#yeah they’re all named after flowers what are you gonna do about it

[writingonleaves]

and all at once, you’re all i want (i’ll never let you go) - jack hughes

pairing: jack hughes x original female character

warnings: literally nothing. fluff! some minor worship of nina hischier (the goat), a little love letter to my alma mater

title: "king of my heart" by taylor swift

word count: 10.3k

author's note: first fic in the new year is for @wyattjohnston 's winter fic exchange 2k24!! i had the absolute pleasure of writing for @wildrangers <3 taylor, i hope you enjoy this as much as i enjoyed putting it together and demi, thank you for your endless hard work for putting this on!!

four times where jack hughes and ashley grassie showed up for each other and one time where everyone showed up for them

*****

one - two months

“Jack, are you sure about this?” Ashley asks, fiddling with the silver rings on her fingers. 

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He responds confidently, sparing a look at her from the drivers seat before turning his eyes back on the road. “Everyone’s expecting you.”

“You told them?”

“That my girlfriend was coming with me to a New Year’s party? Of course.” He squeezes her thigh lightly. “They’re excited to meet you. And not while we’re working.”

“I’m excited to meet them too.”

“You sure?” He teases lightly. “You’ve been quiet all afternoon.”

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry about.” They stop at a red light, and he leans over to kiss her cheek. “Ash, baby, they’re gonna love you.”

“But you don’t know that,” she protests softly. 

“I do, actually. Because everyone loves you.”

She rolls her eyes. “You can’t promise me that everyone’s gonna even like me.”

He shrugs. “I’ll prove you wrong. You’ll see.” He tugs at her gold sweater. “Is this new?”

“Yeah. Seems fitting for the occasion. Sparkles equals New Years, right?”

“I like it a lot.”

“I know what you’re doing,” she deadpans. 

He smirks. “And what might that be?”

“Distracting me.”

“Maybe so. You’re so smart, Miss Columbia Grad.”

“Jack,” she whines, making him laugh. 

He picks up her hand and kisses the back of it. “Trust me, okay? It’ll be great. And I’ll be with you all night.”

Ashley swallows, before forcing herself to nod. 

The thing is, after two months of dating officially (she’s not counting the month beforehand when there wasn’t a label on things even though there should’ve been), there are still important parts of each other’s lives they have yet to experience together. She’s gone to a few of his games, but has never met any of his teammates (except for Luke, but he doesn’t count), choosing to meet Jack back at his place after instead of waiting for him at the rink. She also doesn’t count that one Devils game she had to fill in for, which is how she met Jack in the first place. The few times he’s invited her along when he does go out with them, she’s been busy with other things. 

New Year’s is kinda a big time to be meeting new people. People that mean a lot to Jack. But that could just also be all in Ashley’s head. She’s never really done this before. The last serious boyfriend she had was in high school where everyone knew each other. There was no need for introductions. 

Jack squeezes her hand. “Thank you.” 

“For?” 

“Coming with me to this. Taking off work early. I appreciate it a lot.” 

She shrugs casually. “It’s about time, right?” She pointedly ignores the look he shoots her, because she doesn’t want him to know how nervous she really is.

Before they know it, Jack’s pulled into the driveway of the Toffolis and her hands start sweating again. She gathers the flowers on her lap and the wine bag as Jack rounds the car and opens the door for her. He grabs the bag, presses a kiss atop her head and hand in hand, they walk to the front door. She lets Jack take the lead as he just walks in. They walk into the kitchen area, as Cat pulls her into a hug and thanks them graciously for the flowers and wine.

It turns out that Ashley really does have nothing to worry about. Getting thrown into a whirlwind of introductions and new names is a lot, but she doesn’t mind. A wave of comfort crashes over her as Luke practically hauls her into a hug. 

She finds herself besides Nico after he hands her a glass of wine. “You’re a journalist, right?” He asks.

“I am.”

“Do you ever watch Jack’s media interviews?”

Ashley giggles. “I do once in awhile. Trust me, I have my thoughts. I also met him for the first time from that. And you, technically.”

“Right, right. Will we ever see you in the locker room again?”

“Probably not. I was just filling in for Danny. On the rare chance I do sports, it’s usually for the Jets. Besides, better to watch and support you all without any stake professionally.”

“What do you usually report on?” Nico asks with genuine curiosity. 

She perks up, like anytime she gets to talk about her job. As she talks, using her hands animatedly despite one of them holding a drink, Jack looks on from a distance with a lovesick look in his eyes.

“She is way too cool for you,” Dawson says, fixing his cap.

Jack rolls his eyes. “Shut up.” But Jack knows his teammate’s right.

Jack’s not clingy, perse, but it’s hard for him to watch Ashley just…be and not be touching a part of her. Even if it’s just sliding up against her so her body is pressed alongside his, he just wants to be near her all the time. 

(Quinn once sent some random thing he found on Instagram about love languages a few years back and Jack had remembered absolutely roasting him. But maybe he had a point)

“So,” Nicole starts, refilling both their glasses up with champagne a bit later in the evening. “Why Jack?”

Ashley snorts. “Your guess is as good as mine.” From beside his girlfriend, Jesper barks out a laugh and from next to Ashley, Jack pouts. Ashley laughs, leaning into Jack’s side. “I’m kidding. Mostly. I was hesitant at first though.”

“Oh, yeah. He told me about this,” Jesper says. “Said he chased you down the hall after post-game media and asked you out?”

“Sounds about right.”

“And you said yes to that?” Jesper asks. Jack whacks his teammate in the stomach. 

“Not right away,” Ashley admits. “He gave me his number and told me to text him if I was interested. And I ended up being interested.”

“Lucky for him,” Nicole chuckles. 

Jack squeezes Ashley’s waist fondly. “Lucky for me.”

She listens on in interest as Nicole talks about how she and Jesper got together. Somewhere throughout the conversation, she can’t help but let her mind drift. They’ve been together for years now, been living together for a bit and are looking to move into a house. She literally moved away from Sweden full-time for him. 

Ashley swallows as Jack asks about how their house search is going. There’s a very little chance that Jack will be leaving Jersey anytime within the next half decade. But her mother warned her that his career could take him places in the future unexpectedly. 

And in a way, so could Ashley’s. But it’s not as easy. 

She scolds herself for even thinking this far. They’ve been dating for literally two months. That’s nothing in the grand scheme of things. They’re celebrating entering the new year today, but she has no idea if they’ll even be together for all of it.

She’s hoping they are. God, she really fucking hopes so. But she could hope until the end of the world and have it fall short. She smoothes her sweater out with her suddenly-clammy hands, chugging the whole glass of champagne before putting the flute down on a nearby table. She excuses herself politely to use the bathroom, which she does, before getting some air. 

She definitely looks a bit crazy outside on the Toffoli’s porch in the dead of winter, but she doesn’t mind the biting edge of cold. It’s grounding her, actually. 

“Was looking for you.”

Ashley doesn’t even look at Jack, humming as she hears him walking out to stand next to her. “Did my sparkle sweater give me away?”

“No, Neeks did, actually. Said he saw you walking out.” She finally looks at him with his eyebrows furrowed. “You’re not cold?”

“Don’t even think about offering me your jacket,” she warns. “I know you’re only wearing a t-shirt underneath.”

“Then come back inside so we both don’t die.”

“In a minute,” she promises. 

He huffs, rubbing his hands up and down her arms to try and generate some heat. “Everything good?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Just, you know, minorly freaking out at her boyfriend’s teammate’s place about the fact that she might be falling in love with him even though it hasn’t been that long and what a future could look like for them and how that future could fall apart in an instant.

So regular New Year’s Eve thoughts.

“Unlike you, I don’t have a college degree, much less two,” Jack grins. “I can’t read minds.”

“And you think I can?” She jokes back weakly. He just chuckles. She continues. “Your friends are nice. I like them a lot.”

He lights up anytime someone he loves gets brought up in conversation. “Yeah, they’re cool. They like you too.”

“That’s good,” she says softly. 

He taps her forehead with his pointer finger. “Countdown’s soon. Come back inside?��� He laces their fingers together. 

“You gonna kiss me at midnight?”

“Think so.”

“You only think so?”

Jack smirks, kissing her deeply. “Shut up.”

Ashley is absolutely floored.

two - one year and one month

Cam’s wedding crept up on her. 

Of course, Ashley knew it was coming, but still. Though she was surprised when Jack told her that he was free of games on that particular early November weekend somehow, only having to miss an optional practice and that he would notify the coaching staff far in advance. 

It’s not the act of bringing Jack that she’s nervous about. Cam and Amanda, his fiance, came into the city a few months ago and they all grabbed lunch before heading to a game at The Rock that night. She’ll never forget how ultimately “traitor-like to the Bruins” Cam felt, Ashley and Amanda finding it hilarious. They both had a good time though, and that’s all that matters, and Cam, who has always looked out for her even before she had ever asked, subtly gave his approval. 

(“I’ll admit my assumptions about him were wrong,” Cam had said. “He’s awesome, and he really cares about you. If he’s the one, I won’t be mad about it. He’s very lucky.”)

It’s more of a particular person that’s going to be at the wedding. 

Weirdly, when she and Alex broke up way back when, one of the thoughts that circled her mind months after was exactly this. If and when the day of Cam’s wedding came, and they were both still close to him, they’d both be there. And here they are. 

She’s over him — obviously, considering she’s in a happy, long-term relationship and it’s been four years — but how do you prepare to see your ex-boyfriend when the last time you saw him you had just broken up and you were in tears?

She and Jack drive up to Cape Cod early the day of the wedding and she feels a bit bad that he’s driving after he had a game last night and has one in just two days but he doesn’t mind, happy to be driving as long as she’s in the passenger seat next to him. They’re switching off anyways, and she had driven the first half. Cam and Amanda rented out a bunch of rooms at a few inns for their guests so her and Jack will get ready there before heading to the venue. 

From a quick rundown Cam gave her a month ago when they caught up over the phone, she’ll at least be familiar with a good amount of people at the wedding. She’s excited to see them all again and catch up, those memories that were bittersweet at some point, all water under the bridge so many years later. 

It’s what you get for dating within a friend group. Ultimately, at some point, sides are chosen.

At the end of the day, it’s Cam, someone who has always been there for her since they were 16, even when she didn’t necessarily do the same. He’s given his friendship selflessly to her for over a decade. The least she can do is come to his wedding to celebrate. 

And she has Jack with her. Nothing can go wrong with Jack by her side. 

“You okay?” Jack’s voice breaks her out of her thoughts as he squeezes her thigh, sneaking a look before focusing back on the road. “You’re quiet. You’re rarely quiet in the car.”

“It’s a 5 hour drive, Jack.”

“I’ve been playing country nonstop for the last half an hour and you haven’t chirped me once.” She starts playing with his fingers and his eyebrows furrow. “Alright. What’s going on, baby? What are you thinking about?”

“You know what I’m thinking about.” She shoots back with no malice. 

He sighs, linking their hands together and bringing them up to his lips to kiss her knuckles. “Yeah. I got you though. I’ll be with you the whole day.”

“It’s dumb, really. Four years. And I haven’t thought about him in a long time.”

He shrugs. “He was your first heartbreak, and you haven’t seen him since. This is gonna be some sort of closure, even if it’s four years later.”

“You seem awfully cool about this, considering, you know, your current girlfriend is lowkey freaking out about seeing her ex again.”

“I’m not worried,” he replies easily. “You need this closure. I wasn’t smart like you back then and actually saw my exes probably way sooner than I should’ve. Besides, I’m the one on your arm now. Not him. I’m not pressed.”

She scoffs at yet another country song playing and skips it, snorting when ‘Suburban Legends’ by Taylor Swift comes on. How fitting. “I’m definitely hyping it up in my head. It’s nothing. And Cam told me that he purposefully put us at separate tables, in case Alex says some questionable shit while drunk.”

“No worries about you saying anything questionable?”

“Compared to Alex? No way.” He snorts, amused. But he knows enough about his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend to not push it. “I wonder if he’s bringing someone. God, I hope he is.”

“Why? Don’t want to rub it in his face that you’re happy and in love?”

“That’s mean,” she says airily. “No. I hope he’s bringing someone because I want to know what kind of girl can tolerate his ass. I did, but I was 20 and stupid. I wanna see what kind of girl can tolerate him at 26.”

“Does he know I’m coming?”

“Cam?”

He snorts. “No. Alex.”

“Who knows? Even if he does, he probably doesn’t care and isn’t overthinking it like I am.”

“I think you’d be surprised,” she looks at him, confused and he bites his lip. “Even if they play it off, guys are affected by that stuff more than you’d think.”

“What is there to be affected by?”

“You,” Jack says simply. “Not that I’m biased or anything, but you leave quite an impact on everyone you meet. And that lucky ass got to date you. As someone who also has had that privilege, I can relate a bit.”

Ashley chuckles before squeezing his hand. “Thanks for coming with me. I know your schedule is really busy with the season and everything-”

“You don’t need to thank me. Isn’t half of having a significant other just bringing them as plus ones to weddings?”

“Fair.” She leans her head on his shoulder momentarily as he pushes the sunglasses on top of his head to his face. “Thank you, though. I feel bad that you’re missing practice.”

He snorts. “Don’t.”

“They didn’t give you a hard time?”

“Not really. It’s an optional, anyways. Nico just told us to have fun and I think Lindy has a soft spot for you somehow. I’m excited. I like Cam. And I’m happy to be here with you.” He smirks, adding. “Come on, baby. Did you think I was gonna leave you to dry when your ex is gonna be there?”

“You don’t know anybody at the wedding. And Cam grew up in a hockey-loving family from Boston. There’s bound to be people who recognize you.”

“So I’m the arm candy for the night. That works perfectly for me.” 

They arrive at the inn just past 1, and decide to stop by a nearby cafe to grab a quick bite. Jack decides to take a short nap before they have to start getting ready and head out while she scrolls on her phone and plays with his hair since his head is on her lap. Occasionally she finds herself staring outside the window at the water with a smile. Even if not in the summer, the Cape is beautiful.

Once it hits 4:15, she figures that she should start getting ready, but she can’t move without disturbing Jack since he’s still sleeping soundly on her lap. She gently whispers his name and presses a few kisses on his forehead as his breathing changes, groaning a bit as he stretches and opens his eyes. 

“Time to go?”

“In like, an hour. I need to start getting ready.”

He hums, puckering his lips and she takes the hint, kissing him soundly twice before ushering him off her lap. She lays out the few makeup products she has, moisturizing her face before putting light foundation and concealer on. As always, she focuses more attention on her eyeshadow, deciding to add a bit of gold glitter to compliment her pink dress. She clips a matching pink bow in, liking the way it blends with the natural brown of her hair. She decides to save the lipstick for right before they leave and turns to Jack, who’s buttoning his shirt. 

“What do you think?” He looks up as he’s buttoning his cuffs. “Too much glitter?” She asks.

“Never too much glitter. You look beautiful.”

She looks at his blazer and tie that he’s laid out on the bed, looking at him with minor confusion. “Since when do you own that tie?”

“Since last week when I bought it.”

She looks at where her dress is hanging. “It matches my dress.”

“Yes it does.”

She looks towards him as he tucks his shirt in, a sudden wave of love rushing through her heart. “I love you.”

He looks up and immediately walks over to her, placing a hand on her waist and kissing her. “I love you too.”

She puts on her dress quickly, smiling when she doesn’t even have to ask Jack as he comes over to help her zip it up, pressing a chaste kiss on her shoulder. His phone ringing interrupts and she brushes her hair before she puts on her accessories. 

“Sup Quinny?”

Quinn’s voice crackles through Jack’s phone. “Where the fuck are you going all dressed up on a Saturday? I know for a fact you don’t have a game today, considering Luke just sent a snap of him playing Chel with Dawson 10 minutes ago.”

“I’m in the Cape, asshole. One of Ash’s friends is getting married.”

She peeks into the view of the camera and waves after putting in one earring. “Hi Quinn!”

“Oh! Hey Ash. You look beautiful.”

She beams. “Thank you!”

Jack scoffs. “I’m here too.”

Ashley leaves the brothers to catch up as she starts gathering her things and puts on her lip tint before sitting at the edge of the bed since they still have 15 minutes left before they have to head out and she’s mostly all ready to go. She chimes in once in awhile, always happy to talk to Quinn as Jack shrugs on his suit jacket, ties his matching pink tie and clasps on his watch.

“Looking good, you two.” Quinn says as they both stand in front of the phone. “Matching tie, eh? Good move, Jacky.”

“We look good enough to make an ex jealous?”

She just rolls her eyes as Quinn’s eyes lights up, immediately catching on. “Absolutely.”

“Don’t encourage him, Quinn.”

Quinn just laughs and bids them farewell as Jack smooths down his tie. She puts on her jacket and grabs her boots and slips them on. As she’s about to bend down and tie them, Jack ushers her to sit on the bed and kneels down. He does it too quickly for her to dwell too much on how much she loves him, but he probably knows, if him gently rubbing his thumb over her ankle and the kiss on the inside of her knee tell her anything. 

It’s only been a little over a year, but she really does think she could spend the rest of her life with him.

They end up running into Nick in the lobby and even though it’s been…four years since she’s seen him, she corrals him into a tight hug. She introduces Jack and Nick introduces Melanie, his fiancee. The only indication from Nick that he knows who Jack is is a subtle comment that’s delivered in a way that’s so Nick it makes her heart ache — “Jack Hughes. Only Ash would show up after almost five years in the flesh with a professional athlete at a wedding where her ex is gonna be at. Always gotta do some out of pocket shit.” — and makes Jack laugh as she slaps him.

The four of them walk the short seven minute walk to the venue together, with Ashley and Nick mostly leading the conversation. She can’t remember where they left their tentative friendship in their late teens and early twenties when the world was shut down and the future looked the most uncertain it had been. Even though they don’t immediately pick up where they left off, years of rust littered in their interactions and memories, she’s extremely happy to see that he’s doing well. 

(Jack’s just happy to be there, holding his girlfriend’s hand as she leads the conversation. It’s nice not having to lead for once. There’s not many situations where he’s the one tagging along) 

As they enter the ceremony space, Ashley immediately sees plenty of other people she recognizes. She chuckles to herself as she realizes many of the guys are from the soccer team. It’s touching to know they still keep in touch. Logan, one of said guys, greets Nick goodheartedly, before wrangling her into a hug. As pleasantries are exchanged and people are introduced, she does feel a bit out of place. But that’s natural, reconnecting with people after so long that clearly still hang out with each other and only hear about her through sporadic updates through Cam when they ask. 

Sides were chosen, even if not intentionally. Ashley’s learned to be okay with that. Even if she thinks it’s unfair that Alex got to keep a lot of their mutual friends and she didn’t.

As everyone settles down in their seats, she squeezes Jack’s hand, opening her mouth to apologize for…something. Not preparing him in giving the whole lore of how she knows all these people? How the only reason she knows the sport of soccer is so well is because of Alex? Not explaining clearly the mixed feelings of her coming to the Cape this weekend? 

But Jack’s enraptured in a conversation with Logan, and she smiles. Of course. Logan played hockey back in high school as well. 

(Out of instinct, Jack does squeeze her hand back though, even placing them in his lap even though he’s not looking in her direction at all)

When Alex comes into view, a pretty redhead’s hand around the crook of his elbow, Ashley starts sweating. Thank goodness she has deodorant in her bag. Jack, who’s still talking to Logan, notices, and she’s about to apologize for her clammy hands as he sends her a confused look but the nearby exclamations of Alex’s name answers his question. He just presses two kisses to her temple.

Logan, to his credit, grimaces. “You gonna be good, Ash?”

She waves his kindness away. “Of course. It’s been so long. And it’s Cam’s day.”

And it is Cam’s day, as everyone falls silent watching both sets of parents and the groomsmen and bridesmaids walk down — she chuckles when she sees Sean walking down, forgetting that he and Cam got closer in college even after going to the same high school — before grinning as Amanda walks down in her beautiful A-line, ball gown of a wedding dress. Ashley wipes a tear away watching Cam do the same and she thinks if only 16 year old them could see themselves now. 

(She has a moment when she looks at Jack where her stomach flips, thinking of the day they could be the ones at the altar. She quickly focuses her attention back to the front)

Cam and Amanda are pronounced husband and wife and she cheers as he dips her and kisses her, beaming and tearing up and laughing as she hears Nick wolf-whistle. People start dispersing, the large heated patio hosting a cocktail hour before the doors to the reception hall open back up again.

While she’s sipping on a glass of wine, she hears a familiar voice calling her name and she beams, carefully making sure she doesn’t spill any wine on Sean’s tuxedo as he towers over her and hugs her tightly. He introduces himself to Jack and she watches in slight amusement as they talk. 

Sean and her never really were friends, more friends by association. He was more in the popular crowd in the school that Ashley herself was never inclined to push her way through. Her and Sean shared plenty of classes together though, and always got along when forced to work together. And in another life, sometimes Ashley thinks that she would’ve had a crush on the blonde boy. 

Instead, she dated one of his teammates. And, well, that turned out the way it did.

(Ashley rolls her eyes when Sean makes a comment about how it “makes complete sense that you’re the one who ended up dating a professional athlete” because sure, Sean. Sure.)

Jack may be among many Massachusetts natives who live and die for the Bruins and are not hesitant in chirping him within 5 minutes of meeting him, but he smiles genuinely as his hand instinctively finds a way on her lower back. After dating Ashley for over a year, he’s used to the good-intentioned bluntness of New Englanders. She only starts rolling her eyes when high school gets brought up and stories about her start piling up. In contrast, Jack loves this and just eggs them on, eager to hear the stories. 

With a quick glance at the seating chart when they’re all starting to filter back into the reception hall, she finds that the high school crowd is split between two tables, and that Cam kept to his word and put her and Alex at different ones. The tables next to each other, but still. She won’t have to worry about making accidental awkward eye contact with him across her chicken. She’s the slightest bit surprised she hasn’t crossed direct paths with him yet. But there’s enough people that they wouldn’t ever be forced to interact. And maybe that’s for the best. 

Dinner passes by without incident, Ashley squeezing both Cam and Amanda tight as they come around to toast every table as Jack gives Cam a tight bro-hug and Amanda a polite kiss on the cheek. The dance floor starts to open up, and as usual, Ashley’s one of the first ones on, dragging Jack and practically their whole table out. She feels light on her feet and happy as she leans into Jack with a big smile. He ditches his suit jacket at the table and his pink tie is loosened and she thinks he looks so handsome. She’s happily tipsy enough where the curious glances and whispers from probably the entire fucking reception hall about why an NHL player is here don’t bother her. She knows he’s used to it. She doesn’t know how.

(Jack may not know everything of the lore and context behind Ashley’s relationship with the people she knows here, but he knows her and how deeply she feels and nostalgic she can get and how that can change her perception of her own memories and how that in turn, can make her extremely self critical. 

So this whole evening, he’s tried to make it as easy as possible, talking with her old friends and classmates — which isn’t much of an ask, they’re nice enough — and just squeezing her hand or waist or kissing her temple or cheek when he feels her focus trailing off. If she talks to Alex and wants him there, he’ll be right next to her. If not, he’ll make himself scarce. Whatever she wants)

Ashley’s resting at her chair while Jack’s in a casual conversation with Cam as Alex comes up behind Cam, tapping him on the shoulder. She swallows and sits up straight and Jack automatically places a gentle hand on her back. Cam and Alex exchange a few words she can’t hear before Cam turns his attention back to her and Jack feels a surge of gratitude towards Cam, who looks extremely apologetic. 

Jack watches as she stands up and steps towards Alex with a small smile. “Hey.”

Alex blinks. “Hi.” She gives him a quick hug before stepping back next to Jack as he stands up. “Alex, this is Jack, my boyfriend. Jack, Alex.”

“Nice to meet you, man.” Jack says with a firm, polite handshake and he doesn’t really see (or care about) Alex’s reaction before turning back to Ashley again, trying to read her. She gives him an almost imperceptible nod. Jack’s eyes flicker to Cam, who also nods behind Alex and he clears his throat. “I’m gonna get a refill. You two want anything?”

“All good, man.”

“Rum and coke, heavier on the coke?”

“You got it,” Jack presses a quick kiss to her hair before he and Cam walk to the bar. 

Jack waves to the bartender for a whiskey sour for himself as Cam gets a gin and tonic. They both lean against the counter and Jack sighs, watching Alex take Jack’s previous seat. “Was that a good idea? Leaving them alone?” Because he knows her, of course, but Cam’s known her longer. And he had a front row seat to her and Alex’s friendship before they got together, their relationship when they got together, and the fallout of their breakup. 

“Honestly? I don’t know. But they’re both 26 year old mature adults.” Cam’s eyes flit over to a redhead woman a couple seats away from the bar and waves her over. Jack’s trying to remember if he’s met her tonight

“Hi Cam,” she says lightly. 

“Hey yourself,” he nods over in the direction of her and Alex. “You initiate that?”

She snorts, “Of course I did.” She perches herself on a stool and sticks her hand out to Jack. “I don’t think we’ve met yet. I’m Francesca, but please call me Fran. I’m Alex’s girlfriend.”

Jack gives her a small smile. This is something. “Jack. Ashley’s boyfriend.”

“I’m aware,” she teases. “I grew up in Jersey and my brother’s a huge hockey fan. I’ve been to a couple of your games throughout the years.”

“Always nice to meet a fan,” He responds smoothly and genuinely. “Especially in a room filled with Bruins fans that could honestly poison my drink at any moment and I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re lucky there are no Rangers fans here.” Cam waves him off as Jack and Fran laugh. 

“What a way to meet someone for the first time,” Fran says.

“While our exes are talking for the first time in over four years?” Jack says and Fran and Cam both snort. “You could say that.”

She turns to Cam, “Cam, you can go off and mingle, you know? It’s your wedding. Jack and I will be fine here.”

Jack opens his mouth to agree but Cam just shakes his head. “It’s fine. I need a second to breathe anyways. And also make sure this doesn’t go downhill.”

“Ashley seems like a smart girl and Alex isn’t that stupid,” Fran says. “They wouldn’t make a fuss at your wedding.”

Cam sighs and Jack thinks about how thankful he is that Cam has been there for his girlfriend way before Jack even knew her. Jack then turns to Fran and asks how she and Alex met and the conversation starts there, all three of them turning to the two exes from time to time to make sure there’s no flames or glasses being thrown. 

Fran talks about how she and Alex met at work and laughs in amusement when Jack explains that it was the same with him and Ashley, talking about how Ashley had been filling in for a colleague for an interview and Jack practically fell in love with her the second he saw her and had to tell himself to not sound stupid in front of the pretty girl. 

And honestly, as Jack talks to Fran, he laughs to himself a bit ironically. She reminds him a bit of Ashley. A bit too much for him personally and harsh in a different way than his girlfriend, but decent company nonetheless. So maybe he and Alex are more alike than they think. 

Meanwhile, the conversation happening merely 20 feet away between two exes is not as casual. Not as comfortable. 

“Been a long time, huh?” Alex remarks. 

Ashley tries not to scoff. “Four years.”

Alex curses under his breath. “Yeah. How are you?”

What a loaded question. She goes along with it. “I’m good.”

“Cam mentioned you’re in New York?”

“I am. Moved out there about a year after college for work. Then went to grad school there.”

“Journalist?”

She shrugs. “More or less. The title’s changed a couple times throughout the years but all in that field.”

“That’s awesome.” He runs a hand through his hair and it looks so familiar yet unfamiliar. “I still remember when you told me you got into BU. Seems like the path was always laid out for you, huh?”

She’ll have to unpack that one later. “Guess so. How about you? I heard you were in Portland. Real estate, right?”

He nods, “Yeah.”

“That’s great. I’m really glad you’re doing well.”

“Thanks.” A moment of silence there. “For what it’s worth, it is really good to see you again.”

Ashley lets out a genuine smile. Small, but genuine. “Same.” 

The sound of his laughter kinda aches a bit, but not in a way that has her sad. Just nostalgic. There is some easy banter, and somewhere in the back of her mind, Ashley’s remembering a bit of why she loved him in the first place. 

There’s a pause in the conversation, before she continues, “I haven’t gotten a chance to meet whoever you’re here with yet, but-”

“Fran.”

“Fran, right.” she says. “But I’ve heard a bit. How long have you two been together?”

“Are we really going to do this?”

She swallows the urge to fire back, shrugging instead. “Why not? And don’t pretend like you’re not curious about Jack either. I figured I might as well just go first.”

