#that's why that jolt alex got was so soft

[hotmentransformed]

Skin-Care Routine

Alex was a bright young man living in a small city. Proudly embracing his identity as a gay individual, he radiated charm and confidence that drew people to him. He was popular in college and got good grades, which allowed him to have a stable job. He was happy and had a great social life. It helped that he was attractive, and he spent a lot of time taking care of himself. That included his nightly skin-care routine. One day, an advertisement for a revolutionary face mask promising unparalleled hydration caught his eye. Eager to try something new to rejuvenate his face, he ordered the mask and continued with his life.

By the time package finally arrived, Alex had completely forgotten to he had ordered it. It looked like any normal face-mask, so that night, Alex decided to try it. After rinsing his face, he applied the mask. Its cool, rejuvenating gel settled onto his skin, and he sat down, ready to continue his routine. However, something unexpected began to happen.

The coolness shifted into a strange warmth that spread across his face, soon extending down to the rest of his body. He was consumed by an intense, pleasurable, tingling sensation, that left his mind feeling vaguely… blank.

His jaw drooped open, as all thoughts left his head. The pleasure overtook his mind. His curly hair straightened out and sleeked back onto his scalp. A thick, manly, mustache pushed its way from his above his lips, which began to plump up into kissable mounds on his face. Stubble formed around his jaw, which was still covered in this strange mask.

His chest, once slim and unimpressive, began to take on new dimensions. Pectoral muscles emerged, rising and falling with every breath. The skin on his chest tightened as his chest bulged further and further in front of him. Hair pushed its way from his chest, swirling around his nipples and covering his entire torso, which stretch up, growing longer and wider.

His former twig arms were now swelling and expanding with strength and masculinity. Biceps and triceps carved themselves beneath his skin, involuntarily flexing and exposing the prominent veins that now snaked across his forearms, which widened. His hands cracked as they expanded, his fingers growing meatier and thicker, splaying out. He reveled in these strange pleasurable sensations, a soft moan escaping his lips.

Deep chiseled ridges and valleys carved their way along his abdomen, a trail of thick hair navigating further down his waist, which now sported an intense V-line that accentuated his transforming physique. He moaned deeply as he felt his member expand and pulsate in his pants, which were beginning to strain at his expanding lower body.

Alex felt his ass plump up, lifting him higher on his chair, and his thigh muscles swell, stretching his pants and accentuating the massive bulge at the front of his pelvis, squeezing his genitals and sending waves of intense pleasure throughout his body. His calves bulged as dark hairs spread across both of his legs, which stretched longer and longer, giving him several more inches to his height. His feet began to stretch longer and wider, his toes involuntarily flexing as they grew longer and bigger, with dark hairs growing on the tops of them. His now-size 16 feet were the perfect size to support his massive 6'4" frame.

Even in the fog, Alex couldn't help but notice the smell coming from his armpits. Thick, wet hair had sprouted there producing seemingly uncontrollable body odor. His arms brushed against his sides, and the tickling sensation of the hair against his skin sent shivers down his spine, eliciting a soft gasp.

Almost as suddenly as the mask changed from cool to warm, the warmth quickly changed from warm to fucking hot as hell. It burned! Fuck, of course it did, this stupid skin-care junk is nonsense! Why did he even bother listening to his girlfriend and try it? Alex jolted back from his haze and ran into the bathroom to rinse off the mask in the sink. The water rinsed the gel down the drain along with his old self.

Skincare routines were for girls, and he was a strong man. All he cared about was working out and looking sexy, which he did! Looking in the mirror, he decided to go back out to the gym and get a pump. Putting on his gym gear, he snapped a selfie to send to his girlfriend with the accompanying message, “after the gym, im going to ur place for a second workout 😈”

#male tf #transformation #tf #transform #male transformation #muscle transformation #muscle tf #gay to straight #muscle

[lees-chaotic-brain]

For the song fic event!

Dancing with Your Ghost (Sasha Alex Sloan) with YOU KNOW WHO—Gojo Satoru, of course!—angst/mcd?

I don't really do x reader stuff, but I thought this was a cool idea so I figured why not? 😊✨️

WC: 1.1k

CW: jjk chapter 236 spoilers, mcd, angst, hurt/no comfort, grief, unhealthy coping

Note: aww, thank you so much for sending one in!! this hurt, but omg did i get in my feels writing it. so excited to be posting the first fic for this event!!

listen to this song while reading

Event Guide | Event Masterlist | JJK Masterlist | Blog Navigation

It was past midnight, well into the wee hours of the morning when you woke with a start. Reaching over, you patted the other side of the bed searching for something that would never be there. Instead of the warm body you expected, you made contact with smooth, cool sheets, the surprise jolting you back into reality. 

Remembering that no one was there, you rolled out of bed suddenly unable to bear being in it alone. Sliding your feet into slippers and wrapping a robe around your body you head to the kitchen, the soft sound of your slippers against the hardwood the only sound in the otherwise silent apartment.

Part of you wondered if it would always be like this. If you would spend the rest of your life always searching for something that wasn’t with you. Another part of you knew that you would.

Baby, why'd you go away? I'm still your girl

Knowing you weren’t going to go back to sleep you sighed and put the kettle on for some tea. As you waited for the water to boil you wrapped your arms around yourself and leaned back against the counter. The silence filling your apartment was deafening and the stillness made you uneasy. 

Taking a deep breath you sat down at the counter, staring into space as you allowed yourself to get lost in your thoughts. You don’t know how long you sat there before the shill whistle of the kettle knocked you out of your stupor. You jumped a little, the sound startling you. Moving to stand, it was only then you noticed you were crying. Your fingers reached up and brushed your cheek, and you examined the drops of water on them a little mystified. Deciding that only sleeping four hours in the last week was finally getting to you, you dried your face and turned the stove off. 

Opening the pantry to grab a tea bag, an expired box of kikufuku mochi caught your eye. Inevitably, your thoughts were drawn to him, and a fresh wave of grief hit you. Frantically, you fumbled with the box, hurriedly extracting a tea bag and slamming the pantry door shut a little too violently. The handle of the ceramic mug was cool in your hand as you dunked your tea bag and moved to sit on your couch.

You sank into the soft cushions, unable to stop yourself from grabbing your phone and opening your text chain with him. Despite knowing it was unhealthy, you often found yourself rereading the messages you sent to him that fateful night he hadn’t returned home. The messages get increasingly more panicked with each one, ending with a final “I hope it was painless. I hope you know how much I love you. I didn’t even get to say goodbye…”

Never got the chance to say a last goodbye. 

I gotta move on, but it hurts to try.

Swallowing a sob you shut your phone off and hurl it across the room. You need to move on. You know that. Never leaving your house, pushing your friends away, not sleeping, obsessing over the past, you knew it wasn’t good for you.

Day after day, voicemails and texts poured in from concerned friends and family telling you that you were self-destructing. That this wasn’t what he would have wanted for you. That he would have wanted you to move on. To live.

You know that. You know. But knowing and being able to were two very different things. How were you supposed to move on when everything reminds you of him? When you can’t sleep without his warmth.

Aside from that, your faith in others has been permanently shattered. He had promised you that he would always come back, that he would win. And you had believed him because he was the strongest. And if you couldn’t believe him then who could you? But then he had gone and left you far behind. No. You could never open your heart again. You can’t trust anyone to not leave you like he did.

How do I love? How do I love again?

How do I trust? How do I trust again?

But you were okay with being alone for the rest of your life. Even if the loneliness made it impossible to sleep. Even if his absence wrapped around your throat cutting off your air. You were okay. You didn’t need anyone else. You had your home filled with his belongings and you had yourself. That’s all that mattered.

I stay up all night, tell myself I’m alright

At least that’s what you told yourself. In reality every reminder of him was like a stab to the heart. And maybe you were a masochist because you refused to remove the traces of him from your apartment. Sitting on the sofa you could still see him dancing around the coffee table, hear his laughter fill the air. And sometimes when you closed his eyes and inhaled his scent that still lingered in the air it was like he was still next to you, his voice ringing in your ears.

Baby you’re just harder to see than most

Suddenly the silence in the living room was suffocating. Without the joy and love that used to reside in it, the room felt oppressive. Retrieving your phone from where you had flung it you hastily, you connected to your apartment’s bluetooth and clicked play on the first playlist that popped up in your feed. Some of the stress left your body when a soft dreamy song began to seep from the walls, only to return when you realized what playlist you had accidentally put on. 

Of course you accidentally played the playlist he made for you for your two year anniversary. The playlist of all the songs that reminded him of you. Going to change the playlist you froze when you accidentally hit skip and heard the song that began playing.

It was your song. The song you used to listen to together on quiet evenings. The song that the two of you slow danced to in this very living room. The song you knew all the lyrics to. Slowly, you put your phone down, leaning back and closing your eyes as the music swept over you.

I put the record on, wait ‘til I hear our song

And with the song on repeat, you sat there until the first light of day struck your face, the ghost of Gojo Satoru slow dancing around you. 

Every night I’m dancing with your ghost

Every night I’m dancing with your ghost

#jjk spoilers #jjk 236 spoilers #gojo x reader #lee's brain writes #lee's brain writes: requests #lee's song fic event #satoru x reader #gojo satoru x reader #gojo x you #angst #hurt/no comfort #mcd #lee's brain moots! #jjk x reader #jjk x you

[thesunandneeks]

in this phase where every song I listen to reminds me of nico di angelo- going to start collecting them here bc it’s important

1. this kills in reference to nico & percy. feel like it holds both of their pov’s :,,) also has casino mentions which,, lol

2. nico to will nico to will nico to will !!!! so soft so sweet so innocent kills in a whole different way

3. feels so much like nico’s pain from battle of labyrinth through blood of olympus. also, just know nico would be a huge mitski stan- it’s soso his sound.

4. im sorry these are all v mainstream but they fit so well. this feels like nico when he was crushing on percy. so much so. “only if you knew how much I liked you… watch as she stands, put your arm round her shoulder, now I’m getting colder… but how could you hate her? she’s such an angel… she’s got you mesmerized, while I die… you like her better… wish I were heather”

5. will being the little healing lover boy he is to nico ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

6. more solangelo sweetness!!! i die for the “im only soft for you” dynamic “do not enter its written on the doorway, why can’t everyone just go away? except you- you can stay. what do you think of my treehouse?… usually I’m all by myself”

7. oh god if the other songs kill this one stingsss. I listen and just hear nico finally finding stability and love and a home in will.

every. lyric. is. them. esp “to you I can admit, I’m just too soft for all of it” again w the only soft for u dynamic. pls!!! stings stings stings!!!!!

8. this is a bit of a genre jolt jump but I can’t get through listening to this without giggling and kicking my feet thinking about solangelo its them it’s them it’s them

I feel like the energy of the song really matches their playful banter but also the desperation and frustration they had towards each other when they both had feelings before admitting so (end of blood of olympus) just so sweet and cutesy and perf for them!!!

“Im lost in admiration could i need you this much? oh, you’re wasting my time, you’re just, just, just, just wasting time- SOMETHINGHAPPENSANDIMHEADOVERHEELS!!!!! I never find out until I’m head over heels!!!!" also a little quick line of "and dreaming im a doctor”,, mr healing boy?? and then “traditions I can trace against the child in your face- won’t escape my attention”??? love. love. love.

I’ll stop here for now lolll but will def be adding to this bc I am in so deep with nico and solangelo rn.

#nico di angelo #will solace #solangelo #the sun and the star #percy jackon and the olympians #percy series #spotify #percico #Taylor swift Percy Jackson #mitski #Percy Jackson playlist #nico di Angelo moodboard #solangelo moodboard #Percy Jackson #pjo playlist #Spotify

[iboatedhere]

WIP Wednesday

Thank you for the tag @anincompletelist @lightningboltreader @liminalmemories21 @lemonlyman-dotcom

Everything I’ve written lately is…..NOT GREAT…….it feels bad, it looks bad, it is bad, and the first chapter of The Roman Holiday AU will be up January 1st regardless ✌️

—

The first surprise greets them on the street just outside Alex’s door.

A red Vespa is tucked against the curb, a helmet hanging off each of the handles.

“Safety first,” Alex says as he tosses one of the helmets at Henry. “You might need to take the hat off.”

“I’m sorry,” Henry says, looking down the empty street as Alex fastens his own helmet. “Is there meant to be a second scooter around here somewhere?”

“Nope.”

“So you expect us to share?”

Alex nods. “That’s right.”

Henry hums. “Why aren’t we taking a taxi or an Uber, or walking?”

“Taxis and Ubers mean waiting around for them to show up and I don’t care how long your legs are, we cannot walk the entirety of Rome in a day. This is the fastest and easiest way to get around.”

“And you’ve driven one of these before?”

“In a manner of speaking, yes.”

“What manner?”

“I’m familiar with scooters.”

Henry narrows his eyes.

“I had a Razor Scooter when I was nine.”

“Oh my god.”

“Vespa’s are so much safer,” Alex cries.

“How is that possible? This has a motor!”

“And Razors would fuck up your ankles. You should’ve seen my shins that whole year. The bruises never healed.”

“I would rather have a bruised ankle than a concussed head.”

“That’s what the helmet is for,” Alex says. “Now c’mon.” He swings one leg over the scooter and sits down. “We’re wasting time.”

“It’s six thirty in the morning.”

“Which means we’re already behind schedule.” Alex starts the scooter. “Get on or I’ll leave you.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

The scooter jolts away from the curb and Henry grabs Alex’s shoulder and climbs on behind him, tightening the straps of the helmet as he goes.

He’s unsure what to do with his hands—if he should put them on Alex’s hips, waist, or shoulders, and after fumbling awkwardly, Alex heaves a sigh and reaches back, wrapping Henry’s arms around his waist.

