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ahgasegotarmy116 · 2 months

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Just Take It | Jeon Jungkook | Part Three

Summary: You settle into your new normal with Jungkook but looks like this new normal is going to get a little more interesting Pairing: Inexperienced f!reader x Best Friend's Dad Jungkook (20 year age gap) Word Count: 7k~ (Damn I spoiled ya'll lmao) Warnings: Smuuuuttt, Explicit Language and a crap ton of pet names (I'm sorry okay I love pet names lmao) a/n: I got carried away with this one and it's barely edited but I wanted to post it asap since I left you guys hanging for so long. I know I used hella pet names but I had to okay it was very necessary if you ask me 🤭 Requested by: @kkusadmirer 💜

After getting up from my nap yesterday Jungkook and I spent the night just talking about anything and everything and nothing all at the same time. It's been nice getting to see him in this kind of context, the both of us totally relaxed and comfortable around each other. He does throw the occasional compliment or flirt my way and it gets to me every time but I try to hide it. I have a horrible poker face though and he knows it.

Sunday morning started out the same as yesterday, minus the hangover thank God. I woke up late and Jungkook had lunch ready for me along with a coffee made just how I like it. "How do you know how I like my coffee?" I ask while taking a sip, smiling when I see his body stutter for a second before relaxing and going back to cleaning up, even though I told him I would do it after I finished eating.

"I just kind of noticed from the times you would sleep over and have breakfast the next morning with Jina" he says and I nod my head, a reasonable enough answer but still cute that he took the time to make sure he got it right. "Do you have any plans today?" I ask and he shakes his head no before responding.

"No, not really. I was planning on going on a hike later on though if you'd like to join me" he offers and I cringe at the thought. "Are you going to be running?" I ask, knowing for a fact that I couldn't keep up with him even if I tried. "I said go for a hike not a run Darling" he chuckles, his pet name of choice always causing a fluttery feeling in my stomach.

"Then okay, if you don't mind" I say and he brightens up at my answer before telling me the details and soon enough we're getting in his car and heading out.

"What's the name of this place again?" I question as I unbuckle my seatbelt, looking over at him while he does the same. "Lunar Falls, I'm guessing you haven't been here before" he says with a crooked smile before getting out of the car. "No, I don't think I've ever heard of it. I guess it's because I'm not much of a nature girly" I respond truthfully and he chuckles at my wording. "Well hopefully this will convince you otherwise" he finishes while we make our way to the path.

~~~~

After we've been walking for a bit I start to notice a bit more of the wild life and Jungkook humors me when I stop and watch as a little bunny hops around in a little clearing we're passing.

"Do you like bunnies?" he questions, his eyes crinkling at the sides while he smiles softly. "I do! I used to have one when I was a little girl" I say while watching it continue to hop along. "What was their name?" he questions, eyes totally focused on me without my knowledge. "Bunny!" I say, turning my face back towards him, eyes lighting up at the memories I made with her.

I watch as Jungkook gives me a crooked smile and holds back a laugh. "What's so funny?" I ask, scrunching my eyebrows together. "No, no it's nothing. It's just that Bunny isn't a very imaginative name for a bunny" he laughs, finally letting it loose. "I was four okay leave me alone" I mumble, crossing my arms over my chest and pretending to be upset.

I start to walk away and make my way further up the path but he jogs up in front of me, and stops me in my tracks. "Hey, hey I'm sorry I just thought it was cute" he explains, making my ears go red and I walk around him wordlessly and continue up the path, making him feel even more guilty.

"Are you mad at me?" he questions, walking beside me and I glance over at him briefly before cracking a smile. "No I'm not mad at you, I was just playing around" I say, uncrossing my arms and settling into a more relaxed posture to further support my claims. "Okay good" he says, visibly relieved and following suit and settling into a more relaxed pace.

As we continue walking we stop a few more times to look at more wildlife and as we finally make our way to the top I stop in my tracks. "What's wrong?" he asks stoping beside me, following my line of sight and notices that I'm staring at three beautiful waterfalls with a steady stream of crystal clear water rushing down them into a great big pool that's as pure as the water falling into it.

"You don't like it?" he questions, worried that he might've oversold the place to me since I haven't moved or said a word once I laid sight on it. "N-no, no Jungkook this is amazing!" I stutter out, hardly believing that something this beautiful had been so close to home this whole time. "Really? I thought you might like it but from your reaction you kind of had me second guessing myself" he says while rubbing the back of his neck, almost looking bashful.

"No I mean it this is incredible! How did you find this place?" I question, making my way over to take a closer look. "I mean I've always loved to hike and so I looked up places to go hiking when I first moved here and this was the first place that caught my attention" he explains and I nod my head mindlessly, listening but keeping my focus on the scene in front of me, shivering once the mist from the falls starts to hit my skin.

He takes notice of how silent I've gone and decides to just fall back and let me take my time enjoying the serenity of the moment.

"Thank you for bring me here" I say, turning to face him after a while. "I figured you needed to get out and clear your head for a while" he says softly, walking over to where I'm standing against the railing and watching the various fish that are swimming below us.

"I can bring you back another time if you'd like?" he asks and I can't help but let my face light up at the offer. "Maybe next time I can bring you after dark? That way you can see why they call it Lunar Falls" he suggests and I agree immediately. "I'd like that" I respond and he nods him head, satisfied with my answer.

~~~~

After we finished our hike we made our way back to Jungkook's house and got cleaned up, deciding to keep things low key for the rest of the day.

"This has been really nice" I say aloud, voicing my thoughts and garnering his attention while we spend time on his back patio, enjoying the night sky. "What has?" he asks, curious to know more. "Well, being here with you and I don't know, feeling like I'm welcome and appreciated and safe. I feel like it's been a while since I've felt like this" I admit and he nods, listening intently and hanging on every word.

"Well then I'm glad my intentions have been conveyed well because you are very welcome, appreciated and safe with me" he reassures with a soft smile, making sure to use my wording to show his sincerity.

"Thank you Jungkook, really, for everything" I say and I see his features soften a bit, relieved that he's been able to help a bit.

"You're welcome Bunny" he says with a cheeky smile. "Bunny? What happened to Darling?" I laugh, enjoying the switch up, maybe a little bit more than I should.

"Well you just looked really happy watching the bunnies hopping around, so I feel like the nickname fits. Would it be okay with you if I called you that?" he asks, which makes me want to say yes even more. "You can call me Bunny if you want to" I say, feeling almost a bit bashful at the memory of it.

"So Bunny, have you thought things through a bit more?" he questions, bringing up the topic I was scared to broach our whole time together. "I'm still not sure what I should do but all I know is that I really don't want to stay there while I try to figure things out" I say and while I take a deep breath before continuing he jumps in.

"Just stay" he offers again and as much as I want to say yes I don't think it would be the right thing to do. "Jungkook..." "No I'm serious, just stay. What kind of man would I be if I didn't help a friend in need? I told you I have more than enough space for you and it would be nice to have another person around the house again. Things have gotten pretty boring here ever since Jina moved out so please, just stay" he say and I know that he really does mean it.

"You sure you don't mind?" I question and his face lights up at my words "So you'll stay?" he says, not bothering to answer my question. "Yes I'll stay. But only until I find my own place!" I say, making my motives clear right off the bat. "Of course but you're free to stay as long as you want" he says and I nod my head, excited but also scared that I made the wrong choice.

Who cares though? There's no reason to deny him since he clearly just wants to help. Lord knows I need all the help I can get...

~~~~

Living with Jungkook for the past month has been great! We work well together and share the household tasks even though he wants me to leave them for him to do.

"I said I would wash the dishes. Just go sit down and relax, you had a hard day at work today" he says, while coming up behind me and grabbing the sponge out of my hand. "Hey!" I say in protest, reaching out for it while he holds it over my head, water droplets falling on my face.

"You had a hard day at work too! Plus you cooked tonight so let me do it" I say still jumping up and trying to grab it from him but to no avail he still keeps it far out of my reach.

He places his hand on me and I falter a bit, feeling his strong touch on my bare waist, my shirt having ridden up a bit from jumping and that's when he gets his way. "Go sit down on the couch and we'll watch a movie together" he says and I just end up looking up at him, watching the way his mouth moves instead of listening to what he's said.

"Bunny?" he says, squeezing my waist a bit to get my attention. "Huh?" I question, now looking at his eyes, and I see the amusement written all over his face after catching me staring at his lips.

He leans down and decides to whisper in my ear instead, teasing me mercilessly like he does every now and then and I have to brace myself against the sink behind me to keep my knees from giving out.

"Go turn on the TV Bunny and we'll watching something together tonight yeah?" he says in a hushed low tone and I'm only able to nod in response, clearing my throat to choke back the whimper my body was begging me to let out. But with the way that he is I know that answer is not good enough for him so he decides to play dirty and starts rubbing circles on my waist, waiting for a verbal answer.

"What was that Darling? I couldn't hear you" he presses leaving me choking out an 'okay' before slipping out of his hold and running up stairs to get dressed for bed although my main reason is to catch a breath after that.

After opening and closing my door quietly I throw myself on my bed face down and scream into my pillow.

'What the fuck am I doing? What the fuck is he doing?' I ask myself and this hasn't been the first occasion I've done this, oh no. These lines have been getting blurrier and blurrier as the days go by and this was one of the reasons I wasn't sure about staying here.

We're both two adults though. Two adults that live in the same house who, as far as I know are attracted to each other. We haven't really talked about that kiss after my engagement party since the morning afterward and nothing like that has happened since.

I don't know what's supposed to be done in a situation like this but I think I just need to stop over thinking it. If something happens then it happens and that's all there is to it.

I get up and quickly get changed into more comfortable clothes and head back downstairs and grab a blanket out of the little basket he has before plopping down on the couch and grabbing the remote.

"Did you pick something out yet?" he asks while coming downstair, also having gone to change into sweats and a t shirt and I glance at him for a second to say something but do a double take after having seen he's wearing grey sweatpants. I can't help but gulp at the sight before quickly looking back at the TV, praying that he didn't catch me but from the way he decides to sit a little closer to me I know I've been caught.

"Um no, is there something you want to watch?" I ask after clearing my throat and going back to scrolling through our choices. "Let's watch the next episode of that show you showed me last time" he says, picking something he knows I would like to make a choice quickly. "Oh um, yeah sure" I say, typing it in the search bar and pressing play.

As the show progresses I can't seem to pay the slightest bit of attention to it. All I can think about is the line we've been toeing for a while, and at this point I'm not sure what side of the line I want to end up on.

"Is everything okay?" he asks, placing his hand on my lap, catching me off guard and making me jump. "Yeah no, I mean yeah everything's fine" I stammer, not really knowing how to respond. He takes his hand off me and nods, not bothering to push anymore so as to not make me anymore uncomfortable than I already look.

I feel bad since I know I've changed up the atmosphere and for what? Because I might have a crush on my ex best friend's dad that I've been living with. Well, now that I lay it out like that I guess I do have something to be conflicted about but I don't know what to do, especially since I think he might like me too.

"Did you want to watch something else?" he questions, noticing again how spaced out I am. "Can I ask you a question?" I say before I can stop myself. "Ask me anything you want" he says, turning to face me.

"Why don't you have company over?" I ask the most general question I possibly could, leaving him laughing. "You wanna be a little bit more specific with that?" he chuckles making me squirm in my seat, trying to figure out how else to word this.

"Well I mean you haven't really had any friends over ever since I started staying here and I feel like I'm kind of getting in the way of your life here" I say truthfully, looking down at my lap, feeling a bit insecure at the fact that I might've overstayed my welcome.

"What do you mean? Did I do something to make you feel like that?" he asks and I immediately jump in, hating that I even brought this up. "No Jungkook you've been the perfect host I just can't help but think that I'm, I don't know, cramping your style" I say, cringing at my efforts to dance around the subject that I'm really curious about.

"You're not cramping my style Bunny. I don't have friends over because I don't really enjoy bringing people over to my house. Especially other women" he says the last part in a slower more purposeful tone, making me look up at him embarrassed and relieved that he's gotten down to what I had been getting at.

"I told you before that first night that you stayed here that I don't have a girlfriend and I'm not seeing anyone. I'm okay with not having someone right now and plus I wouldn't want to ruin what we have going on here" he say, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "What do you mean by that?" I question and he smiles at my adorable reaction from his point of view.

"That's a topic of discussion for another time Bunny" he says booping my nose and turning back towards the TV and grabbing the remote to change it to something else. "I- what? No tell me please!" I plead but he doesn't budge. "Another time, I promise" he says, giving me a soft smile and I nod my head before letting it droop a bit.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed" I say, getting up but he grabs my wrist before I can get too far. "Oh come on Bun don't be like that" he says, his eyes full of concern but I know that he won't budge on the subject. "No it's okay I really am tired" I say and gently pull out of his grasp and walk over to the basket to put the blanket back.

"Are we okay?" he asks, following behind me. "Yes Jungkook we're fine don't worry" I say while turning the face him and my heart stops from seeing how close he is, giving me his undivided attention. After standing there and studying my features for a bit he nods his head and leans towards me, giving me a kiss on the forehead like he always does.

"Okay Darling, goodnight" he says grabbing my hand and placing a kiss on it as well before letting me walk away after I say a quick 'Goodnight' in response.

My heart races all the way back to my room and what feels like hours afterwards while I'm laying in bed. I don't know what's happening to me and I'm scared to find out. I never saw myself as someone who would be with an older man but the thought alone excites me when it comes to him. If he means what I thought he meant down there then what am I supposed to do?

Where do we go from here?

~~~~

It's been a few days since we had that conversation and I wouldn't say things are weird between us but I would definitely say they're not normal.

I guess until we have that conversation he had mentioned there's gonna be a bit of tension between us. I'm too scared to broach the subject again so that leaves me to just wait helplessly until he brings it up again.

Putting my keys in the lock and opening the door I'm expecting to see Jungkook downstairs but seeing as I've gotten home a bit early I guess he might be busy doing something else and as I make my way further into the house I hear the shower water running and realize he's in there.

Walking upstairs I go to put my things in my bedroom but stop in my tracks when I hear what sounds like him calling out my name. 'He doesn't know that I'm home though so why would he be saying my name?' I think to myself and I place my things inside my room before walking over to his door but before I'm able to knock I hear something else that has me stopping in my tracks.

"Fuck yes Bunny just like that. Shit y/n, fuck" I hear Jungkook say between grunts and groans and I unconsciously clench my thighs together. 'I shouldn't be listening to this' I say to myself quietly and turn to go but my feet feel like they're stuck to the floor and I'm drawn back in by the sound of him moaning my name again.

"Fuck, wish I could have you in here y/n. My pretty little Bunny" he says and I start to hold my breath, trying to catch onto each and every word he says. 'I really shouldn't be doing this' I think to myself but lean in closer, curious to hear more. I've never heard a man moaning like this, let alone hear someone moan my name like this.

I never knew someone like him would be so, vocal.

I don't think I'll ever be able to hear him call me Bunny ever again without getting images of what I know he's doing on the other side of this door. "Darling want you so so bad. Come choke on this cock, there you go, just like that Bun" he groans and I know I'm a goner.

The pulsing feeling between my legs is getting stronger and I can't seem to catch my breath. 'What is this man doing to me? How am I gonna face him after this?' I ask myself but I lean my ear against the door and listen until he finishes, sounds of curses and my name are mixed with a low moan before I hear the shower turn off minutes later.

I stand there almost frozen in place before my brain catches up seconds later. 'Shit I've gotta get out of here' I scream in my head and run downstairs as fast as I can, grabbing my keys and putting on my shoes before running back to my car. I open it up with my key, not bothering to use the remote in fear of Jungkook hearing it from inside and sit in it for a few minutes, trying to calm my racing heart.

What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do? What the fuck am I supposed to do in a situation like this? It's not like I can call someone and say 'Hey I caught my ex best friend's dad who I happen to be living with moaning my name in the shower. What should I do now?' like who the fuck could I possibly go to to talk about this?

Taking a few deep breath in and out, I quiet down my racing thoughts as best as I can before opening my car door and heading inside. When I unlock the door I'm stopped in my tracks as I'm met with the sight of Jungkook with his bare back to me while he drinks a cup of water he just poured for himself.

"Y/n? I didn't know that you'd be coming home so early" he says flashing me a smile and putting his cup down on the counter before walking towards where I stand. "Oh, um yeah we finished up our meeting early so they let us go home" I say while bracing my hand up against the wall while taking my shoes off.

"I'm glad they let you do that! You've been working way too hard recently" he says while watching me. Just as I'm stepping out of my second shoe I end up tripping over the first leaving Jungkook grabbing my waist to steady me on my feet. "Careful Bun" he says and my heart rate picks up again from almost falling as well as gaining flashbacks of the last time I heard that name from his lips.

"Darling?" he asks, breaking me out of my train of thought "Huh? What?" I ask quickly, straightening back up and pick up my shoes to put them on the shoe rack by the door. "Are you feeling alright?" he asks, taking note of the sweat on my neck and shortness of breath.

"Yeah I'm fine why do you ask?" I say, looking into his eyes and trying my hardest to not look at his bare torso but ultimately losing the battle, my eyes flickering down to it for a second. He looks down and takes into account that that might be the thing that's making me act like this so he takes a step back to give me some room to breathe.

"Sorry Bun, I wasn't expecting you to be home this early. Let me go put on a shirt" he says and walks towards the stairs "You don't have to say sorry. It's your house, don't let me stop you" I call after him and he laughs in response before disappearing down the hall and into his bedroom.

I sit down on the couch to take another breather, begging my flustered self to get over it. I'm flattered that he thinks of me that way but I don't know how to act around him anymore after hearing him.

Like what am I supposed to do? Pretend like hearing him in the shower didn't turn me on and make me want to beg for him to take my virginity again. What am I supposed to do with this information?

"Y/n?" he calls out to me again and places his hand on my shoulder, now sporting a black t shirt and appearing behind the couch and looking down at me. "I'm sorry did you say something?" I say after almost jumping out of my seat from the scare he gave me.

"I said your name like ten times and you didn't respond. Are you sure you're alright?" he says, taking inventory of how I'm acting again. "No, yeah I'm fine don't worry about it. I guess these long days are starting to catch up to me" I say awkwardly scratching my head. He nods and takes his hand off my shoulder, not pressing me for more answers.

"Maybe you should go lay down until dinner?" he suggests but I go to protest right away. "It was my turn to make dinner tonight though" I say and get up to head into the kitchen but before I can get there he takes a hold of both of my shoulders and stops me in my tracks.

