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paintyoureyeswithavividmind · 9 months

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close to home | chapter sixty three

plot: the reader and Daryl reconnect in a treehouse

series masterlist

Pairing: Eventual Daryl Dixon x f!reader Word Count: 3,499 Warnings: violence, blood, typical twd, alcohol use, tipsy sex (the best kind tbh) no plot just smut so ya'll are welcome A/N: thank you for reading!!

By nightfall, a fire was going, Daryl returned from a quick and successful hunt, and you unpacked all your supplies. He’d grabbed mattress pads and blankets, pillows, food, water, candles, and a bottle of wine. Jerry must’ve snuck in one of his cobblers because a small one was sitting in one of the bags. There were also tarps that you didn’t know what for--until Daryl got back and nailed them to cover the windows.

It was dark in the treehouse except for the fire and a few candles. You had already eaten what Daryl brought back--rabbit--and were eating the cobbler straight out of the container with the open bottle of wine.

“I gotta have Jerry tell me how he makes these.” You mumbled through your food. “I could eat one every day of my life.

Daryl smiled at you but didn’t say anything. He’d been quiet since he came back from hunting--which was only about thirty minutes anyway. He was happy, you could tell, and you knew he was at peace, which is why he was quiet.

You grabbed the wine bottle by its neck and took a few sips. “Where did you get this?”

“Stole it from Ezekiel.”

You chuckled and took another sip, feeling it bubble in your chest. “He’s gonna kill you.”

He grabbed the bottle from you and drank from it. “He ain’ ever gonna know.”

You smiled at Daryl and lifted the fork up to his mouth. He rolled his eyes but ate off it anyway.

“Tell me about you from before,” Daryl said, turning around to lay back with his head in your lap.

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

You smiled and sat your hand on his upper chest as you thought about his request. You weren’t even sure where to begin, honestly. You decided to first start with your family: your two sisters and mother and father. You told him about growing up on a farm, all the crap that came with it, and all the trouble you got up to.

You told him funny stories about you in high school and the friends you had. About all the silly fights you got into with your sisters and even your cousins. About when you ran away from home, but your mom caught you right before you skipped town.

“College was nice. I made a lot of friends and had so much fun,” You said, putting the wine bottle down. You were definitely buzzed, and you knew Daryl was too from how he laughed freely along with you.

You reached down and unbuttoned his shirt's first couple of buttons to gently run your fingers against his chest. “When I got accepted into medical school, me and my sisters got so drunk at the bar that the sheriff had to give us a ride home.”

“I woulda loved ya back then if we ever met,” Daryl said, looking up at you.

“You wouldn’t have even looked twice. I was a farm-raised nobody.”

He shook his head. “I woulda loved ya. Woulda saw you on the street and been a goner.”

You smiled and leaned down to kiss his forehead. “You’re crazy, that’s what you are.” You rubbed your hand against his upper chest; his skin was smooth other than old scars. With your other hand you grabbed the bottle and took a long sip. It was almost done.

“Tell me about you from before.”

“Ya don’ wanna know about that. Probably would walk right on outta here.”

“I wouldn’t,” You cupped his cheeks and stared down at him. “It’s too cold outside for me to leave. I’d have to at least stay here until the sun was up.”

Daryl swatted your hands away and then begrudgingly told you about him. You already knew more than just the basics, such as how his mother and father died--and you knew how Merle died already. So he told you about his years in high school and how he was always either ditching or suspended for ditching. Which didn’t surprise you.

He’d had a few friends that Merle didn’t fuck up for him, but after they graduated, they went off to college, and he stayed home.

“I was a piece shit, honestly, didn’ do nothin’ good for myself.” Daryl told you.

“That’s not true,” You said, although you partially agreed with him. Not about the piece of shit part, but the old Daryl didn’t seem to make the best decisions and resembled nothing of the man you’d married. “Besides, you’re one of the strongest, bravest, smartest, and sexiest men I know.”

“One of ‘em? Who are the others?”

You laughed at his joke. “You know what I mean, old man.”

“It’s been a while since ya called me that. Didn’ realize till now just how much I missed it.” Daryl sat up and spun around. He grabbed you by the legs and pulled you closer, and you set your legs on his upper thighs, and his were outstretched behind you.

You set your hands on either of his cheeks as your head swooned a little bit. You and him were definitely wine tipsy; enough to take the edges and awkwardness off. But you felt safe up in the treehouse, and you felt protected. You played with the scruff on his chin as he stared at you.

“Do ya believe me?”

You nodded and pressed your forehead against his lips, getting a few soft kisses. You set your hands on his chest and unbuttoned his shirt the rest of the way so you could see his skin. You kissed his collarbone and wrapped your arms around his lower waist. His muscles were taunted under your fingertips, and you could feel him tensing each time you kissed him.

Daryl mumbled your name, and his body relaxed against your touch. You scooted closer and moved your lips up his neck. You pushed his shirt off and ran your hands down his biceps; he was so muscular, so strong, even when relaxed. You couldn’t stop yourself from running your fingernails along the lengths of his arm, which left goosebumps in their wake.

You moved your hand down his abdomen and to his jeans, fumbling with the button and zipper for a second while running your tongue up the length of his neck.

“Jesus Christ,” Daryl grunted.

You smiled against his skin before pushing your hand between his jeans and briefs and palming his growing erection. You sucked gently on one of the spots on his neck you knew he loved, and you felt him grow even harder.

One of Daryl’s hands reached up to pull out your braid, and your hair fell over your shoulders, tickling his skin, and he fisted his hand through your hair at the base of your head. You moaned as you sucked on his skin, dipping your hand into his briefs and running it along his velvety smooth skin.

“You’re so hard, honey, is everything okay?” You whispered in his ear.

His chest was moving up and down rapidly as he nodded. You squeezed him before wiping your thumb across his leaking precum tip.

“So fuckin’ sexy.”

“Tell me what you want, old man.” You leaned back to look at his beautiful eyes. “Tell me how you want me.”

“On your knees.”

Not even a minute later, you were naked with your legs spread out, ass in the air, and Daryl was thrusting into you hard from behind. The position had him reaching parts inside of you you didn’t think were possible, and you struggled not to cry from how good it felt.

Daryl’s hands held your hips tight as he slammed into you repeatedly.

Then one of those hands wrapped around your hair, and he pulled you upwards. The pain from it was nothing compared to how good it felt being dominated like that, and you moaned loudly and closed your eyes. One hand wrapped around your middle, with a hand palming your breast, while the other gripped your hip.

“Ya like that?” His breath was hot in your ear, sending chills down your body. “Ya gotta use ya words, pretty girl.”

“Yes, yes,” You were desperate. His hoarse voice in your ear and his grunts and moans were too much for you. “Daryl, I’m going to-.” You couldn’t even finish your sentence before you were coming. You clenched around him as you moaned and pleaded his name louder than ever.

“Such a good girl,” Daryl said. His thrusts were like torture through your orgasm, and you could hear how wet you were.

“Daryl,” You moaned. You couldn’t believe this side of him; it had to have been the alcohol. He was never this talkative.

“Ya want more, baby girl? Tell me what ya want.”

You couldn’t even think straight, and then when you felt his lips clamp down around your neck, your eyes rolled back, and you were speechless. But you thanked God Daryl wasn’t.

“Ya so fuckin’ wet for me.”

“I missed this little pussy so bad, gorgeous.”

“Fuck, (Y/N)...”

“Suck on these for me, will ya, darlin’?”

Without even hesitating, you opened your mouth and sucked harshly on his fingers before they were ripped away from you, and within seconds you felt them rub against your clit in time with his thrusts.

“Daryl…” You nearly yelled and leaned your head back against your shoulder.

“Ya know how good ya taste, baby girl?” He asked before bringing his fingers up to his mouth. You turned to watch him; his cheeks hollowed as he sucked you off his fingers. Then he returned them to your clit for a few seconds before showing them in your mouth.

You moaned against his fingers, licking and sucking until he was satisfied. His fingers were only on you for a few seconds before you nearly started yelling when you came again.

“That’s right, baby girl,” He grunted, thrusting through your orgasm. “Tell me how much you like it?”

“Oh God, Daryl, so much.” You moaned loudly. “I need more of you.”

Your back hit the mattress pad, and he was slamming into you before you could blink. Your legs were jelly, and you couldn’t bring them up to wrap around his waist, so they went slack as he fucked you hard. You couldn’t fathom how much stamina he had tonight, nor all his dirty talk.

“Daryl…” You whined as he repeatedly hit the same spot again and again, winding you up all over again.

“I know, baby girl, I know.” His voice was so deep and hoarse in your ear, and you ran your fingernails along his back, making him groan. “‘M gonna fuckin’ cum inside of ya, fill ya up so good. Make ya mine.”

“I already am,” You whimpered at a particularly hard thrust, and you could feel yourself starting to get sore. Tears leaked from your eyes at how good it felt, and he paused for a second and looked at you, wiping them away.

“Feel good?” He asked you under his breath.

You nodded. “Keep going, hard.”

Daryl fucked you like he did the night that he asked you to marry him; hard, with his hands, mouth, tongue, and teeth everywhere he could touch. You were sure you left scratches bleeding down his back as you came one more time before he did, filling you so much so you could feel it leaking out before he even finished.

You winced when he pulled out of you before letting your sweaty body relax into the mattress bad.

“Fuck,” Daryl muttered. “Darlin’, ya bleedin’.”

“Hmm?”

“I made ya bleed, I- I am so sorry.”

You sat up partially and saw little blood on him. “It’s okay. It’s been a really long time since I had it like that. I’m just sore, it doesn’t hurt.”

“Are ya sure?”

You nodded, “Just get something to clean me off.”

He chuckled, gave you a yes, ma’am, and was gone for a second before he was back, taking care of you like he always did. Then he brought you into his arms, and you sighed with content against his chest.

“We should drink like that more often. You were…”

“Don’ remind me.”

You smiled and looked up at him. “I loved it. Why haven’t you said anything like that before?”

“Just kept it up in my head, I guess.”

You snuggled closer to him under the warm blanket. “Well, I except to be called baby girl much more often, old man.”

“Ain’ an old man.”

***

The following day, you woke up to an erection digging into your back so hard you were sure it left it bruise, and you woke Daryl to give his body what it clearly wanted. The two of you made slow, tender love to each other for nearly an hour before your stomach grumbled too hard, and Daryl went to fetch you something to eat from the supplies you brought.

After eating, you got dressed and went outside. The sun was shining again, and about a foot of beautiful, crystal snow had partially frozen over. Your boots crunched over it as you and Daryl worked to clear the platform and the parts of the roof you could reach.

“I wanna walk around. I need to stretch my legs.” You told him as you grabbed your weapons. Your machete went to its usual home, but you left the bow behind.

Daryl followed you down the rope ladder, and you both took a few seconds to look around the area before walking. Flurries were floating around from the branches above you and the wind, so when you looked at Daryl, his hair was coated in them. You knew yours must match.

“You wanna know what I love most about you, Dixon.” You asked him.

“What, Dixon?”

You smiled, your heart fluttering. “That you’re not what I expected you to be. When we first met.”

“What did you expect?”

You shrugged. “Some macho, manly man who didn’t have a care about anything in the world.”

“Ya sayin’ I ain’ manly?”

Laughing loudly, you looped your arm around his. “I’m not saying you aren’t. I’m just saying that you’re the sweetest guy I’ve ever known. Both before and after. And I just really admire you for it.” Daryl blushed and shook his head, and you stood on your toes to kiss his red cheek. “Just as I said, sweet.”

Daryl grunted in response and said he was going to check the snares. You watched as he walked away, admiring him in his shawl and how he carried his crossbow. He was a perfect figure against snow blankets, and you bit your lip as you watched him.

There was still lingering anxiety as you looked at him. You believed that he wouldn’t let what happened happen again. But you weren’t quite sure about it. He didn’t know the future. You didn’t. And it killed you to think that it could happen again. You weren’t sure if you could survive it. You barely survived it the first time--if you had, you wouldn’t have fallen into him again so quickly. You would’ve been able to let him walk out of your room at the kingdom and be content with never seeing him again.

You sighed to yourself and crossed your arms. It was freezing but the fresh air felt nice against your rosy cheeks. And the surrounding area was so peacefully quiet that you wanted to bask in it.

Something hit the back of your head, and you felt snow fall into the back of your jacket. You scoffed and turned again. “Did you really just throw a snowball at me, Dixon?”

He had another one in his hand, about five yards from you. He tossed it into the air and caught it. “I did.”

“What are you, ten years old?” You asked but bent down to pick up snow in your own hand. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw him about to throw another one at you, and you quickly jumped behind a tree.

“Can’ hide from me, foreve’,”

You smiled widely and leaned against the tree. You could hear the crunch of his footsteps, and when he was close enough, you ducked around the tree and jumped on his back. You shoved the snow into his face and laughed loudly.

“I let ya do that,” Daryl said as he wiped snow off his nose.

Your boots hit the ground, and then Daryl grabbed you, pinning you against the tree before you even realized it. “You did not. You must be losing your touch in your golden years,” You said.

“That ain’ what ya said last night.” Daryl dipped his head and whispered in your ear. “Think ya was tellin’ me how much ya need me.” His voice was deep, and you felt your stomach flip.

You looked up at him as flashbacks of the night before and then this morning when he was buried deep inside you. You felt heat run straight through you, grabbed him by his shawl, and brought his lips to yours. You could still hear those words ringing in your head.

Daryl pushed you against the tree with his body, and you reached down to palm him over his jeans. His lips moved quickly over yours, and his hands couldn’t find a spot to settle.

“Gotta get ya back to the treehouse, huh?” He mumbled against your lips.

You shook your head and unzipped his jeans. “Here.”

“It’s freezin’ out,”

“I don’t fucking care,” You said, kissing him again.

Daryl groaned against your lips before stepping away and taking off his shawl. You were instantly touching him again, trying to reconnect your lips when he had you lie down on the shawl, and he worked at taking off your sweats. You could feel the cold from the snow as soon as your pants were off, but you ignored it.

Your cold fingers worked at lowering his pants enough to get his cock out, and you had only just started moving your hand up and down when he swatted your hand away to spread your legs for him. You bit your lip at seeing him lining up to fuck you.

His fingers were as cold as ice when he rubbed them against your clit and teased your opening. Your eyes screwed shut, and you moaned softly. “Don’t tease me.”

He didn’t say anything as he thrust hard into you, which had you nearly yelling in arousal. Your fingers locked around his neck as he fucked you. You could feel snow everywhere, and your legs tingled with cold, but it was exhilarating. Having him fuck you outside like this.

“Fuck, ya so wet, baby girl,” Daryl grunted in your ear. “All for me.”

***

You and Daryl arrived at Alexandria four days later, hand in hand. Eugene was manning the gate, and he was happy to see the two of you. There were a few other people on watch. Some of them Daryl hadn’t met you, so you introduced them. The streets were slushy, and you kept slipping next to him as you walked toward your house.

"(Y/N)!”

You smiled as soon as you heard Judith yelling for you, and when you saw her running as fast as she could, you dropped Daryl’s hand to meet her halfway. You scooped her up and spun her around before putting her back on the ground and cupping her cheeks. “I missed you so much, Jude.” You said.

“You missed the first snow,” She whined. “We didn’t get to have our annual snowball fight. And you were gone longer than you said you’d be.”

“I know, sweetie. I’m sorry. I came as soon as Adam cleared me.”

“Can I see your scar?” She asked with excitement.

You laughed and nodded. “Later. Look who’s with me.”

Judith looked around you and smiled wide when she saw her uncle. “Daryl!”

You smiled as she threw herself into his arms, and then the door opened, and Michonne walked out in her pajamas. She was thrown off when she saw you but quickly came over to hug you. “I wasn’t expecting you back so soon. I didn’t know you were coming.”

“I wanted to surprise the kids.” You said, adjusting the bow on your shoulder. You lowered your voice and looked at your best friend, who kept glancing back at Daryl. “We want to work things out. I want to work things out. I love him.”

She slowly smiled and nodded. “I’m happy to see it. Is he moving back in?”

“Yeah, but we can move into one of the emptier houses.”

“No, I want you with me,” Michonne told you. “And it would break Judith and RJ's heart if you did.”

#daryl x reader #daryl dixion x reader #the walking dead daryl #daryl fanfiction #daryl dixon #daryl dixon x reader #daryl x y/n #daryl twd #twd #daryl x you

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chrisgetsmewet · 3 months

Text

I can count on you

Matt × fem!reader

A/n - i personaly think this isn't gonna be that good i was just listening to lil peep and thought of it also this might be short.

Summary - matt tells y/n to call him whenever things get hard at home.

Warning - family abuse, abusive dad, angst, fluff at the end ig

Wasn't proofread!

I hear stumping coming to my room, quick movements really.

"where are they" my dad says bursting through my door.

I knew what he was talking about. He's and addict he doesn't stop doing drug's, smoking, and drinking. The thing is i don't care but when he does those things he is really abusive more then normal and my mom let's it happen.

"W-what are you talking about?" I play like im clueless but I'm sure it won't work.

In all reality im more scared then i put off, i think he could really hurt me if he wanted to he never has but if he wanted to he would. He is also really good at talking down on me belittling me in every way possible, everytime he got a chance.

"Dont play with me you little shit" the man walks over to me snatching me off my bed and grabbing a fist full of my hair "you're gonna tell me where you put it" he adds walking out the room to the kitchen practically dragging me.

I hold the hand he has on my hair "ow..ow..ow" i try and get out of his grip. Yeah thats not happening.

He pushes me in the living room and i stumble a bit. I turn around to face him crossing my arms looking to the side feeling a presence, a set of eyes looking at me. It's my mom just sitting there drinking a bottle of alcohol,switching in-between smoking and drinking.

"Where are my pills" the man says

I shrugg letting out a mumble "i don't know" i avoid eye contact as much as possible with him

I felt my mom staring at me from where she was sitting. She slouches back a little crossing her legs

"Y/n just tell your daddy where his shit is and you can go" she says

I hate that she calls him my dad, he is my dad but he definitely isn't a father figure and he ruined my childhood, they both did. But at the same time i wouldn't want anything bad to happen to either of them cause they're still my parents, but sometimes you get what you deserve.

He takes the bottle out of my moms hand and throws it against the wall near me, he lines other to me yanking my arm towards him "i couldn't hear you the first time, you were whispering. WHAT DID YOU SAY"

"It's gone.. " i chocked out, closing my eyes looking away from him. I felt him let go of me, i open my eyes he was stressing freaking like any person would but he was filled with rage, i knew it was bad when he started pacing back and forth. I could tell that all from his body language, but what i couldn't tell is what was gonna happen next.

"leave.. LEAVE GET OUT OF MY FACE BEFORE I FUCK YOU UP"

That was all he had to say i run to my room and i close the door. That's when it sets in 'i can't be here any longer i have to go until he's more calm' my brain wouldn't cut off non stop thoughts coming to my head. But the main one was text matt so thats what i do. So we can meet up, he'd want me to do that. We had this discussion, everytime something bad happens or im feeling down i can give him a call/text. So that's what im going to do.

Matt🎀🎀

To matt:

Hey can we meet up?

Sent 10:54 pm delivered

Matt??

Sent 10:55 pm seen

From matt:

Yeah. What's going on??

Sent 10:57pm seen

To matt:

I'll tell you when we get there.

Sent 10:58 pm seen

Matt's POV

I wonder what she needs to tell me. I dont get text like these often unless it's her being random or her wanting to go out for food. So it must be important about family or something sense we have to meet at the rooftop. I hope y/n is ok she never really likes talking about what goes on at home but i know it hurts her and it hurts me that people who are supposed to love you treats her like complete shit.

I was with chris watching a movie but he was sleep. So i thought. I got up quietly not to make a noise, so when the movie got loud thats when i made swift movements, getting my stuff and looking for the keys, the noise could be heard less sense the movie drowned it out. I found the keys

Before i left out i heard chris "where are you going?" He mumbled in a sleepy voice "late night drive" the excuse came straight to my head it wasn't technically a lie but it was definitely not the truth. I walk out of the room so no more questions can be asked. Sense after all he is still in the half alseep half awake state.

In the car half way there i think about what possibly could have happened and if she was truly ready to talk about it cause i gues y/n likes to seem like she's living a normal life but whatever goes on at home hurts her and she never cries about it but it's not best to bottle it up but i wouldn't wanna push her to anything she doesnt wanna talk about so i won't.

I stop for gas on the way over there cause i know the next morning. There won't be any, both chris and nick will give me shit for it but it's also gonna make me late which isn't what she probably needs right now

Back to y/n pov

I put my phone in my pocket and slip out the window. I walk to our place, where me and matt meet up, it's a roof of a hotel it's not a popular one so that's why we never get 'caught' i like it there cause there's a good view of people passing by and it's quiet and you're just there left with your thoughts and the cold breeze of boston.

I walked about 10 minutes to the rooftop waiting, walking around contemplating what i was gonna tell him, he knows about my family problems but I'd rather not relieve it and just be comforted but i don't wanna be an attention seeker or a disappointment like my dad says i am.

"Hey" matt walks over to me "hey" i reply it wasn't awkward i was just warming up to tell him what happend.

"So what's going on" he was trying to make conversation he does that a lot so it doesn't go quiet sense i find silence comforting and I'll forget why i was there to begin with also with his presence it's a lot more comforting.

"It's my parent's again" i avoid looking at him while explaining everything cause i learned not to cry over things like that because it's not gonna change anything.

"So i flushed my dad's pills and any drugs he had down the toilet cause he would get really violent when he had them so i thought i was doing the right thing but it just made him more mad and i.." i let out a breath before putting my head in my hands and collect my thoughts i was just exhausted

"It's ok, talk to me." He reaches over and ubs my back until i sit my head up ready to talk again

"Umm.. i don't really wanna go back home because ime scared and.." i bring my fingers to my mouth biting on my nails "i wanted to know if i could stay at you're house just for today"

"Yeah of course as long as you want" he brings me in for a hug and i hug him back almost immediately i really need a hug from someone that i know that cares about me i wonder how it feels to have parents that adored you since birth and loved you. It must be nice id never know of course cause my parents can't stay away from drugs or alcohol for a day without some how putting the blame on me. Youre the reason we're like this, you never do anyrhing but sit around acting usless, do better in school it's not that hard.

I feel something wet on my cheek i wipe my cheek and it was tears.great. i was crying and i didn't even know it that's the last thing i needed right now, i sniffle.

Matt pulls away from the hug looking at me "are you crying? Y/n it's not you're fault" he pulls me back in for a hug "you're gonna be ok." He let's go of me and sits down against the ledge around the rooftop and i sit down next to him leaning my head on his shoulder.

"Hey, matt.." i was waiting for his response "hmm" he replied attentively "would you say I'm an attention seeker" i can feel him move my head off his shoulder so he can look at me "no, not at all y/n where is this coming from" looking in my eyes as if he's looking for an answer "it's nothing" i clear my throat "can we go now"

I wait for him to get up so we can walk to the car together. We make our way off the roof by the little ladder it had going off the side and down to his car we get inside. "So you wanna get anything to eat" "no I'm fine". I lied. I wasn't fine but i really didn't wanna be a burden besides it was around 12pm and we had school the next day so by the grace of god he even saw my text message.

We made it to the house and it was quiet and dark the only light was the lamp that stayed on i only know that cause the tumes i stayed over on summer nights and wanted water in the middle of the night cause it was super hot.

I crept upstairs to the extra room it wasn't really an extra room it was just Justin there older brothers room.

"If you're not up bye tomorrow I'll tell everyone you stayed over. Also get me if you need anything. ok?"

"Sure thing" i nodd sitting on the bed looking where he was standing as he was closing the door i called his name "can you actually stay"

"Huh?" He called out with confusion in his voice

"I actually don't wanna be alone right now. So i was wkndering if you could stay" i was desperate but not trying to sound the part but i really needed comfort the hug he gave me earlier really made me see life was worth living and there is always gonna be light when it's dark you just gotta find it and i did.

"You sure??" conforming my offer I've never made before so im sure it caught him off guard.

"Yes. Please"

"OH!... i almsot forgot you can change into Justin's old clothes if you want" the brunette pointed over to his older brothers closet and dresser

I changed into a grey lacrosse T- shirt and some black sweats with a string to fasten the waistband i get in the bed matt was already laying in on his phone. It was honestly kinda strange it was like we were dating but we weren't but that feeling wasn't a new one. I've always felt that way with him he made it easy to get butterflies he was nice and respectful when he wanted to be that's what makes me like him so much but i never let those feelings tk the surface cause i can't mess up what i have just for something more.

He cuts his phone off "goodnight?"

"Night" i replied sluggishly and very tired

He's turned my way so i turn facing him and scoot closer so he can wrap his arm's around me. After all that is the real reason i wanted him to stay so i can be in his warm embrace like before cause it made me feel at ease.

The whole house was at peace unlike mine. Little creaks and wind blows from outside the house and cars passing by, the room half lit from the moon casting into the room i don't think neither me or matt was sleep i could tell from his breathing pattern. Not reay he would just move a little. The room was warm but cold breezes from the air conditioning cutting on every now and then. I feel a tug at my waist it was matt pulling me closer to him, i get comfortable with our bodies intertwined on the soft mattress beneath us. We were so close to eachother i could feel his warmth of his breath on me. It was a feeling of security after awhile i dozed off and im sure matt did too.

A/n: yep thats its🎀🎀 feed my delusions and tell me it's good even if tou dont agree

#sturniolo triplets #matt sturniolo #chris sturniolo #nick sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #matt sturniolo x reader #sturniolo x reader #matthew sturniolo imagines #matthew sturniolo

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sleepy-wyvern · 1 year

Note

Hi! Just found your blog and i love it

If you're taking requests I'd love some best friends to lovers smut with Eddie

Maybe he figures out you have a crush on him and he feels the same way. Whatever you think is best, i'm sure it would turn out amazing

- @eddiesprincess86

So uh, I went a little crazy and wrote my longest oneshot ever at 5.8k words, I hope you dont mind! I finished this at 3am but I really wanted to get this to you asap and be something you might enjoy! I hope you like! Thanks so much for your kind words as well!!! <;3 @eddiesprincess86

"Friends" | Eddie Munson x female!Reader Smut

First gif, second pic

TW/CW: jealous reader, very brief mention of cheating (not by Eddie or Reader), vaping, marijuana & cigarette references, alcohol, cream pie, slight praise kink?