“You have to hold on like you mean it,” Alex tells him. “Tight.”

Henry shifts forward so his chest is flush to Alex’s back and he holds his hands together over Alex’s stomach, beneath the light fabric of his open button down but over the soft cotton undershirt.

Alex is solid and warm and smells like cedar smoke and spice and Henry feels him take a sharp breath as he moves even closer.

“Is this okay?” Henry asks, his lips dangerously close to the shell of Alex’s ear.

Alex swallows and nods. “Do you feel safe?”

Henry does.

“Good,” Alex says. He stops and blows out a breath. “That’s good. We should…” He trails off and lifts his foot off the pavement and the Vespa jolts forward again, this time by accident. “I got it,” he says when Henry flinches. “I got it, I got it, I was just fucking with you.”

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”

“Yeah, well,” Alex says as he gives it another go. “We’ll see.”

#ughhhhhhhhhhh #FirstPrince fic #rwrb fic #wip wednesday

[dino-fart]

CAN WE GET A UHHHH-

Sinister strange with staying the night

“i don’t have nightmares when your here” 😻

i love you and your work!! have a great day! 🤍

You got it! And thank you so much!

“Stephen...Stephen!” You shouted, shaking him awake.

 Stephen jolted awake and sat up quickly. He panted heavily and ran his hands over his face. You sat up with him and watched him calm down. You leaned over to gently touch his face. Stephen relaxed under your touch and pulled you into a tight hug. You wrapped your arms around him. 

“W-When did you come to bed, canary?” He mumbled as he buried his face in your hair. 

“Just a few minutes ago, why?” You rubbed his back gently. 

Stephen didn’t answer, he just kept holding you and moved to press a few kisses along your shoulder. 

“Stephen, are you okay?” You moved your head to kiss the side of his head. 

“I had a nightmare where I lost you...It’s because you weren’t in bed with me.” He held you close. 

“I’m so sorry, Stephen...” You frowned. 

“No, no, it’s okay...It was just a nightmare, it’s not real. And as long as I can hold you I won’t get nightmares. I won’t get nightmares when you’re here.” Stephen pulled back and kissed you passionately. He continued to pepper your face with kisses and you let out a soft giggle. 

“You ready for bed or?” You grinned. 

Stephen smirked like a Cheshire Cat and gripped your hips tightly and pressed his body against yours. “I’m ready to devour my canary and make her sing~” He cooed.

Tagging: @leonkennedyslefthand, @stewardofningishzida, @icytrickster17, @onlinecemetery, @marki-moo0, @absolute-not-original, @creamecafe, @scrubb, @nightingal3-tales, @alliethedaydreamer, @strangesthirdeye, @deliciousfestsalad, @alex-33, @zombiedixon89, @sunnsettee, @kiaradaniell, @freyafriggafrey, @criticalroleobssedperson, @avengersfan25, @lunamoonbby, @androgynouspersonapricotfan, @foxcantswim, @namorkawaiiwife, @starkiller-queen, @kyuupidwrites, @luciamajer, @renatas10, @ayamenimthiriel, @gaiagurl05, @dipsylou, @pinkthick, @hansai, @andywinter16, @iambored24601, @3-cheese-tortellini, @cumbrbatchbenedict 

#doctor strange x reader #stephen strange x reader #sinister strange x reader #requests

[idrille]

Anne von Blyssen, and her immunity to high school crushes

to be honest I never thought to look for an sso fandom but I’m so glad I finally did! here is a little anne/derek normal high school au fic, only about 800 or so words. enjoy :)

.

The odd thing is that she barely knows him—Derek. She doesn’t have a reason to know him, for god’s sake. He has his circle and she has hers and that’s the way it is, simple as that. Every so often their shoulders will brush in the hallway; his hand will come instinctively to keep his camera strap from falling, and she’ll toss back her hair, and they’ll go their respective ways.

(Maybe she catches him smiling at her sometimes, his dark eyes sparkling with laughter before darting away. Freshman year he used to try to talk to her all the time. He was a noisy nuisance hovering around her lunch table. She didn’t dislike him, but it was her nature to dole out glares and hisses. Then they were sophomores and she’d started modeling and had become Jorvik High’s resident ice queen and his cheery waves in the hallway, the first smiles she saw in the mornings, became gradually less consistent.

Now they’re juniors and she has her reputation for being a bitch and he has a camera slung over his shoulder, he has a warm, bright laugh, and he’s tall, and he’s got such nice hair, and clearly puberty hit him like a truck but left him for the better because now, at seventeen—

Well. That’s beside the point, anyway. The point is that she suspects he’s still got a thing for her. Most people do in this school so it’s not a surprise, per se, but she did think that her fifteen year old self had turned him away for good.

That’s a good thing.)

That’s the way it is.

Her body jolts as someone’s foot hits the leg of her chair. Anne scowls, twisting a piece of buttery blonde hair between her fingers. Behind her, Lisa Peterson and her spiky red hair must be the culprit, and Anne gravely resists the urge to whip around and glare.

But honestly, what’s the deal with him? She rests her chin in her hand, only half-listening to the calculus lecture—there’s a little note etched in her desk that’s been there as long as anyone can remember. A + D. How fitting. She huffs. How un-fitting! What’s his deal? What’s her deal? All there is between the two of them is the occasional shoulder brush, a murmured excuse me, and that’s all. That’s it.

(Maybe there’s been a few stolen glances on her part. Glimpses over her shoulder. He has so many friends. They always sit together at lunch and smile at each other and laugh at things she can’t see from where she stands frozen across the courtyard. Part of her is relieved he’s never caught her; another part is enraged—why won’t he ever look away from those stupid friends of his when she, Anne von Blyssen, is right there?

It’s all very ridiculous and she’d rather not discuss this now, thank you.)

“Anne,” whispers Lisa.

She heaves a sigh, rolling her eyes up. “What,” she hisses, looking back.

“Alex and Linda and I are going to the stables after school.” She grins. Nods encouragingly.

Anne raises a brow. “And?”

“Want to come with us? You still board Concorde there, right?”

She blinks. “Yeah, I—he’s still there.”

“Okay, that’s perfect then!” she says, a little louder, earning the two of them a few glances from the class and a stern look from Mr. Glowburn. “Sorry,” Lisa murmurs. Anne turns back around in her seat, crossing her arms.

Lisa taps her shoulder twice. Anne turns her head a little bit to acknowledge her.

“We’re gonna meet at the stables at four and go for a trail ride,” she says under her breath. “You should definitely come.”

Anne freezes.

Here are some plans extended to her. An arm to link hers through. It’s silly, but she’s always wanted to be like every other high school girl, giggling and happy. Life is a conglomerate of everyday ups and downs, camera flashes, body contortions, a rolled ankle, a cold house; the only softness being her best friend, his gray fur and twitching ears.

What would it be like, to have three girls to go riding with after school? What would it be like to go hang out at the stable at four?

She doesn’t nod, or shake her head either. She just slowly moves her gaze back forward, but not before catching those dark eyes, the way they always are these days—bright, sparkling, laughing. He sits near the window, in the sun. His hair’s all ruffled. He must have just run his hand through it.

The corner of his mouth tips up in a smile and she looks abruptly away, reassuming a stony focus on the board. There he goes again. What’s his deal?

She pulls her hair forward—it looks better that way, really—but also because it would be mortifying if Derek, of all people, ever saw her blush.

#sso #ssoblr #star stable online #anne von blyssen #derek #anne x derek #what is their ship name? #sso fic

[baubeautyandthegeek]

Seek And Ye Shall Find – Alex Blake/Tara Lewis

A/N: Flick Bingo time. Alex needs Tara and Tara answers, but how was Alex rescued?

“I’m not leaving.” Tara’s voice is firm even as she moves to Alex’s side, the necklace at Alex’s neck is familiar, small and delicate but Tara knows. It’s a sign, a promise. Somehow, someway, Elle found Alex, got her out, got her here. She’s safe, shaken but alive. “Tara…” Alex’s voice is a croak, almost a sob. “Hey, I’m here…” “Why do you all…” “Elle… knows what it is to suffer for the team.” “You?” “I chose you, remember? Followed you all the way to work.” Tara’s smile is soft. “You ran to help JJ when she needed it, helped Rossi… you didn’t have to do that.” Alex’s smile is soft, followed by a whimper of pain and Tara moves quickly to scoop her up, cradling her closer when Alex forces herself up. “Home.” She wants to fight her but Alex is so clearly determined to leave she gives in, holds her closer and starts walking, doesn’t stop even when people call for her to stop. She won’t stop now, not when Alex needs her to walk and take her home. It's only when she’s settled with Alex in her lap, held close, she dares let herself feel the fear she’d been squashing, letting her eyes close even as she focuses on Alex’s breathing, steady and sure, the beat of Alex’s heart making her all the more sure Alex was the one. The kiss comes later, when Alex jolts awake and curls a hand into Tara’s shirt, looking small and lost and scared. Tara can’t help tilting her chin up slightly, kissing her gently but deeply, a promise to stay and keep her safe, her smile soft when Alex sighs into the kiss and pulls back, tucking her head against Tara’s shoulder, relaxing under her gentle touches. She’s safe at last.

#alex blake #tara lewis #alex/tara #tara/alex #elle greenaway mentions #criminal minds #yes the last gif is so you can see the necklace #flick bingo

[nicksreggies]

current mood: reading willex fanfiction and crying 😞✌

#i'm perfectly fine thank you for asking #THEY JUST LOVE EACH OTHER SO MUCH YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND #i- #i just love them ok #i'd do anything for you #LDKALJALLA IM SOBBING #willex #jatp #julie and the phantoms #elsie talks too much #they're soulmates 😌 #that's why that jolt alex got was so soft #because willie was next to him #anyways if alex doesn't free willie from caleb by saying that he loves him #i'm out #i will simply not survive

[thebluewritingbench]

For dialogue prompts- surprise #10 and maybe some supercorp ?

surprise #10 from this prompt list:

“Christ! What happened to your eye?”

It’s the first thing Alex says to her when she makes it back to the DEO, which definitely means her eye looks worse than she thought, given the fact that she’s also limping and cradling a broken arm.

Kara leans against the wall, and presses her fingers gingerly to her cheekbone, wincing at the sharp stab of pain it sends directly up her eye socket and into her skull. There’s a good chance that her cheekbone is broken, and her eye is already swollen tightly enough that she can barely see out of it.

“Took on a bunch of superpowered aliens,” she says, swiping under her nose and looking at the blood that comes away on her knuckles. “Then I got punched in the face.”

“By what, a house?” Alex asks, incredulous. Her eyes widen in concern when Kara tries to take a step towards her and stumbles, and she hurries forward to grab Kara’s uninjured arm and steady her. “Okay, let’s get you to a solar lamp before you pass out.”

Alex sets her arm in silence, and then probes her ankle and declares it only sprained. She’s gently examining Kara’s swollen eye when she starts to speak again, and it’s only the slight tremor in her voice that tells Kara how angry she is.

“I didn’t find out you’d even gone anywhere until I heard you were injured. Kara, you always let me know when you’re going to do something dangerous. We’ve agreed on that before. I didn’t even hear from you over the comms.”

“I know, I know,” says Kara, closing her working eye. “I’m sorry, Alex, I didn’t mean to worry you, it was just…”

“Just?”

“Lena.”

“Lena?” Alex’s fingers freeze against her cheek. “What about Lena? What happened?”

The corner of Kara’s mouth quirks up. It sends another wave of pain through her eye. “Oh, you know. The regular quarterly kidnapping-slash-assassination attempt. It was about Lex this time, I think. They were trying to use her as bait, though they clearly don’t know Lex if they think he’d risk anything for Lena’s life.”

Alex hums. “But you would,” she says softly.

Kara groans. “Rao, I shouldn’t have—I just got so angry. I know I should have called you, but I wasn’t thinking straight. You should have seen what they…I wanted to burn the whole place down. If J’onn hadn’t showed up when he did…”

“Shh, okay, it’s okay,” says Alex. “I know. Did you get Lena out?”

“Yes, I think so, I—” She swallows. “I think J’onn got her, could you go…?”

“I’ll go check,” Alex confirms. She brushes Kara’s hair back, lays a careful kiss on her forehead. “You try and sleep for a minute, okay? I’ll come back if anything important happens.”

“Okay,” Kara whispers.

She doesn’t actually intend to fall asleep, but apparently the exhaustion of the fight sits heavier on her than she thought, because the next thing she knows she’s being jolted awake by a whole lot of yelling. She tries to blink her still-swollen eye open, but it still feels like her eyelids are fused together, despite the improvement she can already feel from the sunlamps. There’s a crescendo in the yelling outside the door, and Kara makes out Lena’s voice in the chaos. She’s struggling to sit up before she can stop and think about it.

“I don’t care, I need to see her,” Lena is yelling as Kara limps to the door, and another low voice responds in a placating tone.

“No!” Lena shouts. “You don’t understand, it’s my fault she’s like this, I have to—”

“Lena?”

The conversation stops when Kara peeks her head around the door. Lena swallows, her eyes roaming Kara’s bruised face, the sling on her arm. Her face is pale, old mascara smudged into the circles under her eyes, her hair half pulled out of its updo, dried blood on her temple. She’s still wearing the same outfit she was kidnapped in, and there’s blood soaked into the sleeve of her shirt.

“You’re awake,” Lena whispers. “You’re—oh god, your eye.”

“It’s fine,” Kara says, wondering why everyone is so bothered by it. She nods at the DEO agent who Lena was fighting with, and he seems to accept this as a dismissal. “Nothing I haven’t had before. I’ll be fine by tomorrow, really.”

Alarmingly, Lena’s eyes fill with tears.