Alex laughs. “Around three years for Fran and I.”

“You love her?”

“I do. A lot.”

She smiles. Genuinely this time. “Good. I’m glad to hear it.”

“How about you and Mr. NHL Superstar?”

Again, she swallows down her instinct to fire back. “A little over a year now.”

“You happy?”

“Very.”

Alex nods once and doesn’t quite smile but has a pleasant expression on his face. “Cam said that he likes him. Which is a lot, considering I’m pretty sure he used to think that he was a cocky asshole.”

Ashley knows it’s not meant in that way because she knows that her boyfriend has somewhat of a reputation, but she gets defensive. “People aren’t always what they seem. Even if he’s a pest on the ice sometimes, he’s a wonderful guy.” You should know, she wants to say. You were the exact same way in high school.

They’re trickling into dangerous territory. She wonders if he’ll take the bait. If he does, she wonders if she’ll be strong enough not to fall for it. She wonders if he’ll apologize, not because she needs it, but because she knows she deserved one all those years ago. 

Alex leans back casually, putting his arm over the empty chair next to him. “From me to Jack fucking Hughes. I don’t know if I should be flattered or offended.”

Ashley doesn’t know at all how she’s supposed to take that. Like everything he’s always done, he says it casually, taking a drink of water as she’s figuring out how to respond. She doesn’t. For the first time, she feels like she doesn’t have control of this conversation.

He notices she has no response and keeps going. “Hey, he’s a decent player and the money can’t hurt. I’m glad you’re happy.”

She swallows. A gold digger? Is that really what he’s hinting at?

Ashley almost sighs in relief when she catches sight of Jack, Cam and a woman who she presumes is Fran walking back towards them. Immediately she plasters on a smile and introduces herself to Fran, because it’s not her fault that her boyfriend still has the ability to get under her skin even so many years after their break-up. Jack presses a rum and coke in her hand silently and she thanks him quietly before making small talk with Fran. Just having Jack next to her has her blood pressure lowering. Soon enough, they all but shove Cam back into his own wedding and bid farewell as Fran excuses her and Alex and heads over to chat with someone she doesn’t recognize. 

Jack leads her outside of the main reception hall into one of the hallways, where there are people sporadically chatting and also getting away from the music for a second. 

Jack grabs her drink and faces her with a concerned look. “Ash? You okay? It seemed to get a little…tense at times.”

Ashley shrugs and chuckles. It’s bitter though, and he knows it, immediately placing a grounding hand on her waist. “I was how I always am to everyone.”

“Sure,” he responds skeptically. 

She sighs. “It was fine. I’m fine. It didn’t go badly. I don’t know if it was good. It just…was.” She squeezes her eyes shut. “It was fine. It’s not a big deal. It’s been four fucking years and it’s not like I love him anymore. I shouldn’t-”

“Hey. Stop. None of that,” Jack says softly but firmly, leaning in closer and kissing her forehead as she bites her bottom lip harshly. He holds her hand gently and presses it against his chest. “Open your eyes, baby. Take some breaths with me.”

She obeys, looking into blue eyes that have become another home for her and taking deep breaths. “Thanks.”

“Always. Wanna talk about it?”

She debates in her mind. “No. It’s a wedding. Let’s go back and have fun and dance.”

“You sure?”

She nods, before placing a peck on his lips. “I’ll probably be more in my feelings tomorrow about it. Or the next week. But for now, come dance with me.”

“Lead the way.”

Ashley doesn’t even look at Alex’s direction for the rest of the night, instead looking at Jack when she feels like the floor beneath her is gonna get pulled away. The stupidly romantic thing is, she knows he’ll catch her everytime.

three - one year and nine months

“What do you think?”

Jack looks up from where he’s sitting on her bed and his eyes pop open, jaw dropping with it. He tosses his phone to the side. “Ash. Holy shit.”

Ashley twirls around in the yellow ruffle dress. “I like this one the most, but I don’t think it’s fancy enough.”

She looks up to see him biting his lip, eyes scanning her body. She blushes as he beckons her to stand inbetween his legs. “Don’t care. You have to wear this one, please. It fits you perfectly.”

She smoothes down the ruffles. “Are you sure it’s fancy enough?”

“Honey, most of the guys probably won’t even be wearing ties,” she settles her hands in his hair. “Wear this one. I know you love it and you look beautiful in it.”

She lets out a breath. “Okay, yeah. I can pair it with those flower earrings and matching bracelet and I think Scarlett has white heels I could borrow and-”

“Woah there,” he chuckles, rubbing his thumbs on the fabric at her hips. “Did you have too much coffee today? You’re talking a million miles a minute.”

“No,” she drawls out. “I’m just…nervous? This is the first thing we’re going to that’s so…”

“Public?” He finishes for her. She nods. He pushes her gently so that she’s sitting next to him. “I get that. I’m a bit nervous too. But I’ll be there the whole time. And you’ll have my parents and Quinn. And Nico will be there too. Besides, you’re great with people. I’ve seen you in action.”

She shrugs modestly. “That’s not what I’m worried about.”

“Then what is it you’re worried about?”

She swallows at his tone, because she doesn’t think he gets it. Why would he? He’s not the one that’s going to be scrutinized by his fans. At least not to the degree she would be. “Everyone else’s thoughts.”

Jack nods slowly in realization. He leans in to kiss her lips twice. She has to admit it makes her feel a bit better. His kisses usually do. “You know no one else’s opinions mean anything. Besides, it’s very clear to anyone that I’m happily taken.”

And he has a point. She’s made an appearance on his Instagram with two photos in his annual summer dump — one was just of her in the city and the other was of the two of them by the lake in Michigan — and he hadn’t tagged her, but it was clearly a message to the world that he wasn’t a single man. Social media doesn’t matter and it never will, but it had been a decision they both had come to, Jack approaching her gently and asking if he could post them. 

But having it through a screen and having it in real life is different. 

“I know it’s stupid,” she says. “But you know me. I don’t particularly enjoy being out of my element.”

“I know, I know,” he bumps her knee with his. “It’ll be fun though. We’ll get drunk the night before and maybe I’ll be hungover the next morning and you get to tell Luke if I do anything embarrassing.”

Ashley laughs. “That does sound fun.”

“Exactly.” He cups her face in his hands. “I gotcha, baby. Always.”

She trusts in that when she lands in Boston a few days later. She trusts in that as she gets swept in a world she’s not quite comfortable in, but finds there are a lot more similarities than differences compared to environments she’s been in. She’s a journalist after all. It’s her job in a way to blend into different lives in order to get the best and most impactful stories. She trusts in that as she’s rolling her eyes fondly at Jack, who’s chatting with practically everyone at the bar. She doesn’t think she’s ever seen this many hockey players in one room. She trusts in that as Jack then always drags whoever he’s talking to so that he can introduce her. 

For someone who has always valued their privacy, Jack is making it pretty obvious that the “stunning girl in the floral shirt” is his. Ashley can’t say she hates it, even if it’s a little bold for her particular taste. 

“He looks happy, doesn’t he?” Ellen asks as they both watch Jack across the room with Auston Matthews. Ashley’s cousins in Toronto would be freaking out right now. 

Ashley snickers. “Drunk or happy?”

“Both?” Ellen raises her glass up to knock it against Ashley’s in a toast.

“I’ll drink to that.” 

“Thank you for coming. I know it means a lot to Jack that you’re here.”

“Thank you all for having me,” Ashley responds, suddenly a bit shy. “It’s, been, uh, a bit overwhelming, to be honest.”

“I can imagine,” Ellen smiles sympathetically. “All this hockey stuff, business wise, is more Jimmy’s scene than mine.”

“Really?” Ashley thinks to all that Jack’s told her about his mother and all the warmth Ellen has emitted since they’ve met, not to mention how everyone they’ve talked to — player, coach, agent — has gravitated towards Ellen.

To her credit, Ellen chuckles. “That’s fair. Jack tells me that you know how to work a room, which is something that Jimmy’s always said about me.”

Ashley traces the rim of her glass. “I think Jack gives me too much credit.”

“I’m not sure about that,” Ellen says with a knowing smile. “I read your article the other day. The one about the family who’s had to travel across the country to get care for their child. Quinn sent it to me, actually.” Quinn read it? She doesn’t remember sending it to him. Did Jack send it to him? “It’s an incredible piece of work. How long did that take you?”

“From start to finish? Around two months.”

Ellen grins, placing a motherly hand on her shoulder. “You’re so talented, honey. I try to keep up with everything you write, but you do so much that sometimes I lose track.”

"You really don’t have to do that. But thank you, Ellen. T-that means a lot to me.” 

“What does Mom not have to do?” Jack asks, squeezing himself next to his girlfriend.

“Read my articles.”

Jack grins. “Why not? They’re so good. Our family group chat is filled with them. Dad always loves your profiles.”

Ashley swallows. She’s pretty confident that the Hughes family likes her, but the fact that they all keep track of her published articles is a bit too much for her to handle right now. She downs the rest of her beer and waves Jack away when he opens his mouth to ask if she wants his. Instead, he asks the bartender for a ginger ale. Ashley’s grateful. 

The next day, Ashley smiles as Jack’s walking the carpet. He’s up for the Hart trophy this year and as he squats down to greet a little boy and sign his jersey, Ashley can’t help but let her love and pride for him soar. She’s as out of the way as she can be, trying not to get overwhelmed with all the voices and flashes around her. It helps that Ellen and Jim seem to always be nearby and she makes fast friends with Nina and Luca, who are watching Nico do similar things. 

She gets pulled out of her own world with a familiar hand on her waist. “Hey,” Jack murmurs into her ear. 

“Hi.”

“Do you wanna jump into a few pictures with me?” Jack asks softly. “It’ll only take a few minutes. No pressure if not.”

“Uh, yeah. Sure.”

He beams, offering an arm as he leads them over to where the photographers are. She tries not to blink too much as the flashes hurt her eyes and hopes she and Jack are looking in the same direction. 

“You look beautiful,” he pairs his sincere compliment with a squeeze of her waist. 

She smiles at the cameras for a few seconds before turning to him slightly. “You already said that.”

“I know. It’s worth repeating.”

Thankfully, it’s only about 30 seconds before everyone else — Quinn, Jack’s parents and Nico’s family — are being ushered in for a group photo. She finds herself inbetween Jack and Nico and giggles as Nico tries to blow his hair out of his face. She takes pity on him after a few tries and she reaches up to fix it for him quickly, Nina laughing on the other side of her brother. 

“Stop messing with it,” Ashley scolds lightly through clenched teeth, smiling for the pictures. “You’re gonna make it worse.” She giggles when Nico pokes her side a few seconds later. 

When Jack wins the Hart, Ashley leaps out of her seat in excitement. To her, he’s always going to be the best player she knows because she sees firsthand how hard he works, but it’s nice that his peers are recognizing it too. He places a quick kiss on her lips before going up on stage and Ashley’s clapping and laughing to herself. He was dreading having to make any sort of speech. 

After the ceremony, she just follows everyone to whatever swanky rooftop seemingly the entire NHL is gathering at. She finds herself flocking towards Nina for a lot of the evening as they both exchange fun stories and memories of their own lives over drinks. Ashley thinks she could keep talking to Nina for the rest of her life. She’s just so damn cool. 

The next day, she drags Jack around the BU campus and is happy pointing out buildings that she had classes in, cried in, cheered in and lived her life in. They walk from one end of Com Ave to the other, Ashley dutifully pointing out Agganis Arena (“I’m sure Trevor has some good memories in this building”), their starting point.

She stands in front of the College of Communication building and stops. Jack dutifully stops next to her. “This building kinda looks like shit.”

Ashley snorts. “Yeah, I know. Especially compared to all the science buildings.” She bites her lip. “It all started here.”

“What did?”

“The dream.”

And yeah, maybe that’s a bit dramatic. But Jack said similar things when he brought her to Toronto earlier this year, so she knows he understands. 

Almost two years together now, she’s convinced that no one will really ever understand her like Jack does. 

He nudges her hip with his, the breeze blowing comfortably through her hair and rustling the plants around them. They watch as a student walks through the front doors. “Wanna go in?” 

She shakes her head. “Nah, I’m good.” She tugs at his hand while sipping the lavender lemonade from Pavement in the other. “Come on. I’ll show you Bay State. I lived there my junior year after I came back from studying abroad in Dublin.”

Bay State Road is beautiful as always in the Boston summer, Ashley’s hand in Jack’s. She drags him out into the middle of the road and only squeals once when a car is coming and he pulls her to the sidewalk. 

Campus isn’t the same when classes aren’t in session, but she hopes Jack can still feel some of the magic in the air through her stories. 

“It suits you.”

She turns to Jack. “Hm?”

“This city. It suits you.”

“Oh,” she blushes for some reason. “Thanks.”

“Do you miss it here?”

“All the time,” Ashley admits. “New York is great, but Boston will always be home.”

“Would you think of working here? If given the option?” Jack asks. 

“Maybe,” Ashley squeezes Jack’s hand, “But I also have reasons to stay in New York.”

He smirks, but it quickly transitions into something gentler. “Yeah?”

She could throw something snarky back at him, but she looks around the brownstones and lets out a deep breath. This is home, but flashes of Hoboken and East Village flicker in her mind and that’s also home. 

She looks at Jack and feels overwhelmed. Oh. It’s Boston. It’s Hoboken. It’s East Village. It’s him. Jack is home.

four - two years

“Big day, huh?” 

Ashley just smiles at Carissa, nudging her side. “We’ve come a long way since that phone call at 2 a.m.”

Carissa just snorts. “That phone call got us here.”

“True,” Ashley squeezes her arm as they make their way to their assigned table. “Love you, girly.”

“Love you more. I’m proud of us.”

Ashley grins, looking around as everyone is mingling amongst each other. There are past award winners here and Ashley’s already done some of her internal fangirling, especially when Lynsey Addario came up to her and wanted to talk to her. 

She’s still decently new in this industry and knows she has so much to learn, but it’s comforting to see that all of her hard work has paid off. 

People are starting to take their seats and Ashley looks around at her colleagues. Everyone’s dressed up and looks so lovely and Ashley smiles, looking down at her midnight blue dress. When Jack had seen her walk out of the changing room in it a few weeks ago, his eyes had popped out. 

(“Fuck,” he had said. “Now I’m even more pissed I can’t make it to the dinner.”)

And yeah, it would be nice if he was here. But the Devils are playing the Islanders tonight. It sucks that he’s so close but so far away, but after two years now, it’s just part of the gig. And they make it work. So Ashley isn’t too upset about it, even if Jack is. 

She’s a bit confused when there is an empty seat next to her, as it seems like the ballroom is filled. There’s no nametag there either, but her attention soon drifts off to the front. She has to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling too hard. 

The Pulitzer Prize Awards Ceremony at Columbia University, also her alma mater in a way. Her 18-year-old-self who was sitting in the front row of Introduction to Journalism in Boston could’ve only dreamed about this day. 

Opening remarks start and Ashley really does try to listen, but her eyes glaze over as her mind drifts off. She claps as the first few awards are being presented. She thinks about all the hours that it took to get this piece down, but also all the hours before — in her classes, at her college paper, in her internships, during her job search. The times she wanted to throw in the towel and just do something else. Anything else.  

“I didn’t miss too much, did I?” She blinks, turning to the voice next to her. She freezes. 

“Jack?” She breathes out. She hasn’t been sleeping much this week, so this could very well be a hallucination. 

He beams and she reaches to place her hand on his cheek and she realizes as she scans her eyes up and down.  Oh. He’s in her favorite suit of his. And he’s here. 

“Oh my god,” she wraps her arms around his neck as her whole table cheers. Thankfully, there’s a lull in the ceremony where the whole room is blanketed in a low buzz. “What the f-don’t you have a game?”

“Technically,” Jack says, nodding at her coworkers with a charming smile. “Took a personal day.”

“What? You can do that?”

“Yeah,” he shrugs, like he didn’t just skip a game to be here. He rubs his thumb on her shoulder as he kisses her temple. “This is a huge deal, baby. I wasn’t gonna miss it. I’m so proud of you.”

“Lindy’s not mad? Nico’s not mad?”

Jack snorts. “The second you won, I told Lindy to count me out for the game so he can do what he wants with that. Nico’s lowkey pissed he also can’t be here.” He turns to Carissa on the other side and beams. “Hey Care. Congrats.”

“Thanks, Jack,” Carissa beams. “Surprised you pulled this off.”

“Surprised we pulled this off.”

Ashley looks at Carissa. “You knew about this?”

“Of course. Who do you think made sure he would have a seat?”

She looks between her colleague and her boyfriend. Something creeps up her throat that feels a lot like love. 

When her and Carissa are recognized and they have to go up to accept the award and give a short speech, it’s kinda a blur. All she remembers is Jack’s kiss on her cheek and receiving a standing ovation as she and Carissa walk up together. So many hours with her eyes glazed over glaring at the laptop. So many hours interviewing with people and reconfirming facts. So many hours dedicated to this one piece. 

She wouldn’t have it any other way. 

As Carissa is speaking, she locks eyes with Jack. He’s beaming and his eyes are actually sparkling. His hair tousled and he’s so handsome and he’s hers. 

(She almost trips walking back to him) 

He chuckles, pulling her into another tight hug. “You’re amazing, baby. Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” she chokes out. “Thank you for calming me down all the times I was freaking out.”

“Of course. I’m sure all those glasses of cold water helped,” he jokes. She always said the ice cold water he would place next to her laptop would wake up her brain. 

She laughs into his shoulder. “They did.”

He pulls away and just stares at her, smile still on his face. Their attention is taken away by someone who wants to congratulate Ashley and has no recognition on their face when looking at Jack. 

(Jack looks on with pride)

plus one - three years and four months

Stanley Cups are interesting. Even some of the best athletes of all time have never gotten one. And some that are only slightly above average perhaps were just placed on the right team in the right season. 

But this Stanley Cup, in Ashley’s completely unbiased opinion, this one was fully deserved. By every single person on the team. 

She doesn’t think she’ll ever forget the absolute joy in Nico’s eyes as he lifted the cup in the air to a roaring crowd at The Rock, or how long the hug between Jack and Luke was when the final whistle sounded, or seeing Ellen cry as her two sons beckoned her in for a picture with the cup, her other son and husband standing close by with pride in their eyes. 

The picture of her and Jack by the cup as he’s kissing her cheek as she smiles so widely her eyes are shut might be her favorite picture of them of all time. 

Ashley had wondered if Jack was going to bring the cup to Toronto or Michigan. He ended up bringing it to Toronto while Luke brought it to Michigan. It ended up being all the same, since they were both present at both. 

Jack winning the Cup is obviously a huge celebration. But he’s not the only one with something to celebrate.

Yesterday, when they were out to lunch with some of his extended family, Ashley had found out by phone that she was just promoted to be a director of her team. After her phone call, she had just covered her mouth in shock as she sat down on a nearby bench. It wasn’t until a few minutes later when a concerned Jack came up to her and asked what was wrong, before she told him and he smothered her face in kisses. 

The parade around his pseudo-hometown is absolutely insane. Ashley doesn’t even know how she has a voice by mid-afternoon, much less how Jack has one considering that he’s been yelling all day. At some point, she forces him to sit down and chug a giant water bottle. 

But she can’t overthink too hard. Her phone’s filled with pictures of Jack with his loved ones and she just feels proud. 

Some of Jack’s extended family who still live in the area offered their home to host a party that night with just friends and family. Ashley did all she could to help prepare, which included coming over to decorate the night before and parking herself in the kitchen the second they got there to offer a helping hand. Well, she tried, before every single person pushed her away and insisted she go join the celebrations. 

She finds herself in a long, in-depth conversation with one of Jack’s younger cousins who’s thinking about working in media when she notices it suddenly becomes quiet. Suddenly, the light flickers off and Ashley is confused.

Jack then walks in with a circular cake with candles lit paired with his beautiful smile. Ashley blinks in confusion as everyone’s eyes fall on her and before she can ask what the hell is going on, Luke bounds over to her and swings an arm around her shoulder, shaking her. 

“Congrats on your promotion, Ash!” Luke exclaims. 

Her mouth drops open and she looks around as everyone in the room cheers and shouts out their congratulations. She chuckles in shock as Jack walks closer. And then suddenly, all she can focus on is him. 

“What are you doing?” She whispers, suddenly wanting to cry. 

“Come on,” he says with the softest smile. “You didn’t think I’d just keep the news to myself, did you?”

“But this is your day,” she chokes out. 

“My day. Your day. It’s all the same, eh?” Jack nods at the candles. “Hurry up. My arms are getting tired.”

A watery laugh from her before she blows out the candles at everyone’s cheers. Jack places the cake on a nearby table before smothering her in a tight hug. Ashley’s heart could burst right now at the love she feels from the people in the room and the person in her arms. She gets a chance to really look at the cake, which is white and sage with “Congratulations Jack and Ashley!” in beautiful script at the center. The lights turn back on and Quinn’s the first one who comes up to hug her. As Ellen is giving Ashley a kiss on the cheek, she sees Jack over Ellen’s shoulder, smiling at her. 

She swallows as she pulls away, before glancing at the ring on her left finger. Ashley’s never let herself want much in her life. But if someone asked her what she wants with her life, she would just place them in this room. Right here. Right now. 

(They cut the cake together. Ashley feels a buzzing joy throughout her bones)

#the winter fic exchange 2k24 #k writes #hockey fanfic #hockey writing #hockey blurb #jack hughes #jack hughes fic #jack hughes blurb #nhl #nhl writing #nhl blurb #nhl fic #jack hughes x oc #jack hughes x ofc #new jersey devils

[theidiotwhowritesthings]

TAKE CARE OF YOU [8A]

Sugar Daddy!Joel Miller x Female!Reader

Overall Warnings: slow burn, angst/comfort, power imbalance, age gap, possessive tendencies, eventual smut, #daddyissues, independent reader learns to let go and relax, emotionally constipated Joel Miller learns to be vulnerable; (more specific warnings to be added to individual chapters if necessary)

Chapter Word Count: 12,502

Summary: You spent your entire adult life supporting yourself and barely getting by. It’s why a life of ease offered to you by a mysterious stranger sounded so foreign and unbelievable. Joel Miller, dressed in flannels that had seen better days, didn’t look like the kind who could promise you the world on a plate, but he seemed desperate to help out. All he asks is that you let him take care of you. That wouldn’t be so hard. Would it?

[a/n: part one of two! hope you enjoy, if you do let me know your fav part 😘]

Chapter Specific Warning: mentions of attempted sexual assault (not reader), mild violence, mentions of past significant violence, gambling

08: I KNOW HOW TO HANDLE TROUBLE

"the right person for you will be protective of your heart like it's second nature to them." -bliss

The Wynn resort in Las Vegas was a curved bronze hotel right on the strip. The hot Nevada sun seemed to make the building glow, and it only got prettier once you stepped inside. The entire space had glassy, marble floors decorated with splashes of color. Gardens sat inside with trees wrapped in lights and figures of flowers stood out. The atrium itself had spheres of flowers hanging from the trees and you found yourself in awe of the space. Joel had been right. You really liked this place. 

“Sugar.” You turned at Joel’s voice, tearing your eyes away from the view, and when you spotted Joel he stood a few feet away with his phone lifted and aimed in your direction. An amused grin flickered across your features as he hummed at his phone. “Hm, yeah. That’s a keeper.”

“You took a picture of me?” You chuckled.

Joel closed the space so he was beside you. “How could I not? You’re gorgeous.” You felt your cheeks heat at his words. Joel stuck his phone into his pocket before offering you his arm. When you looped yours through his, a familiar stance for the two of you, he began to lead you away. “They’re taking our bags upstairs.” He had already reassured you on the way here that though the two of you were sharing a suite it was one with two separate rooms for sleep arrangements. Just as you told Nima, you found yourself both relieved and disappointed. 

Feelings were confusing. 

“Hungry?”

“I could eat.” You nodded.

“Good. I know a place.”

Said place ending up being a cafe in the casino resort that served a late brunch. When Joel spoke to the host there was no need to ask for a wait time or place his name down. They gave him the choice of indoor or outdoor then walked you in immediately after he chose the outdoor option. The table they offered the two of you was a cute two person seating arrangement on the covered patio under a fan and in view of the elaborate pool. More gardens surrounded the pool itself in the forms of immense and impressive shrubbery and garden paths. The seating around the pool consisted of red and white chairs separated by curtain cabanas that you couldn’t even begin to imagine the price of.

“Do you come to Vegas often?” You asked after a waitress came by and took your orders.

“No. Just for this conference.” Joel shrugged. “It’s an annual thing.” You asked what the conference was about. In all honesty, you didn’t care too much about the specific lectures or meetings he had coming up, but you’d never pass on the opportunity to listen to him talk. “Mostly meetings between different companies. A way to network and bump elbows. A few lectures from some big names on the trendin’ topics in the contractin’ world.”

You beamed at him with a nod. “Very exciting.” Joel chuckled. “How busy is it gonna keep you?”

“Well tomorrow I’ll be busy for most of the mornin’ and afternoon, but I’m free in the evenin’. Then Sunday I have one last meetin’ in the mornin’ and I figure we can do somethin’ in the afternoon before headin’ back home on the jet.”

You leaned forward on the table, head resting on your fists, “And today?”

Joel’s lips curled into a smile that brightened all of his features. It was your favorite look on him. Forget the flannel or the expensive suits, it was that damned smile that put butterflies in your belly. You weren’t sure how a devastatingly handsome older man could also look so boyish and adorable while wearing that charming smile, but by God you were obsessed.

“Today?” Joel reached across the table and brushed his rough fingers against the side of your arm. In response, you let your arm fall from where it held up your head and tangled your fingers with his. Joel squeezed your hand. “Today I’m all yours, sugar.”

You liked the sound of that. 

The two of you just enjoyed your uninterrupted time together. When your meal was over, Joel rose and helped you up as well. He didn’t hesitate to pull you close, looping your arm through his, and leading you back toward the lobby. “So,” You leaned into him, “Do we have plans for today?”

“We do.” Joel nodded. “Startin’ with an afternoon poolside.”

Your eyebrows raised in excitement. “Pool?” He hummed in confirmation. You smirked, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to get me in one of those new swim suits you bought me, daddy.” Standing this close to him, you could see the slight flush of red creep up from the collar of his shirt as he cleared his throat. Joel shot you a dry look. “What’s wrong? Are you getting a little hot under the collar?”

Joel cleared his throat, “You’re trouble, sugar.” He leaned in and suddenly pressed his lips to the side of your head. It was such a chaste and quick moment, yet it stopped your heart in your chest. He left his lips close enough to murmur, “Luckily, I know how to handle trouble.”

“I, uh, I…”

“What’s wrong?” Joel pulled back enough so you could see his smug grin, “Are you gettin’ a bit hot?”

You swallowed, involuntarily, and Joel took that as his victory. He chuckled and dragged you toward the elevators. Your suite was near the top floor of the resort, and when Joel pushed the door open for you the first thing that greeted you was the expansive window that made up the entirety of the wall. Your jaw popped open in shock and your feet carried you closer to the window. The room itself was gorgeous with decor of white and gold, you had never stayed in a hotel room that had an actual living room before, but you could only focus on the view of the Nevada mountains out in the distance. When you reached the glass, you peered down the dizzying drop to where you had a view of the pool and the golf course.

“So pretty…” You mumbled in awe. You spun in place to meet Joel’s gaze, “Isn’t this incredible?”

“Yeah,” Joel nodded. His arms were crossed and you could feel his eyes trace you from head to toe and back up. “Some view.” He kept his gaze on you for a beat while walking toward one of the side doors. Joel opened it and peered in then you heard him curse. “Fuck.”

Curiously, you walked around the couch toward him, “What’s wrong? Did they lose our bags?” You stepped beside him to see what it was that had raptured his attention the way it did, and your eyes landed on the singular Queen sized bed in the center of the bedroom. “Oh.”

“Son of a⏤ I am so sorry.” Joel said quickly before you could push out another word. “I’m gonna fix this.” He went further into the room and grasped the phone at the bedside to immediately bring it up to his ear. A beat passed and he was obviously connected to the front desk. “Hello?”

Your eyes drifted back to the bed and you felt your cheeks warm at the thought of sharing the same bed with Joel Miller. Speaking of the man, he was still arguing over the line and from the sounds of it the argument was not going his way. He seemed desperate to fix this problem and you worried that meant he was desperate to avoid sleeping in the same bed as you. 