Pet names: baby, darling, sweetheart (this fic uses y/n)

This fic contains 18+ EXPLICIT material, minors DNI! All characters in this fic are 18+

Friends. We’re friends. The concept of a friend was never meant to be a bad one, so why did it feel like poison in your brain the moment the words thrummed into your ear drums?

That was what you were, after all.

Friends who spent nearly every day together. Hell, best friends even.

“What’s the matter, y/n? You have been acting weird and avoiding me.” Eddie’s eyes were large and brown, it was rare to see him with a serious expression so you felt thrown off guard.

The matter is you were in love. With him. And didn’t want to admit it to yourself.

You think back to when you both were little. His hair was short and buzzed, he was covered in dirt and his jeans had bright green grass stains. He’d smile brightly at you, asking if you wanted to play after school. Even then you knew people considered him a freak. But you didn’t care, you had fun with Eddie and that’s what mattered.

Your mother on the other hand, always kept you neat and tidy, scolding when you’d track any dirt or stain your precious clothes.

“You were with that Munson boy again weren't you?” She’d scowl while running a bath “that boy's trouble.”

When you got older you figured it had something to do with his parentage, or where he had lived in a trailer park and you a house with the white picket fence.

But as you grew into a teenager, your parents realised they were better off letting you be friends with who you wanted. You’d just rebel against them anyways if they told you not to. They also figured it’d be better to monitor you both by letting him hang out at your place, so you wouldn’t be “up to no good.” In doing so they realised what a kind person he was, offering to do the dishes, helping your family move houses a few streets down, bringing you Gatorade when you’re sick and watching the house while you went on dreaded family vacations. Eventually the sight of Eddie at your house was normal, expected even.

One night, he helped you home when you embarrassingly had too much to drink. You didn’t think your parents found out, as the quiet house creaked while he tucked you into bed with a glass of water and escaped through the window. But ever since then your mom warmed up to him a little more.

“You can tell Eddie we’re having tacos tonight, I know they’re his favourite,” your mom beamed from the kitchen one evening.

Now things were different. You lived in your own small apartment, he in his. His hair was longer, his body and yours were covered in tattoos.

Now he was staring at you expecting a reply, eye bags drooping in a tired, charming way. But he still played guitar, he still wore ripped jeans, still snuck away with you to drink and get high, still got mad at you when you were close to having too much to drink. The same yet different.

Something had to explain or account for a newfound feeling in your chest when he introduced you to the girls at the hideout.

When he got off the stage, his chest was still heavily moving up and down and sweat dripped from his hair and forehead. The sight made you unable to sit still, you pretended to not know why.

They were his friends, yet the blond girl seemed to bat her eyelashes at Eddie as she sat at the bar. The purple and pink haired girl didn’t need to, her low cut top and skirt with fishnets spoke for her that night.

Jealousy dissolved to anger which dissolved to sadness. You hated that you started to despise these girls you hadn't even known for more than 5 minutes. For doing a normal thing, shooting their shot with a guy that was single.

Yet it still stung when he said the words “Hey, this is y/n, my friend.”

For the first time in your friendship you were jealous.

“Nice to meet you,” you said, not caring to listen to their names.

Eddie didn’t seem to notice they were flirting with him, yet the jealousy still appeared, taunting you. One of Eddie’s other band members interrupted their quiet small talk, something about equipment needing attention.

You looked down the bar noticing Gareth sitting there. You moved to sit on the stool next to him, sighing as you lean your arms onto the wooden counter.

You were the same age and last year celebrated your 21st birthday. Now of legal drinking age, you often shared drinks at Corroded Coffin shows to support Eddie every Tuesday. It became a ritual of sorts, and you grew pretty close that way.

Eddie met him in highschool, at a dnd club. You never really knew him that well until after graduation. Lost sheep, Eddie had called him. You’ve never felt any feelings for Gareth, especially jealousy. Was that what this was for Eddie, a stupid little crush?

You sighed, folding your arms as you tapped your fingers against yourself anxiously. Gareth eyed you out of the corner of his vision curiously. You ordered a rum and coke, something that had a nostalgia about it for you.

“Good show tonight huh?” He spoke before taking a long sip of his beer.

The bartender brought you your glass and you drank eagerly, it had more soda than you wanted tonight.

“Uh huh,” you looked over to Eddie who was talking to the girls, hands in his pockets.

Gareth followed your eyes as he tapped his finger along the handle of his mug.

“Who are they?” He asked.

“Huh?” You turned back to him and he nodded towards where you were looking.

Embarrassed you looked down at your cup “some girls from out of town. Ones a singer.”

He nodded silently, shifting his position on the stool. What you didn’t see was Eddie looking back at you as you stared down, glancing concerned between you and Gareth. Eddie gave him a look of apprehension to which he shrugged at.

You take another sip of your drink, enjoying the hot sensation in your stomach. It was so stupid. Eddie’s hooked up with girls before, though you both wanted to know little to nothing about each other's love life it never bothered you before. Now, he wasn’t even sleeping with someone, as far as you knew, but it still bugged you. The thought of him sleeping with them made you want to vomit.

“You should tell him,” Gareth broke your thoughts, you wondered for a moment if he could read minds.

You were moments away from choking on your drink, thankfully he didn’t notice “tell him what?” Your voice had a small croak to it.

Gareth sighed, sitting straight up. He wore his old red plaid jacket he had since high school, it had tears and patches sewn over.

“You know what,” he gave you an irritated look.

You scowl at him before downing your drink. The ice clinked the bottom of the glass as you placed it down on the counter.

“I’m not stupid, but Eddie is. He couldn’t notice a crush if it slapped him in the face.” Gareth looked at you sympathetically but you couldn't handle it anymore.

You sigh standing up, grabbing your soft warm jacket. Eddie catches your gaze as you stand, turning to leave the bar. He waves you, you wave back but still head to the door. He hurries up to you, catching you just before you leave.

“Hey,” he said, “you’re going home already?” His eyes darted between yours, a tinge of sadness coated them. You felt bad but it pained you to be here, of the reactions that you had that you weren’t proud of.

“Yeah, it’s getting late so I should head home.” You smile at him weakly, he doesn’t return the sentiment, just a look of concern.

“Are we still on for tomorrow…?” He asked, sounding hopeful with bright doe like eyes.

“Yeah,” it was all you could think of to say, your heart ached.

He let you leave in silence. You zipped up your jacket, bundling against the cold spring night. You take your vape out of your pocket, warming it with cold fingers. You watched the smoke disperse into the air as it evaporated.

Arriving home you change into your pyjamas crawling into bed, wondering how you’ll be able to make it through tomorrow. When did things change? What changed?

The last month you supposed, spending the dark months of the beginning of the year together watching shows like The Last of Us and playing Valorant. You loved him, you always had since you were little. He stuck up for you, and frankly people were scared of him so they stayed off your back. In return you always stuck up for him when people called him a freak or whatnot.

He brought you ice cream when your first love broke your heart. You brought him weed and beer when his girlfriend cheated on him. But your love for him never felt like this before, a bittersweet taste on the back of your tongue.

You’re not sure when your buzzing thoughts turned to sleep but at some point they did, as you woke to the sound of a text message in the morning. It was Gareth.

“Did you do it yet?” He texted.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You replied.

“:(“

“Sorry. Hanging out with Eddie tonight. I'll call you tomorrow.” You lock your phone screen feeling a little guilty. You went about your day to day routine until 7pm rolled around, unsure of what else to do.

You had popcorn, snacks, and beer in the fridge. The tv was ready, if you were to watch something, and your Nintendo switch was ready if that was the choice, or your gaming laptop.

Your foot was bouncing in anxiety, trying to get some nervous energy out when the doorbell rang in your ears. You get up, rather too quickly, making your way to the door. Opening it you’re greeted with shaggy, wavy dark hair. He held a bottle of wine and your favourite candy.

“What’s the occasion?” You asked, opening the door wider and stepping back.

“No occasion,” he admitted stepping inside, “just your favourite.”

Your stomach churned wondering if he could tell you were upset last night and was trying to make up for it. He made no indication he was doing so, strolling into your apartment as usual. He got two wine glasses out knowing exactly where you kept them. He poured the wine into the glasses, swirling the liquid around dramatically. You stood with your arms crossed watching him silently.

“What did you wanna do tonight?” He asked and honestly you never thought this far ahead. Making it past the door was your biggest anxiety tonight.

“No idea,” you rubbed your temples to soothe your racing brain.

He looks out the window thinking for a moment as he does, “come with me. We’re going for a walk.”

“You just poured wine and took off your shoes.” You can’t help but chuckle a little at his sudden idea. Once Eddie has an idea he’ll drop everything he’s doing to accomplish it.

“Yeah, well, it’ll be here when we get back,” he clapped his hands together “let’s go go go!”

You blink a few times shaking your head but you oblige. You haul a black hoodie over your head, tugging it down. You slip on your hightops and suddenly you felt like you were in highschool again, heading out with Eddie just for something to do.

Placing your wallet and keys into your pocket you step outside into the cold air, “where are we going?” you turn back to watch him haul on his snow white sneakers.

“For snacks,” he answered, closing the door behind him.

It felt like forever since you walked somewhere just for the hell of it. You put your air pod in one ear, offering him the other that he accepts on one condition.

“Play our blended playlist,” he requested as you opened spotify.

The sky was painted orange, you watched the clouds while you walked as darkness crept around the horizon. You knew the path to the corner store, absentmindedly your legs carried you there. Music played through your ears as you watched him walk besides you, hand in his pockets staring off into the sky.

You admire his smile lines framing his gorgeous brown eyes, each told a story of his years of happiness that you witnessed. His hair bounced back against the light breeze, he wore his usual leather jacket and jean vest, keeping him warm enough. His silver chain attached to his belt loops bounced against his leg with every step. Occasionally a loose pebble was kicked further ahead, skipping across the cement sidewalk.

You weren’t sure what to say, if anything. Words caught at the bottom of your throat, until you reached the old little shop. It looked the same as when you were a kid- old dirty white siding, wooden steps leading up to the door that creaked, a gross ashtray you tried your best to avoid looking at lest your appetite escape you.

You stroll into the old building as the bell rings, the white tiles beneath your feet covered in sand. You look over the numerous colourful packages of sweet treats, mouth watering already.

It was so nostalgic, reminding you of the numerous times you stopped by here with Eddie. As kids you stopped by for blue and red slushies in the summer on your bikes, the place always smelled like cheap deep fried food. Once, when you were preteens, you poured your change together and with it bought a package of ice cream sandwiches. You had eaten the entire package together, sitting on the swings until you had to go home from a tummy ache.

You felt lucky you lived closer to it now, in your new apartment, but refused to go there without him. It felt so weird to be there alone, as if this was a spot just for you both.

Tonight you opted out from the sticky ice cream or slushies. Instead you went for the bottled soda, craving the sweet fizzy feeling on your tongue.

“What do you think?” Eddie asks, holding his arms out like a game show host showing off prizes “kitkat, butterfingers, Reece’s…”

You glance over your shoulder at him while picking out the blue soda. Eddie always looked quite out of place, like he should be on stage. Shaggy hair, ripped jeans, demon-esque clothing. Yet it was oddly fitting for the old corner store. Probably a normal occurrence for the shop tender, as he looked rather bored.

“Didn’t you already bring me candy?”

“Yes but as you know, candy is not chocolate,” he retorts and you roll your eyes.

“They both have sugar. Loads of it.”

“Okay but,” his eyes widened as he looked down at you matter-of-factly “chocolate is an entirely different category.”

You couldn’t help but smile at him “okay, you’re right.”

You grabbed a kitkat, placing it on the counter next to a see through display of scratch tickets. The cashier rang through the items as you shifted your weight from one leg to the next. Why were you so nervous?

You managed to place a $20 down before Eddie could, dumping the change back in your wallet while he scowled at you. He settled for holding the chocolate in his pockets as you strolled out of the store.

“Let’s go to the playground,” he suggested, “all the kids will be gone by now.”

Your eyebrow raised “everyone will be gone because that playground is junky.”

He laughs, “well, more fun for us.”

The old playground was nearby, it still had the same rusted monkey bars and swing set, though the swing seats and chains had been switched out some time ago. It didn’t take you long to get there and he was right, there was no one there.

You sat on the old black swing, hips much wider now, making it a bit more uncomfortable now than as a kid. Your knees pressed together as you kicked at the ground, rocking yourself back and forth making designs in the sand. You twisted the cap off of your soda bottle, bringing the glass mouth piece to your lips. The sweet blue liquid dripped down your throat, fizzing as it entered your stomach.

Eddie sat next to you, hands currently buried in a bag of sour patch kids, offering you the kitkat. You held it in your hands, looking it over. After a few songs played in your ears, he stood in front of you, looking down at you.

“What’s the matter, y/n? You have been acting weird and avoiding me.” Eddie’s expression was serious. Something you didn’t see very often.

You scratched the back of your neck not yet answering so he continued.

“I mean not like physically ignoring me,” he said using nervous hand gestures “just, I don’t know…” he trailed off looking for the right words to say “it’s corny. Like you’re not connecting with me.”

You ran your thumb along the glass bottle while his eyes darted between yours.

“Oh my god,” he said as you looked up at him, eyes caught on the part in his lips. His facial expression softens “you have a crush on Gareth.”

You burst out into a laugh and he raises an eyebrow at you “No, you dingus.”

He looks into your eyes, face melting as a thousand emotions exchange between you as you both realize the truth. You look down at your feet as he sits on the swing next to you.

“Do you remember when we met?” he asked you, looking straight ahead.

“Honestly? No,” you admitted.

He looked over at you then, “me neither,” you shared a hearty chuckle together.

Looking up at the sky you noticed the stars were slowly starting to appear.

“You were just… always there. But I remember the day I first realised I loved you,” he fumbled with his rings, a little nervous.

Your eyes meet his, urging him on.

“You were wearing a yellow dress with pink butterflies, your hair was in braids. Jason Carver said the town called me a freak-” he smiled as he recounted the memory.

“-and I punched him in the face” you laugh into the darkening sky.

His laugh joined you as he crossed his arms “and he cried, swearing his revenge by telling his mommy.”

“Yup, and I was ‘banned’ from hanging out with you because you were a bad influence,” truth be told Eddie wouldn’t hurt a fly, unless it was a mosquito. You were probably a bad influence on him.

“That was the day I first started loving you, and I’ve never stopped since then,” his eyes seemed to shine like the stars above his head.

Your heart seemed to pound in your chest, directly in the back of your throat as you looked into his brown eyes.

“I hated myself,” you say suddenly “that I felt jealous over those girls at the bar,” you feel your cheeks running red.

He tilted his head listening intently but his brows furrowed “you are the most gorgeous girl I’ve ever met,” tingles spread over your cheeks as he continued “you have nothing to be jealous of.”

You look down again, biting at your chapped lip.

He sighed, “Despite what Gareth says about me all of the time, I know they were flirting with me. I rejected them.”

“I-I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. It was selfish.”

He had a soft chuckle surprising you. “I think it's cute.”

You frown, kicking the sand softly as your cheeks heated.

“So,” he said after a minute, “are you going to admit your undying love for me now?”

“Well,” you recede your hands into your hoodie sleeves, feeling a little vulnerable “that’s a bit of a dramatic way to put it.”

He folded his hands together in confidence “we’ll get there,”

He reaches his hand out to you brushing his thumb along your cheek, “so are we going to do this thing or what?”

You lean to the side until his lips meet yours, a warmth touch beneath the cold sky. The moment he does, you feel unified as sparks jump from you to him and back again. The stubble on his face tickles against your cheek, a sweet sensation you never knew before.

“Wow,” he gasped, “you don’t know how long I’ve waited for that,” his eyes were locked on your lips as he whispered.

You lean forward connecting your lips again, gently sucking on his bottom lip before pulling away.

“We’ve got some wine sitting at home waiting for us” his breath against your cheek spread shivers through the rest of your body.

Instinctively you bring your hands to his cheek, getting lost in his hair “that sounds wonderful.”

The walk back to your house had the same scenery, the same vibe of music in your ear, and you even walked in the same step next to each other. Yet it was completely different. The dark blue sky looked over you both like a blanket, you giggled at jokes he threw at you playfully. Even the music seemed happier now. Before you knew it you arrived home together, taking your boots off as you entered.

You grabbed your wine glass before flopping onto the couch. The wine was room temperature but frankly you didn’t know enough about wine to know if that was good or bad. To you it was just alcohol, but the kind that made you feel fancy as you sipped from the glass.

Eddie strolled over as he always did, owning the room, sitting on the other end of the couch, tapping his foot against the floor to some invisible beat.

You had already flipped on a random Netflix movie that was on your list but despite trying to pay attention you couldn’t.

Your focus was on the man next to you, arm stretched over the couch behind your back. The same but different. The fuzzy feeling in your stomach made you smile, and you declared it a good different.

You place your wine glass on the coffee table as you lean into him, snuggling into his chest the way couples did frequently in movies. It was just as good as you thought it would be, if not better. Hearing his heart thumping against your ear, the firmness of his torso, the rise and fall of his chest with every breath… it was all so perfect. So right. You felt almost silly over how much you stressed about everything, merely an hour earlier.

“Eddie,” you looked up at him and he looked down at you, a curious look with pure happiness.

Before he could say anything your lips reunited with his, warm and soft. You brushed your tongue along his lower lip, tasting the sweetness of soda and candy. Being this close to him you never noticed exactly how good he smelled to you. Sweet tobacco, crisp evergreen, and undertones that were just so… him.

As your tongue met his, you wanted to consume him and be consumed by him. His hand moved to your waist while yours met the gruffness of his face. You brought your hands to the back of his head, tangling yourself in his soft locks.

You felt yourself climbing into his lap, surprised at your own boldness. He was too, as he held your hips steady a wide grin grew on his face while he pressed his lips into yours.

“Woah baby,” the words rolled off of his tongue perfectly “are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes,” you whisper on his lips “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”

The feeling of being on Eddie’s lap was so intoxicating you almost felt dizzy, you were so glad for his strong grip on you. You hold the back of his head, kissing him as deeply as your mouths would allow. The kisses turned sloppier as you continued and heat overtook you, your tongues mingling in and out of your mouth.

His hands tested the waters by sliding underneath your shirt and up to your waist. He grabbed at your curves, cold metal rings pressing into you in a way that sent hunger through your body.

You felt your cunt wetten as you lightly grinded against his crotch. Your leggings were a thin enough material that a fold in his jeans hit your clit at precisely the right angle causing you to let out a soft moan into his mouth, body jumping a little in surprise.

“Woah,” he smirked pulling back to gauge your reaction, “I never thought I’d hear you make that noise,”

You noticed goosebumps on his tattooed arms rise as he wrapped his arms around you.

“Sorry,” You mumble a little embarrassed.

Without warning he picked you up into his arms, holding your ass and thighs tightly as he carried you to your bedroom.

He laid you on your soft bed sheets, grinning wildly with fire in his eyes “darling that was the best sound I’ve ever heard in my life."

He cupped your face kissing you deeply. Everywhere his hands touched created sparks you’ve never gotten so intensely before. You wanted them everywhere, over your entire body.

“Touch me,” You whispered, the words almost sounded foreign on your tongue; they were the words you’ve only said to him in dreams. And this was better than any dream you’ve ever had.

He helped you pull the oversized sweater off, losing sight of him for a moment as the fabric pulled over your head. You smile at him feeling your hair frizz in different directions from the static

You giggle lovingly as he smiles back at you “every noise you make is music to my ears baby,” he brings his mouth down to the rim of your shirt, biting it and pulling it up and over your head.

Your torso shivered as you crossed your arms beneath your breasts, nervous for his reaction as you lay beneath him topless.

He kept his eyes level with yours, “you are so gorgeous,” his lips met yours as his hair brushed against your neck.

One hand moved to your neck and you melted beneath his fingers as he brushed them over your shoulder and down your arms. Slowly he moved to your waist and you couldn’t help it as you moved your arms to wrap around him. He was wearing too much though, so you tug at his shirt, pulling it up eagerly.

He straightened up, pulling his shirt up and over his head, letting it fall to the floor “is this what you wanted, darling?”

“Yes,” you whispered, entranced in his tattoos. You've been there for every one, but as he stood over you filled with desire somehow they felt different.

As he closed the gap between you, you traced his chest tattoos with his fingers before he moved to kiss your neck.

Your legs squirm as he licks the delicate skin. You let out a gasp as he sucks in between kisses, sure to leave a bruise.

“I like to mark what’s mine,” he whispers into your ear before returning to your mouth.

He hooks his fingers underneath the fabric of your bra, tugging at it and begging you to let him see you, feel you and touch you.

You lean forward allowing him to wrap his arm around you “that’s a good girl,” his hand moves to undo the clasp.

You let the straps fall off your shoulders as a shudder runs through your body. Your breasts bounce as your bra falls onto the bed.

His eyes widen as he looks down at you, in awe and shock “better than I imagined, somehow,” his lips quivered.

“You imagined them?” you tease, raising your eyebrows.

He looks deep into your eyes considering his answer before speaking “once or twice.”

You laugh pulling him in for a kiss. You couldn’t bear to have his lips apart from yours, you were already addicted to his taste and touch.

He moved his hands over to cup your breast, gently and lovingly. He ran his fingers over your nipples before lowering his head from your mouth to your breasts. You bury your hands and face into his hair, taking in as much as you could while he kisses your chest, licking and soaking you. You let out a mix of gasps and moans as he gently bites at your nipple.

You bring your hands down to your waist, feeling your hips start to beg for attention. You shimmy out of your leggings pulling them down.

Eddie was sure to give your thighs the attention they well deserved too, running his hands over them with cold rings, grabbing them lustfully. The crotch of your panties was warm as you start to soak them due to Eddie’s fingertips making their way inward towards your entrance.

“Eddie,” you whispered soft and sweet, a mixture of a question, a beg and a demand.

“Don’t worry baby, I’ll make you feel good, if that’s what you want,” his raspy voice offered you, he wanted to hear you say it.

“Yes” you nodded weakly, he lowered his fingers underneath your panties, removing them from your legs.

“I…” you whisper and he looks up at you, one brow raised in question “I…. Want your cock Eddie, so so bad.”

His body shivers at your words, he was more than willing to give you anything you wanted.

He moved his fingers to his belt buckle, removing it and letting it fall to the floor. Your toes curled as he removed his jeans and boxers, the sight of his cock made you gasp, you must’ve had a shocked or scared expression because he chuckled amused.

He lowered himself on top of you, the heat of your bodies mingling together. Your bodies pressed into one another felt like a perfect fit, like you were made for each other.

He pressed the shaft of his cock against your entrance allowing you to feel the length of him along your wet cunt. You whimpered into his mouth while he moved his hands down to your entrance.

“Are you ready baby?” He asked, big brown eyes intent to hear your answer.

You nod, “yes,” you wanted all of him, so badly, and you wanted him now.

He moved his hand to line himself up with your entrance, first testing you with his fingers. Your back arches as he slides them in easily. He curled them against your walls making you moan in pleasure.

“Please, please, Eddie, your cock,” you pouted, making him smirk in satisfaction.

He bent down and kissed you sweetly, “yes baby, you’ll get it,” he let out a small chuckle in disbelief that he finally gets to hear you say those words.

He ran his fingers over his cock, lubing up to prepare. Lining his tip up with your entrance you hold your breath. You bring your fingers up to clutch onto his back for support as he ever so slowly pushes his tip inside. You take a deep breath and he continues, tight precious pleasure filled you as you let out a small gasp.

“How’s that?” His voice was unsteady you could tell, taking in the feeling of his cock against your cunt “fuck baby, you’re so slick and tight for me.”

“Good, i'm good, i'm ready,” You fumble over the words, eager to have the rest of him.

He takes his hand in yours, intertwining your fingers as he pushes against you. You let out a deep sigh as you feel his full length deep inside you.

Eddie grins down at you, brushing your hair back “you’re taking me so well sweetheart.”

And you had, because you dreamt of this for days although you wouldn’t dare admit how badly you wanted him. Needed him, even.

You shimmy your hips, readjusting yourself “keep going,” you whisper.

He pulls out, thrusting in a little quicker this time. He repeats the process, faster again as you let out a moan. The bed started to shake and before you knew it he was ramming into your tight little cunt, grunting in exertion and pleasure.

The feeling of his cock inside you was so divine, you knew nothing else in the world would be able to top it. You never wanted to be apart from him, as you desperately pulled at the muscles on his back, wanting him closer.

He kissed your forehead and your lips, continuing to thrust at a steady pace. You readjusted your hips and to your surprise his next thrust brushed against that wonderful g-spot and the moan that escaped your lips shocked you.

“Oh, I’ve found it haven’t I?” He ran his tongue over his teeth slyly.

He continued to thrust into you, pushing into the spot over and over again “yes, yes Eddie! Harder,” you whimpered.

He grunted with sweat dripping down his forehead. Slowly but surely the tip of his cock brought you up and over that mountain of pleasure, your orgasm topping over in that sweet high. Your body stiffened letting out a moan louder than the rest and he knew he had you.

“My princess finished on my cock did she? It feels so good when you finish while I’m inside,” he kissed your neck, enjoying the pleasure on your face caused by him.

He began to thrust again, faster this time as your body was limp against the bedsheets. Your hands move to his hair, running your fingers through it and pulling it out of his face.

“Don’t hold back,” you murmur “I want to feel your cum deep inside me,” your own words made you shudder “let our orgasms mix.”

He could barely nod, chasing his orgasm through your clenching walls around him. The sensation was oh so good, so addicting. He never wanted to leave your cunt, you fit so perfectly together as if you were made for one another.

“Baby I’m-“ A delightful moan escapes him, a sound that makes you shiver as you feel him twitch inside you, releasing his seed.

You lay there together gasping, holding his hair back to help him cool down. He nuzzled his face into your neck lovingly, heart beating hard against you.

“That was…” he whispered.

“Amazing,” you finished his sentence for him with a cheeky smile.

After a minute of resting together you sigh “we should’ve gotten a towel…”

He pulls out slowly as your mixture of hot fluids drips down your thighs.

He leaves for a moment, returning with a soft cloth to dab against your sensitive entrance. Your body twitches as he pressed the cloth against you, he watched your facial expression with amusement.

“You act like you didn’t just watch me cum,” you smile.

“Oh don’t worry darling,” he moves to your lips kissing you before continuing “I’ll watch it over and over till the day we die.”