“Oh no,” Kara says, reaching for her arm. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt? I’m so sorry I didn’t get you out of there myself, I saw that J’onn had you and then I was just really angry and I wanted to give them a taste of their own medicine but I really shouldn’t have—”

“Kara,” says Lena. “I’m okay, really. Just a little shaken up, but I’ve had worse, I was just… god, I was just so worried about you.” Then she notices the way Kara shifts her weight to avoid aggravating her ankle (which is mostly better now, really), and immediately starts guiding her back to the bed. “No, you’re hurt, this is all my fault,” she says at Kara’s protest.

She refuses to continue the conversation until Kara’s set up under the sunlamp again. Lena sits in the chair beside her and brushes the hair from her face, running her thumb over the ridges of Kara’s knuckles. Kara lets her touch gently around the damaged eye, and then smooth her fingers over the rest of Kara’s face as though Kara will disappear if she stops.

“Don’t you usually get better faster than this?" Lena asks. "It’s just… your eye. I’ve never seen you like—you’re supposed to invulnerable,” she finishes in a whisper.

“It’s just a little swelling,” Kara says. “It barely hurts, Lena, really, I’m fine.”

“This is because of me. If you hadn’t been trying to save me, you wouldn’t be hurt.”

“If I hadn’t been trying to save you, you might be dead. This isn’t your fault.”

Lena buries her face in her hands. “When J’onn was carrying me out I saw—I saw when he hit you. With that entire support beam. I saw you go through the wall. I couldn’t stop screaming, they had to sedate me, I thought, I thought…”

“Hey, hey,” Kara says. “Invincible, remember? I’m just a tiny bit banged up, I’ve had way worse. I was more worried about you.”

“Me? I’m fine, I’m nothing, they just knocked me out and tied me to a chair for a couple hours, I didn’t get hit in the face by a metal post that probably weighed a metric ton.”

Kara feels the dying embers of her anger spark back up in her at those words, and for a moment she wants another chance at those aliens, wants to return fully charged and blast them into the stratosphere for causing Lena distress. But Lena still has her face hidden in her hands, and her shoulders are shivering a bit, and the instinct to hurt is quickly overridden by the instinct to soothe.

“Hey," says Kara. "You know how you can make it better?”

“How?” Lena lifts her face from her palms. Her eyes are slightly reddened, her makeup smudged, her face wearied. She’s breathtaking.

“Kiss it better. Works like magic. It’ll be better than the yellow sunlamps.”

The corners of Lena’s mouth upturn in a tiny smile. “Very cute.”

“Kiss me,” Kara whispers. “And I promise everything will be better in the morning.”

Lena leans in with a soft smile, her palm warm against the uninjured side of Kara’s face, and nudges their noses together. Her lips brush against Kara’s. “Okay,” she whispers.

#supercorp #supergirl #supercorp fic #supercorp fanfic #prompts #kara danvers #lena luthor #asks #anonymous #honestly I don't remember how the whole injury/healing process works for kara if this is blatantly wrong don't @ me #ty for the ask this was fun :) #my writing #bluewritingbench writes #bluewritingbench ficlets

[lena-in-a-red-dress]

Stronger Together

"Dreamer!"

Lena's alarm sears across Nia's senses. She registers the danger at the corner of her eye-- a Brevakk ripping off his sleeves to expose the keratinized spurs protruding from his arms. One sweep of his arm and she'll be dead, skewered in a spray of thick quills sharp enough to penetrate her suit and lacerate any organ they could reach. But she's locked in battle with a K'hund attacking from the front, so all she can do is brace for the inevitable impact.

Suddenly, Nia's view of the Brevakk is eclipsed by the shadow of Lena's back.

"NO!"

The force of the thorns' impact knocks Lena fron her feet, slamming into Nia and causing them both to go down with a cry. Lena's gauntlet fires once, stunning the Brevakk with a glancing blow. Nia throws her own arm out towards her opponent in a desperate bid to gain some ground. The blast of dream energy sends him flying, and when Nia doesn't notice that he doesn't rise again. Her attention is locked on Lena, and the half dozen quills that have found a home in her chest.

"Lena, Lena, oh my god." Nia's hands shake as she climbs out from under Lena and kneels beside her on the pavement. "No, no, no..."

Lena's eyes are glassy and dazed. She looks down at the horns, reaching drunkenly towards them only for Nia to pull her hands away.

"Why did you do that?"

Nia's suit wouldn't have helped much, but it was better than Lena's blouse-- a silly silken thing now ripped and torn, digging into the edges of the wounds around the quills. Lena had no protection beside her gauntlet, and still she had jumped between them.

"N-nia..." Lena's voice crackles in her throat. She coughs, and blood spatters across her chin, staining her berry-red lips a color far more sinister.

Nia's heart lurches with panic. Her head whips up in search of Kara, but Supergirl isn't here. She's on the other side of the city with J'onn, fighting further unrest there. Her eyes lock on another figure, black leather instead of blue.

"ALEX!!"

Nia's shriek cuts through the din, and Sentinel's head whips towards her. In an instant, the pistol in her hand shifts into a warhammer, and Alex slams it down on her opponent, all thoughts of mitigating casualties forgotten. She skids to her knees beside Nia, nearly elbowing her out of the way to crouch over Lena.

"Lena? Jesus... Lena! Can you hear me? Look at me, look at me--"

Lena's eyes track to Alex, and Nia chokes on a sob when she sees the fear in them. But Alex only calms.

"Good, you're okay," Alex tells her, stroking Lena's hair once with a gentle hand. "You're going to be okay."

With her free hand, Alex fumbles for the watch on Lena's wrist, flipping open its face and silently pressing the symbol embossed there. She doesn't take her eyes off Lena for a moment, and when the signal is active Alex slides her palm into Lena's, which curls tightly around hers.

"H-hurts--"

Lena's breath begins to quicken, and the corners of her eyes pinch with the onset of pain. The shock is quickly wearing off, leaving nothing to dull the pain. Alex nods, giving Lena's hand a squeeze.

"I know, but it's going to be okay," she promises. "We're going to get you somewhere safe--"

Supergirl touches down at the moment, pavement cracking beneath the force of her panic. "Lena!!"

Kara kneels opposite her sister, taking in the damage with wide eyes. She grips Lena's free hand tightly, even as she looks to Alex for instructions.

"Hospital," Alex says simply, urgency clipping her tone. "Now."

Kara nods, and gently maneuvers Lena into her arms. Lena cries out, the sound sharp in Nia's ears. When Nia blinks, tears dampen the fabric of her mask.

"I'm sorry," Kara murmurs, pressing her nose to the side of Lena's head. "I'm sorry."

"K-kar--" Lena gasps for breath, coughing up more blood. Her back now visible, Nia sees that one of the thorns has penetrated so deeply that it tents the back of Lena's shirt.

"It's okay," Kara echoes the well-meaning lie of her sister. "I've got you."

In a burst of wind, Kara takes off, and Nia sits dazed in her wake. It's long moments before she registers Alex's insistent hands tugging her up.

"It was supposed to be me," Nia intones, flat with shock. "She--"

"I know," Alex cuts her off, not unkindly. She tugs Nia to her feet then shoves her into a run. "But we need to go. Now!"

Together, they make their retreat, leaving the alley and the unconscious aliens behind just as the distant wail of approaching sirens cuts through the air.

---

Nia wastes no time in stripping off her costume and changing back into her civvies. But before she can reach the exit, Alex cuts her off. "You can't go to the hospital."

Surprise jolts through Nia, before its quickly replaced with anger. "Are you insane?"

"Nia--"

"I can't just wait here-- she-- those barbs were meant for me, Alex! She's hurt because of me. I can't not be there!"

"Kara just called."

Time seems to freeze. Nia feels ice pool in her veins as a lump climbs to her throat and lodges there. "No..."

Alex rushes to reassure her. "No! That's not-- no, Lena's still in surgery. But-- the police are there."

Nia's relief that Lena is alive cuts short with confusion. "What? Why?"

"They're there to take Lena into custody."

"They can't do that!"

"She's aided and abetted known vigilantes," Alex explains. "With everything that's been happening lately--"

"It's not right!"

"Lena will be fine. Truly. Kara is going to CatCo to get Andrea to make the arrest as public as possible. Between that and the Luthor reputation, my guess is that they'll question her about our identities and then let her go."

"That's-- that's--" Nia struggles to find words through her growing rage. The helplessness of the past few months, the rising anti-alien sentiments, the crackdown on Supergirl on her friends... it all comes to a head, and Nia can barely breathe.

Alex reaches for Nia's hand. "If you go now, you'll only risk exposing yourself. Lena wouldn't want that."

Nia sucks in a breath, but it comes in a sob. The next thing she knows, Alex's arms are around her and she's crying into her shoulder, huge lurching sobs that feel like the world is quaking around her.

"It's okay," Alex promises.

"It's my fault," Nia gasps. "It's all my fault..."

"Lena's going to be okay."

---

Nia may not be able to go to the hospital, but she can't stay in the Tower either. In the end she goes to CatCo, ready to throw her weight behind Kara's pitch to fry the police in the press. Luckily, Andrea doesn't need the convincing.

"I want both of you on this," their boss delivers with a coolness sharpened to a razors edge by the glint of rage in her eyes. "William too. I want you to dig up anything you can find about the arresting officers. Any whisper of corruption within the NCPD that you might have been sitting on, now is your time to air it. CatCo won't stand for this."

Nia and Kara both nod solemnly before retreating to their desks. But instead of diverting to her own desk, Kara follows Nia to hers.

"How are you holding up?"

The gentle question threatens a resurgence of tears. Nia looks away, only for her eyes to catch on the photo of her and Lena on her desk, taken at one of their sister nights the year before. Nia can't remember the last time they've hung out, just the two of them.

Blinking furiously, Nia flips the picture down and opens up her laptop. "Fine."

"It's okay to not be fine..."

"Do you want to know if I'm angry that my friend is alone in the hospital because of me? Fine! I'm angry!"

Kara's features soften. "Nia..."

"It's my fault she's there in the first place!" Nia hisses. The lump returns to her throat, and her eyes burn with unshed tears. "She just, just... she just jumped between us! I should've--"

"Hey." Kara calms her with a hand on her shoulder. Nia sucks in a breath, then another, trying to steady herself. Finally, Kara's features pinch into a bemused smile. "You know Lena... There's no line she won't cross, for the people she cares about."

Instead of comforting her, Kara's words only makes Nia grit her teeth. She turns back to the computer. They better be willing to do the same for her.

"Let's get to work."

----

The first article runs the following morning, skewering the police department for rampant anti-alien abuses while highlighting Lena's charity and outreach. While it's not quite enough to banish the police presence from the hospital, it does get a single visitor in to see Lena. Nia expects Kara to take it, but to her surprise Kara simply nods her towards the door.

"Go," Kara says softly. "Give her our love."

Nia doesn't stop to ask twice. She's ushered into Lena's hospital room by a kindly looking nurse, glaring at the officer posted outside the door on her way in. The second her eyes land on Lena, rage swells in her chest at the side of the handcuffs tethering Lena to the bed.

"Is that really necessary?" she demands, balling her hands into fists. "Where is she going to go?"

"Nia..." Lena's soft voice from the bed interrupts her before she can gather much steam. "It's okay."

Nia huffs, eyeing the way the officer slowly moves his hand from his sidearm when Nia turns back to the room. But then all she can see is Lena, hair limp and torso bulky with bandages under her hospital gown.

"It's not okay," Nia says, sitting in the chair thats been placed next to Lena's bed.

"It's just a misunderstanding," Lena insists, her gaze sliding towards the door. The door itself remains open, denying them any sense of privacy. But Lena doesn't seem to mind when her gaze returns to Nia. "You okay?"

Nia chokes on her own tongue. "Am I--? Lena, you're in the hospital..."

"And I'm okay." Lifting her cuffed wrist, Lena silently reaches for Nia's hand, which Nia offers without hesitation. "Promise."

All of a sudden, the tears come back, pressing against her eyelids as she squeezes her eyes shut. "I promised myself I wouldn't cry--"

"It's okay," Lena assures her. "I'm okay."

"You shouldn't have--"

"Been there in the alley? When that guy tried to mug me?" Lena asks pointedly. Clearly, she's already established her cover story. "You're right, I should have known better." She pitches her voice loud enough to carry to the door. "I'm just lucky Sentinel and Dreamer were there to help me."

They wait a moment to listen for a response, but when none comes, they devolve into a fit of giggles.

"Ow," Lena grimaces with a cough. "No laughing for a while."

Nia tightens her grip on Lena's hand. "I... Lena, I'm so sorry--"

"I'd do it again," Lena returns, softly this time. Her words are for Nia alone. "That's what friends do."

---

Alex turns out to be right. As soon as Lena is well enough to leave the hospital, she's taken to the precinct for interrogation, but between CatCo's articles stirring up enough local support that a crowd forms around the precinct to protest the arrest, and the kind of lawyers a Luthor can acquire even after abandoning the family legacy, Lena is released without charge in a matter of hours.

Nia stays at the Tower hoping to see her, but Lena doesn't come.

"She's guessed she's probably being watched," Alex tells her. "She'll being laying low for a while til the heat dies down. All the better, honestly. It'll give her time to heal."

Nia swallows thickly. "Where is she?"

"Home. Kara's with her, but I'm sure she'd love to see you."

Nia approaches Lena's condo without much of a plan. She's armed with snacks and movies, but she knows that having Kara there won't give Nia the time with Lena she needs. She misses Lena, all more the more since she realized how long it had been since they'd just been... friends. More than allies, more than teammates, just... friends.

It feels like Maeve all over again.

But she swallows her nerves and takes the elevator up. Kara opens the door just as Nia lifts her hand to knock.

"Hey," Kara says quietly. She steps aside to let Nia in, and though she can hear the tv from the next room, they linger in the foyer.

