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a-small-writer-in-a-big-world · 1 year

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Heaven Help a Fool Who Falls in Love

Pairing: Simon "Ghost" Riley x f!reader

Warnings: angst, fluff, mutual pining, Simon being in love but not saying anything

Words: 3.5k

Synopsis: Months apart makes Simon realize how much he truly wants you...

Link to The Roommate Series Masterlist

You are currently reading part 1 of The Roommate Series

Simon tries not to wake you when he comes home this early in the morning. He makes sure to open the door as quietly as he can despite the creak in it, and always takes his shoes off before stepping inside to minimize the sound of his footsteps. He would argue that he was pretty good at stealth, it was a big part of his job and he rarely ever got caught, yet when he was trying to sneak around you, you always seemed to hear him.

It didn’t matter if he came into the apartment without making a single sound, the light in your room would always turn on minutes after his arrival.

You stepped out of your room still in pajamas, your eyes blurry from sleep as you made your way into the living room to greet your roommate. You yawned and rubbed the sleep from your eyes as you turned the corner, a small smile pulling on your face when you saw him looking as if he’d been caught doing something bad.

“Morning.” Your voice was still heavy with sleep.

“Go back to bed.” Simon’s voice was soft yet there was almost a demanding undertone to it as he set his bag and shoes down on the floor.

“And miss ‘Welcome Back Breakfast’? No.”

It was a tradition you had set up a little while after you roommed with Simon. A meal cooked by you whenever he got home, a small celebration that he was back after being gone for months and an excuse to catch up on everything he missed. It also forced him to eat something when you knew that he wouldn’t otherwise.

He never outwardly expressed his love for the meals but you always knew he appreciated them when he ended up eating seconds and thirds of the food you made. However, he didn’t particularly like the breakfast meals mainly because when you were cooking him breakfast, it was between the late hours of the night and the early hours of the morning.

Simon didn’t like when you lost sleep because of him.

“Class doesn’t start until nine.” He argued but you dismissed him with a wave.

“So? I’ll be fine.” You didn’t give him the chance to argue anymore as you walked into the kitchen. “If you take a shower now, I'll be done when you’re finished.”

You listened to him walk towards the bathroom with a small smile, finally feeling at ease as the silence in the apartment disappeared after months of being alone. It was like a heavy weight had been taken out of the air or like the sun had finally parted the clouds after weeks of cloudy skies. Everything in you felt better when you heard the shower turn on as you began to cook breakfast.

It was a strange situation you were in. A college student who started way after she finished high school staying with a guy who disappeared for months on end for an unknown job living with each other in a small apartment.

A normal person would be thrilled that their stranger of a roommate was never there, especially when that stranger sometimes came back with fresh wounds, but Simon Riley was no stranger to you anymore.

It took almost a year and half before either of you got to the point where conversations flow freely, where you can talk his ear off about what you’ve been doing while he’s gone and something stupid that’s been going on in your classes without having to worry if you’re overstepping. You ask him about how he is and how he feels, he’ll answer. He’ll talk to you as much as he can and answer any questions, but there is one thing completely off limits.

His job.

You gathered he was a private man when you first moved in and he kept most of his belongings to himself. He never let you into his room and he had been shy about showing you his face until you expressed you were a little worried he might be a felon.

You tried to ask once, but he shut it down immediately.

“Someone like you doesn’t need to know about that.”

The response confused you then and still confused you to this day. You weren’t sure what he meant by ‘someone like you’, but you never questioned it, not when he gave you an almost glare, a warning for you to never ask again so you never did.

Not when he came home with wounds and not when you noticed the various weapons in his bag that he brought home. You turned a blind eye to the gun he kept in his nightstand and the knife he had hidden underneath his pillow in favor of keeping your friendship alive without pressuring him to give up his secrets.

You wouldn’t trade the relationship you had with him for any information. Especially not when he made you feel a certain way.

You finished cooking when Simon joined you in the kitchen with damp hair, smelling fresh and like home. You were about to plate food for you both before he gently pushed his knuckles into your shoulder.

“Sit.” He told you as he took the plates from your hands.

“You’re bossy this morning.” You teased but did as he said and sat down at the table, watching him make both of your plates. “Everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine.”

Simon set your plate in front of you before he sat across from you as if he hadn’t been gone for months and began to eat. You saw his shoulders go less tense the moment the food was in his mouth and it was hard for you to keep a proud smile off your face as you began to eat as well. You both were quiet for a moment, just enjoying the food and the company of each other after so long.

“So I have an exam in three weeks,” you began and though he didn’t look up from his plate you knew he was listening. “In that one class.”