-----

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Thanks so much for reading if you made it this far I hope you all enjoyed! Leave a comment/heart/reblog if you feel so inclined, I treasure every one and they motivate me <3

My requests are OPEN! Since I have an exam next week turnaround time will be 1-3 days depending on how crazy I go on your prompt haha :)

Hope you have a great day my lovely Reader!

-Wyv

#fan fic #fan fics #eddie stranger things #eddie munson x fem!reader smut #eddie munson x you #eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson smut #im filthy sorry #fan fiction

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stardewremixed · 6 months

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SDV + SVE Pairings

This is just random fluff headcanon about good pairings in Stardew Valley, imo.

Alex

+ Abigail (already wrote a post on this adorable pairing)

+ Penny (something tells me he would be super protective of her and just the kind of adventure she needs and she would be so good to Evelyn and George, endearing him even more)

Elliott

+ Olivia (from SVE - a little May-December romance going on here)

+ Penny (he would take such good care of her, showering her with praise and adoration, and she deserves it)

+ Claire (from SVE - she's half-in-love with him already as an avid reader of his books; he would just lap up the praise)

+ Sophia (from SVE - the wine is what brings them together and love of fantasy)

Shane

+ Emily (I think she would be a good influence in his life, a bit mothering at times, but he needs a firm supporter and cheerleader in his corner when he's detoxing, plus she would spoil Jas rotten)

+ Haley (an odd pairing at first glance, but this headcanon, though not explicitly Haley, has me convinced these two would make a good pair somehow)

+ Abigail (this girl LOVES the egg hunt, and gets super into talking about chickens with him; and he kinda likes watching her from a distance, not quite sure what to make of this purple-haired beauty, but he is attracted to her joy and silliness, and she just wants to bring a smile to his face and make him happy)

+ Leah (she would not put up with his bullcrap; she would dish it right back; she would hang in there with him like a champ while he detoxed and tell him what he needs to hear; and she would be good to Jas, plus she lives close by; and I think he would appreciate homecooked meals as he eats a lot of pizza at the Saloon and frozen dinners from Joja at home; I don't think Marnie cooks much; and he would appreciate her passion for art and the outdoors, particularly their shared fondness for Cindersap Woods; she could keep up with him when he is at his best; and these two would be fire together in bed)

Magnus (Wizard from SVE)

+ Emily (something tells me this pairing would be magical *wink wink*)

+ Olivia (SVE - I'm not sure why, but this works in my head and he would give her the best "trinkets;" and he would greatly admire her first-editions collection and appreciate the library she has cultivated; somehow I also think it would be really funny for these two to get high together like she did in college in the '70s)

Harvey

+ Penny (he would also take very good care of her, and he's established with a solid career, older, a bit more experienced, and help her work through PTSD of living with an alcoholic mom)

+ Leah (oh she definitely is a capable, independent woman and catches his eye, and she likes teasing and spoiling him with goods from the woods *face palm* did not mean to make that rhyme. She would bring him salads and healthy meals and they'd enjoy a good bottle of wine or a good cup of coffee together)

+ Haley (he would spoil her and call her princess, and she would dote on him; it's all very flattering; he would also invite her to spruce up the clinic and let her display her photography; and when she cries and has a bad day, he would give her the TLC she needs; and I think she would be generous with the massages and kisses; plus, I know, this is a bit shallow, but he has a well-respected job and some money, which would impress her)

+ Claire (SVE - these two intellectuals would never run out of things to talk about, even though they are both quiet people; and they would be comfortable with the quiet; I could see them spending lazy rainy afternoons and evenings together, just reading, some soft jazz on in the background)

Sebastian

+ Leah (she would scare the hell outta him initially, but he would be secretly impressed by her woodchopping and have mad respect for her independence and fall madly in love with this redhead; she would give him the space he needs, uninterrupted, so he could work without his family constantly butting in; and I see her spoiling this touch-starved man with good food and tender loving care)

+ Haley (another odd pairing, BUT, hear me out, I think she'd ask him for help fixing her iPhone or iPad or something and at first, would be kinda annoyed by his aloofness, but then somehow would make it her mission to make sure this boy had the 'sweets;' like she would bake him a cake every week and hope something else would break just so she could see him again; he would think she's spoiled and annoying at first, but gradually grow to appreciate her artistic abilities - like seeing her out in the rain one day photographing frogs and the river and being impressed with her work; also he would secretly stalk her Instagram just so he could figure out where she was in town and casually 'bump' into her; I could see him being super into black & white photography; as Haley softens up and matures a bit, he could see himself pursuing her; and she would be totally down to follow him to Zuzu so he could pursue his dreams)

+ Claire (from SVE - it would start with them both wanting the same book at the library; of course, Seb would let her have it, but she promised to return it when she was done and let him check it out, and she stays true to her word; these two are both quiet individuals so I could see them reading together on a rainy day in the library, and seeing each other often enough, asking what the other is reading, and then gradually it becoming a habit to sit together; another girl he would introduce to digitized books; also Claire strikes me as a secret geek, totally down to try DnD and enjoying Journey of the Prairie King)

Sam

+ Scarlet (from SVE - technically not a romance candidate, but I like the idea of these two together; she is into anime and theater and cosplay and he likes her geeky side and how enthusiastically she talks about it with anyone who will listen; plus I think, she would appreciate his wicked guitar skills)

+ Emily (a little weird as a pairing, and she is an older woman, BUT, he likes how she takes care of him, bringing him a scarf on a windy day, giving him a Claritin when his spring allergies get bad, carrying around a first-aid kit when he bangs up his elbows and knees skateboarding, and keeping an eye on him when he's drinking at the Saloon; I think she enjoys having someone to take care of, someone who is carefree and happy-go-lucky like she is and open to trying anything)

+ Sophia (from SVE - what can I say? I think Sam is attracted to smart, competent, independent women; I also think they would bond because her parents died when she was younger, and he deeply misses his dad, even after Kent comes back and is suffering with PTSD; Sophia would help him through navigating it having navigated it herself; and she would appreciate his joy in life, plus I could see them both being geeky together)

Lance

+ Abigail (think of the adventures these two could/would have - enough said)

+ Scarlet (from SVE - for similar reasons as Abigail - I think she would enjoy going on adventures with Lance)

+ Leah (they are both strong and independent people, dedicated to their work, capable of being on their own for awhile, but I do think the passion would burn hot between these two)

+ Claire (SVE - she would swoon a little, to go on adventures she has only read about, and he would love to show her the world *cue Aladdin music now*)

+ Olivia (SVE - a little odd at first, but she likes that he is worldly and traveled and he appreciates her voracious appetite for literature and her cultured background; they are intellectual equals)

Victor (SVE)

+ Maru (I just love the idea of these two together; she might come over to borrow a book about astronomy and they would stay up late into the night discussing space exploration, robotics, and engineering; these two intellectuals would always enjoy each other's company and help the other with their projects; plus they both understand what it's like to have a 'hovering' parent and wouldn't mind escaping together every once in awhile)

+ Penny (another intellectual pairing; I also think he would take good care of her and enjoy spoiling her, maybe even designing a home for them to live in as an engineer; and she would fall madly in love with his library and adore how he had read all the same books she has)

Gus (not really a love interest... but... I couldn't help myself)

+ Penny (yes, you guessed it, she is attracted to men who can take care of her, and secretly loves being spoiled; they would work together in the community garden, and he always ensures she has enough food at home; she appreciates how he has always looked out for her; while kind-of a dad figure to her, now as an adult, she sees him in a whole new light - and finds herself feeling things she never thought she would; and he always saw her as much too young for him, but he admires her resilience and is beyond flattered when she confesses her feelings to him; age is just a number, right?; plus these two would be great teachers together, maybe cooking classes in the newly restored community center; and then some sensual cooking and foodplay in his apartment)

Clint

+ Sophia (SVE - as two respected business-owners in town, they would initially have that in common; after being rejected by Emily, Clint's heart is tender and raw; he doesn't think he will love again; She takes some projects to him and appreciates his attention to detail; she finds herself lingering even after she's dropped something off or after she's paid and picked up her item; one day she asks him to deliver something out to her vineyard, but then he gets stuck during a snowstorm; she cooks him a meal, something he hasn't had in a long time; he is touched by her generosity and hospitality; Sophia longs to make him feel better and to help him heal after rejection, but she's super shy and he's a bit too; so maybe she starts with an innocent invitation to dinner after that first one they had by accident because of the snow storm, but then they start enjoying a few meals together, and a glass of wine/beer at the Saloon, and soon he's walking her home on Friday nights, until one night... she invites him inside for more than just a nightcap... and...)

Who's your favorite? Any particular pairing from above that you'd like to see me write together in a "headcanon" post?

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eroticwound · 11 months

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The Parentification of the Berzatto Siblings: Mikey’s Mental State

Let’s take a look at Donna’s mental state, as a way of understanding Mikey’s. Donna is dealing with mental illness. She most likely has a personality disorder (Borderline would be my guess) that might be comorbid with a mood disorder (Bipolar or Intermittent Explosive Disorder), and is using alcohol to self-medicate.

Donna’s alcoholism doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Because of her mental illness and the stressors of being a single mom, she is self-medicating with alcohol, meaning she is using it to numb herself out. Between 50 and 70% of people with BPD have substance abuse issues, and 41% of those with Bipolar disorder self-medicate.

This is the state of the Barzatto Family Home: the unstable woman at the center, who can be fun and funny, but is incredibly volatile. She is influencing and modeling behavior for all of the Bear Sibs. So looking back at Michael, as the oldest son, the burden of Donna’s moods and the state of his siblings (and any guests that happen to be around) is firmly on him. And he is empathetic enough to get others out of their funk and charming enough to keep things positive and running (relatively) smoothly. But all the anxiety of this situation—the parentification, which forces a child to disregard their own emotions and well-being in favor of their parent—gets severely internalized, and then masked by his ability to be loud and funny.

Mikey is avoidant above all else. In that first interaction in Fishes, between him and Nat, he literally says, “with [Mom], not handling it is the best way to handle it.” And this approach of his pops up again and again, whether he’s avoiding Carmy (by not picking up the phone or engaging in difficult conversations, or literally, when he leaves the pantry after Carm gives him the present), avoiding handling Donna, or avoiding dealing with his own mental health. This is in no way helped by the fact Mikey is most likely dealing with some form of chemical imbalance, whether it’s depression or bipolar disorder like Donna.

Add to all this the self-medicating behavior Donna models for him, and it’s a fairly clear line from internalizing and masking his pain, to substance abuse; alcohol and pain medication and whatever else he was using are just more intense ways of avoiding his pain. They are quite literally the only ways he’s managing his distress.

In fact, so much of Mikey’s behavior is modeled off of Donna:

The first person to throw a utensil in Fishes is not Michael, it’s actually Donna. She throws one at Steve while Mikey and Richie are giving Carm a tough time about Claire.

Mikey hits himself after Carm gives him the gift, and Donna hits herself at the dinner table.

If Donna hadn’t driven her car through the wall, the scene Mikey makes at the dinner table might’ve been the big story from that Christmas.

And then of course there’s the traumatic tirade Donna goes on about killing herself. That seems like a fairly common threat in the Berzatto household. And it makes me wonder if the gun Michael used to kill himself was his father’s, the one that Donna threatened to use.

And this is a real issue with Parentification: it becomes normalized and perpetuated. These roles and behaviors become integrated into a child’s personality, and alters ideas of what normal and healthy relationships look like. You can see this in how Michael treats Carmen. It was normalized for Mikey to handle Donna in the kitchen. It never occurs to him that baby Carm shouldn’t be around that. But it is normalized *and* unavoidable, so Michael let’s him take on that responsibility. Even the way he talks to Carm, calling him moody, a saltine—these are intended to get Carmen out of his head, but they are also cruel and tell Carm that his emotions are too much, that his emotions can’t compete with Donna’s. After all, Donna and Mikey work together as a parental unit.

You see it especially in the first Mikey-Carmy-Donna Kitchen scene in Fishes, where Donna and Mikey gang up on Carmy together, getting Carm to say he’s happy to be home and loves them. This is a lie to smooth things over on Carmen’s end, but if being around Donna is bad for Carm, it’s bad for all of them. Living at home has got to be triggering, and you can tell throughout Fishes just how done Michael is with it.

Michael’s adulthood is so sad. We know that he had a trail of failed business ventures, money problems, and even had to move back in with Donna. He doesn’t seem to have a girlfriend, and is stuck telling the same old stories from his youth, because the best he can do is mask his dysfunction and entertain everyone. All of this is a self-perpetuating cycle, his avoidance making sure he cannot ask for the help he needs, and his relative functionality ensuring no one pushes the issue.

My next post will breakdown some of the key Mikey scenes in Fishes.

#michael berzatto #mikey berzatto #donna berzatto #carmen berzatto #carmy berzatto #natalie berzatto #sugar berzatto #the bear #the bear fx #parentification #bear meta #the bear meta #meta

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rainisawriter · 8 months

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To Care for You – Murayama (PSF #20)

Ficography

Genre: Fluff, angst, slice of life

Prompt: Pumpkin (@flufftober)

Word Count: 5,515

Pairing: Reader x Murayama

World: High&Low

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

A fierce pounding on the front door made you jump, nearly falling off the couch. Your heart was racing within your chest as you got up, slowly approaching the door. “Who is it?”

“Open this damn door, Natsuki!”

Hearing your mom’s name made you frown, pain tugging at your heart. “I’m sorry but she… she no longer lives here.”

“Bullshit!” He hit the door harder, causing it to rattle. “Open this damn door or I’m going to break it down!”

You didn’t have the money to fix it if he did break it down, so you made the decision to open the door, the chain preventing him from bursting inside. He was a huge guy, easily towering over you. “Please… she’s no longer here.”

He seemed to calm down a bit upon seeing you, folding his arms over his chest. “Where did she go?”

“She… died. A week ago.”

“Died?” he repeated in surprise, brow furrowed. “How?”

“Hit and run. She was -” You stopped yourself, figuring that he didn’t need to know that she had been wasted and wandered into the road.

His eyes flickered to the apartment behind you. “You live alone, kid?”

Your eyes narrowed suspiciously. “That’s none of your business…”

The man sighed, running a hand through his slicked-back black hair. “Listen, kid. Your mom owes my boss a lot of money. And now that she’s gone…”

“It falls on me,” you muttered flatly and he nodded.

He glanced around before moving closer, lowering his voice. “If I were you, I’d leave town. I’ll say that no one was home, but I won’t be the last one to come looking.”

“How much is the debt?”

“Five grand.”

“F-Five…” Your eyes widened, dread filling you. You didn’t have that kind of money! You were barely managing to scrape by as it was, every bit of your check going to bills and a little bit of food. With your mom gone, you didn’t have to worry about her wasting money on alcohol or partying with her friends, but that also meant you didn’t have the income from her job, either.

“For what it’s worth… I don’t think kids should inherit their parent’s debt,” he frowned, giving you a sympathetic look that had you scoffing.

“Yet you’re perfectly fine enforcing it.”

“We all do what we have to do to survive. Leave town before you get hurt.” And then he turned on his heel and walked away.

You closed the door, sliding down the wood until you hit the ground, a heavy sigh passing your lips. What the hell were you going to do? You honestly had no clue. He suggested that you leave town, but that required money, too. It’s not like you had any family to reach out to.

You closed your eyes, head falling back against the wood. “Even from the grave, you’re hell-bent on making my life as difficult as possible…”

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

Murayama was lying across the couch in Oya’s gym, tossing a baseball into the air and catching it repeatedly. He was frustrated because you’ve been ghosting him lately, ignoring his calls and not responding to his texts. Every time he saw you, you were in a hurry and looking exhausted though you assured him that everything was fine. You were just busy with work.

He knew money was tight for you, especially after your mom passed away, but was it really so bad that you had to work constantly? He knew there was something you weren’t telling him and it was driving him crazy.

With a scowl, he tossed the ball onto the couch as he stood up, leaving the gym. He had decided he would wait inside your apartment until you got home and then he would demand answers. When he reached your apartment, though, he found the front door cracked open.

His brow furrowed as he stepped inside, calling out your name. The apartment was trashed, furniture broken and strewn across the floor. Drawers had been tossed, their contents sitting in piles. He screamed your name, fear gripping his heart as he began to search for you.

You were in the kitchen, resting against the cold tile floor, your back against the counter. Your face was bloody and bruised, brow furrowed in pain.

“Oi!” He cried, falling to his knees beside you. “What happened? Who did this?!”

You winced at his loud voice, pain shooting through your skull. “Do you have to be so damn loud?”

“Sorry,” he muttered, reaching out to brush his thumb across a cut on your cheek. “Tell me who did this.”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” His brow furrowed suspiciously as he searched your tired eyes. “If you’re lying to me -“

“I’m not lying,” you muttered, leaning your head back to stare at the ceiling. “Apparently, my mom racked up quite the debt before she died. They can’t collect from a dead person so they need the next best thing.”

“Hah? You’re telling me debt collectors did this?”

“Yeah. I don’t know how they knew I got paid today…” You ran a hand down your face with a groan. “Rent is due tomorrow but they took everything… fuck, what am I gonna do, Shiki?”

Murayama shifted so that he was sitting beside you, carefully putting his arms around you. You didn’t hesitate to lean into his warmth, fingers curling around his t-shirt as you buried your face into his neck. He wanted to tell you it would be alright, but the words didn’t come.

Truth be told, he didn’t know that things would be alright. He certainly didn’t have any money and he had no idea who your mom owed money to. Something told him it wasn’t just some street gang and, as strong as Oya was, they weren’t ready to take on the Yakuza.

All he could do was hold you. He felt powerless and he hated it.

“Shiki?” you called softly, looking up at him tiredly.

“Yeah?” He cupped your cheek, loving how you leaned into his touch.

“Promise me you won’t do anything stupid. This is my problem, not – ouch!” You scowled when he flicked you lightly on the forehead, dark eyes narrowed at you.

“Your problems are my problems, idiot.”

“Yoshiki,” you stressed, sending him a serious look that made him want to squirm. “I can’t lose you, I… I can’t.”

“And you won’t.” He cupped your face, leaning his forehead against your own. “I won’t ever leave you, I promise.”

Your hands rested over his own. “Will you stay with me? I don’t want to be alone.”

He scoffed. “You really think I’m gonna let you be alone after this? If those bastards come near you again, I’ll kill them.”

“Shiki -“

“Safely. I’ll kill them safely.”

Despite yourself, you laughed at the ridiculous comment, the motion sending pain throughout your body. “Ah, it – ahaha – hurts to laugh.”

Murayama chuckled. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

You glanced at Murayama as he slept peacefully in your bed, hair falling over his eyes. You knew you should have woken him up because he didn’t want you to go anywhere alone, but he just looked so pretty that you couldn’t bear to wake him.

Plus, he had spent half the night cleaning up the apartment after you fell asleep and you felt as if he had earned the extra sleep. You smiled at him, brushing away the hair from his forehead so you could press a kiss there.

“Don’t be mad,” you whispered softly before leaving the apartment. You were on edge the entire way to Dan’s store but, thankfully, you made it there with no issue. He was restocking the fridge when you entered. “Morning, boss.”

“Good morni- what the hell happened?” His eyes widened when he turned to look at you, quickly putting the box on the ground before rushing over. Worry filled his brown eyes as he took in your injured face.

“I, uh,” you rubbed the back of your head, offering him a sheepish smile. “I fell down the stairs…”

Dan sent you a look, hand on his hip. He clearly didn’t believe you and rightfully so. He had dozens of fights under his belt and he knew what the injuries typically looked like. Those were definitely bruises created by fists, not stairs. It worried him because he had grown attached to you, but he knew how stubborn you were.

You had always been the type to keep things to yourself, to want to handle things on your own. He and the rest of Sannoh had been trying to help you with your mom for years, but you always refused. Murayama was the only one you had let in.

“Are you okay to work?”

Before you could answer, the bell above the door chimed, an older woman stepping inside. You smiled politely at her and she froze, wide eyes staring at your face. She quickly apologized before backing out of the store.

“Shit,” you muttered, frowning at the male. “Maybe I should work in the back today… I don’t want to scare your other customers.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he smiled, gently patting your shoulder. “Can you finish stocking the fridge?”

“Sure, boss.” You offered him a grateful bow before heading over to the fridge, beginning to fill it with various drinks. You were nearly finished when you heard the bell above the door chime.

“Dan-san!” Oshiage and Shiba rushed inside, grins on their faces.

Dan looked up from the magazine he was reading, quirking a brow at the two girls. You approached the front curiously, carrying the empty box with you.

“Did you hear?” Oshiage slammed a flyer down onto the counter. “Daruma Ikka is hosting a huge festival during the last week of October!”

Dan scratched his cheek, frowning at the paper. “Having all five Sword gangs there is just asking for trouble.”

“You’re not gonna go, then?” wondered Shiba. “Even though they’re giving away money?”

“What?” You and Dan chorused in surprise.

“Yeah, there’s a -” Shiba stopped dead when she turned to look at you, an angry expression coming to her face. “Oi, did that Oya brat do that to you?”

Oshiage frowned, worry in her eyes. “Murayama would never do something like that… right?”

“Don’t worry,” you were able to offer them a genuine smile because their concern touched your heart. You had never really gotten along with Ichigo Milk, mostly because Junko hated you so, by default, the others didn’t like you, either.

Then there was the issue of Oshiage’s crush on Murayama. She had been super hurt when she learned how close the two of you were and Shiba had confronted you about it. You hadn’t even been aware of her crush, something they didn’t believe at first.

You’re not actually sure when things started to change but, over time, the three of you learned to tolerate and, on some small level, care about each other. Perhaps it was because of Dan and his store that brought the three of you together.

Shiba scoffed, hand on her hip. “You come here beat to hell and tell us not to worry? I oughta-” She raised her fist threateningly and you held up the box like a shield.

“I fell down the stairs,” you told them with a frown. “I was super tired because I didn’t get much sleep. I’m perfectly fine, though! I’m a fast healer, ya know?”

She didn’t look convinced.

You cleared your throat, approaching the counter. “Is Daruma really giving away money? That’s surprising.”

“You have to win it,” explained Oshiage as she leaned her arms on the counter. “It’s a pumpkin carving contest! The winner wins $5,000.”

Your eyes widened, the breath leaving your lungs. They had already taken about two hundred bucks from you, so that prize would cover the debt in full while still leaving you enough to pay part of your rent.

Dan noticed how you reacted to this information though he chose not to point it out. Money had always been an issue for you and he could only imagine it was worse with your mother gone.

“So… you just carve a pumpkin?” You questioned, eyes on the flyer.

Oshiage nodded. “The Daruma babies are gonna be the judges.”

“Oh… it, uh, it sounds fun.” You tried not to sound too excited as you headed into the back of the store to drop off the box. You knew you couldn’t pass up this opportunity, but… you had never carved a pumpkin before. It couldn’t be that hard, right?

Your phone vibrated in your pocket, a single message coming in from Murayama. It was an angry, frowning face to let you know that he was displeased at your decision not to wake him.

You chuckled, sending him an apology before getting back to work.

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

“Why is this so hard?!” you groaned, stabbing the knife into the fruit with a scowl. You had gone through three pumpkins already and you had either butchered them or had been unable to pierce the surface. You had also cut yourself a few times, but they weren’t too deep.

You knew this wasn’t going to work, not if you wanted to win this contest.

Grabbing your coat, you headed out. The cool autumn wind was blowing softly, wrapping around you like a comforting blanket. It did wonders to help your nerves since you never knew when the debt collectors would jump you again. So far, it had been a week and they hadn’t shown up again.

At first, Murayama had stuck by your side without fail and you appreciated his dedication and concern. You felt smothered, though, unable to do anything without him breathing down your neck. It sounded childish, but you didn’t want him to know about the contest. Perhaps you didn’t want him to get his hopes up because that would make it harder to swallow if you failed.

Either way, his presence was overwhelming and you needed a break. You expected more pushback when you told him you needed space, but he just agreed without a fuss. He had assigned Seki to watch over you from a distance, but the large male wasn’t exactly good at stealth. He was easy to lose and to distract.

You glanced at your phone to check the time before picking up your pace. The bookstore closed in a little less than an hour. It would take about fifteen minutes to get there, though, so you should have plenty of time to find the book you needed. Assuming said book even existed in the first place.

The bookstore was small and, currently, there were only a couple of people inside, browsing the selection. You scratched your cheek as you slowly headed down the aisles, scanning the signs listed above the shelves. Where would a how-to book on pumpkin carving even be? Education, perhaps?

You didn’t see it so you moved on, rounding the corner to check the next aisle only to run right into someone. “I’m so sorry!” You lifted your head, meeting Dan’s surprised eyes. “Boss? What are you doing here?”

Your eyes flickered to the cheap romance novel in his hands and he quickly hid it behind his back, cheeks darkening as he cleared his throat.

“Just browsing. You?”

You hesitated a moment, wondering if you should tell him. Well, it’s not like you have to tell him everything. “The truth is… that pumpkin carving contest sounds really fun and I want to enter, but… I’ve never actually carved one before. I was hoping I could find a book on it.”

He knew you were holding back on him, but he felt it wasn’t his place to pry for more information. “The Halloween section is in the back. It’ll probably be there.”

“Oh, I didn’t know there was one,” you chuckled, following the male toward the display.

There were loads of spooky titles on display, along with recipe books and Halloween history books. Both of you searched, but there wasn’t a single book about pumpkins or jack-o-lanterns.

You frowned. “Could they be somewhere else?”

Dan glanced at his watch. “The store closes soon. It’ll be quicker to just ask the owner.”

“Good point.” You followed him to the front of the store.

The owner was a kind, elderly man named Nakamoto who smiled at the two of you when you approached. “Ready to check out?”

“Actually,” started Dan. “Do you have any books about pumpkin carving?”

“I’m sorry,” His smile fell a bit as he looked between the two of you. “I just sold the last one about thirty minutes ago.”

Your spirits fell at this information. “Oh, I see. Thank you very much.” You bowed before quickly turning and heading for the door.

“Oi!” Dan called out your name, starting to follow you until he remembered the book in his hands. With a groan, he placed it on the counter, offering a promise to the man. “I’ll be back for this tomorrow, please don’t sell it!”

The man chuckled as he watched Dan run from the store, chasing after you.

You weren’t sure how to feel, honestly. The contest had given you hope, but now it felt as if that hope had been shattered.