"Is everything okay?" Kara asks.

Nia nods. "Yeah. Um. I just--"

She doesn't have an explanation either. Nia stares at her feet, until Kara breaks the silence.

"Look, I have a favor to ask..."

"Yeah?"

"Would you mind staying with Lena for a few hours?"

When Nia looks up, she finds Kara scrubbing the back of her head with one hand, looking sheepish.

"Yeah," she continues, "I've been kind of... hovering? And I think it's getting on her nerves a little. So I figured I could get some stuff done at CatCo--"

"Yes," Nia blurts. "Yes, of course. I'll stay."

Kara grins. "Thanks. She's in the living room now, if you want to..."

"Right. Yeah, I've got this. Go."

Kara thanks her with another smile that makes her whole face shine. "Call if you need anything."

She slips out the door with a wink, and locks it behind her. Nia walks to the living room on wooden legs, and finds Lena laying on the couch against a pile of pillows, propping her up to take the pressure off her wounds.

She looks up when Nia enters, and though her eyes are tired, her features crease into a smile. "Hey..."

"Hey."

Lena struggles to sit up, prompting Nia to close the distance swiftly. "No, no, no, stay comfy."

Relenting with a sigh, Lena groans. "Not like I have much choice these days."

"It'll get better."

Silence follows. Nia stands awkwardly, hands gripping her bag of candy tightly until Lena regards it with curiosity.

"What's all this?"

Nia starts. "Oh. Uhm... I thought-- well, I was wondering..." She trails off, shoulders slumping. "It's been a while since we've had sister's night."

When Lena doesn't answer, Nia risks a glance up to find Lena blinking in astonishment, before her features soften to warmth. She smiles.

"Well, there's no time like the present."

Lena lifts her arms, making playful grabby motions with her hands.

"What'd you bring me?"

----

Hours later, Kara returns home to find Nia seated on the couch with Lena's legs across her lap. It's as close to cuddling as Lena can get, with her injuries, and the way Nia's hands are spread over Lena's shins tells Kara that the contacr was very much needed.

Lena sleeps peacefully, the tv low in the background. Nia looks up at Kara from the shadows, the light reflecting in the tear tracks painted on her cheeks. Without a word, Kara slips in next to Nia, working her way under Lena's ankles to wrap one arm around the younger girl's shoulders.

Nia hugs her back, shaking quietly with the effort to keep her crying silent.

"It's okay," Kara whispers. Nia nods against her. So long as they were all together, they could get through anything.

"We're going to be okay."

#supercorp #nia and lena brotp #kind of a continuation of sister sister #alternate universe #but could have conceivably happened if lena had been part of the superfriends during the col storyline #that sort of atmosphere #let me know what you think

[heelwriting]

Masterlist A-Z Wrestlers

Adam Cole

12 Days of Christmas - Sweetest

Prompt: Argument leading to kiss

Prompt: There’s only one bed and we sleep as far away as possible from each other but wake up cuddling

"Hangman" Adam Page

Prompt: I’m scared but won’t admit it so you take my hand

Alex Shelley

Prompt: Kissing in the rain and getting soaked before running inside laughing (Coming soon)

Prompt: Blind date set up by friends (Coming soon)

Brandon Cutler

Prompt: Both going to grab the same thing and touching hands, then making eye contact

Buddy Murphy

12 Days of Christmas - Fake Lumberjack

Prompt: Your shirt/jumper was in the laundry pile and I couldn’t help but steal it

Cash Wheeler

Prompt: Wrapping arms around them when they make breakfast

Cesaro

Prompt: Secret relationship

Prompt: You’re my ex but I think I still have feelings for you (Coming soon)

Chuck Taylor

Prompt: Cuddling in comfortable silence before murmuring “I love you”

Prompt: Drunkenly confessing feelings

Prompt: You’re my new bodyguard and you’re cute.

Prompt: “Just tell why you did it!” “Because I’m in love with you, okay!” (Coming soon)

Drew Gulak

Prompt: You caught me doing something dangerous and flipped out (Coming soon)

Headcanon: Cuddling

Eddie Kingston

Headcanon: He has a crush on a southern girl

"All Ego" Ethan Page

12 Days of Christmas - Antartic

Prompt: Playing with their hair while their head’s in your lap.

Prompt: Spin the bottle (Coming soon)

Headcanon: First Kiss (Coming soon)

Jungle Boy

Prompt: Friends with benefits and both people catching feelings. (Part 2 of Marko Stunt's prompt)

Kazuchika Okada

Prompt: “You’ve got something on your lip, here let me.”

Kenny Omega

Prompt: There’s only one bed and we sleep as far away as possible from each other but wake up cuddling + Jolting awake after a nightmare and being comforted

Prompt: “Good morning, beautiful/handsome” + Wrapping arms around them when they make breakfast

Kyle O'Reilly

12 Days of Christmas - Blush

Prompt: There's people chasing us and I pulled you into the alley with me and wow you're close.

Luchasaurus

Prompt:“I think I’m in love with you.”

Marcel Barthel

12 Days of Christmas - Panda

Prompt: Having a bad day and the other noticing

Prompt: Everyone thinks we’re already dating, but we’re just best friends- oh wait + Overhearing they have feelings for you (Coming soon)

Prompt: You’re leaving for something dangerous and I can’t help but kiss you + Blurting out a confession of love (Coming soon)

Marko Stunt

Prompt: “I’ve been in love with you for years.” (Part 1 of Jungle Boy's prompt)

Mustafa Ali

12 Days of Christmas - Piece of Paper

Prompt: Taking care of the other when sick or injured

Nick Jackson

Prompt: “I think I’m in love with you.”

Orange Cassidy

One Shot: Do you have any Denim?

One Shot: Just One Date

Prompt: “I've been in love with you for years”

Prompt: We're roommates but we're falling for each other

Prompt: I called you at 2am because I need you

Prompt: Help me I’m being hit on at a bar please be my fake boyfriend for a second (Coming soon)

PAC

Prompt: Everyone thinks I should stay away from you because you’re dangerous

Headcanon: Reader had a bad day and he helps them feel better

Pete Dunne

12 Days of Christmas - With the Family

Prompt: I’m going to save you from the terrible date you’re having (Coming soon)

Peter Avalon

Prompt: Everyone thinks we’re already dating, but we’re just best friends- oh wait

Roderick Strong

Prompt: Jolting awake after a nightmare and being comforted

Shinsuke Nakamura

Prompt: “I’ve been in love with you for years.” (Coming soon)

Prompt: I’m your new neighbour and I got locked out, help! (Coming soon)

Timothy Thatcher

12 Days of Christmas - At Home

Prompt: Help me I’m being hit on at a bar please be my fake boyfriend for a second (Part 1)

Prompt: Taking care of the other when sick or injured (Part 2)

Prompt: A soft smile before leaning in for a kiss (Part 3)

Trent?

12 Days of Christmas - Wonderful

Prompt: Blind date set up by friends

Prompts: I need a date for this wedding + Hands brushing unexpectedly.

Prompt: Overhearing they have feelings for you (Coming soon)

Headcanon: Taking his S/O on a date

Tyler Breeze

Prompts: Argument leading to kiss + "Just tell why you did it!” “Because I’m in love with you, okay!”

Warhorse

12 Days of Christmas - Metal Songs

Prompts: Overhearing they have feelings for you

Wheeler Yuta

Soft headcanon (Coming soon)

#warhorse #adam cole #hangman page #orange cassidy #chuck taylor #drew gulak #trent beretta #kyle o'reilly #buddy murphy #mustafa ali #kazuchika okada #jungle boy #marko stunt #luchasaurus #marcel barthel #timothy thatcher #tyler breeze #wwe #aew #nxt #njpw #writing masterlist #eddie kingston #shinsuke nakamura #cesaro #wheeler yuta

[dreamerstreamer]

Office Lunch

Pairing: Quackity / Alexis x gn!reader

Summary: [Dream SMP!AU] Being vice president is far from an easy job, and it’s starting to take a toll on Quackity. Thankfully, you’re always there to pick him back up, again.

Warnings: some cursing, minor mentions of alcohol

Word Count: 2.7k

A/N: requested by the lovely 🐌 anon, who wanted some reverse comfort & fluff for big q! the story takes place during schlatt’s presidency, and also serves as a bit of a character study. i hope you enjoy!

The quiet ticking of the clock felt absolutely deafening in the barren silence of the office. You fidgeted your feet, your thumbs nervously tapping at the throw pillow at your side. Despite how plush and comfortable the couch cushions were beneath your thighs, they felt as stiff as rock digging into your skin. Chewing on the inside of your cheek, you sat up straight, your eyes glued to the clock as you stared down the taunting, ticking hands.

Were presidential meetings always this long? You were no professional, but employees still had a lunch break, right?

Sighing, you tore your eyes away from the clock on the walls, sweeping your gaze across the office. A tall window decorated the wall opposite from the looming mahogany door, the warm, midday sun washing the room with light. The bookshelf tucked away in the corner of the room was adorned with shelves upon shelves of files, alongside a framed photo of the Manberg flag. On the floor sat a deep crimson rug, the golden tassels brushing along the soles of your shoes.

It was a beautiful office, really. But it looked so much more dull when it was as empty as it was.

Your gaze flickered down to the container sitting on the coffee table in front of you, your lips curling into the smallest of frowns. So much for giving him a surpris—

All of a sudden, the office door swung open, slamming into the opposite wall with a loud thud. Jolting, you whipped your head up, your eyes landing on the huffing figure standing in the doorway. You watched as Quackity stomped across the room to his desk, his gaze stormy as his grip tightened around the already crumpled stack of files in his hand. He was practically seething as he dropped the stack of papers onto his desk, cursing loudly under his breath.

“What an ass,” he muttered, irritation lacing his every word. Reaching up, he tugged at his navy tie, the tight fabric unravelling around his neck. “Always keeping me late because he can't be bothered to show up on time.” His scowl deepened. “That lazy piece of sh—”

“Alex?”

Quackity froze at the sound of your voice, whirling around to face you with wide eyes, his lips parted in shock. “[Y/N]?” he whispered.

You lifted your hand in a shy wave, offering him a sheepish smile. “Hi.”

His lips split into a wide grin as he strode over to you, crouching down next to you. “What are you doing here?” he breathed, his bright eyes scanning yours. “Don't get me wrong, I'm always happy to see your beautiful face, but you're here.” He gestured vaguely to the space around him, his eyebrows knitted together. “In my office.”

Heat crept across your face at his words, something fuzzy and warm blossoming in the crevice of your chest. Bobbing your head, you reached across the coffee table to hold up the container you had brought with you, a glimmer of hope flitting through your eyes. “Yeah! I, um, wanted to surprise you today, so I brought you lunch!”

Quackity blinked at you once. Twice. Then, he opened his mouth, an enamoured expression creeping onto his face. “[Y/N],” he said, gentle and soft, “have I ever told you how incredible you are?”

Your heart flipped in your chest, joy sparking in your chest like a firework as you shot him a cheeky grin, winking slyly. "You could stand to mention it more often."

He laughed at that, getting to his feet before settling into the space next to you on the couch, his side warm against yours. Leaning over, he rested his head against your shoulder, letting out a long sigh of relief.

“God,” he sighed, the tightness trickling out from his body as he melted against you, “I can't even begin to describe how happy I am you're here.” He glanced up at you curiously. “What did you make?”

You grinned, your fingers curling around the container lid. “I figured you would want something easy to hold that was still tasty, so...” The lid tugged open with a pop, revealing an array of sandwiches stacked next to one another, stuffed full with vegetables and spreads. “Ta-da!”

Quackity gasped, sitting upright to gape at the lunch you had made, elation shooting across his face. “Are you an angel?” he blurted, his mouth practically watering at the sight. “You must be a fucking angel, I swear.”

A giggle bubbled up in your throat, warmth fluttering in the pit of your stomach. “Last time I checked,” you hummed, gently nudging his shoulder with yours, “I was just the love of your life, but angel works, too.”

Quackity's eyes gleamed fondly, but you didn't miss the way his fingers twitched in anticipation. Tilting the container toward him, you smiled, amusement seeping into your voice. “Yes, you can eat.”

His eyes lit up like the sun, and you could only laugh as a “thank you” tumbled from his lips before he was grabbing a sandwich. As his teeth sank in for the first bite, his eyes fluttered shut and he made a pleased noise. In an instant, he was absolutely devouring the sandwich, his cheeks puffed with delight.

“This,” he said between bites, “is so good.” Swallowing the final bite, he reached over for a second, his tongue darting out to swipe at his lips. “I don't think I would mind eating this for the rest of my life.”

You flashed him a grin. “I’ll keep that in mind.” Leaning back against the soft cushions, you lifted a sandwich to your mouth, savouring the burst of flavour across your tongue as you took a bite. “By the way,” you said before you took another bite, casting a curious glance in Quackity’s direction, “how’s your day been so far? I missed you.”

In an instant, Quackity’s eyes went dark, the smile falling from his face as he let out a long, drawn out sigh. “Schlatt,” he said.

You swallowed, raising your brows at him. “Schlatt?” you repeated.

He deadpanned. “Is the fucking worst.”

You winced at the exhausted look that flitted across his face, setting your sandwich down on the container lid. “So, I take it your morning went badly.”

The groan that escaped his lips was absolutely gut-wrenching, frustration soaking into his every movement as he got to his feet, pacing around the room. “Like you wouldn’t believe. He cancelled two meetings—the first because he was hungover, and the second because he wanted to drink. Then,” he said, whirling on his feet with a glower, “when he did actually schedule a meeting, he was late.” He threw his hands up into the air. “Like, what the hell?”