"No you need rest. Go upstairs and I'll come get you when it's ready" he orders. "But I-" "No buts y/n" "I-" "No. Go" he says, emphasizing each word and not giving me a chance to get in a word edgewise. "Fine" I grumble and he smiles before placing a kiss on my forehead. "It'll be ready soon" he says and turns me by my shoulders and points me towards the stairs.

I turn to face him and try to say something one more time but he cuts me off again "Go!" he chuckles and I let out a sigh before running up the stairs and into my room.

~~~~

"Bunny? You awake?" I hear him say as he comes into my room quietly after having sent me upstairs.

Somehow I ended up falling asleep after taking his advice of coming upstairs to lay down and I'm really glad I did. Hopefully I'll be able to act a little more normal now that I've given my brain a rest.

"Hmm?" I hum out, acknowledging his presence while trying to slowly regain consciousness. "I told you you needed some rest" he says, coming to sit down on my side of the bed.

"You ready for dinner?" he asks and I nod my head right away leaving him chuckling at my enthusiasm. "Do you want me to bring it up to you?" he asks while brushing the hair off of my face. "No I'll be down in a second" I mumble and he chuckles again at my groggy state.

"Okay well, don't fall back asleep okay? You don't want it to get too cold" he says, standing up and heading out of the room after gaining a nod in response. I take a deep breath and stretch before sitting up and taking in my surroundings for a second before throwing off the covers and getting out of bed.

Trudging downstairs I'm met with a the table all set with my favorite meal and a glass of wine for each of us.

"What's this?" I question sleepily, still rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. "I thought you could use a little pick me up and remembered how much you liked this dish when we tried it for the first time" he says, pulling out my seat and pushing it back in once I've taken a seat. "I feel like I'm at a five star restaurant" I joke and he chuckles at my enthusiasm. "You flatter me" he responds while taking a seat next to me, feeling as though sitting across from each other would feel too distant.

"Should I have dressed up?" I continue to tease and he does a motion for me to look at what he's wearing and laughs at my question. "Do I look like I'm dressed up to you?" he says, and I smile and shake my head before taking a bite. "This is delicious! It's even better than last time!" I say, humming in content and savoring the rich flavor. "I'm glad you like it! I wasn't sure of the spice blend but I'm glad it worked out alright" he says and take a big bite of his too.

As dinner continues it feels like normal again, the both of us talking freely and laughing together and it all just feels right, until he uses that nickname again. "Are you feeling better Bunny?" he asks, bringing up my weird behavior from earlier again and suddenly everything comes rushing back. "Yeah I think I really was just tired" I say awkwardly and he nods his head and thinks for a second before saying something else.

"Did I do something wrong?" he questions and I feel my heart break at his words. "No you didn't do anything wrong I promise. Why would you even say that?" I question, hating that he's doubted himself.

"I just feel like you've been acting a bit strange these past few days and I just thought I was doing something that might've made you feel uncomfortable" he explains while pushing around the rest of his food with his fork, distracting himself from having to look at me.

"You've done nothing to make me feel uncomfortable I promise. I've just been tired and drowning myself in work lately so I think it's starting to catch up to me" I say, telling him a half truth. I have been working a lot more lately but I've been doing it to distract myself from having to think about him.

It feels as thought all I can do is fixate on that conversation and it's been driving me crazy. I just wish that things could go back to the way they were but a part of me wishes that we could be something more than this. What that is exactly I have no clue but I think I might want to find out...

~~~~

After washing the dishes together I tell him that I'm going to bed early and although he looks as though he was about to ask me to stay he nods and says goodnight before letting me go.

Tossing and turning is all I've been able to do since I came back up here and I can't seem to catch a break as my mind plays and replays the sound of him moaning my name. The sounds of him growling in pleasure and praising me as if I was there with him makes me clench around nothing, begging to be full.

After trying to ignore that feeling as long as I can I finally break.

I trail my hand down my stomach and play with my waistband, debating on if I should really do this but as the memory of Jungkook's bare torso and his sweatpants hung low along his waist flashes through my mind I finally give in and take my clothes off, leaving me totally bare and open to touch myself.

My right hand trails down my torso just as it had before while my left one trails up and gropes my breast, pinching my nipple and making it harden from the contact. Once my right hand reaches the apex of my thighs I drag my ring finger along my folds, teasing myself and only just barely tracing over my clit.

I let out a shaky breath and continue my movements, slowly dipping further into my folds and dragging my finger up and down, gathering up my slick, making my movements more fluid. I drag my finger back up and draw circles around my clit, slowly working myself up and starting to get in that fuzzy headspace.

One that's desperate for release.

I let out a moans as I pick up the pace, switching to drawing figure eights with my thumb against my sensitive bud while dipping my ring finger into my entrance, making me let out a shaky breath. "Jungkook please" I whimper, my thoughts traveling back to him and how he touched me today, his strong hands on my waist and his intense eyes paying attention to me and only me.

"Fuck" I say, throwing my head back as I add another finger and continue rubbing my clit. Feeling myself getting closer to that edge I start thinking about how his hands would feel if he touched me like this. My left hand now on my other breast tugs on my other nipple and I call out his name.

"Jungkook please" I whine, so lost in this fantasy and not bothering to keep quiet anymore to the point of not noticing how he's standing in the doorway and watching me as I pleasure myself to the memory of the sound of his voice.

"Please what Bunny?" he says in a deep tone, leaving me pulling my fingers out and sitting up, pulling the blanket up higher on me. "M-mr. Jeon?" I say, reverting into that more formal tone, having gone from one extreme to the other.

"Come on Darling, you know better than that. Now what were you saying? Jungkook please? Please what Bun?" he says, stalking towards me and I can only open and close my mouth, losing my words from the shock of being caught.

"What would you like me to do for you baby?" he says while sitting next to me, the bed dipping under his weight. He called me baby this time, he's never done that before, why is he doing this? What is he doing in here?

"Look at how cute you are. Confident enough to moan my name while I'm sleeping just a few doors down but now that you've been caught you can't even say a word. But you sounded so pretty Darling. Can you say it again for me?" he taunts, leaning in and placing a kiss under my ear. "Come on Bunny, I know you know how to use your words" he whispers in my ear, leaving me choking out a response.

"P-please Jungkook" I say just barely above a whisper. "Please what Darling?" he says, ghosting his lips along the nape of my neck. "Please let me cum" I choke, tears now threatening to fall. The embarrassment and intensity of this moment being nothing like I had ever felt before.

"Would you like me to help you cum Princess?" he ask, leaning back to look at me and I nod my head, a stray tear streaming down my cheek. "We don't have to do this if you don't want to. I can walk right out of here and we can pretend that nothing ever happened" he says, reassuring me that this is my choice.

"Please help me cum" I plead, another tear falling and he cups my face and quickly wipes it away.

"Lay down for me yeah?" he says in a hushed tone, kissing my forehead again and guides me back down onto the bed. I watch as he caresses my face again, studying my features before saying another word.

"Can I kiss you Bunny?" he asks and I nod my head immediately. He leans down to kiss me but stops just short of letting our lips touch. "Use your words Darling" he says, his warm breath fanning across my lips and making me choke back a moan before saying 'yes' leaving him smiling against my lips before pressing them against mine.

This kiss is different than the one we shared before. It's more delicate, more sensual and it has my hips bucking up, begging for some friction. "Someone's needy now aren't they?" he taunts before kissing me again. "Can I take this off?" he questions, playing with the blanket I have covering me and I nod before letting go and he gets up only enough to push the blankets off of me.

His eyes drink in my form, trailing slowly up and down my body and leaves me clenching my thighs together, still frustrated from having my orgasm cut off. "You want me to touch you?" he asks, his cold fingers ghosting along my waist, leaving me shivering at the feeling. "Please" is all I can manage to choke out, overwhelmed and excited by what's to come.

"Open your legs for me Princess" he says while guiding my legs apart and now tracing patterns on my stomach. "Were you just using your fingers baby?" he asks and I nod leaving him following the path my fingers once traveled. "Want me to use mine?" he continues and I nod again, taking in a sharp breath once he runs a finger through my folds.

"Baby was all wet just thinking about me huh?" he says and I cover my face, too embarrassed to say anything. "Can I ask you a question Darling?" he says while he traces lazy patterns up and down my slit. "Y-yes" I whimper, pressing my head back against the pillow.

"Did you hear me earlier today when I was in the shower?" he asks and I take my hands off of my face, looking at him like a deer in headlights shocked at the fact that he found out.

"I noticed that you didn't bring your bags in from your car like you normally do and when I was walking out of my room I noticed that your door was open and your bags were already inside. Meaning that you were probably in the house before I first saw you. Isn't that right Princess?" he says before pushing a finger inside me.

"Yes" I moan, my back arching as he drags his fingers lazily along my folds, never having felt this before, never having been touched like this before.

"Is that why you were acting so jumpy today? Were you thinking about how I was moaning your name in the shower? How I was saying I wanted you in there with me so bad? Were you listening when I said that Princess?" he says while easing another finger into me leaving me choking back a moan and letting tears fall down my face from all of the intense feelings I'm having all at once.

"Yes, fuck yes" I moan out when I feel him hit that spot inside me that I've never been able to reach. "You like that? You like it when I touch you like that?" he says now leaning down and biting my collar bone gently leaving me arching up into his touch. He licks the spot slowly, easing the slight pain and trails kisses down my breast.

He looks up at me before he goes too far and glances down at my nipple that's right in front of him and looks back up at me wordlessly asking for my permission. "Yes Jungkook please" I groan out and he pushes his fingers in further dragging harder against my walls as he takes one of my nipples into his mouth.

"You make such pretty noises Darling" he praises, switching over to the other nipple after having abused the first one, leaving it puffy and wet. I clench around his fingers in response, loving the way he's talking to me.

"Does baby like getting praised? Do you like it when I tell you how pretty you look while you're under me?" he taunts and I clench around his fingers even harder while my back comes off the mattress, feeling myself getting closer to tipping over the edge.

Babble out a slur of curses attached to his name, begging to cum and he chuckles dryly, enjoying the way my face contorts in pleasure. "That's it Bunny, just like that" he say, coaching me through it until I'm about to reach the edge and as I tip over I grab the back of his neck and pull him down, smashing his lips against mine, making him swallow my moans as I come undone.

His fingers don't falter for a second as he fucks me through my high and only stops when he hears me whining from overstimulation. "You did so well Princess" he says while brushing the tears off my face. "You did so good for me" he praises again and I hum in contentment, feeling myself start to drift off to sleep.

He chuckles at the sight and goes into the bathroom and comes back to clean me up before picking me up and taking me into another guest bedroom so I can sleep on fresh sheets.

"Goodnight Bunny" he says, leaning down and placing a kiss on my forehead before slowly leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.

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two-white-butterflies · 11 months

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therese | d. targaryen

Description: You are famous for acting in films that gain critical acclaim, but much of your life remains secret. In where, your private life becomes public. Pairing: millionaire!daemon targaryen/lowkey-actress!reader Tags: established relationship.

Daemon wasn't the kind of person who'd stay secret about something he was proud about. He wanted to scream your name into the crowds - without any fear of their judgement. He was proud, and you were the opposite of that.

"Which one do you want, baby?" he asked while pointing at the two bags held by the sales associate. One was black, and the other one was white. They were the same brand - the same hardware and everything, but in your eyes they were different from each other.

"You don't have to do this babe," you lean your head on his shoulder. He presses a kiss on your forehead, smiling proudly as you continued inspecting the items in the shop. "It's not everyday that my girlfriend is nominated for an Oscar," he boasted while placing a pair of sunglasses on the sales associate's hands. "- you've been ranting about this bag for weeks. I'm buying it for you, princess." he asserted.

"I'll take the black one," you smiled, entwining your hands together as you continued strolling down the store.

He was extra when it came to everything. You'd tell him that you wanted a smoothie and he'll bring you all the flavors - you'd tell him that you were nominated for an academy award and he'd rent out the entire mall. It was impressive to see the lengths of what his money could provide, but it was more impressive to see his efforts.

"I'm so proud of you," he whispered, keeping his arms around your waist. "Thank you for doing this, babe." your smile deepened. He spots another store in his periphery - and he wastes no time in leading you inside.

"- and the winner is therese!" the hosts announce your stage name, and the tears began flowing out of your eyes.

You finally made it!

Your manager presses a kiss to your cheek, before helping you gather your gowns and walk to the stage. The hosts give you the award - muttering a few words of congratulations.

You walk up the podium, staring at the faces of your peers. A decade ago, you were the one watching them on the screen - and now you were one of them.

You stare at the camera, with tears still flowing down your eyes. "Daemon, baby we did it!" was the first thing you said, and the crowd erupts into a second round of cheers.

"I want to thank everyone especially the academy, my co-workers, the directors, the writers and the producers. I couldn't have done it without you." you thanked, wiping the tears away from your eyes using a small handkerchief.

"I want to thank all of my fans for supporting me. I'm so sorry, I didn't prepare a speech because I thought Meryl Streep would win. I'm just really glad to be among these women today." you smiled, knowing that he was watching you from the screen.

theresesupporter NAUR cuz who tf is Damon?

MicheleTheMonsterFromHell not ya'll acting shocked that therese has a bf, we didn't even know her real name until last year 💀

SullyFarts_8: IMAGINE SHE'S MARRIED WITH KIDS - MicheleTheMonsterFromHell: I wouldn't be surprised 💀

Therese_Ismy.mommydom My #1 suspect as therese's bf

BenjaminButtons_11: OR Daemon Targaryen - Therese_Ismy.mommydom: Who?? - BenjaminButtons_11: The guy who basically owns half of the trade industry 💀 he's famous in europe/south america cuz he acted in that one telenovela as a teen - Therese_Ismy.mommydom: nty i think it's matt damon 😁

Daemon settles down beside you with a pout on his face. "What's wrong?" you ask while editing his face on the body of a Pokemon. "Everyone thinks that you're dating Matt Damon," he huffs while browsing through his Ipad Air.

A loud laugh escapes your mouth.

"#DamonandTherese, #ThereseDamon," he continued reading the trending hashtags on Twitter. "- you should've said my full name." he pouted, and you pressed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Daemon Targaryen, I love you." you hum, placing your phone on the table and wrapping both of your arms around him.

thereseupdates: Matt Damon and Therese in 'Adjustment Bureau'.

TygaTyger: 💀 I THOUGHT IT WAS A JOKE

therese: 💜

Missusssususus: I don't think it's a joke anymore, also THERESE HAS AN INSTA!! WAR IS OVER

therese: my first instagram post ! (first pic: after the haircut/vacation) (second pic: before the haircut/pre-vacation) taken by @helaenas_photography

234,890 comments 5,782,105 likes

DaemonTargaryen: Now, about that Matt Damon guy...🧐

thereseupdates: OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OGM

puppygogo "Daemon Targaryen is currently worth $900 Million" CHILEE mom get the bag 💅🏻

part two

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army93bangya · 3 months

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The Moon Goddess’s Chosen | Chapter 2 | MYG [M]

Chapter 2

*Summary: Y/N has been sheltered and hidden within her pack her whole life. She is gifted and her father the alpha of the pack does not want her to find her mate and leave the birth pack. But not even he can stop her from attending the mate gathering between many packs every year to find one’s fated mate. Y/N is worried what her father will do should her mate find her and try to take her. Add in the revelation that the talked about fairly new pack Bangtan will be in attendance this year. Rumored to be ruthless and their alpha heartless, Y/N has every reason to be concerned and riddled with anxiety.

*Genre/Rating: Mature, 18+, Werewolf/Fated mates, eventual smut?

*Warnings/Potential Triggers: Talks of Child Abuse, Abuse, Non-con Touching, Mistreatment, Non-con Confinement, Angst, Anxiety, Nervousness, Character Poisoning, Explicit Language, Mention of plotting Murder, Mention of Murder/Massacre, Reader is going thru it, Possible future Smut,….more to be added in future chapters.

*Disclaimer: This work was written and owned by Army93bangya and there is no consent for anyone else to post it as theirs, this story is intended for entertainment purposes only, this story is a work of fantasy, seems a bit ridiculous to say but I do not own or have rights to BTS or the members and the characters in this story are a fictional interpretation of members.

*Notes: ATTENTION! Pov change to second person writing. OMG I was really amped up after posting the first chapter/teaser and immediately started working on chapter 2. My sleep has suffered getting this all typed out, but I just could not help it! I worked really hard on this, and I just have to say, as a long-time avid fanfic reader I now have an extreme appreciation to all the writers out there. I knew that writers put a lot of time, energy, and passion into their work, but I never truly sat and thought about how much work it is. So, for all the writers out there and the ones whose stories I have read and love I just want to say ya'll are rockstars in my book! I wrote this and thought I was done but then went back to proofread and edit and ended up writing another 1k words last night. Anyways again, if you come upon this story and give it a chance, Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy!

*Words: 4k

*Date posted: 01/14/2024

Previous Chapter —- Next Chapter

Maddie left your tent a few minutes ago to join the other pack members that were already making their way to the gathering. Sitting silently you wait for your father to come fetch you when Darius storms in. Grabbing you he throws you on the bedding. You let out a surprised yelp and try to get back up, but he pushes your body back down growling as a warning before climbing on top of you to start rubbing his entire body against yours practically squishing you, and seemingly trying to scent you as much as he can. Grabbing the bottom half of your face and yanking your head to the side, he starts laving his tongue roughly against your pulse point where a mating mark should go, before moving your head to the other side giving it the same treatment. Feeling disgusted by his actions and close proximity you attempt to push him off, but he grips harder, an even louder growl rumbling through him causes you to freeze knowing better than to keep resisting.

“Don’t think for one second you’re going to find your mate and be free of us. If you bond tonight with anyone he will be dead before you can even make it out of this territory!” You glare at him as he pulls himself off you, yanking you up to stand, heavily sniffing the air to make sure his scenting was efficient. You now reeked of this fucker and wouldn’t be able to get his scent off without having to bathe again. He shoots you a threatening look “You can glare and act like you don’t want me as much as you desire, but we both know that someday your father is going to stop dangling you over my head as motivation for my eventual secession finally letting me sink my teeth into that pretty neck”

Your father waltzes into the tent with a stern look permanently etched onto his face and glances between you two. “You did a good job Darius, I can hardly smell her scent.” Darius’s face turns smug and you have an almost irresistible impulse to find something sturdy that you could pick up and land the hardest blow you can against his unappealing mug. Words sink in and your mouth almost drops open in realization before schooling your features and looking at the ground instead like your father usually preferred. Of fucking course these two had come up with this tactic. Drenching you in Darius' scent, basically claiming you as his future chosen mate to mask your own so that you have less chance of your mate smelling you. You feel upset but at the same time if your mate is in attendance today and doesn’t catch your scent, or thinks you already have a chosen mate and decides not to approach you, then you don’t have to worry about him being killed. You wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if your mate finds you and is a kind decent wolf, only to be murdered because of what you are and your father’s desperation to keep you forever captive for his own selfishness.