“Wait up!” Dan grabbed your shoulder, a scowl on his lips. “If you want, I can help you.”

“Really? Are you good at it?” You looked at him pleadingly, making him chuckle.

“When I was a kid, I won the pumpkin carving contest at my school four years in a row.”

Your eyes widened, hands grasping the front of his hoodie. “Please teach me, boss!”

He smiled warmly, ruffling the top of your head. “By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be a pro.”

“Thank you so much!”

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

“Is he still sulking?” questioned Nakazono, glancing at Oya’s leader before looking at his two friends. They were sitting at a makeshift table low to the ground, playing a game of cards.

Murayama was lying on the couch, staring blankly up at the tall ceiling of the gym. It’s the same place he had been since you told him you wanted space. As far as the Sanchu trio knew, the male hadn’t slept or eaten since falling on that couch two days ago.

“What do you think?” scoffed Nakabayashi as he tossed down one of his cards on the table. “You’d think he got dumped or something.”

Nakazono shrugged, sitting down at the table. “Did you hear about the party Daruma is throwing?”

Nakakuki hummed as he drew a card, observing his hand. “It’s a Halloween festival, right? They invited all of Sword, didn’t they?”

“Yeah, it’s supposed to be the biggest party Sword has ever seen.”

Nakabayashi wrinkled his nose at the card his friend had discarded because it was one number off from the one he needed. “It’s probably gonna be a chaotic mess.”

“Fighting has been banned. The Daruma babies will be surveilling to make sure no one causes any trouble.”

Nakakuki grinned as he picked up the discarded card before laying out a 2, 3, 4 and 5 of diamonds, a set of aces, and a set of 8s before discarding the last card he had. “I win.”

“Damn it, again?” scowled the male, tossing his cards onto the table. “Why are you so good at this?”

He snickered, holding out his hand. “Pay up, brother.”

Reluctantly, Nakabayashi pulled out his wallet, slapping a ten dollar bill against his friend’s palm.

“Speaking of money,” Nakazono pulled the flyer from his pocket, setting it on the table. “They’re hosting a pumpkin carving contest, too. The winner gets five grand!”

“Five grand?” Nakakuki’s eyes widened. “That’s cra-“

The flyer was snatched off the table, making the three males jump in surprise. Murayama held it with both hands, tired eyes staring at the information printed there. He immediately thought of you and how you could use that money.

His gaze snapped to the three part-timers and they were surprised by the fire that lingered in his eyes. “We’re entering that contest and we’re going to win!”

The trio exchanged a look, not understanding why he was suddenly so fired up. Furuya watched the younger male return to the sofa, seeming a bit more at ease than he had been a moment before. Though he had no idea why, he did know it had something to do with you. It was important to Murayama and that was enough for him.

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

You took a deep breath, pacing back and forth as you waited for the contest to begin. With Dan’s guidance, you felt much more confident than you had a few days ago, but you were still nervous. If this didn’t work out, you had no idea what you were gonna do.

Though you hadn’t seen them, you could feel those thugs lingering just out of sight, watching you closely. Violence had been banned at the festival and they seemed to know that crossing Daruma was not wise. Still, their gaze was making you more nervous and you feared their presence would cause you to slip up.

On the opposite side of the festival, obscured by the sea of people, was Murayama and the other part-timers. The Sanchu trio and Seki were making the most of the festival, playing games and trying all the various snacks that were being offered.

Murayama couldn’t stop pacing, one arm folded over his chest while his free hand was resting against his chin. He was nervous because he knew how important this was. If he won this, he could single-handedly solve your money problems. He would be your hero, someone you knew you could depend on.

Most importantly, you’d be safe.

A hand rested on your shoulder and you jumped, heart leaping in your chest. You were afraid it was one of the goons.

“You’re gonna do fine.”

You released the breath you were holding at the sound of Dan’s voice. “I hope so.”

“You had a great teacher,” he grinned, giving your shoulder a squeeze.

Despite your nerves, you laughed at the comment. “You’re right. If I win -“

“Ah, ah,” he wagged his finger. “When you win.”

“When I win,” you corrected. “I’ll have to thank him with some lunch.”

The music dulled as a voice came over the loudspeaker. “The pumpkin carving contest is about to begin! Head to your assigned stations and get ready.”

Dan sent you an encouraging nod which you returned before heading toward the carving station. Because of the prize money, dozens of people had signed up for it and they had been forced to put everyone into groups to make it easier.

The contest was held in a large open field. At the back was a stage decorated with paper pumpkins and cute little ghosts. In front of the stage sat six super long tables, each table having cardboard dividers to create individual sections for each pumpkin. A piece of orange paper with a number had been taped to each section to indicate who was supposed to be where.

There was quite a bit of distance between each table and, since you were placed into group A while Murayama was placed in group F, neither of you realized that you were both occupying the same space with the same goal in mind. The two of you were so close, yet so far away.

The field had been cut off with caution tape to keep the crowd out of the way while the contestants worked.

Kato appeared on the stage, holding a bright red microphone. His eyes scanned the tables. “You have twenty minutes to carve your pumpkin. Incomplete designs will be docked points, so don’t get too ambitious! Your time begins… now!”

You took a deep breath, picking up the knife. You had given it a lot of thought and you had chosen a design that held a lot of meaning to you. That was the first lesson Dan had taught you. Anyone can carve a pumpkin, but people can feel the emotion put into that carving. The stronger the emotion, the bigger the impression on whoever sees it.

You tried not to focus on the timer above the stage as you carved the design into the fruit. Every time you made a mistake, you felt more frustrated with yourself but you kept with it, trying to make the mistakes blend in with the overall design. You just barely managed to get it finished before the timer buzzed.

“Drop the knives!” snapped Kato, glaring at the few people who kept trying to carve. “Step away from your stations and position yourselves on the other side of the caution tape so the judges can put in work.”

You bit your lip, sending the pumpkin one last look before heading for the caution tape to the right side of the field where Dan was waiting. He smiled encouragingly at you, offering you your favorite beverage for comfort.

You took it with a weary smile, thanking him. Part of you wanted to stay and wait for them to finish but, as you scanned the sheer amount of pumpkins, you knew doing so would kill you. It was better to do something else to pass the time.

As much as you appreciated Dan’s support, you excused yourself because you wanted some time to yourself. Your mind was torn between worrying about the contest and thinking about Murayama. You really wished he was here with you.

You found your way to the edge of the festival, far away from the crowds of people. You fell onto the grassy hill with a sigh, tugging your phone from your pocket. Should you call him? You worried he would hear the sounds of the sounds of the festival and get suspicious so you chose to text him instead.

< Hey, Shiki. Are you busy?

His reply was almost instantaneous.

> For you? Never 🙂 What’s up?

A smile tugged at your lips.

< I… wanted to apologize for pushing you away I’m just dealing with a lot right now.

> I know. You don’t have to apologize ♡

You were starting to realize just how lucky you were to have Murayama in your life. He had always been your biggest support system, always by your side through thick and thin. When you needed space, he respected that- even if he did assign someone to keep an eye on you – and when you needed comfort, he dropped everything to be with you.

Most people saw him as nothing more than the delinquent leader of Oya Koukou, but he was so much more than that to you. He was the stars in your sky, the rain that helped you grow, the food that kept you fed.

Murayama Yoshiki was your world.

< Do you wanna come over tonight? We can watch Halloween movies.

You nearly told him that you had something you wanted to talk to him about, but you didn’t want him to worry so you kept that to yourself. Whether you won or lost this contest, you intended to tell him about it.

> I’ll bring the snacks ♡

The speaker buzzed before Kato’s voice overpowered the excited chatter of the festival. “The winner has been chosen! All participants must report to the field with their number card. No number card, no prize money!”

You stood up, pulling the orange and black card from your pocket. It held your name, the Daruma logo, your station letter and pumpkin number. The closer you got to the field, the more nervous you felt. This was it, the moment of truth.

You hung at the back of the crowd, peering at the stage where Kato and the Daruma babies stood. Three pumpkins sat on the table, turned around so no one could see the designs on them.

“In third place, taking home a ten-dollar credit for any food item at the Daruma festival…” Kato took the card offered by Agyo. “Misato, pumpkin #51.”

Misato was a teenage boy with a black bowl cut and large, round glasses. The crowd cheered for him as he rushed up to the stage to claim his ten bucks. He was allowed to turn his pumpkin around to show the design to the crowd before they let him place a bronze ribbon sticker on it.

The design he had carved was a family of pumpkinmen beneath a full moon.

“In second place, taking home $100 and a plushie of your choice…” Kato took the card Futa offered him, his eyes scanning the crowd with a smirk to build tension. “Murayama, pumpkin #86!”

Your eyes widened when you heard his name, gaze snapping to the male as he made his way onto the stage. He was scowling, clearly unhappy about the result. His scowl deepened when Kato smacked his shoulder, saying something you couldn’t hear.

He smacked the silver sticker onto his pumpkin harder than he needed to before turning it around, showing off a cute kitten wearing a witch’s hat. You thought it was the cutest thing in the world and you felt sad that it didn’t win.

“Finally, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…”

A tense silence settled over the crowd but you had already stopped paying attention, too focused on Murayama as he stepped away from the stage toward the other part-timers. You started to make your way over to him, pushing your way through the crowd.

Between trying to reach him and having already accepted that you weren’t going to win, you failed to hear Kato saying your name and pumpkin number. Dan saw you in the crowd and rushed over, grabbing your shoulder.

“What are you doing, idiot?” He hissed, pushing you toward the front of the crowd. “You won!”

“Eh?” Your heart raced within your chest, wide eyes staring at the stage. Kato was looking at you expectantly and you quickly rushed over, offering the four men an apology.

Ungyo smiled warmly at you as he handed you the gold sticker. You slowly turned the pumpkin around, placing the sticker above the design before stepping aside so the crowd could see it.

Murayama was already shocked to see you at the festival. Even more so to see you win the contest. When he saw the design, though, he felt his body flood with so much warmth and love that he felt as if he were being suffocated.

The design on the pumpkin was a dragonfly resting atop a lotus flower, the exact same design engraved on the bracelet you had given him for his birthday several years ago. It was a set of only two in the world. Honestly, you weren’t even sure he still had his or would even remember it, but it was an important memory for you.

That was the day you realized you loved Murayama wholeheartedly.

Murayama had, of course, kept the bracelet. It was one of his most prized possessions because it was the first gift you had given him.

Kato handed you an envelope with the cash in it and you bowed to him, thanking him and the Daruma babies. Honestly, it was taking everything within you not to cry and, as soon as you exited the stage, you took off toward the edge of the festival.

Murayama rushed after you, calling out your name but you didn’t stop until you were far away from everyone else. His hand found your shoulder, lips parting to say your name once more.

You threw yourself at him, arms tight around his waist as you sobbed into his chest. He swallowed hard, holding you tightly as he tried to control his own emotions.

You felt so happy that you had won and could clear your debt, but you also felt guilty for taking the money away from Murayama. Your fingers curled around the back of his tank top, arms hidden under the blue jacket he wore. “I’m sorry you lost…”

“I’m not. You won, that’s all that matters.” He meant this, of course, but he also felt a bit annoyed by it. He wanted to be the one to solve your problems, to prove that he could look after you and support you. He needed you to know that.

“Huh?” you frowned up at him, eyes glassy from your tears. “Don’t you need the money?”

He scoffed in disbelief. “I’m supposed to be the dumb one in this relationship, not you.”

You blinked dumbly. “You were… trying to win that money for me?”

“Of course I was,” he mumbled, a pout on his lips. “I want to take care of you and I’ll do anything for you.”

Your cheeks dusted with pink, heart filling with warmth. Words failed you at that moment so, instead, you leaned up and pressed your lips against his. He didn’t hesitate to return it, hand finding the back of your neck. His head tilted to the side, deepening the kiss.

───── ⋆⋅🍂⋅⋆ ─────

-> High&Low/Rampage Taglist: @kiraaaeon, @simpforchuchu, @star2fishmeg, @thatpoindexterpixy @manhwabtch

-> General Taglist: @asterhaze, @mrskenpachizaraki

#flufftober2023 #day 20 #murayama yoshiki #high&low #h&l #high & low #high and low #oya high #RFO - PSF #RFO - PSF23 #rains ficography #flufftober #RFO - reader insert #fanfic #fanfics #RFO - asian dramas

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rosanna-writer · 3 months

Text

a simple name and everything has changed (3/?)

Summary: we said hello and your eyes look like coming home, Rhys POV chapters Or: Rhys's slow realization that he's mated to Prythian's most chaotic human (and how much he loves her for it) Warnings: implied/referenced sexual assault, discussion of food insecurity and disordered eating Word Count: ~3.5k

This is Rhys's POV of ch. 19 - your mom's ring in your pocket, which is the initial discussion of the ring and the Weaver's cottage.

You can find it Here on AO3 or below the readmore.

It was a small miracle that I managed to read Azriel's entire report with Feyre standing so close to my wings. More than anything, I wanted her hands on them again. But for now, I was content with just the easy, comfortable way she rested her free hand on my shoulder. A small thing, perhaps, but Under the Mountain, it had been beyond my wildest dreams.

She was also peppering me with questions, and after she'd been deceived by Tamlin, it was clearly important to her that I answered all of them completely. So I did. The lack of information Azriel had been able to dig up worried me, and I didn't hide that from her, either.

Amren arrived shortly after that, and the size of her stack of books seemed…promising. Azriel might have run into dead ends, but I hoped he was only one at least.

"Research. As requested before you leave for Illyria, Rhysand," she said, dropping everything on the table.

Unsurprisingly, Feyre responded quicker than I did. "Research on what?"

"On you, girl. And whatever power has been thrumming in your veins since you were Made."

Feyre knocked back the last of her tea as if it were a shot of alcohol. If she were wishing she'd had something stronger before dealing with Amren first thing in the morning, I didn't blame her in the slightest.

"And I assume you found something, or we wouldn't be having this conversation," I said.

"I have theories, but books aren't enough to prove anything—we'll have to run tests."

I let my hand drift to Feyre's lower back. The thought of running tests on my mate rankled me, and I forced myself not to snarl, lest my Second bit my head off in retaliation.

"We don't have time for dramatics today. Please explain."

"Feyre has been claimed by the Night Court, and she's mated to its High Lord. It stands to reason that she's a creature of Night. But at the same time, her Making was a boon from Spring Court magic after taking Tamlin's place in the Great Rite. She may be…something else entirely."

The same thing had crossed my mind before, on nights I tried to focus on the sound of Feyre's slow, steady breathing across the hall instead of my own spiraling thoughts. I'd found my mate in the very court that had taken my family from me, and that didn't feel like a coincidence.

The violence should have ended the moment Tamlin and I became High Lords. But now, my newest recurring nightmare was of a third head in a box, sent down river by the Spring Court just like my mother's and sister's.

"If Tamlin thinks I stole power from him and swore fealty to Rhys on Calanmai…" Feyre said, and at the sound of her voicing my fears aloud, I couldn't hold back a growl.

Amren nodded, a quiet signal that she understood that the growl wasn't aimed at her. "Agreed, and because treasure troves with objects from both Spring and Night are few and far between, it's time to stop stalling. You have a promise to keep."

Perhaps I should have growled at her anyway—I needed at least another century before I could look Feyre in the eye and tell her about the ring waiting for her in the Weaver's cottage. She'd risked her life to free me, and I was certain that if I came anywhere close to insinuating she still had something to prove, she'd have my balls. And rightfully so.

Just the thought of telling her was enough to loosen my grip on my power, and pathetically, the darkness drifted towards Feyre, clinging to her arm as if it were afraid she'd leave.

"Find another method," I ground out from between clenched teeth.

"Feyre has to go claim it anyway."

"She's already proven more than enough."

"Spare me, Rhysand. We all know what you were thinking when you put that bargain tattoo on her finger."

Amren was right, though. The look she was giving me was familiar—I'd gotten used to it when I was a boy still mastering my powers and she was tired of me giving anything less than my best during a lesson.

"Tell me what you're talking about this before this comes to blows." Feyre shrugged my hand off her back, and I slid it into my pocket before I made a bigger fool of myself and reached for her again.

It truly wasn't fair that Feyre looked that beautiful when she was angry.

Amren, of course, wasn't going to deign to provide an explanation. It wasn't her business anyway. I took a breath and steeled myself, fully expecting the full truth would fan the flames of Feyre's temper.

"There's a ring," I said. "An heirloom of my family, passed down from female to female. My sister wasn't born yet, so my mother gave it to me when I was a boy. A reminder that she was always with me, even during the worst of my training, and I safeguarded it with preserving spells, the way our kind do for anything valuable. When I reached my majority, she took the ring away and gave it to an ancient, wicked creature called the Weaver, who added it to the collection of treasures she amassed over millennia."

It wasn't everything, and Feyre was smart enough to figure that out on her own. "Why would your mother give it away?"

Gods, I could kill Amren for this. She pretended to be above it all, but I knew during her next meeting with Mor, she'd be sharing every last detail of me squirming.

"Another test. If I were to marry or mate, then the female would either have to be smart or strong enough to get the ring back. And if she wasn’t either of those things, then she wouldn’t survive the marriage. I promised my mother that any potential bride or mate would have to pass, but I think if she were still here…she'd agree that you've already done more than enough."

I waited for more of Feyre's anger, but she just blinked, clearly bewildered. "A wedding ring?" she said, as if it weren't patently obvious.

"Yes, but you're under no obligation to—"

When she spoke again, the uncertainty making her voice waver damn near broke my heart. "You— You haven't…sent someone after it before me, have you?"

As if anyone would have been stupid enough to want to marry me. I couldn't imagine what could have put the idea in her head.

But then again, I'd been the one who'd made her feel unwanted enough to run off to the House of Wind as soon as we'd returned to the Night Court.

"Cauldron, no," I said, scrambling for a way to remind her—in front of Amren, of all people—that there had never been anyone else for me and never would be.

"And this isn't— You're not…proposing?"

Cauldron boil and fucking fry me. Now was hardly the time to be having this discussion—I had no idea what Feyre's views on marriage were or if the mating bond changed them. She'd always be my mate first and foremost, but…I couldn't deny the appeal of calling her my wife too, and she might be more comfortable with a more human way to refer to me.

But it was just as likely she was feeling rushed and didn't want any of that at all.

A pounding at the door heralded the arrival of the rest of my Inner Circle, and I made a silent prayer of thanks to the Mother as we filed into the sitting room. I hadn't been able to think of anything to say, and they'd saved me from continuing to gape at Feyre like a fish.

Feyre went quiet as the conversation turned to dealing with the Illyrians who'd supported Amarantha. From Cassian's report, it seemed that there were more than I'd expected, but news of my return had sent them scurrying into the forest to hide. We'd have to flush them out.

I didn't relish the thought of several days in the Steppes, away from Feyre. But I knew the Illyrians, and I'd lose more respect by staying in Velaris and sending someone else to do my dirty work. Then again, it might be for the best—I wasn't sure I wanted Feyre to witness me kill again, no matter how much they deserved it.

Eventually, there was a lull in the conversation, and Feyre filled it. "If we need to make a statement to keep control of Illyria, then we could give them to the Weaver and kill two birds with stone."

If Feyre wasn't exactly the sort of person who might have once felled two birds with a single stone, I would have thought she was joking. But I knew better. Feyre didn't like waste, whether that was food scraps or ammunition or a taking a life; she was merely efficient and the farthest thing from squeamish.

Strong enough to survive the marriage indeed.

"Are you suggesting that we allow a death-god to eat a few rogue Illyrians in exchange for the return of your wedding ring?" I said, smiling.

Feyre didn't smile back—her face was set in that characteristic determined grimace of hers. "Amarantha refused to free her human slaves. I'm the Night Court's resident human. What better way to punish them for supporting her than turning them over to me?"

She had a point, and the rest of the Inner Circle seemed to think so, which was a relief. If Feyre were to accompany us to Illyria, I wanted to avoid objections from Cassian and Azriel.

"If we're cracking a few wing bones, Feyre might as well get a turn," Cassian said.

"It's Illyria, not Velaris, so word will get out, which we can spin in our favor. Distaste for slavery instead of petty revenge against those who supported the bitch who made Rhys her—" Mor said, then stopped.

Whore. That had been what she'd about to say. I should have been used to it after fifty years, and it wasn't as if Mor was flinging it at me as an insult. My cheeks burned with shame anyway.

"The bitch who hurt him," Mor amended, and somehow, it made me feel worse. I hated the thought of any member of my family feeling the need to tiptoe around me.

"I'll never be offended by you telling the truth. Even about that," I said. Mor took my hand and squeezed it.

"No one reasonable would fault you for slaughtering your rapist's supporters. But for the unreasonable ones…it's also true that involving Feyre could help dispel the rumors that Prythian's savior is a pawn you intend to discard."

I understood—for the most part, the other courts were more concerned with rebuilding the damage that Amarantha had caused, and they likely would be for decades. But as Mor had worked to put treaties and agreements back in place, there had been more than a few polite—if very pointed—inquiries regarding the wellbeing of Feyre Cursebreaker. For now, Mor's letters back had contained equally pointed reminders that the Cursebreaker had been through an ordeal and didn't deserve to be bothered. We couldn't keep that up forever, though.

"Assuming the Weaver is willing to bargain, it's not a bad plan," Azriel said. From him, that was a ringing endorsement.

"Hell of an assumption, though," Cassian added.

Feyre was looking at me expectantly, clearly waiting for me to weigh in. I was suddenly uncomfortably aware that I had the authority to order her to either come to Illyria or stay back in Velaris, regardless of what her wishes were. I considered Feyre my equal in everything, but there were ancient laws and magic at play. Emissary or Lady of the Night Court…either way, her power was limited.

If nothing else, I wanted her to know that I wouldn't command her to face any danger. I had the bravest mate in Prythian, but Feyre deserved a chance to rest instead of shouldering the weight of the world. "All of it is your choice, Feyre. If you don't want to risk leaving Velaris, no one will force you," I said.

"I'm not shying away from any of it. I'll go," she said without hesitation.

Nothing stopped Feyre. I dropped my shields just enough to let her feel my swell of pride at her willingness to face this head on, even after everything she'd been through.

Cassian mussed her hair, and a memory came to me, unbidden—he used to do the same thing to Azriel, back before the War, when Az was still sporting those hideous bangs that swooped low across his forehead. And they way Feyre was trying and failing to scowl at Cassian…my heart squeezed. My own sister had always given me that look when I'd gotten on her nerves to break up the monotony of formal court events.

"Send your mate and your dogs out to the yard if they insist on playing, Rhysand. The adults still have matters to discuss," Amren said.

"Amren, if you wanted to play—" Cassian said, taunting her the way he always did when she called him my dog.

And as if on cue, Mor groaned. "Can we not? We're supposed to be working."

Under the Mountain, I'd resigned myself to never hearing them bicker like this again. After a decade, I'd forgotten their voices, their faces. That's when I'd stopped hoping.

Hearing it again while I shared the sofa with Feyre…it felt like a gift. She caught my eye as Cassian smoothed her hair back into place, and I smiled, just grateful for all of them.

But I could hardly afford to get maudlin with a court to run and Prythian in disarray, so I forced myself to focus on the task at hand.

The meeting was a long one; I trusted Mor and Amren to keep everything running smoothly in my absence, but there was so much more up in the air than usual. Unfortunately, they'd likely be at it for a while—according to Cassian's reporting, the rogue war-bands had scattered, and it would take time to track down each group that had splintered.

There was work to be done, so none of us lingered longer than necessary. We were up before the sun the next morning.

As I was washing my face, I felt a pang of anxiety from Feyre's side of the bond. A few disjointed images and feelings crossed the bond—a tree covered in snow, the twang of a bowstring, hunger pangs. It vanished as quickly as it came.

Something had stirred an old memory for her, I supposed. But it seemed she'd mastered it, so I refrained from giving her a fright by winnowing into her room while she was still dressing.

Instead, I met her downstairs and immediately lifted her into my arms to fly. Feyre felt like she'd gained a bit of weight, which was good. The tangible evidence she'd been eating right and gaining muscle from training soothed some of my worries.

I started to ask if she was alright, but the second her feet were off the floor, she relaxed and buried her face in my shoulder. I couldn't help but smile. Since returning home, I'd quickly learned that she wasn't a morning person, and there was something adorably Feyre about the way she'd clearly decided it was too early to talk—but not too early to cling to me.

"Good morning to you, too," I said.

"We have somewhere to be," she said, somehow managing to sound both half-asleep and accusatory.

I kissed her temple, then winnowed us into the sky above Windhaven. The immediate cold rush of air against my face felt like freedom. Feyre—now fully awake—cried out and held on tight as I spread my wings.

My shoulders immediately barked in protest, even though all I'd done was slow the descent. Feyre wasn't particularly heavy, but I still wasn't strong enough to fly upward while carrying her—the latest goal the healer had set for me was getting above the wards around the House of Wind to winnow down to the street with Feyre in my arms.

But now we were gliding to the ground smoothly, and that was progress. Incremental, but still progress, even if my back strained with each occasional flap of my wings.

Fearless as ever, Feyre lifted her head from my shoulder to look straight down at the camp below us, despite the altitude still being enough to turn the stomach of anyone wingless. I expected more questions, but she was silent as she took in the view.

From the air at least, it didn't appear that Windhaven had changed much. Amarantha had mostly considered Illyria beneath her notice, and while her beasts had been free to roam into Steppes, they'd avoided it. Too few resources, too many warriors with killing magic.

Thanks to Cassian's reports, I knew Illyria was more or less intact, but it was still a relief to see it for myself. In those last seconds before Amarantha had taken my power, I'd chosen to protect Velaris, throwing the rest of my court to the wolves in the process. It was sound strategy—if anyone could defend themselves, it was the Illyrians, and there wasn't much worth saving in the Hewn City—but not being able to protect everything had left me with a heavy sense of guilt that had weighed on me for fifty years.

During the war, my father had treated my mother's people as cannon fodder. Perhaps I wasn't any better, despite striving to be.

It took all of my concentration to keep from stumbling as we landed. Centuries of muscle memory were the only reason I didn't break an ankle and drop Feyre in the process. But it looked effortless, and that was most important.

I set Feyre down, and—as usual—she slipped into a role naturally, standing up straight and maintaining eye contact, a clear signal she wasn't afraid. That she wasn't lesser.