Your heart churned in your chest at the sight of his irritated face, the bitterness in his tone winding rising higher and higher, filling the air like a dam that was about to burst. “Plus, he still hasn’t read the report I submitted last week, and also he interrupted me six times today.” He held up six fingers toward you, a deep scowl etched into his features. “Six! That’s seven times too many.”

You had half the mind to laugh at his words, but the sorrow you felt outweighed the flicker of amusement that shot through you. “And did I tell you that he made me make him coffee this morning?” He groaned again, his hands tightening into fists at his side as he collapsed back onto the couch, draping his arm over his eyes. “Sometimes,” he grumbled, “I feel less like a vice president and more like an unpaid intern.”

You shuffled closer to him on the couch, reaching your hand up to gently stroke his back. “I’m sorry that’s happening, baby,” your murmured, rubbing a soft, soothing circle around the base of his neck with your thumb. “Schlatt sounds like an awful boss.”

He whipped around to face you, a grimace stretched taught across his face. “He is!” he cried. “He’s such a fucking... dick! There are so many things I could say.” He lifted a hand, counting off on his fingers. “He constantly misses meetings, he’s always goofing off, and he’s always fucking drunk. It’s like he doesn’t even care about this country.” He sighed, dragging his hand over his face. “Like, why run for president if you’re not going to at least try to make a difference?”

Suddenly, he went quiet, his hand freezing around his chin. You watched as a cloudy fog passed over his gaze, his voice dropping to a low whisper. “God, am I making a difference?”

Your breath hitched in your throat as he turned to look at you, his heart hanging heavy in his lungs as you watched the gears turn in his head. “What have I done?” he whispered, his brows sloping downward. “I’m just helping push Schlatt’s agenda, whatever that is.”

He dropped his head, resting his elbows on his knees as he hung his face in his hands. “Why did I even support him in the election in the first place?” His voice cracked, and you felt your own heart cleave at the sound. “Seriously, just what the hell am I doing?”

A long, thick silence fell over the two of you, Quackity raised his head, turning to face you with a cloudy, broken gaze. “Maybe I’m just as bad as he is.”

The words were out of your mouth in an instant, a wave of protectiveness crashing over you and filling every inch of your being. “Don’t say that.”

He gazed at you sadly, regret flickering across his face. “But, aren’t I—”

“No,” you said, firmer this time, “you’re not.” When Quackity’s eyes went wide at your sudden shift in tone, your gaze softened, adding gently, “I swear.”

Pulling your hand away from his back, you let your eyes scan his doubtful expression, your lips pressed into a thin line. “People like having power, Alex. Physical power, bargaining power, political power—” You shook your head with a sigh, disappointment tugging at the back of your mind. “It can be obsessive, and a lot of the time, that power’s misused.” You sent him a knowing look, brows raised. “You would know.”

His lips twitched the tiniest bit, and he bobbed his head, almost as if there were a set of weights on his shoulders. “Yeah, I really fucking do.”

“But,” you hummed, a smile tugging at your lips, “it’s not always misused.” You leaned against him, your soft side pressing into his. “Look at you—you’re trying your hardest to make this country a better place, and that’s amazing.”

You felt him shake next to you, the fabric of his suit trembling against you. “But,” he said quietly, sounding so very unlike the bold, confident man you loved, “I’ve hardly been able to do anything.” He squeezed his eyes shut, sucking in a weary, ragged breath. “Everything I try to do just gets shut down, or pushed aside, or it’s not even looked at.”

You reached over, slipping your hand in his and intertwining your fingers together. “That doesn’t demean your hard work and effort, though,” you said softly. “I’ve watched you work overtime so many days in a row, and you’re always spending late nights at the office to pick up Schlatt’s slack.”

Your lips curled into a smile, genuine and fond. “You’re wonderful, Alex, and Schlatt is lucky to have you. You’re a wonderful vice president, and an ever better person.” Your eyes curved into soft, crescent moons. “Don’t put yourself down like that, okay?”

Quackity stared at you for a moment longer, then lowered his gaze to your connected hands, the light in his eyes flickering. “Even if you’re right,” he said quietly, “Schlatt’s still the one in power. He’s the one with the most control.”

You scooted a fraction closer to him, your knees brushing against his. “The thing about power is that one person hardly ever gets to keep it to themselves forever.” You reached your other hand up, pressing your palm to his cheek, his skin warm against yours. “Schlatt may be president now, but a new term will come soon, and he’ll be voted out, I’m sure of it. And when that happens, you guys will be able to turn a new leaf.”

You brushed your thumb over his cheekbone. “I believe in you.”

Another silence fell over you, but this one was different—it wasn’t tense or heavy like the last, weighing down on you like an anchor. Instead, a certain brightened bloomed across the room, and you watched with kind eyes as Quackity lifted his head, his eyes meeting yours with a serious expression.

“I love you.”

Your heart leapt into your throat, heat exploding across your face as your chest shook with a hazy whirlwind of emotion. “Wh—huh?” you spluttered, your face growing hotter by the second. “I-I love you too, but where did that come from?”

His hand squeezed tightly around yours, an ardent spark of affection springing inside him. “My heart,” he said honestly.

You couldn’t stop the smile from splitting across your lips, wide and bright. You opened your mouth to respond when, without warning, he was tugging you forward until you were pressed flush against his chest. Wrapping his arms around your waist in a tight embrace, he dipped his head down next to your ear and murmured, “Thank you, [Y/N].”

You blinked for a moment, then melted against him, resting your head on his shoulder as you snaked your arms up and around his backside. “For you, anything.”

For a long moment, the two of you simply held each other, nestled closely within each other’s arms. You let your eyelids fall shut as you brushed your nose against the side of his neck, inhaling his lingering scent of linen and lemon.

After a few minutes, you felt his breath tickle your cheek as he opened his mouth. “Hey, what time is it?”

You opened your eyes, your gaze darting to the clock on the wall behind him and squinting. “Um, quarter past one.”

Quackity’s eyes shot open to the size of saucers, and in a flash, he was scrambling off the couch, stumbling across his office to his desk. “Oh shit, I’m late for my next meeting!”

Your eyes widened as he quickly picked up a new stack of papers from his desk, grabbing a pen from his cup holder before slipping it behind his ear. While he balanced the mess of office supplies in his arms, striding back over to you, a flurry of swords tumbled from his mouth. “The sandwiches were fantastic, everything you said means the world to me, you’re beautiful, and I love you so fucking much.”

Your heart swelled in your chest, love rushing through your veins as you struggled to process his words. “I—”

All of a sudden, he leaned over the coffee table and pressed his lips to yours in a sweet kiss, pulling away just as quickly as he had arrived. “See you when I get home?” he said, his cheeks flushed a rosy pink.

Your head spun with dizzying waves of adoration, and you felt your own face grow warm with affection as you nodded hazily, offering him a wave. “See you then.”

The grin he flashed you made your stomach soar with butterflies, and in a whirlwind of papers, he was rushing out the door, his undone tie still hanging around his neck. The office door slammed shut behind him, and just like that, you were alone again, accompanied only by the ticking of the clock.

You let out a breath and pressed a shaky hand to your chest, feeling your heart thump against your rib cage. Sitting up, your eyes dropped down to your half-eaten sandwich still sitting on the coffee table. An image of Quackity flashed across your mind, and you couldn’t help but feel your lungs blossom with something that you were absolutely certain was love.

With warm sunlight caressing the side of your face, you picked up your sandwich and took another bite, a thoughtful smile gracing your lips.

Maybe you should bring him lunch tomorrow, too.

#request #mcyt #mcyt x reader #mcyt x you #mcyt x y/n #dream smp x reader #dream smp x you #dream smp x y/n #mcyt fanfic #mcyt imagine #mcyt fanfiction #mcyt fluff #mcyt scenario #mcyt imagines #quackity x reader #quackity imagines #quackity imagine #quackity scenario #quackity fluff #quackity angst #mcyt angst #quackity x you #quackity x y/n #mcyt reader insert #dream smp au #quackity #quackity dream smp #quackity mcyt #quackity dsmp #🐌 anon

[pink-flame]

Bad Day

It's not much, but here's a little Juke goodness for my lovely friend @mamirugbee today. I'm forever your fan and so glad to be your friend. 💜

Julie just didn’t feel right.

Although, actually, putting it that way annoyed her a bit. Why was being happy all the time seen as the “right” way to feel? All day her friends and family had been asking her what was wrong and wanting to fix it somehow and she got it, she really did. It hadn’t been that long at all since she was in a year long slump of grief and insecurity. It made sense that the people closest to her would want to make sure she wasn’t sliding into that headspace again. But the fact of the matter was that Julie wasn’t having a bad day because she missed her mom (though of course she did, all the time) or because Carrie had said anything (her former friend had been a bit more tolerable lately) or even because she was anxious about the possibility that Caleb would come after the guys again (it had been three weeks since the Orpheum and so far, nothing).

She was just...having a bad day.

And surely even people who lost their moms, played a CD and summoned a ghost band, and possibly performed some sort of magic that freed said ghost band from an evil magician were allowed to have a plain old bad day once in a while.

So that evening Julie found herself out in the garage, hiding from Flynn’s questioning texts and her dad’s hovering and her aunt’s attempts to improve her mood through forcing multiple types of food on her. She wasn’t surprised to find the studio empty as she collapsed onto the couch. Now that they were free of Caleb’s jolts and were at least temporarily tangible most of the time they were making up for lost time. Most days that they didn’t have a band rehearsal scheduled the guys spent at least part of the night out exploring, getting used to 2020 as the newly almost humans they were. Normally she was a little jealous that her promise to her dad about not sneaking out again meant that she couldn’t join them, but for once she was glad to have a little solitude.

She had thought she might do some writing, had brought out her notebook and her favorite purple pen in case inspiration struck. But instead she just stared at the blank page for half an hour before tossing the notebook aside in frustration and drawing her feet up on the couch to rest her head on her knees. She had spent the whole day prickling with non-specific frustration and by this point even her skin felt slightly uncomfortable like truly nothing was going to feel right until this randomly bad day was over.

“Hey!”

Julie jumped as Luke’s voice sounded from far too close to her ear for her comfort. She sat up enough to catch sight of his familiar grin before it slid into a frown as he took in her less than happy expression. He was standing beside the couch looking down at her and Julie instantly knew what he was going to say next.

“What’s wrong?”

Julie huffed out a frustrated breath.

She knew she was being a little unreasonable, she knew that it was only natural that the people who cared about her would ask that question when she was so clearly out of sorts. But it was so annoying to be asked such a simple question repeatedly when she didn’t have a satisfying answer.

“Nothing,” She tried. “Everything. I don’t know. Just a bad day.”

She expected Luke to ask a million more questions or to try to distract her with music or something. She didn’t expect him to nudge off his sneakers and clamber onto the couch behind her.

“Hey!” Julie protested halfheartedly as she was jostled around, starting to scoot away to make room for him until a hand on her arm stopped her.

The truth was she couldn’t bring herself to be too annoyed with him, even on a bad day, not when the fact that she could feel him was still a miracle each and every time it happened.

He didn’t need to know that though.

“Come here,” Luke instructed, settling in with his back against the armrest of the couch, tugging her gently until her back was against his chest.

Julie blushed, suddenly grateful that he couldn’t see her expression clearly anymore. She was still frowning, that simmering frustration burning beneath her skin, but even in her current mood she was far from immune to being this close to Luke.

“What are you doing?” Julie asked tensely, her posture stiff against him as she fought the urge to sink back largely out of a stubborn determination to remain in her funk.

“I know what to do,” Luke insisted, running his hands gently down her arms.

Julie fought the urge to shiver.

“What?” She asked, trying to sound far less interested than she actually was.

Luke didn’t answer with words, instead he surged forward, wrapping his arms tightly around her and bringing his legs up to cradle her body as well. Julie suddenly found herself, completely and totally enveloped by Luke and she struggled to catch up to this development. It hadn’t been long since she had failed at something as simple as holding his hand. The sheer luxury of having Luke’s form wrapped around hers would have been enough to break through her determination to see her grumpy day through but the way he leaned his head down to rest his chin on her shoulder, his cheek bumping against hers...it demolished her walls instantly.

She found herself relaxing into his grip and breathing an involuntary sigh of relief even as she mustered up the motivation to ask her question one more time.

“What are you doing?” She asked, her voice already lighter as the world seemed to settle into a more familiar shape with the weight of his arms grounding her there.

“Koala hug,” Luke offered, the satisfaction in his voice obvious. “Guaranteed to cure all bad days.”

Julie couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

“Do I get my money back if it doesn’t work?”

Luke just snuggled even closer, his voice rumbling out from seemingly all around her.

“For you my services are free so no refunds. Besides, it's already working.”

“You’re so sure, huh?” Julie tried to tease but in reality her voice sounded entirely too soft and relaxed for the effect to come across.

“Yep,” Luke agreed cockily. “Like I said, it works every time.”

Julie considered her options and finally came to the conclusion that she really did feel better already and besides, no evening spent wallowing was worth missing out on a chance to be held by Luke. So she managed to free one of her arms and reach up to arrange her hair as best she could out of Luke’s face allowing for him to hopefully breathe a little more freely and then snuggled back against his chest, settling in.

He didn’t talk after that, though he did hum occasionally, melodies she didn’t recognize but was sure would pop up in one of their future writing sessions. For now she was more than content just to let Luke’s voice wash over her wordlessly and to revel in the feeling of him physically surrounding her. She swore she could feel him breathing, the steady rise and fall of his chest allowing her to match her own breathing to his calm rhythm, despite the fact that she knew deep down he didn’t need to do it. She was practically falling asleep when he finally spoke again.

“Feeling better?”

Julie nodded against his arm then repeated her answer in words.

“Yeah. I’m feeling better.”

Luke turned his head just enough to press a barely there kiss to the soft spot between her jaw and her ear.

“Good.”