Being the Goddess’s chosen, the mage wolf, you are supposed to be one that all wolves from any pack can seek out for guidance as you are a direct link to the goddess herself. You feel her at times and you know she is displeased for how you have been treated. The fact that the gifts she bestowed upon you has been kept hidden from the world. To be selfishly used for the benefit of one pack, for one alphas greed, has angered her. Not that you are offering a whole hell of alot for your birth pack. The link between the Goddess and yourself feels frayed, your abilities not as controlled as they should be. As a child you wanted to learn the intricacies of the link and figure out how to manage your gifts. You was happy to be her mage wolf, to have that connection with the Moon Goddess. Gaining hers and your fathers approval was just about the only thing you cared about. But eventually you got tired. You were not progressing quick enough for your father, he began to get frustrated and irate because you could not fulfill all his requests. That's when the abuse started, first you would just be locked in a room for days on end only receiving your meals. When that did not give the results he hoped for, the amount of food you received began to lessen as well. He always let you have just enough nutrients to keep you alive and somewhat mobile so that he could stretch out how long he kept you locked up before letting you out. You remember being so weak but reaching out through the link, you wanted your goddess to help you, to help you mend your fathers soul or to escape if he could not be healed. But she never did. Only sending feelings of patience and reassurance. You used to think that she was telling you to be patient and that you would be liberated from this loneliness and confinement. But your spirit broke and eventually you just gave up. Now you just don’t care. Choosing to try and ignore the link, not listen, not feel the goddess as much as you can. You have long come to terms that the destiny she has thrust upon you wasn’t meant to be. Greed and a thirst for power had corrupted it.

Your father walking towards you interrupts your thoughts. Glancing up but not looking at his face you see the cup in his hands and your stomach immediately churns knowing the contents that it held. He stops in front of you and holds the cup out for you to take. “Drink up. We can’t have any of your abilities making an unwanted appearance today or anyone finding out what you are.” Reaching for the cup hand shaking as you grasp your fingers around it, you know that you cannot refuse or there will be consequences. Accepting your present fate you respond. “Yes father.” Bringing the cup to your mouth, you down the contents as fast as you can the burn of it agonizing as it enters your body, a feeling you're all too familiar with. Tea laced with wolfsbane, not enough to fully poison or kill you but enough to make you feel weak, subdued, and to temporarily mute your gifts so that they will not surface when out in public. Your father makes you drink it whenever he wants to punish or establish control over you, it is also a method of containing your abilities if they start to go haywire. It makes you weak and unable to resist, not that you resist much of anything anymore. The wolfsbane leaves your body in pain until it is out of your system. You feel it causing a burning pain in your muscles and joints, your body beginning to feel heavier, the pounding beginning in your head. If they had given you a little bit of a stronger dose you would have been bedridden. As the wolfsbane makes its way through your system you once again contemplate for maybe the millionth time why your father didn’t just tell the other packs that you have already found your mate in your birth pack. The only thing you can think of is because of Darius. He means to eventually let his pupil mark you. If he says you already found your fated mate only to later be marked by Darius as his chosen mate and the other packs somehow found out? The packs would be outraged at your fathers blatant disrespect to tradition. It would make him look bad in front of the other packs, possibly losing him the few allies he has.

You sway just slightly on your feet and Darius moves to your side placing his arm around your waist, holding you up squeezing slightly uncomfortably. “You will stay by my side tonight. You will not go anywhere without me, keep your head down and do not speak unless spoken to. Do you understand Y/N?” His hand squeezes your side harder prompting you to answer. “I understand.” Secretly thinking that if you hurl today you hope It lands on him.The plan they have come up with is beginning to piece together for you and you have to say it’s a good one. First cover you in Darius’s scent, marking you as his and warding off other wolves. Give you wolfsbane to not only subdue your gifts and keep them from making an appearance, as sometimes you can’t control it when you are facing strong emotions no matter how good you are at hiding them. Also with the wolfsbane in your system you have no choice but to stay at Darius’s side, too weak to be able to walk around and mingle by yourself. Lastly, keeping your head down is not only keeping you submissive, it is also another way of making sure no connection to a mate is made. Mate connections can be made by scent, touch, and lastly eye contact. Yeah, you hate yourself for admitting the two banes of your existence have seemingly come up with a pretty good plan.

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The gathering is massive with multiple packs attending, even if the crowd is mostly just unmated wolves and the pack leaders. It is a huge clearing that stretches far in a neutral territory. With enormously long tables and benches set up on all the outskirts of the field. There are several piles of stacked wood placed strategically in areas throughout the field to be lit when the sun goes down so that the event can last through the night giving as much time for everyone to mingle in hopes to find one's fated mate. The mate gathering is sacred and bloodshed is prohibited. All these packs come together for one night peacefully lest they be banned from ever getting to attend again.

Darius, you, and the four pack betas follow behind your father to an area more so reserved for the leaders. You steal quick glances of your surroundings but keep your head lowered for the most part and stand next to Darius who stays close to your fathers side even after he dismisses his betas to go enjoy themselves but be on guard. A few alphas come up to your father and comment on your presence, asking if this was the mysterious daughter that has not been able to attend due to sickness. These alphas must be his adversaries, the ones that would not let your father continue to withhold you from a chance at being a mate to someone in their packs. But you must not seem to be as much of a mystery as they were hoping for because they do not stick around for very long after they get the acknowledgement that you are the daughter he has been hiding. Or they just can't stand to be around your father which seems more likely. The wolfsbane in your system and your demeanor makes it believable that you are sickly and you can feel the stares on your form concluding that they are most likely expressions of either concern or disgust. Your father just laughs about how you haven't been feeling well this day and that you are an incredibly shy girl. For fucks sake this whole experience is painful, and its not just cause of the literal poison in your system. Being paraded around all these strangers reeking of the asshole next to you, being forced to look docile and pathetic while masking the extensive discomfort of wolfsbane flowing through your body, you have a strong desire to throw your head back and scream as loud as you can. But that little act of defiance would probably get you starved and locked away for a month.

A growl accompanied by yelling rings out somewhere to the left and your head instinctively snaps up, eyes following the sound. You let out gasp at the scene, Maddie stands with a distraught look on her face while a man in front of her towers over another male, fist clenched and growling threateningly. A quick realization flashes through your mind recognizing the man on the ground. His name is Vix, Maddie always talks about him, that he has been pursuing her for almost a year now. He wants her to be his choice mate and after four years of not finding her fated mate at any gatherings, she has agreed that if she didn't find her mate this year she would be open to attempt a relationship with him. You focus back on the events unfolding as another unfamiliar wolf appears and grabs Mr.pissed offs arm whispering in his ear, his body relaxes and they both turn to look at Maddie. Your heart clenches at the terror on her face, she remains frozen, eyes wide as the seemingly now calm man walks up to her slowly like she is a skittish doe, standing before her his back is now to you so you can’t see Maddie on the other side of him. Slowly raising his arm, hand extended out to her, he speaks so softly that you can’t make out what he says, but a moment later she takes his hand and is being led out of the field on the opposite side that your pack entered. Your knowing perception somehow makes an appearance and it tells you that Maddie just found her mate. Vix gets up with a look that speaks of his anguish as one of your fathers' betas approaches him, grabbing his arm and leading him in the direction that will take him back to camp. You feel terrible for the wolf whose heart longed for your best friend. You recall her once telling you that much like Darius, Vix mate had died before he could ever find her. The feeling one gets when your wolf side senses the death of their fated mate is said to be gut-wrenching and leaves inside a feeling of hopelessness that can last weeks.

Darius' arm tightens around your waist in warning urging to once again lower your gaze. As you oblige you overhear a conversation happening not too far away. "Wasn't that one of the betas from Bangtan?” Your body feels like it just took a physical blow. That pack name had completely slipped your mind with all the stress of your own predicament bearing down on you. From a further distance away you hear the guy's companion reply “Yeah that was one of them. I would keep my distance if I were you, those betas are rumored to be just as powerful as an alpha” You can barely make out the first guys scoff and Darius who was apparently also listening to snickers before leaning down to whisper in your ear. “Looks like you're going to need a new maid. Don't agonize over it too much, she just got a raise in position. From lowly maid to the mate of a beta, I'm sure she will be ‘very’ well taken care of.” Dick. How you wish you could retaliate to his nasty derogatory words. Tears start to prick your eyes and you take a deep breath to subdue the panic you now feel for your best friend. She was your chosen family, the one person you could fully trust in the world. In the rare instances when you would lash out or if your abilities became overwhelming and started acting up, your father would lock you back into your solitude room. Maddie would sneak extra food to you and risk sitting by the door to talk to you for a while. She took care of you, encouraged you, lifted your spirits when everything got to be too much. She was your person and now she is gone. The grief you feel is immense but you lock it all away as best you can, you still have to get through this day.

“Well wasn't that a spectacle?” “Alpha Sharp, it's good to see a friend amongst these miscreants.” You almost snort, did your father just call other alphas ‘miscreants’? What a master of projection. “Alpha Y/L/N it's been awhile since we have had a chance to talk. How is your territory fairing?” You begin to tune them out and focus on your body and willing it to stay strong. Knowing your father you would not be attending for too much longer having already been here a few hours. He is just waiting for an adequate amount of time to pass before sending you back to your temporary camp without seeming suspicious. Or heck maybe he wants you to pass out and he can use such a display to keep you from ever having to attend again. Wouldn't put it past him to be elated with that outcome.

“That's Alpha Min over there and his other five betas with him.” If your ears could have perked up in this form they definitely would have. Fuck you want to look, to see the leaders of the pack everybody is apprehensive of and gossiping about. The thought shoots a pang through you reminding you again of Maddie. Of Course the halfwit next to you has to chime in. “That's him!? He's the powerful merciless alpha everybody whispers about?” You don't have to be looking to know that your father and Alpha Sharp have stiffened and are probably throwing warning looks at Darius for the volume he spoke those words in an area filled with sensitive ears. “Darius speak that loudly again and you will return to the camp.” You can't help the small upturn of your mouth at the reprimand. Promises promises.

“Sharp you always have your ears open, what have you heard about him?” You start to feel prickly. Maybe the wolfsbane didn't subdue your gifts as well as you thought because you begin to have a knowing feeling that you are being looked at, and not by anyone standing close to you.“Plenty. But whether what I've been told is factual or not I don’t know.” His audience must be staring at him expectantly because ‘alpha not so sharp’ sighs before continuing. “Let me start by telling you the only thing I do know for sure; Min Yoongi is the son of Alpha Min Hoon of the Min pack.” You startle hearing that pack name but it goes unnoticed as Darius and your father both stiffen and must be paying undivided attention to Alpha Sharp. Why didn’t this alphas surname spark recollection in you before. The Min pack was revered and old, very old. Everybody knows that the last mage wolf the goddess created was born into the Min pack. Darius’s voice breaks your train of thoughts. "I didn't know there was any survivors from Alpha Min's family.” “Well if what I heard is true you can't exactly call him a survivor. We all knew that the Min pack was decimated eight years ago, but it's all been speculation as to what exactly happened. What I was told is Min Yoongi ran away from his pack and went missing for an entire week before returning with a bunch of rogue wolves who helped him slaughter his entire pack before running off again.”

You feel bile rising in your throat, your heart quickening from hearing something so heinous. Why? What would have been the reason to do something that vile? That knowing prick starts again, somebody is watching you and the desire to look up in the direction you feel it coming from is almost overwhelming. From the ringing that has started in your ears you hear your father being the one to reply to Alpha Sharps words. “I knew that after it happened that there was a fight over the Min territory from the Crimson pack and the Kim pack who was the Mins ally” Alpha Sharp exhales a dry laugh before responding. “Yes from what I heard both sides lost quite a few wolves before they came to an agreement to split the territory, but then we know that two years after that the Kim pack was destroyed and the Bangtan pack was formed under Min Yoongi. For five years Bangtan and Crimson packs feuded and had territory disputes, Crimson being weakened from their previous fighting with the Kims was not able to get rid of Bangtan. That is until last year when the new Alpha Min once again slaughtered the entire Crimson pack leaving no survivors.”

Darius cuts in being fully engrossed in what he is being told. “I find all this hard to believe. How did one wolf take down not one but three damn packs. I know Bangtan now has all three territories, but there has to be more to this than him supposedly being blessed by the moon goddess.” You wish that whoever kept stealing glances at you would just stop. It is a foreboding feeling that is filling your already exhausted and overstimulated self with unease. You long to be able to just turn it off, to not be forced to be so acutely aware of this wolf's interest of your person. Focusing back on the conversation before you, Sharp answers captain oblivious. “How did I say that I was told he did it the first time? Rogues. Eight years ago, he ran and returned with rogues only to vanish again. It was said to me that those two years before he took the Kim pack down, that he was moving between the territories collecting rogues to fight for him. If I had to guess, he gave them promises of being a part of a pack again to earn their loyalty and that started to form what would become the Bangtan pack.”

You feel like you're having some bizarre out of body experience. You feel what you have felt since you drank the wolfsbane, the pain in your body, the throbbing in your head, and your seemingly muted gifts. Your emotions from what you are hearing, and being distraught over Maddie are there too, but the knowing sense is what is taking over and beginning to feel hefty. Someone will not stop observing you, and this sensation is so strong that a tingling feeling has also spread throughout your body. You feel this immense urge to lift your eyes, to finally gaze upon whoever this person is that your precognitive gift is screaming at you to see.

You're abruptly alarmed and left even further unsettled when your father, Darius, and Alpha Sharp's body language all abruptly change, taking on a more defensive but still somewhat of a civil stance. Darius’s arm once again tightens around your waist gripping and would probably feel more painful if you weren't so shell shocked and overwhelmed. You can no longer stop yourself from raising your eyes, first glancing at the man you despise, who hasn’t let go of you since you got here. His face is drawn tight with a look that says whoever he is gazing at is very much unwelcome. Somehow even with the wolfsbane poisoning your system, your link to the moon goddess comes bursting through your soul like a battle cry possibly stronger than you have ever felt it before. It is as if she is beseeching you, piercing you with cries to look! Just follow your gift, heed my command! The insistence, the urging is so shattering that you just can't take the torture of it anymore.

With your head raised you turn it slowly in trepidation, and to not cause yourself a wave of dizziness. Shifting your sight to immediately follow the feeling of compulsion and glance at who the moon goddess has implored you to gaze upon. A wolf with cat-like eyes has approached your group. His face holds blank, but his eyes speak. His wolf coming through them and shining amber with the bond of a fated mate being placed in him, and you know without a shadow of a doubt that your eyes are doing the same. Somebody's voice breaks through but your mind is so gone you don't have the slightest recognition of who it belongs to.

“To what do we owe this pleasure Alpha Min?”

#yoongi #yoongi mate #bangtan #suga #bts #bts jin #namjoon #hoseok #park jimin #taehyung #jungkook #werewolf #fated mates #fanfic #fantasy #x reader

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crisalidaseason · 4 months

Text

Percy Jackson community, we need to talk a little.

No spoilers, just ranting about some shitty stuff. Also, If i swear, I'm sorry but I am just a raging commie and swearing is a second language for me, but I'll keep it very very minimal.

The hate towards Leah Sava Jeffries is NOT tolerable. If I see people hating on her, I'm gonna be visceral towards you. (Ya'll know I am far from a pacifist, I choose violence always). When Walker was cast as Percy, people did complain a little but I always saw the "But he will be a good percy regardless, He has all the potential" but people would not give Leah or Aryan the same chance??? Like be for fucking real. That's fucking racism and for me racist people don't deserve peace.

Another complaint is "The show is too teenager coded, too silly". THEY ARE TEENAGERS BRO. Also...have you ever read ANY Percy Jackson book? Because there are serious themes, but the silyness is also there, specially in the first book. Percy is a teen and he still acts like one despite living the difficult life of a demigod.

Also, people complaining that Rick Riordan made changes and saying "It's gonna be shit". First, you don't know that. You don't have a crystal ball. Second, authors are allowed to make changes in their stories. Authors are allowed to take the opportunity of a series adaptation to change what they feel needed to be changed. Rick took a more 2020s approach (which was needed considering they are not catering the series only to us, almost 30-year-old adults) and that's fine! I love 2005 Percy, but we can also love a 2023 Percy because IT IS PERCY, but with a few changes to match our current years.

That's all. I am not sayint that the series is perfect, I have my critical thoughts on it BUT there are many dumb shit being said and I fucking hate it.

EDIT 1: I boycott Disney plus, don't worry followers I did not bend. I am watching it illegally like the good commie I am :D

#Percy jackson #PJO #percy #annabeth #grover

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anogete · 8 months

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Oh my goodness

Hello to anyone who remembers me. Real life and mental health both sank their claws into me. I've been avoiding social media because... well, many reasons but most because I feel like I'm a big ol' disappointment.

But today, I've come here like the humble whore I am to ask for a beta. Before you get excited, I have to warn you that it's not for Marvel, which (if you remember me) is what you likely know me for writing. Read on for an explanation about where the fuck I've been and what fandom I've spiraled down into lately.

In 2019-2020, I had a lot of grieving to do for some close loved ones who passed on. This led to a really shitty space for my mental health where I went into a functioning depression. I was doing things, but only the bare minimum required to exist without people catching on that I was in a bad mental space. I can't say I've completely kicked that, but I'm trying to do better. At the same time, I had a bunch of stuff going on a work. Specifically, I work for a team of advisors who provide financial planning services to individuals/families. I was promoted to an associate in 2020 and then we went through a merger with a larger firm in 2022. So, work has been crazy with me taking on additional responsibilities and working to build new processes after the merger. In addition, I managed to finish my bachelor's (20 years after I dropped out of college!) and take classes toward getting a CFP designation over the past 2 years. I'm scheduled to take the CFP exam in November. It's a 6-hour bear of a test covering pretty much all aspects of personal financial planning. And then next year I'll be continuing with my team as an advisor myself. Do I have anxiety? Fuck, yes. But I'm trying to stop cockblocking myself on the career front.