“No, no, I⏤ I understand that. But I⏤” Joel paused, his jaw locked, and then he pinched the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed irritably. “I said I understand that. No, I⏤ Yeah. Thanks anyways.” He hung up the phone and turned back to face you entirely. You shot him a sheepish smile. Joel’s irritation melted into worry and he held his hands up. “I swear, this was not my intention, darlin’. I booked a room with two beds.” Your eyes widened in understanding. Joel was worried you thought he was trying to take advantage. It was a laughable thought that had never even occurred to you⏤ not Joel. Some would call you naive to have such faith in a sugar daddy you hadn’t known for all that long, but it couldn’t be helped. Somehow, you just knew. “The Wynn doesn’t have any other two bed suites available but we can try a different resort or⏤”

“Joel.” You interrupted his nervous rambling and reached out to set your hand on his forearm. “It’s okay. Accidents happen.” Joel’s shoulders seemed to relax. “And as for the, uh, bed situation… I don’t mind.” The words tumbled from your lips slowly, awkwardly even, and Joel just stared. Quickly, you tried to scramble and clarify. “I just mean, it doesn’t bother me to share. We’re both, you know, adults. We can⏤ We can sleep beside one another without issue.” Joel just continued to stare and you were beginning to regret bringing it up at all. You felt silly. In a poor attempt to break the tension, you joked, “I promise I don’t kick in my sleep. I think.”

Joel set his hand on top of yours and squeezed reassuringly. “Of course we can. But, I don’t want you to feel… pressured to just accept this situation.” He spoke firmly leaving no room for argument in his voice. “If even the smallest part of you feels uncomfortable in any way please tell me. We could go to a different resort or, I mean, if you really wanna stick with this place I could get us separate rooms.”

“Really, Joel.” You replied with just as much finality in your voice as he placed in his. “I’m okay with this. It’s not a big deal.” You motioned toward the bed in question. “It’s a big bed.”

Joel let out a small sigh and shook his head. “I’m a… big guy.”

Your eyes couldn’t help but trace Joel’s broad shoulders and tall frame. “As long as you’re comfortable with it too.” Joel held your gaze then gave a nod. A small smile filling his features. “Now, can we get ready for the pool?”

“Yeah. Course.” Joel chuckled and lifted your hand to press his lips against your knuckles.

You had only just gotten used to holding his hand without feeling flustered, and now Joel was pulling out the big guns with these chaste kisses. The smug son of a bitch knew it too based on the smile he wore. Joel handed you your bag and you carried it into the bathroom to change. In your lifetime, you had gotten ready for a pool day God knows how many times. This was one of the first times you felt so nervous though. You loved your body and felt comfortable in your skin, but at the end of the day you were still a human with anxiety. You still couldn’t help that you wanted Joel to look at you and like what he saw. 

At the very least you knew he’d like the swim suit itself since he was the one who had been there to buy it for you. Quickly, eager to get to the pool with Joel, you traded your travel clothes for the swim suit and pulled on the matching, thin robe-like cover that he bought with it⏤ leaving it open rather than tying it closed in the front. Then you spent another few minutes checking your appearance in the mirror and adjusting little things like your hair or where the swim suit sat. Finally, when you knew there was nothing left to check, or obsess over, you stepped out of the bathroom. 

Joel wasn’t in the bedroom anymore. You set your bag aside and wandered out into the living room following the sound of his voice. He must have gotten changed out in the bedroom while you were in the bathroom. Joel had changed into swim shorts and a white t-shirt. The shorts were dark navy at the top half and a pale yellow on the lower half. You found you couldn’t stop staring because with the way he lounged on the couch, legs spread wide while talking on the phone, you could see his thick thighs. The sight of a man’s thighs should not make you feel so feral, and yet… 

“No, the contract needs to be done by then. We can…” Joel’s voice trailed to a stop and your eyes snapped up from his thighs to see he was gawking at you. You bit down on your lower lip to try and mute the wide grin that threatened to fill your features. You raised a questioning eyebrow at him. Joel nodded. “You’re a goddamn vision, sugar.” There was no chance at hiding your grin now at his compliment. Joel jumped suddenly in surprise, eyes widening, as his attention went back to the phone he forgot he had been holding. “No, no. Not you, idiot.” You laughed and Joel’s cheeks burned. “Oh, bite me, Tommy.”

Joel hung up the phone and pointed it in your direction while standing up. “That’s your fault.”

“My fault?” You chuckled. “How’s that?”

“How’s that?” He scoffed, but his smile didn’t falter. Joel closed the space so he could reach out and lightly pinch your chin. “Walkin’ in here lookin’ like a work of art.” He shook his head. “Tommy ain’t ever gonna let me live that down.”

Joel’s eyes drifted down your frame again and you felt the back of your neck grow warm. You cleared your throat and his eyes snapped back to you. You smirked. “What’re you staring at, Joel?”

His hand fell away from your cheek to brush his fingers against the sunflower charm hanging from your neck. Joel hummed, “Just this pretty, little necklace, sugar.” You shook your head, amused. Joel stepped away to grab a simple back book bag that he slung over one shoulder. “Now, come on. Pool time.”

Rather than walk you down to the Wynn Resort’s pool, Joel led you to the neighboring resort’s pool. The Encore was identical to the Wynn from the outside and sat right beside it as its sister resort. As you traveled, Joel kept his fingers intertwined with yours. Every time he flexed his grip, you glanced down at where the two of you were connected. It was beginning to feel like your hand was shaped just to fit in his. 

“So how come we don’t just stay at the Wynn?” You asked.

“The Encore is newer, and I think you’ll like the pool better here.” Joel replied. You had no room to question his judgment. So far, he was spot on because the interior of the Wynn was much prettier than the interior of the Encore in your opinion. “Plus, this is an adults only pool so we won’t have to worry about any yellin’ or splashin’.”

The moment the two of you stepped outside, you were greeted by a more modern looking pool with chairs and decor in shades of white and a bold red. Palm trees decorated the area and the floor was painted with the design of curling sun rays surrounding the pool. There was even a second story of chairs and lounges. Honestly, Joel either knew you better than you thought he did or the man was a good guess because this was much nicer than the Wynn’s pool. Joel squeezed your hand and you turned to see him watching you. He raised his eyebrows in question and you laughed again.

“Alright, alright. It’s a nice pool but don’t look so smug about it.” You replied. You glanced over the space, “Do you see any open chairs we can grab?”

“Yeah, I do.” Joel nodded, “Come on.”

Unsurprisingly, the pool was packed with people and Joel pulled you closer to his side so he could set his hand on your back while leading you through the throngs of people. You tried to spot the chairs he spoke of, but after a beat you realized he was leading you to one of the fancy looking cabanas. It was an open room built on the lower floor of the two story piece right by the poolside. A red curtain was hanging and draped open and inside was a couch, flat screen television, and a cabinet with a bottle of champagne sitting in an ice bucket on top. There were even two lounge chairs that could be dragged out into the space directly in front of the cabana where the sun was shining. Your eyes widened, “No way.”

Joel let go of your hand to step into the cabana and set his bag down on the couch. You slowly drifted in behind him and realized the little cabana was even filled with cool air from a large fan overhead. Joel pulled the champagne from the ice and you watched as he cracked it open with ease. 

“How much was this, Joel?” You asked.

“Hey,” Joel chided as he turned with two flutes of cold champagne. He handed you one with a shake of his head, “What was the rule we talked about on the way here, sugar?”

During the plane ride to Vegas, Joel told you he didn’t want you asking how much anything cost during the trip. You chuckled and replied teasingly, “Sorry, daddy.” Joel lightly tapped the edge of his flute against yours and you followed his lead in taking a sip. “Mmm. That’s amazing.”

“Only the best for my sugar baby.” Joel replied, making you laugh.

You took another long swig from the flute then motioned to his bag, “Did you grab my sunscreen?” Joel set his flute down to dig through his bag then pulled out the sunscreen you had brought. You had asked him to toss it in with his stuff to keep from having to bring a bag of your own. “Thanks!”

Joel dropped down to sit on the couch. He rested an arm on the back of it with a content smile while staring at you. Biting back any nervous energy that bubbled in your chest, you shrugged out of your thin robe and began to put on the sunscreen. Knowing his gaze was on you, you rubbed it in methodically and tried not to let it be obvious that the butterflies in your belly were threatening to overwhelm you. When you got every spot you could reach with ease, you turned and held the bottle out to Joel, “Can you get my back?”

His eyes widened as if he hadn’t expected you to ask. Joel sat up and threw back the last of his champagne before taking the bottle. He stood up and you turned around. Luckily, not having to face Joel made the action much easier. Joel stood close enough that you could feel his warm breath on your neck and despite the hot weather you felt goosebumps rise on your skin. Joel’s hand settled on your lower back first and he was careful with the application. He rubbed it in your skin, but he did so in a way that made you feel like you were made of glass. You couldn’t even find it in yourself to complain because the more careful he was the slower he worked, and the slower he worked the longer you had his rough hands against your skin.

“There.” Joel hummed. His voice sounded more hoarse than it did when he started. “All protected, sugar.”

You glanced over your shoulder to meet his gaze, “Thanks, daddy.” You meant to say the words playfully, but instead they fell out in a soft near whisper. There was a beat of silence between the two of you and you forced yourself to shake out of the trance Joel had you in. “Um. Can you help me drag the lounge chairs out into the sun?”

Joel cleared his throat and nodded, “I can do you one better.”

He grabbed the back of his shirt’s collar to pull out of his shirt and your eyes involuntarily raked down his body. Joel was built strong. From his broad shoulders to the bit of belly he had, it all screamed strength and sturdiness. He tossed his shirt aside then grasped your hand to lead you out, but you dug your heels in to stop him. Joel shot you a curious look.

“You didn’t put on any sunscreen.” You said.

Joel furrowed his brow, “I don’t need sunscreen.”

“You don’t need sunscreen?”

“I’m a big, strong man.” Joel replied teasingly before trying to pull you out of the cabana again.

You tugged him back. “Hey, big strong man, in a fight against the sun you’re gonna lose.” Joel groaned and rolled his eyes in good nature but he allowed you to pull him all the way back in. You made him hold your flute so you could grab the bottle of sunscreen. Quickly, before you lost your nerve, you squirted a glob of sunscreen in your hand and began to rub it into Joel’s skin. He squirmed under your touch and you shot him a mocking glare, “Hey, stay still.”

“Bossy.” Joel snorted.

“Do you like it better when I’m bossy or bratty?” You asked with a cheeky grin. Joel’s lips pulled up into a smile, but he didn’t offer an answer. You used the last bit of sunscreen on your hands to rub onto his features and you finished with your hands on the side of his face. You squished his cheeks together. “There. All protected.”

Joel suddenly turned his face and playfully nipped at your hand with his teeth. You gasped in surprise and he laughed. “Now that we’re safe from the sun, let’s go.” He tangled his fingers with yours and offered you back the flute of champagne you hadn’t finished yet. With a sip, you let him drag you out into the sun. He walked you up to the poolside and stopped at the edge. In the shallow parts of the pool, sitting in the water, were circular cushioned beds with an umbrella situated in the middle of each one. By each beside was a circular stand where drinks could be placed to rest. You stared at, gaping probably, and Joel leaned in toward your ear. “That’s ours too.”

“Seriously?” You asked in surprise. Joel nodded. The urge to ask how much it cost came to mind, but you bit back the words and just grinned instead. Joel walked down the few steps into the shallow water and held your hand to aid you in. “You know,” The cold water came up just past your ankles and you waded with Joel to the daybed reserved for the two of you, “I could get used to this ‘having money’ thing.”

Joel chuckled and dropped down on the bed. He lounged on his back, hands folded behind his head, and stared at you as you settled in beside him. You chose to lay on your belly so you could continue to sip on your champagne. 

“Thank you. For all of this.” You said sincerely. Briefly, you chewed on your lower lip then gave a small shrug, “I haven’t had a pool day in nearly a year let alone go on an actual vacation.”

Joel shook his head, “Thank you for comin’ with me, darlin’. You’re doin’ me the favor.”

The two of you just relaxed, letting the heat seep into your skin, and when you were on your last sip of champagne a poolside waitress walked over with a smile to see if the two of you needed any drinks. Joel sat up and ordered two frozen drinks. You chuckled, “You’ve kept a drink in my hand since the moment we landed.” You tilted your head. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were trying to get me tipsy, Joel.”

“Me? Never. I’m a gentleman.” Joel shook his head. He smirked and nodded toward you. “Besides, you’ve already felt me up, and I didn’t even need to get you tipsy.”

Your eyes widened and you reached out to give him a light shove, “I was not ‘feeling you up’. I was saving you from a future of being a leathered, sun shriveled old man.”

“If that’s what you gotta tell yourself.” Joel shrugged. 

You laughed and Joel began to lay back down. Before he could get comfortable, you pointed to the umbrella, “Wait, can you close the umbrella?” Joel shot you a confused look as if you were crazy for asking. You shrugged. “I just want some sunshine for a little bit.”

“You’re all the sunshine we need right now.” Joel said and reached out to pinch your cheek.

“That is an adorable excuse.” You spoke despite him pinching your cheek, and Joel chuckled before reaching up to close the umbrella. Bright sunlight immediately rained down on the two of you and the direct warmth on your skin made you beam happily. As hot as it was, you probably wouldn’t be able to stand the sunlight for very long, but it felt nice for the time being. 

Joel grunted and rolled over onto his belly so he could keep the sun out of his eyes, “What do you say?” You slid a pair of sunglasses on and laid on your back while humming⏤ pretending to think of what answer he might want. Joel propped himself up just enough to rest one of his arms on your other side so he was leaning over you. You sucked in a sharp breath at his close proximity, and he raised an eyebrow at you. “Manners, sugar.”

“Thank you, daddy.” You cooed.

“Good girl.”

You tightened the fluffy, white robe that the Wynn resort left you in the suite’s bathroom then stepped out fresh and clean, “Joel! I’m done with the shower.” The two of you had stayed out at the pool until it closed. Being out in the hot sun the entire afternoon had wiped you out, but Joel told you to get ready for a night out and you found your second wind. Joel wandered into the bedroom, and you groaned happily, “You’re in for a treat because the water pressure was incredible.”

“I would hope so.” Joel chuckled then his eyes narrowed skeptically. “Do you have bad water pressure in your apartment?”

“Uh…” You paused in thought. You had a feeling that if you confirmed that information then Joel would try to buy you a new apartment or something equally as wild. “...no?” Joel shot you a skeptical glance that made it clear he didn’t believe you. He disappeared into the bathroom, and you quickly called out. “Oh, wait! Pick a color, Joel!”

Without hesitation, Joel replied through the door, “Red!”

Excitedly, you shimmed off the bed to hurry over and dig out the red cocktail dress Joel had bought you for Vegas. Of the newest additions to your wardrobe, the red dress you had picked out was one of your favorites. You wondered if he remembered that. While Joel showered, you pulled out the ironing board to smooth out any of the wrinkles your dress had gotten during transit. It didn’t take much and you were about to put away the iron when you paused. Joel’s suitcase sat near yours in the room. You bit down on your lower lip for a beat before walking over to find a shirt for him.

You picked out a black button up shirt to match the black blazer he had already hung up. The ‘black out’ look on him just seemed like it would be clean and handsome. Not that you could picture many looks not looking incredible on him. The bathroom door opened and Joel stepped out in just a towel. The back of your neck warmed and you tried not to let your eyes linger. Obviously you had seen him shirtless poolside, but this felt more intimate.

“Why don’t you get changed in the bathroom and I can get ready out here⏤” Joel paused and pointed to the ironing board. You finished the last few passes of the iron over his shirt. “Is that mine?”

“Well, it’s not mine.” You replied and picked up his shirt to shake it a bit. You held it out to him with a broad smile.

Joel took the shirt from you and you were acutely aware of his lingering touch on your hand. “This my color for the night, sugar? Black?” You nodded with a wide grin. Joel gave you a nod of confirmation and you scooped up your dress to head to the bathroom. “Alright. Black and red it is.”

You glanced over your shoulder to allow yourself one last look of Joel and seeing the bare expanse of his back made your heart flutter in your chest. The image of it lingered in your mind even after you closed the door. You made the effort to commit it to memory. 

It didn’t take you too long to get ready and it was in part due to how eager you were. Joel had been tight lipped the entire afternoon about the plans for the evening. No matter how much you pleaded or begged he wouldn’t even give you a hint. All you knew was that he had an entire night planned for the two of you. Not even accounting for the amount of money involved in all of this, the fact that Joel had the thought to plan a night for you was heartwarming. It was a reminder that your bar was set so low due to your last boyfriend. You had to plan nearly every single trip or date night, and you had convinced yourself you enjoyed it. Tricked yourself into thinking you preferred it that way instead of admitting that it was a problem. 

You rubbed your hands down the front of your red dress⏤ smoothing it out and giving you something to do with your nervous energy. You stepped out of the bathroom, expecting Joel to be sitting in the living room waiting for you or on his phone, but your feet faltered at the sight of him sitting on the edge of the bed. Joel ran a hand over his jawline, fingers dragging through his scruff. He stood up and the two of you spent a quiet moment just staring at one another. Just as you knew it would, the black shirt and black suit combo was deadly on Joel. This time you beat Joel to the punch.

“Hot damn, Joel.” You grinned. He cleared his throat and the look on his face could only be described as flustered. Eager to flip the table on him and do what he always did to you, you walked to him and reached out to smooth his lapel, feeling his chest under it, “This is a real good look on you, daddy.”

The sound that left him, almost a choking noise at the back of his throat, made you feel smug. He shook his head slowly and didn’t let his eyes leave you for even a second. “Oh, sugar,” Joel hummed, “I don’t hold a flame to you. I just don’t get it.”

“Don’t get what?” You asked.

“How every time I look at you, you somehow get even more breathtakin’.” Joel replied.

Heat rose in your cheeks and crawled up the back of your neck. Damn it all. Every time you think you had the tables flipped he managed to get the upper hand again. You let out a laugh and tried to hide how flustered you felt, “No fair.” Joel smirked as if he knew exactly what you were getting at. You gave his chest a slight push, but he caught your hands to hold them there. You shook your head, “Can you let me have the upper hand just one time?”

Joel breathed out a small laugh, and he opened his mouth to reply. However, he stopped himself and closed his mouth with an amused smile. You tilted your head curiously, but Joel just slipped his hand through yours. “Ready to go?”

“Do I get to know where we’re going now?”

“You’ll find out as soon as we get there.”

“Very funny.”

The same car that drove you from the airport to the Wynn also picked you up. When it came to the Vegas strip, there were some resorts that were within walking distance from where you were located, but Joel’s first plan of the night was not. You stared out the window marveling at the tall buildings covered in gigantic screens showcasing an ad or show. Even the sidewalks had plenty of things to watch. Tourists, showgirls, people performing, and some even dressed up in character suits. There was one rough looking Mickey Mouse the car passed that gave you a look into what the famous mouse’s life would look like if he got deep in the world of hard drugs.

“Oh,” You tore your eyes away from the window to look at Joel who sat beside you in the back of the car with his arm resting on the seat behind you, “Is that where they do that big fountain show?”

Joel nodded, “Bellagio. Yeah. We can stop and watch it later tonight. They do a show every thirty minutes I think.”

The car turned off the strip to a resort that sat just off it by a bit. The Aria. It looked as immense and fancy as any of the other resorts and was even shaped similarly to the Wynn and the Encore. Joel let his hand brush against the back of your neck and you knew he wanted you to stay in place while he climbed out. Seconds later, your door opened and Joel held out a hand to help you climb out. 

“What’s so special about the Aria?” You asked.

Joel laced his fingers through yours and pulled you toward the resort doors. The lobby was a large open space with pillars, and your eyes landed on a wave of hand folded origami flowers in a gradient of red, pink, and orange hanging from the glass ceiling. You paused, jaw slightly open as you admired the sight, and Joel just waited patiently. Finally, you tore your eyes away from the origami flowers to look at him.

“We have dinner reservations here.” Joel answered.

You raised an eyebrow at him with a smirk, “We came all the way here just for dinner?”

Joel didn’t give you a reply, and you noticed he looked excited. You squeezed his hand and let him lead you deeper into the resort. In order to get where you were going, the two of you had to walk through the casino and it was fun to see the flashing lights and general buzz of excitement. The air smelled faintly of cigarette smoke, and there were different degrees of yelling and cheering. You were so caught up in your surroundings that you hadn’t noticed Joel and you reached your destination until he came to a stop.

You glanced at Joel who continued to beam at you, and then looked forward to where a simple arch sat with the word ‘CATCH’ written in bright, glowing letters above the top. It was what laid just beyond the arch that had your breath catch in your throat. The arch was the entrance to a tunnel and even from where you stood you could see the entire tunnel was made up of different flowers and glowing lights.

Joel leaned over, his lips close enough to your ear that you could feel his breath fan against your skin, “It didn’t feel right not bein’ able to get you a bouquet of flowers before dinner so I thought I’d just bring you to ‘em.”

You felt a visceral reaction to Joel’s words. Your throat tightened, and a part of you wanted to cry. It took every ounce of your self control to not actually let any tears fall. It was just so sweet and you felt so seen and cared for. “Joel.” You mumbled and turned your head to look at him. He was still lingering close to where he had whispered in your ear which left you dangerously close to his face. You swallowed, “Joel, this is…”

His eyes darted across your features, lingering at your eyes and lips, “Wanna take a closer look, sugar?”

Your face broke out into a face splitting grin and you nodded. Joel hesitated in place, taking in a slow breath, before pulling away so he could drag you through the arch. He let his own steps slow while you continued forward a bit. Your hand fell out of his, but your eyes were taking in the hanging flowers overhead and the colorful walls on either side of you. The air was filled with a sweet, floral scent and a soft, golden glow surrounded the space from the lights buried between the flowers. It took half a beat before you realized Joel wasn’t by your side, and you quickly turned in place to look for him. He stood a few feet back, hands in his pocket, just staring with a small smile on his face. 

“What?” You asked with a laugh.

“Nothing.” Joel closed the space.

As soon as he was close enough, you looped your arm through his. The two of you took a few more steps down the wood panel path that led through the tunnel and a portion off to the side curved inward with a long half circle bench nestled against the wall and a wall of pink, orange, and red roses covering that indent of the wall. 

“Oh!” You pulled him toward the bench and dropped down there with him beside you. “Can we take a picture?” You pulled your phone out. “Please?”

“I can take your picture for you.” Joel replied.

You shook your head and held onto his arm. “I want you to be in it too.”

Joel looked skeptical for only a moment. He never seemed the selfie kind to you, but he leaned in regardless. You lifted your phone to take a few snaps. Joel had one arm around your shoulders during most of the pictures, but near the end he used his other hand to cup the side of your face to pull him closer. Joel turned and pressed his lips to your temple and you managed to get a few snaps of that as well. Your chest was filled with so much warmth and happiness that you didn’t have the room to feel flustered.

You stood up with Joel and he tugged you to the end of the tunnel where a maitre’d stood waiting. The first part of the restaurant you could see was a large bar surrounded by people. Joel had the two of you pause by the front desk. 

“Welcome Miller party.” The maitre’d asked. Joel nodded. “Your table is being cleaned off and prepared now. If you’d like to wait by the bar, your waitress will fetch you soon.”

“Thanks.” Joel dug through his coat pocket and you saw him pull out a few folded bills that he slipped into the other man’s hand. “And thank you for clearin’ the tunnel.”

“Of course, sir.”

It dawned on you then, and you glanced back to see the tunnel was now filled with small parties and couples. “Wait, did you pay him to let us be the only ones?”

Joel shrugged and rather than answer he stepped up to the bar with you by his side and ordered himself a glass of whiskey and your typical drink of choice. He kept one hand on the small of your back while you leaned against the bar. When the drinks came, Joel lifted his glass just high enough to allow you to tap yours against his. He winked as the glasses made contact, “Cheers, sugar.”

You moved to take a sip and your drink had only barely touched your tongue when a waitress came over calling out for Joel. He nodded for you to follow first so he could linger a step behind you with his hand on your waist. The table you were led to was a circular booth and it was one of the few tables decorated in excess. The booth looked like it was nestled inside a large bird cage with a broad open door, and woven between the metal bars were vines and string lights. You slid into the booth, setting your glass on the table to avoid spilling it, and Joel slid in after you. 

“Joel, this place is…” You let out a breath, unable to grasp a word immediately, “...amazing. Thank you.”

“Stop thankin’ me for somethin’ I like doin’.” Joel chuckled. He draped his arm on the top of the booth behind you and let his fingers brush lightly against your shoulder.

“You like spending absorbent amounts of money on me?” You teased.

Joel leaned over a bit and lowered his voice, sincerity in his voice, “I like takin’ care of you.” It should probably concern how easily Joel was able to make your temperature rise. Literally all it took was a look, the sound of his voice, or just being in near proximity. He straightened back in his seat. “Now,” Joel picked up his glass and took a quick sip, “Is there anythin’ you always wanted to do while in Vegas?”

You hummed in thought. The fountains had already been mentioned. That seemed like a staple Vegas activity. “I wanna see a show.”

“Already on the agenda.”

“Wait, really?” Your eyes widened. “What show??” Joel just stared at you with a smug smile. You rolled your eyes. “Yeah, yeah. It’s a surprise.” You took a sip of your own drink. “I want to gamble.”

Joel chuckled, “Gamble?” You nodded. “Gamble how? Slots or a table game?”

“I want to play the one where you throw dice.”

“Craps.”

“Yeah, that!” You nodded. “Everybody does that while they’re in Vegas, right?”

“Fair enough.” Joel said. “Anythin’ else?”

Another thought came to mind, but it felt kind of silly. “There was this one other thing…”

“Name it, sugar.”

You scrunched your nose. “Can we go on the gondolas? I know it’s probably dumb since it’s not even a real river and it’s just inside one of those big resorts, but I don’t know… It looked kind of fun.”

Joel let out a breathy laugh before dropping his hand so instead of soft brushes he was able to squeeze your shoulder, “We can absolutely ride the gondolas.”

You bounced in your seat, excited, as Joel shook his head in amusement. The waitress came back to discuss the specials of the night. After a quick discussion, Joel ordered for the both of you. It was something you learned early on with the man. He enjoyed leading. Whether it be the obvious thing like paying for everything or having you wait in the car so he could open the door for you or ordering your food and drink for you. Joel just liked being in charge of the relationship and you had no qualms with that. Especially considering how careful and caring he was in the action. He paid attention to you, the things you did or the words you said, in order to take charge accordingly. As sad and pathetic as it was, Joel remembered more about you and your preferences than your ex-boyfriend did at the end of your relationship with him. 

Content and at ease, you settled in your seat and let out a soft sigh.

The night went by too quickly for your liking. Dinner, just like everything with Joel, was easy. You had never met someone who made you feel so comfortable, so seen, so fast. And after he treated you to one of the best meals you ever had, the two of you traveled to the MGM resort for the show which turned out to be a show by the name of ‘KA’. Joel said he chose it off the recommendation of one of the business men he’d be working with in the morning, and it had been a solid choice. The show went beyond your expectations and you had already set them pretty high considering it was Cirque du Soleil and in Vegas. Then, rather than take the car, the two of you walked down the strip with your arm wrapped through his. The walk consisted of two stops, one at the fountains to watch the show, and the other at the Venetian resort to ride in the gondolas.

“Joel, this has literally been the greatest night ever.” You gushed while squeezing his arm. The two of you had walked from the Venetian back to the Wynn. His black suit jacket hung on your shoulders after he had given it to you during the gondola ride. 

Joel chuckled, “Literally?”

“Yes.” You said. “I am being literal, thank you.”

“Well, sugar, you know me.” Joel lifted one of your hands to press his lips to the back casually. “Always happy to provide.”

He continued to lead you into the resort without even realizing how earth shattering his presence was to you. Joel kept your arm wrapped through his with his hand intertwined with yours and held to his chest. It was such an intimate gesture that he did so casually⏤ as if it were second nature to him. The urge to stop in your tracks and pull him into a kiss was nearly overwhelming. In fact, if you had maybe even one more drink tonight it would’ve been enough liquid courage to convince you. However, anxiety still plagued your mind. Logic tried to reign in your feelings and remind you of all the reasons this was a bad idea. Even if you ignored the nearly two decade large age gap between the both of you, there were still enough reasons for your brain to try and stop you. 