Julie did shiver that time, trying and failing not to imagine what his lips would feel like pressed against her own instead.

“Where did you get the idea to cheer me up with a koala hug?” She asked as lightly as she could manage in a mortifyingly transparent attempt at a distraction.

Luke shrugged and her shoulders moved right along with his.

“It always worked on Alex.”

There was a brief moment of silence while Julie let that delightful image truly sink in and then laughter was bursting out of her.

“Now I know you feel better,” Luke observed in a satisfied tone.

Julie didn’t bother denying it.

Sometimes she just had a bad day and that was ok, it really was.

But she had a feeling with Luke around?

There wouldn’t be that many.

#juke #jatp #my fics #I hope you like this #it's imagery that just wouldn't leave my head #I figured you can't go wrong with juke cuddling

[charlies-gillespie]

 everything to lose | luke patterson

paring: fem!ghost!reader x ghost!luke patterson

summary: Luke confronts reader, the daughter of Caleb Covington, after he finds out what the shocks mean. reader tries to help Luke do what he needs to do so he and his bandmates can

length: medium

rating: PG-13

warnings: a lot of angst, swearing / cussing, jatp spoilers if you haven’t watched episode 5 or later

!! NOT MY GIF !!

MASTERLIST

“I can’t believe you did that to them, Dad,” you shout. “Why can’t you just listen to them when they tell you they already have a band?” You just found out that your father, Caleb Covington, used his stamp on the Sunset Curve boys because they refused his offer.

Your father sips out of his mug and says, “You know the reason, my darling. They’re just too powerful.”

With a groan, you say, “Sometimes, I really don’t like you.”

After finishing his mug of whatever he was drinking, your father says, “You’re stuck with me for eternity, my daughter. You better get around to liking me.” He poofs out of your room in the Hollywood Ghost Club and you grab your jacket.

You’ve made it your mission to go and tell Luke and his bandmates what’s going to happen to them since your father used his stamp on them. Maybe they can figure out what their unfinished business is and they can cross over.

So you poof out of the Hollywood Ghost Club and to the studio where your crush and his bandmates practice. You peep inside and don’t see Luke. A sigh of defeat passes your lips and you step back. You think about where they could be, or at least where Luke would be.

You poof to South Broadway, in front of the Orpheum. You find Willie, your best friend, talking to Luke, Alex, and Reggie. Luke looks behind Willie at you. He has a look of anger on his face and he walks around Willie to get to you.

“What the hell, Y/N?” Luke says, approaching you. “You let Caleb just stamp us?”

Immediately, you say, “I’m sorry, Luke. I didn’t know that he would use the stamp on you. I never wanted him to.”

Luke looks at you and he says, “The guys and I love our band with Julie, and Caleb just took that away from us. We either have to join his band, cross over, or get destroyed by these jolt things.”

Quickly, you reach out and try to touch Luke. He backs away from you and your face falls. “Luke, please,” you beg. “I never wanted this. I’ve seen how happy you are with Julie and the band. I never wanted that to be taken away from you guys. I tried to talk him down but he wasn’t having it. Okay?”

He says, “I just met you a few weeks ago. How am I supposed to believe that?”

“Because in the eighty or so years that I’ve been a ghost, I’ve never met anyone like you, Luke,” you say, staring up at the guy in front of you. “I always kept to myself until Willie introduced me to you. I was scared to talk to anyone just for this reason. Until I met you. My father is insanely powerful and I can’t do anything to stop him.”

Luke’s face softens and he says, “All we wanted was to get revenge on our bandmate for what he did to us and now we’re cursed.”

Your voice drops to a whisper and you say, “I’m sorry, Luke. I really am. I wish he wasn’t like this.” You look down at your feet.

Both of you are quiet before Luke sighs, reaching out and holding your hand. You look at your connected hands and you finally look up at him. “I’m sorry I blamed you, Y/N,” he says. “I’m just frustrated that these are my only options. I know that this isn’t your fault and that you don’t have control over what he does.”

“I don’t know what I can do, Luke,” you admit. “I just wish that you had never met him, or me or even Willie because it was us that got you into this.”

Luke shakes his head and says, “I wouldn’t take back meeting you. Meeting you has been one of my favorite things that’s happened to me since I became a ghost.”

You say, “But you’re cursed and you’ll die all over again.”

He takes a step closer to you and he says, “I’ll die over and over again if it meant meeting you.”

There’s a whoosh noise and you look to your right, knowing who’s standing there. Luke looks over at your father and the guys run up to the two of you.

Your father looks between you and Luke before he says, “Hm, it seems like I’ve interrupted something here.”

“What do you want?” you spit at him. “You’ve done enough, Dad.”

The only people here that knew he was your father were Willie and Luke. Alex and Reggie didn’t know, but now they do. It’s not a big deal that they know but how to you tell new friends that your father is the owner of the most famous ghost clubs and one of the most powerful ghosts?

Luke confidently stands at your side, looking up at your father as he says, “That’s not how you speak to me, young lady. I thought you learned your lesson.”

You say, “You don’t own me. You can’t control me. None of your powers work on me because I’m your blood. You can’t own my soul. I have no consequences when it comes to speaking to you in a certain way or how I act.”

Your father says, “You don’t have any consequences, Y/N.” He waves his hands and a jolt hits the Sunset Curve boys. Luke lets go of your hand as he stumbles back. You look at him with worry all over your face before spinning back to your father. “But they do. Now, boys, let me make my offer again. You can join my house band and these jolts will simply just stop. Alex, you’ll always be able to see Willie. Luke, you’ll be able to see Y/N whenever you’d like. If you’re destroyed or you cross over, you won’t get any of that.”

“We’re never joining your house band,” Luke says through his teeth. You turn your head and look at the musician. His eyes flicker to you before returning to your father.

He says, “Have it your way.” Your father waves his hand again and there’s another jolt that hits the guys. All three grunt. Willie has his hand on Alex’s shoulder and you run over to Luke, whose back is pressed against the wall of the building. You lace your fingers with Luke’s as your father poofs away.

You look up at Luke and you say, “You have to cross over, Luke. Soon.”

Luke says, “I don’t know how to do that.”

Willie chimes in and says, “You have to do your unfinished business. It’s why you came back as ghosts.”

Alex, Reggie, and Luke all look at each other before Luke says, “i guess we have to play the show that we never got to play then.”

They need to play the Orpheum.

***

You and Willie help Luke and his band get booked at the Orpheum the next day. Willie drives the bus of Panic! At The Disco’s opening act out into the desert over 200 miles away. The two of you poof to the boys, who stand right outside the venue. Just as you both poof to the guys, they get hit with a jolt. You walk up to Luke and ask, “You okay?”

“Nothing I haven’t felt before,” Luke says, shrugging. “Um, can I talk to you for a second?”

After nodding, you and Luke walk away. The two of you stand in the alleyway beside the Orpheum. You look up at Luke and he sighs. “I’ve never felt anything for anyone before you. I’m not just saying this because I’m either about to cross over or get destroyed by the jolts,” he admits to you. “I just, I don’t have many regrets and I’d definitely regret it if I didn’t tell you that I really like you.”

Your eyes widen and you say, “Luke, I-”

Luke says, “I have everything to lose, Y/N. You, my band, everything. I’d rather have you and Julie sleep peacefully knowing that I crossed over instead of getting destroyed.”

You can see the tears in his eyes and you say, “I wish I could do something, Luke. I wish that this wasn’t the end of us, even though there never really was an ‘us’ to begin with. I wanted an us.”

He sniffles and you reach up, brushing his hair off his forehead before he says, “I wanted an us too.”

Luke cups your face in his hands and you look up at him. He leans down and presses a light kiss to your lips. You sigh and slowly kiss him back. Your eyes are screwed shut and a few tears escape, falling down your cheeks and wetting them.

After a second, Luke pulls back and looks down at you. “If, by some miracle, I survive this. If something happens and we don’t cross over and I don’t get destroyed by the jolts, I’ll meet you here at midnight,” he says. You nod and stare up at him.

You lean up and peck his lips before Luke walks off. You lean against the wall of the Orpheum and sigh, closing your eyes.

You hate your father for taking away the only guy you’ve ever liked since you became a ghost. Luke would never leave his band with Julie to join your father’s band, and you respect that.

Later that night, you’re back in the same spot. You were able to sneak into the Orpheum to see Luke’s performance with his band. He looked handsome in his suit with no sleeves and messy hair as he played his guitar. You lean your head back and close your eyes.

Minutes tick by. It’s close to 12:30 now. He either crossed over or he didn’t make it.

Soft sobs begin to leave your lips as you let it sink in that you’ll never see Luke again.

There’s a whooshing sound and you assume that it’s your father so you don’t look. Someone walks toward you and you feel someone wipe away your tears. Your eyes flutter open and you’re met with Luke’s pretty hazel eyes. You gasp softly and throw your arms around Luke.

“You made it,” you whisper.

Luke chuckles and says, “I made it. I’m okay. I don’t know how but the curse is gone.”

You pull back just enough to meet Luke’s eyes. “You did amazing tonight, by the way,” you tell him. “I was able to sneak in.”

He smiles and says, “The suit is thanks to your father. I lost the sleeves in the poof.”

“I don’t mind,” you admit. “I like the no sleeves. Definitely shows off your muscles.” You run your fingers up and down his biceps to prove your point.

Luke laughs and says, “You love my arms. Noted.”

You smile and say, “I also love your kisses.”

“We’ve only kissed once, Y/N,” Luke tells you. You lean your head up.

“It’s time to change that, Luke,” you say. With a little laugh, Luke leans down and kisses you again. The kiss is a little rougher than the kiss you shared with him earlier in the day. Both of you are more hungry for each other because neither of you thought that you’d be standing here with him.

Maybe because the curse is gone, you’d get to have the relationship you want with Luke. Maybe this is the guy you can spend your ghostly years with. You almost lost him, and you’ve promise yourself that you’d never let him go again.

#luke patterson imagine #luke patterson x reader #charlie gillespie imagines #charlie gillespie imagine #charlie gillespie x oc #charlie gillespie x reader #charlie gillespie x y/n #julie and the phantoms imagines #jatp imagines #jatp imagine #imagines #imagine #angst imagine #angsty #angst

[lepusrufus]

Double edged scalpel ch.6

ch.1 ch.2 ch.3 ch.4 ch.5

Summary: It's backstory time!

Mandatory warning since this is not a usual thing on my blog so I think a separate warning would be useful, there will be talk of past abuse and alcohol abuse.

----

"Wakey wakey," came the gruff voice from just outside her bedroom door.

It was slightly muffled but more than enough to make her jolt awake, muscle memory taking over the remnants of sleep. She only had one minute to be out the door. It was more than enough though, her routine perfected over years. Get out of bed. Put socks on. Get shoes. Grab the duffel bag. She slept dressed anyways, ready to go at any time.

Or not?

Where were her clothes?

Nevermind that she had time to put something on. Just grab a shirt and pants from the dresser.

Hurried steps took her over the plush carpet. Wasn't it supposed to be a solid grey? Had her mother swapped it for one of their fancier rugs?

That didn't matter right now. Clothes. She needed clothes. When she got to her dresser she stood there, frowning at the bookshelf that now took its place. She didn't even remember acquiring the tomes in front of her, most of them old and with unfamiliar trinkets surrounding them. That's not how her bedroom was arranged. Why wasn't anything in its place? Was Alex playing a prank on her? No, he wouldn't do that.

Time was almost up and she needed some goddamn clothes and to get out and her head was starting to spin-

"Nicole?"

Her eyes snapped back to the bed she had so hastily vacated, Cassandra looking at her concerned.

From the room's entrance came another familiar voice. Bela. "I only wanted to let you know that Daniela wants to go for a hunt tomorrow." Her eyes were averted and as soon as the words left her lips, she turned and shut the door behind her, not waiting for an answer from her sister.

Confusion mixed in with dizziness, but Nicole let out a quiet oh when she fully realized where she was. Cassandra's bedroom. They came here last night and fell asleep. And she was only wearing underwear.

She went to sit on the edge of the bed, head resting in her hands to try alleviate the fog in her brain. She probably looked like hell, but that was the least of her concerns right now.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Came the uncharacteristically soft voice of Cassandra, who had moved from her spot under the blankets and was gently rubbing her back.

"Uh, nothing," Nicole replied, as if she didn't look ready to puke.

Cassandra only pursed her lips and frowned. "You looked like you simultaneously saw a ghost and were ready to fight a ghost."

She swallowed thickly and forced out a laugh. "Oh are we at "tragic backstory" relationship level now?" It was at best a pathetic attempt to change the subject and at worst annoying.

When she looked back at the brunette she was still frowning, but not in annoyance. Her golden eyes sparked with concern, scrutinizing the redhead's face and body language for any clue as to what was wrong. It sent a pang of guilt through Nicole's chest. She took a deep breath and leaned back into Cassandra's touch, trying to collect her thoughts. Where does one even begin to explain this whole mess?

"Have you ever wondered why I came here? To the village?"

"...Not really," she admitted.

Nicole took another deep breath, pulling the words from her mouth as if she were pulling out teeth with pliers.

"My dad, he…he had a bit of a weird business. We never knew the details of it, he never told any of us and we knew better than to snoop, but I do know it had something to do with drugs and was highly illegal."

Staying in one place proved itself a pesky little task, so Nicole stood up and started to collect her clothes from the floor and started dressing. Cassandra instead remained in the same spot, listening intently.

"With a job like that you make enemies by default. And that made him paranoid beyond belief. When me and Alex, my older brother, were children it wasn't that bad. Worst thing he would do was lock our bedroom doors and refuse to let us attend public school."

She narrowed her eyes at a wall, still not wanting to meet Cassandra's gaze. Now that she said it out loud, not that bad sounded pretty bad too. Whatever.