ANYWAY, enough with the boring stuff. I've been drowning in material for classes and studies with so little fun in my life. Somehow I got on CODTok (Call of Duty) and my little imagination ran wild as I watched these absolutely filthy edits of those boys. And for the first time in a long time, I felt that itch to write. I really should be focusing on studying for this exam, but all work and no play isn't fun. It's taken me 3 years to learn that lesson, but it has managed to finally sink into my thick skull.

My problem is that I know virtually nothing about Call of Duty because I don't like video games. As for the characters--I only know minimal info (mostly from YouTube videos and a COD wiki). It would be nice to have someone more knowledgeable than me to look over what I've written. And if not that, then it would be nice to have anyone other than me give it a beta read to point out my stupid mistakes or plot holes. I have about 16 pages of a Ghost/OFC written. It's my usual--heavy on the dialogue and sexual tension with a side of plot/action. I don't know how fast I'll be at writing this. Work is kicking my ass and I still need to dedicate my weekends to studying for this test. But if you're willing to take a little ride with me, I'd love some input. Send me a message or email me at [email protected] if you're interested. I miss and love ya'll.

#beta help #call of duty

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pandorascrush · 1 year

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LIFE FINDS A WAY

CHAPTER ONE : ALONE

ALL WORK IS MY ORIGINAL WORK

PAIRING: jake x neytiri and eventual jake x oc

TW: Mentions of death, mentions of dying planet, and mentions of sadness :(

SUMMARY: Esperanza Chacón is Trudy’s younger sister who finds herself on Pandora after some unexpected news. Who knew that her decision to leave Earth to go find her sister would change her life forever.

WARNINGS: This is sort of a slow burn to begin with, I want Esperanza as a character to have more backstory and depth to her. I also want this for Trudy because all we really got were glimpses of her but I feel like there was so much potential in Trudy as a character. This is eventual Jake x OC. I love me some Neytiri but for this story it’ll be a different route. All the children still exist though! It will go from 1st person to 3rd person POV a lot. Sorry if it starts off a bit slow but I want some depth. Please enjoy and leave some feedback!!!

NOTES: QUICK LITTLE EDIT. After reading this chapter and editing the next I just realized theres a song that would fit perfectly with the emotions that'll be exposed her and the coming chapters. I'll add it in a link below so ya'll can click it and listen to the song at the same time as you read this chapter! The song is On the Nature of Daylight by Max Richter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVN1B-tUpgs ENJOY! <3

ESPERANZA’S POV

My life on Earth was far from perfect, in fact it came with many obstacles along the way. From the planet dying, to people and corporations fighting over natural resources, people would think life on Earth was hell. Many people gave up on fighting for the planet when they realized we didn't have much time left on earth at the rate things were going. But I didn't, every chance I had at seeing Earth’s beauty and resilience I took. It was our planet and home, how could we just give up. But of course not everyone believed or thought the same way I did.

“Okay so what is it that you want to be again, or do?” My sister asks me for what seems to be the hundredth time.

“I already told you, I'm studying plant biology and botanical science along with earth science.”

“But what is the point of that if Earth is dying?” All I could do was just stare at her in disbelief.

“Damn Trudy, have faith in the fact that there’s people like me trying to find a way to help.”

“Sorry sis, but we’re fucked.” She says while holding in a giggle.

It was moments like these that I cherish, this is the last time we’ll be together before she gets shipped off to Pandora, a whole nother planet, moon actually. I take a moment to muster up the courage to ask the next question that I've been avoiding to ask.

“So…how long are you going to leave me for?” I ask Trudy hesitantly. All she does is look around avoiding my eyes and I do the same. I know the answer will be one I don’t like but I need to hear it in order to try and accept it. Accept the fact that I'll be alone.

“Only for five years, no biggie.” She says trying to alleviate the gravity of the situation.

“Yea five years, with six years to arrive and come back from there. Sure Trudy no biggie.”

“Come on Esperanza don’t do that. Don’t get mad, I want to leave on a good note.” She says while holding my hands in hers. I look at her and any anger I feel gets replaced with sadness.

“I know I'm sorry, but it’s just hard you know. Now I'll really be alone.” And that’s when I see the worry in her eyes and regret. But before she gets the chance to rethink her life choices I interrupt her.

“But it’s okay! Don’t worry I'll be fine, I'm a big girl now. Plus before you know it fifteen years will fly by.” I say while faking a smile.

“More like seventeen.”

“Doesn't matter as long as you come back.” I tell her while flashing a smile. All we could do was laugh and hug each other until our arms started getting sore from hugging.

“I love you little sis, i’ll ALWAYS come back to you.” She told me reassuringly.

“I know you will.” Is all I can muster up while giving her a smile.

It starts off with a faint buzzing sound in my ears. It’s a steady beat that seems to get stronger as the seconds pass by. I start to hear a strong thumping sound fill my ears and somehow it starts to overwhelm my senses. And that’s when I feel it, the cold air on my skin, and a bright light being forced in front of my eyes. I start to put my hand up to cover them but my body feels as if it was run over by a truck. It feels heavy and like an outer body experience, I'm not entirely sure if it's me moving my body or someone else. My eyes start to squint open and that’s when I see them.

On one side, there is a human man who seems to be dressed as a doctor. He has dark brown curly hair along with a beard and is wearing glasses. On the other side a na’vi man. Of course I knew they were indigenous to Pandora, but I never knew I would get to see one. But he doesn't look like a regular na’vi, his nose resembles that of a human's nose and he has eyebrows. From the small amount of knowledge I learned thanks to Trudy, the na’vi don't have any facial hair, especially eyebrows. The longer I stare the more I seem to notice that the human man seems smaller than the other man. In fact, he seemed smaller than me which is strange given I’m 5’7 and he seems about 6’0.

As I go to shield my eyes, that's when I see it. A giant blue hand, my giant blue hand. I look down at the rest of myself and I feel as if my world has made a complete 180. Gone are the legs of a human woman, now it’s those of a na’vi woman. And that’s when I feel it, a burning in my eyes and a panic in my chest.

I don’t understand anything at all. I start to panic and I feel the room closing in on me. I can hear my heart beat on the monitor going a million beats per minute. I hear the men yelling around and at me but it’s all just a blur. I’m too confused to understand and it feels as if it's the first time being in my body ever. I don’t even notice the moment I get up to stand.

One minute I’m sitting up and looking around panicking and the next I’m running to who knows where. I just needed to get up and go, the only thing on my mind was finding Trudy. It’s the whole reason why I gave up my life on Earth. To come find Trudy and potentially save her from the sickness the RDA told me she had. It’s while I'm running that I finally notice my size. Running on wobbly legs and taking unsure steps, it reminds me of those videos I once saw of baby giraffes getting up to walk as soon as they were born, before they went extinct. Running got easier with each step I took, it was the trying not to step on humans that was hard.

I barely even made it to the door of wherever we were when I was tackled. I look up to see two blue men trying to hold me down all the while yelling at me to calm down. I don’t know where it came from but I feel a hiss work it’s way out of my throat and I bare my teeth as if it was a natural reaction to being grabbed against my will. It’s when I see their panicked faces that it all starts to dawn on me.

I’m no longer me. I’m in a blue body, on a strange planet alone. I came here for my sister but I don’t even see her, I see these strange men who I have no idea who they are or what they want. A million thoughts are running through my head, and none of them are positive or reassuring. I just want my sister. Not seeing her is just filling me up with worry.

That’s when I feel the sharp jab in my arm while I’m thinking. It just felt like a light pinch, but I still felt it either way. The physical pain momentarily distracted me from my emotional and mental pain. I start to feel my body lose consciousness again and now all I feel is anger. Anger at these men holding me down. Anger at the fact that I’m blue for some reason. And anger at the fact that I don’t see my sister.That’s the last thing on my mind as I drift off into the darkness.

➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵

Jake walks into the lab and immediately walks towards Norm. He came to the lab as soon as Norm informed him that the last avatar woke up. It was still a mystery to him as to why she just didn't seem to wake up. Or want to wake up for that fact. Norm starts telling him of how you tried running off just like Jake had when he awoke in his avatar body. It felt like dejavú all over again for Norm and Jake. He can only stifle a chuckle before he realizes what this means.

This means that when you wake up again you’ll realize that your life as it was is gone. And that’s when it dawned on him, you were utterly and completely alone on a strange planet just like he was at the beginning. How would they be able to explain to you that Trudy has been dead for nearly seven years. They found out as soon as you had arrived who you were, but not the reason behind why you were there.

“So who’s gonna be the one to tell her?” Norm asks, he too realized what this meant.

“You know I can’t stay here for too long Norm, my duties as a chief won’t allow me to.” At this Norm lets out a groan.

“Fine but if she comes after me or hurts me, I’m coming after you, chief.” Norm called after Jake as he walked away to go back to his family.

All Jake could do was walk away and try not to think about how you’ll react. In the back of his head all he could feel was guilt. He knows it wasn't his fault and that it was Trudy’s decision to join the fight but he couldn’t help it. Ever since becoming a father and chief six years ago, he feels a sense of responsibility for everyone. He’s responsible for his family and clan, and now he feels a sense of responsibility over you. He was the reason as to why when you wake up you’ll have no one to greet you. Your sister won’t be there to reassure you or comfort you. But he had to push that to the back of his mind and go back to his clan. He just knew that he had to prepare Neytiri and Mo’at at least for the coming storm that you would be. If you were anything like Trudy, he knew he had to be ready.

Life as he knows it was about to change for you.

➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵➵

OKAY THERE IT IS GUYS! Here is the very first chapter of LIFE FINDS A WAY. I can't wait to keep writing the rest. I'll probably upload once a week, twice if I really can't help myself. I'm just in love with the ideas I have for this story and where it's going. Even if only one person decides that this story is worth their time, i'll keep writing. I'll make sure to create a master list as well and organize everything on my page as well. Also that is my face claim for Esperanza, it's literally the face of Neytiri and Trudy morphed because I just found this way the easiest to do. Any feedback ya'll decide to leave will be amazing and appreciated. Love ya, TOODLES <3

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randomgooberness · 11 months

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This is in reference to the one post where Gordon gets all embarrassed for talkin like a kid (and maybe I missed something) But does Freemind sign "sorry", or say it out loud? I'm so curious if ya'll have a reason for how or why Mind signs, or the fact that Gordon can even UNDERSTAND it !!

(ask is referencing this post)

TYSM FOR THIS ASK! WE HAVE A LOT TO SAY ON IT LMAO. @shineyfish 's answer: MIND SIGNS IT HE LOVES LANGUAGES!!! there's lots of points in Freeman's Mind where he speaks in different languages or references shit to do with that so it's a big hc of mine that he knows how to speak a bunch of different languages. Can't have prior potentially talking shit about him, and you can't talk shit about him if he always knows what you're saying! Hilariously to me though is that he Canonically doesn't know Morse code. Sign language in particular I feel like he'd know because it's a language where you don't need to speak to use it. That's perfect for anything where you need to be silent, for example, being in Panama with your buddy Eddie and you don't want to get caught.

My answer:

From Gordons POV, in my headcanons, he grew up learning sign language because of his autism- it made it easier for him to communicate nonverbally, especially because he was mostly mute for the first few years of his life(to which when he was like 7 or 8 he switched to never shutting up LMAO). Gordon couldn't actually understand that specific moment where Mind signed, because he wasn't facing him and was moving, so he didn't really see it- just a bit of movement(hence why he's confused in the comic). However, there IS a scene that took place a day or so prior(in act 1, that comic is in early act 2) that had them using it. I shared a small screenshot of the scene because it was really funny to me, but Ace agreed to let me edit it up and post the full segment here! Have a treat :D

This takes place after they get outside for the first time and run from the airstrikes- and go into the vents with the skeleton and the sweet voice.

WARNING FOR: ableism(internalized and external) and (technically)self-harm

"It can't be THAT hard to fly a fuckin plane!"

Mind laughed, half joking with that as he moved forward.

It didn't take long until he was whining again.

"Why are so many people trying to kill me?? I'm awesome! Are they jealous?"

He didn't have enough bullets for all of them at the rate they were going at. The military should give peace a chance, or at least stand still.

"I'm calling dibs on the med station."

"Go ahead," Gordon chuckled. "Yeah, I think they're just jealous of you. They uh. They think the Science Team is too sexy to live." He wheezed.

"YES!"

Mind hooked himself up the the med station, silently begging the thing for what he wanted.

The med station, checking his vitals and seeing he wasn't mortally injured, did not give him any morphine.

"NO!"

He rested his head against the thing as it appropriately treated his more minor injuries. He didn't want to say he was getting desperate, because he wasn't, and if you thought that you were wrong, but... It was hard to be sober around this place.

He laughed joylessly.

"They've got it all wrong. We're actually too sexy to die."

"Exactly!" Gordon laughed, clapping his hands. "Let's uh, c'mon, Bubby I- dude what are you charging in the HEV suit station."

"My MP3 player." Bubby said.

"What?"

"Don't tell anyone~!"

"...Okay," Gordon wheezed. "Is that what's playing the Russian speaking?"

"The what?" Bubby looked...genuinely confused by that question. "No?"

"What speaking?" Dr. Coomer tilted his head. Gordon sighed.

"...Nothing. Let's move on."

Whatever the fuck Gordon was talking about, Mind was a little concerned about it. Being overly Paranoid that you're seeing things can be good when you need to look for enemies, but hearing things that aren't there? That could be a problem.

Whatever. It wasn't too much of a problem right now, and they still had hallways to go through for a second time. He never wants to look at a hallway ever again. His headache was a little worse, and now that the noise was muffled he had a ringing in his ears.

"Why do you get an MP3 player?? And why does the HEV station charge it??"

"I want to listen to my tunes," Bubby said. "The HEV station charges anything."

"I use it for my bionic body!" Dr. Coomer nodded.

Gordon rounded over to a vent nearby. From it, odd humming and whistling could be heard- alien sounding. Like the Sweet Voice. He pulled out his gun and headed inside. Mind heard it too, flinching.

"...No. no, it's dead, we watched the bitch get torn apart by the doors, there's no way it survived that. I'm either just imagining that, which is concerning, or mistaking the sound..."

He didn't seem to be talking to anyone, although kept his gun ready as he spoke.

If nothing could kill that- that thing, then... "We really are fucked."

"No...No, I'm hearing it too, man," Gordon muttered. He was shocked that this vent was big enough to stand in, and walked cautiously. "...Maybe there's more like him here? I mean, it's called the Black Mesa Sweet Voice- it might...I dunno. We'll see. Maybe it's friendly."

"I doubt that, if Mall-cop was anything to go off of, it'll be irritating at best."

Following close behind Gordon, gun at the ready, he could feel his heartbeat. Something about the mere thought of seeing that thing again sent a spike of fear through him.

"At worst? I don't think I want to know."

"Yeah," Gordon laughed. "I'm tryin' uh. To be an optimist. Sucks."

"That's the problem, optimism gets you nowhere in the long run. At some point, you need to cut your losses and start breaking shit."

"It sounds, friendly," Tommy spoke up.

"Oh, right- you can read it.” Gordon perked up, looking at the taller scientist. “What's it saying right now?"

"Umm..." Tommy tried to focus. "I-I dunno, I can't really tell without the- without the colors."

"Oh, okay. We'll see in a bit, then."

They rounded a corner, and Gordon noticed a figure.

"Wait for my word, do not shoot."

A flash from a camera behind them.

"Don't take pictures flash photography scares him."

They got a little closer, and the figure was still hard to see in the dark.

"...Hello?" Gordon called.

A small buzz emitted from it, and then a few lower ones, purple. Gordon got closer, and sucked air between his teeth when he noticed it was a fucking skeleton.

"...Do you know what that is?" He whispered to Tommy, who shrugged.

As they turned the corner, Mind kept his grip on his gun, assuming it to be an army recruit. He couldn't make out a weapon, but he wasn't taking any chances on that.

He didn't believe his eyes when he saw it properly.

Option one, he was hallucinating. This was bad for the obvious reasons, but he was skeptical on that because the others were clearly seeing it too.

Option two, there was a real, living, sweet voice using skeleton in front of him. This was almost worse, because it immediately made him worry about Benrey. He watched him die. Now he wasn't so sure.

Option three, group hysteria. He wasn't certain on this one.

"... I'm not seeing that. There is no way I am seeing that."

"...I think we are," Gordon stammered, eyes huge.

The skeleton made a few more noises, sort of like a guitar plucking.

"Stay back- stay back staaay back-" It was hard to tell if Gordon was talking to the skeleton, or to The Science Team. "...You guys have any ideas?"

"...I could always punch it," Dr. Coomer tilted his head, though he didn't seem so sure.

The skeleton whistled a few times, a soft, odd noise, before it made a honk noise.

"...Okay, on three, we rush it," Gordon muttered. "God, I'm scared-"

Tommy perked up.

"Wait, no!" He cried.

"What?! What?! Do you know what it is!?"

"That's green!" Tommy asserted.

"What does green mean!?"

"Green means he's not mean!"

"So-"

Gordon was interrupted by repeated whistling and buzzing, a flail of colors appearing.

"What does that mean-" He choked. "What is he saying?!"

And then, suddenly, the skeleton reached a high pitch that continued on and on, and it was deafening, bouncing against the metal of the vents they were in and stabbing into their ears.

Mind almost dropped his gun, rushing to cover his ears. Too LOUD. Too MUCH.

"SsHHHHUUTT UP SHUT UP, BE QUIET!!"

"OW- FUCK-!" Gordon yelped, now covering his own ears.

It hurt. It hurt. Mind felt like his brain was melting, and without thinking he started shooting blindly at the thing, eyes squeezed shut and ears awkwardly pressed between his free hand and his shoulder.

He needed this thing dead... Again.

Unfortunately, he didn't think about the current location they were in, and the gunshots only echoed in the vents alongside the creature. He really should have brought his earplugs to work, but they might not have done much for whatever fresh hell this was.

"JUST KILL IT I CANT HANDLE IT-!" Bubby screeched. Gordon, as if he were an attack dog, started bolting toward the thing with a shout- leading the way as the rest of the team followed.

The skeleton, who didn't react much to the bullets, started running as well.