If you could quiet your logical and turbulent mind for just a moment, just long enough to allow your heart to act, then maybe these fears and anxieties wouldn’t matter. 

The two of you were walking through the casino to get to the elevators that would take you upstairs. You continued to stare while focusing on the circles his thumb was tracing on the back of your hand. God, you wanted this man. If he could make you feel so happy, so good about yourself, in public with innocent touches and glances, you wondered how incredible he could make you feel behind closed doors. You craved his touch, his rough hands grasping at all of you, and you were desperate enough to trade your soul just to feel his hot mouth exploring your skin.

Joel’s eyes suddenly met yours and you sucked in a sharp breath of surprise. Heat flooded your cheeks in embarrassment as if he could hear your sinful thoughts about him. Joel gave you a quick wink and nodded, “One last stop.” 

He tugged you off the path that carved through the casino and onto the actual casino floor. The slot machines around you were a sea of colors, flashing lights, and whistling tunes. Servers drifted about bringing drinks to those sitting at the machines, but Joel led you past all of them. The two of you approached the section that had the table games, and you spotted the one with the dice.

“Oh!” You chirped in recognition. “We’re gonna play?”

“You said you wanted to.” Joel countered. The table wasn’t very crowded right now. Save for the casino employees, there was two other people standing around the table playing. You felt a sense of anxiety creep up your spine. You were vaguely aware that the rules for these table games were very strict and there were also unspoken rules of conduct. “Here.” Joel reached toward you and stuck his hand in the inner pocket of his jacket which hung off your shoulders. He fished out a few hundreds that you couldn’t help but stare at. Joel pushed two hundred dollars in your hand. “Just like me, sugar.”

He placed the bills on the table top with his ID card and you hurried to copy him. Between dice rolls, the man running the table pulled your bills toward him and began to prep your chips. You leaned over and whispered, “Joel, I have no idea how to play this.”

“It’s easy.” He reassured you. You glanced at the very confusing green felt covered in different words and numbers then back to him skeptically. Joel chuckled and tapped under your chin with his hand. “I promise.”

Joel began to point out different portions of the table, and between the warm honey tone of his words and the multiple drinks you had throughout the night, you were not following whatsoever. You stared at him, nodding every few seconds, while admiring the lines of his face. People wrote poems and sung praises about blue and green eyes, but you were convinced it was because those people were never blessed with the opportunity to gaze into Joel Miller’s eyes. There was a warmth in the dark color of his irises that felt like coming home after a long day in the cold. Your eyes flickered to a small bare spot in his scruffy jawline that vaguely resembled a heart and you resisted the urge to lean forward and place a kiss right there. Why else would the otherwise perfect man in front of you have that space in his beard if not for your lips?

“You’re not hearin’ a damn thing I’m sayin’, are you?” Joel teased.

You blinked in surprise and watched as his lips stretched into a bright smile, “Uh, I’m listening.”

“Right. What did I just say about the ‘Come bet’?”

“That…it’s… better than a ‘Leave bet’?” You joked.

Joel barked out a laugh and the sound made your stomach flip. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to your forehead. You were savoring the feel of his lips on your skin, when he turned you back to the table where a stack of chips were waiting for you. He slid two green chips into the box labeled ‘Pass Line’. You quickly mimicked his actions. Joel scooped up the dice, nodding at the man running the table, and then set them in your hands. “You’re the shooter, sugar.”

“Me?” Your eyes widened in worry.

“7 or 11.” Joel winked.

You took half a second to stand in shock at how your life had brought you to this point right here, and then you dove right in. You tossed the red dice and they bounced across the table before landing on a four and a three. The other two people at the table clapped their hands and Joel gave your elbow a squeeze.

The table slowly began to fill up, and you were a firm believer in the concept of ‘beginner’s luck’. You still only had a vague understanding of the game, but every time it was your time to be the shooter you were on a roll. It was exciting to have strangers cheering you on as well and as time passed you began to get more confident with how you tossed the chips around. Again, your knowledge on the actual rules were scarce, but you were pushing around higher number chips than Joel was. As the man running the table began to prep chips for a new player who settled in beside you, you turned to smirk at Joel.

“I’m doing pretty good.” You motioned to your decent stack of chips.

“Better than me.” Joel smirked.

Your pile was currently larger than Joel’s, but he seemed more concerned in keeping an eye on you than winning back his money. Teasingly, you leaned forward to let your lips linger by his ear, “If I win big, I promise to take care of you, baby.”

Joel laughed loudly and shook his head, “Just roll your dice.” You bounced in place just a bit before throwing the dice across the table. It landed on a total of seven which was not what you needed at the moment and it ended your roll. You groaned with the rest of the table, and Joel leaned into you this time. “Looks like I don’t need to worry none. Disappointed?”

“Nah.” You shook your head and locked your eyes with his. “I like being your sugar.”

“Good.” Joel’s dark eyes lingered on yours before dropping to your lips and bouncing back up. It was enough to make you release a small gasp, and he must have heard the sound because he smirked. 

Your elbow suddenly brushed against something behind you, and it broke the spell. Joel leaned back and it was only then you realized how close the two of you had drifted toward one another. You cleared your throat and glanced at the man on your other side, assuming you had bumped into him while getting lost in the tempting vortex that was Joel, “I’m so sorry about that.”

“No, no. No worries, sweetheart.” The man replied. He was probably a few years older than you, if you garnered a guess, and he was decent looking but certainly not anything to write home about. Absolutely plain standing beside someone like Joel. He lifted his hand to your face, making you flinch, and opened his fist to reveal the dice, “Blow me?”

“What?” You blurted in shock.

“Watch it.” Joel snarled from behind you. His chest pressed against your side, and when you glanced over you saw the warmth in his eyes had turned dangerous. Not a comforting flame in the fireplace after a long day, but a raging wildfire licking at the edge of the forest⏤ threatening to destroy. Joel glared at the man and if looks could kill then he’d be struck down by now.

“I’m just talking about the dice.” The guy chuckled. He winked at you, and you blanched in disgust. “Relax.”

The rest of the table, including a few of his friends on the other side of him, began to goad him into rolling the dice. Joel was still stiff, and you set a hand on his forearm in hopes to calm him. Joel’s eyes snapped to yours and you watched the anger simmer. You gave him a reassuring smile. One stupid jerk wasn’t going to ruin the night for you. Joel nodded once and began to move around you. At first, you thought he was going to place himself in between you and the guy, but instead he settled behind you. Joel pressed his chest against your back, setting a hand on your abdomen to pull you closer, and then let his hands fall to the tables’ sides⏤ successfully blocking you in. 

You couldn’t even focus on if Joel was still upset because every single ounce of your mind was redirected to keeping your body from spontaneously combusting. His stance around you was dizzying. Protective. Intimate. Possessive. Joel was stamping a claim on you, a warning to the man who accosted you, and you found it extremely attractive. Months ago, you would have firmly stated that you were a strong, independent woman who didn’t want nor need a man that took control or showed any signs of being overprotective. However, you would commit atrocities if it meant hearing Joel call you his.

Joel leaned his head down on your shoulder just enough to whisper, “You alright, sugar?”

Other than possibly going into a heart arrhythmia from his proximity, you were just fine, “Yeah. I’m okay, Joel. Don’t worry.” You felt him nod and then he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to the side of your neck. You audibly gasped, “Oh God.”

“What was that?” Joel asked.

“Nothing.” You blurted. His head was still hovering over your shoulder and you stayed stock still to avoid accidentally brushing any part of you against him. You heard Joel chuckle lightly before he straightened his posture. 

With Joel nearly wrapped around your body, it was easy to fall back into ease as the game went on. You weren’t really winning much more money, but you also weren’t significantly losing either. Just bouncing back and forth enough to maintain the same amount of chips. Between that and the feel of Joel’s breaths on your neck, you were ready to call it a night.

You turned your head to speak to him and realized how close he still stood then. Your nose was only an inch or so away from brushing against his jawline. You swallowed the lump in your throat and found the courage to not pull away. “Can we call it a night? Go back to the room?”

Joel turned his head and the slow way his jawline ended up rubbing against the top of your nose softly seemed deliberate. He gave you a small smile and nodded. “Course.” Joel held his position for a beat more before pushing away from you so he could speak to the man running the table. “We’re out.”

You took in a shuddering breath as Joel got the chips converted to the highest amount possible so it’d be easier to carry. Your anxiety had a bad habit of making you overthink and underplay everything against your favor, but even for you it was difficult to ignore Joel’s behavior tonight. He seemed genuinely interested. Nima had encouraged you to chase what made you happy, and Joel made you happy. There was no doubt there. Anticipation began to build in your chest as you hyped yourself up to make a move tonight. You took a chance and said yes to being his sugar baby in the first place. 

You just needed to take a chance again.

Joel turned back to you and he slipped a few black chips into his coat’s inner pocket before wrapping his arm around your shoulders to tug you into his side. You mimicked his action, holding yourself close to him, and the two of you only got a few steps away before the same obnoxious voice from earlier wolf whistled behind you.

“Damn, look at that ass.” The guy from earlier stumbled a step closer as his friends behind him tried to reel him back desperately. “How much do you charge a night? I’ll pay double whatever the old man is paying you.”

You stiffened at the words. They hit a little too close to home. You usually were able to easily let the drunk, stupid words of some obnoxious asshole roll off your back. Unknowingly though, the man had dug a knife into an already sore subject in your mind. In your spiraling panic, you didn’t realize the man was reaching for you until Joel was suddenly gone from your side. 

Without a word, Joel slammed his fist into the man’s face then grabbed him by the lapels of his sport coat before he could collapse. The man’s friends were trying to stop the attack while calling out apologies, but their attempts were fruitless. Joel lifted the man up off the ground enough to throw him over the edge of the craps table, making chips fly across the green felt as others around the table screamed in alarm, and Joel punched the man twice more before security swarmed the scene.

“Joel!” You cried out and tried to reach him, but a man in a dark suit and badge held you back.

They separated the fight easily and when Joel was pulled back away from the now groaning guy who was still laid up on the craps table, you saw real rage burning in Joel’s dark eyes. You had never seen his features twisted in anger and loathing before. Security dragged the guy off the table and took him and his friends toward the front of the resort while ushering for you and Joel to follow them in the opposite direction. Joel’s eyes snapped to meet yours and you watched as his anger melted into worry and concern. He shoved a security guard out of his way to reach you and one hand shot up to rest protectively on the back of your neck as his eyes scanned your face.

“Hey, are you alright?” Joel asked nervously. Unable to find words, you gave him a meek nod and his shoulders sagged in relief. The lead security guard cleared his throat and Joel kept his hands on you while following after the man. When the small grouping of people reached the edge of the casino floor, Joel spoke up. “That piece of shit better be out on his ass.”

“He has been forcibly removed from our premises and I do apologize for the duress.” The lead security, his badge read ‘T. Gordon’, turned to you with a slight nod. “Are you okay, miss?”

“Oh, uh, I’m fine.” You replied.

“Good.” Gordon focused back on Joel. “As regrettable as this scenario was, fighting is strictly prohibited⏤”

“If you kept assholes like him from gettin’ so wasted then maybe I wouldn’t have had to start nothin’.” Joel snapped. “He was gonna try and touch her.”

“Right, and because of that we will not be restricting your access to the resort.” Gordon said. “That being said, I will have to limit your access to the casino floor. The Wynn has a strict policy. That gentleman will never be welcome on our property again, and you will be suspended for the next three months.”

“Fine. Can we go?”

Gordon motioned for the two of you to wait while he fetched some paperwork for Joel to sign. Your eyes darted down to Joel’s dominant hand, the one not wrapped around your waist, and it was still balled into a tight fist. There was a redness to the knuckles that made you gasp.

“What’s wrong?” Joel’s attention snapped to you in alarm.

You reached for his hand and cradled it in yours, studying the gash and early bruising, “You’re bleeding, Joel.”

“It’s not a big deal.” He tried to pull his hand away, but you held on tighter and he sighed. “Really. Doesn’t even hurt.”

Your thumb brushed the edge of the discoloration and his nose twitched with a slight wince. You shot him a light glare, “Liar.” Joel’s own lips curled into a small smile and you shook your head. “What? Don’t smile at me. I’m worried about your hand.”

“I know.” Joel replied softly. He turned his gaze away from you and his next words fell out in a slight whisper. “It’s cute.”

Gordon returned a second later and you were forced to release his hand so he could sign the paperwork stating he understood his punishment. You were just happy that the police didn’t need to be involved. Joel began to lead you toward the elevators, which weren’t far from where you stood now. It didn’t take long to get to the room, and the moment you stepped through the threshold you pushed him toward the couch to sit. Quickly, you shrugged out of his jacket and fetched a rag to run under cold water. 

Joel was slumped in his seat with his head leaning back and his arm draped over to cover his eyes. You sat down beside him, on his left and close enough that your thigh pressed against the side of his, then carefully pulled his arm away from his face so you could take his hand in yours. Joel blinked his eyes open at you while you carefully began to dab at the gash on his knuckles.

“I’m so sorry.” Joel sighed.

Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Why are you apologizing?” 

“I lost my temper.” He shifted so rather than slumped back he was sitting upright. Joel’s fingers wrapped around the hand holding his up while your other continued to clean his injury. “I never wanted you to see me like that.”

“Joel…”

“When I’m around you,” Joel paused and took in a slow breath, “I get to be one of the best versions of myself. Carefree. Happy. That’s what I want you to see. Not angry or grumpy or stressed⏤ Just… I don’t want…” 

It seemed he couldn’t find the end of his thoughts. You paused in cleaning his wound to just squeeze his hand in reassurance. “I don’t want just the best of you, Joel. I want to know all of you. Good and bad.” Joel’s gaze softened and the way he stared at you, with blatant adoration even the worst of your anxiety couldn’t deny, made your chest fill with warmth. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“How’d I get so lucky to find you, sugar?” Joel asked quietly.

“Easy.” You offered him a smile and shrug, “You left your wallet at home, daddy.”

Joel laughed and the sound of it felt victorious. You liked being able to cheer him up. A knock at the door made you rise from the couch. Joel tried to stop you so he could go, but you brushed away his hand with a chuckle. At the door, a waiter stood holding a bucket filled with ice and a bottle of wine. You took it from him questioningly and walked back into the living space.

“What is it?”

You read the card tied to the side, “‘Please accept this wine as an apology for tonight’s disturbance.’” Your eyes widened and you stared at Joel in shock. “Seriously? You punch a guy and the hotel apologizes to you?” Joel motioned for you to get closer and you walked over to settle back in the seat you had been in. Joel pulled the bottle from the bucket to read it. “You rich people, I swear.”

“Wow. This is a pricey bottle.” Joel hummed. “I don’t know a lot of wines, but Sarah likes this one. I buy it for her every year for her birthday.”

You scooped up some of the ice to set in the rag, a smile on your features. You always loved hearing details of Joel’s home life. It wasn’t like he was hiding anything from you, he spoke freely about his daughters, but every little detail you learned solidified the image of the doting and loving father Joel truly was. You’d be lying if you said it wasn’t an extremely attractive trait of his.

With your makeshift ice pack, you shifted in place so you could settle it on his knuckles. Joel hissed at the cold and set the bottle down. His hand was resting in your lap so neither of you had to hold it up and his close proximity was making your heart race.

“You know,” You chuckled, “Nobody’s ever punched someone to defend my honor, like that before. Is it wrong that I kind of liked it?”

“Not wrong.” Joel shook his head. “But you’ve really never had to deal with an asshole like that before?”

You scoffed with a laugh. “I’ve dealt with assholes like him my whole life. I’m a breathing woman who lives in LA. I can’t walk down the street without getting catcalled or yelled at.”

Joel’s brows furrowed in confusion, “You were datin’ someone before me though, right?” You nodded in confirmation. “He never…?”

“Nathan wasn’t big on violence of any kind.” You shook your head. A memory tumbled out from your lips before you could even stop it. “I got groped once at a bar we went to. Some guy grabbed my chest and Nate scolded him and then the two of them started talking about some baseball game.”

“You’re shittin’ me.”

“Nope.”

Joel muttered under his breath a string of curses. His hand slid to rest on your mid thigh and he gave it a comforting squeeze. “I know technically the answer should be non-violence, so I’m probably the bad guy for sayin’ this, but I would’ve ripped that guy’s head off.” Based on what you saw this evening, you believed him, and still you only found comfort in it. “The world’s a goddamn mess and that kid you dated was a coward for not standin’ up for you. That’s the least a man could do for a woman he loves.” You felt your heart skip a beat at his insinuation. Joel didn’t love you. It was way too soon for him to feel any kind of way close to that, but to hear you were in the group of people he cared enough about to protect still made you feel some kind of way yourself. “Not that women can’t protect themselves.” Joel was near ranting now. “I made sure Sarah and Ellie could hold their own. Basic self defense, teachin’ ‘em how to handle a weapon, a kickboxin’ class here or there. But still… The thought that you got assaulted and your ex-boyfriend just thought to be chummy with the guy pisses me the fuck off.”

There was an edge to his voice, and you could see the haunted look of a past memory lingering in his eyes. You melted into the couch, closer to him, and Joel squeezed your thigh once more. “I’m okay, Joel. Everything is fine, and I’m safe. We’re safe.” You lifted the ice pack just enough to give his skin a break from all the cold. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m alright. Just…” Joel shook his head. “Bad memory.”

“Want to talk about it?”

Joel hesitated for a moment before sighing, “It was a long time ago. I took the girls campin’. Ellie was fourteen. Just a kid. Not even old enough to drive.” His thumb was tracing a line back and forth against your thigh as he recounted his past. “We were settin’ everything up, I looked away for a minute⏤ just a minute⏤ and she was gone. I left Sarah with Tess, called the cops, then Tommy and I were tearin’ apart the woods lookin’ for her.” Joel carried a tension in his shoulders as he spoke and you leaned in closer to him to offer physical reassurance without interrupting him. “I heard Ellie scream. That sound… it’s carved into my very soul. I’ll never forget it. I found her in this beat up RV by the lake. Some sick son of a bitch had snatched her and was tryin’ to…” Joel locked his jaw. Silence settled between the two of you for a moment. Your heart ached for him and it ached for his daughter. You couldn’t even begin to imagine the horror. Joel shook his head finally. “Ellie’s a fighter. She always has been. Arguably to a fault.” He let out a sad chuckle at the praise, but it faded. “She had clawed his face up, broke his finger, hell, she even managed to bite off the upper part of the bastard’s ear… Ellie held him off, and I got there in time. When I saw him though…” Joel squeezed your thigh and this time he didn’t let up. “God, I saw red, darlin’. Ripped him off her and nearly killed him. I would’ve except I heard Ellie cryin’ and I stopped to grab her. Cops showed up around then. Sick bastard was lucky it was the cops and not Tommy. Tommy wouldn’t have stopped me. Not for that.”

“She’s okay? Ellie?” You asked softly.

“Yeah. She’s strong. Stronger than me even.” A flash of pride filled his features while praising his daughter’s strength, “She got that from her mom.” You knew that Joel wasn’t related to Ellie by blood. He had shared that bit of information with you early on when he first told you about his daughters. That was all you knew of the fact though. You didn’t know how Joel knew Ellie’s mom or how she came to be adopted by him. “Since then though, I’ve always had a hair trigger for that kind of shit. More so than I used to. Just brings up bad memories.”

“I could only imagine.” You replied. “I’m so sorry, Joel.” 

“No need for you to be.”

“Still…” You searched for something to say, but there were no words that came to mind. Instead, you rested your head between his shoulder and chest. Joel responded by letting the arm draped on the couch behind you wrap around your own shoulders as his right hand continued to reach across his lap and rest on your thigh. Softly, you spoke, “Sarah and Ellie are lucky to have you.”

Joel gave a small shake of his head, “I’m lucky to have them.”

“Well, then,” You lifted your head just enough to meet his gaze and gave him a tight lipped smile, “I’m lucky to have you.”

“Wrong again.” Joel chuckled and there was a softness in his eyes as he studied your features.

That didn’t feel true to you. It had been so long since you felt protected to this degree. For literal years, you only had yourself to rely on. Of course you always had Nima and Henry at the bake shop, they’d move mountains for you, but the thought of bothering them kept you from ever wanting to ask for too much. However, when Joel took care of you, it never made you feel like a burden. It felt like you could breathe fully and freely for the first time in a long time⏤ as if the concrete blocks once tied to your ankles were gone and you could now stretch your wings and be yourself. 

Your gaze found its way to his lips before bouncing back up to his eyes. The plan had been to gain the courage to close this gap and share that physical intimacy with him, but the two of you seemed to find a different kind of intimacy altogether. You leaned in and rather than kissing him like you had been craving all night, you lightly set your lips against his jawline, in that same spot you had admired earlier in the night, and then laid your head back on his shoulder. You curled in closer into him and Joel wrapped around your once more as if it were simply natural to do so.

“You’re a good man.” You mumbled and listened to the steady thrum of his heart under your ear.

You felt Joel suck in a sharp, shaky breath and hold it. Eternity seemed to pass before he slowly breathed out. Joel turned his head, you could feel him moving, and he pressed a kiss to your hairline⏤ lingering there with his lips to your skin as he mumbled, “No, sugar. I’m really not.”

There was an underlying tone to his words you didn't recognize, but there was nothing that could convince you otherwise of your beliefs. You were lucky to have Joel in your life, and he was a good man.

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✨J.M. Masterlist✨

#tlou fanfiction #the last of us fanfiction #joel miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #sugar daddy!joel miller x reader #sugar daddy!joel miller #take care of you

[topguncortez]

Speak Now ~ J. Seresin

Hangman Masterlist | Main Masterlist

synopsis: Jake gets a wedding invite from the girl he's still in love with. Based off of Speak Now (TV) by Taylor Swift

word count: 4.1k

warnings: cursing, break-ups, runaway bride, miscommunication

Jake knew you probably hated the invites. You had told him over and over that you never wanted a big wedding, you wanted something small. You had agreed with your mom to not just go to the courthouse, but would at least do something a little bigger. Jake ran his fingers over the pale pink paper that was decorated with flowers and had your name and your fiancé’s name written in gold cursive letters. He knew you were somewhere screaming and pulling your hair out.

‘PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE CEREMONY OF MATRIMONY OF Y/N M/N AND BILLY “FRITZ” AVALON’

“Yeah, I just got it,” Jake said to Coyote. He had called his best friend the moment he saw the light pink envelope in his mailbox, “I looked up the address, it’s a church. She always said she wouldn’t get married in a church, she was worried it would burn down around her,”

“I don’t think that’s possible,” Javy said, “She must be a different person now, when was the last time you talked to her?”

“I don’t know 2-3 years ago. I heard Bob ask Nat if she had figured out a bridesmaid dress yet,” Jake sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, “I guess it was for this.”

“Did you expect anything less? They’re best friends.”

Jake shrugged knowing his friend couldn’t see him, “I don’t think I’m gonna go,”

“You can’t do that!”

“Why would I go? To submit myself to the torture of watching her marry someone else? Watching someone else give her the life I couldn’t give her?” Jake said angrily, the images of their last fight filled his mind. He looked over to the front door from his kitchen, the replay of you walking out the door, with your bags packed and tears in your eyes was forever burned into his mind.

“You pushed her away, Jacob. You can only blame yourself for that,” Javy scolded and Jake sighed.

“I thought I was doing the right thing,” Jake mumbled.

“Well do the true right thing, and go to the wedding, for her. It’ll make her happy to see you there,” Javy said and Jake told him he’d think about it.

Jake sat down on his couch and closed his eyes. Ever since that fateful day, he let you go, he couldn’t fathom thinking about you with someone else. He knew though, he knew you had met someone else, but didn’t know it was Fritz until about a month ago. The two of you waltzed into the Hard Deck, hand-in-hand, smiles on your face. Jake couldn’t stand the sight of it. It made him physically ill to stand there and keep a smile on his face. You had caught only a glimpse of him as he walked out the door. 

Jake pushed himself off of his spot and walked to his room. He pulled down the box that sat on the top shelf of his closet and opened the lid. Pictures, concert tickets, notes, mixed CDs, random t-shirts, and postcards were all packed away in the box. Jake dug to the bottom of the box and pulled out the tiny light blue ring box and opened it. The pear-shaped diamond ring glared up at him in mockery.

———————————————

“Have you ever thought about the future?” You asked him, as you were both relaxing in the bathtub. Jake had a stressful day at work and just wanted to relax. You had made him something to eat and draw a bath.

“Of course,” Jake said, kissing your bare shoulder, “I think about it a lot, what I’m doing next week, or next month, or even next year,”

“Do you ever think of our future?” You asked softly.

“I-I uh, yeah sometimes. But I like where we are,” Jake said and you frowned slightly. You had been with Jake since freshman year of high school, right by his side through it all. From giving up your dream of going to UT, and moving to Maryland while he went to the academy, to waiting with other partners and spouses for him to come off the carrier after a deployment.  You loved Jake, you really did, but you were hoping for more, you wanted more.

“I think about getting married,” You said and sighed into Jake, “Something small, probably in my parents’ backyard on a beautiful summer night. I want that perfect day, where you just wake up and say, ‘Let’s get married’, nothing too crazy. I told my mom I won’t just go to the courthouse.”

“Yeah,” was all Jake could say.

“What?” You asked, turning your head to look at him, “You don’t… you don’t see that?”

“It’s not that I don’t see it, it’s that I don’t want it.”

“Oh,” You nodded. There was a beat of silence, until you pushed yourself up from Jake’s embrace.

“Wait, Y/N,” Jake said reaching out to you as you grabbed your towel.

“The water is getting cold,” You said and dried yourself off, before heading into the bathroom.

Jake cursed himself and got out of the bathtub, grabbing his towel and following you. You sat on the bed and looked at Jake with tears in your eyes. You had this sinking feeling for a while. Like things were bound to break between you. You loved Jake, you really did, and every day it felt like you were falling more in love with him. He always did something new to make you fall in love. Whether it was surprising you with some new recipe, bringing you home your favorite flowers, to sending you postcards from where ever he was in the world. But lately, all that had seemed to stop. You had slowly wondered if maybe, just maybe, Jake wasn’t in love with you anymore.

“Y/N…” Jake said your name softly.

“When did you fall out of love?”

“What-“

“Jake, please,” You asked him, tears now running down your face.

“I love you, Y/N, I really do. But I- My career is just starting to take off. I. . .,” Jake sighed, “I- I don’t want to be holding you back from everything that you want.”

“You don’t want to hold me back, or you don’t want me holding YOU back?”

Jake sighed and looked down at his feet. Truth was, he didn’t want to hold you back. He could see the small changes in you. You had decided to change your major from education to business, something that you insisted was what you wanted. He noticed that your grades had slipped, your GPA the lowest it had ever been. You had spent more time at home, next to him, than hanging out with your friends. Jake didn’t want to hurt you, but he wanted you to follow your dreams, even if that meant having to break his and your heart. Jake took a deep breath and grabbed your hands.

“I’m breaking up with you,” He said and bit the bullet. You closed your eyes and Jake was fighting the urge to wipe the tears from your eyes. A sob left your pink lips and you pulled your hands from his, “I’m sorry-“

“Just shut up, Jake,” You said and pushed yourself up from the bed. You walked into the bathroom and slammed it shut, locking the door behind you. You gripped the sides of the sink and sobbed. Jake listened on the other side of the door as you threw everything off the counter, and could hear the breaking of the mirror as you threw a hairbrush at it. Jake changed into his pajamas and then set some out for you. He wrote a note that he was going to stay at Josh’s for the night.

The next morning you woke up to a cold bed and a pounding headache. You looked around the empty room and sighed. You began with the closet, dumping all your clothes into your suitcase, leaving behind the stuff that Jake had either bought you or gifted you. You packed away all your underwear, socks, and makeup. The apartment slowly became bare as you packed your little trinkets and decorations away. You had hoped to get most of it done before Jake came back, but you weren’t that lucky.

“Where are you going?” Jake asked, walking into the apartment and seeing your bags by the front door.

“My sister’s house,” You said and Jake looked at you confused. This was the first time you had mentioned a sister, and he had been dating you for over 5 years, “You don’t know her, she’s a half-sister,”

“Okay… this is really it?”

“Yeah,” You said softly as you looked down at the item in your hand, a picture from your first date, taken when you were both 13. Your parents wouldn’t let you go alone, so Jake’s older sister and her boyfriend at the time had to tag along. She took the picture and Jake gave it to you as a gift on your first anniversary, “Here,” You handed Jake the picture.