"It started going downhill when I was around…" She pursed her lips, trying to make her brain put together some semblance of a timeline. "Twelve. Yeah twelve. He came bursting into our bedrooms at 2 a.m. saying that someone with a gun had gotten into our house and wanted to kill us. We were mortified. I remember my mom holding me and Alex in the backseat crying while my dad drove us to his secluded cabin in the woods."

"And that became a habit of his. He'd have us do these drills every once in a while and then scream at us if we didn't do everything in under a minute."

"That's so fucking stupid," Cassandra spat, golden eyes gleaming with anger.

Nicole started pacing back and forth, desperate for a distraction. "Oh I know. And after a few years of this I made sure to tell him exactly how much I thought it was bullshit."

Finally coming to terms with the lack of something to do while she talked, Nicole gave up and went back to the bed. She sat down by Cassandra's side, though still avoiding her eyes.

"Do you know what getting punched in the face feels like?"

Cassandra's expression contorted into a disgusted grimace. With the hand not on Nicole's back rubbing comforting circles, she dug talons into the soft fabric of a blanket. She didn't really have an answer because frankly she didn't know. Her body reacted very differently to physical harm and the few that could hurt her wouldn't go for a stupid punch to the face. Nicole kept on talking though, not really looking for an answer.

"That shut me up for a bit. Key word a bit. When he woke me up on the night before an important test I was pissed. I just thought fuck it and went upstairs to the library. It took him around twenty minutes to find me and when he did… Well, I regretted some life choices."

"I was so done with being there in that house. Though thankfully my parents went on a business trip the next day and Alex was at a friend's for the weekend. I had the whole house to myself and decided to grab one of my mom's vintage wines and just spend the evening on the couch drinking. And that's how I became an alcoholic at the ripe old age of fifteen." She let out a humorless chuckle at the end.

That day was a blur in her mind. The only thing that she vividly remembered was Alex coming home early and finding her blackout drunk on the couch. At the end of the day though, they were both in the same boat. He just grabbed the bottle from her and started to sip away at the remaining wine. Laughing at each other's hangover the next day was the most fun they'd had in ages so it became a habit for the both of them. Every once in a while they'd go into the wine cellar, pick out a bottle and then go drink it in the attic while they pretended their problems didn't exist. It continued well into their college years. Nicole was barely able to recall doing anything during her years in med school that wasn't being drunk or studying.

She groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. That's not where she meant to go with the story. Cassandra placing a gentle kiss on her shoulder brought her enough comfort to try and wrap it up.

"I guess in a sick ironic way my dad was right in the end though," she subconsciously shifted closer to the brunette and she wasted no time in loosely wrapping her arms around Nicole's waist.

"I was three weeks away from completing my residency when I came home from the lab, only to find my mom in a puddle of blood on the living room floor. My brother was in a similar state in his bedroom. My dad was nowhere to be found but I didn't care. It was his fault," she swallowed the lump in her throat and felt tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"I just grabbed my documents and a duffle bag with some clothes and ran. Booked the first flight to Romania to come stay at my grandparents'. Oh except they know what my dad is all about! Told me I had an hour to get some rest and be out of their house as they didn't want any trouble with my dad's people."

"I did grab a fuck ton of my dad's cash though so at least hotels weren't an issue," her words were coming out chocked, occasionally interrupted by sniffles. She rapidly whipped a hand across her face. "Have you ever been to Braşov? Old part of the city is quite lovely."

Cassandra grimaced. She didn't want to interrupt, but seeing Nicole in such a state made something in her unbeating heart ache. She gently wiped the trail of tears from her cheeks and placed a kiss on her temple from where she was sitting half behind Nicole. Then, with the softest voice she could muster, "And how did you meet Duke?"

Nicole's eyes widened slightly, apparently having forgotten that detail.

"Oh I stumbled upon his shop one day. I thought he was selling some neat stuff and he was nice so I kept coming back. One thing led to another and when I found out about a place off the map where no one gets in or out without help I thought it would be the perfect place to hide from the people trying to put a bullet through my head." Then she winced slightly. "I was also mildly tipsy when I made that decision."

Cassandra looked a little incredulous. "And he just brought you here?"

"I paid him."

Cassandra's expression turned to what could only be described as disappointed but not surprised. Then her attention went back on the redhead, glossy eyes fixated on the floor. To say she sucked at comforting others was an understatement. Daniela was far more well versed in the art of making others not feel miserable but she was nothing if not stubborn enough to try.

"Listen," she shifted to sit in front of her, hand placed gently on a wet cheek. "If anyone ever dares come near you with the intention of harming you, I'll make them regret every life choice that led them there. You're safe here." She may not be great with her words, but if Cassandra excelled in anything, it was keeping her loved ones safe. Loved one huh.

Nicole leaned into her touch, finally meeting Cassandra's eyes. There was a gentle kind of determination in her golden gaze, accompanied by a fiery rage that, for once in her life, brought comfort as opposed to terror. It came with the knowledge that it wasn't directed at her but at whoever may want to harm her.

She didn't doubt her words. Instead she shifted closer, face nuzzled in the crook of Cassandra's neck and, barely above a whisper, said: "Thank you."

#unhinged maiden™ my beloved #cassandra dimitrescu x maiden #dimitrescu daughters #resident evil village #fanfic #double edged scalpel

[ahatintimepieces]

Fabric Hearts

Remember the first part of that build-a-bear au I wrote for @smieska-draws? It’s back! But now the au name makes sense! Imagine!

Luka, known as the Snatcher to most of the mall locals, runs the Kraft-a-Kid while his daughter, Hattie, runs around with her friends. There’s definitely nothing suspicious about Luka. The rumors that he snatches the souls of children and stuffs them into the dolls are completely unfounded. Probably. Most likely. Don’t worry about it, I’m sure it’s fine.

This is, of course, another au that Smieska and I both developed and like to swap ideas for SO send her your love and adulation because I couldn’t have written this without her ;o; <333 Here’s the link to the piece she did for first part if you haven’t seen it yet (which u should because it’s fabulous and incredible). Without further ado, here it is!

Words: 4,131

The door squeaked open as Luka recorded the number of tiny, elastic collars with bright bells in the back.

“Dimitri can’t make it today,” he warned without looking up from his clipboard. His golden gaze flickered up towards the boxes filled with cotton stuffing and he quickly counted them as footsteps approached. “If you get a sudden influx of customers, come grab me.”

“It’s me, Dad,” Hattie’s voice came from right beside him.

“Did I stutter?” He glanced down without missing a beat. She gave him a deadpan stare as he grinned. His sharp canines glinted in the unnaturally bright florescent lights. “Come on, kiddo. How about you help me with my business endeavors instead of frittering away your summer romping around the mall?”

She readjusted the brim of the top hat she made from her millinery lessons at the fabric store. Why his child fixated on hat-making out of everything she could have taken an interest in was beyond him but even he had to admit her royal purple top hat was well crafted.

“I’m going with Belle and the others to get lunch at the food court,” she said, ignoring his jesting. “Can I have money?”

“You know if you had a job you wouldn’t need to be asking me,” he lamented dramatically before wedging the clipboard between his arm and side. He reached for his wallet in the back pocket of his slacks.

“I’m not even twelve.” She blinked up at him with large blue eyes. “There are child labor laws.”

“Excellent.” He nodded, opening his wallet. “Don’t let anyone in the mall convince you otherwise. But,” he slipped out a bill and gave her a pointed look, “if you accept this, you have to do me a favor.”

“I already cleaned the bathrooms last weekend,” she whined.

His grin widened.

“Tough luck, kiddo.” He twisted the bill in the air, watching her nose scrunch as she seriously weighed her options. After a second of letting her think that she was going to have to do her least favorite chore, he extended the bill towards her. “Just bring me back a coffee and I’ll consider us even.”

Relief instantly flooded her features as she took the bill.

“I can do that! Your usual?” She headed towards the door.

“That’ll work,” he said, tucking away his wallet and grabbing the clipboard again.

“Thanks, Dad!” she chirped before moving to open the door.

Just as she reached for it, the door swung open, and she stumbled back. Luka immediately dropped the clipboard and slipped behind her with the speed of shadows dodging the light. She smacked into his legs, and he placed a steadying hand on her shoulder as Alex walked in with wide eyes.

“I’m so sorry, kid! I didn’t see you there.” Alex winced, looking from Hattie to Luka’s hard glare.

“I’m fine!” Hattie promised, giving a bright smile until she placed her hand over Luka’s fingers. She jolted and twisted around. “Dad, are you okay? You’re really warm.”

“It is hot in here.” Alex tugged at their collar, wincing.

“The thermostat dial was probably nudged,” Luka dismissed, pulling away and stooping to grab the clipboard. “I’ll take a look.”

“Should I get you water?” Hattie asked.

“I have water. Now go have fun.” He shooed her towards the door. “The sooner you leave the sooner you can run my errand.”

Hattie hesitated but when he returned to his task of recording inventory, he heard her retreating footsteps.

“Sorry,” Alex muttered as they crossed over to the table for the employees. They dropped their backpack before grabbing the light purple apron with their nametag.

“Let’s just be careful with how forcefully we open doors, hm? I don’t want to deal with any workplace liability cases. They’re a pain.” Luka shot the teen a toothy grin. Glancing back down to the clipboard, he added in a more monotone cadence, “Anyway, Dimitri can’t come today, so once Ember leaves, it’ll just be you and me for the rest of the day. If it gets too crowded on the floor and I’m not around, come find me.”

“Right.” They nodded firmly. While wiping back their bangs and smearing the beads of sweat on their brow, they hurried out. Once the door closed behind them and Luka was alone, he let out a sigh.

The flame that had flared when Hattie nearly got hit crackled noisily in his otherwise empty chest. Luka placed one of his pale hands over the flame and counted out the seconds between metered inhales and exhales. The snap and pop of embers faded and when he glanced towards the thermostat, the temperature in the room lowered back to a comfortable range.

Not that he was bothered by the heat, but he didn’t need his employees passing out.

Ember’s shift ended as he got to counting the unstuffed plush shells. As she hung her apron over the hook, she informed him that two separate groups had just entered the store. Luka nodded, finishing his current count before getting ready to help Alex on the floor.

He brushed back his long, spiky hair into a ponytail. Stray strands the color of soot fluttered against his cheek, and he tucked them behind his ear.

They reflected a warm violet when they caught the light.

With his hair as contained as he could manage, he grabbed his own amethyst apron with the Kraft-a-Kid’s signature logo; a stylized baby goat and parent goat waving a friendly greeting. After draping it over his black suit and making sure it didn’t displace his dark purple tie, he tied the apron with nimble fingers, clawed at the tips. He double-checked that the pocket had extra thread and a compact sewing kit before he clipped on his name tag and headed out into the workshop.

Alex snapped their head up from one of the stuffing stations, looking relieved when they spotted Luka rounding the counter. Alex returned their full attention to the small girl and her mother while Luka smiled at the two teens with a younger child hovering by the bins of unstuffed shells by the entrance.

While he didn’t know them personally, he recognized Brooke and her younger sister Hali, who worked (or in Hali’s case just hovered around in the back when not at daycare) at their uncle’s travel agency, and then Makoto, who worked at the jewelry store. Judging from their uniforms, the teens were probably using their breaks to accompany Hali. Since he often heard good things about their work ethic and Hali’s sweet nature from Mari, he assumed he had an easy session ahead. He waved them over.

Brooke and Makoto shared a nervous look while Hali bounded over with a bright smile.

“Why, hello there!” Luka pasted on his most vibrant customer service smile as he lowered onto the seat by the stuffing station. Cotton and soft fibers filled the glass tank decorated to look like hearty trees and branches climbed around the edges. The machine itself matched the lilac walls and brown and bronze gears that decorated them. The bins and shelves that held the merchandise throughout the store were all structured to look like spools of golden thread.

Holding an unstuffed goat with dark brown fuzz and silver horns, Hali shyly smiled up at Luka as Brooke and Makoto slowly joined.

“I see you’ve picked your new friend!” Luka held out his hands and Hali gingerly lowered the flat goat into his palms. “Before we bring them to life, how stuffed do you want them to be?”

“Um?” Hali tilted her head with a blank expression.

“Do you want them to be firm or squishy?” Luka clarified, fitting the goat around the nozzle and getting his foot ready over the pedal.

“Fiwm, pwease!” Hali declared in a cutesy voice.

“Excellent choice!” Luka set to work, pumping the pedal as he filled out the head of the goat plush. The machine roared to life, blowing air and fluff with the force of a vacuum. Though, his ears perked when he caught Brooke and Makoto in an intense discussion as they remained a couple steps back. What he couldn’t hear over the machine, he pieced together easily enough.

He knew the rumors and could guess what was on their mind when they mentioned the Snatcher and stolen souls.

Luka smirked as he pulled his foot from the pedal and the machine hushed.

“Now it’s time for my favorite part.” He beamed, pulling off the firmly stuffed goat and then reaching for a bucket full of small felt hearts. “The soul ceremony! Go ahead and pick the heart that most resonates with you.”

“If it’s just a heart, why is it called a soul ceremony?” Brooke asked, her voice quivering as she pressed closer to Makoto.

Hali, meanwhile, was completely enraptured with picking out the right fabric heart.

“Hearts, souls, same thing, really,” Luka soothed with a toothy grin, giving the teens a considering look.

Makoto’s gaze flickered down to his fangs. She lifted her chin, trying to project an air of confidence. But her furrowed brows wavered.

“Souws awe heawts?” Hali gasped, looking up with awe.

“Absolutely!” Luka kept his voice cheerful, gesturing to the bucket. “It’s what gives your new friend life! I imagine without one, they would feel pretty empty and hollow.” Keeping his chin tilted down, he lifted his eyes towards the teens and lowered his voice just a touch. “Wouldn’t you feel pretty soulless without a heart?”