Mind squinted his eyes open, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes as he did, and saw the group running. Unbearable physical pain be damned, he ran after them, not wanting to be left behind.

He needed to make sure that thing stopped existing, even if the process of doing so was going to make him want to commit atrocities... More than usual.

Bubby raced ahead of Gordon and took out- ...oh god that was an RPG.

Before anyone could say anything, the trigger was pulled, and a rocket blasted through the vents before exploding against the metal, sending a blast of heat and deafening ringing toward everyone.

...And, not only did it not break the vents they were in, but Gordon and the rest seemed to not even care, locked on their target.

Mind, who had uncovered his ears, deciding to just grin and bear it until the thing was dead, caught the full sound of the explosion.

In almost an instant his body decided enough was enough, and he screeched, falling to his knees and covering his ears, gun forgotten beside him. His palms were pressed hard enough to hurt, and he was almost certain that when he took them away, the imprint of the gloves would be on his face.

He didn't care. He just needed the ringing to stop.

He didn't even notice the tears falling until he took a breath, shaky and broken, and heard himself sob. What filled his chest at that was a red-hot shame. What kind of idiot couldn't handle a little bit of noise? Even at that, he didn't need to cry at it, he was being pathetic. He was sure of it, nobody else could see him like this.

The gunshots were muffled and distant, still ringing through the vents as they got further and further away- much louder than a scream, a loud, panicked conversation, and then a bit of talking.

The first thing Mind properly heard was footsteps and Gordon's voice.

"God, where is he- shit I hope he's okay-"

The large man turned the corner, and perked up, before racing over and sliding on his knees- he immediately put a hand on his shoulder.

"Woah- heyheyheyhey- are you alright!?"

Without thinking, Mind HISSED at the guy, immediately scratching and pushing the guy away. Space, he needed space, don't look at him-

"GGET THE- GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!"

His voice is rough from sobbing, but there's a significant growl to it.

"IF YOU COME ANY- A-ANY CLOSER I WILL NOT HHHESITATE TO BITE YOU."

For a split second he looked Gordon in the eyes, and his own were full of fear. It wasn’t for long though, as he very quickly covered his face, scratching at his eyes with a screech in an attempt to make everything less.

"Woah-! Hey-" Gordon backed up, eyes huge.

He didn't know what to do here- granted, he barely understood what was going on, but he had a feeling this might be related to all the noise from earlier. He himself fucking hated it, but he went into a tunnel vision trying to kill the damn skeleton as a way to cope- and regretted it, because it meant he left Mind alone. Not to mention, his ears were still ringing.

He backed up a bit more, and sat down across from Mind, face twisted in worry.

"Hey, keep your- don't touch your face, man."

"I'LL DO WHATEVER THE FUCK I WANT!"

There was too many people looking at him, he could feel it-

He hated these stupid gloves and their protective rubber, dragging them over his face just left a dull ache. If he didn't have them on he'd be able to be done with this, the sting from his nails usually tipped it over the edge for him and his stupid brain would start to calm down again. Sure, he normally had to hide the marks until they faded when he was at work, but it's the middle of an alien apocalypse, was he not allowed ONE source of relief in this hell?

After another attempt, he sobbed again, taking his hands down and looking at Gordon with a tear-streaked face. He looked tired. He felt tired. He didn't want to be here anymore.

Gordon frowned, shrinking a bit as he watched him.

He was a little scared, honestly- he didn't want this guy to suddenly snap and decide he was an enemy. He didn't...entirely trust anyone here, but that trust was building, at least a little.

He didn't know why he was starting to trust these people, despite how fucking stupid they all acted, or how mean to him they tended to be. He already sort of considered them friends, and hoped they could all still talk after all this was over.

Naturally, this was scary to see, because of that. But he decided friends should trust and support one another- that's what he heard all his life.

He swallowed, fiddling with his hands and looking at the ground.

"It's- you're alright, dude, we're. I dunno if we're safe right now but we're...you can breathe, I'm here, alright?"

Was that what you were supposed to say? He wasn't sure.

Mind felt weak. He felt so weak. Useless, pathetic, there was no way in hell these people will be able to look at him the same. He needs to get out of here.

As he tried to move though, he was shaking too much, that annoying tremble in his hands from earlier now a full-fledged tremor.

He only distantly heard Gordon's words but he laughed at it, hollow. What, did he think he needed help? Did he think he wasn't strong enough? He would have snapped back at him if the exhaustion wasn't so strong in him. Whatever. He took a deep breath, or tried to, curling in on himself.

"Hey- dude, please sit down- please?" Gordon put his hands out. "You're- you need to calm down, first, alright? Can you-" He paused, looking him up and down. "Auh, fuck, okay gimme a sec."

He paused, thinking- when he was little and had basically daily meltdowns, not long after he became verbal, one of his old teachers used to give him a cup of water so he'd be distracted and stop crying- he later used this technique on Josh all the time.

After a bit, he went through their collection from the vending machines and took out a bottle of water. He opened it and set it down in front of Mind.

The guy looked between the bottle and Gordon. Trying to think of any tricks, any ulterior motives, anything.

He came back with nothing. It registered as a discrepancy to him, why was there no trick to this?

Suspicious, he took the bottle, slowly raising it and taking a sip, eyes on Gordon practically the whole time.

Taking a sip felt gross in his mouth, and he cringed slightly, but drank a little more.

He didn't like admitting that it did make him feel better, and his brain was still shot with panic about what that was as he sat the bottle back down in between them.

Gordon didn't look at him very much- though the guy already avoided a lot of eye contact unless something stupid was said. He continued to play with his gloves a bit, nervous, and when the bottle was set down, he looked at Mind again, studying his breathing and making sure it was slower.

"...Are you able to talk?" He asked, softly.

Mind opened his mouth to say something sarcastic back at him, Yeah of course I can talk, I'm not a toddler.

... Only to find that he could not talk.

The shame was back, he hated this.

Shaking his head no, he brought his knees closer to his chest, practically death-staring Gordon. This is your fault, somehow.

"...Okay, that's fine- I-I go nonverbal sometimes, too," Gordon said. "Do you know sign language? Or would you rather, would you rather we have uh. Fuckin. Would you rather we have quiet time?"

Quiet time. Just hearing the words made Mind want to hurt someone. It felt childish, and he wasn't a child. He was just as damn capable as the rest of them, voice or not.

Luckily for him though, he did know sign language. Unluckily for everyone else, his hands still shook, and he was absolutely going to get snappy if he had to repeat himself.

"Sign."

Gordon perked up.

"Okay-! Great! That's- that's great, uh," He looked back over to the charred vent nearby, and then to Mind. "Do you need anything in particular right now? I-I'm uh, k-kinda scared to leave you alone, cause...I mean. Aliens." He gestured. "But if you want um, me to be quiet, or me to uh, talk? Or distract you? I-I can do that-"

Mind shifted, snapping his fingers.

"Shut up. Pay attention."

He took a second, and another sip from the water, before continuing.

"Don't like this any more than you do. I can still handle myself, not useless."

He paused.

"... I don't like noise."

"...That's...fine. I don't, either." Gordon said. "And I know you aren't useless, you've- I mean, you've kinda been the most normal guy here- and uh, you're smart."

He curled his knees to his own chest, looking at the ground, before deciding it was important to make sure if he knew Mind was signing or not.

"...I-I've kinda needed you as a source of grounding this whole time, man. It's...everything else is fucked and these people, I-I care about them but they're fucking...confusing."

The other guy had started signing something, before it died on his hands as he processed that.

Mind wasn't expecting at all to be told he was wanted, let alone that he was smart and helped ground the guy.

Some weight eased itself off of his shoulders, and he finally looked away from Gordon with such scrutiny.

"... Thank you. This place is fucking insane," another pause, "doesn't surprise me that you need me here just to make sense of everything."

Gordon let out a wheeze.

"Oh, it is fucking insane, I don't- the rest of the gang is exploring up ahead, but uh...yeah no. Today fucking sucks. And...I dunno what that skeleton was but- that noise and us shooting shit in the vents? Dude, I thought I was gonna throw up," He straight up laughed. "It- my ears are ringing still. And I'm still hearing weird fucking Russian."

Mind laughed, silently shaking before snapping his fingers again, a smile on his face.

"What is with the Russian?? I'm surprised I didn't throw up if I'm honest."

His expression dropped, and he looked down the vents to where the skeleton went.

"Did you kill it?"

“…I dunno, uh- the vent suddenly dropped off, into uh. Fan blades. Bubby fell in and didn’t get hurt, somehow,” Gordon said. “Uh, they all started to figure out how to get through when I realized you weren’t with us, so I came back here to see if you were okay.”

Mind paused, going over the words in his head.

It occurred to him that he hasn't tried to find a secondary motive or worry about any aliens spawning in beside them for a bit now. He didn't know how he felt about that.

"...Thank you."

“Oh- yeah, man, of course! I-I want us to get out, leaving you would be shitty, you don’t deserve that.” Gordon said, and then started feeling a bit of his Dad Mode instincts kick in again. “You feeling better? Need food? I have more uh, more chips.”

Mind smiled weakly, exhaustion from his breakdown still flooding his system.

"I'm good for now. Don't think I could eat even if I wanted to. Finishing this water though."

He picked up the bottle, tracing over the side of it.

“Good- good idea.” Gordon chuckled softly. “You uh, you do that. Then we can see if we can catch up with the team, alright? Or wait as long as you need.”

He pauses, hesitant.

“…Uh, there have been a few times where I’ve forgotten earplugs for heavier experiments, and uh. Got overstimulated and shut down, a-and I always locked myself in my office when that happened, cause I was…I didn’t want to be judged. So…I uh. I can kinda get…if you wanted to wait a bit longer. I-I’m pretty sure the Science Team is chill, I know for a fact Dr. Coomer is autistic- Bubby and Tommy haven’t told me themselves but they’re. I dunno. I don’t think they’ll be shitty. But we can still wait.”

Mind’s grip on the bottle tightened slightly, and he put it down again to sign.

"I'm not autistic. I just... Can't handle too much noise. And it isn't my fault that other people can't do things the right way."

If the only reason Gordon was being nice to him is because he thought he was Autistic, he didn't want it. He wasn't broken. He didn't know why his chest hurt at the thought of that.

He looked away.

"I can move in just a second."

Gordon raised an eyebrow at that- it wasn’t in any offense, it was…well, it looked sorta like he doubted him, kind of a sure buddy, whatever you say expression.

“Take your time, man. I don’t mind waiting.”

Bite, chomp, kill. Mind let it go, for now, not having the energy to argue.

After another minute or so, he started to move, grabbing the bottle. He went to check for his gun as well, before realising it wasn't holstered, and looked around frantically, panic rising.

He spotted it close by Gordon, and practically lunged at the thing to put it back where it belongs.

"Okay, now I'm ready."

Gordon gave him a smile, and with a grunt, he stood up, stretching.

“Houghman, Alright, let’s-“

He was interrupted by footsteps, and turned around, noticing Bubby turn the corner.

“Dead-end.” He grumbled, Dr. Coomer and Tommy following behind.

“Huh!?” Gordon gestured. “Wh- why?! Really!? How big is this place!?”

...

TYSM FOR READING :3 SORRY IF IT'S A BIT MESSY, AGAIN THIS WAS ORIGINALLY AN RP BETWEEN ME AND @shineyfish !

#hlvraifm #asks #cw: ableism #cw: self-harm #SORRY IF THIS ANSWER IS MESSY. I WAS SORTA DRUNK WHEN I STARTED ANSWERING IT AND IM STILL KINDA BUZZED LMAOOOO #freeman's mind

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skyfallslayer · 1 year

Text

The Devils Are Caught In Red Strings || Chapter 2: Cut Man & Specter

-Matt Murdock x Parker!OFC-

Series Masterlist

AO3 Link

♡Series Summary: Childhood friendships are a sacred thing... But so are secrets. This story revolves around a girl named Anya Hughes, an attorney by day and a vigilante by night. Join her into the struggles she’ll face, like her path coming back to haunt her, then facing a man who holds all the power, all while she develops a crush on her close friend. How long can she take all this until she falls apart? ♡

♡Chapter Summary: Anya and Matt make a near fatal error while trying to do their own missions, and they find an unlikely ally when they need saving themselves. ♡

♡Date: 12/20 ♡

♡Rating: Explicit ♡

♡Word Count: 11,757 (Another Long One, ya'll) ♡

♡Warning: Spoilers for the show; Canon Typical Violence; Blood and Injury; Strong Use of Language; Vomiting; Poorly Executed Fighting Scenes; Near Death Experiences; Talks of Murder and Murdering; Possible Medical Inaccuracies; Use of Pet Names; Constant Bickering; (Unknowingly) Enemies to Lovers; Talks of Child Abuse; Brief Session of Torturing; Claire Needs A Vacation; Jack Murdock is MVP here; Matt and Anya Are In The Wrong and Right; Poorly Translated Spanish Via Google (Let me know if I missed anything). READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!! ♡

♡A/N: Sorry this took so long! I got stuck editing some of my other stories, and trying to decided where this chapter should go. I originally was just going to have Anya be looking for Matt, but decided against it when didn't know how to execute it. So hopefully this was the smart route to go. I also I'm just going to write Matt's name anytime he shows up on page as the masked man since all you readers know who he is (it's going to be easier to read this way too). Enjoy! ♡

-21 Years Ago-

Everything that has happened in Hell’s Kitchen while he’s lived here, Jack Murdock never expected something like this. There were too many police and fire truck sirens for his liking. Too many people gathered around. Too many stray cars clustered together. His heart sank because he knows this route and he knows the time. The time was twenty minutes after school, and the route led back to his apartment. The route and time were giving him anxiety.

His mind wandered to the kids. The very thought made his throat dry.

No. They have to be alright. But it hurt so much to even say that.

But as he maneuvered around the cars, in the distance he saw a glimpse of familiar pigtails and sped up. He rudely told everyone to move, brushing past them with a bit of brute force. He needed to see this. He needed to see if–

Scared green eyes meet his blues.

“Anya! Sweetheart, are you okay?” He calls out, but her frazzled expression as she hovers over the body of her friend.

His son.

“Matty! Matty!” He yells, dropping his bag and practically falling apart next to his son. “Matty! No, no, no! Just… Just don’t move!” His head snapped up in every direction it could just as the young girl started to ball. “Somebody get us some help!”

Matt shook at his father’s touch, confused, dazed. “D-Dad… Ann… what happened?”

“Matty, it’s gonna be alright. Just don’t move. Don’t move, okay?”

“What happened?”

Jack blinked at the question, oblivious himself as he started looking around again for more answers. He found none. “Anya?” He begins, getting her attention. “What happened, sweetheart?”

Her lip quivered. “M-Matt… h-he…”

“Your boy–” An older man calls out behind them as he’s being helped up. “He pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.”

Matt starts coughing, and squirms uncomfortably. “Dad… it burns.” He cries, eyes shut as he starts clawing at his lids.

The seasoned Murdock looked beyond his kid, and that’s when he noticed the many barrels of toxic chemicals lying outside a truck, some spilling out into the street. He came to a haunting realization.

He faces the little girl he could consider his own. “Did any…?”

Anya processed what he was implying in a few seconds, before shaking her head ‘no’. A small wave of relief washed over him before morphing back into major concern.

“Close your eyes, Matty.” Jack says, as he takes his sleeve and tries to wipe any excess liquid away.

“Dad!” His son wails.

“Close your eyes.”

“Dad! Dad!”

“Close your eyes.”

“Dad. Dad. Dad. I-I c-can’t see.” The little croak, before his dad gently picks him up, cradling him close. “I can’t see. I can’t see! I can’t see!”

-Present Day-

“I can’t see!” Anya cries, clawing at her burning eyes.

This wasn’t how this night was supposed to go. She was just going to do her usual business. Find information that could connect all the dots, a mission that was supposed to in-and-out, but…

No. Why would it be that easy?

She heard him coming, even smelled his axe body spray before he even arrived; Anya was just going to leave him be, slowing her heart rate down so he could barely hear it himself. But that was another no. Somehow she ended up getting caught up in whatever he was doing, before it all descended into a blur.

So now they’re here, laying in a dumpster somewhere in Hell’s Kitchen, hurt and blinded.

Ugh… I should have just gone to Josie’s with Foggy. She mentally curses, hands reaching out to find something, anything to hold onto that wasn’t open air.

“Hey, no-eyes?” She said, trying to hear out the ear that wasn’t ringing. “No-eyes? You alright? Answer me. I can’t really see you right now.” She waves her hands around some more before touching what felt like his bicep. He winces. “No-eyes?”

“W-Where are we?” He asked, groaning when he tried to move.

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I mean, I don’t know. I… I got something in my eyes. I can’t fucking see anything.”

Matt made something like a scoffing sound. “Welcome to the club then.”

“Wait?” She raises an eyebrow. “You’re really blind?”

“Are you really that dense? Have you seen my mask?”

“Honestly, I thought you were making a fashion statement for all vigilantes.” Anya teased half-heartedly.

Matt holds his tongue on one thought, but expresses the other. “Listen here, peaches, you–”

“Hold up. Peaches? Why the fuck you calling me that for?”

“Same reason you call me no-eyes, peaches. You smell like the cheap ones that come in the cans.”

Anya scoffs. “Wow. You should buy a girl dinner before smelling her, you know? Just a thought.”

“Oh, you'll be the last girl I buy dinner for.”

“Man, you’re such a–”

“Shh!” He hushes and snatches her nearby hand, silencing her. “I can hear someone coming.”

Anya listens closely, hearing someone open a nearby door, footsteps urgently moving. “Shit!” She whispers, tensing up. “We gotta move.”

And they tried, but Matt was in the worst shape that she was. It took a lot of strength for him to even move his hand, how much would he need to move his entire body?

They soon could hear two people approaching, both speaking quickly in Spanish.

“¡Aqui!” A voice of a younger man said (*Over here!). He seemed to be more in a rush, his heart racing like a bullet train. He was nervous, scared. You could practically smell the fear on him through his sweat. “¡Ven aquí!” (*Come here!)

Anya, despite not being able to see, did her best to go into defense mode as they approached. She bears her claws, clenching her teeth under her mask to hide the pain. “Stay back!” She hissed, hearing them stop a foot away from the dumpster.

“Relax. I’m just here to help. That’s all.” A woman’s voice replies, unusually calm. “Please, let me help. At least… let me help him. He doesn't look too good.”