“No, no, keep it.”

“I can’t,” You said, your voice breaking. You placed your hand on Jake’s cheek, and kissed his lips softly, one last time, “Goodbye, Jake. Be good to yourself, okay?”

“I will, Y/N. I love you,”

You couldn’t bring yourself to say it back, as you grabbed your bags and walked out the front door. Jake bit his lip as he watched you walk out the door and out of his life.

———————————-

You looked half dead, as you sat in the makeup chair, bright and early on your wedding day. You had tried to go to sleep, but you tossed and turned the whole night. You had thought about running away, getting your car, and driving off to god knows where, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. Instead, you took some melatonin and slept for about 4 hours, until Natasha burst through your door with her unusually high amount of energy. You were just happy she brought you red bull and donuts.

“You look like shit?” Natasha said as she poured you a mimosa.

“I feel like it,” you reached your hand out for the glass.

“Oh my god,” She said and pulled the glass back, “Are you pregnant?!”

“No!” You yelled, “Give me the damn drink,”

“Fiesty,” She laughed and handed you the glass, “I steamed your dress, it’s hanging up in the bathroom,”

“Thank you,” You answered, “The boys?”

“I talked to Billy’s brother, Steven, he said they are up and moving. But, if you were wondering Rooster said that they are ALL on their way,”

“He’s coming?”

Natasha gave you a small smile and nodded, before going over to where the rest of your bridesmaids were. You looked up at your makeup artist and smiled as she placed false eyelashes on your eyes. You had tried to keep yourself from shaking with anxiety over seeing Jake, but you couldn’t help it. You had brushed it off as wedding day jitters. For the rest of the morning, you and your bridesmaids drank and ate a light breakfast that your parents had provided. You had a photographer taking pictures of you guys as you got ready. The bridesmaid dresses you had picked were emerald green, and you let them pick their own design. You sucked in a breath, as Natasha zipped the back of your dress. You stared at yourself in the mirror, and could hardly recognize the person in the mirror. The dress you and Billy had picked out was a classic style dress, with a deep v-cut, lace sleeves that went down to your wrists, and an open back. Billy said you looked like Princess Kate, but you felt more like Princess Di.

“Absolutely breathtaking,” Natasha said and You smiled, trying to make yourself feel better, “They want a first look. You okay with that?”

“I mean, Billy picked the dress out, so why not,”

Natasha smiled and walked out of the bedroom. You blinked and stared up at the ceiling, trying not to cry. You took a deep breath and then headed out of the bathroom. You looked up from your shoes to be shocked by the 3 men standing in front of you, one noticeably missing.

“Well god damn, Y/N, you can clean up nicely,” Javy said You laughed and walked over and hugged him.

“Like our very own princess,” Bob said.

“Thank you,” You said looking at all of them. You could feel a certain pair of blue eyes burning into you, “I can’t believe you guys actually came!”

“Well, my girlfriend is your maid of honor,” Javy said, putting his arm around Natasha’s waist.

“She’s the best maid of honor I could ask for,” You smiled at her.

“Speaking of which, we gotta get going. Can’t be late for your own wedding,” Natasha said and your face faltered.

“Yeah,” You said hoping none of them noticed the change in your demeanor, of course the oldest twin did.

“Alright, let’s get going okay,” Natasha said and the boys nodded, following her out of the room, all except Bob who hung back a second.

“You look amazing,” Bob said, “He would be here, but he just couldn’t see you quite yet.”

“Thank you, Bob,” You said honestly. He kissed your cheek and then left your room.

“You ready?” Natasha asked, coming back into the room. You nodded and grabbed the champagne bottle that was next to you. Natasha watched with wide eyes as you downed the rest of the bottle, “Liquid courage?”

“If I do something dumb, you promise to support me?”

Natasha squinted her eyes at you, “Depends on what dumb thing you’re thinking about doing.”

“We’ll have to see,”

The church was decorated beautifully, white roses and emerald green flowers were mixed in and decorated the altar. Javy sat on Jake’s right and Rooster on the left. Jake’s eyes were locked on his shoes as Billy and his parents made their way down the aisle. Rooster nudged him as your mom and brother made their way down the aisle. Your mom sent Jake a warm smile, making his heart beat faster in his chest. The look in her eyes was one that Jake had seen far too often. 

‘That should be you.’

“What if I stop the wedding?” Jake asked Javy.

“Don’t even think about it Jacob,” Javy whispered harshly.

“You saw how unhappy she is!” 

“She’s nervous, it’s her damn wedding day!” Javy snapped. 

“Stop, Natasha is walking down,” Bob said noticing his WSO walking down with your fiancé’s brother. Natasha winked at the boys, as she took her spot right next to wear you would stand at the alter. 

Jake’s heart fell to his ass as he heard that oh-so-familiar wedding march and everyone stood up, to look to the back of the church. The doors opened Jake’s breath caught in his throat. You were breathtaking, the dress hugging your body perfectly. Jake couldn’t help but wish that was for him. Your eyes were locked on Billy, as tears left his eyes. You had tried to dig deep in your heart and remember why you were going to marry him, but everything was drawing up a blank. The aisle felt like it was miles long, and you hated everyone’s eyes on you. When you got to the end of the aisle, Billy stepped down to take you from your father.

“Who gives this woman, to this man?” The priest asked.

“Her mother, and I,” Your dad said. He turned to you and hugged you, “Jake is here,” You went to move your head to look for him but your dad kept you from moving, “Make the right choice,” You nodded and kissed his cheek before pulling back and stepping up on the altar.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you maybe be seated,” The priest said and You handed Natasha your bouquet, your eyes searching the crowd of people, and finally landing on those familiar brown eyes, “Welcome, we are gathered here today to witness the symbolic ceremony of love between these two young people, Y/N M/N L/N and Billy Fritz Avalon. Is there anybody who believes that these two shouldn’t be married, speak now or forever hold your peace,”

Y/N closed her eyes and waited for someone to say something. Jake was about to stand before Javy grabbed his arm and held him down. He looked at his wingman with wide eyes, but the boy just shook his head and pointed toward you. Jake looked at you and locked eyes with him, as the priest was reading some passage about marriage and what it means in the Bible. Jake could read it in your eyes, you were really going through with this. Jake saw his window of opportunity finally close and the stages of grief started settling in his chest. He leaned back against the pew and tried to keep from crying.

“Billy, do you take Y/N, to have and to hold, to honor and treasure, to be at her side in sorrow and in joy, in the good times and bad, in sickness and health, for rich or for poor, to love and cherish her always until the moment of your last breath?”

“I do,” Billy said giving your hand a squeeze.

“Y/N,” The priest said, basically startling you, “Do you take Billy, to have and to hold, to honor and treasure, to be at his side in sorrow and in joy, in the good times and bad, in sickness and death, for rich or for poor, to love and cherish him always until the moment of your last breath?”

You looked at the priest and then at Billy, “I…,” You quickly glanced over to Jake, whose green eyes were locked on you. You swallowed and looked back at Billy, “I-” 

“No,” A voice from the crowd spoke. You snapped your head towards the audience, seeing Jake standing up and the look of shock on everyone’s face. 

“Hangman, what the,” Billy asked, dropping your hands and turning towards him.

“You never wanted to get married in a Church,” Jake said, pushing past Rooster and Bob, to stand in the middle of the aisle, “You said the church of Elvis was fine, but nothing like. . . this,” Jake gestured around, “You want the wedding where you wake up and say ‘let’s get married’. You want to eat hot dogs and mac’n’cheese in your parents’ backyard and light off fireworks.” 

Tears gathered in your eyes as Jake stepped closer to you, and you took a step down from the altar. 

“You want to jump off the dock at the lake house in your wedding dress because the lake has good luck in it and you believe in that stuff,” Jake licked his lips, “This isn’t you. . .” You nodded and Jake wiped away a stray tear with his thumb, “What do you say? Wanna get out of here?” 

“Yes please,” You said, as you grabbed Jake’s hand. The church erupted in chaos as the two of you ran towards the doors. 

“The hell did you say to her!?” Your mom asked your father, hitting him lightly on the chest.

“I just told her to make the right choice,” Your dad said smugly, “Never liked Buster anyway.”

“It’s Billy!”

You and Jake were bursting with laughter as you sprinted to his car. Jake had helped gather your dress in the car, before shutting the door carefully and jumping into the driver’s seat. Neither of you guys said anything as you drove away from the church. You weren’t sure where you were driving to, and it honestly didn’t matter. You looked over at Jake, who had a smile on his face as he grabbed your hand, and kissed your knuckles. 

But suddenly, the fate of the decision hit you like a ton of bricks. 

“Stop the car,” You said. 

Jake looked over at you, “What?” 

“Stop the damn car!” You yelled. Jake complied and pulled the car over, putting it in park. You got out instantly, running towards the woodline, the soft rain falling on you. Jake watched as you tried to catch your breath. He walked to the other side of his BMW, and leaned against the passenger door as you paced. 

“I ran away,” You said eyes wide. You turned to face him, “I just ran away from the altar!”

“Yes, you did,” Jake nodded. 

“A-and because of you!” You yelled.

“I’m sorry,” Jake said, honestly. Guilt was swimming in his green eyes as you looked at him. He looked as bad as you felt. His suit was wrinkled, his hair slightly a mess from running his hands through it, his five o’clock shadow settling on his face. 

“Why? Why did it take you so long?” You asked and Jake looked at you. 

“I was scared,” He admitted, “I was scared of coming back and ruining what you had built. You went back to education, got your degree, you’re living your dream, and I…. I didn’t want to get in the way again.” 

You shook your head and walked up to him. You grabbed his hand, “Dance with me,”

Jake nodded and turned up the car radio. The sweet sound of Aretha Franklin’s Natural Woman’ filled your eardrums. Jake grabbed you softly and pulled you into him as he swayed with you in the moonlight. You guys lost track of time, as one song faded into the other, and you were both soaked, your dress was ruined.

“Your dress,” Jake said, looking at the dirty train, “I’m sorry, I’ll pay,”

“No, don’t worry about it,” You said and placed your hands on Jake’s face.

Jake’s rough hands carefully gripped the side of your face and pulled his lips against yours. For the first time in nearly 2 years, you were feeling his lips on yours again. You pulled him against you, wanting him to never let you go. He pulled back and rested his forehead against yours. You two didn’t say anything, but you didn’t have to. It was clear, you had made the right choice.

“Marry me,” Jake said and you looked up at him. He reached into his wet suit jacket and pulled out the blue box, “I don’t know what the hell I was thinking, I had this stashed away for the perfect moment but I just got scared. I didn’t want you to put your dreams on the back burner for me, so I let you go.”

“Jake, you dumbass,” You said, “You are my dream.”

“You’re mine too, I can’t believe I almost lost you to-”

“Shh, you have me now.”

“Marry me, please?” Jake asked getting down on one knee. You smiled and tackled him to the ground. He landed with a thud and laughed as he kissed you passionately. You pulled back and slid the ring that was already on your finger, and replaced it with the one Jake had for you, “Looks better.”

“Much better.” You said kissing him again.

3 weeks later, you woke up one morning to a cold bed, but the covers messed up. You looked out the window, seeing the sun shining and making everything glow warmly. You stretched and headed down to your kitchen, where Jake was already making dinner. You greeted him with a kiss and sat down at the table to eat the vegan pancakes he had made.

“We should get married today,” Jake suggested, “Javy got ordained online a couple of months ago and has been itching to use it.”

“My dad’s got a new dinner recipe he wants to try.” You said sipping your orange juice.

“Then it’s settled,” Jake smiled, “Let’s get married today,”

And that’s exactly what you two did. You sent out a text message for everyone to be at your house by 6 for your wedding. Nobody questioned It, knowing this was exactly what you and Jake wanted. Everyone gathered in your backyard, dressed causally for a summer backyard wedding. Jake stood barefoot in the grass as he waited for you to walk out of the house, in a simple white maxi sun dress. Javy was living for this moment to be the official of a wedding, and what better than to be one at his best friend’s wedding?

“Now, we can actually do this right this time,” Javy said winking at you.

“Jake, do you take Y/N-“

“Yes,” Jake said interrupting his brother.

“I have to say the speech, Jacobl,” Javy scolded and everyone chuckled, “Y/N, do you take Jake-“

“I do!” You answered by doing the same.

“You guys are so impatient,” Javy smiled, “Well, by the power vested in me by some officiating website and the state of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Jake, you may now kiss your bride,”

“Don’t gotta tell me twice,”

You giggled as Jake smashed his lips against yours. Cheers were let out from your family as he dipped you and sealed the deal with a kiss. He set you back on your two feet and grabbed your hand, walking you down the makeshift aisle, finally as husband and wife.

taglist: @shanimallina87 @phoenix1388 @desert-fern @mygyn @cherrycola27 @yanna-banana @seitmai @topgun-imagines @bradleybeachbabe @na-ta-sh-aa @startrekfangirl2233 @xoxabs88xox @atarmychick007 @lunamoonbby @sophiaslastbraincell @bradswolfe @fandom-princess-forevermore @thedroneranger @angelbabyange @callsignharper @dempy @lovelywiseprincess @krismdavis @eternallyvenus @dakotakazansky @pono-pura-vida @callsignartemis @starberryhorse @daggersquadphantom @gspenc @toobouquet @dreamgirl3300 @avada-kedavra-bitch-187

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#top gun #top gun fan fic #top gun fan fiction #top gun imagine #top gun maverick #top gun maverick fan fic #top gun maverick fan fiction #top gun maverick imagine #Jake seresin #Jake seresin fan fic #Jake seresin fan fiction #Jake seresin imagine #Jake seresin x reader #Jake seresin x you #Jake seresin x y/n #Jake hangman seresin #hangman seresin #hangman #hangman fan fic #hangman fan fiction #hangman imagine #hangman x reader #hangman x you #hangman x y/n

[midnight-pluto]

Hi!! Can I request headcanons about being best friends with Nico and Will (together), kinda having that “couple who adopts their bsf as their child” dynamic reader is a child of Demeter and if it’s no trouble can reader be female? GN will work if not.

SOLANGELO +1 — headcanons

you call it third wheeling, i call it quality time with the parents

CHAR: will solace, nico di angelo, grover, mentioned!percy jackson, mentioned!annabeth chase

PAIRING(S): solangelo + daughter of demeter!reader, mentioned!percabeth

A/N: this is gonna be a nightmare to tag lmao

when new campers meet Will for the first time, they’re almost always introduced to Nico next

what they don’t expect, is for you to pop out of nowhere introducing yourself as well

they jump slightly at your sudden appearance, and reciprocate your greeting with slight confusion in their voice but then Will gladly explains the situation

“This is Y/N, daughter of Demeter.”

“Yeah, and these are my dads.”

“Y/N that’s not—“

it would be so much funnier if you were taller than both of them

that sends some campers in a spiral, especially the younger ones

once the new camper is recovered they then automatically understand the true nature of y’all’s relationship

some are slightly confused on why you seem so glad with the arrangement you three have going but most support it and find it amusing

if the three of you are ever going anywhere you’re usually in the front as the actual couple trail behind you holding hands

all of the friendship accessories you three own are thanks to you!

you made matching bracelets, a custom bead to add to the camp necklace just for the three of you, and the cliché flower crowns your cabin is known for

the flower crown was made of an assortment of flowers — lilies, chrysanthemums, and sunflowers which all not coincidentally mean or have some correlation to friendship

you have most definitely been the first to witness Will playing a love song to Nico in private

not wanting to interrupt the moment you made all the plants in the area grow greener and have flowers sprout around them

it was a miracle on how both of them didn’t notice your antic sooner

as you were making the plants grow around them from the bush, Will had stopped strumming as Nico looked at him with one of his rare smiles when they both leaned into each other

but of course Nico just had to feel the suddenly grown flowers tickling at his ankles and immediately spotted you — watching you run away from your hiding spot

that situation is what led to you to believe was the reason you kept on being invited to their dates

were you complaining? no, of course not

you had the ability to snack on all their food after all and they have no one but themselves to blame

“Where did the cookies even go?”

“…whoops.”

as their honorary child you were not technically counted as a third-wheel

Will had jokingly dubbed it a ‘family bonding time’ whenever you joined in on his Nico’s time together — them not even doing anything special, but you still joined anyways — and the name stuck

in all honesty Will is happy with the arrangement you all have together

don’t get him wrong, he would enjoy the moments he and Nico have together all the same even if you weren’t there, but your presence and witty comments coming from nowhere make it all the more cherished

also, your ability to make scenes more romantic is very highly appreciated; making him choose more woody and grassy areas so it’s easier for you to romanticize them

Nico on the other hand would’ve enjoyed it more if he and Will were alone away from your eyes

but he supposed yours was different — making the moments they both have feel more domestic so he didn’t necessarily consider any of his or Will’s actions PDA when it was you

you never really paid attention anyways

the romanticized scenery caused by you made Nico scoff but he was grateful for the added atmosphere — which was quite a compliment since he normally disliked such clichés

Grover once tried to talk to you about it and relate to the feeling of being the third-wheel like he was with Percy and Annabeth

it didn’t lead to an outcome he expected

“And they’re like: ‘be safe. I love you,’ and then I’m just standing there wondering if they’ll ever tell me that because you know, life-or-death situation going on right? But they never do!”

“Damn bro, that sucks.“

“Does this not happen to you?”

“Nope. We yell at each other to be safe.”

A/N: school is absolute shit

#rin’s 200 follower event [🧸] #rin’s headcanon’s 🌷 #pjo x you #pjo x reader #pjo fluff #will solace x y/n #will solace x reader #will x reader #nico x reader #nico di angelo x reader #nico di angelo #will solace

[avenging-fandoms]

Hey!! I love your writingggg.. can’t get enough of soft loverrrr pedrooooo definitely need moreeee

I was wondering if you take requests. So I have this fantasy of like Pedro and the reader living in a shared house/apartment in New York and they’re in a long term relationship. For the last few months Pedro’s been travelling busy with filming and so they haven’t seen each other for a while, e-reader decides to have a self care day that ends with being sprawled on the bed playing with themselves. Little do they know Pedro’s decided to surprise by coming home early, only to have the reader nowhere to be found; as he walks deeper into the house he hears your moans and panics thinking you might be cheating, only to find the reader sprawled on the bed wearing one of his shirts that still smell like him and moaning his name.

That will be all.

Thank you 😊

yeah.. it's nasty as hell. don't read if you're a minor.

adding this request: request: pedro smut🤭 praise kink🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️

“it’s ok” “i know baby, i know” “you’re alright baby” “you’re doing so good” “you did so good sweetie” immediate aftercare when you’re worn out😦🤤

-

"Today was so rough, Pedrito," You drape your head over the armrest of the couch and sigh. "I wish you were here to hold me until I felt better."

Pedro could hear the pout through the phone. "God I dream of holding you every night, sweetheart. 2 more months and I'm all yours."

You smile and sit up, leaning your elbows on your knees as you look at your nails. "I think I'm gonna take a bath, I always feel better after those."

"A bath, hm? I hope you'll let me see how relaxed you are." His voice was deeper and you bit your lip, leaning back and playing with the strings on your sweatpants.

"Maybe, I'll think about it. I'm mad at you for being away from me for so long."

"I'm away for so long so I can buy the biggest diamond to put on your finger, princesa. Don't start now." You giggle and sigh, shaking your head. "Enjoy your bath, listen to some Prince to think of me, I'll be shooting but I have my phone. I love you honey."

"I love you, Pedro." You make a kiss noise and hang up the phone, heading to the bathroom with the speaker. You set it on the counter and connect your phone, playing your 'Pedro' playlist and sure enough, Prince came on. You turn on the water and sing into the mirror as you wait for it to be ready.

You added salts and some flowers with bubbles, lighting a candle and sliding into the tub. You submerge in the water and your nerves could finally relax. You close your eyes and listen to the song until it ends before opening your eyes again.

You dry your hand and grab your phone, opening your camera and taking a photo of your lips down, with your body barely covered in bubbles with your wet thigh poking out of the water.

Pedro: I may quit my job just to eat you up.

You bite your lip and inhale sharply with a big smile, setting your phone down and closing your eyes, dreaming of everything you could be doing with Pedro if he walked through the door. How you'd touch him, kiss him, make him scream, you were desperate for his touch.

After almost an hour in the bath, you finally brought yourself to get out. You dry off and wrap yourself in your towel, draining the tub and shutting off the speaker.

You head into the bedroom and take a picture in the mirror of you in your towel with your cleavage popping out.

Pedro: Enough Pedro: I'll fly home to you dressed as Joel Miller Pedro: I won't even change

Yn: Is that supposed to be a bad thing?

You grab one of Pedro's shirts and underwear, falling on the bed in your towel. You hold his shirt in your hands and sit up, sliding it over your head and smiling at how it smelled like him. The thoughts of what you'd do with Pedro if he was home came back and your body shivered.

You bit your lip and opened the side table drawer, turning on the vibrator and pressing it to your clit softly as you went to your 'Hidden' album to listen to a video of you and Pedro.

Your moans mixed with Pedro's from the video as you moved the vibrator around your clit slowly. You closed your eyes and imagined Pedro was the one holding the toy, and your moans grew louder.

Pedro smiled as he closed the door to the apartment, locking it behind him and dropping his backpack. He looked around the whole floor for you, but it was dead quiet.

He grabbed the railing and took two steps before stopping dead in his tracks. He heard your beautiful moans coming from the bedroom, and he got a sick feeling.

You would never cheat on him. But then again, he is away for so long.

Pedro took deep breaths as he walked up the stairs slowly, peeking into the crack of the door and his mouth fills with saliva.

Your legs were spread, your left leg bent with your knee towards the air and your right leg straight. His pants got tight as he watch you pleasure yourself with his shirt over your nose, hearing his moans and holding back a whimper as he hears you moaning his name.

Pedro walked in the room and you gasp, scrambling to shut off the video and he placed his knee in between your legs, grabbing the vibrator and pressing it hard against your clit.

"P-Pedro! Fuck- What are you doing here? Fuck." Your nails dug into his biceps as your back arched, holding your breath as he pushed his fingers into you and fucked you fast with the vibrator in his left hand.

You exhale deeply and gasp, moving your hips up and down slowly as you shake while riding out your orgasm. "Oh.. fuuuck.." Your eyes roll back as you grip his shirt, his fingers still fucking you without the vibrator.

“Oh, I know, let it out sweet girl.” Your moans turned to whimpers and he pulls his fingers away. "What a welcome home."

Pedro shut off the vibrator and threw it to the side, kissing you slowly as he moved his hips against yours. "You didn't quit, did you?" You breathe and he laughs, shaking his head.

"They don't need me for 4 weeks, it was unexpected and I'm so grateful I made it home just in time." You smile and his fingers moved again. “Oh, look at you..” His voice was soft and hoarse, bending down and spreading your pussy before moving his tongue against your clit.

Your fingers grip his hair as he hums, shaking his head before pulling away and kissing you messily.

“Take off your fucking pants, Pedro.” You hiss into his mouth and he smiles, standing up with his hands on his hips and closing his lips and smirking.

You had to do it.

You sit up and grab his waist, pushing up his shirt and kissing his happy trail with your bottom lip hitting his waistline. “Enough, princesa.”

“You missed me, P?” You smile and look up at him as you pull his pants and underwear down, drooling at the sight of his hard cock. “I missed you, Pedro.” He stepped out of his pants and you couldn't wait any longer as you watched his dick bounce with every move.

“I missed you so fucking much, honey. So much.” He breathed and his chest moved rapidly as your mouth moved up and down his dick. His head fell back with his hands in your hair, pushing his fingers through it and taking the hair tie off his wrist and put it in your hair. That's what it's always there for, just in case.

"How much, Pedro?" You smile up at him as you move your hand around his tip and he held your chin, making you stand up. Your hand touches his stomach and gasp softly as he hand wraps around your throat.

He pushes his thumb under your chin and makes you look up, lips kissing your neck slowly and tickling your skin with his facial hair. “Like how the moon misses the sun. My heart sang to you every night, mí amor, couldn’t you hear it?”

His voice was a whimper and you were a puddle. You pulled him down on you and kissed him, wrapping your leg loosely around his waist. “I’ve waited 8 months for you, Pedro. Please.”

“I love when you use manners.” He positions himself and slides in slowly, nearly collapsing on top of you as he missed how wonderful you felt.

“Yes, Pedro, harder!” You beg and his hips snap into yours, pushing your knees against your chest and you grip his wrists.

Your eyes roll back and you hear him chuckle as your eyelids shut. “Yes.. oh my god.. look at you. You take my fuckin’ cock so good. Such a good girl.”

He kisses your calf and you smile, dropping your legs and Pedro holds them up. Your ankles sat on his shoulders with his hands holding your thighs, continually fucking his hips fast into yours.

“Pedro.. fuck… Pedro.. Pey…” you gasp, whimpering his name as you grab his shirt frantically in a fist as the pleasure was overbearing. “Right there, fuck!”

He stopped. “Were you going to tell me you were touching yourself to me?” Pedro was out of breath, fists next to yours as he knocks your legs off him.

Your legs fall to the bed, bending them with your knees against his side. He moved his hips slowly, watching himself as he pulls his dick out so just the tip was in, and snapping into your hips before your whine.

“Yes.. Yes, baby, I was going to send you pictures and videos..” You breathe with your hand pressed against his chest.

A light bulb went off in Pedro’s head. He walks away from you and leaves you on the bed, grabbing the vibrator, a tripod and a dildo and made it back to the foot of the bed.

“What the..?”

“You, my sweet, good girl, are going to show me exactly how you touch yourself without me here.” He set up the camera and you stared at him as you sat up on your elbows. “Miller.”

“What?”

“If you feel uncomfortable, yell or scream or shout ‘Miller’ as in Joel Miller and we’ll take a break.” Pedro nods to you and you nod back.

Pedro hands you the toys, and you grew embarrassed. Stage fright? You looked into his eyes once and that was it.

Pedro started recording and you laid down slowly with your eyes locked on his, moaning as you push the dildo inside of yourself.

“Shit..” You breathe as you pump it in and out of you, Pedro stroking himself as he watched your every move.

“Vibrator.”

“Pedro.. I-I can’t-“

“Now.”

Buzzing filled your ears and you shiver with a moan as you press the toy against your sensitive clit.

“Good girl.. look at you. Spread your legs more.. mmhmm.. just like that..” He started to pant and put his hands on his hips as he caught his breathe.

Your moans hummed in his ears as he watched you fuck yourself. “Please.. Pedro I need you, not the toy.”

“Don’t stop. I didn’t tell you to stop.” His eyes burned holes into your pupils and you gulp. “Keep going. You’re doing so good, so beautiful.”

Pedro sat next to you and moved his finger tips up and down your inner thigh as you continue to fuck yourself, his hand slowly replacing yours on the dildo.

His hand moved quickly, pounding deeply into you and you gasp, screaming his name as you reach your climax.

Pedro ripped the toy away and you gasp while dropping the vibrator, his body in between your legs as he fucked you again. Your fingers gripped his hair tightly and you bite his ear, whimpering his name in his ear.

“Please Pedro, I need to cum so bad, please.” You beg and he smiles, kissing you deeply as he rubs your clit.

You nearly rip a hole in his shirt as you scream his name, orgasming around him. He grunts and curses your name, huffing as he spills his seed into you.

You close your eyes and Pedro lays on his side next to you, his finger tracing your features. “You did so good, mi amor. I’m so proud of you.” He kissed your shoulder and you hum with a smile, turning your head towards him and he kisses your nose.

“I was so lonely without you, Pedro.” You whisper and he pouts, kissing your lips softly as well as your jaw.

“I know, mi hermosa. But I’m here for 4 weeks, and we can spend all those days in this bed.” He whispers and you look at him, kissing him a few times before tapping his chest.

“But first.. a shower and we wash these sheets.” Pedro laughs and you head into the bathroom.

“Welcome home.” Pedro mumbled to himself with a smile as he rolls up the covers.

#pedro pascal x reader #pedro pascal x you #pedro pascal imagine #pedro pascal imagines #pedro pascal blurb #pedro pascal blurbs #pedro pascal fic #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal smut #smut #rpf #real person fiction

[bengiyo]

Last Twilight Ep 7 Stray Thoughts

Last week, August tried to make up with Day after standing him up on their date. Aon also showed up that day and mentioned that he is participating in a race with his new girlfriend. Day and August started practicing together, making Mhok a bit jealous. August organized a surprise party for Day with the rest of the badminton folks and kissed Day. Unfortunately, August only sees Day as a friend and walked off. Mhok confronted August and then took Day to a rooftop where he then kissed Day as well.