The two stiffened.

“Pwobabwy!” Hali chirped, completely unaware of their increasing unease. She dug around the hearts and pursed her lips. “How do woo know which heawt is the best?”

“That’s up to you!” Luka bounced effortlessly back into an upbeat cadence. He pinched a heart with a checkerboard pattern in red and white. “The nice thing about these hearts is that they’re blank slates. They’ll be filled with whatever you put into them. But don’t put in too much!” he added with a chuckle. “Wouldn’t want your new friend to be more you than you!”

Brooke squeaked in fright and his grin stretched.

“I wiwl take this one, then!” Hali held up a solid red heart.

“Great! Hold on to it, now.” Luka placed the tub back down. “First, why don’t you rub the heart on your hair so your little buddy will always have soft fur!”

Hali beamed at that and rubbed the fabric heart on her hair. When she pulled it back down, some of the blond strands followed the heart while the strands too far away stuck up from the lingering static.

“Well done! Now, rub it against your funny bone so your friend has a sense of humor.” Luka tapped his elbow when Hali crinkled her nose for a moment. Her eyes lit up in understanding and once the heart was granted good humor, Luka added, “and why don’t you strike a superhero pose, so that your pal will hold courage.”

Hali giggled as she placed her hands on her hips and preened.

“Fantastic. Lastly, I want you to rub the heart between your palms!” Luka motioned for her to mimic him as he demonstrated. “Now, when it’s nice and warm, give it a clap to start its heartbeat!”

The clap resounded through the workshop and the teens jolted behind her.

“That should do it,” Luka praised, holding out his palm. Hali handed the heart over, and he slipped it into the goat, tucking it snuggly away in the cotton and fluff.

He then set to filling out the rest of the plush. Once it was stiff and sturdy, he handed it to her, asking if she was content with it. When he received an enthusiastic nod, he took it back and sealed the hole. He snipped the extra thread with the scissors in his apron and then passed the goat back to Hali.

“Here’s your new friend! Be sure to visit our shop in the back! We have plenty of accessories and outfits for the newest member of your family,” Luka recited the same sales pitch as always. “Once you’re ready, head over to an open kiosk so you can fill out the adoption papers. If you need any help, Alex or I will be overjoyed to assist.”

“Thank woo!” Hali hurried over to the accessories, hugging the goat to her chest.

Luka clasped his hands and turned to the teens. When his gaze flickered to the floppy hooded doll in Makoto’s arms, her embrace tightened.

“Ready?” He motioned for her to hand it over so that he could stuff it.

She looked to Brooke, who shrugged with uncertainty. Makoto stepped forward.  

Keeping his tone light, he went through the same script as always. He asked if she wanted the doll to be firm or squishy and, in an effort to loosen her up a bit, offered to add any fun sound boxes or scents to the plush. She remained on edge until he asked about the nametag on her uniform as the machine roared to life again. She explained how her boss liked to give everyone themed nicknames and she was saddled with “Makoneko.” When he asked if she appreciated the nickname, she pointedly rolled her eyes as he removed his foot from the machine pedal again. Her shoulders relaxed when he chuckled.

“Your turn to pick a heart,” Luka twittered in an overly cheerful voice as he held out the bucket.

“Do I have to do the ceremony?” Makoto hesitated, plucking the first heart she saw. Rather than scared, her bored expression mirrored that of many teens who wanted to skip the step.

Perfect.

“I wouldn’t recommend it.” He shrugged casually. “What is a heart without a heartbeat? A soul without a person behind the personality?”

“What?” She faltered, shoulders slowly stiffening again as Brooke’s eyes widened.

“I only mean it’ll be a sorry existence for this little friend.” Luka waved the stubby hands of the purple plush toy. “And you get out what you put in.” Her brows dipped in slight confusion, and he smirked. “You have to at least start its heartbeat. You don’t want to bring a ghost home, do you?”  

“Just do the ceremony!” Brooke hissed through clenched teeth.

“F-fine,” Makoto said, slowly lifting the heart to her long black locks. “So, hair for soft fur?”

“Does it look like this one has fur?” Luka gestured to the doll with the yellow spiral in its hood. He scoffed, turning up his nose. “Of course not! No. First, why don’t you rub the heart against your belly so that it’s full of laughter.”

“I thought that was the elbow.” Makoto crinkled her nose. Though she rubbed the heart against her stomach, eager to get it over with.

“There is a difference between telling good jokes and laughing at them, kiddo,” Luka offered with a smirk. “Now, how about you jump up and down a few times? I’m sure your friend would love to share some of your energy.”

“What does that mean?” She jolted.

“Just that exercise keeps the heart healthy,” Luka said placidly.

Her eyes narrowed but she eventually gave a sluggish skip.  

“Then, rub it against your ear, so it will always listen.” He smiled brightly, being sure to bare his teeth. Once she complied, he clasped his hands together. “I’m sure you know what to do now! Warm it between your palms and then clap to start the heartbeat!”

She let out the breath that she had been holding, relieved it was finally over. She gave a small clap before passing the heart back. He slipped it into the doll.

“Any names in mind for your friend?” Luka prompted as his foot tapped the pedal.

“I don’t know,” she mumbled curtly, purposefully trying to let the whirling air in the stuffing machine drown out her answer.

“How’s this feel?” he asked a few seconds later when the machine hushed again. He pulled the doll from the nozzle and passed it back to her.

“Good.” She returned it after assessing the squishiness.

“If you haven’t got any names, I always thought these particular dolls looked like minions,” he prattled, closing the seam. When she didn’t respond, he continued lightly, “so Minion might be a good name.” He glanced up to meet her gaze and lowered his tone. “You did make sure it’ll listen. It’ll be an obedient little kiddo.”

Her breath hitched.

“Obedient to who?” she challenged, maintaining a fragile glare.

“All done!” Luka snapped upright after snipping the excess thread, pretending he hadn’t heard her question. “Welcome your friend into the world!”

Makoto accepted the doll, her gaze flickering between it and Luka with uncertainty.

“Same as always,” he droned in his peppy, customer service voice. “Browse to your contentment. My daughter recommends the plush purple cherries. You want to keep your buddy happy and fed! Make sure to finalize the adoption and meet Alex or I by the counter.” He glanced over to find the other young girl with her mother already at the cash register. “Looks like it’ll be Alex!”

Makoto nodded numbly as Brooke stepped forward and looped her arm through hers, rescuing Makoto by tugging her away.

“One more thing,” Luka began, keeping his eyes on his clean-up routine. The teens’ footsteps paused as they hovered. Though his smile laced his voice, his enunciation was sharp. “I’m sure the Snatcher doesn’t have to tell you but be sure to treat your new friend as you would yourself. You put your soul into bringing them to life, after all.”

The teens gasped.

“Have a good day, kids.” Laughter laced his voice.

They rushed away as he chuckled.

While he finished cleaning up, Hattie returned with her friends. As soon as she spotted him behind the stuffing machine, she rushed across the tiles decorated to look vaguely like a forest path.

“Here’s your coffee,” she chirped, holding up the cup.

“Any plans for the rest of the day?” he asked, pushing to his feet and picking stray fluff from his apron. Once he was as clean as he was going to get, he accepted the drink. He held it towards his lips, pausing to quirk a brow at young Muriel and Timmy as they passed the stuffing machines to check out all the colorful outfits. Belle, meanwhile, joined Hattie with her azure bow bouncing in her dark coils.

“We’re going to head to the bookstore.” Hattie shrugged. “Tim’s friend is hosting a card game tournament.”

“Remember to be back by six,” he instructed. “Don’t go snacking after four or you’ll spoil your dinner.”

“I know, Dad,” she huffed dramatically.

“Also, Mom says hi, Mr. Kingsley,” Belle pipped in.

“Tell Mari I return the sentiment. Now get your friends to stop loitering.” He turned back towards Hattie and rose his voice so Timmy and Mu could hear. “They scare away customers.”

“Says the Snatcher,” Timmy whispered to Mu.

Luka covered his smirk with the coffee cup. His gaze shifted over Hattie and Belle and he watched as Makoto and Brooke fled the store at a brisk pace. Hali struggled to keep up, but she managed to meet his eyes and offered a cheerful wave.

“Fine,” Hattie sighed. “Come on, guys!”

“I need to stop by Mom’s before we head to the bookstore,” Belle mentioned as she and Hattie turned to leave. “I left my cards with my backpack.”

As the girls left, Luka turned to head back towards the counter, taking a sip of his coffee. He immediately winced.

“Ugh, tepid,” he grumbled as Timmy and Mu ran past, hurrying out to follow Hattie and Belle.

After making sure the kids all had their backs turned and Alex was busy with something on the counter, Luka summoned a gentle ember to his hand. While the flame harmlessly licked the cup, the coffee warmed inside until steam wafted from the hole in the lid. He took a tentative sip and swallowed the scalding liquid.

The flames in his chest crackled and popped, and the knots in his shoulders eased.

He snuffed out the ember in his hand as he lowered the cup. Mist trailed from the lid as the coffee maintained its heat.

“I think you scarred those two for life,” Alex muttered as Luka returned to the counter.

“Which two?” he asked, mind still on Hattie and her friends.

“Brooke and Makoto.” Alex glanced up, shaking their head with a scolding expression.

“I didn’t do anything out of the ordinary,” Luka said calmly. He leaned against the counter, sipping his coffee during his momentary break. “If those hooligans are letting their imaginations run wild, it’s not on my conscience.”

“Uh-huh.” Alex gave him an unimpressed look. “Also, I think we’re running low on the beach ball accessories.”

“I noticed,” Luka muttered, swirling his cup pensively. “Those aren’t particularly popular, and we are getting near the end of the season…”

While they discussed whether they needed to send out an order or if they would make it until the fall selection came out, Hattie rolled on the balls of her feet as she, Timmy, and Mu waited for Belle to return from her mom’s flower shop just across from Kraft-a-Kid. Hattie idly watched all the mallgoers, thoughts blank, but Timmy and Mu had their eyes locked on Kraft-a-Kid, thoughts whirling noisier than the stuffing machines.

“Okay, I’m ready!” Belle announced as she bounced out with her deck of cards.

“Hattie.” Timmy whirled around. “Your dad’s magic!”

“Timmy, he doesn’t steal souls, we’ve been over this,” Hattie whined, crossing her arms.

“If he doesn’t steal souls, then what’s with his coffee?” Mu snapped, nodding her head towards the display window where Luka could be seen leaning against the counter inside the workshop.

Hattie squinted, trying to figure out what was out of place with the steaming coffee cup. After a moment, she turned to Belle, who shrugged.

“It’s hot!” Mu gestured wildly, causing her blond mustache to bob with her movement. “Look at that steam!”

Hattie blinked in disbelief.

“Yeah,” Belle supplied dryly. “Because Hattie ordered it hot.”

“But he said it was tepid!” Timmy argued. “We heard him!”

“He probably thinks it is,” Hattie said, knitting her brows together. “He likes his coffee hot enough to burn his tastebuds.”

“You aren’t getting it!” Mu huffed. “It wasn’t steaming when he said it was cold!”

“Okay, but even if he somehow heated it up, that didn’t have anything to do with stealing souls,” Belle appeased.

“That’s what we mean!” Timmy urged. “If he can use one type of magic, he can use others!”

“I regret the day I told you about those rumors,” Hattie grumbled.

It didn’t matter as much when strangers said it, but instead of laughing with Hattie when she told them that people thought her dad was some kind of heartless, soul-snatching monster, Mu and Timmy had latched onto the conspiracy and ever since refused to let go. She couldn’t talk about new product plushies or designs around them anymore because they would just start a debate about which shell would best hold the souls of children.

“Look can we just get going?” She started walking in the direction of the bookstore and Belle matched her pace. Mu hurried to catch up as Timmy trailed behind, keeping a watchful eye on Kraft-a-Kid.

“Are you sure you haven’t seen anything weird?” Mu insisted. “Heard any screams of children he caught? Seen any dolls move in the corner of your eye?”

“You know he laughs like a cartoon villain?” Timmy added.

“The store is literally called Kraft-a-Kid!” Mu continued. “Open your eyes, Hattie!”

“Kid is just another word for baby goat!” Belle argued. “It’s cute!”

“We aren’t talking about this anymore!” Hattie snapped, tugging down on the brim of her hat. She turned away from them and focused on Belle. “So, what deck are you using? The one with fairy types? Or your cat themed one?”

“Both!” She grinned mischievously as she happily helped to redirect the conversation. “I combined them because I wanted to use all my favorites. How about you?”

“Going with the forest deck.” Hattie glanced up, where her deck was safely tucked away in the hidden compartment she stitched into the top hat.

Timmy and Mu huffed, letting their argument go as they pipped in with talking about their own decks. But it was only a matter of time before they started back on their theories about her dad’s supposed magic. Trying not to deflate too much, she kept her eyes forward. She swallowed her frustration and focused on the upcoming tournament.

Besides, even if her dad did have magic and only used it for heating up coffee, it hardly seemed something a heartless monster would do.

Right?

#a hat in time #ahit snatcher #ahit prince #ahit hat kid #ahit dadtcher #my writing #build-a-bear au #'im gonna take a break' #*proceeds to post exactly one day after the old posting schedule #im still writing lol just gonna be all over the place for a bit #ALSO FINALLY WROTE THIS #ITS BEEN ON MY MIND FOR FOREVER #ITS JUST REALLY FUNNY TO ME TO IMAGINE SNATCHER RUNNING A BUILD A BEAR PLEEEEEEASE #i have one more short thing for this that addresses the heart-shaped hole in the room and then u might find me #ricocheting around other aus like a pinball #anyway that's all for now #thank you so much for reading as always!!!!! #catch ya later!