Anya bite her lip, detecting no lie before tuning in on her unofficial ‘partner’. She could hear him dozing off again, but his heart was pounding, his blood pumping like it was trying to keep him awake or fight off an upcoming infection.

Shit. We ain’t getting out of this. She swallows, lowering her hands, shielding the claws.

“Alright. But don’t try anything.” She replies, hearing her nod. “But you’re going to have to guide me. I can’t see anything.”

The woman nods again. “Alright, I can do that.” She faces the boy. “Ayúdame. Primero ayúdalo a él, luego a ella.” (*Help me. First help him, then her.)

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Anya listened to the woman’s instructions as she was guided around what felt like a large building, judging by how sounds were echoing quietly against the walls. After carefully going up three flights of stairs, she could hear a door opening which she assumed was their destination.

“Fácil, fácil, fácil.” She said, slowly coming to a stop a few steps inside a room, an apartment maybe? (*Easy, easy, easy). “Alright, mysterious lady, there’s a wall on your right, I want you to feel your way down to the floor. I’ll get to you in a minute. Keep your eyes closed while you’re at it.”

“Okay.” Anya replies, taking her hand off the woman’s shoulder to reach out. Her calloused fingertips brush the rough wall before slowly guiding herself down to the ground. She holds back another wince of pain by squeezing her eyes shut tighter, listening to the mask man being placed on the floor.

“Sube las escaleras y cierra la puerta. Y ni una palabra a nadie.” The woman said to the boy sternly. (*Okay. Go upstairs, and close the door. And not a word to anybody)

“Sí, bien.” The boy replies, standing up and leaving the apartment. (*Yes, okay)

“Ni siquiera tu mamá.” (*Not even your mom)

The door closes, and she sighs while springing to her feet. “How are you feeling, missy?” She asked, running towards the other side of the room, grabbing a bag.

“Still can’t see.” Anya replies, holding her stomach. “But I’ll manage. How’s he?”

“I’m checking.” She slides on rubber gloves before assessing the large wound on Matt’s arm before moving on to check a pulse on his neck. “Well, he’s alive.”

I could have told you that. Anya holds her tongue on the snarky remark, but she couldn’t stop her heart from sinking upon hearing the woman removing his mask.

“W-Wait. What are you doing?” Sure she can’t stand him, but whoever he may be, he's got a reason he’s hiding his face (just like she has a reason for hiding hers). She wouldn’t even snoop that low no matter how much he ends up annoying her.

“I’m saving your friend’s life.” The nurse lady grabs a flashlight from the bag and begins shining it in Matt’s chocolate eyes. When his pupils don’t dilate, she stares in disbelief, which melts into worriedness when finding another gash on his head.

“Wait, don’t!” Anya blurts out, her stomach churning even more when hearing the sound of a cell phone turning on. “You can’t–”

Before she could intervene, Matt had beat her to it by snatching the nurse’s wrist, stopping her movement.

“N-No. No calls.” He said, firmly.

“It’s okay, I’m just trying to help.” She said, calmly,

“No.”

“We have to get you to the hospital. The both of you.”

“They'll kill everyone.”

“Who?”

“The men who did this. They'll kill everyone in the hospital to get to me. To us.” He starts rolling over to get on his knees, groaning while doing so.

“Oh… I can’t believe I’m actually agreeing with you.” Anya mumbles, placing her hand on the wall for support. “But yeah, we gotta go.”

“You followed me! Okay? Geez, you can't…” The woman ushers. “Don't. You've lost a lot of blood. I think you might have been stabbed.”

“We have to leave.” Matt said, standing up and making a waving motion towards his (unknowingly best) friend. “Come on.”

She stands up between them, trying to be firm. “She can’t see–”

“I heard him waving.” Anya cuts in, pulling herself to her feet, still listening as Matt moves across the apartment towards the supposed exit.

Supposed.

“You wanna leave? Door's that way.” The nurse said, gesturing in the opposite direction, pausing his actions. He turns to go the other way, but just one small step causes him to collapse on the floor. “Shit!!”

Anya perks up at the thud, paling. “No-eyes?” She croaks, concernedly before her world starts to crash under weight.

Her heart started to pace rapidly as her body caught itself on fire. She feels her body trembling, blood and vomit rising in her throat as she sinks back down to the floor…

Her mind is fading to black.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

{{ This crowd is not happy, Pete. Murdock has dominated this fight but now Price has turned the table on him. }}

“Oh, not again.” A young Anya mumbles, frowning sadly as her friend starts to look disappointed. They both sat in front of the small tv, watching as his dad started to lose his boxing match.

{{ He's pounding Murdock's head, and Murdock isn't even defending himself! }}

The two kids winced at the sound of Price’s gloves beating in Murdock’s head. They could only imagine what his face is going to look like when they get home.

{{ Wait! The ref is stopping the fight. (Bell dings) Canero has stopped the fight. Two-to-one favorite "Battlin' Jack" Murdock loses to a TKO in the 10th. }}

{{ Price looks as shocked as the crowd. Murdock had him on the ropes, but let his glove drop and got tagged with a series of devastating- }}

Matt holds up the remote and turns the TV off.

“I’m sorry, Matty.” Anya said, sincerely.

"Not your fault, Ann. I just thought he had it this time." He replies, putting the remote back on the table. “Now it’s just a matter of time until he gets home.”

For the next hour or so, they stayed in the kitchen, heads resting on the table before they heard the door open. A man opens it, all bloody and bruised, huffing and puffing as he slides his gym back off his shoulder. The boy gets up, running down the narrow hallway with the girl trailing slowly behind.

"Dad!" Matt yells, plowing into his dad for a hug.

"Hey, Matty! Hey!" Jack said, giving him a hug. "Hey, hey, don't... don't get blood on your shirt." He smiles softly at the kid behind his. "Hi, Anya."

"Hi, Mr. Murdock." She said, with a small wave.

"Hey, how many times do I have to tell you to stop the formalities, huh? Come on. We're family." He reaches out to mess up her hair making her laugh.

"Gotta keep your gloves up next time." Matt said, teasingly.

"Yeah, well, I... I should have you in my corner, then." Jack replies, walking slowly towards the kitchen.

"Does it hurt?"

He sighs. "It don't tickle." The older Murdock slides into his seat, a steady hand on his ribcage. “Go get the kit.”

Matt leaves to get the medical supplies, while Anya slides back into her chair, leaning on her elbows to feel taller. Jack takes his eyes off his son for a moment to look at the girl he should consider his own; especially since she seems to spend most of her time over here.

“So where’s your parents this time?” Jack asked, concernedly.

The girl frowns and sheepishly looks away. “Um… my dad’s at another meeting and my mom’s at a bookclub.” She replies, sounding like she was going to get a scolding if she spoke.

Jack narrows his eyes a little. “Uh, huh. Your father sure has been busy lately.”

She nods, still not meeting his gaze. “Yeah.”

“And they’re okay with you hanging out here? I know we had a problem the last time you came over.”

“Yeah, they’re fine now.”

Jack said nothing more as he son arrived with a metal case, opening it up and grabbing a few cotton swabs with ointment on them.

“You should’ve had him.” Matt scoffed, while pressing the cotton into a cut above his dad’s eye. “Price is a bum.”

“Hey, anybody who's got the guts to step into that ring deserves respect. Don't you ever forget that.” Jack said, pulling back to lock eyes with his son.

He raises an eyebrow. “Even Price?”

“Even Price.”

“Sorry you lost, Dad.”

“Yeah... Just wasn't my night.” Jack winces when the stinging sets in, and holds the boy’s hand to stop. “Easy with the cotton swabs there, doc.”

Matt frowns apologetically. “Gotta get in there. You don't want to get it infected.”

“Stitches?”

He chuckles. “Oh, yeah.”

“You better get the Scotch.” Jack said, and Matt stops to go grab it out of the cabinet. He sets the bottle on the table and pushes it towards the adult. Jack shakes his head. “No. It's for you.”

“Really?” Matt asked as the bottle was placed into his arms.

He nods. “You think I want your hands shaking like last time? This is my face we're talking about.” He faces the girl, a grin on his face. “Don’t tell anyone I’m doing this.”

She snickers, and makes a zipping motion over her lips. Matt opens the cap and smells the scotch, gagging.

“Go ahead. Take a… just a little sip.”

Matt takes a sip of the scotch, and makes a face as soon as it hits his tongue. Jack chuckles at his reaction.

“Oh! Oh, it burns!” The young Murdock complains.

“All right.” Jack leans forward and sighs deeply. “Come on. Let's do it.”

Matt strings the needle and begins the procedure. “Don't move.”

Jack bites his lip at the pain, inhaling slowly. “So you two watched the fight?” His son nods. “You're supposed to be doing your homework.”

“Got it done first.”

“All of it?” Matt says nothing, causing Jack to sigh. “Anya?”

“I finished mine.” She replies, truthfully.

“Good.” He stares at his son, sternly. “I want you to finish up before you go to bed.”

“I'll do it tomorrow.” Was Matt’s reply.

“Tonight.”

“Before school?”

“Tonight. Okay?”

“Okay.” Matt stops for a minute, watching his dad shutter a little before urging him to go on. “Dad?” Jack hums. “You gonna have enough this month for Mr. Morris?”

“He will get his rent–” He pulls out an envelope. “On time.”

Matt finishes the stitches before picking it, opening it to reveal a few hundred dollar bills. His eyes widened in surprise. “You got all this for losing?”

Jack nods slowly. “Sometimes… even when you get knocked down, you can still win.”

“It ain't how you hit the mat…” Matt begins.

“It's how you get up.” They both said in unison, smiling.

“That's right.” Jack chuckles, grabbing the envelope back. “All right, all right. Go hit the books.”

Matt blinks before smugly asking, “Can I take the bottle?”

“No, just... Go on. Go on.”

“Okay.” He waves quickly. “Bye, Anya.”

“Bye, Matty.” She said, waving back.

“Alright, sweetheart. Let’s go.” Jack said, standing up and gesturing for her to follow.

“Okay.” She follows him, unaware of his careful gaze. She grabs her backpack by the door, sliding the straps on–

“Hang on, kid.” Jack said, stopping the girl. He carefully grabs her hand, pulling back her sleeve which was lingering with tiny bruises. He bit the inside of his cheek. “Anya, you would tell me if your dad was hurting you, right?” She nods. “So, is he?”

She shakes her head immediately. “No.”

“He’s not?” He asked, unconvinced. “Because you know I won’t get angry. I just want to make sure you're okay.”

“I’m fine, Mr. Murdock.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Alright, just checking.” He opens the front door, letting her out. “Remember the route I told you about. It’s a lot safer.”

She mutters another ‘Okay’ as she skips out of the apartment building, living behind a man that is now angry at two things in the world.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Anya gasps, sucking in the crisp air as Matt does the same. They could feel the nurse hovering over them, still attending their wounds. Matt stiffened up, trying his best to stay alert as Anya squeezed her aching eyes shut; She could feel water drip down from the towel on her forehead, along with a wave of nausea that was coursing through her warm veins.

Shit… I really overdid it with my abilities. She scolds herself, feeling the nurse’s eerie stare.

“Are you gonna listen to me this time?” She asked them.

“Where are we?” Matt asked, straight to the point.

“You're in my apartment.”

“Who are you?”

“I'm the lucky girl who pulled you out of the garbage.”

Matt feels for his mask, frowning. “You've seen my face.”

“Yeah. I’ve seen both of yours.”

“Great.”

“Awesome…” Anya mumbled, squeezing her eyes tighter while swallowing a bit of bile in her throat.

“Your outfits kind of sucks, by the way.”

“It’s a work in progress.” They both reply, sending a mental glare at one another upon it.

The woman could practically see their child like antics and scoffed.

“Okay, I really wouldn't try to move too much.” She said, crossing her arms. “You, sir, have got two or three broken ribs, probable concussion, some kind of puncture wound, and that's just the stuff that I know about. And your eyes, they're unresponsive to light, which isn't freaking you the hell out, so either you're blind or in way worse shape than I thought.”

“Do I have to pick one?” Matt asked, dead serious.

“And you, lady, I’ve got a couple questions for you.”

“Shoot.” Anya said, eyelids still closed.

“First off, how the fuck do you have these glowing purple eyes?”

“Haven’t you heard of Elizabeth Taylor?”

“Yeah, but people’s eyes don’t just glow. So explain that to me.”

The brunette sighs, really not wanting to get into this conversation. “So I got superpowers. What do you want me to do?”

The nurse scoffs again. “Well that explains why the cut on your collar bone is in the proliferative stage.”

Anya raises an eyebrow. “The what?”

“Proliferative. It’s the third stage out of four for healing wounds.”

“Oh…”

“You can heal that fast?” Matt asked, surprised, eyes widening.

“Depending on how deep the wound is, yes, I can heal in less than a few hours.” Anya explains, slowly cracking her amethyst orbs open (She was starting to get some of her vision back).

“And your eyes are–”

“They’re not my real eye color. I just make them that way so no one knows who I am.”

Matt ponders for a minute, taking it all in. “I see.”

“Yeah. Hey–” Anya turns her attention to the nurse. “Did you flush them with something? They feel a little better.”

“I did. Several times actually before I applied some medicated ones.” The nurse replies.

“Thanks.”

“I get the impression you two don’t know each other.”

“What makes you say that?” Matt asked, curiously.

“Because, for starters, she keeps looking away from you every time she opens her eyes. And second, the two of you are clearly making your voices deeper than they probably are, and I don’t think it’s supposed to be directed at me.”

“Are you a detective or sometime?” Anya asked, shocked. How could one be that observant so quickly?

“Do you mind telling me how a blind man, and a newly blinded woman, in masks end up beaten half to death in my dumpster? Two people who clearly are not on the same page as one another.” She said, ignoring her comment.

“The less you know about us, the better.” Matt answers, earning a nod from his ‘friend’.

“Yeah, ditto.” Anya agrees.

She shrugs, and then sighs deeply. “The wound on your side, mysterious man,... knife?

“Probably. Ah…” He groans, trying to get up.

The woman puts a hand on his shoulder, silently telling him to sit down as she checks his wound. “I think I got the bleeding stopped, but I can't tell how bad it is internally without a full series of X-rays, so–”

“Sorry. No hospitals, Ma’am.” Anya cuts in, half politely.

She smacks her lips, holding back her irritation. “This is my night off. I'm really not looking for your partner to die on my living room floor.”

“He’s not my partner.”

“Are you a doctor?” Matt asked, curious again.

She shrugs. “Something like that.”

“Most people, they find bleeding people in masks in the garbage, they call the police.”

“You got a lot of experience in this area?”

“Why are you helping us?”

“The less you know about me, the better.”

This gets Matt to laugh and Anya to snort.

“Alright, you’ve got humor. I like you.” Anya said, grinning a little.

“Yeah.” Matt said, copying her expression. “You got a name at least?”

The woman sighs. “Claire. Don't suppose I get to know yours?” Matt says nothing. “All right, I'll call you Mike.”

“Mike?”

“Yeah, a guy I used to date. Turns out he was very good at keeping secrets, too.”

Anya frowns hearing the heartbreak in her voice. She swallows, guilty (and hopefully not regretting). “Just call me May.”

Claire perks up at this. “May?” She said, smiling. “I’m glad you shared.” But her expression fades seeing the vigilante’s neutral features. “Oh. But that’s not your real name.”

“Sorry, Ma’am. It ain’t. It just means a lot…” She whispers that last part, causing Matt to frown.

That’s… odd. He thought, but kept it on the backburner for emergencies.

“Thank you, Claire.” He said, touching her hand.

Claire sighs again. “Rest. Make sure you're stabilized. We'll figure the other stuff out later.” She gets up and leaves the room, giving herself a breather.

Matt groans again, trying to get comfortable on the rug. Anya sighs, squinting now at the little light she could see.

“Hey, no-eyes?” She said, getting his attention. “Why don’t you rest? I’ll be on the lookout.”

“You sure?” He asked, dubious.

“Positive. Just rest. You’ll get better.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

Jack Murdock nervously tapped his foot in the chair, listening to all the machines tinkering, eyeing his son laying in a hospital bed. He was getting antsy while sitting here for hours on end. No updates for the doctors. No sudden movements from his son. No one coming up to him saying he has a phone call.

“Where the fuck are your parents?” He mumbled bitterly, while glancing at his kid’s friend beside him. “I’ve called them several times in six hours now. Where are they?”

Anya shrugs, bloodshot eyes looking away. “I don’t know. Maybe they’re busy…”

“Yeah, well they’re always fucking busy, huh?!” She flinches under his tone, which was enough for him to dial back. “Sorry, sweetheart. Didn’t mean to yell at you.”

“I know. You’re just stressed.”

“I know, but that doesn’t give me the right to take it out on you.” He sighs, locking his gaze with hers. “Listen, What about to ask you, is going to be a lot, okay?” She nods. “Good. So do you realize what happened to Matty?”

“Yeah. He can’t see anymore.”

“Yeah, which is going to be scary. Really scary, especially to Matty, so I want you to promise me something. Alright?” She nods again. “Alright. You’re always by his side when I’m not, so promise me you’re going to be there for him when he starts to feel down. Promise me you’ll pull him up when he falls?”

“I promise, Mr. Murdock.”

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

Suddenly, the heart monitor starts beeping frantically in the background.

“I can't see!” Matt cries out, clawing at the bandages over his eyes.

Jack rushes over, sitting on the side of the bed, carefully pulling away his son's hands. “Matty, Matty, Matty, it's me. It's Dad. I'm right here.”

Matt jerks around in his spot, tears starting to roll down his cheek. “I can’t see! I can’t see!”

His father shushes him. “You were in an accident, you remember? You're in the hospital, but I'm right here with you.”

The boy sobs, machine still racing. “Everything’s so loud… everything…”

“I'm right here with you. It's Daddy. Here, feel my face.” Jack takes his small hands, resting them on his cheek bones. “Feel my face. I'm right here. I'm right here.”

“I can't see.”

“It's alright. It's okay.”

“Dad, I can't see!”

“It's alright, Matt.”

“I can't–”

“It's alright.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Claire changes the towel on Anya’s head, folding it up nicely before gently laying it across her flush skin. The hot feeling in her body was starting to vanish away with the nausea.

“You look like you’re in deep thought.” Claire said, setting the bowl of water down in exchange for a flashlight. She quickly flashes it, watching her pupils dilate normally.

“I’m just listening.” Anya replies, blinking from the brightness. She was starting to make out more shapes now. She could almost see their savior clearly.