Oh hell yeah! I am so glad we’re not skipping over the kiss aftermath. Mhok is his caregiver, so this is going to immediately change things.

I love Porjai. Got her all worked up just to tell her what she already knew. These two are my favorite exes of the year.

“I didn’t say it.” Well he’s technically not lying.

This show is excellent. August is leaving, so we’ll deal with his mess and then eject him in the first part!

Despite being mad at August last episode, I’m really glad these two get closure. Friend break ups are worse than romantic ones.

They used “delulu” as a translation! Who is on the sub team for this show?? I want to send them flowers!

“That’s so fast.” I love Gee.

“About last night…” Don’t get me started, y’all.

Alright. That rejection in the car hurt my feelings.

Ope. I’m back. Day told on himself and Mhok is back in the game.

Mhok fixed the headband. I love you and your unsubtle metaphors, Aof.

Okay, I love Mhok blaming the shoes August picked for them not being able to sync.

I’m glad Sea is actually an athlete, so he doesn’t have to fake a cramp.

Night definitely notices how comfortable these two have gotten with each other.

This bed scene was probably super easy for them. Sea is always falling asleep easily on set.

OMG they’re stayin gat Mhok’s place before the event.

Porjai said, “Really, in front of my sardine salad?”

Namtam is actually so good. I like the way she uses her eyes.

Mhok planted jasmine at his house!!

She’s naming the baby Mee because Mhok has been practicing reading the book! I’m going to explode.

This show is doing a great job of making me miss Rung.

We have hit on a rare trope I love: Two people who are working out their feelings for each other are sharing a bed and hearing others go at it through the walls.

I’m glad we’re seeing more of Night. Mark is so good at communicating without saying much.

Oh, Day, don’t read too much into that conversation. Mhok’s friend is just looking out for him.

Shoot your shot, Porjai!

I am with Mhok. That’s enough games. Let’s make it clear.

Aof, please continue to be unsubtle. I love you.

Porjai and Night begins! Look at me rooting for hets in BL again.

I’m gonna lose it. Mhok is acting out Aon’s proposal for Day.

I see we were having too much fun. Let’s crank up the angst.

Look at them trying to assuage us with this PPL.

Beach trip next week! This was a lovely episode. It’s so smooth.

#last twilight #last twilight the series #thai bl #bl series #Ben watches

[forays-into-fiction]

Flower Power

Your parents are total hippies and honestly, they’d give you weed whenever you want, but that doesn’t stop you from going to Eddie to buy it from him. Never mind that flirty little rapport the two of you share... it never goes anywhere. Except tonight it does, when you make an impulsive move.

Request fill for @niallerlover8022​, sorry it’s taken so long, hope you enjoy it 😊

Minors DNI

Contains: Slight Dom!Eddie/Sub!Reader, Hippie!Reader, Drug Use (Weed), Protected Sex, Public Sex, Fingering, Petnames/Nicknames (Babe, Baby, Sweetheart, Flower Power), Slight Degradation/Name-calling (Dirty Girl), Dirty Talk

Your friend Gareth first introduced you to Eddie and since then you’d been buying your weed from him exclusively, despite the fact you could get it from your parents literally whenever and for free.

You had arranged to meet with him after school today to replenish your stash but also because it gave you an excuse to see him. Over time the two of you had developed a flirty rapport, but much to your chagrin it never led to anything concrete.

You were waiting for him by his van at the end of the day when you heard him call out, waving as he drew closer, “Hey, Flower Power! Sorry you had to wait babe, I got caught up talking D&D with some of the guys.”

You give him a gentle smile, looking up at him through your lashes, “Oh, that’s ok. Really, it’s no problem at all, I wasn’t waiting that long.”

He offers you his arm and leads you round to the back of the van, opening the doors and helping you in before climbing in after you.

You sit cross-legged on one of the patterned cushions he’d placed in the back for times like this. The two of you had started this routine where almost every time you’d buy from him, you’d smoke up together in the back of his van.

“So, you just after the usual, sweetheart?” He asks pulling out his little black lunchbox.

“Yes, please.” You smile at him sweetly and bat your eyelashes.

He pulls out a baggie and dangles it in front of you between his fingers, “Okie dokie, that’ll be fifteen.”

You frown at him, “Eddie I know you’re undercharging me. What is it really?”

He gasps in mock shock, holding a hand to his chest, “I would never. That is really the price.”

You narrow your eyes at him, “Don’t lie to me Munson.”

“Alright fine, I’m undercharging you… but that’s just the friends and family discount, and you are my best customer after all.”

Your expression softens, “Awww, we’re friends?”

“Absolutely, sweetheart… unless” his confidence melts away and he looks away shyly, tone shifting, “… unless you don’t… that isn’t what this is?”

You put an arm on his shoulder, bringing his eyes back to yours, you assure him, “Of course we are friends, I’m not just here for the weed. I like hanging out with you Eddie.”

He breathes out a soft sigh, “Good. Good. That’s good. So, uhh… you wanna…?”

“Actually, I was thinking maybe we could head back to my place this time.” You suggest.

He looks at you uncertainly, “What about your parents? Are they home?”

You giggle, “Have you seen my parents? Man, they’re hippies, where do you think I get it from? They smoke more than I do, shit my mum was the one who taught me how to roll a joint. Relax it’s cool and we’ve got all the best snacks you can believe that.”

He rubs the back of his neck and shrugs, “Oh, uh sure yeah that sounds good.”

He sits there still not moving, you prompt him, “Well? We gonna go or…?”

“Oh, uh yeah… just let me…” he moves towards the doors of the van and you follow.

He offers you his hand when you get out and leads you to the passenger side helping you in yet again. You can’t help the heat that rises in your cheeks, he was always so sweet to you, you can’t imagine how he’d gotten a reputation for being ‘mean and scary’.

You direct him all the way to your house chatting pleasantly along the way. You talk about the latest Corroded Coffin performance and mention that you can’t wait for the next one, he playfully teases you a little about being his ‘fangirl’.

As you open your front door you call out, “Hey, mum I’m home! Eddie’s here too, he gave me a lift.”

She emerges from the kitchen, greeting you with a smile, “Oh so this is the famous ‘Eddie’. I finally get to meet him, do I?”

“Muuuum, stop it.” You whine.

Eddie shifts by your side clearing his throat, “Um, hello ma’am it’s nice to meet you. I’m Eddie… Munson, but I guess you knew that.”

“Oh, isn’t he sweet. It’s lovely to meet you young man, come inside.  Please come in.” She beckons him in.

You look to her, “Is it ok if we go up to my room, we’re just gonna smoke a little and hang out?”

“Of course, I’ve just made some brownies too if you get a little snack-y, feel free to help yourselves.”

“Thanks mum.” You grab Eddie by the hand, dragging him up the stairs.

“Your mum is nice… what did she mean by ‘famous’?”

You can feel that traitorous heat rising in your cheeks again as you stumble over your words, “Oh… that’s umm that’s nothing, don’t mind that. I may have mentioned you a couple of times… no big deal.”

“You talk about me with your mum?”

“What, don’t you talk about your friends with your uncle?”

“Uh yeah, I guess… but he’s never referred to any of my friends as ‘famous’.”

“Like I said, don’t read too much into it. Well, here we are.” You step into your colourful, flowery bedroom and gesture around the room.

“Oh, I love it Flower Power, it’s very you.”

You lead him over to your bed and take a seat, motioning for him to join you, “We’re gonna share mine this time, just so you know.”

“What? No, I can’t smoke the weed you literally just bought from me. Don’t be ridiculous, I always smoke from my private stash.”

You slap his arm playfully, “Yeah, well that stops now Mr. Friends and Family discount.”

“No, I can’t.” He protests again.

“You can and you will.” You insist.

He rolls his eyes, “Fine.”

You grin at him self-satisfied, “Alright, so do you wanna roll or should I?”

“I got it sweetheart, you just sit back and relax, maybe throw on some music.” He pulls out everything he needs and begins laying it out over your bed.

You toss him the baggie he’d given you only minutes prior and hop off the bed, placing one of your records on, music emanates throughout the room softly. You join him on the bed again watching him work as he grinds the dried flowers, placing them onto one of his rolling papers. 

You eye his thick, calloused fingers as he goes and your whole body heats with lust as he makes eye contact while he licks the edge of the paper with the tip of his tongue.

He twists it off and lights the end, rolling it between his fingers to get that perfect cherry.

He holds the joint out to you and before you can protest, he says, “You first, I insist since you did pay me for it and all.”

“Oh, this is some first-rate service, do you offer this to all your customers?” You giggle and take a couple of puffs before handing it over to him, he accepts it before replying.

“Nah, just you babe… most of my other customers can’t get rid of me fast enough once a deal is done.”

You reach out a hand and stroke his arm, “Oh, Eddie that’s horrible… I’m sorry people treat you like that. I know, I just know if people got to know you, they’d love you.”

“Sweetheart, what are you apologising for? It’s not like it’s your fault people don’t like me… and besides I’d rather have my close little group of friends than have everyone like me.”

He passes the joint back to you, “Yeah, I guess… I just wish they didn’t treat you like such shit.”

“Yeah, I know, but the people that really matter… well they’re great to me.”

“Good… so, moving on to more cheerful things, I umm have something to show you… here…” You hand him the joint and hop off the bed.

He grins back at you, “Oh, yeah? What’s that sweetheart?”

You move over to your desk, picking up a sheet of paper before turning back to him and taking a few steps back to the bed. You hold it up before him and announce, “I drew up this Corroded Coffin poster… thought if you liked it, I could get some copies made and we could hang them around town, around the school.”

“Oh, sweetheart I love it, you really captured our style too.”

“Thanks that’s what I was going for, um if you want me to change anything before I get the copies made-”

“No, honestly it is perfect, don’t change a thing. Now get back here, still got a few more hits from this.” He wiggles the joint between his fingers.

You re-join him and continue passing the joint back and forth until it’s burnt down to nothing, he discards the roach in an ashtray on your bedside table and flops back onto the bed. 

You lay back beside him staring up at the ceiling sighing contentedly. A few moments pass and you reach over and poke at his side, he squirms away giggling.

“I’m hungry, are you hungry? Want me to get some snacks?”

“Well, you did promise the best snacks, so my expectations are very high.” He pokes you back.

You roll off your bed, tossing a, “Be right back.” over your shoulder as you go.

You pile a plate with brownies and various other snacks that tickle your fancy as you move through the kitchen. You almost bump into your mum as you head back to the staircase, “You two having fun? Need anything else?”

“Nah, we’re all good, thanks mum.”

“Alright, well if you do need anything I’m here.”

You nod and head back upstairs, when you re-enter your bedroom, you present the plate with a little “Tada…”

Eddie props himself up on his elbows looking at you with a dopey grin before stretching out a hand making grabbing motions, “Gimme, gimme, gimme.”

You grin back at him and place the plate on the bed before taking a seat cross-legged in front of him.

He dives right in without any hesitation, shovelling a brownie into his mouth. He lets out an obscene groan and moans, “God, these are fucking gooood. You weren’t kidding huh?”

“I never joke about snacks.” You say in mock seriousness before bursting into peals of laughter and grabbing one for yourself.

The two of you continue to chat and giggle until your buzz starts wearing off and he’s saying goodbye at the front door, “See you at school, yeah?”

“Yeah, of course. We should hang out here again sometime though.” You suggest.

“Absolutely, I’d love that sweetheart, tell your mum I said thanks for the snacks and that her brownies are amazing.”

“Will do, drive safe.” You wave at him.

He laughs and waves back, “No promises. See ya.”

“Bye.”

When Monday comes around you spot him by his locker, you approach him carrying a stack of papers. You pull one off the top and hold it up for him to see. You’d had copies of the poster made and thought the two of you, maybe even the rest of the band could hang some today.

He grins at you broadly, “Hey, Flower Power. Thanks for doing this, it’s really cool. How much do I owe ya?”

You look up at him confused, “Huh?”

“For the posters. How much do I owe you?”

“Oh, nothing. You don’t owe me anything, I wanted to do this.”

“Ah, ah, ah, no I gotta pay you or something. This can’t have been cheap and it would’ve taken a lot of time and effort. You gotta let me do something.”

“Alright, fine… umm, you can… you can buy me a drink tomorrow night at The Hideout. How’s that?”

“Ok and the next time you need a resupply it’s on me.”

You slap his arm, “Eddie no you’re already giving me a discount, I don’t need any more than that.”

“No complaints sweetheart, you will take it.” He says firmly with a smirk.

“O-ok.” You reply shakily, clearing your throat before you continue, “So, where do you wanna hang these? Do you wanna give a few to the rest of the guys to put up?”

He shrugs, “Yeah sure why not? We can just put them wherever.”

He holds out a hand, “Here, I’ll put them in my locker for now and we can give them to the guys at lunch and hang some then.”

You hand them over with a nod and he places them oh so carefully into his locker beside a couple of D&D books.

“Walk you to class?” He offers.

“Sure, let’s go.” You take his offered arm and make your way to your next lesson.

Before you know it, it’s Tuesday night and you’re getting ready to watch the guys performing at The Hideout, Eddie was giving Jeff and Clarke a lift, along with hauling all their gear and Gareth had offered to drive you.

He was downstairs waiting for you to get ready, you pull on your favourite pair of bell bottom jeans and riffle through your closet to find a top, picking out something flowery and paisley and flowy. 

You rush to find bits and pieces to tie together the rest of your outfit. You stumble down the stairs, calling out a hasty goodbye to your parents before pulling Gareth out the door along with you.

He smirks at you and you frown at him, “What’s that look for Gare-bear?”

“Nothing. Nothing at all.” He replies evasively.

You slap his arm, “No, that smug little smirk was not nothing!”

“I know you took extra long getting ready just for him. This little crush you’ve had going-”

You roll your eyes, cutting him off, “Oh, shut up.”

“No really, all batting your eyelashes, ‘I made this poster for you Eddie, I hope you like it’ c’mon it’s obvious.” He continues to tease, putting on a falsetto and batting his own eyelashes.

“Alright, just watch the fucking road, Emerson.” You grumble sinking down into your seat arms folded over your chest.

“Oh, ‘Emerson’ now, is it? What happened to ‘Gare-bear’? I know I’m right.”

“Ugh so what if you are, that doesn’t mean you gotta tease me.” You whine.

“Awww is someone getting all pouty? Just make a move if he won’t, he’s into you too I know it.”

“Yeah, yeah whatever.” You wave a hand at him dismissively.

“Anyway, here we are.” He announces as you pull into the parking lot at The Hideout.

You get out of the car, slamming the door shut, he does the same and as his head pops over the top of the car you call out to him, “Thanks for the lift, Gare-bear.”

The two of you part ways as you enter the bar, the rest of the band were already there setting up their equipment.

You’re over this silly game of cat and mouse you and Eddie had, flirting back and forth but never actually going anywhere. An impulsive thought overtakes you, you slip away into the bathrooms. 

Squeezing into a stall you slide off your bell bottoms and remove your panties, you just wished you’d worn something a little ‘sexier’, some lingerie or something, but whatever. You pull your jeans back up and tuck the panties into your fist so that they don’t show.

You spot him over by the stage and call out his name as you approach.

“Hey there Flower Power, looking good. Did you want that drink now or after our set?” He greets you as you come to a stop in front of him, Gareth standing off to the side.

You hold up your hand letting the panties dangle in front of him briefly, his eyes bug out when he realises what they are and you ball them up shoving them deep in his front pocket.

“For luck…” you reach up and kiss the tip of his nose gently before spinning around and flouncing off to re-join the other patrons of the bar.

He stands there shell-shocked, mouth agape when Gareth speaks up, “Man close your damn mouth and hurry up we got a show right now.”

“Wh-what… what the fuck was that?” He stutters back.

“Come on like it wasn’t obvious? She likes you, why do you think she’s always coming to our gigs, buying from you, just hanging around in general.”

“Uh cause she’s your friend… my friend… what?” He’s still dumbfounded.

Gareth rolls his eyes, “Whatever man just get on stage.”

They take the stage and begin the first song, you’re mesmerised by him, the way his fingers move, the way he throws himself into the performance and when he starts singing, God you’re lost to it.

Then what you’d just done catches up to you. You’d brought a joint to share with Eddie after the show but your nerves were shot to hell all of a sudden. You mumble to yourself as you pull it out lighting it up, “Fuck, fuck, fuck. Why’d you do that? Oh, shit.”

You take a few puffs before your eyes are drawn back to the stage to find him looking directly at you. You’re falling to pieces, already dripping at the sight of him, nothing to catch your arousal but the coarse denim between your legs.

Once they’re done with their set Eddie turns to his friends as they break down their gear, “Uh hey, Emerson do you mind giving the guys a lift tonight? I’ll still take all the gear but I gotta stick around and talk to y/n.”

Gareth smirks at him knowingly, “Sure Munson, go get ‘er big boy.”

“Uh yeah… thanks.” He mumbles resuming his work.

Jeff claps him on the shoulder, “Hey, man we got this, just go talk to your girl.”

“Right, yeah ok.” He nods, hesitating a moment before hopping off the stage.

You tense as he approaches you, shifting nervously and avoiding eye contact, “So, umm… how ‘bout that drink then?”

 “Could we… could we talk first, maybe outside?”

You nod mutely and follow along after him as he moves to stand by his van.

You both go to talk at once, “Is it-”

“I���m sorry-”

“You first.” He offers.

“I’m sorry, don’t know why I did that. Sorry if I ruined things between us.”

“Oh, sweetheart no, you have nothing to be sorry for. I um I was going to say… or ask really… um Emerson said you ‘like’ me. That, that’s the reason why you come to my gigs, buy weed from me, always hanging around… is that… is that true?”

You pause awkwardly as you’re interrupted by his band mates hefting their equipment over to his van, he helps them load it in before returning to you as they scurry back into the bar.

“So, um… where were we?” He rubs a hand along the back of his neck.

You toe at the ground avoiding his gaze, “Um you were asking if I like you and… well I do, but it’s totally fine if you don’t feel the same…”

He hooks a finger under your chin tilting your head towards him, “Who said I don’t feel the same? Is that really why you come to our gigs and buy weed from me?”

“Uh yeah, I mean my parents grow the damn stuff, I can get it from them whenever I want. Why the fuck did you think I was always coming to you?”

“Oh, baby you didn’t have to do that if you wanted to spend time with me you coulda just asked, you know.”

“Yeah… but I didn’t know how.”

“Well, uh that thing with your panties that was a pretty bold move.” He chuckles.

You slap him across the chest, “Hey, don’t tease me.”

“I’m not. I’m not. It was very… sexy.” He all but purrs in your ear.

“Kiss me?” You whine.

“With pleasure.” He captures your lips between his own, nibbling along your bottom lip. He deepens the kiss as your mouth drops open with a gasp.

When he pulls away, looking at you with hooded eyes and growls, “Fuck you’ve got no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that. Been so fucking hard since the second you shoved your panties into my pocket.”

You groan in response, “Fuck Eddie, I’ve been horny since the moment you stepped on that stage, you always look so sexy up there with that guitar. Makes me wanna rip off all my clothes and throw myself at you. You’ve never seen me after one of your shows, soon as I get home, I can’t keep my hands off of myself.”

“Shit, really?” He breathes out in disbelief.

“Uh huh, do ya wanna um take this further?”

“Like right now? I um… there’s not much room in the van right now.”

“Don’t care… just want you to fuck me.”

“Are you sure baby, all of this isn’t just cause you’re high right? I know sometimes you get horny when you’re high.”

“Oh my god shut up and fuck me, Munson! I wouldn’t care even if you fucked me against the side of your van… need you, Eddie.” You devolve into a needy moan.

“Oh, really? Need me so bad you don’t even care if people see us, do you?” He taunts as he cages you in against the side of his van with his arms, his gaze turning predatory.

All you can do is whine in response and he persists bringing a hand over to stroke along your cheek, “Or maybe that’s what you want, huh? You want people to see us, does that turn you on?”

“Fuck, Eddie… please…” You gasp as he ducks his head, leaning in to kiss down the side of your neck, sucking and biting along the way.

“Tell me what you want, sweetheart.” He insists firmly, “You want me to fuck you out here in the open or do you wanna cram into the back and fuck all over our gear?”

“Shit… I dunno, you… you decide.” You gasp and rub your thighs together as his hands begin to wander, your wetness flooding your jeans anew.

“Nuh uh, you know what you want. You just gotta say it sweetheart.”

You search your lust addled mind, what do you want… would you rather be pressed against all their instruments in that cramped space or would you rather be pushed up against the hard exterior of his van… for anyone who walks by to see…

It’s unlikely that anyone would just be walking past, being on the outskirts of town in a dimly lit parking lot. The only way someone would see you is if any of the few bar patrons were to come outside. Would they though? It’s hard to say…

You reply shakily, “Want… want you to fuck me out here… please.”

He grins at you smugly, “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Who knew you were such a dirty girl?”

He forces your legs apart with one of his, pressing his knee into your heated core as he continues kissing you and groping at your chest.

You whimper at the sensation, but interrupt him with a tap to the shoulder, he looks up immediately with a concerned expression, “Eddie… wait, could we… could we move to the other side?”

A puzzled look overtakes his features, “What do you mean?”

“The other side of the van… don’t know if I want someone to really see us…”

“Oh, of course sweetheart.” He pulls back and you can’t help but whine at the loss of contact, he chuckles and takes your hand leading you around to the side of the van that faces into the darkened, empty parking lot of The Warzone.

Without warning you’re pushed back into the side of the van, his lips against your own once again. His hand slips under your loose top and traverses the length of your body ‘til he reaches your bare breast and groans into your mouth. You moan as he begins to knead the soft flesh, rolling your nipple between his fingers.

The two of you break apart momentarily gasping for breath, his hand drifts from your breast slowly trailing back down your abdomen to rest at the waistband of your jeans. 

He looks to you for confirmation before proceeding and you give a slight nod, he pops open the button on your jeans and draws the zipper down. His eyes never stray from your own as his hand dips into your pants, immediately coming into contact with the thatch of hair scattered over your mound.

He groans deeply, fingers delving lower to swirl around in your slick folds, “You gave me the panties you were wearing… shit babe, that makes it even fucking hotter. I hope you know you’re not getting them back, they’re mine now… just like you.”

“Fuck, Eddie… please, please, please.”

He eases two of his fingers into your entrance, his thumb presses against your clit and he begins crooking his fingers against your slippery walls. You grip his shoulder tightly panting and gasping as he whispers in your ear, “Love the way you beg. Is that what you want? Want me to stretch you out before I fuck you? Gonna make you cum with just my fingers.”

“God, yes Eddie… fuck.” You mewl.

He continues his languid pace, his thumb slowly moving in slow, tight circles against your clit in a way that has you inhaling sharply.

He increases the pace, gradually building up, winding you up like a spring ‘til you’re ready to burst. “G-gonna… gonna cum…” You whimper as your walls begin tightening around his thick fingers.

He croons encouragingly, “Yeah, that’s it baby, cum for me.”

A strung-out moan escapes from your lips, your thighs quake as you pulse on his digits soaking them in your release, “Oh god, Eddie.”

His hand slips out of your pants and he brings his fingers to his lips, licking away the fluid left clinging to them. Your head droops forward as you catch your breath, he keeps you supported pressed against the side of his van. He tilts your head up to face him, “How was that sweetheart? Was it good?”

“Fucking perfect.” You sigh.

A small smile spreads across his face and you pull him in for a kiss, eyes fluttering closed, it’s short and sweet and he pulls back, “So, you still wanna…?”

“Christ Eddie, of course I do, you got a condom?”

He nods eagerly and pulls a cigarette carton out of his packet, he slips a finger between the lining and the box pulling out a foil packet.

You giggle at him, “That’s where you keep your condoms?”

He shrugs, “Well, yeah um… I dunno… I just heard you’re not supposed to keep ‘em in your wallet, even though everyone does. This was the first place I thought of.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you carried them around in your little lunchbox too.” You tease good-naturedly.

“Uhh… I do actually. You know, keep all the ‘contraband’ together.” He jokes back.

You paw at his shirt, “Alright come on now, it’s your turn.”

He unbuckles his belt hastily, button and zip coming undone just as quick then tugging his jeans and boxers down in one movement until they rest just beneath his balls. 

His flushed cock bounces as it’s freed from its confines, dribbling pre-cum over its length. You admire his impressive size before looking up at him through your lashes and holding out a hand for the condom, “Here, let me put it on?”

“Shit, ok yeah.” He hands it to you and you waste no time in unwrapping it.

You reach down and give his cock a few slow strokes, spreading his pre-cum, his breath catches in his throat and he whines. You line up the condom with his weepy, tip and pinch the reservoir as you roll it down his shaft. Once it’s on you drop your hand lower and tug on his balls gently, rolling them in your palm.

His eyes flutter and he lets out a pitchy, “Jesus H Christ.”

You hook a hand behind his neck and pull him in for another kiss, more heated and demanding, swallowing up all the little sounds he makes as you stroke over his length again.

He grasps your arm, halting its movements, “Shit, please… please if you keep doing that I won’t be able to make it.”

You grin against his lips and move your hand away to roll down your own jeans before grabbing onto his hips and pulling him in closer.

“Can’t believe this is happening.” He murmurs softly.

He places his hands over yours caressing them gently before suddenly wrenching them off of his hips and forcing them above your head against the van behind you. 

He crosses your arms at the wrists and holds them in place with one of his hands, you gasp at the unexpected action. He leans in and nips at your bottom lip, kissing you greedily but briefly.

He uses his free hand to grip the base of his shaft, guiding the tip between your slick folds, dragging his sheathed head through your wetness. He taps against your clit a few times before guiding his cock back to your dripping hole, easing it in the same as he did with his fingers. 

You relish in the slow stretch of your walls until he is fully seated against you, pressing his weight into you, pushing you against the hard exterior of his van. He gives you a moment to adjust before slowly pulling back out and sinking back in. His forehead rest against your own and he groans, “Fuck, you feel so good.

He settles in to an easy roll of his hips, his tip dragging over your soft, spongy walls. You wriggle your arms in his grip, but he just tightens his hold, to be met with your pathetic little whines.

“You like that, sweetheart?” He taunts, “You like being fucked out in the open for anyone to see?”

You nod and with his free hand he rubs your clit lazily, you writhe beneath him. “You do, don’t you… tell me you do, wanna hear you say it.”

You pant and barely manage to stutter out, “Y-yes… Ed-Eddie, I like it… fuck I’m close, d-don’t stop.”

He chuckles, “Wasn’t… fuck… wasn’t planning on it.”

“F-faster… please.” You whine.

He increases his pace, both his thrusts and the swirl of his thumb against your clit, drawing you closer to the brink.

“You gonna cum again for me? Cum all over my fat cock?”

Your walls begin to flutter and you groan, “Fuck yes… say… say that again… tell me to cum on your cock.”

“You really are such a dirty girl, aren’t you? Do it then, cum on my cock.”

His words tip you over the edge, you call out his name clamping down on his throbbing length, gushing all around it. Starbursts of light dance in front of your eyes and tingles spread across your entire body. He continues fucking you through your orgasm, his head coming to rest on your shoulder, kissing and biting on your neck. 

He reaches his own end shortly after you, groaning into your skin as he unloads into the condom. Once his cock has stilled, no longer twitching and throbbing, he pulls out panting heavily. 

He takes off the condom, tying it off and tossing it into the bushes. You pull him back in for a lazy kiss, he breaks away to pull up his pants and boxers and you righten your own clothing.

“That was… wow.” He breathes out in awe.

You giggle, “Yeah, yeah it was.”

“You wanna head back to yours… or we could go to my place? The guys are getting a lift from Emerson, it’s all sorted already.”

You look up at him with a soft smile, “Yeah, um your… your place sounds good.”

“Ok, cool… yeah, my place.” He rubs a hand along the back of his neck before taking your hand in his own, guiding you to the passenger side door and opening it for you.

You take your seat and he pauses for a moment in the open door, gazing at you as you buckle in, “Did I ever tell you how beautiful you are?” He sighs.

You hum as you consider, “Hmmm… you know, I don’t think you did.”

“Well, you are. So beautiful.”

You giggle, “You are too… well, handsome I mean.”