Devlon approached, flanked by the same warriors as always, and for a moment, I could almost believe no time had passed since I'd last been here. "Your dog," he barked with a nod at Cassian, "already completed camp inspections yesterday. Don't tell me you've brought a human to check for dust in the barracks, too."

I bit back a growl at the way he'd spoken about Feyre. Starting a fight within seconds of my return hardly sent a message that everything was under control. If it weren't for centuries of practice holding my temper back around Devlon, his brain would have been leaking out of his nose.

"After fifty years away, it's good to see your sparkle hasn't dimmed, Devlon. Feyre Cursebreaker is a member of my Inner Circle, and she wouldn't be here to clean up a mess if you'd kept a tighter leash on your men," I said.

And perhaps crushing minds would be unnecessary—Feyre was already reaching for an ash arrow. I'd never seen her shoot, but it didn't surprise me that she pulled it out of the quiver with expert, lethal grace. She knew exactly what she was doing as she smiled and tapped it against her thigh.

Devlon scowled. "These last fifty years have been difficult for us all."

It was all I needed to hear to be sure that he'd keep Windhaven in check while we were in the forest. Devlon might have hated me, but he was reliable and followed orders despite looking for loopholes and grumbling about it. If he wasn't insulting me to my face, the situation was still salvagable.

"I'm not interested in hearing your excuses. The current state of your camp is pathetic, and if I see one more misstep, you can consider yourself court-martialed," I said, then started off for the trees.

I was desperately curious to know what Feyre thought of Illyria. Growing up in this place had shaped me—in many ways, even more than Velaris had—and the part of me that craved my mate's approval needed to hear that she didn't hate it here.

I reached down the bond, intending to ask her, but as I opened my shields slightly, a silver of a thought slipped through from her end. …Rhys's stupidly long legs…

It was a miracle I didn't laugh aloud, just kept my face blank as I reached through the opening she'd left for me. Stupidly long legs? But you look so delicious framed between them.

"Save it for when we're back home, Rhys," Feyre muttered.

Behind me, Azriel snickered, but I didn't have it in me to care, not when Feyre had just called Velaris home.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched her nock the arrow in her hand. Even to acute faerie hearing, her footsteps were silent. Her eyes were wary as she scanned the trees ahead of us, and her nostrils flared as she took in the pine-scented air.

A couple weeks of comfortable domesticity with her in the townhouse had nearly made me forget that Feyre was, at her core, a predator. Not quite a warrior, but someone shaped by years of stalking, trapping, skinning, and gutting, all to keep her family fed. Someone who slipped through the forest with all the lethality befitting the Queen of Nightmares.

I'd watched Feyre trap the Middengard Wyrm like a rabbit, but perhaps that had barely scratched the surface.

#feysand #we said hello and your eyes look like coming home #a simple name and everything has changed #he really went through the FULL SPECTRUM OF EMOTIONS here

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corvidcrossbow · 1 month

Text

Every time I listen to Hazey by Glass Animals I just think of young Daryl like hhhhhhhuuuuuuuuu (I've been a Glass Animals fan for so many years and it's eating at me)

I imagine the verses would be a back forth between Daryl and his parents, and then you.

C/W: Mentions of abuse, alcoholism, smoking, parental death, Daryl's trauma

Your baby's falling, you know I'm talking now

You know I'm dancing, you know I'm racing 'round

No no you're so juiced, you said you'd kick the booze

You know I'll get bruised, you know that I'm just a boy

First verse would be a young him towards his father, his dad once saying he'd be sober - but of course that was broken following his mothers death, and it never held much truth or promise to begin with.

Daryl was just a little kid (I say 8 or so), and would try to use that as leverage, crying and pleading when his fathers abuse first started to really pick up. He'd always tell him to shut up and stop crying, which is where Daryl's tendencies to be closed off and hide emotions were cemented into his psyche - to 'take it like a man'. He'd hear it from Merle too under other contexts, who'd picked it up from their dad - but also bullies, teachers or most anyone else, that's just how it is growing up in the rural south.

Daryl never got to be a boy, he had to be a man.

Come back baby, don’t you cry

Don’t you drain those big blue eyes

I’ve been crawling

Come back baby, don’t you cry

Just you say the reason why

I can calm you

The chorus would be how Daryl would imagine his mom. He'd sit alone in the woods, or lay in bed in the dark, and try to hear the sound of his mothers voice - her comforting tone, arms reaching out as he'd run to her, feeling like he was crawling to her, and she'd hold him tight. She'd wipe the tears from his glassy big blue eyes. 'Wha's wrong sweetheart? Why're you cryin'? You can tell me. Shhh, shhhh... I'm here baby.'

He so badly wanted her back. To tell her everything, for her to save him from his father. Maybe she wasn't the best mother in the world, there'd been issues. But she was his mom. 'Pleas', momma... com' back...'

You say I’m bawling, I say I’m begging while

You take my photo, I fake my breaking smile

I’m fucking loco, I can’t get through to you

You turn your nose you, spark up and I can go

And again with the crying, Daryl's father would just say he was being 'a wimp' or 'a pussy'. Daryl had to learn how to mask everything, to act like it was all okay. Whether at school, in public, with friends, other family, or when Merle would come around - he needed to pretend what was happening wasn't happening. Maybe even then he could believe it too, that it wasn't real.

But as he aged, it ate away at him, drove. him. crazy. He knew the truth, that it did happen. It was real. And the scars that covered his back proved it. That's what led to his outbursts, how he'd get snippy and snappy with people. He could only keep his emotions buried for so long before they'd start to burst.

And it'd land him in trouble. Snarky mumbles towards a teacher when a test would be returned, and it was straight to detention. Giving someone the wrong look, then responding in the wrong way, and he'd find himself on the ground surrounded by kids a bit older and larger than him, kicking him before spitting at the ground beside him and leaving him there.

He was always more cautious around his dad, knowing he'd be a harsher outcome than any other - but there were still times where his father felt he was 'givin' 'im attitude 'n he needs tah check 'imself', even though Daryl was treading lightly.

Any time his father wasn't beating him, he was always drunk, or smoking. He gave up a long time ago with trying to reason with him, get through. He learned to rely on himself, and solely himself. Daryl would go out alone - and that time he was lost in the forest - and his dad was too engrossed in substances to realize, or care. He himself was all he really had, so he shut everyone else out. At least for a long time.

Come back baby, don’t you cry

Don’t you drain those big blue eyes

I’ve been crawling

Come back baby, don’t you cry

Just you say the reason why

I can calm you

And as the chorus would repeat, it'd be you. Daryl would distance himself, or even disappear. Isolating, shutting away what was left of a nearly nonexistent world.

Now you were the one begging. Going to find him and begging him to come back. For him to let you into his world, let you be there for him. Calm him, be what he needs.

And as you seemed to be metaphorically crawling after him, he finally let you in. Despite how many years had gone by, his eyes were still big, still blue, and glassy again.

Your words and actions would mirror what he pictured his mom doing. Holding him and rocking him, whispering against his head 'Shhh... it's okay, I'm here. Talk to me, angel. What's wrong?'

#daryl dixon #daryldixon #twd daryl #twd #the walking dead #daryl dixon headcanon #daryl dixon imagine #norman reedus #twd daryl dixon #daryl drabbles #Spotify

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itsscromp · 3 months

Note

hellloooo so i wanted to request something I've been thinking of for a while <3 you can just call me 🦇bat anon :D sooo i was thinking rocket raccoon x reader who is also a genetically modified raccoon by the hands of high evolutionary with the same amount of trauma and torture as rocket experienced, but they're more brain modified, so they look like a sorta normal raccoon but they're really REALLY overly intelligent and are agile and smart and all that, but they use a human body hologram, and when rocket met them he saw them as a human, but reader later revealed their secret and they connected with their trauma or something i dunno X( i just want someone to let rocket know he's not alone <3 if you're gonna do this, thank you :D if not, have a nice day anyway and i love your writing!!!

We're not so different

Hello there 🦇bat anon :D, Apologies for the delay in this, Now for this request, I had read over it and ultimately my brain has gone splat in the moment. BUT !!! I cooked another idea relating to what you asked. So I hope you like it. Warnings: Mentions of abuse. Word count:985

How you were brought into this world will continue to baffle you until the day you die. How many children have happy families, Yours was utterly broken, Your mom abandoned you before your first birthday, leaving you with your dad who turned to alcohol to cope with the stress. You would always have to bring him his bottle... unless you would cop something in the head. You still had the scar across your eyebrow from the shard cutting through, you were thankful that it didn't get your eye.

By 10 years old when you were on the way home from school as quickly as you could. Your teacher stopped you before you could rush home to talk about the results of your test. Heading home... Guess who was there.

"Where the fuck have you been ??!! I told you to get back as soon school finished."

"I... I know... The teacher just wanted to talk to me..."

"You got into trouble !!" He grabbed your arm and twisted it.

You yelped in pain and started to cry, You yanked your hand away and ran away, Having enough of his endless hurting. Running as fast as you could, You rushed down into the nearby park and fell over, started to cry. As you cried, you felt yourself getting dragged up by something in the sky, Soon being sent away thousands of light-years away in the galaxy.

The cycle continued just with your kidnappers, Whatever your dad did, they did ten times worse when you didn't do what they said. You didn't escape for another 5 years. Being placed into hiding on Knowhere and stayed there for the time being. At least you were free.

You took up some mercenary work with the ravagers, coming across Peter quill from time to time. And it just so happened that that day when the guardians of the galaxy were formed. The day you met Rocket Raccoon.

You knew straight from the start that the attitude that he pulled off when you worked together in prison was nothing more than a cover-up for a deeper trauma that he had witnessed. But it became more evident when you saw his drunken out burst in the bar.

"He thinks I'm some stupid thing he does !! Well, I didn't ask to get made !! I didn't ask to be torn apart and put back together over and over, turned into some... Some little monster !!"

"Rocket, no one is calling you a monster" Peter told him

"He called me vermin !! She called me Rodent !!! His bottom lip wobbled a bit before he grew angry. "Let's see if you can last after five or six good shots in your fricken face !!" He aimed his gun at Drax.

"No no no no !! 4 billion units, Rocket come on suck it up for one more lousy night and you're rich !!" Quill begged him to think rationally.

Rocket thought for a bit before disarming his weapon. "Fine... But I can't promise when this is over I'm not gonna kill every last one of you jerks."

He then bolted out of the bar, Your heart absolutely shattered hearing all of this. At this, you wanted to hold him and tell him that everything was ok... But you knew this wouldn't work knowing Rocket for the short time.

But regardless he needed someone right now, So you headed outside to find him. Looking around nearby until you found him in an alleyway crying softly to himself. You grew sad as you saw him... You walked over as you gently sat down across the other side, remaining silent.

He looked up and saw you, quickly regaining his composure. "Get lost y/n..."

"I didn't say anything" You softly said.

He opened his mouth before shutting it, His ears fully drooped. Crossing his arms as he looked away from you. "Why are you here ?? Wanna call me monster too ??"

You shook your head gently, Trying to figure out how to properly say it. "Rocket... Whatever it is... that you have gone through." You could feel his eyes glaring on you, almost to say choose your next few words very carefully.

"Whatever it is... I get it... I know what it feels like."

His eyes slowly softened a little, but still glaring at you.

"The scar... On my eyebrow... This was by the man who was meant to protect me..." You pointed to your eyebrow.

He inspected your eyebrow a bit before he looked down at the ground. "I... I'm sorry you had to suffer that"

"My whole life... And not even that... When I was 10 I was kidnapped from Earth, The people who kidnapped me... They endured so much pain on me... For 5 flarking years..." You moved your shirt a bit, showing scared underneath your ribs... this one hurt you the most, you couldn't even stomach to talk about it.

Rocket's eyes went soft, And soon, you could see a different side to him. "I'm sorry... I really am..." He hesitantly started to move, moving next to you. Wanting to be in your company and feel safe.

"Rocket, Whatever this galaxy throws at you... I want to let you know... I'll be there for you ok ??" You looked at him.

He gave it a bit of thought for a little bit before nodding. "Yeah... Same to you y/n" He looked up at you, saying it sincerely.

You smiled and gently raised a fist to him, he tilted his head a little bit in confusion. "What are you doing humie ??"

"You never heard about fist bumps ??"

He shook his head, wanting an explanation.

"It's kind of like a symbol of friendship on earth, so here" You gently helped him achieve his first fist bump, "There you go" You smiled,

You would always have his back, And he with yours. Always.

Taglist: @callofdudes

#platonic #reader insert #rocket raccoon #rocket raccoon x reader #rocket raccoon imagine #rocket x reader #rocket imagine #gotg imagine #gotg x reader #rocket gotg

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cielie-voss · 6 months

Text

I wish you a very unmerry christmas.

Eddie Munson x Reader

Warnings: shitty family, some curse words, brief mentions of alcohol consumption, established relationship, pet names, kinda gender neutral reader.

A/n: I just absolutely hate Christmas, so this is my attempt to do something for other Christmas hater.

If you want to be tagged in coming fanfics or if you want to request something, feel free to send me a dm or an ask. 🥰 Likes, comments and especially reblogs are always welcome. 🤗

Masterlist

Wordcount: ~3.6k

“Hey, Y/N! About Christmas … “

The crunching snow under his feet made his attempt to sneak up behind me unnoticed fail spectacularly. As soon as the word ‘Christmas’ left his lips, I rolled my eyes and pressed my lips into a thin line.

“Sorry Eddie, I have already plans for Christmas. It’s mom’s birthday, the whole family is there, you know…”

"Oh yeah, right. I completely forgot about that.” The disappointment was written all over his face when I used my mother's birthday, which I hated, as an excuse not to have to celebrate Christmas.

“Maybe you’ll have time to come to me afterwards. Wayne would like to invite you and meet you.”

“Yeah, maybe,” I starved him off with a fake smile. “I gotta go. See you, honey!" I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before running through the snow towards home. The sound that the fresh snow makes as you rush over it is about the only thing I really like about Christmas and winter.

Throughout my life, Christmas has always been filled with stress, arguments and the hideous charade of acting like a happy, functioning family. And that hasn't changed to this day.

For the next few days I tried to keep myself busy, whatever it was, to avoid Eddie. We've only been together for six months and it was our first Christmas as a couple, but I didn’t have the heart to tell him how much this day, this time of the year, was taking a toll on me mentally. Seeing his excited and joyful smile disappear from his lips would break my heart. Although he didn’t have a very good relationship with Christmas either, he still seemed to have the hope of celebrating a nice Christmas with Wayne and me after all these years. Without dispute. Without hate. Only love and security. And I didn't want to take this illusion away from him.

After history class, Jeff pulled me aside. “Since when is your mother’s birthday more important to you than Eddie?” He looked down at me with a frown, a hint of skepticism flashing in his eyes. Jeff was responsible for me meeting Eddie. Sometimes I'm not even sure if he intended to set us up together.

“It’s her birthday, that’s important.” Okay, even if I tried to sell this lie as sincerely and honestly as possible, I wouldn't have believed it either. And neither did Jeff, who knew me better than I would like.

“You hate your mother.” That was a fact. “Or do you want to break up with Eddie?” Something reproachful flashed over his face.

“Fuck, no. I won’t leave Eddie,” I reassured him. “But I hate Christmas even more than spending time with my mother,” I finally confessed and turned my gaze down to the dirty floor, which now only consisted of melted snow and grit from outside and therefore posed a huge slipping hazard.

"What? How can one hate Christmas?” His surprised look irritated me a little. Outside of my family, he was the only one who knew how disharmonious the mood at home was.

“How can one hate Christmas? I’ll tell you. I just hate everything about it. From that hypocritical 'I love everyone' attitude, to that damn snow, cold, the absolute terrible music and disgusting food. I would love to burn every one of those horribly decorated Christmas trees I see. And my family? They hate each other 24/7, 364 days a year, and on Christmas Day we all suddenly love each other incredibly much?” I snorted derisively and then continued my rant. “The stress of buying the right gift for everyone, it shouldn't be too expensive, otherwise the other person will have a bad conscience, but it also shouldn't be too simple and cheap, otherwise the other person might not feel valued enough. And don’t even get me started on this false joy over another pair of darn socks!”

“But you love socks,” Jeff interjected, earning a deadly glance from me.

“That’s irrelevant here, you know what I mean.”

“Y/N, I can imagine that in the past, Christmas didn’t bring up too fond memories for you. But don't you think you could give the celebration of love another chance? With the person you love?” Damn, he was right. Why did he always have to be right? I grumbled and ran my hands through my hair.

“I don’t want to disappoint him, not yet. He's so excited for Christmas and I don't want to ruin that for him. We haven’t known each other long enough and I don’t want to give him a reason to hate me so soon.”

“He won’t hate you.” Jeff's voice became quieter and gentler, his eyes tried to look into mine, but I returned my gaze to the wet floor. Yes, fear of abandonment is nothing nice, especially not when you have finally found the person with whom you are happy and with whom you can be who you are. Eddie loves me just the way I am. But I am still convinced that if I spoiled this Christmas, which he seems to be looking forward to like a little child, with my aversion, he would resent me and perhaps see me differently. And I don't want to jeopardize what we have, not because of such an unnecessary little thing. The bell saved me from this unpleasant interrogation and I was able to escape from my best friend.

Christmas and my mother's birthday were getting closer and closer, and with each passing day I began to isolate myself more and more. The last day of school before the holidays was pure torture. From all sides I had to listen to everyone around me telling me how perfectly all their families would spend their Christmas time, how happy everyone was to finally be able to sit together with the whole family again, drink eggnog, sing songs, bake and cook. And every time someone told me about it, I had to put on my mask, fake a happy smile, and make up lies so that I wouldn't spoil everyone else's anticipation with my unhappiness. I couldn't wait for the bell to ring one last time and send all the Hawkins High students off to their well-deserved Christmas. I gave Eddie a kiss goodbye, wished him and Wayne a merry Christmas and promised that we would see each other again in the next few days. And before he could say anything, I was already trudging through the snow towards home.

As I strolled through the cold and tried to delay my arrival home as much as possible, I was already making mental plans on how I could escape my family as often and as quickly as possible in the next few days to be alone.

My arrival was acknowledged by my family as always: silently and with the occasional eye roll. Without another word, I disappeared into my room and tried to somehow vent my anger. I leafed through my favorite book, but the pages seemed empty and without content, nothing that piqued my interest. Even when I tried to use my knitting yarn to somehow banish the emptiness inside me, I failed. With a deep sigh, I let the yarn and knitting needles disappear back into the basket from which I had taken them out just moments before. I stared blankly into a seemingly endless void, every now and then the voices of my neighbors playing in the snow outside my window caught my attention.

Time really passed at a snail's pace. When my sister called me to dinner, I crept downstairs and sank into the chair at the dining room table.

“How was school?” my mother tried to feign interest in me and my life after a few minutes of awkward silence.

“Good,” I mumbled after swallowing the dry, tasteless mush that was supposed to be meatloaf. “Everything’s fine.” She just nodded appreciatively and then went back to eating. As soon as I had satisfied my stomach's growling for food, I brought my dishes into the kitchen and quickly disappeared back to my room.

I tried again to pass the time with Dracula, read a few pages, and scribbled small sketches in the margins with a pencil.

After just a few pages my eyelids became heavy and I found it increasingly difficult to follow van Helsing's explanations. So I put the book aside again, slipped into my pajamas and wrapped myself in my blanket. Sleep soon overcame me, literally saving me from the yawning emptiness within me and the absence of my thoughts.

Actually I should be happy, I haven't slept so much in a long time. It seemed as if my body wanted to make up for what it had missed.

In the morning, Bobby Helms' voice coming from downstairs woke me up. ‘Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock’

Grumbling, I rolled over onto my stomach and buried my head in my pillow to shield my ears from the noise. Unsuccessful.

After just a few moments, my little brother banged on my door, just in case the music at an uncomfortable volume from downstairs hadn't already woken me up.

I responded with a loud “YES!” to stop him from punching a hole in my door. He clattered down the stairs. Much quieter - and also slower - I followed him a little later, after putting on the most hideous Christmas sweater and a pair of jeans. Staring at the steps below me with intense concentration so as not to fall and with the temple of my glasses between my teeth, I combed through my hair with my fingers and tied it into a rather messy braid with a worn-out scrunchy. When I reached the end of the stairs, I pushed my glasses up my nose, put on an almost ironic grin and hugged my mother.

“I wish you a wonderful birthday!” What a lie. Everyone knew it, but no one said anything.

“Oh thank you so much, my darling!” she replied and broke the hug. Well, that takes care of the most important part.

Finally, my grandfather shuffled down the stairs, grumbling and cursing capitalism, which he believed was the reason for this commercial exploitation of an originally pagan holiday claimed by the church.

To maintain the charade of a harmonious and loving family, we all sat down at the lavish breakfast table to celebrate my mother's birthday. Like every year, breakfast this year was quite quiet. Only the radio presenter's voice brought some life into this spectacle.

After breakfast I stayed for the obligatory birthday present-giving, then I disappeared into my room for some peace and quiet until dinner. This year I used an important project as an excuse to get away from my family, but promised to be back down by dinner at the latest.

We spent dinner in silence, just as we did breakfast. My grandfather, already a little drunk from the eggnog, started telling his stories from his army days again and filled the living room with the smoke of his cigar.

It didn't take long until a stupid comment from my cousin sparked a discussion between my father and my uncle, mom's brother. I couldn't say exactly what they were arguing about again. But it didn't interest me any more than my grandmother's neighbor's digestive problems. Absolutely not at all.

At a moment when everyone was waiting anxiously for the argument to become violent and so that no one would notice my disappearance, I sneaked out of the living room and sought refuge in my room. I put on the headphones from my Walkman, put in a Van Halen cassette and looked at the night sky that I had painted with Jeff's help on the ceiling above my bed.

It took a lot of effort to keep my feelings closed and buried deep inside. As soon as the first tears stung my eyes, I swallowed the flood of anger and hatred and sadness. Over and over again. Of course, somewhere deep inside me I wanted a harmonious Christmas. I longed for love, affection, and security. But what I was presented with every year was feigned affection. To the outside world, our acting might seemed realistic, as if we were a loving family like any other, enjoying our time together and appreciating each other. But when you know what's behind that mask, it's just pathetic. Even as a child, I had given up hoping for a merry Christmas. In addition, for us as children, Christmas was more our mother's birthday than Christmas, so of course we missed that Christmas anticipation that every child feels. A Christmas, peaceful and relaxed, without quarreling uncles and aunts, without snide remarks from my grandfather, without anybody making fun of how I looked, without my uncle, in whose eyes I am depraved and a Satan worshiper just because I refused to go to church and listened to music that violated christian values. Just one year, one Christmas, where everyone gets along and doesn't have to pretend. Maybe one day I'll make it. Together with Eddie. Maybe Jeff was right and Eddie is my Christmas miracle, igniting the spark in me and helping me learn to love Christmas.

With the music ringing in my ears, the turmoil raging outside my sanctuary disappeared and brought me some peace. After a while, without noticing, sleep came over me.

The next day the masquerade began again. After breakfast, the little presents were unwrapped and the annual disappointment was masked by false gratitude and joy before my mother turned the attention back to herself. She just can't help but always want to be the center of attention.

As I said goodbye shortly after the presents were given - I pretended that Wayne and Eddie had invited me - I thought I saw a glimmer of relief in my mother's eyes.

I slipped on my favorite sweater and one of the countless ripped jeans that my mother had tried to patch, against my will of course. I stuffed some cookies, a bottle of water and the book Eddie had lent me a few weeks ago - a very worn copy of The Hobbit - into my bag and drove my little Ford Pinto through the empty streets of Hawkins.

After a few minutes I came to a small cabin in the forest. As kids, Jeff and I found this abandoned cabin and made it our secret hideout. Over the years we have furnished it with old sofa cushions and patched leaky holes in the roof or the cracked windows with foil. I wiped the thin layer of dust from one of the pillows and settled in there with the cookies and the book. After a short while, however, I heard the hum of an engine and the light of two headlights crept through the cracks in the rotten wooden boards.

I carefully stuck my finger between the pages so as not to lose the passage I was reading and leaned to the side. Through the knothole in the wood I saw a dirty white van and a large figure dressed in black who got out and seemed to look around. I turned off the flashlight so as not to give any indication that I was in the cabin. But the next time I looked through the hole in the wall, the person was gone and the van's lights had gone out. I narrowed my eyebrows in question when the door to the hut suddenly and screechingly opened.

I stared at Eddie's face, perplexed, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

"Hey sweety." The greeting was, contrary to what I expected, friendly. I started to panic inside because I had told him I didn't have time to meet him over the holidays. Now that he found me here, alone, in the middle of the forest, he inevitably knew that this was a lie. But he didn't seem angry, disappointed or upset at all.

“How …” I couldn’t say anything else. I was confused and somewhat speechless by both his presence and his reaction.

He searched for the right words for a moment before answering me. “Jeff.” Of course. I could have guessed it too. "May I come inside?"

I nodded and put the book aside, inserting a candy wrapper between the pages as a bookmark. To my surprise, Eddie had a large basket with him, which he placed at my feet. Frowning, I leaned forward and tried to see the contents of the basket. But as soon as I leaned forward, Eddie pushed the basket further away from me with a cheeky grin.

“Well, well! Don’t be so curious,” he admonished me before briefly going outside again. When he returned to the cabin, he had a small, decorated Christmas tree in tow. I was already rolling my eyes internally. I had sought refuge in the cabin from all this Christmas madness, and now Eddie came here with that same madness.

“Eddie, I…” He didn’t let me finish and interrupted me with an excited tone in his voice.

“Give me just a moment.” With a raised index finger he indicated that I should stay seated and wait for him. And I did. He disappeared from the hut for a moment and returned with a baseball bat.

“I actually wanted to pick you up earlier, but your father said that you were already on your way to me.”

“Eddie, I -” And again he interrupted me and didn't even let me say my apology. But his gaze was gentle, caring, and not angry or disappointed as I would have assumed.

“I met Jeff outside and he gave me the tip about the hut.” Eddie sat down next to me and looked at me with these puppy eyes that made me weak. I felt absolutely horrible. I lied to him and avoided him. The fact that he wasn't angry with me or blamed me only made me more insecure.

He paused for a moment, looking awkwardly at the floor, before continuing.

"I overheard you and Jeff's conversation," he confessed. I sensed he felt bad about this. “It wasn’t on purpose, I swear. I heard you and was, admittedly, a little curious. After you acted so distant, I thought you might want to break up with me.” Now it was my turn to interrupt him.