“To what?”

“His breathing.”

Claire raises an eyebrow, confused. “I thought you said you weren’t partners? Why care about him?”

“Just because we aren’t doesn’t mean I want him dead. I’m not that type of person.” Anya replies, truthfully. “Besides, We both have a lot to do before we die. I got my mission, he’s got his.”

“Well that’s kind of morbid.”

“Tell me about it.”

Matt suddenly wakes up and starts gasping for air. He starts frantically gripping the ground, head looking around.

Claire faces him worriedly. “What is it? What's wrong?”

“No-eyes?” Anya said, reaching for his shoulder. She immediately picked up on the odd sensation stirring up in his chest.

“I-I c-can't br-breathe.” He chokes, face turning red.

Claire uses a stethoscope to listen to his lungs. “You've got air in your chest. It's collapsing your lung. I'm gonna relieve the pressure, but I'm gonna need you to hold still, okay?”

She grabs some supplies from her medical bag, pulling Matt’s shirt down a little and begins the procedure. “Here we go... This is gonna hurt.”

She frowns apologetically before piercing his chest with a needle. He grunts loudly and gasps, Anya wincing at the sound. Claire removes part of the needle, causing air to hiss out of his chest. It took a short moment for his breathing to stabilize.

“Good.” Claire soothes, removing the needle gently. “Just breathe normally.” She listens to his lungs again, sighing gratefully.

“Jesus Christ, no-eyes…” Anya whispers after the mini scare.

Claire finally looks between the two when everything cooled down. “All right. Look, let's just say for the sake of discussion I buy this whole, ‘We can't go to the hospital because whatever,’ story you two got going on. But we need to talk about what happens if you give up the ghost here in my living room.

“Because I'm listening to myself explain to the police how I let this happen, and every version ends with me in handcuffs, so convince me it's worth it. Who’s first?”

“They kidnapped a boy.” Matt says, immediately.

“Who did?” Claire asked, as Anya looked at him surprised (this was news to her).

“The Russians. They've been running a human trafficking ring out of Hell's Kitchen. Took over when the Italians folded up. Two days ago, they pulled a kid out of the back of a van. Beat his father while he watched.”

How the fuck did I miss that? Anya scolded herself.

“Jesus.” Claire mumbles, shifting uncomfortably.

“I knew the kid would still be alive. At least until they took him out of the city.” Matt continues. “I tracked the Russians to a warehouse not far from here. Thought I was being smart, how fast I found them.” He frowns at himself. “Turns out, I wasn't.”

“They were waiting for you.”

“And I walked right into it.”

“So, they took this kid just to get to you?” Claire asked, trying to piece it together.

“Yeah, I've been making their lives…” He grunts. “Difficult lately.”

“But you're blind.”

He chuckles. “There are other ways to see.”

“This is what you do, you make life difficult for bad men?”

“It's one way of putting it.”

She holds her hands up. “No offense, but you don't seem to be very good at it.”

Matt lets out a laugh.“Ow!” He touches his stomach. “Yeah, well, you're catching me on an off night.”

“Did you at least find the kid?”

He shakes his head, sighing. “No, he wasn't there. I barely made it out myself. I was careless… Stupid.”

“Sounds like it. Alright, missy, how about you?” She pats the woman’s leg. “What’s your story?”

Anya exhales through her nose, distant gaze going somewhere else. “I was looking for… information to lead me to something I’ve been working on. Lately, things have been linking up in ways that I didn’t think were possible.”

“Were they expecting you too?” Claire asked as Matt drank up her explanation.

“I don’t think so. I just like to get in and get out, I don’t like to cause trouble.” She frowns too. “It only got messy when no-eyes here showed up, and they started targeting me.”

“I see.” Claire leans back on her hands. “So these men that took the boy they're out there right now, looking for probably the both of you?” She gets no answer, both of them growing alarmingly still. “Guys?”

“Someone's coming.” They said in unison.

“Wait, what?”

“There's someone in the building, a man, going from door to door.” Anya replies, pushing herself up to sit.

“How do you know that?”

“He's on the third floor already.” Matt replies, also pushing himself up which was tiresome. “Smells like Prima cigarettes and discount cologne.”

“You can smell a man on the third floor?”

“You'll smell him soon enough. He really likes that cologne.” They both stand up, feeling her weary look on them. Matt's features deepens. “You're looking at us like we’re crazy, right?”

Claire nods. “Seems the appropriate response.”

“There are some things I haven't told you about me, Claire.”

“You haven't told me anything about you. The both of you actually. All I know is, Mike, you're very good at taking a beating.”

Matt's heart skips at a memory. “That part I got from my dad.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

Jack steps out of the ring, gloves and helmet off as he wipes away his sweaty bangs. He sighs, greeting a few other guys in the gym as he heads towards his kids. He watches Matt taking in each sentence on the page written in braille, while Anya looks through one of the books curiously.

“How'd you do?” His son asked, hearing a chair being pulled out and sat in.

“Uh I tagged him a couple times. That kid is fast.” Jack replies, scooting close and picking up a book as well. “So, how you… how you getting along with, uh, your new books?”

“I'm working on it. Each grid is six possible dots, so each letter is a combination of those dots. You have to feel for what's not there as much as what is.”

Jack purses his lips while flipping through the pages. “That doesn't make any damn sense at all.”

“Thank you.” Anya said, laying hers back down in defeat.

“Well, you know where a punch is going before it's thrown sometimes, right?” Matt begins, trying to help his father with the picture.

“Oh, clearly I don't.” Jack said, getting the kids to laugh. “So, uh, you can make sense out of all of this?”

“I'm starting to. Here.” He gestures to something on the page for his father to feel along. “Dot in the right corner, that's a ‘C’. Upper left, ‘A’. ‘T’ is hard. I get it confused with ‘Q’.”

He looks at the page like it’s got three heads. “Well, why don't they just make it feel like a ‘T’?”

Matt shrugs. “Well, they say this is faster once you get the hang of it. ‘W’ is really tricky. Braille was created in French, and they don't have ‘W’.”

“Oui, Oui, Mon Amie.” Anya said, playfully, which made him laugh and the older man stare in confusion. (*Yes, Yes, my friend)

Jack blinks before deciding to play along. “Oh… is that how you two talk shit about me behind my back?”

“Maybe…” His son snickers, but their playfulness didn’t last long when the visitor arrived.

“Oi, Battlin' Jack!” A man, Roscoe, calls out, waving him over.

Jack frowns and sighs, and gestures for Roscoe and his partner to go somewhere else in the room. “Hey, you wait. Couple months, you're gonna be reading Braille faster than I read normal.”

“I already read Braille faster.” Matt said, with a cheeky grin.

He chuckles and stands up. “Yeah, yeah, I get it. You smartass.” He quickly kisses Matt’s head. “I'll be right back.”

He pats the top of Anya’s head before walking away from the table. His face became more serious as he got closer to the corrupt boxing promoters.

Roscoe laughs. “What's the word, Jackie-boy?”

“Roscoe. Silke.” Jack said, acknowledging.

“Hello, Jack.” Silkie said with an eerie smile.

“I heard about the wee one.” Roscoe says, watching the kid read from afar. “That's a tough break.”

“You have our condolences.”

“And you're young yet. Plenty of time to have more kids.”

Silkie snickers, elbowing his partner. “But hey, he could get a couple grandkids soon, seeing that his son has a lady friend he could marry now.”

Jack looks at Roscoe angrily, holding his tongue and crosses his arms (It’s better not to poke the bear). “What can I do for you boys?”

“We come bearing glad tidings.” Silkie said, grinning. “A match with Creel.”

“Creel?” His blue eyes widened in surprise. “How'd you pull that off?”

“Mr. Sweeney can be quite persuasive when he puts his mind to it.”

“It's me Irish charm.” Roscoe said, proudly.

“Jesus! Creel?” Jack chuckles. “I owe you… I owe you guys.”

“Ah. You're doing us the favor.” Silkie said, knowing his boxer was not going to like it. “It's 3-to-1 that you go the distance. You drop in the fifth, we're clearing 70%.”

“Right.”

“Come on, Jackie! It's time to celebrate.” Roscoe encouraged.

“It's the big time, Jack.” Silkie added.

Jack frowns, completely unaware that the two kids were eavesdropping with enhanced hearing. “Thanks for the offer. I'm gonna take a pass.”

Roscoe laughed. “Did he just say ‘pass’?”

“I appreciate everything you've done for me. Really, I do. But…” He takes a quick glance at his son. “I got other things to worry about now.”

“He don't want to do it, he don't do it. Man makes his choice and we make ours.”

“You wanna step into the ring, see how that plays out?” Jack bites back, stunning them.

“You gotta think of your family, Jack. This could do a lot of good for your boy.” Silkie said, trying to plant the seed into his head.

“Yeah.” Roscoe nods, smiling. “What else are you gonna leave him when you're gone?”

Jack looks back at his son again, the guilt sinking in. “All right.”

“We need to hear you say it.” Silkie said, enjoying this.

He clenches his jaw. “I go down in the fifth.”

“There you go. That wasn't so hard.” Roscoe said, patting his shoulder.

Their conversation continued on, and Matt had stopped reading out of shock just as Anya broke the pen she was holding.

“Uh… crap.” She mumbles, pulling herself out of trance .

Matt looks in her direction. “Are you okay?” He asked, worriedly.

“Uh, yeah, I’m fine. B-Broke a pen.” She replies, finding a towel and starts wiping off some ink.

“A pen?”

“Yeah. Just.. it was bound to happen. It had a crack.”

The two of them went silent again (despite the weird incident), frowning at what Jack Murdock had unfortunately got himself wrapped into.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Anya leans against the wall, pulling up her hood and mask, listening to Matt ruffling through a drawer in the kitchen. He too had his mask back on.

“This all you got?” He asked the nurse, holding up a tiny, partially dull knife.

“Yeah, it's for vegetables, not a knife fight.” Claire said, hoping he wasn’t serious about this (Hint, hint: He’s is).

“He's at your neighbor's door.” Anya said, baring her claws.

“You kidding me?” She said, looking between the two. They didn’t listen as they started heading for the door. “Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.” She stops them with a hand on their chests. She glares at Matt first. “You can barely stand up.

“That's what the knife's for.” He replies, holding it up again.

“Claws.” Anya said, showing them off.

Claire sends her daggers too. “You can’t see.”

“Hey, I’m starting to. I can see clearly if I get up close. Like you’re–” Anya gets closer, eyes widened a bit. “You’re… a very beautiful woman. Like, holy shit. You’re a nurse?!”

“Peaches.” Matt hissed, reminding her of the task ahead.

“Oh, right. Sorry.”

They take another step forward, Claire stopping them again. “Wait! Don't do this. Not in my home. Okay, nobody has to get hurt. You two just stand over there on that side and be quiet and I'll get rid of him.”

They vigilantes pondered on that for a moment before the knocking came. Another step forward,which was countered with another block.

“Please.” She whispers, begging. She glances at the door. “Who is it?”

“NYPD, ma'am. Please open the door.”

“Okay.” They whisper back, and she points to where they should hide.

“I'll be right there.” Claire announced, taking her gloves off, and hiding her medical bag behind the couch. She walks to her door and opens the keyhole, spotting the well dressed man holding up his badge. She mentally prepares herself as she opens the door just enough to see her face.

“Sorry to bother you so late, ma'am. My name is Detective Foster, with the 65th Precinct.” He begins, tucking his badge away. “We had a bit of a disturbance a few blocks from here. We're asking everyone if they've seen or heard anything unusual in the past few hours.”

She tilts her head. “What kind of disturbance?”

“Armed robbery. Some dickheads in a black masks shot up a bodega on 38th. Owner put up a fight. Perps fled on foot, leaving a trail of blood in this direction.”

“Oh, my God.”

“Probably long gone by now, but just in case, you know. You see anything, hear anything tonight?”

She shakes her head. “No, sorry.”

He nods in understanding. “Just being thorough. You have a good night, ma'am.”

“Thanks. You, too.”

Foster walks away, and Claire watches him move swiftly down the hall before closing the door. She lets out a heavy exhale, clasping her hands together.

“See? No reason to get all stabby.” She said, with relief. “Boy, were you right about that cologne? What? Does he dip himself in that crap?”

“He didn’t believe you.” Anya stated, already moving with Matt.

“Mike! May!” Claire scolds once they're out the door.

Matt grabs a fire extinguisher off of the wall, coming up to the stairs, dangling it over the railing. The vigilantes could hear Foster hustling down the steps, calling someone on his phone in Russian, speaking in a frantic tone.

“What are you doing?” Claire asked, before Anya held her arm out to stop her.

Matt listens closely to Foster’s movements, and after a few moments, he drops the fire extinguisher. Claire gasps into her hands at the sound of it colliding with something, making Anya look down at Matt’s doing. Her eyes widened at Foster’s unconscious state on the floor, with a pool of blood around his head.

Anya paled. “Well that’s one way to do it…” She mumbled in surprise.

“What do we do now?” Claire asked, fearful.

“There's someone else one floor up watching us.” Matt said, pulling the girls close to the wall. He pauses to listen. “Oh, no. He's young. He's scared.”

She carefully takes a peak, spotting her young neighbour above. “Santino?” She said, watching him run away. “He's the one who found you guys in the alley.”

“He’s seen our faces, too?” Anya asked, pulling herself out of her shock.

“Yeah.”

“Claire, go upstairs and get him. We're gonna need help carrying Detective Foster to the roof.” Matt says, pushing himself off the wall with a grunt.

“What the hell are we going to the roof for?” Claire asked as he descended down the stairs.

“Less chance of someone in the building hearing him scream.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

“Alright, what’s with the frowns?” Jack asked at the foot of the school stairs. The kids were hanging their heads low, body slouching.

“Mrs. Whitmore gives way too much homework.” Matt complains, his friend nodding. “I liked it when she didn’t know how to transfer everything in braille.”

“Well, sorry to hear that, but you gotta do it.” He chuckles at them groaning miserably. “Alright, let’s go. We’ll get some food in your bellies and then hit the books.”

They mumbled an ‘okay’, but couldn’t even take a step in their desired direction when someone started cutting in.

“Anya!”

The girl froze upon hearing her father’s voice. A tall man who was similarly built like her friend’s father; Dressing up too nice for her standards, with glasses shielding his darkened eyes. He seemed irritated which made her want to shrink down under his intense stare.

“Alright, Anya, let's go. We got errands to run.” Stopping in front of her, not caring for the other people present.

“M-More errands?” Anya asked, trying to keep the shakiness out of her voice.

“Ah, so you’re actually not busy today, Benson?” Jack said, not hiding his bitterness. “That’s a surprise.”

“Well…” He shrugged with the same attitude as Murdock. “Miracles can happen, Jonathan.”

“Uh, huh. And what kind of errands you running?” Jack asked, suspiciously as his fingers started aching to ball into a fist.

He shrugged. “You know, just… simple errands. Grocery stores and stuff like that. Why? You worried?” He steps right into his personal space, voice real low. “Say, were you the one who called the CPS last week on us?”

His daughter looks up at them in surprise while Matt scrunches up his nose in confusion.

“Dad, what’s CPS?” He asked, making his dad clench his jaw.

“I was just concerned because your daughter’s always showing up to my house with bruises and what look like needle markings all over her arms.” Jack said, keeping a straight face.

“I’m a doctor, Jonathan. And it’s flu season.” Was his reply.

“That seems like an awful lot of flu shots. The bruises?”

“I’ll admit, I’m a little harsh sometimes. But it’s not intentional. Right, darling?”

Anya nods slowly. “Yeah. Right.” She said, looking up at Jack. “I’m good, Mr. Murdock.” But she knows well enough that he doesn’t believe her, and almost pleads with his eyes for her to say something back.

“See? Nothing wrong.” Benson said, placing his hand on her shoulder, guiding her away. “Enjoy your evening, Murdocks.”

He strings her along towards their car somewhere down the block, leaving the family of two in the dust. Jack continues to send death glares that way, ones that his son could even feel.

“Dad…” Matt begins, getting his attention. “He’s not a good man, is he?”

Jack hangs his head low, sighing. “Come on. Let’s go.”

“Dad?”

“Let’s go. I’ll explain later.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“You really think this is the best option? Torture?” Anya asked, watching him (crystal clearly) tie Foster to a ladder with cable they found.

“This is the only way I’m going to find the kid.” Matt said, bluntly.

“Yeah, but torture? Why not rough him up instead? Give him a few punches?”

“I’m not going to kill him if that’s what you’re worried about. There’s nothing wrong with breaking a few bones.” He finishes tying. “Why?” He asked, looking her way. “You scared?”

She shakes her head. “No, but…” She slouches, gazing at the floor. “As someone who was torture in her childhood, I don’t feel comfortable doing the same to someone else. There’s a reason why I do the whole stealth thing.”

And just for a split moment, he felt an ounce of guilt and sympathy before Claire showed up.

“You find anything?” He asked, as she held up Foster’s phone.

“You smashed the hell out of it with that extinguisher.” She says, crossing her arms. “He had a badge. What if you're wrong?”

“I'm not/He’s not.” They said, sending an annoyed look at each other again.

Claire shakes her head in disbelief. “This is way past what I signed up for.”

“What exactly do you think that was?” Matt asked, gesturing to Foster.

“I found two people who needed help, so I helped them.”

“Oh, yeah? That simple?”

She holds her tongue, fearfully looking at them and the sleeping man. “Do you really want to get into this in front of him?”

“He's out.”

“Maybe he's faking.”

He pauses to listen. “He's not.”

Claire threw her hands up. “Okay, that right there, that's what I'm talking about!”

Anya sighs, taking a step forward. “Claire–”

“No! Let me finish.” She points to Matt first. “So, I find one guy in a dumpster who turns out to be some kind of blind vigilante who can do all of this really weird shit, like smell cologne through walls, and sense whether someone's unconscious or faking it.”

She points to Anya. “Then I found a lady who has these crazy, fucking glowing eyes, and has some weird green shit coming out her finger nails.” Claire almost laughs at the next statement. “One can take an unbelievable amount of punishment without one damn complaint, and the other can heal way faster than any human being.”

Matt gave a vague shrug. “The last part's the Catholicism.”

Anya nods. “Yeah, let’s go with that.”

Claire scoffs. “So, what? I'm supposed to take it on faith I'm on the right side of this?”

“You don't carry two masked people bleeding to death into your apartment on faith.” Matt stated, crossing his arms. “You knew which side you were on the moment you found us. Why'd you help us, Claire?”