The two of you pause for a beat before you snap back, urging him, “C’mon, get in and let’s go… handsome.”

He grins broadly at you, “Anything you wish, sweetheart.”

#eddie munson fic #eddie munson smut #eddie munson x reader #eddie x reader #dom!eddie #dom!eddie x sub!reader #hippie!reader #eddie x hippie!reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie x y/n #request fill #niallerlover8022

[sanb3rry]

strawberry picking w/ eren (∩˃o˂∩)♡

a/n: i've been daydreaming about this sm so enjoy ♡ also theres probably typos, lolol.

it started with you running up to eren when he got out of his last class, “let’s go strawberry picking !” you said as you shoved your phone in his face, “hi babe, i'm good and class went pretty well, how about you?” you rolled your eyes. “welll? are you gonna come with me?” you batted your eyelashes at him.

“‘course im coming, i’d go anywhere if it meant you’d be there too” he replied as he lead you down the hallway. you kissed him on the cheek, “love you” he smiled at you “love you more, i’ll pick you up at 3 tomorrow”

weekend had come by and you were fixing your hair and got a text from eren saying he was outside. you took the keys and your phone and locked your house.

"you look pretty" he commented as you got in his car. "thank you" you smiled at him. once you got there, you immediately got a basket for yourself cause eren didn't want one and got inside the greenhouse.

"it's steamy in here" eren commented, "mhm, yea." you nodded. you took his hand leaded him to an aisle, "look at these they're so cute." you squealed as you saw the strawberries.

"cute?" eren asked, confused on how strawberries can be cute. "yes, they're so cute, i just wanna eat them up." you cooed. "you're adorable" he remarked. "shut up.", he chuckled at your flustered state. you picked strawberries and put them in the basket that eren insisted to hold.

“c’mere” he called. “hmm?” you turned to him and you saw him pick a flower from the strawberry bush. “it’s pretty just like you.” he said as he carefully put it in your hair. you felt your face get hot and it somehow got hotter when he pecked your lips.

“you’re pretty too.”

“yea?” he smiled, “yea.” you kissed him again.

as you finished picking all the strawberries you went through them to pick out any bad ones that you put in accidentally. “why are we doing this again” he asked, “cause i want to make sure they’re all perfect” you answered. he hummed in response, “look at this one, it looks like that cat you obsess over.” he showed you the strawberry that freakishly resembled hello kitty.

“woah! it looks like so much like her,” you took the strawberry out of his hands and observed it. “and we both know you know her name.” you looked up at him. “maybe i do, maybe i don’t.” he shrugged.

you both finished picking out the bad strawberries and went to go get them packed. “we picked so many.” you said as you saw all the boxes. “yeah, should i give one to armin?” he asked, you nodded.

after you got done with everything, you two got in his car to leave. “what are you gonna do with these?” eren quizzed. “i’m gonna use them to bake cupcakes! you should come over when i do.” you replied with excitement.

he chuckled at your enthusiasm, “hm, alright. i’ll be sure to be the best taste tester ever.” he said. “if you want to get a taste of them, you better help.”

“i’ll be sure to help by taste testing” he responded, whispering the last part. “what was that?” you questioned.

“nothing.” he laughed.

© sanb3rry2023

#✿ san's work ! #✿ fluff #aot #aot fluff #aot x reader #eren jeager x reader #attack on titan eren #eren x reader #eren fluff #eren headcanons #eren imagines #eren yeager #eren yeager x reader #eren x fem!reader #eren x f!reader #eren x you #this is pretty short #i might do a part 2 maybeee #✿ drabble

[sunflowergirl522]

Flower Girls

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Mom!Reader

Summary: It’s the girls first day of school and you’re missing them while Callie gets teased over her full name. Luckily Eddie’s there to help both of you.

A/N: Yes this is vaguely inspired by Chrysanthemum.

Word Count: 2044

The Twins Masterlist

“Thanks again for coming with me Eddie.” It’s probably the third time you’ve thanked him since you both left your house to pick the girls up from their first day of kindergarten. “And for being there for me today.”

“It’s no problem, I’d do it again in a heartbeat.” 

About an hour after you had dropped them off you had called Eddie to see if he wanted to come over hiding how distraught you were over the phone. When he got there he saw right through your act and immediately brought you into his arms asking what was wrong. That was when you started crying and admitting how much you missed your babies and how you feel lost being in the house without them. Today was the first time in a really long time that you were without both of them for an extended period of time and the silence was getting to you.

Eddie held you close to him as you spoke while slowly backing you up into the living room. He told you to pick a movie while he made some famous Munson ham sandwiches, a regular ham sandwich really but it’s almost exclusively all he and Wayne eat so they’re special to him. He had wiped the tear streaks and the few peeking out of the corners of your eyes away with his thumbs while he spoke. You nodded and he brought you into another quick hug wanting nothing more than to drop a kiss to your forehead before heading into the kitchen.

What you appreciated the most about the whole thing was how Eddie never told you you were overreacting or tried to make you feel better by saying you’ll see them in a few hours. All he did was try to distract you from the fact that they weren’t around and keep you entertained so time went by quicker. And when you had tried to apologize for being so emotional over it he covered your mouth with his hand before you could even finish your sentence, telling you there was nothing to apologize for. And then you asked him to come with you when you picked them up so you didn’t get too emotional then like you almost did this morning when Callie did not want to leave your side to go in.

“When I leave today do you want me to take another box or two to Goodwill?” Eddie asks as he follows you out of the car and towards the pick up area. Between your family looking through them and Eddie taking the ones you’ve okayed for donations you’ve gotten almost every box taking up the front room out of there.

“Yeah, that’d be great. That would just leave me with the couple of boxes I’m waiting for Steve’s parents to come look through. I think I’ll just drop them off at his house though.”

“Are you gonna want any help setting up the playroom?”

“I won’t say no if that's you offering.” You smile up at him before your attention immediately gets drawn to Callie who’s rushing towards you.

“Mommy!” You crouch just in time to catch her in a hug and she immediately bursts into tears against your chest. Your eyes go wide with worry and you rub her back holding her tightly against you while looking up at Eddie panicked. Primrose is close behind her sister stopping next to you not noticing Eddie until he says something in greeting. You don’t catch it, you're too busy trying to soothe Callie.

“Come on baby, let’s go home.” You whisper it into Callie’s hair before standing up keeping her in your arms. “Eddie, can you drive?”

“Sure thing Princess.” He takes the keys from you and holds his hand out for Primrose to take for on the way to the car. She’s quiet as she watches you with Callie and Eddie catches a look of confusion on her face as she stays latched onto you refusing to let go to sit in the back seat. Eddie helps Primrose buckle up in the back seat while you take your spot in the front with Callie on your lap hoping your arms are enough to keep her safe.

“You’re gonna be okay baby. Let it out sweet girl.” You murmur repeatedly in her ear the whole drive home, caressing the back of her head as she cries into your shoulder.

“Is Callie okay Mama?” Primrose asks as Eddie pulls into your driveway her voice full of worry for her sister. 

“I don’t know Rosie baby. She’ll have to let us know when she’s calmed down enough to speak.” Eddie rushes around the car once it’s been parked to open your door for you before going to let Primrose out of the back. “Thanks Eddie.”

“Anytime, I’ll get the door for you.” He walks quickly in front of you and holds it open while you walk past him, his worried glance going straight to Callie as you go.

“Darling, can I put you down to get your shoes off?” You sway a bit as you speak softly to your now almost dried eyed girl. She nods and lets go of her grip on you so you can sit her on the staircase. Once you do get her shoes off Eddie’s right there to take them from you and put them on the shoe rack knowing how you don’t like when shoes are left everywhere but that you would’ve left them in your worry. Primrose is at Callies side almost as soon as you set her down, putting a hand on her shoulder and asking what’s wrong. Eddie’s never seen siblings care about each other the way that your girls care about each other, it warms his heart to see it.

“Do you feel ready to talk about what made you feel upset?” You gently wipe the tear streaks from her cheeks as you ask. She nods in response. “Let's go get comfy on the couch and you can tell me about it okay?”

You stand and hold your hand out for her to take. She stands before taking it and you let her lead the way into the living room. Primrose follows close behind silently. With Eddie lagging a little behind unsure if he should be around for this despite all his worry for Callie. Once Callie’s seated in her spot on the couch, Primrose sitting next to her, you crouch down and take her hands in your own and Eddie hovers awkwardly in the doorway. 

“Do you want Eddie to go away while you tell me?” 

“No, want him to stay.” She murmurs and you motion with your head for him to come join you in front of them. He can’t help but feel some type of way at the fact that she wants him to stay while she talks about it. 

“What’s wrong, Cals?” He asks as he gets next to you on the floor. She opens her mouth to speak but then shuts it again. She’s quiet for another minute before you bring the backs of her hands to your mouth to place kisses on them.

“You know you can tell me anything baby. And if you can’t get the words out then that’s okay too, we don’t have to talk about it.”

“This boy in my class made fun of my name after the teacher called it out. He said it was too long and hard to say and weird.” Callie’s always loved her name and when you use it so hearing someone make fun of it and in response other kids laugh at it really upset her.

“Oh my sweet girl, come here.” You’re quick to pull her off the couch and into your lap when you notice her eyes tearing up again.

“And then during naptime I started crying because I missed you and he called me a crybaby.” She whimpers through her words as she speaks. Eddie watches as Primrose's face scrunches up in anger. It’s clear to him that she didn’t know it happened. “Am I a crybaby mama?”

“You Calliopsis, are not a crybaby.” She smiles at the way your soothing yet serious voice says her full name full of love. And Eddie’s eyes widen a bit upon hearing her full name for the first time. “You’re a Y/l/n and we Y/l/ns are an emotional group of people.”

“We are?”

“Yep. You know what I did today?”

“What?”

“I cried.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I missed you and your sister so much while you were gone. I made Eddie come over to help distract me, didn’t I Eds?”

“That’s right, cried like a baby into my chest over it. But that was okay because it’s good to get those feelings out.” He’s nervous his wording was all wrong for the situation but then you smile at him from over Callie’s shoulder and it fixes all his nerves. 

“Look at me Calliopsis.” She turns her head to look at you from where she was wide eyed staring at Eddie. “It's okay to cry, it’s good to get all your feelings off of your chest. You’re not a crybaby for feeling things and having a reaction to them. And I’ll always be here to help you through it, always. Okay?” She nods and you bring her into a hug. 

“You two are named after flowers you know?” You hear later as you make dinner and Eddie plays with the girls. “Two really pretty ones.” You’re not sure how he knows that exactly but you’re quickly distracted from that with how excited the girls sound at the idea.

“Calliopsis are considered to be fairies' favorite type of flowers and they say that the way to see fairies is to look over the petals of a primrose.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Dinner’s done!” You get down bowls for the spaghetti and Eddie comes into the kitchen to take them out of your hands.

“Go sit with your girls, I'll bring everything in.”

“Are you sure?” He nods and pushes you with his shoulder towards the dining room.

“Mama, are we really named after fairy flowers?”

“You are but I didn’t name you after them because of fairies. I did it because of what they can mean and because my grandma used to always have them in her garden.”

“What do they mean?”

“Calliopsis can be symbolic of love at first sight. Which is exactly what happened when I first laid eyes on the two of you. And primrose can be symbolic of eternal love. Which is what I have for you, my pretty girls.” They get distracted from the conversation as Eddie brings in the pot and starts placing bowls in front of everyone, filling them up as he goes.

“Do you know a lot about flower meanings?” Eddie asks you after he takes his seat next to you ready to dig into the meal he knows will be amazing.

“Not really, my gran helped me name them. She was big on knowing about all the different flowers. Do you know a lot about flowers and fairies?” He shrugs and twirls his fork around to catch the noodles.

“A little, my aunt was into gardening and when I would go out to help her she’d tell me things about fairies to keep me interested. We had our own little fairy garden.” 

“That’s nice.” You don’t push for more information knowing it’s hard for him to talk about his late aunt and instead smile and lean in closer to him as you eat.

“Thanks for being here today Eddie.” He’s getting ready to leave after you put the girls to bed, not wanting to stay and keep you up when your first day of work is tomorrow. He has to get home and start looking for his aunt's books on gardening after promising the girls he’d help them make their own fairy garden anyway. “For me and for Callie.”

“You don’t have to thank me Princess, I’m happy to help. Besides, I love your girls.” I love you he wants to say but he isn’t sure how you’d react. 

“They love you too.”

“I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah see ya Eddie. Get home safe.”

“Always.”

Eddie Taglist: @sadbitchfangirl​ @notbeforelong​​ @munsonswhore86​​ @navs-bhat​ @emotionaldreamer​ ​​​ @magicalchocolatecheesecake​ @awesome-badass-cafeteria-sauce​ ​​ @fangirling-4-ever @gaysludge​ @audhd-dragonaut​ ​​ ​@eddiethesexy​ @mazerunnerrose​ @tvserie-s-world​ @midnightsgetawaycar  @goldylions  @spacedoutdaydreamer @livslifeonline @mushroomelephant @ginnupp @saramelaniemoon @kaylshunter @nojamsonmytoast @vintagehellfire @esoltis280 @spikedhe4rt @let-love-bleeds-red @siriuslysmoking @toobsessedsstuff @alana4610 @gretavanfleas @sparkletash @aactuaaltraash @gloryekaterina @eddiemuns0nl0verr @spookyemorockbabe

Everything Taglist: @bejeweledmastermind @matchamunson​ @bubsonnobx​ @practicalghost​ @katsukis1wife @crustyowos @yourfavdummy @protecteddiemunson4vr @kennedy-brooke

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson fanfiction #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x mom!reader #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson fluff #eddie x reader #eddie munson #eddie munson stranger things #eddie stranger things #stranger things #stranger things 4 #stranger things x reader

[persephoneflowerpetals]

Any Valentines Day head canons or stories about Hades + Persephone? *smirks*

You know what? I was just about to make a post for Valentine’s Day (because this is honestly just my Hades simping blog, so of course I need to make Valentine’s Day post lol) sharing some cute Valentine’s Day ideas I had for Hades and Persephone, but screw it I’m totally gonna answer this instead lol! Thank you, anon! I love you! 💕

But yes I absolutely do have some headcanons 😏👌 💙🩷

They will totally go on a date at the House of Mouse

Hades didn’t usually go to the House of Mouse on Valentine’s Day before because it was too “lovey dovey” and “happily ever after” around there. He was really tired of seeing the happy couples while he just sits there being lonely and single, so he skips the Valentine’s Day shows

Also, in general, Hades just HATED Valentine’s Day. It annoyed him and he hated seeing all those mortals in love. It disgusted him.

His favorite thing to do before Persephone came along was to manipulate people into breaking up just so he could watch them suffer lol (y’know because he’s an evil villain, he’s gotta get his kicks somehow lol)

But now that he FINALLY has his true love he’s 100% gonna go to the House of Mouse to show her off and be like “See that?! That’s MINE! You can’t have it! Jealous? Of course you are!”

Also he spoils her like crazy and gives her anything she wants (as if he doesn’t already lol)

He knows she can make her own flowers, so he doesn’t bother with gifting her those, but oh man she LOVES chocolate! He will gift her the most luxurious and delicious chocolate in the cosmos! Like those chocolates covered in solid gold flakes or something lmao, Hades is extra like that

If they’re not going to the House of Mouse then they’re just going on a date where Hades goes all out lmao

He’ll try to recreate their first date or have a “105th honeymoon” (no doubt they’ve had so many “2nd honeymoons” that they’re not even “honeymoons” anymore lmao, they’re just romantic getaways lol)

He’s the “go big or go home” type of partner lmao, he’ll do the most extra things to impress Persephone on Valentine’s Day lol

He’ll set off fireworks spelling out her name or get a whole group of mortals to make an entire play or musical or something based around her, like he will do the MOST lol

Persephone doesn’t mind all the big stuff Hades does, but she also wouldn’t mind if he did something simple (like just a cute date night at the House of Mouse for example)

She’ll create a huge bouquet of flowers just for him and he freaking CHERISHES them, he’s extra careful not to set them on fire lol

She’ll also gift him his favorite sweets like a heart shaped baklava or a heart shaped box of chocolate covered slugs or something lol

She’s very simple and gets a little nervous that she’s not doing enough when she sees Hades going all out for her

But he reassures her that he absolutely LOVES everything she does for him and her love for him is enough of a gift already ❤️ (he’s such a charmer lol)

But yeah, that’s about it. I do have some nsfw Valentine’s ideas too, but I wanted to keep this sfw lol. But if you guys want the nsfw valentines headcanons I can totally post those too! 😁

Anyways, HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!!! I love you all so much and you’re all my valentines this year!!! ❤️

(Yes, this is an official Disney image and I love it lmao)

#ask #anon ask #disney #hades #hercules movie & series au #headcanons #persephone #hades x persephone #persephades #persephone x hades

[scaredcacticle]

Flowers For Men

Bo Sinclair x F!Reader 🔥

Bo’s date makes an unforgettable first impression

“Dammit, sir can you help me,” you ask the man in the same aisle as you.

“Wh-Oh hey pretty girl what can I go for you,” he replies looking you up and down.

“That’s cute, can you please help me out,” you laugh.

“Hey you don’t even know my name,” he replies, an expectant look on his face.

“Fine what’s your name, mines Y/N,” you giggle.

“Names Bo. Now what is a pretty girl like you doing in a dirty shop like this?” he asks as he walks closer.

“Broken fan belt sadly, anyway you can help?”

“Heh… Yeah I can help you get one but only if I get a date in return”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah really”

With a smile you can’t help but ask him for a pen and paper. He wasn’t bad looking either, quite the opposite actually. Nice chocolate hair, strong arms visible underneath his mechanics suit, and very strong looking hands.

As you walked with him and got your things you couldn’t help but stare at his body. The sweltering heat had his clothes sticking to him showing every muscle in his back.

“Thank you for helping me”

“No problem doll. This a real number ain’t it”

“Of course it is but don’t open it until I leave. No questions just do it”

“Alright”

As you both part ways Bo opens the paper. It’s your number with a time and date at a diner in town. He smiles to himself and heads home, trying to convince himself he won’t be counting down the days until he sees you again.

________

“Hey,” Bo hears from behind him, that all to familiar sweet voice hitting his ears once again. As he turns he has to all but catch his jaw.

He’s a simple man with simple tastes. The simple jean shorts that hug your thighs ever so tightly and your low cut top has his all of his blood going south.

“Hey doll you look real good,” he says , eyes tracing your breasts over and over again.

“Glad you like my top but I also have a gift for you,” you laugh, pulling a bouquet of flowers from behind you.

As you set them down Bo stays sitting in silence, mouth open in disbelief.

“Aww cmon now darlin’ men don’t get flowers,” he says covering his face to hide the blush spreading across his cheeks.

“Hey when we talked on the phone you said yourself ‘men never get flowers until they’re dead’ and I plan on giving you a lot more than flowers before you’re dead,” you say leaning over the table between the two of you, making sure your chest is on full display for him.

For the first time in a long time Bo was absolutely stunned. The woman in front of him had him enamored and he needed her. All of her.

As the date continued you and Bo laughed and laughed until the diner closed. Time passing by the both of you in the blink of an eye.

“Can I come back to your place?” You ask as soon as you both leave the diner making Bo stop.

“What?” he laughs ,” I thought I would be the one to ask”

“But you’re not asking fast enough,” all smiles gone from your face, you step up to him. Your face inches from his.

“Y-yeah I mean I was just making sure you wanted to”

“Of course I am”

“Let’s go then”

————

“So where’s your house?” You ask, taking your jacket off.

“Really? That’s all I get after all that teasing at the diner,” Bo laughs , sitting a not so sly hand on your thigh.

“Hey I gotta make sure you’re not a serial killer or something,” you giggle crossing your legs over his hand.

“Well I own my own shop in Ambrose and a wax museum run by my brother and I”

“Nice”

And with that you give him shorter and shorter replies. At some point he’d wondered if you’d fallen asleep, sometimes not answering him at all. Until he pulled up into Ambrose.

“You alrig-“ he starts to ask before your lips are on his and for the first time he has to push a woman off.

“Woah doll that’s what you’ve been planning huh. Let’s go inside”

“Nope. Let’s do it right here in the open who’s gonna see?”

He thinks you’re a woman after his own heart and before he can even think about it he’s on you.

Hands and lips wandering and rubbing all over you. His hands come under your top and in one swift motion he rips it off of you. Breasts now exposed to the cool air of Ambrose.

Like a man starved his mouth is all over your chest. Squeezing and licking your nipples with a hand to your throat. After making quick work of his pants his hands travel to yours and he does the same.

And right before he can do anything you whip around and fall to your knees. It felt like pure ecstasy to Bo, the warm cavern of your mouth feeling like our ecstasy on his member. But Bo isn’t one to lose control so easily, swiftly grabbing your head forcing you down on him over and over again and right before his climax he pulls you off.

Dragging you to the back of his truck he open the bed and throws you over it stuffing himself inside of you. Wasting no time he rams into you hitting every spot you never could.

“That’s right you’re my little slut aren’t you?” He grunts into your ear, hands tightening around your throat.

“Yes, yes I’m your little fucking slut!” You scream, waves and waves of pleasure rushing over you. But Bo keeps going ramming himself into you harder and harder until he unloads inside of you. Using you like his fuckdoll he keeps going until he’s completely empty.

As he pulls always he looks at the beauty of what he’d done. You’re a mess with his cum dripping down your legs and hair a mess.

“You wanna stay the night doll?” He laughs, wiping the remnants of himself off of you.”

And with your nod he picks you up and carries you to his bedroom.

#bo sinclair x reader #bo sinclair #oneshot #house of wax #date #slasher x reader

[fitrahgolden]

WEARY MEMORY: 4 - BROKEN INTO PIECES

“OK, guys! Your nan's almost here!”

Kaveri came skipping into the living room. She started checking herself out in the television's reflection and doing more skips and jumps, no doubt relishing in the sound of her new shoes, which she’d dubbed her “dancing shoes,” against the hardwood floor.

“Kav, baby, don't stomp on the floor too hard with those shoes.” Kate warned.

“Do you hear my shoes, Amma?”

“We all hear your shoes, Riri,” Edmund groused upon entering the living room.

“Good!” Kaveri continued entertaining herself in front of the TV.

“Ned, where's your brother?”

“In the backyard with his dog.”

Kate sucked her teeth and muttered. “Dammit, Newton is my dog.”

“Don't swear, Amma.”

Kaveri's censure of their mother got a laugh out of Edmund.

The doorbell rang, stopping Kate from going and staking her claim on Newton–again. 

“Hi, Violet.” Kate gave Anthony’s mum a hug. “Come in. They’re almost ready.”

“Thanks, dear.” Violet sat on the couch–and was instantly introduced to her granddaughter’s new shoes–while Kate went out back to fetch Maaran. The two only argued briefly about who Newton belonged to before returning inside.

“Thank you for letting them come tonight. I know the weeks didn’t line up.”

Kate waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, of course. They want to go, and it’s an important performance for Fran. There was no question about it.”

Kaveri took a break from her own performance and jumped onto the couch next to Violet. “We have flowers for Aunty Fran! I got to pick them out!”

“Oh, how sweet, Riri. Francesca will love them.”

Kate looked down at her watch. “I think you guys should get going.”

“Yes,” Violet agreed as she rose from the couch. “My dears, I’m just gonna talk to your mum for a minute, and then we’ll be on our way. Neddy, can you get everyone in the car?”

“Sure, Nan.”

As Edmund ushered everyone outside, Kate tilted her head in concern. “Everything alright?”

“Oh, yes, nothing dire,” Violet said quickly. “It’s just… And I know this isn’t really your, I don’t know, wheelhouse anymore, but has Anthony seemed OK the last few times you saw him?”

Kate winced a little at the implication that she wouldn’t know anymore if anything were going on with Anthony. But it was true, wasn’t it?

“Um… Yeah, he seemed alright. Did something happen?”

“I don’t think so. He’s just seemed a little off lately, is all. Maybe it’s something with…” Violet trailed off and looked at Kate sheepishly.

“Oh, don’t be silly, Violet.” Kate forced a laugh. “You can say her name. Give me a bit more credit than that.”

“Yes, of course.” Violet shook her head. “Anyway, I’m sure he’s fine.”

“Well, I’ll keep an eye out. We still talk. Sometimes.”

Violet nodded. “And it’s almost time for your holiday, isn’t it? That will be good for him. Where is it going to be this year? Anthony hasn’t mentioned it.”

Kate and Anthony made sure to still do their family holiday every year, just the five of them. The kids always looked forward to it. Sharing a house for a week never went completely smoothly, especially that first year after the divorce, but they made it work, and the following two holidays had them finding a rhythm much more quickly.

“We settled on Edinburgh. It’s a short flight, and all three of the kids should be into it. Castles for Kav, history for Maan, seaside for Ned. And the house Anthony found looks amazing.”

“Brilliant.”

“Well, have a great night.” Kate walked with Violet to the door. “Tell Francesca I said good luck.”

The two shared another hug, and after Violet left with the kids, Kate tried not to think too much about what she’d said. Kate was sure there was plenty going on in Anthony’s life that she wasn’t privy to. Of course there was. They mostly only saw each other briefly on Saturdays, and texted sparingly throughout the week. The last time he seemed upset when she was around was… the day she went out with Tom. There was no way that could still be bothering him. They’d gotten over it later that night.

Hadn’t we?

It was a silly thing to fixate on. Violet was right. She didn’t know that much about Anthony’s life anymore.

—

Anthony heard Siena come up behind him as he sat at his kitchen counter, chai in hand, looking at his laptop.

“Good morning,” she said as she wrapped her arms around him.

“Morning. Want coffee?”

“Don’t get up. I’ll make it. What are you working on?” she asked as she made her way to the coffee maker.

“Booking the caterer for Ned’s birthday party,” Anthony answered distractedly, not looking up, missing the way Siena froze.

“I take it I'm not invited?”

His head shot up from his computer screen. “Siena…”

“Unless, of course, you're finally ready to introduce me to your family.”

“You've met my family.”

“Come off it, Anthony. You know I mean your kids.”

He did know that, and felt foolish for pretending otherwise.

“Is it your ex?” Siena asked.

Anthony’s jaw ticked. “What do you mean?”

“Does she not want me to meet them?” Siena crossed her arms. “Does she even know about me?”

“I’ve mentioned you, yes. Not often. Is it that odd that I don't talk to my ex-wife about my love life?”

“Not for most people, no. But you seem to actually talk to your ex–”

“Kate,” he said quietly, almost to himself.

“Don't correct me as if I should remember that. Why would I? You don’t talk to me about her or your kids. Such a huge part of your life, and you won’t let me near it. Shouldn’t you want me to know that part of you? If we're serious?”

Anthony opened his mouth, but no words came out. Siena stepped towards him, her eyes shining with unshed tears. Anthony felt mortified that he had no idea how to comfort her.

“Are we?” she asked, pleading. “Are we serious, Anthony?”

Tell her yes.

“We…we could be.”

Siena shook her head, disappointed. When she spoke again, she sounded defeated. “When? When you stop wearing your ring?”

What?

“I don't wear my ring.”

“No?” Siena scoffed. “It's not looped onto the pocket watch that you have on you at all times?”

Oh. Anthony’s mind went to Kate's rings, which hung off her neck on a delicate chain every time he saw her.

“And you kept her name,” Siena continued.

To that, Anthony took offence. “We hyphenated our names when we got married. It's our kids’ last names, Siena. Why would I change mine back?”

Siena turned away from him and paced for a few long moments before looking at him again.

“Remind me, why did you two get divorced?”

Where to fucking start? “I… We–”

“You said you wanted to stop hurting each other, that you felt you couldn’t give each other the support you needed after everything that happened. You literally said ‘everything that happened.’ I don’t even know what that means, besides your father.”

“It’s… It’s all her business as much as it is mine.”

“It’s your business as much as it is hers. And you won’t clue me in.”

Siena collapsed onto the stool next to Anthony.

“Siena… Siena, I’m sorry.” That was the truth, but not nearly enough, he knew that.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Eventually, Siena wiped an errant tear and asked, “And you're sure you two aren’t hurting each other now? And dragging other people down with you?”

Fuck, is that what I’m doing?

Siena grabbed his hand. “Look, Anthony. I like you. A lot. But it’s painfully clear that… Well, I don’t want to force you to open your whole world up to me. I wouldn’t want to. I’d want you to do that on your own, because you want me there.” She sighed heavily. “But you don’t, do you?” she whispered.