“Eddie, I would never leave you,” I promised him and put my hand on his knee.

“I know,” he said, the smile returning to his lips. “I overheard that you hate Christmas and are afraid of scaring me away.” He paused for a moment and looked deep into my eyes.

“I thought you would be disappointed. You seemed so happy about Christmas, I didn't want to spoil it for you - "

“And give me a reason to love you less?” he completed my sentence, to which I agreed with a nod.

“I would be an incredible fool to stop loving you because of this.” If only he knew what relief those words brought me. “If anything, I would only love you more if that was possible.” We both laughed and the mood immediately relaxed.

“Anyway, I have a present for you.”

“But I have nothing for you,” I replied, whereupon he reassured me: “It doesn’t matter. Nothing would make me happier than doing this with you anyway.”

I raised an eyebrow as I watched him unpack the basket. He pulled out two pizza boxes.

“Since you can’t stand all this Christmas food, how about pizza?”

Next he pulled two cans of beer out of the basket with the words “And eggnog is overrated and disgusting anyway.”

Now he turned to the tree. The Christmas tree ornaments glittered in the weak light, which illuminated the hut through the cracks in the roof and walls. He placed the Christmas tree in the middle of the hut and handed me the baseball bat with a big grin. He didn't have to say anything, I knew exactly what he was going to do.

“Where did you get that tree?” I wanted to know as I took the bat from him.

He shrugged his shoulders and explained in an indifferent tone, “I don’t know. From some front yard.”

My gaze wandered over the Christmas tree, the pizza, the beer, and my broadly grinning friend. To be honest, I couldn't ask for anything better at that moment. Even a 'real' Christmas, like the ones we see in films, couldn't top this moment.

“Oh, and before I forget.” He dug out a battery-operated cassette player from the basket, pressed the play button, and when the first beats of Metallica's 'For whom the bell tolls' rang out, he scoffed: "All those Christmas songs are unbearable anyway."

I was close to tears. I couldn't have dreamed of a better Christmas. I looked at everything he had brought with glassy eyes.

“Eddie, this is incredible.” My voice was broken and I had to try hard not to burst into tears of joy. Not because I was allowed to live out my hatred of Christmas. But because I was so touched and overwhelmed by what Eddie had organized for me. I had never experienced such affection before.

“I wish you a very unmerry Christmas.” He announced, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pressing a kiss to the crown of my head.

“Yeah, you too, darling,” I replied happily and reached up to kiss him.

"You're the best thing that ever happened to me. This is the best worst Christmas,” I whispered against his lips. "I love you."

“I love you too, sweetie.” He looked into my eyes lovingly and pushed a strand of hair behind my ear.

I could never have imagined that Eddie and I would spend our first Christmas like this, standing in front of the burning remains of the Christmas tree, with pizza and beer in hand and Metallica playing in the background. And it was the first of many Christmases we experienced together.

_________________

Thank you for reading! 🫶 If you want to be tagged in coming fanfics or if you want to request something, feel free to send me a dm or an ask. 🥰 Likes, comments and especially reblogs are always welcome. 🤗

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cherrycola27 · 1 year

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Whiskey, Neat

Summary: You came out to California for a fresh start. Sometimes, new beginnings look just like old flames.

Pairing: Bob x Reader

Warnings: Language, alcohol, Mentions of cheating, Mentions of Smut. Minors DNI 18+

...........................................

Part 1

You'd rolled into Miramar with a trail of dust behind you and a faded black Stetson hat on your head. Fresh off of a break up and high on a promotion, you were itching to make a name for yourself here.

You'd almost turned down the chance to have a permanent station at Top Gun, hell, you would have if you hadn't caught your ex-boyfriend kissing his ex-girlfriend right after his winning bull ride in Tulsa.

You didn't even let him explain. You didn't want to hear his excuse. Instead, you smoked a Marlboro Red for the road, grabbed your things, and called the Admiral who'd offered you the position that night.

The next day, you were on a plane to California. You, Lieutenant Commander Y/N "Whiskey" Evans, were to be the new fighter maneuvers instructor at Top Gun. You'd also be a part of the elite Dagger Squadron that went on high-risk missions.

....................

You'd taken a few days to get acquainted with base. Phoenix, the only other woman pilot in the group, had been assigned to show you around. The two of you had already formed a bond, and she was taking you out for drinks to meet the rest of the team.

You had put on your favorite pair of cut-off jean shorts, shimmying them on over your thick thighs and round rear. A fitted black tank hugged your chest. Your trusty boots and your signature black cherry lipstick complimented your Stetson to finish off the look.

.....................

The evening was going well until Phoenix introduced you to her WSO. Your heart stopped, and your breath caught in your chest.

The moment you saw him, you were met with an almost familiar set of blue eyes.

You could have sworen you heard God laughing at you.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." You said as he went to shake your hand.

Bob looked at you confused.

"Where are you from?" You asked him quickly.

"Well, my folks and I moved to Tennessee when I was seventeen, but I grew up in Wyoming." He tells you, taken aback by your boldness.

"You're from Amelia County, aren't you?" You press him.

"Um, yeah? My mom's family still has a ranch there in Wabang. My aunt and uncle run it. How'd you know that?" He looks at you confused.

"Royal and Celia? The Abbotts?" You ask.

"Yes—" He says slowly.

"Son of a bitch." You cry out. This would be your luck.

"Celia is my mom's sister. How— how do you know them?" Bob asks you.

"So that makes you Rhetts cousin, right?" You say.

"Yes, Rhett is my cousin. You still haven't answered my question." Bob replied. His voice raising a decibel as he firmly planted his feet in front of you. The rest of the squad watched the interaction with baited breath.

"I moved to Wabang when I was sixteen. Graduated from Amelia County High. My mom and Celia were in prayer group together. Royal and my dad were rodeo buddies. After I graduated, I went to the Academy. Went to flight school and Top Gun after that. Did two tours overseas, and then my dad passed. Went back to Wyoming and met Rhett. Well, re-met him. We graduated together." You began to explain.

"You know you look almost identical to him." You tell Bob with an long exahle.

"We got that a lot growing up. But I take it, because of your—less than stellar reaction to meeting me, something happened between you and Rhett?" Bob inquires.

"He charmed me. I gave him almost two years of my life, following him along the bull riding circuit. We got lucky that my duty stations were always near where he was riding." You continue.

"But two weeks ago, we were in Tulsa. He'd just won the whole damn thing. I went to the pits to congratulate him, and there is was, all over his ex." You finish as you take a sip of your whiskey neat.

"Maria?" Bob asks. You nod. "He never did get over her, did he?" Bob shakes his head in disbelief.

"Guess not. I didn't even give him a chance to explain. I grabbed my shit and left him." You finish.

Bob shrugs. The rest of the squad looks around, unsure of what to say.

"Well, small world, I guess." Hangman states clearing his throat.

"Sure is." You tell them before grabbing a pool cue to play a game.

After the rocky start, you and Bob seemed to get along. Aside from looks and the accent, Bob and Rhett were nothing alike. It was crazy to you how they could have the same jaw line and blue eyes, yet be so different.

The more you looked at him, the more subtle difference you noticed. Bob kept his hair neat, and it was a bit lighter than Rhetts mess strands. Bob's eyes were brighter. Bob was also leaner than Rhett was. Rhett was stocky but soft from the beer he drank, while Bob was broad from years of having to stay in shape for flying.

As the night went on, you danced and drank with the team, fitting right in. But you couldn't help notice the way Bob's eyes never left you.

........................

It should feel wrong, it really should, but after six weeks, you found yourself on a date with Bob, or Robby, as you had taken to calling him. Once your brain had gotten out of the way, and you stopped listening to the little voice in your head telling you that he was going to hurt you like Rhett did, you found out how great of a person Bob was.

He treated you better than anyone had before.

He was kind, gentle, and a man of his word. He was giving, and protective, and so funny.

The first time you slept with, you were overcome with pleasure. It's always the quiet ones, you thought.

You'd been dating for four glorious months when trouble rolled into the Hard Deck.

.......................

It was a Friday evening, just like any other. You were out with the squad. Bob and Phoenix had to stay later for checks on their aircraft. You were at the bar getting your drink when you felt a familiar hand press against your hip.

"Hey there han—" your sentence stopped when you turned to face him.

"Rhett." You spat. "What are you doing here?"

"I qualified for nationals. It's here in San Diego. I asked around at the hotel, and they said this was the place that the Navy people hung out. I came to find you, Honeybee." Rhett drawled out.

"Well, you're wasting your time. I don't have anything to say to you." You turned and tried to get away from him, but you were trapped by the sea of people.

"Whiskey, please, can we talk. Just give me five minutes." He asked.

You sighed and motioned for him to follow you to the back deck.

As you walked out, Rooster saw you and someone who looked just like Bob, but definitely wasn't Bob, walk out with you. That must have been who you were talking about a few months ago. He made the mental note to let Bob know what was going on as soon as he saw him.

..................

Rhett spent the next five minutes trying to convince you that he didn't do anything wrong. But you weren't listening to him. He wasn't worth it. So, you stepped away from the railing of the deck to leave.

"Honeybee, wait." Rhett said as he grasped your arm. You turned to face him.

"You don't get to call me that anymore, Rhett. You lost that right as soon as you kissed Maria." You gritted out.

"It wasn't what it looked like, Whiskey. You ran off before I could explain myself." He defends.

"She was wearing your hat, Rhett. The one I bought you." You state. "Honeybee, please. You have to believe me. She took it. She kissed me." Rhett explains. He's trying to reason with you.

"I've changed. I wouldn't do that to you." He pleads.

"Did you sleep with her?" You ask him.

"What?" He asks, raising his eye brows.

"The night I caught you, the night I left you in Tulsa. Did. You. Sleep. With. Maria?" You punctuate each word of the question.

Rhett looks like a kicked puppy. He doesn't meet your eyes. He doesn't have to answer your question. The silence speaks louder than any of this words.

"You haven't changed a bit, Rhett. You're always going to choose her. I deserve someone who is going to choose me. You should have never come out here. It was a mistake." You tell him before turning on your heels to walk away.

"Honeybee, please!" He pleads with you. He grabs your bicep to stop you from walking away. He pulls you roughly towards him.

"Rhett." You warn him in a low voice. "Please, just give me another chance." He's almost begging.

"Let me go." You tell him as you try to pull away, but you're stuck. Trapped in his firm grip.

"I'm not going to let you walk away from me. I can be better for you." Rhett tells you.

"I have someone who's better for me. Now, let me go." You tell him.

"Let her go, Rhett." Bob's voice rings out.

Both of you catch sight of him as he walks out to the deck of the Hard Deck.

It takes Rhett a minute to recognize his cousin. You guess he wasn't expecting to see him here.

He looks between the two of you before speaking.

"This doesn't concern you, Bobby. Go back inside with your friends. This is between me and the little lady here." Rhett tells him.

"That's where you're wrong, Rhett. This does concern me." Bob states as he walks closer to the two of you.

He stares down Rhett, whose grip on you hasn't wavered.

"That's my girl that you've got a hold of there. So you can either take your hands off of her yourself, like she asked. Or, I can do it for you."

So! This is my first crossover fic! Be kind! Let me know what yall think!

Tag List: @dreamingathighaltitude @shanimallina87 @luckyladycreator2 @mak-32 @katieshook02 @samhapner6 @rosiahills22 @thedroneranger @roosterforme @youlightmeupfinn @withahappyrefrain @arson-tm @sebsxphia @emorychase @potato-girl99981

#top gun maverick #cherrycola27 #top gun #top gun bob #robert bob floyd #bob x reader #bob smut #lt. robert floyd #rhett abbott #rhett x reader #outer range #crossover #tgm fanfiction #tgm #tgm fic #top gun 2

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justwritedreams · 2 years

Text

Welcome to the Kingdom | Jeno

Chapter Five: The wrong Lee

Prince Jeno x Princess Reader, enemies to lovers au!, royalty au!

Word count: 8715 oops Genre: drama, very slow burn, angst Author: maari Warnings: Mentions of cheating (well, kinda of) sorry, alcohol, menstruation and cramps, food, reader feeling sick, really confused and emotional, Jeno is jealous. Note: Sooo i said i would bring my dream to one of the imagines 👀 Did I forgot to tag some people in the last chapter? Please let me know!! Summary: It's the first event that the princess is officially engaged to Jeno and her dreams are starting to come true, literally.

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The princess dragged herself to the garage, where the car was already waiting for her, feeling pain in her head and back, in addition to the unbearable cramps she felt that day.

Yes, she was at that time of the month.

The mood was to match the trip she was taking to the eastern kingdom, the next day she would be in the territory of the newest ally to witness Ten's wedding.

Her father and mother accompanied her, one on each side giving instructions to her, who listened attentively but without any animation.

She didn't want to go, she felt emotionally unstable and whenever felt like that, the most sensible thing she did was stay inside the castle, postponing her commitments. However, she knew that this time it would be impossible to do that.

It wasn't like she could tell Ten and the bride to postpone the wedding because she felt vulnerable.

Also, she didn't know what it would be like when she meet Jeno. The last time they'd spoken, he'd left her talking to herself, claiming he knew her deeply, more than she knew herself. She had a feeling things were going to get uncomfortable between them from now on and she didn't want to deal with that situation today. Not today.

"Daughter, don't forget." the queen placed her hands on the princess's shoulders, making her look carefully. “The press of the eastern kingdom is different from ours.”

"I know, they are wilder."

“Don’t give them reasons to write fake news.” the queen remembered and Y/N nodded in agreement.

"I'm only staying a week, mom." the princess remembered, making the queen sigh.

“Long enough for many things to happen.” Y/N frowned, her mother looked just as insecure as she did and that put her on high alert.

However, the princess took her mother's hands that were holding her shoulders and held them, squeezing gently.

“I know how to take care of myself!” she smiled, trying to look confident. “Anyway, I need to learn to deal with the rest of the world away from you and Dad. I will be the queen after all.”

Y/N kept her chin up and her mom nodded, pulling her into a tight hug.

Y/N closed her eyes, unraveling in the hug and trying somehow to acquire the strength that her mother passed. It would be a shame not to have her parents on her side when she crossed the border, she had never gone this far without their presence, but the commitment to the prime minister on the other side of the continent was more important at that moment. It was the king's duty to take care of business matters, the queen would be regent and the princess would represent the family at Ten's wedding.

It was the most sensible plan for the moment.

As Y/N had concluded when received the news that she was going to the eastern kingdom alone, it was time for her to act as an adult and the future queen. She needed to do this for herself.

The princess moved away from her mother and went to her father, who was watching the scene with pride.

"You won't be alone, many of our allies will be there too, if anything happens..."

"Nothing will happen, dad." she interrupted with conviction, making her father smirk.

"If it happens, you'll have someone to run to." he informed and Y/N nodded in agreement before hugging him.

The princess walked away, taking a deep breath and stowed her bag that was over her shoulder, giving one last smile and a goodbye to her parents before getting into the car. Without further ado, the driver started the car, pulling out of the castle's garage in no time at all as Y/N watched the house grow further away with every meter.

The drive to the airstrip was silent and the princess just watched the scenery outside the window, her head elsewhere, specifically for the week she would spend across the border.

She hated being a pessimist and didn't know if it was because of the hormones, but something inside her was saying that she would need to be prepared because the emotions wouldn't stop until she was back in her land, her home.

The royal family's private jet was already ready when the driver stopped the car on the airstrip, Y/N left quickly thanking the driver and greeting the other employees who were waiting outside the aircraft.

The scorching sun was causing the princess's headache to increase even though she was wearing sunglasses, the light was bothering her and she thanked for wearing shorts and a white button-down blouse. She didn't take long to get on the jet, being accompanied by her stylist, makeup artist and hair stylist. This was the team that would accompany her.

No undercover security.

Y/N's father didn't want this to sound suspicious to the press, after all, Y/N was engaged to the prince so her safety should also be one of the eastern kingdom's priorities. But the king seemed to trust Taeyong a lot and that surprised Y/N, because if he were any other monarch, her father would never act like that.

She knew because she'd seen it before.

The princess settled into her seat after placing the bag she was carrying on the little table in front of her along with the sunglasses, leaning in a little until felt comfortable enough to close her eyes feeling the pain medicine she had taken before leaving the house. The princess slept before the jet even left the ground.

When opened her eyes, the place where she was had nothing to do with an airship.

She was in a place in shades of purple and blue that looked like the sky, she heard the sound of water and looked down, seeing her bare feet in contact with the hot water.

She glanced up at her bare legs and was surprised at the outfit she wore, not only because it was extremely short, it didn't cover half her thighs. But because the dress, which looked more like a nightgown, light pink was transparent on both sides from the hem to the height of her rib and the top was lace, the sleeve was so thin that it didn't even seem to exist and maybe that explained why she wore a robe of the same color and length.

Okay, first she would never wear that kind of outfit.

Second, where was she?

Confused, the princess wandered her eyes around the place in search of what had brought her there and saw two figures ahead, the dim lighting wasn't helping her to recognize so her legs took her further forward, getting closer when realized that one person was lying on the water and the other was kneeling beside him.

Squinting her eyes a little more, she identified Jeno's profile face, he had his eyes open but without blinking, was serene and wearing light clothes too. It was then that her gaze stopped on the person next to him who was resting his hands on the floor near Jeno's head and leaning in to look him in the eyes, she identified Mark and tilted her head to the side trying to understand what was happening.

They continued to stare at each other, Jeno without moving or blinking and Mark reciprocated with determination when the two turned their heads towards the princess and at the exact moment that the two's eyes met Y/N's, she blinked and the whole scene changed. The open space had turned the purple and blue tones to black tones, as if I were inside a dark cave, and the only lighting that came was directed at Mark and Jeno who didn't look away.

Y/N felt the water move violently between her feet and she looked down, her face reflected in the water was distorted but when the water became calm and suddenly clearer she could see a lone tear trickling down her cheek.

She didn't have time to react to the crying as she was pulled down into the darkness.

“Your Highness!”

Y/N woke up suddenly as a hand touched her shoulder and she pulled out of her seat, confused and the stylist held up her hands as if apologizing for scaring her.

"We've already landed." she informed and Y/N shifted in her seat, silently nodding.

The princess stretched, feeling her back complain, yawning as she looked out the window watching the sun begin to set on the horizon and she rubbed her eyes. Had she slept that long? All the way to the airstrip in the eastern kingdom?

Her head no longer ached and the cramps had faded, she picked up the bag she'd left on the table and rose from her seat, massaging the back of her neck after replacing her sunglasses as followed her team out of the jet.

The first thing Y/N noticed when got out was that an official car was already waiting for her, parked near the jet, and Jeno was standing with his arms crossed.

The second was that Jeno finally wore a shirt like a normal person. But that wasn't cause for celebration as the sweater he wore, sleeveless, was showing his biceps, and the v-shaped opening in the front left part of his chest exposed. Much more discreet than the other times they'd seen each other, but his fair skin was still drawing attention. He wore white baggy pants and blue sneakers.

She would have been annoyed with the way they were dressing almost the same lately, even though the princess' shorts were a much duller shade, it was like they had matched that outfit too.

But she didn't have the patience for that kind of tantrum right now, just walked down the stairs of the jet watching her crew go to the other car up ahead, along with the suitcases that were brought by the staff.

Y/N approached Jeno and when she was close enough Jeno leaned over to kiss her cheek for a long time that made her heart do some jolts.

But she blamed the hormones.

The fact that she didn't even argue with him for being so cheeky was also the hormones' fault.

“Before you kill me, there are photographers hiding behind the gates.” he explained close to her ear and the moment Jeno's breath hit her skin, a cold wind passed through her body.

She tried not to shiver, but the low temperature of the kingdom and the clothes she wore weren't getting along.

“Alright, Lee.” she replied, in a tired tone and he frowned in confusion.

Y/N noticed how black his hair was split in the middle perfectly and this time there weren't any strands falling over his eyes that made her body feel the need to pull away.

"Shall we?" Jeno asked uncertainly and she just nodded as he held the door open and gave way for her to go ahead like a true gentleman.

She arranged herself in the car seat and wished the driver good night, Jeno closed the door, went around the car and got in the other side, he asked the driver to get out and when the car started to move, Y/N took off her sunglasses, leaning her forehead against the window as tucked the glasses into the blouse she wore.

Y/N noticed how Jeno looked at her without any shame, he didn't even try to be discreet.

"Are you okay?" he asked, sounding worried and Y/N glared at him quickly.

"Weary." was all she managed to say, feeling her hands tremble and her stomach churn, she just closed her eyes.

“Is that why your mouth is colorless?” Jeno questioned and Y/N took a deep breath, feeling suddenly weak. "Princess."

"What?!" she asked, turning slowly to face him.

"When was the last time you ate?"

Oops

Y/N was silent, blinking non-stop as tried to remember. She slept the whole way so she didn't eat on the jet and before leaving the house she ate little. The headache and the cramping had taken away all her appetite.

"I had breakfast if that's what you're asking." she replied, keeping her head against the window as felt her blood run cold and get weaker, feeling her body heavy.

Jeno didn't respond right away, but she could feel his eyes on her.

"Rob, stop the car over there."

Y/N opened her eyes when felt the car slow down and looked at Jeno, he was pointing ahead but the princess didn't have the strength to lift her head and see what he was showing.

When the car stopped, Y/N smelled a familiar smell and forced herself to look out the window, seeing the yellow and red sign she frowned, heard Jeno move around the seat until he was next to her sitting on top of one of his legs and handed the black card to the driver.

“Buy the biggest hamburger. Two.” he ordered and the driver nodded, taking the card.

Jeno turned his attention to the princess, he held the back of her neck and pulled her head away from the window, pulled the car headrest up and slowly made her pull over.

“Since when do you eat at McDonald’s?” she asked quietly, wanting to laugh at the situation.

"Since always." he removed his hand from the back of her neck but remained in the same position, looking at her with some concern. "Your blood pressure must have dropped."

"Won't it hurt your gym diet?" Y/N wanted to bite her tongue when heard her own voice ask that.

It wasn't supposed to look like she cared about the diet he followed to have a body like that.

"What?" he laughed and Y/N shook her head slowly, closing her eyes again. "Okay, Y/N, don't sleep!"

"I will not!" she replied, annoyed, even though she was tired. She was hungrier than sleepy.

She heard some packing and bag noises, concluding that the driver had bought the food.

"Open your mouth." Jeno asked quietly and without complaint, she obeyed.

Feeling the straw in her mouth, she took the soda in one long gulp. Her stomach grumbled as she smelled the fries and opened her eyes, seeing Jeno hold the cup and take the portion of fries, holding it out to her as the driver took the car out of the drive-thru.

"Thanks." was what she said before devouring the potatoes so fast she didn't even chew, but she was so hungry she didn't even want to breathe, just eat.

When she had swallowed it all, sighed and felt her body get a little stronger, but she was still hungry. Jeno held out the cup of soda again and she nodded, ready to lift her hands to take from Jeno's when he brought the straw to her mouth again.

Y/N frowned but gladly accepted, wanting to retort by saying that she could drink the soda on her own like the adult she was but didn't. Jeno's concern made them comfortable in silence, and she liked that.

Better than fighting and her headache and pain coming back.

"Do you feel better?" he asked, not taking his eyes off her.

"Yea." he admitted. "Thank you, Lee." the princess's tone of voice was calm and sincere, making her strange with herself.

He smirked and took the hamburger, handing it to her who took it in a hurry, Jeno arranged himself in the car seat while she ate the hamburger with a mouth so big it indicated how hungry she was. He placed the soda cup on the holder and decided to eat his own hamburger.

They stayed like that the entire way, silently eating while Y/N watched the streets of the kingdom through the window. Everything was very different from what she remembered from the east, it was spring and everything seemed much more colorful.

She used to always go east in winter, when heavy snow hampered traffic because it covered all the streets and major highways, it was always a very cold time.

But now, even though the temperature was a little milder than when she left her home, it was quite pleasant.

When they were approaching the castle, the princess had already finished her hamburger and soda, while Jeno was still eating his fries. The driver parked near the fountain that faced the castle's main entrance.

The princess wiped her salty mouth and hands, packed the bag she had even forgotten was on her shoulder and got out when the driver opened the door for her, Jeno got out on the other side and quickly came around to stand beside her who admired the castle.

Funny that when she was little always thought the place was too huge, now she as an adult had the same feeling.

"Your team is already installed in the castle's chambers, do you want to come in?" Jeno asked softly and Y/N squeezed her purse strap before facing him.

She preferred it a thousand times when she argued with Jeno, because she knew he would react in some way, but that atmosphere of peace between the two of them was weird, it made her shy around him.

She wouldn't even think about the fact that he practically saved her from a near-fainting inside the car and that he ate McDonald's with her!

“Do I have a choice?” it was a rhetorical question but Jeno smirked before bringing his face closer to the princess's and stared at her deeply.

She raised an eyebrow at the sudden movement, feeling weak in her legs.

"No." he replied softly and she looked at him confused, before she could retort he had already walked away.

However, making that day even more awkward, Jeno placed his hand on her waist indicating that she should go ahead and Y/N ignored the fact that his palm had a pleasant temperature.

She started to turn around to ask why he was acting so polite to her but gave up, all she wanted was to take a long shower and go to bed, her cramps were coming back and so was her back pain.

As soon as they climbed the castle's long staircase and passed through the main door, the princess noticed that the entire Lee family was waiting for her.

Taeyong had his wife's hand around his arm and they were both in the center, Haechan at the queen's side and Mark at the king's side, they all maintained cordial smiles and firm postures.

Y/N smiled at everyone as approached and subtly lowered her head, greeting them.

"Welcome." the queen spoke friendly. “Did you have a good trip?”

"Thanks. Yes, it was a smooth trip.” Y/N responded, feeling Jeno stop beside her, much closer than he should have been, his arm almost touching her.

"Feel like you're at home, Y/N." Taeyong keeps smiling. “Actually, this is your home.”

The princess nodded in agreement. She didn't know if she would feel that comfortable, but it wasn't like she was in strange territory, she'd been there a few times, she'd crossed the border before.

Just, never alone.

"If you'd like to join us for dinner, we'd be glad to have you." the queen spoke and Y/N opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted.

“We already ate on the way.” Jeno replied with a carefree tone and the princess stared at him.

Did he really have to talk like he was insinuating something to everyone?