Claire sighs, shifting the weight on her feet. “I'm a nurse. Work the ER at Metro-General. A few weeks ago, cops brought in three men, said they were robbing tourists, beating them up pretty bad. Apparently, a man in a black mask took issue with their activities and decided to step in. I counted nine broken bones between them.

“A few days after that, EMTs brought in a 19-year-old waitress, said some guy she knew waited for her after work in the parking lot, attacked her and tried to drag her in the alley. She said she screamed and screamed, and a man in a black mask heard her and he saved her life.”

She looks at Anya. “And I don’t think I’ve ever heard about you until today.”

Anya shrugs. “Yeah, well, stealth work, remember?”

“Yeah, but how long will that last?” Claire asks, words twisting in the vigilante’s gut, as eyes trailed back to him. “So, yeah, word's getting around. And I want to believe in what you're doing, Mike. I really do. But this?” She jerks her thumb at Foster, frowning more.

“I know you're afraid.” Matt begins, getting closer with a tiny grunt. “You can't give in to the fear. If you do, men like this win.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

Matt was reading out loud from the kitchen table, loud enough for his father to hear as he walked around the small apartment.

“There is a price to be paid for division and isolation. Democracy cannot flourish amid hate. Justice cannot take root amid rage. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear.”

Jack pauses after coming into the kitchen, sitting some dishes into the sink. “Either you're actually reading all that, or you're making it up as you go along. I don't know which is more impressive.”

“It's Thurgood Marshall.”

Jack hums, placing a half drunk cup of water on the table. “Starting centerfielder for the Mets, right?”

Matt raises his eyebrows in surprise. “You know who Thurgood Marshall is.”

“School wasn't my strong suit.” Was he reply before plopping a package down, untying the strings. A quick look inside was enough for him to whistle from its beauty.

“How's it look?”

“It’s…” He takes out his new silky robe. “It's red. It's really red.”

“Can I?” Matt asked, holding his palms out.

“Yeah.” Jack watches his son feel the material before tracing the words: ‘Battlin’ Jack Murdock’.

Matt grins. “Good thing about red.”

“Huh?”

“They can't tell how much you're bleeding.”

“Hey–” Jack picks up his glass. “Who says I'm even gonna get hit?” He takes a sip as his son tilts his head.

“We're Murdocks. We get hit a lot.”

His heart sinks. “Yeah I guess we do.”

“But we get up. Right, Dad? We always get up.”

“Right.” Jack places the glass down, making his mind up. “But we also pick up our friends.”

Matt furrows his brows. “What do you mean?”

“Listen, Matty.” He takes a seat. “Some kids… aren’t so lucky when it comes to loving parents, and in that case, it’s Anya. Now, I can’t do much unless she complies, but she won't. She’s scared. I just want you to make sure you keep an eye on her. Alright?”

“I’ll always do that. She’s my friend. Is…” Matt frowns, looking like a kicked puppy. “Is she getting hurt by her parents?”

His heart sinks a little bit more. “Something like that.”

And now, since he knows the both of them will hang onto one another–

He’s got one last thing to do before everything’s over.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Foster wakes up, inhaling loudly. As he huffs in oxygen, he looks up and momentarily tries to get out of the cable, before gazing flickering down at the vigilantes and Claire (who had her face completely covered).

Matt steps forward. “Here's how this is gonna work. I'm gonna ask you some questions, you're gonna answer them. If you're lying to me, trust that I will know… and I will be unhappy.” He clenches his fists. “Where's the boy?”

Foster returns a cold glare. “He's dead.”

Matt punches Foster in the jaw, causing him to cough and heave heavily.

“This is what unhappy looks like. Where's the boy?” He tries again.

“What do you care? If he's not dead yet, he will be.”

“Why did you take him?”

Foster gives a half shrug. “Figured you'd come running.”

Matt tilts his head. “And after I was dead?”

“Sell the kid, like all the others.” Another punch again, harder than the last. He spits out blood. “I was telling the truth on that one.”

“I know.”

Foster chuckles. “We got you good, didn't we? We even got a two for one deal on that sweetheart over there.” He cocks his head towards Anya. “Nice of you to stop by too.” She stays quiet, making him frown. “What? You’re not going to say anything?”

“I’ve already done my part. I suggest you answer his questions.” Anya replies, folding her arms.

“Who do you sell the children to?” Matt badgers again.

“I don't know. Whoever has the money.” Foster replies, nonchalantly.

“Where's the boy?”

“So you find him. So what? We'll take another. Kill me, somebody takes my place. Long as people are buying, we'll be selling. Nothing you do tonight will change that.” His cocky grin returns. “But go ahead. Keep hitting me. Let's see who drops first.”

Matt snags a chunk of the man’s hair, holding his head upright ready to try–

“Try stabbing him in his trigeminal nerve.” Claire said, stepping up next to him.

Anya’s amethyst eyes widened in shock. “Dude…”

“Where is it?” Matt asked, not missing a beat.

“Dude.”

Claire points the spot out on Foster. “Go in through here, right above the eye. That's the supraorbital foramen. You want to go in right under there.”

Matt holds the knife up to Foster’s face, just above the eyelid as he starts to struggle.

“Hold still. I might do some serious damage if you squirm.” He hissed. “How will I know when I find it?”

“He'll tell you.” Claire responded.

There is a squishing sound as the knife goes in for the nerve. Foster begins screaming loudly, flailing his body.

“Oh, Jesus…” Anya says under her breath, looking away just as blood started caking the side of his face.

Matt pulls out the knife roughly as Foster starts breathing heavily. “You're right, what you said before. I kill you, somebody takes your place, but they'll end up back here just like you, and sooner or later, one of you is gonna tell me what I need to know.”

Matt jumps up and cuts the cable, then throws Foster over his shoulder and carries him to the side of the building. The girls follow him as he dangles him by the wire over the edge. He starts screaming again which nobody cared to hush.

“This is important.” Matt said, hearing the man start weeping. “Listen! I need you to know why I'm hurting you. It's not just the boy. I'm doing this 'cause I enjoy it.”

“No-eyes.” Anya begins cautiously.

“No, no, no! No, no, no!” Foster pleads.

“Where is he?!” Matt yells, dangling him some more.

“No!” He sobbed, shaking his head. “Underneath Troika restaurant! Eleventh and 44th.” Matt grunts and pulls him back, just as he chuckles. “They'll be waiting for you. If you're lucky, they'll kill you before they start in on the boy. It would be a shame for you to have to watch what they do to him–”

Matt suddenly pushes him over the side of the building, making him scream. Both Claire and Anya shriek and run to the edge, looking down. A loud thudding noise is heard, enough for Claire to pull off her disguise.

“Oh, my God!” She said, panicking.

“Jesus, man! What the fuck?!” Anya said, looking his way.

“It's all right. He landed in the dumpster you pulled me out of.” Matt answered.

“Is he dead?” Claire asked, still peering down.

“He’ll live.”

“Don’t you think that’s a little obsessive?” Anya asked, getting in his path.

“He’s fine.”

“That's insane.”

“We both beat people up. What’s the difference between you and me?”

“I knock people unconscious just so I can get away, I don’t throw them off buildings to potentially kill them!”

He steps closer, their nose practically touching. “If you don’t like it, then stay out of my way.”

She bites the inside of her cheek. “That’s not fair.”

“Like you said the first night we met, you do your thing and I’ll do mine.” He hits her shoulder with his as he passes by. “Claire, you need to get your things and leave. Don't tell anyone where you're going.”

“What?” The nurse asked, confused.

“He wakes up, he'll be back, and he won't be alone next time.” He explains, while cleaning up the remaining cable in the area.

“But he didn't see my face.”

“That was just for effect, to scare him. He knew you were lying when you answered your door.” He leans against the latter, grunting.

“Mike?” She said, worriedly.

He lets out a heavy exhale. “Do you have somewhere you can go?”

“I'm cat-sitting for a woman I work with. Her brother's sick. She's in Oklahoma.”

“What's the address?”

“Why?”

“I'm thinking if I make it through the night, I may need some help getting patched up.”

Claire debates for a moment before giving in. “Tenth and 54th. Apartment 412, um, in the building above the liquor store.”

He puts his hand on her bicep. “Thank you, Claire.” He said, walking away.

“I don't believe you.” She calls out, making him freeze. “What you said. I don't believe you enjoy this.”

Matt says nothing and continues walking away, and Claire opens her mouth to try to protest just as Anya holds her hand up to silence her.

“I’ll watch him. Just get to safety. Please.”

And she walks off too.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

Matt and Anya were sitting down on the floor, cross legged in front of the TV with biggest smiles on their faces.

{ Murdock lands another and another! }

“Get him, Dad! Get him!”

“Yeah, Mr. Murdock!”

{ Creel is rocked! Murdock won't let him out of the corner! The younger Creel seems stunned by the ferocious display by the more seasoned Murdock! Creel goes down! }

Matt bolts to his feet as the crowd starts roaring. “Yes! Yes!”

“Holy cow…” Anya said in disbelief, the bell ringing.

{ He's not getting up! It's over! ‘Battlin' Jack’ Murdock has defeated Crusher Creel! }

“Yeah, Dad! Yeah!” He faces his friend with pure joy on his face. “He did, Ann. He finally did it!”

She chuckles. “He finally lives up to that name, doesn't he?”

“Hell yeah he does!” He pumps his fist. “I can’t wait to celebrate when he gets back!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“You’re following me?” Matt said, stopping at the edge of the rooftop. “Thought I scared you off.”

Anya steps out the shadows, slowly coming up next to him. “I’m not scared of you, I’m scared of what you might do.” She replies, honestly. “You’re not thinking straight.”

“What makes you think I’m not?” He asked, skeptical.

“You’re not the only one who can pick out emotions from heartbeats.” She said, genuinely concerned. “I know you lied when you said that to Foster.” She watches his look away, his unhidden features seemed neutral, but she knew better. “Or maybe… you were trying to convince yourself you do.”

He faces her, heart spiking in surprise as she adds, “Do you think you’re actually the devil in Hell’s Kitchen?”

“If that’s what everyone is calling me then… yeah.” He said, a small nod to go with it. “Then I’m the devil of Hell’s Kitchen?”

“Well, which one then?” She asked, his confused aura coming back. “Are you the devil when he became the devil? Or are you the devil when he was an angel?” She looks across the street at the building they were going to enter. “The reason I don’t want to go so far with my skills is because I’ve seen enough dead bodies at my feet to reconsider my life choices.”

He grows quiet for a little while, an internal debate going back and forth in his mind before he whispers,

“So have I.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

-21 Years Ago-

Anya wakes up on the couch at a sound in the distance. She has enough time to rub her groggy eyes before seeing her friend run down the hall and out the door with just his cane.

“Matt?” She calls out, following him. It took her a few minutes to catch up, asking where he was going but he said nothing. “Matty, seriously, what’s going on?”

He comes to an abrupt stop, right before an alleyway where some policemen were guarding it, keeping bystanders away. Matt attempts to enter like he owes it, but an officer keeps him back.

“Oh, oh, hang on there, son. What's the hurry?” He asked.

“I-I think that's my dad.” Matt said, urgently.

Anya snaps her head his way, stunned. “What?”

“Jesus, Ray, the kid's blind.” Another officer scolded, right as Matt pushed him aside to get in.

“Matt!”

“Hey, wait!”

Anya follows behind her friend with the officer Ray on their tail, and she freezes up completely as Matt sinks to his knees.

“Jack…?” She said, teary eyed.

“Dad?” Matt croaks, feeling the body’s face, which was covered in blood; But he knows who it really is. “Daddy! Daddy!” He lets the dam break immediately. “Daddy! Daddy!”

“Matt, he’s–”

“No… he’s… he’s fine…”

“Matty–”

“Daddy! Daddy, please come back! Daddy!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“I take the left, you take the right?” Anya asked, as they slowly creeped inside the building.

“It’ll make this quicker.” Matt said, his way of agreeing.

They could hear a TV playing, some kind of card game going on, people snickering and talking in Russian.

They even heard the little boy begging for his dad.

They moved slowly, three doors total. A door straight forward, one on the left, and one the right. The two of moved to their desired door, hands on the handle–

They suddenly push the doors open, screaming and running in. The next few minutes went by quickly, but felt like an eternity. Guns were being fired off, missing every one of them by a hair; Glass was shattering, shards dousing the air; Furniture was smashed to pieces, too torn to be put back together. The Russians were sent flying across the rooms, splattered around the hallway as the doors came off their hinges.

The two of them were starting to become gassed as they were left with a pair of gunmen waiting in the hallway. They acted quickly. Anya manages to disarm them to give Matt enough time to incapacitate their foes. And just for a second, they allowed themselves to lean against one another, closing their eyes and taking in deep breaths of oxygen.

She only opens them to look at him worriedly when she hears something wet dripping off his clothing. She frowns, eyebrows pushed together. “Your bandage came loose.” She replies, hand hovering over the one on his abdomen.

His face was trying to keep the pained expression off his face as he could feel it. “Let’s get the kid first. I’ll worry about it when he’s safe.” He replies, hearing her nod.

“Okay. Let’s do it then.” She touches his shoulder. “Watch for the doors.”

The two carefully navigated over the rubble that lingered on the floor. They slowly came up to the end of the hall, listening to see if anything unpleasant awaits them inside.

Nothing. Which was the best news they had all night.

“Mind turning away for a moment?” He asked, which she granted. He pulls up his mask, turning the knob and greeting the little boy. “Hi. I know you're scared. But I'm here to help you. Okay? You don't have to be scared anymore.”

“Okay. Okay.” The boy said, quietly.

“Let's get you home to your dad.”

Anya waited until he was out, tapping her in the back to tell her she could look. Once she saw his mask was back in place, and the boy was held safely in his arms, she started moving ahead just by a few steps; Just enough to stop anyone from trying to come their way.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It was like déjà vu again as they found themselves standing on top of the building from the police station. They stood in silence for a long time, more than likely either listening to the police activity inside or were waiting for one another to speak. Or maybe… they were starting to actually like the company. But there’s no way that could be true.

Right?

Anya exhales, the wave of adrenaline is starting to die off finally. “I guess we should call it night.” She said, not expecting this type of reply.

“Thank you.” Matt said, genuinely. He felt her bewildered eyes on him, mouth open slightly too.

She blinks, shifting to face him completely. “Did I hear that right? Did you just say, ‘thank you’?”

He lets a little grin play on his lips. “Don’t read too much into it, peaches.”

“Wow.” She chuckles. “Sure you don’t have a concussion?”

“You know I can take it back, right?”

“Nope.” She pops the ‘p’. “No take backs. I will forever remember this.”

He sighs. “I regret saying anything.”

Another chuckle. “Lighten up, no-eyes.” Anya said, lightly hitting him in the arm.

This is nice, actually. She thought, smiling. When she first heard the rumors, she didn’t think there was another man out in HK doing justice like her. But now that she’s seen him in the flesh, it’s kind of nice knowing she’s not alone.

Not that she’ll ever say that to his face though.

Matt on the other hand was silently thinking in a similar way, only this time his curiosity finally got the best of him. “Can I ask you something?” He said, feeling her gaze.

“Shoot.”

“Why do you do this?” She immediately frowns, crossing her protectively. He could sense how uncomfortable she was getting. “I mean… you’re not doing what I’m doing. At least that’s what I think.”

“Well… you’re kind of right.”

He tilts his head. “Kind of?”

Anya nods slowly. “Yeah.” She sighs, looking out of the distance (Matt could hear her heart pounding like crazy). “My parents were… murdered some time ago, and uh…” She makes a sound between a sigh and scoff. “They were not good people, but, um… they’re still my parents, you know?”

“And you still feel obligated to investigate their deaths?” Matt finished, an underlying anger he felt that wasn’t towards her.

She nods again. “Yeah, you’re… right again.”

“But they hurt you.”

“Th-That’s besides the point.” Anya really didn’t want to get into that part of her life just yet. “Basically, they were in some shady shit, doing some shady shit. I know because I’ve seen some of it first hand. And when they were killed, I thought it was because of that.”

“And it wasn’t.”

“Yeah. Exactly. When I started looking into it more, all these things, every little thing that seemed to be going on in this city, seemed to connect in some kind of way.”

“Connect in ways, how?” Matt asked, intrigued.

“That’s the thing. I don’t know.” Anya replies, shrugging. “But I’ve seen things coming up frequently to know not to ignore them. I mean… something’s going on here. Between these human traffickers, drug smugglers, that whole… Union Allied bullshit last week, I’ve seen and heard that name in so many different places, it can’t be a coincidence. And I think you see this too.”

He frowns. “Yeah, There’s definitely something going on here.” So he wasn’t alone like he thought. “Sounds like you want to do something about it?”

“Well I found out about all this shit. Can’t exactly back away from it now.”

“Yeah, I know the feeling.”

“Look–” She begins, stepping closer. “I’m not saying we should become partners, but if we’re going to figure out what’s going on here, we should not exactly push each other away. If we come across each other, we just deal with it.”

“And… if we do, we compare notes if we find something?” He asked, carefully.

She nods once more. “If you're okay with it, so am I.”

He ponders for a moment before holding his hand out. “You got yourself a deal. Peaches.” He said, smirking.

Anya chuckles. “Alright, no-eyes.” She shakes it, and casts a glance to their interlocking hands. “Strong grip. What’s your secret?”

“Tell me yours and I’ll share mine.”

“That’s no fair, You know mine.”

“Oh, what a shame.”

“You’re something special.” She jerks her head in a familiar direction. “Go get patched up. I can practically sense your energy draining from you.”

“You don’t say.”

“Yeah.”

“Can I ask you one more thing?”

“Why the hell not.”

He looks at her funny again, replying, “When we both were at that warehouse earlier, the one that started this whole nightmarish night, I never even heard your heartbeat. I thought I could smell you faintly, but hearing you? That was a negative. How come?”

She gives him a bittersweet look. “Truthfully, I was trained to slow it at a young age. Slow it down to where it sounds like I don’t have one. It takes a lot of concentration, I can’t do it all the time, but it comes in handy.” She says, now looking amused. “If you're nice next time, I could teach you.”

He returns the look. “I’ll definitely think about it.”

She smiles and bids him farewell, running off into the night. But Matt stayed on that rooftop for a little bit, the gears in his head turning at the thought of maybe…

Maybe he should have said yes to being her partner.

》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》》《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《《

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