Anthony floundered. “We… I can see–”

“No. Don’t tell me you could in the future. Don’t tell me it’s possible. I can’t hear ‘not yet’ again. I really fucking can’t. Do you want me there, Anthony?”

There was nowhere left to hide. Siena didn’t deserve his bullshit. She never did.

“No.”

Siena pressed her eyes shut, releasing more tears as she nodded. “Right.”

Without another word, she walked into Anthony’s bedroom, undoubtedly to collect her things. Anthony stayed frozen at the kitchen counter. He had no idea how much time had passed when Siena came back out, with an overstuffed tote bag. She slowly approached him, and deposited a kiss on his cheek. It was soft and kind, and nothing he deserved.

“I really hope you figure it out, Anthony. I hope both of you do. Please don’t do this to anyone else.”

—

Kate had just made sure all the kids were settled for the night when her phone rang.

“Anthony?”

“Hey.”

Kate didn’t need to ask if he was OK. She could hear in that one syllable that he wasn’t.

“What is it? Is everyone alright? Is it–”

“Everyone’s fine, Kit.” Anthony had fallen back into calling her that all the time after their last thunderstorm phone call. Kate didn’t mind.

“Everyone but you?”

His laugh was humourless. “It’s just been a shit day.”

She knew that wasn’t all, but didn’t push.

“I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. I know my problems aren’t your problems anymore.”

“I mean, some of them are. What’s wrong, Anthony?”

“I think I’m just missing the kids this week. I'm just sat here, looking at pictures. A bit pathetic.”

Kate sucked her teeth. “You know that's not pathetic.” That also wasn't the real problem either, she was sure of it. But perhaps she could at least do something to help. “I can ask them in the morning if they are OK with you picking them up from school, if you want a few extra days with them.”

“We shouldn’t,” Anthony said after a while. “We agreed–”

“We’ve never needed the agreement, Anthony. It's fine. And it’ll be up to them.”

“OK. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Anthony fell silent again.

“Anthony?”

“I’m going to try to sleep,” he said a little abruptly.

“Oh, OK. Um, good night. I’ll ring you in the morning about the kids.”

“Alright. Good night, Kit.”

#bridgerton #anthony x kate #kanthony #kate and anthony #kate x anthony #kate sharma #kate bridgerton #kate sheffield #anthony and kate #anthony bridgerton #kanthony fanfic #kanthony fanfiction #kanthony edit #kanthony fic #kanthonyedit #the viscount who loved me #kathony #kathony edit #kathonyedit #kathony fanfiction #kathony fanfic #kathony fic #bridgerton au #bridgerton fic #bridgerton fanfiction #divorce au #co parenting au #weary memory au #weary memory

[eggs-can-draw]

various pregame shenaniganeries, including a baby shu because I missed him :) kinda long naegamigiri timeline thing under the cut that I made at like 1 am on friday

Hi hi hi sit down we’re gonna talk about pre-game naegamigiri because they’re kinda the reverse of how in-game naegamigiri ends up together in my head. HI hihihi this is Egg slightly later this kinda grabbed me and ran into the sunset so naegamigiri timeline thing lets goooooooo

So to start us out, we have the top two in the class, Togami sitting at no. 2 and Kirigiri sitting at no. 1. Togami being Togami, instantly turns this into a competition. His number 1 priority becomes rising to the no. 1 spot and shoving it in this dumbass detective’s smug face. At first, Kirigiri really couldn't be bothered, but sadly, she fell victim to Togami’s secret second talent, Super High School Level Drama Queen. So pretty quickly into their first year, Kirigiri and Togami are academic rivals! Both being naturally competitive, it rapidly evolves into full on rivals! Until…over time. They become reluctant friends. And suddenly class-78 has the world’s scariest power couple.  

BUT EGG! You may be screaming at me, WHERE IS NAEGI IN ALL THIS?? Well you see, as the shsl lucky student and self proclaimed Just Some Guy, when he quickly fell head over heels for the power couple, he instantly assumed both were waaaay out of his league. I mean, who wouldn't? Togami practically refused to give ANYONE the time of day, and Kirigiri is one of the most closed off people on the PLANET. And while he does make friends with them during the rivalry era of their relationship, he resigns himself to pining for both from the sidelines

LITTLE DOES HE FUCKING KNOW THOUGH. Kirigiri and Togami are definitely happy together, but their relationship as it is feels like it's... Missing something. After about a week of awkward tension, they both admit to having a crush on Naegi. With both of them on the same page, they make it their mission to confess to Naegi, and get him to join the polycule!

So yeah it's a lot of fluff from both Kirigiri and Togami, Very Obviously Flirting and Naegi pulling the classic “Ok But Did They Mean It As A Friend” that slowly gets more and more intense.

Like. Picture this. A fancy candlelight dinner, the three of them at an expensive Michelin star restaurant, Kirigiri and Togami both got Naegi flowers, afterwards they went on a walk through a local park and watched the sunset with just the three of them.

Naegi still didn't get the hint.

After almost two years of flirting with Naegi being (somewhat willfully) oblivious, they decide to bite the bullet and just tell him. The dynamic duo write Naegi an adorable love letter, laying all their feelings out in the open, but the day they give it to him, just happened to be the day that class-78 was barricaded inside Hope’s Peak.

He was going to read it in his room when he was called down for the memory wipe, and it just happened to fall out of his pocket as he was walking out.

But fear not! This story isn't over yet! The polycule is real and they do love each other!

Beginning the game, Naegi can't help but feel. Weird. Whenever he's around Togami and Kirigiri. His head feels light and his chest gets all fluttery and he stumbles over his words a bit more than usual.

While looking through one of the classrooms on the second floor, after the first trial, he finds. A letter? Its torn and damaged but when he opens it, the handwriting feels oddly familiar? Names have been scratched out but he can't help but feel incredibly hot in the face when he reads it. He doesn't know why, but seeing this gives him a boost of confidence! While Monokuma shows up to rain on his parade and take the letter, it doesn't work and he uses this confidence to approach Kirigiri. They have a heart to heart and both admit to feeling the warm fuzzies around each other for an unknown reason. They’ve known each other for what, half a week? Kirigiri can't help but be intrigued so they decide to hang out more, this leading the two into a soft and fluffy relationship.

As trial two comes and goes, they both come to a startling yet all to familiar realization. They ALSO get the warm and fuzzies around Togami. That bastard. While making sure to do so outside of the earshot of a certain shsl Murderer, they both approach Togami, who (begrudgingly) admits to feeling the same. While it starts out a bit rocky, the three form a solid and loving polycule.

AND THEN CHAPTER 5 HAPPENS. I could talk about chapter 5 for a million years. Honestly. The angst potential is so so so so so so so strong. Togami doesn't want to believe that he’s been tricked by the two people he promised himself he’s make it out alive with, Naegi refuses to believe that Kirigiri would kill anyone but also a dead body doesn't just appear out of nowhere, and Kirigiri is just TRYING TO SURVIVE.

Pov you are Asahina, Scissor System, Yasuhiro, and Junko and you are witnessing a brutal divorce. The fire is real.

After Naegi’s execution, Togami is a MESS, Kirigiri completely shuts herself off, her one priority being getting Naegi the fuck outta the trash and making up with her short boyfriend. Once the sunshine boy himself is back, tall boyfriend has grown some bad abandonment issues and is beginning his journey as the Super High School Level Mother Hen, so as he’s lecturing treating Naegi’s for his injuries from almost being executed, Naegi gets them all to kiss (literally) and make up. Things aren't perfect, but they're on the same page.

And then trial 6 happens, and they win the killing game. Things seem scary, but they know that whatever they face out there, they’ll have each other.

It doesn't take long for the future foundation to find them, the small group of kids like scared animals being thrust into a world they no longer remember. Naegamigiri refuse to let go of each other, even when the FF’s medic team try to give them a check up to make sure they weren't seriously injured (which in Naegi’s case, led to Kirigiri and Togami yelling at the medic team that tried to shove Naegi onto a gurney and deeper into the hospital wing without them.

Things are tense and scary and they are tired but no matter what they have hope. The world is big and scary and completely foreign to them but no matter what, they have each other, and they have hope for the future.

FLASH FORWARD! The three are official members of the Future Foundation, and have been working on their little pet project involving The Remnants of Despair. After a lot of long talks, they agreed that they wouldn't get married until the tragedy was completely over, then where they would all leave the future foundation to pursue their ambitions and live a happy life together. This agreement, however, does not extend to children. This quickly becomes very relevant when through a series of vaguely ambiguous events, they ended up with little Shuichi Last-Name-Pending! So things get a smidge more stressful. The middle of the apocalypse is the perfect time for a kid. I have no idea what you're talking about.

Then UDG happens. And the stress. Rises. To put it lightly. Almost losing Togami definitely shifted perspective for the power trio. Kirigiri and Naegi were terrified of the thought of not only losing their partner, but Shuichi having to grow up without one of his parents. Togami got progressively more mother hen, despite being the one who almost died.

On the happier side, Komaru was very happy to find out she was an aunt! Once the tragedy is over, she is going to spoil the ever loving shit out of him. I’m sorry sir, but my nephew asked for no fucking pickles!

Things get kinda vague for me after this. Sdr2 happens, with Naegamigiri once again almost dying as you do. Shuichi gains a surprise new uncle, he also gets babysat by Asahina, and once naegamigiri get back I remember that I haven't finished the dr3 anime.

Not 100% sure if I’m gonna keep the dr3 killing game who knows. Maybe things stay cute and fluffy and nothing huge happens for naegamigiri until the tragedy is officially over and Togami and Kirigiri leave the future foundation to pursue their passions (FF wont let Naegi leave, sadly, he did get to change his job to a stay at home one tho, mans basically does paperwork on a laptop all day and sometimes has to go on long business trips to speak to people all over the world to help restore hope and stuff)

One important detail: The HPA survivors are not involved in the resurrection of hope's peak. It's something that's bugged me for a while and it just. It doesn't sit right with me.

A long time later, Shuichi and his friends attend Hopes Peak (a certain gremlin has to lie to their dad to get there due to Bad Blood Tee Em but it's fiiiine they're all fiiiiiine) where shit hits the fan, and I’m not gonna reveal that until I finish v3 so for now, that’s it! Get out of my house! Come back later! You’ve had your food for the day!

#eggs can art #eggs can speak #naegamigiri #byakuya togami #makoto naegi #kyoko kirigiri #naegami #naegiri #togiri #they!! #they!!!!! #Naegi's ahoge is a force of nature and cannot be suppressed for long #very very heavily considering cutting the v3 killing game entirely #HELLO THIS IS EGG FROM THE FUTURE I MEANT DR3 #either that or pulling something a lot different #I just. I really dont like how Monaca was treated as a character #it felt like she was built up to be the next big bad and then. suddenly she's a space NEET #yeah she would be a predictable mastermind but she doesnt need to be the person actually responsible FOR the killing game to still be #running it. like. yeah Kamukura is the mastermind of sdr2 but ai!Junko is still the one who actually orchestrated it all and held the actual #game yknow. #danganronpa #drthh #danganronpa trigger happy havoc #still feels like it should have one more h #art #artists on tumblr

[opossumloverr]

Hello hello! Sorry for being really specific here, but can I request the ROTTMNT turtles with a axolotl reader, and they have a long tail (I love tails, I’m sorry-), and they’re like smaller than Mikey, but can pack a punch? Sorry again if this is too specific, lol, you can just do the axolotl part if this is too much. Remember to drink water and take care of yourself! Thank you!

✪TURTLE BROS X AXOLOTL READER ✪

Summary:

The turtle bros with a Axolotl reader that may look small, but can absolutely kick ass

Warning(s):

None!

A/N:

Tysm for requesting this, I love axolotls, also TY FOR SO MUCH LOVE ON MY OTHER POST like what?? Anyways here we go (gender-neutral reader)

《RAPH》

He thinks you're really cool

He likes that you don't let your size get the best of you

And to be honest half of the time your here he's looking at your tail swinging back and forth

Sometimes you catch him staring...

"Yeah and so after that-" you paused to glance over at raph, who's apparently to busy looking at your tail to focus on the totally important conversation you guys were having, you gave him a quick little slap with your tail to his cheek that woke him up from his trance.

"HUH! Wha?" He looked around the room all confused, but you just continued talking.

He was surprised when you completely OBLITERATED those origami ninjas when you decided to come along on one of their missions

He thought you were gonna get hurt so he was trying to stay close to you, but when you handled them (like a boss) he was like 'damn okay I see you'

You guys definitely have each others backs

《LEO》

This man will tease you non-stop about your height

Like he will baby you, calling you a kid and stuff

He'll only stop when you knock some sense into him

And your tail...

You bet on your LIFE that he's grabbing it

Tries to be sneaky about it

You were sitting on a chair scrolling through social media, waiting for Leo to come back because he said and I quote 'I have to walk my fish' you didn't mind cause, well, it's Leo, but you suddenly feel someone trying to creep up on you, you waited for the right moment to, jump up out of your chair and kick them in the back, only to find Leo on the floor instead, "What the hell man? what are you doing?" You ask.

"Nothin'.."

Just let him give your tail a few strokes please he can't move on without knowing how it feels

《DONNIE》

Fascinated, to say the least

Like who wouldn't be, look at that lengthy tail.

He would measure it, take notes, ask questions, man's is IMMERSED

And to top all of that off, your strong? Holy moly

When you guys are fighting, he will be focusing on your moves, and how you add your tail into your attacks

He's so impressed that he gets hit by his own weapon.

"Nice momentum [Name]!" Donnie grunted.

"Thanks Don-tron, WAIT OH MY GOSH LOOK OUT" you say as you watched him get hit by his own bo staff.

Asks you to stay still sometimes so he can watch your tail move on its own

It may be a little annoying but he's having fun, in his own way.

(Nerd)

《MIKEY》

Mikey is also fascinated, he thinks you and your tail is cute

He's not the shortest anymore yayy

I'm just saying that he would doodle and draw on your tail

If you let him of course

OMG JUST IMAGINE...

"Are you done yet Mikey?" You questioned, wanting to get up and stretch.

"Just adding some finishing details and...done!" You got up to go look in a mirror and see your tail covered in flowers, smiley faces, and vines, and you noticed the little 'Mikey wuz here ;P' on your tail.

He likes that you can fight for yourself

I can imagine him watching you practice your punches and kicks.

I love Mikey so much guys

Thank you for requesting this! I feel like I messed up Donnies part a bit though, have a great day/night!

#rottmnt x reader #rottmnt #x reader #leonardo rottmnt #raphael rottmnt #donnatello rottmnt #michelangelo rottmnt

[theplatypusblue]

COMPILING ALL LEGENDS OF CHIMA SEASON 1 THOUGHTS BELOW THE READ MORE (super long post, written as I was watching)

(I can be a little mean but I promise I’m having fun lol)

Episodes 1 + 2:

Man this shits super boring.

Idk if I can get behind craggers plot line tbh. He’s too much of a dumbass for me to really root for him.

The lore seems really cool so far. I like the settings and the stuff about the legend beasts.

Like?? Forest full of trees that just fall down all the time? Epic.

Legend beasts are especially cool cuz it means this is how Chima characters react when seeing a regular ass lion for the first time:

Episode 3:

Man Laval really fucked everything up.

I have a feeling all of cragger’s dumbass-ness, like, transferred over to laval and now we’re gonna be seeing him making all the dumbass decisions

The only thing I really care about here is the b-plot about Gorzan and his flower. More engaging than the main plot

Episode 4:

Prediction about Laval replacing Cragger as the resident dumbass seems to be coming true

Gorzan is quickly becoming my favorite.

Oh hey look it’s the beavers!! I remember they show up in that one episode of ninjago. I had zero context for what they were all about then but now I know!!

Episode 5:

The gorilla tribe seems like the most chill out of everyone. Gorillas 👍

Can I just say I hate the fucking skunk. He sucks.

Honestly kind of a nothing episode

Episode 6:

Eagle spire does that cool thing where all the buildings are built on super scary precipices. There’s literally a post going around about this exact thing but I can’t find it rn

Oh so the eagles are just a bunch of nerds. A little weird I guess(?) I feel like eagles are usually symbols of strength n stuff so that’s different. It’s giving cloud kingdom.

“Wing girl” tf kinda nickname??

Apparently the ravens are double crossing everyone but I have not been paying close enough attention to what’s going on to really process that

Ok so it was all an extremely convoluted way for the crocs to get everyone to fight each other. And the ravens tried to profit but they’re kinda stupid so nothing really worked out for anyone

Episode 7:

Purble moon??? Epic

Man the bears are so epic just like me fr

Nooo don’t mess w the gorillas they’re so chill :(

I am entirely uninterested in the 100 year full moon skunk fart lore. Sorry.

It’s a little strange and maybe I’m hallucinating but I feel like the animation has has somehow gotten better?? Like the lighting or smthn…. Or the facial expressions???

Oh….. skunk fart lore is plot relevant………

Now that I’m thinking… is that the only skunk in chima?? Cuz rn it looks like just the one guy

Episode 8:

Oh it’s a big boy chi

There’s a fucking peacock?? Don’t know how to spell his name. So wait if he wins who does the chi go to?? He gets it all to himself?

Oh wait nvm it’s probably a cragger thing. Mr. Peacock comes back after retirement or w/ever in order to do some evil shit with the crocs I get it I get it

Gorzan I love you

WHO THE FUCK IS THAT GUY?? Is it a pig? A warthog??? It’s giving Mr. E vibes.

Man idk this episode is structured rlly weirdly. Nothing really fit together very well. It’s alright tho.

Episode 9:

GORILLA EPISODE?? Let’s go dude

It funny cuz I feel like gorillas aren’t actually this mellow irl

STOP FUCKING WITH THE GORILLAS CRAGGER I’LL KILL YOU

Oh hey it’s our mystery mans. Oh nevermind he left again.

There are balloon plants?? Oh yeah those are the things they were using in the other episode. Sorry I wasn’t paying attention to anything else that happened.

Episode 10:

Uhh I forgot to take notes while watching uhhh

The fox guy was cute. I like a little fox guy

This episode managed to make me feel a little bad for cragger!! He wants to do a good job but he kinda sucks at everything :(

It also made me confused abt cruller!!! What are you doing w ur life girl!!!!

Kinda messed up how the wolves had to serve the crocodiles tho… probly for the best she threw away that pledge

If Laval’s dad is right when he says they’re not gonna race for chi for a long time, I’m guessing they’re not gonna do any more racing episodes for some time. That’s fine honestly.

WAIT THAT RHINO GUY’S DYING. Oh nvm. This whole situation is cringe I hope it’s a one-off thing….

Also I forgot everyone thinks craggers parents are dead but really they’re just chilling in that canyon. Kinda funny actually

Episode 11:

Oh man the wolves are fucking everything up

“We all gotta stay here till the walls are fixed” bruh just call the beavers or smthn

Man what is the deal with this shadow wind dude.

If there’s one similarity I could point out with ninjago, it’s all this talk abt ~the balance~. I guess it makes sense since they take place in the same universe, technically

These bears are so cute lol napping does solve everything so true

Episode 12:

Jets travel super fast in the air. If they’re going through a storm Laval should totally be dead by now

Cragger is setting boundaries!! We love to see it. Cruller is acting pretty cringe. In her ~~girlfailure era~~

Is Laval gonna fall in this gorge?? Oh yeah he’s gonna fall in this gorge

Noooo Gorzans underwear is gonna tear

It’s a little sweet how Laval still wants to help out cragger

Episode 13:

I guess I’m still not super into cragger but I pity him a little. He’s trying his best but he’s just a bit stupid. And also his sister sucks ass

Okay. So she may be cringe but cruller is living her best(-ish) life.

That wolf is wearing a really cute apron

Man they were bringing up Shadow wind earlier and I thought they were gonna reveal their identity but now I’m a bit disappointed…

Laval is being peak dumbass rn I kinda like it. “The warm milk of oppression” lol

Pretty cute finale tbh

That’s where Tubi says season 1 ends, so i think I’ll just stop here for now. I guess they’ll bring up craggers parents next season?? For now they’re still stuck chilling in that canyon.

I definitely feel like it’s a show that doesn’t have super strong characters. I think it would better if the show leaned more into the world it’s created instead, if that makes sense. Maybe later the character writing will improve a little bit, and I’ll changed my tune. But!! Who knows. I’m having fun with it.

Idk when I’ll get to season 2, cuz I get super busy sometimes (I started this one a couple months ago but couldn’t finish it till now ugh) but I do want to continue watching!! Eventually!!!

#lego shows #chima liveblog thing #for reference I’m coming at this from the perspective of someone who’s pretty much only watched ninjago #so far the two shows seem pretty similar and that not a bad thing!! I try not to compare them too much but they def have similar ideas #going on behind the scenes or whatever. if that makes sense #I debated main tagging this and I don’t think I’m gonna do it….. idk

[doveabovetheworld]

Baby You’re a Firework

Josh Kiszka x GN!Reader

Summary; It’s New Years Eve and your long time friend, Josh Kiszka, and you invite all of your friends to your guy’s house for a party. What happens when he gets drunk and says and does some things you really don’t know fully show his true feelings for you?

Warnings; Language, drinking

A/N; this was based off of my GVF as Holidays post and I decided I would make fics for all of the boys based off those! Hopefully you guys like this!! Jake is next btw so be prepared!! Also my friend @radyouthcherryblossom made the moodboard as well as helped proofread cus I suck at typing so go follow them :)

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“Hey, Y/N?” Josh’s voice echoed from the kitchen.

“Yea Josh?” I got up and walked over to see him pulling out a pan of cupcakes from the oven, “What the hell are you doing?”

“I’m making cupcakes for the party tonight! Do you think the white or colored frosting would look better? I also have gold or blue sprinkles to add on.”

“How about… white frosting and then the gold sprinkles that you made me buy for you.”

“Exactly what I though!” He pulled out the frosting and sprinkles and asked if I wanted to help him out.

Josh invited his brother, Danny, and Jake’s girlfriend, Jita, for a New Year's Eve party. Every single year he throws these type of small parties with our friends and every year I love it. Josh just makes everything so much more fun and he’s so easy to be around. He always makes me feel happier.

After a few hours of helping Josh get the party set up, Jake and Jita showed up. I went over to give them hugs and said hi.

“So, how’s it going?” Jake asked putting down a bottle of vodka that he brought on the kitchen counter.

“It’s been really good, actually,” I responded bringing the snacks and drinks out of the fridge and setting them up.

“You tell Josh about your little crush on him yet?” Jake looked at me and gave a smirk. Jake knows exactly how I feel about Josh. I mean I talk about him all the time and Jake has to suffer by hearing me ramble on about him. They’re both my best friends and I don’t know what I would do without them.

“Who said I’m gonna tell anyone? I don’t want to ruin my friendship with Josh anytime soon so no, I’m not going to say anything.”

“You sure you don't want to like… I don't know,” he did a little shrug and then continued, “Maybe try taking a risk you know? I mean you haven’t talked about anyone like you do about Josh since what? Freshman year? With... Zack? Wasn’t that his name?”

“Yeah, yeah, I remember my Zack phase. No need to remind me of it.” I laughed and heard Jake echo it right behind me.

“Well just think about it, Y/N, you don’t know what’ll happen until it actually does.” Jake started to walk out of the kitchen and left me sight.

Since when did he become an inspirational speaker?

~

After about an hour or so everyone showed up and we got New York City New Years Eve special on the TV. Josh was running around dancing and yelling while Sam was right behind him running after him. Jita and Jake were on the couch watch the performances that came on while I was talking to Danny.

We heard Josh and Sam yelling when something made a loud bang in the next room. Both of the two boys got silent immediately and Sammy ran out of the room. I saw Josh standing over a broken flower vase with water and daisies all over the floor.

“Holy crap, Josh.” I heard Jake say from behind me.

“It wasn’t my fault guys!” Josh shot his hand in the air like he was getting arrested and we all looked back at Sammy.

“Why are we looking at me? Im not the one who stole their younger brother’s food and then ran off!” Sam argued back telling everyone their little confrontation.

“Okay you two, let's just go and sit on the couch,” I took Josh by the hand and lead him to the couch, “the ball’s going to drop soon and I don’t want you guys to miss it.”

“Aw that’s so sweet of you, Y/N!” Josh said giving me a huge smile and the look. God, I hate when he looks at me with his eyes full of love. He always looks at me this way whenever I’m around and Jake says that it’s because he likes me but I really don’t think so. Plus, he’s drunk right now. Like badly. There’s no way that any of it means anything.

Josh stood up and went to a different room saying he would be right back and that he had to get something. I really don’t know why I let him run off by himself again. He came back with a few bags in his hand and passed one out to everyone. He sat down next to me on the couch and said, “They’re presents for each of you guys! I’m really excited to spend another year with my best friends and these are just little “I love you” gifts for each of you!”

I started blushing when he said that. I know he said it to everyone but it felt weird that he said it you know?

Josh told everyone to open the gifts and as I was opening mine I felt someone looking at me. I turned to see Josh’s eyes on me as I was opening the gift. He looked away immediately after I looked up from the present. When I opened the present I picked up a locket that said “forever yours” with a picture of me and Josh inside of it. It was one of the sweetest things that I ever received. I looked at Josh again and saw him focusing on his hands. He looked nervous but kept a beautiful smile on his face.

“So do you like it?” Josh said looking up at me.

“Josh, I love it. Thank you so much.” I gave him a soft smile as he hugged me.

“I’m so glad you do! It was kind of hard to find something perfect and I knew this was it right when I saw it.”

“It really is the perfect gift, Josh.”

Sam shot up from the couch and started to yell, “Guys! It’s starting! The ball drop!”

We all stood up and counted down.

10… 9… 8…

I felt Josh’s fingers intertwining with mine.

7… 6… 5..

He turned to look at me and moved closer.

4… 3… 2…

That’s when it happened.

1…

That’s when we interlocked lips. His were soft and kind. It honestly felt like heaven but then I was reminded, he was drunk. It’s not actually Josh's thinking.

Josh pulled away and said, “I like you, Y/N. So much more than you know and I've been wanting to tell you but I wasn’t sure how you’d react but I thought “fuck it” It’s now or never, right?”

“Josh you’re dru-” I started to say before he cut me off.

“Yes but this is real. I’m telling you exactly how I feel and if you ask me tomorrow after the awful hangover I’m going to have and I promise you, Y/N, I’ll say the exact same thing when I’m sober.”

“We’ll test that tomorrow, Josh,” I gathered my stuff and said bye to everyone as I walked up the stairs to my room, “Night, Josh.”

“Night, Y/N.”

~

The next morning I came down to see Sam, Danny, and Josh all passed out on the couch. Jita must’ve driven Jake home last night sometime after I went to bed.

I started to clean up and make breakfast for me and the other three in the living room. I think the smell woke Josh up because the next thing I know I hear his voice.

“Hey,” Josh sleepily said, he really was out of it, “What’re you making?”

“Pancakes,” I looked back at him as he walked over next to me, “How’s your hangover?”

“Not as bad as I expected but I still feel like shit.”

“Yeah, I think that happens when you get a hangover.”

“Oh you say so?” He gave a tiny laugh and looked at me. The look.

I looked away breaking the moment of silence that just occurred.

“I still mean what I said last night.” Josh spoke up pulling a water out of the fridge.

“What?” I looked back at him with shock in my voice. Why are we talking about this so early in the morning? I really am not prepared for this talk right now.

“I told you last night-”

“No, no, Josh, I know what happened last night it’s just that… Do you really mean what you said last night? Was the kiss real?”

“Just as real as you and me, love,” Josh walked over to me and cupped my head in his hands. He pulled me closer and as our lips approached each other’s he said, “Can I spend this year and many more with you?”

“Are you asking to marry me, Josh Kiszka?” I laughed and saw him smirk.

“Not yet, eventually though, I will”

“Ah, that sounds very promising actually…”

“Yeah?” He gave a big smile that showed his perfect teeth.

“Could you offer me a kiss to help make me sure of my answer?”

“Of course I can darling,” Josh kissed me again, and just like last night, fireworks, “you sure your answer now?”

“Definitely.” I said hugging him.

“I'm glad you’re with me, Y/N.”

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#greta van fleet #gvf #josh kiszka #jake kiszka #sammy kiszka #danny wagner #josh kiszka fic #josh kiszka x reader #gvf fic #greta van fluff #gvf fanfiction