Y/N felt the prying eyes of the royal family upon her.

"I'm sorry, it's just-" the princess turned to face the Lee family.

"She was feeling sick, so I thought I'd better feed her soon." Jeno explained and Y/N snorted.

How polite of the prince, to interrupt her for the second time.

“Are you going to advertise to everyone?” she asked irritably, glaring at him again and saw his little smile of amusement at the corner of his mouth. “Do you want a medal?”

Haechan's laugh came out louder than expected and it caught the princess's attention, who faced the Lee family again. Haechan covered his mouth to not let them see that he was laughing, the queen maintained her serene posture although she looked at Jeno, kinda used to that, Taeyong pressed his lips together to keep from laughing and Mark smiled discreetly to the side, looking at the princess.

Y/N took a deep breath, smiled shyly and bit her tongue. She wasn't going to make a fuss in front of everyone.

“And Ten?” she changed the subject, ignoring the fact that Jeno was laughing in front of everyone without even covering it up.

"He's getting a massage so he can get a good night's sleep." Taeyong replied.

"Yeah, he's really anxious for the wedding." Haechan commented.

"If you want, Y/N, as soon as his session is over you can go to the spa." the queen spoke and Y/N smiled politely.

"I appreciate it, but I prefer to settle in my room."

"Excellent!" Taeyong spoke. “Jeno accompany her.”

The princess suppressed the sound of discontent and wished the Lee family good night, feeling Jeno place his hand on her back again and indicating the stairs ahead, the inner voice commanded her to move Jeno's hot palm away but she was so tired and in pain that she decided this time to listen to every cell in her body and let Jeno lead her to the second floor of the castle.

Strangely, he remained quiet the entire time and although the princess was looking straight ahead, she could see in her peripheral vision that he was glaring at her from time to time. Maybe he was just as confused as she was, but all Y/N wanted was sleep to wake up willing the next morning.

Jeno indicated the room and Y/N opened the door quickly, pausing to survey the room. It was spacious and well decorated, her bags were already close to the king size bed, she was surprised. Well, she knew that every guest room in castles used to follow the same pattern, but she almost felt truly at home. It was a nice room.

Y/N felt Jeno take his hand from her back and turned at the same moment he took a step inside, so that the bodies wouldn't collide, the princess widened her eyes and took a step back, looking at Jeno confused.

"What are you doing?"

"I'll show you the room." he answered obviously and she shook her head.

This was already too much.

“No, you won't.” on impulse, she placed her hand on Jeno's chest and pushed him back, causing him to leave the room. "I know there's a toilet on that door and I can find the TV remote myself."

It was easy actually because Jeno didn't resist, he would have had enough strength for it but he just laughed.

"Oh yeah, you don’t need my help then, princess?" he raised an eyebrow teasingly and Y/N snorted.

"No, Lee."

"And you don't even want to know that my room is at the end of the hall?" he spoke with a huge smile and Y/N blinked, huffing once more in annoyance.

"I don’t care."

Jeno laughed and took a step forward, getting a little closer to the princess who didn't move away, keeping her eyes fixed on him.

"Then why don't you take your hand off my body?" he questioned and Y/N frowned, lowering her gaze to her own hand that was still on Jeno's chest, preventing him from approaching her.

She felt his hard chest between her fingers through the fabric of his sweater.

She did it quickly, as if she'd been shocked, and brought her other hand to the door without replying.

"Go away, Lee."

"Do you want me to leave? You know, I can be at your side if you have a nightmare.” he winked and Y/N rolled her eyes, angrily slammed the door in his face and the thunderous noise was followed by Jeno's laughter outside. “Dream with me, princess.”

"Idiot!" she screamed against the door and crossed her arms, feeling her whole body heat up.

She just didn't know if it was from anger or shame because in fact she had already dreamed with him.

[...]

The next morning, it was difficult for Y/N to get out of bed.

Because of the medicine to stop her cramps, she had slept longer than necessary and ended up being woken up again by her team who were already in her room ready to tidy her up.

She took a shower first, felt feverish, hot inside as her back ached and the cramps returned, so she took her medicine at the right time and asked for breakfast to be brought to her room. She'd already done the slight on the Lee family anyway, at least it wouldn't delay them to the wedding.

The first thing she did was the hair, it would have a part tied and the other loose, it took a little longer than she imagined, after all she would wear a discreet tiara but that would have to be tied up for the rest of the day.

After the makeup, the princess's eyes were loaded with makeup a little more daring but that marked the iris well and her lips were an approximate shade of the color of her mouth.

She put on the earrings, the discreet bracelet and the rings, not forgetting the engagement ring.

And finally, the dress. Long, nude and well designed in lace and details that made it angelic, with short sleeves and high collar lace. A tail came out from the middle of her back and went against her skirt.

The original design was a little edgier than that, so a skirt was added so it wouldn't be too see-through for the princess, as well as extra fabric on the bust.

When the princess was ready to go, she took the nude heels and left the room with the shoes in her hands, because of the pain in her back she decided to put them on only when they left the castle towards the cathedral.

So she walked through the castle barefoot up the stairs and when she reached the top she saw that Jeno was waiting with his head down and the hands in his pants pocket. The princess looked Jeno up and down, they didn't wear the same clothes, his formal suit was blue, it looked like silk but it was much thicker, by a miracle or maybe because the wedding was inside the church, Jeno wore a white shirt with buttons underneath.

And although they weren't wearing the same color clothes, the color palette was harmonious and very well selected.

Y/N didn't know if it was just a coincidence of fate again or if they were really doing it on purpose to make them look like a real couple.

Realizing that someone was at the top of the stairs, Jeno looked up and the princess noticed the way his hair, even if parted in the middle, fell over his eyes. She swallowed hard when noticed that Jeno didn't take his eyes off her and decided to go downstairs soon, feeling watched by Jeno's fixed eyes.

When she was on the last steps, Jeno's hand appeared in her field of vision and she took a deep breath before accepting it with her free hand, noticing that on the fabric of the suit at the wrist there was an emblem but in fact that wasn't all she noticed but how Jeno's hands were warm, but also wet.

Y/N felt the need to tuck her hair behind her ear but didn't want to mess up the hairstyle that had taken hours to do, so she just took her hand away from Jeno's, noticing that he was wearing a necklace with the Lee family crest.

Averting her eyes from Jeno, put her heels on the floor and hiked up the skirt of her dress enough so that she could see her feet and tried to put her shoes on but for some reason she was having a hard time with it.

“Want some help?” Jeno asked subtly and Y/N kept her gaze fixed on her feet, confused but nodded.

Y/N felt her legs wobble as Jeno stepped in front of her, not taking his eyes off her, and crouched down. His attention returned to Y/N's feet and he held a shoe, she then tried to contain all the cloths of the dress skirt and without waiting, Jeno grabbed her ankle and brought her foot closer so he could put it on.

The princess had to clench her jaw because Jeno's hand shouldn't have been such a gentle touch that it sent a strange shiver down her spine, he finished and gently placed her foot on the floor again.

Ready to put on the other shoe, Y/N was forced to put her hand on Jeno's shoulder while he did the same thing on her other foot, but this time when he was done, he caressed her ankle almost imperceptibly.

Jeno kept crouching and raised his eyes to meet Y/N's who were already staring at him, wanted to see if she could understand why he was acting so differently with her. Of course, it had to do with the fact that they had to pretend to be a real couple in front of the cameras, but then why was he treating her so well even inside the castle?

Didn't people know that their Romeo and Juliet story was a hoax?

The exchange of glances was interrupted by Haechan's loud laugh, the princess took steps back as Jeno stood up and straightened his suit, a little uncomfortable.

"Oh, you two are ready!" Haechan spoke and the princess turned to face him.

But she was taken by surprise by two factors. Mark and the clothes they both wore.

The suit was practically the same as Jeno's, the difference from Haechan's was that the collar of the white blouse was higher and he hadn’t closed the suit but wore necklaces too, the messy hair gave a charm and attracted any girl with just a word: danger.

As for Mark… the princess had to hold back a sigh at the sight of him. Mark's white blouse also had a larger collar than Jeno's and was closed with all the buttons, unlike Haechan's who had left two open, and the suit was slightly shorter than Jeno's. His blond hair was perfectly slicked back with a few strands falling across his forehead.

The three wore the same white shoe.

As Y/N analyzed both princes, she noticed that they both did the same and Mark took a little longer to look away, smiling shyly afterwards.

Y/N bit her lip to contain her excited smile, feeling her legs tremble.

Maybe it was the effect of the medicine or her own hormones that were churning.

When Taeyong and the queen arrived, announcing they were ready to go, everyone left through the main entrance. The royal family's official cars were parked in front of the castle.

"Please, miss." Haechan did a theatrical curtsy and extended his hand to the princess, in order to help her down the stairs.

She laughed but accepted, holding his hand, completely missing the bored face Jeno made at seeing him do what he was about to.

Haechan took her to the second car and the princess got in first, figuring Haechan would come right after, but he turned around so she decided to sit in the middle.

However, Haechan passed the car door and walked on, Y/N frowned and looked the other way, seeing that Jeno was getting ready to enter from the side where she had gone.

Jeno sat next to her, closing the door as she looked ahead and when the other door opened, Y/N saw Mark enter.

He sat down on the other side of her quickly and closed the door, smiling slightly at the princess and averted his eyes forward as the driver got into the car along with a security guard.

Y/N pulled over her back on the bench slowly, releasing the breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding.

She was in the middle, between Mark and Jeno. Maybe she should start taking her dreams more seriously because apparently they were coming true.

The way to the cathedral was awkward and silent, the princess didn't know if it had to do with the fact that the three of them were locked in that car that, as spacious as it was, her arm brushed between Mark and Jeno's every time the driver turned the car. Or maybe because they were both nervous about the wedding, it would be normal right?

Well, of course it was more embarrassing for her considering the fact that she'd dreamed about them the day before, the tension she felt was her subconscious's fault so she tried to convince herself that she was imagining things. That all that embarrassment was made of her imagination.

She tried to look out of the corner of her eye to see if any of them made any move to speak or even move in the car, but the two of them looked like two statues, completely still.

And she almost sighed when saw the cathedral approach and the car stop, she just didn't because there were more people there who couldn't even imagine what she was thinking.

Mark left one side and Jeno did the same, Y/N made a move to go with Mark as he was standing in front of the cathedral but when she saw the flashes of the cameras, remembered her purpose for being there. Then she went to the side of Jeno who promptly already had his hand extended to her.

He held her hand tight and helped her out of the car, pulling her closer to close the door and waved his free hand at the journalists, Y/N smiled shyly and nodded.

The journalists were yards away but she could still hear the rumble that only increased when Jeno put his arm around her waist and pulled her around the car and onto the cathedral.

Y/N held her breath. She was feeling too many things at once, the heat of Jeno's body against hers, his warm hand against the skin of her waist covered by the thin fabric of her dress, Jeno's scent taking over her personal space and not least, she was confused.

The royals never showed physical contact in public, even more knowing that journalists would enjoy every click, Taeyong and the queen didn't. Y/N's parents didn't.

So why did Jeno do it?

She had to fight every rational side of her to push Jeno away, far enough away that his heat wouldn't confuse her even more and then she turned her attention to anything other than the prince beside her.

She observed the cathedral and felt the need to take a picture of the divine ceiling that was taken over by paintings, she liked the Byzantine influence more than it showed, her personal camera was full of photos of places like that cathedral around the world, in places she had already visited.

A hobby few people knew she had: taking pictures.

“Ready?” Jeno asked as she stopped at the door and pulled away enough to take his arm from her waist, but his hand soon took Y/N's.

The cameras had all turned to the couple as well as everyone present inside the cathedral, the princess was used to that but it didn't stop her from feeling an anxiety take over her body.

She looked at Jeno firmly and smirked, he mirrored her reaction and the princess almost got carried away by his dark eyes.

Almost.

"More than ever."

Jeno winked at her before looking back to the front, they went towards the altar, the princess felt the watchful eyes of each guest who were on the pews and the aisle never felt so long but she kept her chin up, as if that attention didn't bother her.

Well, since she had to maintain the new Juliet pose, that's what she would do. With a class and elegance that was the envy of anyone.

As soon as they arrived, they placed themselves next to Haechan who had Mark beside him, Jeno separated their hands and gave his arm so that the princess could pass her arm and she did, seeing that the next ones to enter were Taeyong and the queen.

Y/N noticed how the two were elegant together and had an imposing but not arrogant attitude, both matched the crown, especially Taeyong. The princess felt a strange shiver in her body at the thought that in the future, she and Jeno would be just like them.

It wasn't marriage she was thinking about but when they became king and queen.

Would they experience the same tranquility and harmony? Will hatred cease to exist so that companionship prevails?

Y/N took a deep breath and the fact seemed to catch Jeno's attention, who looked at her quickly, but she pretended not to see it and kept her gaze towards the cathedral door where Ten entered alone.

As Ten arrived at the altar, he looked at the brothers and the princess smiled slightly at him as his eyes hovered over her, in response he smiled nervously. The cathedral doors were closed and the music stopped, the anticipation was created since everyone knew that the next person to enter would be the bride.

Even the princess, who didn't even know the story of Ten and the bride, was anxious as the wedding march began to play and the door opened, revealing the stunning bride, the Oh echoed throughout the cathedral as did the camera flashes.

Y/N smiled once more seeing that Ten was thrilled as the bride walked down the aisle, she loved weddings and loved seeing the groom's reaction, there was something in the way their eyes sparkled when they saw the bride entering that enchanted Y/N.

As the bride approached Ten and they smiled knowingly, turning to the priest after the bride's father walked away, the ceremony began.

It was a quick ceremony, considering some royal protocols had to be followed, and a pretty one too. Y/N wasn't one to get emotional at weddings even though she liked to attend, but that specific one made her thoughtful and emotional. Maybe it was the hormones, again, or the fact that the next one to marry would be her.

Within an hour they were at the wedding party in the Lee family's castle hall.

The huge room was lively, with happy music playing and the guests chatting excitedly.

The princess managed to congratulate the couple with Jeno by her side and after that, she mingled with Mark and Haechan, talking to some nobles in the kingdom. Jeno moved to the other side of the huge room and Y/N didn't complain, she was having a lot of fun with the stories of Haechan and Renjun, ally of the kingdom she had known that day.

Mark left the conversation circle after a while too, Taeyong took him to talk to some military present at the party and the princess followed him with her gaze until hovering at the door of the hall seeing Jeno bite his lip while one of the maids seemed to discreetly talk with him.

Discreetly, but not quite, as she leaned in, almost touching him.

Y/N didn't know why but the blood bubbled up inside and she downed the last of the champagne in her glass in one gulp, excused herself from the guys and strode out to Jeno's. She kept her head up and eyes fixed on the two of them like an eagle, when she was close enough to hear the conversation, the maid was taken by surprise, stuttered a few times and walked away.

Y/N just followed her with an unfriendly gaze and clenched her jaw, feeling her heart beating faster than usual. And then she looked back at Jeno, he had a false expression of innocence on his face but he was facing the hall and not the princess.

“Careful, Lee.” she approached, speaking softly so no one could hear. “If I become known as the horn princess, know that I will fight back too.”

Jeno laughed, putting his hands behind his body, making Y/N glare at him angrily.

Was it funny for him? Of course, what was the surprise after all?

"I don't think you have that much courage, princess." he kept the smile and stared at her. "It's not like you."

Y/N raised an eyebrow, feeling challenged, and took another step towards Jeno, their bodies practically touching.

"Then test my loyalty." she spoke firmly, lifting her chin even higher. "And I'm done with this theater of Romeo and Juliet in five seconds."

The two held each other's gaze, anyone looking at the scene could see sparks going off.

Y/N felt her heart still beating faster but she thought it was because this was another competition, another bet to see who would give in first.

Jeno smiled evilly and took his hands from behind his body, taking one to Y/N's hand, pulling her along with him. She frowned as she watched him direct her to the center of the room where Ten and the bride were dancing a waltz.

“Are you finished with your arguments?” Y/N provoked

"No, I just want to dance with you." he shrugged and pressed the bodies together, causing the princess to place her free hand on his shoulder as he wrapped his other arm around Y/N's waist.

It was the princess' turn to be silent as she was led through Jeno's body. That was a bad trick.

No matter how hot Jeno was, how right it felt the way he touched her waist, she wasn't going to change her mind.

She wouldn't be known as the princess who was betrayed, before Jeno could even think of making out with any other maid, whether from the Lee family kingdom or her own, she would hit back, pay in kind.

She looked around as they twirled around the room and saw that the previous maid was looking at the two, the princess maintained her same pose and took the hand that was on Jeno's shoulder to the back of his head. The engagement ring seemed to shine brighter as they danced around the room and she knew everyone was staring at the scene as was the maid.

Jeno pulled her closer, almost melting their bodies together, when Y/N's icy fingers found his short strands of hair.

This made the princess look back at him, noticing how close he was to her, that she felt his breath hit her face invitingly and she ended up getting lost in the immensity of Jeno's dark eyes.

Suddenly, it felt like all the air she had in her lungs was missing as a shiver went through her spine. Jeno was staring at her as if she was the only woman in the room and when his eyes dropped to her lips, Y/N felt her legs weaken as the music ended and applause echoed through the room.

Y/N blinked a few times and stopped where they were taking a deep breath, looking around to avoid the way Jeno was looking at her. She took her hands away and backed away, feeling her head spin.

"Excuse me." she spoke softly and walked out of there in long strides, while bringing her hand to the back of her neck, feeling Jeno's eyes on her back.

Y/N looked for any other place that was empty so she could understand the storm that was going on in her mind, eventually ending up on the living room balcony and leaning against the railing, looking down as she wondered how she had come so close to kissing Jeno.

Plus, why hadn't she stopped him from getting so close? Why did she allow him to cross her personal space?

She blamed the dreams she'd had with Jeno, well, none of them made sense but they were definitely messing with her subconscious. It could only be that, it was the only explanation.

She took her hands off the railing and brought her thumb to her teeth as she bit her nail, looking at the vast grounds of the castle as if the horizon would give her answers.

Was Jeno right? Was all the hatred she felt for him not real?

Because clearly her body hadn't claimed her to pull away from him, if it hadn't been for the applause, would she have given in?

But if it wasn't hate then what was it?

“Y/N?” the princess jumped in fright and turned around.

Mark was standing further ahead with his hands in his pants pocket, he was looking at her worriedly.

"Is everything okay?" he asked fearfully and the princess opened her mouth to answer but she didn't know what to say. Was it okay? “Did something happen for you to be alone here?”

"It is! It's just…” she shrugged, confused even to find the right words. She didn't know how to tell Mark that his brother confused her. “Having the eyes of royalty on you is…”

"Scary." he completed and Y/N nodded in agreement. Mark walked over and leaned his hips against the railing, turning his back to the horizon and turning all his attention to the princess.

"I just needed some air." she admitted.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you-" Mark started to walk away but the princess put her hand on his shoulder.

"No, it's okay, Mark." she assured and the boy looked at her suspiciously. “You never disturb me, quite the contrary, you’re the one who tries to make me comfortable the most. Since we were little.” she smiled slightly, feeling her face burn, and Mark ducked his head shyly.

“Nothing has changed, but at the same time everything has changed, hasn’t it?”

She sighed. She couldn't disagree.

“Back then I thought I would marry you.” Y/N's eyes widened as realized she spoke out loud and Mark stared at her in the same instant.

The princess didn't have the courage to look at Mark, as he couldn't take his eyes off her, and felt her heart beat faster against her ribs.

Damn it, she'd said more than should have and didn't even know why she'd done it.

"I had a crush on you when I was a kid." Mark spoke quietly and Y/N brought her gaze slowly up to his face, as if couldn't believe she'd even heard that.

She was speechless, didn't know how to find her voice to respond because if she went back in time and knew that, maybe things would be different. Like, the child inside her has always dreamed of hearing that. But now, it was a little late…

And standing there, looking into Mark's sad eyes, she knew he was thinking the same thing.

Y/N kept her eyes locked on Mark's and her body reacted before her mind, on an impulse, she brought her hands up to either side of his face and held before sealing their lips.

The princess closed her eyes then lost sight of Mark's shock that dissolved then he brought a hand to her waist carefully, not even moving his lips. They just let the textures meet until Y/N boldly initiated the real kiss, it wasn't just a simple touch or a lingering peck.

She needed to know what it felt like to kiss Mark, to fulfill the urge she'd had when she was younger.

Mark's lips moved cautiously and more carefully, almost as if he was afraid to scare her or break her, which changed when their tongues met for the first time and the kiss grew faster. The princess moved her hands to Mark's suit and gripped tightly as he moved his hand to the back of her neck and the kiss deepened.

Y/N felt her legs giving out but she knew something was missing, she couldn't tell what it was, even though the kiss was the realization of a dream and much better than her childish imagination had thought, there was still something that wasn't there.

Mark broke the kiss, Y/N was out of breath and kept her eyes closed as he pressed their foreheads together.

She wanted to say something but didn't know what.

“Am I interrupting something?”

Y/N felt all the blood in her body go cold as heard Jeno's cold voice and she opened her eyes instantly, pulling away from Mark as she looked in the direction of the voice.

She didn't realize that she started shaking as soon as saw Jeno's hard expression, the flared nostrils showing he was holding his breath and the clenched fists didn't go unnoticed by either the princess or Mark.

"Jeno, I-" Mark took a step forward but his brother cut him off.

“I need to speak to the princess. Alone.” Although it was a request, it sounded like an order and Mark looked at the princess one last time to make sure he should obey.

Y/N stared at him and nodded, feeling a weight of guilt over her heart as Mark left, leaving her alone with Jeno.

The princess looked at Jeno who shook his head, unhappy.

"How could you?" he asked, short and thick, in a tone he'd never spoken to Y/N before. She just lowered her head, feeling her eyes sting. "With my brother?!"

"I don't know what got me-"

“Is this how you intended to take revenge?” Jeno's voice rose and Y/N swallowed hard. "Who is next? Haechan? Maybe Ten.”

Y/N looked up at him, offended.

"Don't talk about me like that, I would never do that to Ten or Taeyong, I'm not looking for married men."

“Only for my single brothers!”

The princess rolled her eyes.

“As if you care!”

"You betrayed me, Y/N." Jeno spoke through gritted teeth and once again Y/N's blood bubbled up.

"Then I think we're even, Lee." she spoke and started to leave but Jeno grabbed her arm.

"I didn't play as low as you." this made the princess angry, she hit Jeno's chest with her closed fist, pushing him away.

“This is not a real engagement!” she screamed. "This is not real. There's no way there can be betrayal of a relationship that doesn't even exist."

With every word, the princess felt her heart wither.

Jeno looked at her completely hurt and she was panting, the situation didn't improve at all when he laughed sarcastically and approached her, joining the bodies.

She hated the way her body seemed to sag so fast.

“You know what, princess? You got what you wanted.” she frowned but didn't ask. "You didn't want me to approach you and I won't."

Contrary to what he said, Jeno brought his face closer and closer to hers. It's not what it looks like, she thought.

"Actually, I'll make you regret it." he put their noses together and the princess felt her heart want to jump out of her mouth. "And when you're completely blinded by desire for me and want to give in, I'm going to back off." Y/N had to fight to keep her eyelids from drooping, Jeno's breath blew dangerously against her mouth. “We're going to kiss, I have no doubt about that, but you're going to beg for it. You will beg me to kiss every inch of your body.”

The princess felt her breath go out when Jeno's lips were inches from hers and then he pulled away completely, leaving an immense cold. The princess with weak legs and a confused mind, Jeno walked off the balcony and left the princess alone.

Taglist: @floweronacloud, @cookydream, @travelleratheart101, @ilvaussiee, @tyongf-sunflower99, @mings-cafe, @n0hyuck, @waltermitty97, @jihoonismydad

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uglypastels · 1 year

Text

Diary of Potential College Dropouts // Steddie au

modern!college!au - Neither of them expects to make it through a full semester, though for different reasons. Is that perhaps why they were given a dorm to share?

author's note: this is just a little something-something as I'm struggling with the rest of pirate!eddie. I'm not sure you can really say this has a plot but if you like it, please support by reblogging and commenting or leaving an ask with your thoughts

big thanks to @eddies-house for giving me the idea for this. and @pollenallergie for coming through with amazing suggestions for this imaginary school

word count: 6k

warnings: no plot, just vibes. swearing, alcohol. drugs. quarter-life crises. dark humour. mention of unhappy family lives. anxiety. mention of throwing up.

My advice to you... is to start drinking. Heavily - Animal House (1979)

Steve had not wanted his parents to come with him on Moving Day.

They said their goodbyes on the curb of his childhood home. His old car was packed to the brim with cardboard boxes; Dad had his arm around Mom and extended an arm for a sturdy handshake. To Steve’s surprise, his mother bit into her cheek, pushing a sour smile from underneath her tear-stinging eyes. Perhaps she would actually miss him. But he wouldn’t be surprised to return for Christmas break and see his bedroom go through its fourth renovation in the four months of his absence.

Before getting in the car, Steve told them he’d text when he got there. It wasn’t a lie, per se, as he did not not want to. But even as he said the words, he knew he would forget by the time he drove up to campus, and something told him that his parents wouldn’t care.

He drove off with a last wave of the hand and a tight-lipped smile, leaving Hawkins behind for good.

If his parents had known that, they might have put more effort into the goodbyes. Maybe Steve would have, too. The release he felt as he drove past that green sign was immediate, and he knew what he was leaving behind was only holding him back, but it was also like saying goodbye to a trusted blanket. Suddenly, the comfort of years having grown up there was gone in mere seconds.

So long King Steve.

Hello Steve Harrington, finance freshman… kill me now.

Of course, he never wanted to do anything related to business, finance, or anything his father approved with a nod behind his Sunday newspaper, but it was either do as the old man tells ya or no college at all. And without college, what was he to do? Join his dad’s company? Get stuck in the vicious family cycle forever? It felt like a new kind of hell that made college seem like a field of daisies. But even those prospects didn’t stop Steve from fillings the first three hours of his two-day trip with angry thoughts about his upcoming classes and how to get out of them.

While the thoughts did dissipate over time, they never went away. The idea of just taking a wrong turn and never getting off the road was strong as the first signs for Dashwood University appeared. He could, after all, go anywhere. Nothing was stopping him.

That spirit stayed within him as he took a turn into town. Hawkins never felt further away. As the city changed in scenery to what clearly were lecture halls and dormitories, his heart skipped a beat in fear. It was really happening. And if the old redbrick building weren’t a hint enough of his location, then maybe it was the dozens of cars halted at the side of the roads, overflowing the parking lots. Mothers held their kids tightly while the dads pulled heavy boxes from the trunks. As he drove past a boy being nearly strangled to death in an embrace, Steve was happy to have gone through all that days ago.

With the number of people roaming around, it nearly took him more time to find a parking spot than the entirety of his drive there. There were also several harsh steps on the break as frisbees flew by, their owners running blindly behind them like dogs in a park. Then there were the other freshmen, looking like lost puppies, followed by the eager campus volunteers who welcomed everybody in and sniffed out the weak to indoctrinate them into whatever cults they were a part of. Steve tried not to get too annoyed too quickly, taking deep breaths and instead focusing on finding location markings. Dunent Hall. All the emails he had been getting on the topic of the introduction week mentioned “Dunent Hall,” in which “room 306 would be his new home for the upcoming year.” Exciting stuff, truly riveting. The excitement was practically trickling out of him.

Finally, he saw the signs announcing the student housing building. Conveniently located on the far north end of campus, it needed to have the regular commotion that the centre held. The parking lot in front was still dotted with parting families and students hauling boxes, but Steve managed to find a spot for his car almost right next to the entrance.

The aged red brick looked vibrant in the sun. Flower beds had been planted around the entrance, and Steve was sure they would look wonderful in the springtime, but as the days were only getting shorter, the bush looked a bit neglected and depressed. Putting on his sunglasses against the afternoon glow, he looked around again. The other dorms were spread out in a pentagonal shape. All identical in shape and size, decorated with the school's light blue and yellow colours. The only real difference between the buildings was the once-golden letters above the main doors, stating the name of the dorm halls. Dunent was behind Steve as he looked at the Runter and Vanhov buildings, with Bering on his left and Prudham on his right. He was sure that these names must mean something to someone interested in anything, but to him, it was just gibberish.

Now, Steve had heard jokes, but when he turned around to head inside, nothing prepared him for the speed at which someone approached him and shoved a pamphlet.

‘Hi!’ the girl said, eyes practically bulging out of their sockets like she must have been coming off a 10 coffee cup worth of energy high.

‘Hi,’ Steve replied, slightly taken aback by the girl’s eagerness and large smile.

‘I’m Constance; welcome to Dashwood!’ She didn’t even allow Steve to respond before asking: ‘Which dorm are you in?’

‘Why? Do you plan on murdering me already?’ He chuckled lightly.

‘Ha ha ha’. Her laugh was an exact exaggeration of the syllables, making Steve take yet another step back. ‘No, silly, so I can show you the way.’

‘I’m fine, thanks,’ he tried to stay polite while not seeing the point of being shown around a pentagon where each building had a sign you could read from across the street.

‘Oh, ok, just remember orientation starts tomorrow at 10. You should have received an itinerary in an email with all the details about the fun activities your faculty have planned. And don’t worry about getting lost or late; the pamphlet includes a map of the whole campus and the bus schedule… as well as some handy-dandy discounts and meal deals.’

‘Good to know,’ Steve nodded and put the pamphlet in his back pocket.

‘Alrighty then,’ she looked him once over, then looked at the hoard of boxes in his car, ‘well, if you need any help, just let me know. I’ll be here all day.’

‘I’ll keep it in mind.’ He couldn’t tell if her offering of help was because she did not think he was strong enough to carry all these boxes up to the third floor, or if she wanted to hang around him longer for something. Either way, he wasn’t interested in any of that.

It took another second of awkward eye contact before Constance cleared her throat, mumbled a goodbye and walked away, leaving Steve with his boxes and the pamphlet. He waited for her to have approached another poor unprepared soul to take a deep breath in and head for the door of Dunent.

As it was the unofficial first day of term and people were coming in and out of the building, the doors that usually stayed locked with a keycard were now wide open. Steve let a shirtless guy carrying in, what seemed to be, a mini fridge pass him before walking inside himself. The first thing he saw was an endless beige corridor, with blue doors situated every few feet, some already covered in posters, stickers and whatnot. The air was stuffy, like being hit in the face by a very soft pillow, despite the humming of an AC system could be heard.

The first door in the hallway was open; someone had stuck a piece of paper with tape, “RECEPTION”, written in black marker. It was a small office, if you could call it that, and barely held enough space for the desk and chair at which the guy was sitting, making Steve very anxious about his dorm room. He knocked on the door frame, and the boy looked up quickly. His glasses slid right off his nose, and he jerked around as if he had just been caught red-handed. And maybe he had, but Steve just didn’t know what exactly.

‘Is this where I can pick up my keys?’ Steve asked.

‘Uhhh, yes. Yes!’ The boy, now looking younger and younger by the second, but not in a complimentary way, came alive in a jumble of nerves. He shuffled around the desk, searching for the list of names. ‘Name?’

‘Harrington.’

‘Ah, yes… it should be… right here. Room 306—I see your roommate has already signed in,’ he commented while handing Steve the sheet of paper, where indeed, a name was scribbled in the same black ink as the “RECEPTION” sign on the door.

‘Cool,’ Steve mumbled as he noted down his name. ‘What’s he like?’ He handed everything back in exchange for a large white envelope.

‘Oh, I think he arrived yesterday, and I wasn’t working–’ the kid looked genuinely apologetic as if he had done something wrong, so Steve cut him short.

‘It’s fine, no worries.’ He smiled. He would meet the guy in a few minutes anyway.

The receptionist boy smiled back, without any of the reassurance that Steve tried to bring into the conversation, then looked down at the envelope he had just handed him. ‘In there is your key, by the way. Also, a list of regulations and… stuff.’

‘Cool,’ was there much else to say besides that? ‘Guess I’ll see you around….’

‘Arc.’ Arc said.

‘Arc?’

‘Yeah, like the boat.’ Arc shrugged and pushed his glasses back up over the bridge of his nose.

‘Ok, cool,’ it was his first genuine “cool” ‘I’ll see you around, Arc.’

This was the first genuine smile Arc made. Then he remembered the one thing he was told to say. ‘Welcome in Dunent Hall!’ he yelled as Steve walked through the corridor.

The stairs to the rest of the building were at the end of the hallway, and as suspected, there was no elevator.

Not a functional one, at least.

You’d think they’d fix something like that for the first week of term, where everyone was hauling boxes around the corridors, but no. Instead, it was a tight fit; people were jogging down as others struggled with their heavy things. It took Steve around double the time to climb the stairs as he kept bumping into people ready to fall down the whole flight as their property attempted to tip them off-balance.

‘Woah, you good?’ Steve asked a pretty blonde as she nearly missed a step she did not see because her eyesight was obstructed by a giant snake plant.

‘Yeah, thanks.’ She smiled, brushing her hair behind her ear– which might not have been a good idea as she could not hold the plant with only one hand.

‘Do you need me to carry it for you?’ Steve suggested.

‘Really? That would be great. My arms are killing me.’ She handed over the pot, and Steve put his Dunent envelope between his teeth. Unable to speak, he signed for the girl to lead the way. As luck would have it, she had also been heading to the third floor. They stopped at room 302. She opened the door and showed Steve where to place the plant. Her roommate had not appeared yet, so the room was half empty. The other half was now eaten alive by plants and books; the drabby walls were barely visible underneath the greenery.

‘Thank you so much.’ The girl said as Steve put down the pot next to her bed. ‘I’m Nicky.’

‘Steve.’ They shook hands, both now covered in a thin layer of plant soil. ‘Guess we’re almost neighbours. I’m in 306.’

‘Oh, fun!’ Nicky beamed, ‘And hey, if you need any help carrying things up, that was my last trip up and down, so– I mean, it would only be fair, right.’

‘Well, then I’ll leave the heaviest boxes for you.’ He fought the urge to wink, but kept his charming smile up until Nicky said goodbye and closed her door. Maybe college wouldn’t be so hard.

But he couldn’t hook up with someone living in the same building, let alone 2 doors down. That might just be the stupidest thing he could do, and he had already done some dumb things. So no, Nicky seemed like a great girl, but he would have to control himself.

So not that easy after all.

The third-floor corridor was smaller than the lower levels, with only 7 doors. 6 dorms and a community hall at the end. From what he could hear, some people were already socialising there, with their laughter and music giving everything a lively atmosphere. Room 306 was next to it, and people waved to Steve as they noticed him through the doorway. He waved back awkwardly as he got his key out of the envelope.

‘I think Ed’s inside,’ a guy said from the couch in the community room, indicating that Steve could just knock. And, yes, he could, but this was his room. He had the key. Why would he hit?

The roommate situation was not a surprise. Along with his dorm hall and room number, all the emails also talked about how Steve had been paired with some kid named Edward Munson for the roommate scheme. Unfortunately, that was all that was told to him. A name and nothing else, so Steve could only hope the guy wasn’t a dickswab.

Finally, roaming through the millions of papers in the envelope, Steve fished out the key. It slipped into the lock, and Steve suddenly realised that the music had not been coming from the community room but from his dorm.

Compared to the “RECEPTION”, this room felt gargantuan. The two single beds were set perpendicularly to their respective walls next to a set of desks. The door Steve just walked through was between two large closets, but there was enough shelving space for everything Steve brought with him.

From how Nicky had decorated her room, he expected a stark contrast between his and Ed’s half, but it seemed his roommate had some trouble with boundaries. The room had fallen victim to a geekplosion. Something resembling an old bed sheet was draped on the wall over his bed; the paint read “Corroded Coffin”, whatever that was. Around it were other small posters and pictures of bands and movies. Steve recognised most and noticed how there was barely anything around from after the year 1986. An auspicious start…

The shelves were already packed with books and action figures, and more packed boxes littered the ground and clothes (primarily black). Steve hadn’t even realised a person was sitting among the hoard of shirts and jeans lying on the bed, but Edward Munson sat casually back among this mess, strumming on his red guitar. He jumped up at the sight of Steve crossing the threshold.

‘Finally!’ he tried to cross the room but stumbled over a box, cursing as he nearly fell. But you wouldn’t be able to tell any of that happened by how he composed himself once finally face-to-face with his new roomie. ‘You must be Steven–’

‘Steve,’ he corrected.

‘Right, right. I’m Eddie.’ Eddie extended his hand. ‘Nice to meet you.’

‘You too.’ Steve shook Eddie’s ring-clad hand. It was a solid shake, which he appreciated.

‘Sorry about the mess,’ Eddie apologised while they parted. ‘I couldn’t find my—stuff and you know how shit is. You get distracted, and it goes from bad to worse, but I’ll clean it up before you bring your stuff in.’

Steve didn’t know what to say, so he just nodded. Eddie turned around to put his guitar in its case, and Steve looked at his new roommate. From his years on the basketball and swimming team, Steve immediately thought Eddie must be a runner. He was lean, maybe a bit taller than himself. But the tattoos he was showing off in his black tank top made Steve doubt any kind of track career because there were many. From the quality of the sketches, they seemed homemade, too; some clearly even stick-n-poke. He had his long hair in a ponytail, but half of it was already sticking out messily, the old scrunchie hanging on by a thread. His jeans had chains attached to all possible places, and his belt buckle looked too much like real handcuffs.

Compared to Steve, wearing a clean green shirt and some light jeans, they made quite the pair.

‘I just came to drop this of real quick,’ he dropped the envelope on his bed, ‘i’m gonna go get the rest of my stuff.’

‘Need help with that?’

‘No, I’m good, thanks.’ He had Nicky already, and Steve didn’t feel like soliciting half the campus to haul his shit up the stairs, even if that made his day a bit easier. Besides, he would find greater help in Eddie cleaning up while he was gone.

Not that there was that much to bring up anyway. Everyone was probably projecting their luggage when offering to help, but Steve had packed everything into two suitcases and four boxes, which weren’t even that heavy. He just didn’t own that much. So after three trips up and down, and something that felt like a minor asthma attack, Steve sat on his bed and noticed Eddie’s look. His brows twisted in thought.

‘What?’

‘This is all your stuff?’

‘Yeah?’ Clothes, a computer, some books and sports gear, what else would he need?

Eddie looked him up and down again quickly. Then asked, ‘What’s your major?’

‘Finance,’ Steve sighed, already growing tired of that being his answer. ‘Yours?’

‘Not sure.’ Eddie was sitting in his desk chair and spun around.

‘What do you mean, not sure?’ He must have signed up for something to get here.

‘Technically, English, but who knows what it will be next month. Fuck, they might kick me out by then.’

‘Not great with following the rules?’ Steve had to stay as far away as possible if this guy was planning on getting expelled.

‘Not great at anything, really.’ Eddie exhaled deeply, ‘but you know, college is college. It’s already a whole thing to be able to go.’

‘Tell me about it.’ Steve let his head hit his pillow while Eddie kept spinning in his chair. Maybe if he could turn fast enough, he could catch up to his brain, which seemed to wheeze a million miles per second. It was still weird to him to actually sit in a college dorm.

24 HOURS AGO, he still couldn’t believe it; he was driving onto campus to be a student. He had always expected the only way he’d step a foot inside was to piss off some frat bros, Tpeeing their house or something. Now he would actually be in classes with these guys.

‘Boy, you better stop jumping or this car won’t last much longer,’ his uncle muttered.

‘Sorry,’ Eddie stopped his leg from shaking, but it just moved all the energy in his body to his hands, and he started tapping his fingers on the dashboard, head rocking back and forth as their van approached the campus site.

‘You sure you’re good, Eds?’ Wayne glanced over at his nephew.

‘Yeah, I’m fine,’ Eddie blinked, shaking his head. They were now only a few streets away from Dunent Hall. ‘Just a bit nervous, I guess.’ He had that same stomach-gnawing feeling as he had in kindergarten on his first day of school. And then, on the first day of elementary school and in fourth grade, when his family moved, he had to change schools again in seventh grade. The first day of high school, freshmen year, and a year later when he moved in with Wayne across the country and started all over again. Then the feeling crept back when he had to repeat senior year… twice. After all these times, he thought he would get used to it, that the anxiety would come easier, but it hit him as hard as ever.

‘Try not to throw up in the car, son,’ his uncle said, and Eddie tried to laugh the sour taste in his mouth off. He would have replied but was scared that more than words would come out, and so they drove on in silence. Only once they parked in front of the Dument building did Eddie dare to open his mouth.

‘Looks worse than I expected.’ To that comment, Wayne smacked him on the back of the head.

‘Just because you’re right don’t mean you should say it.’ Wayne pointed a stern finger, but a smile was creeping up under his bushy moustache.

‘Sorry!’ Eddie chuckled. ‘I’ll go and–’ Right as he was about to head inside, a girl appeared, practically out of nowhere, startling both uncle and nephew.

‘Gooood morning!’ she sang. ‘I’m Constance, and it is my pleasure to welcome you to Dashwood University, the home of the Gorgons!’ She cheered haphazardly, most likely because all her energy was stuck in her face.

‘Gorgons, eh?’ Eddie said, unimpressed. He never cared much for school spirit, so the whole sports team thing wasn’t very appealing, but he knew some people got all hot and bothered by it.

‘Be sure to get tickets for the first game of the season; it will be a blast,’ Constance beamed, and Eddie would have asked what sport this was supposed to be about if he gave an inch of a fuck. So, he just smiled and nodded like the polite hated-by-Christians boy he was.

Constance looked at Eddie, and with a face like hers, it was evidently hard to keep her thoughts to her inner self. The judgement was practically being screamed through a megaphone (which she was carrying on a shoulder strap). When she looked back up at him, noticing that he had not stopped looking at her, she squeezed out a smile.

‘Here is a campus map,’ she held out a pamphlet, ‘with all the important locations and travel information if you need to get around. You can pick up your keys inside, first door to your left.’

‘Thanks.’ Eddie ignored Constance's last glare, not understanding how some people were still so close-minded in the year of our foe and Satan… was it the hair? The tattoos? It couldn’t be the weed; he had showered for an absurdly long time, knowing he would have to spend a whole day in the car with his uncle.

Speaking of Wayne, he had opened the back of the van, suddenly finding himself very busy with some box, only poking his head out to wave goodbye to this welcome committee.

It was a cloudy, sleepy Sunday. The air around them felt ready to rain or daze in its aftermath. But the grass smelled of it, and the flower bushes…… were there too.

‘I’ll go get the keys.’ Eddie said and went in ahead.

Just like Constance had said, the first door on the left was open and revealed a broom closet for an office. Inside was an older man who looked up before Eddie could say anything. He had a white button-up shirt and pits stained in sweat, and understandably so because Eddie already felt like he was burning after standing there for two seconds.

‘Welcome to Dunent Hall. Name, please.’

‘Munson, Eddie- Edward.’ God, he hated saying his full name. He watched the man pick up a clipboard and review the list of names until he reached the Ms.

‘Yes, right. Sign here.’ He handed him the clipboard to sign, and while Eddie was doing so, the man reached for a basket of large envelopes and searched through those for “Munson” as well. ‘In this you will find your key, dorm regulations, college regulations, lists of clubs and associations and this month’s cafeteria menu—which you can find on the map that I’m sure constance has given you.’

All Eddie could do was whistle in fascination. ‘You guys sure are organised,’ he tried to joke, but the man just looked at him with a cold and unimpressed stare. ‘Well, thanks, anyway.’ Eddie held up the envelope and walked back out of the building where Wayne was waiting, a box in his hands.

‘Got 'em?’ he asked, and Eddie showed him the envelope. It took him another five years to sift through all the paper waste to find the key—a small silver key attached to a red label reading “306”.

Eddie grabbed his guitar case, whipped it around his shoulder, and took another two boxes to follow Wayne into the building. The only people around were just like them, families unpacking, so he doubted it was necessary to lock the van… not that he had anything worth stealing anyway.

The elevator had a large “out of order” sign stamped on it, so they took the stairs. While Wayne said he was fine, Eddie insisted he takes it slow and not make any more up-and-down trips. They compromised by Wayne giving him a warning look and bringing up two more boxes before resting up in the room as Eddie got the rest of his stuff. Together, it took five trips up the flight of stairs, but all the boxes and bags covered most of the floor space. Wayne took the desk chair while Eddie sat on the bed, choosing the left side of the room.

Running back and forth to the car had occupied him for the time being, but now, sitting there in silence, all the thoughts from the drive were returning. The look Constance gave him… would that be everyone he met around these parts? Would it be like every other school he had been to? What about this roommate of his? Steven? What were the chances that he’d be into all the stuff Eddie was? Would he have to share a room with someone that was either scared of him or thought Eddie was a freak?

‘Pay them no mind, boy,’ Wayne said out of nowhere, almost as if he could read his nephew’s mind.

‘For once, I don’t want them to think I don’t belong here.’ Eddie sighed.

‘Listen here,’ Wayne pushed the chair closer to the bed, ‘you worked as hard, if not harder, as anybody here. You’re here because you deserve it, you understand me, son?’

Eddie nodded, but his uncle needed more. ‘Yes sir.’ And then, like when he was a little boy, he jumped into his uncle’s arms for a tight embrace, possibly knocking the air out of the man’s lungs.

‘I’m proud of you boy.’ Wayne wrapped his arms around him. ‘Always have, always will be.’

‘Even when I accidentally set the theater room on fire?’

‘Boy–’ Wayne warned.

‘Right, sorry.’ He pulled back into the hug. His uncle smelled of driftwood and wind. No matter how long of a drive or shift at the plant they had behind them, the smell of home never left. And now Eddie had to say goodbye to it. To his home, to his uncle. He would be entirely on his own again.

‘Alright, that’s enough of the good stuff, Eds,’ Wayne tapped him on the back, and the two got up. His uncle’s arm remained on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly. ‘Really proud of you.’

‘Thanks.’ Eddie smiled, pushing back any emotions. He didn’t want his last moments with his uncle to be filled with tears.

‘And you know, your ma would be too.’

‘What about good ol’ pops?’ Eddie snickered.

‘Damn him to Hell.’ Wayne spit and Eddie gasped half-jokingly. He had expected precisely that kind of reaction, but he had never heard his uncle use the big H word.

‘Maybe it’s good I’m leaving, man, clearly I’m not a good influence on you.’ Eddie pulled him back into one last hug, but after that, it was time for Wayne to go. It was hard to say goodbye, though, so Eddie ended up walking back to the car, and didn’t head inside until the car disappeared around the corner. It felt silly, and he had never imagined himself getting so emotional over farewells, and yet, as he sludged his step up the stairs, tears pricked at the corner of his eyes.

The room looked tiny and giant at the same time. Compared to his old room, it must have been three times the size, but looking at all his stuff in boxes, Wayne’s writing on all of them, categorising his belongings, it felt dizzying. This is where everything starts. The great adventure.

The sour taste in his mouth came back.

‘Fuck.’ He needed to relax. Like, right now. And luckily, Eddie knew precisely how.

If only he remembered where he had packed it. Somewhere at the bottom of one of the boxes, he still could retell. At the bottom, if his uncle opened it up, the weed wouldn’t be front and centre. Also, to cover up the smell a bit.

He went through three boxes before finding the incense, which he had thought was a good sign, but alas. Apparently, he had stashed the stash in one of his duffel bags. He opened the window, lit the incense stick and was about to light a blunt when a voice came out from the doorway.

‘Ooh, wouldn’t do that if I were you.’

‘Hmm?’ with the joint between his lips, Eddie looked towards the door, where a guy with a buzzcut was standing, leaning into his room with his hands on the doorframe.

‘Smoking is a big no-no inside these buildings. It’s like rule one on all the regulations. Highlighted in italics and bold font.’ He had a slight accent, but from his voice, he sounded just as annoyed about the rule as Eddie felt when he heard it.

‘Well, there goes my afternoon.’ He put the blunt back in its little tin box. ‘But thanks for the heads up, man.’

‘Yeah, sure thing.’ the guy glanced around him, ‘guess we’re across neighbours then.’

‘Oh, nice.’ Eddie wanted to slide his chair out towards the door, but it was undoable with all hix boxes lying around. So finally, defeated by the cardboard, he got up.

‘I’m Eddie.’

‘Ved, but call me Vader.’ Ved introduced himself.

‘That might just be the stupidest self-proclaimed nickname I’ve ever heard.’ Eddie laughed. ‘I love it.’ So maybe college wouldn’t be that hard after all.

Vader looked into the room, ‘making yourself at home already, I see?’ You would definitely think so by the state of the dorm. Throughout his search for the weed, Eddie had thrown everything in the boxes around. The ground was covered in his clothes. ‘No roommate?’

‘I’ll clean it up before he gets here.’ Eddie shrugged it off. The cleaning before the roommate arrived consisted of scooping everything from the ground into his arms and dropping it on the bed. The plan after that was to start putting things away into the closet, but shit, what was he to do when Vader invited him and the rest of the third-floor early arrivals to a small party at his place. That way, in 24 hours, Eddie managed to ransack not one but two rooms. The beer was provided for (Vader knew how to make friends quickly), and Eddie provided the music with his speakers. The worst of beats their childhood had gifted them boomed through the entire night.

Around 2 am, Eddie was in deep need of a smoke. He excused himself and found his way up the stairs onto the roof. A previous like-minded person had left a set of beach chairs out there, bleached from the sun and slightly rusted from the rain but perfect for their purpose. No smoking in the buildings. No one said anything about on top of the buildings. He lit the joint and sucked in deeply, dropping into the chair. The bitterness filled his throat delightfully.

Back home, millions of stars looked back down at him when he looked up at the sky. Here, among the street lights and the dozens of small windows lit up in a rainbow of LED, he saw around 3 bright spots above him. The moon was merely a sliver.

Eddie could have quickly fallen asleep right then, and maybe he even had, but Vader burst through the door and hauled him back in.

‘You know it’s like freezing out there, right?’ he said, pointing out Eddie was only wearing a thin tank top and ripped jeans.

‘I’ve had worse.’ That was all that Eddie said, giggling. They walked downstairs and said goodnight at their doors.

When he woke up the following day, his entire body hurt in what could only be dehydration. But the first thing Eddie did instead, was turn on some music. He couldn’t do the silence anymore. It was deafening.

The clothes were still everywhere too, and he kept telling himself to get it cleaned up, but somehow found himself putting away everything but that. And then, of course, he got tired and needed a break from all the unpacking. The music faded into the background, so Eddie pulled out his guitar to strum along. It was the next best thing to weed.

And that’s when Steve Harrington walked in.

He was precisely what Eddie imagined a “Steve Harrington” to look like. Neatly styled hair, perfectly fitted clothes, the shock on his face at the sight of Eddie. And then there he was, in his clothes from last night, in a mess of a room. He probably still smelled of booze and weed as he had had no breakfast or a shower. Great first impression.

The guy came in with half the stuff Eddie had brought, and he couldn’t tell if that meant Steve was even poorer or filthy rich.

After that short conversation, where they learned nothing about each other, things seemed to hit a dead end. They both kept to their own halves of the room, like prison cellmates, except without the murderous tendencies (yet). And for the first hour, Eddie thought that might be it. After that, they would never speak to each other again except when one had something to complain about the other.

Then after that hour, he searched for some kind of reason to talk to him, but each attempt felt dumb, and so Eddie fell into silence again. Would it have helped if he knew Steve was in the same boat? Looking for something to start a conversation again, but too awkward to actually speak. Because what do you say to a guy you just met and already living with?

Their saving grace was the sound of knuckles against the door.

‘It’s open!’ they both shouted out at the same time. Vader poked his head in.

‘Hey, I was just wondering if you guys would want to get some food?’ He directed the suggestion more towards Eddie but then looked over at Steve. ‘I’m Vader, 305.’

‘Steve.’

‘Pleasure,’ Vader turned back to Eddie. ‘So what do you say? I’m calling in on everybody. A bit of a team-building, you know?’

‘Uhh, yeah, sure why not? Steve?’

‘Sure.’ He wasn’t sure if he was being invited, and a group activity concerning the entire floor felt a bit ridiculous, but what else would he do around here?

‘Ok, cool.’ Vader smiled and closed the door behind him. They could hear his footsteps approaching door 304 and knocking like he had just done for them.

There was a beat of silence in room 306 before Steve asked: ‘What kind of a name is Vader?’

‘Beats me, man. The guy’s crazy.’ But, they both had felt it as soon as they stepped into the building, “crazy” seemed to be a requirement for the inhabitants of Dunent Hall.

the end.

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