“Have you started studying?” He wondered and when he looked up at you, you averted your gaze from him quickly. “Am I going to have to help?”

“I’m not going through your crazy study bootcamp again.”

“You passed because of me.”

The conversations began to flow between you both. You talked about how one of your recent classes had been giving you mindless work to do for minimal points and how your other friends were doing, not that he particularly cared about what was going on with them but it was something to talk about.

He listened and made comments, engaging in the conversation as he helped himself to the rest of the breakfast, feeling a lot better than he had since he stepped on the plane to come back to you.

Simon watched you talk with soft eyes that bounced across your face unbeknownst to you. He took in everything about you, the small things that changed over the time that he was gone that wouldn’t have made a difference to anyone but he noticed them almost immediately. They didn’t make you any less beautiful or any less than who you were and yet it made him shift uncomfortably in his seat as he felt a small pit form in his stomach.

Maybe he wouldn’t have noticed the changes so much if he had been here, if he wasn’t away from you for so long. Maybe the changes had happened because he had been gone.

He wasn’t stupid. He could see the way you lit up like the fourth of july when he came home, how you would look a lot less tired when you saw him coming through the door like there had been a weight stuck on your chest. It did things to him that he swore would never happen the moment you moved into his flat as his roommate.

He leaned forward against the table as he watched you talk about your recent outing with your friends and his eyes flicked down to your lips.

Every time he walked through that door and you were there it took everything in him to not pull you into his chest, to touch you to make sure that he was actually still alive and that he got to see you again. That you were still here, that you still liked seeing him even though he neglected you for months because of his job, you still like him enough to make him food when you could easily just make him do it. He wished he could show you how much he actually missed you when he was gone.

You had no reason to be that way with him. You weren’t together and neither of you had ever made the move to take the relationship a step further. You didn’t owe him your time, you could easily find a different place to live and yet you stayed with him for some reason.

Part of him waited for the other shoe to drop. He waited for you to come to your senses and realize that the friendship you shared was too strange, was too taxing on your health for it to be something that you truly wanted.

Selfishly he wished you never did.

He wanted you to stay. He wanted you in his life even when it could be dangerous. The only thing keeping you with him were the secrets he kept from you.

“Anyway, I was thinking we could go to the store later this evening.” You said and he scowled.

“Why?” He grumbled as he took both of your plates to the sink before you could get up from your chair.

“We need groceries to eat.”

He sent you a look, one that signaled he didn’t appreciate your sarcasm but you just gave him a smug smirk that made him roll his eyes. He went back to washing the dishes and heard you get up, following your movement from the corner of his eyes as you came up to him and leaned on the counter.

“And because of tomorrow.” You smiled, a twinkle in your eyes that made him look at you with confusion.

“What’s tomorrow?” He asked and watched as your face fell slightly.

“Your birthday…?”

“Is it?”

Simon looked at the calendar that was pinned to the fridge and saw that his birthday was indeed tomorrow, but he was completely indifferent towards the day. He didn’t celebrate ever, it had been years since he had celebrated any kind of holiday or his birthday until you came along. The only reason why you even knew was because you asked him and he found it extremely hard to tell you no when you asked him certain questions.

He put the dishes on the drying rack without another word.

“That’s it? Come on, get a little excited.” You nudged his shoulder, feeling slightly sad about his reaction. “You’re here for your birthday which means we get to do something fun!”

“Something fun would be not doing anything.” He retorted but felt a little bit of regret when you gave him a disappointed look.

“You don’t mean that…not entirely anyway.”

Simon dried his hands on a hand towel and stared at you. He watched as you stared back, your eyes still bright despite the disappointment and it made him falter. He couldn’t quite think of what to say so he ended up staring at you for a lot longer than what would normally be acceptable and subconsciously stepped into your space.

You knew he had a staring problem and it didn’t bother you after you figured out that if he was staring at you because something was off about the way you looked, he would tell you.

You raised your eyebrows in question but he didn’t say anything. A small smile crept onto your face and you poked his chest a few times, enjoying the warmth that you could feel off of him.

“What do you want to do?” You wondered softly because as much as you wanted him to have a great time for his birthday, it was still his day.

Spend time with you. The words nearly slipped out of him before he realized how close he was to you. He took a step back and finally looked away from you, his shoulders tensing up slightly as he moved on to clean the kitchen utensils you used to make breakfast.

Those words seemed innocent enough but he knew that it would reveal way too much about how he truly felt about you which you evidently put you on the spot. As much as he wanted to tell you how much he wanted you and show you the extent of how he felt for you, that could potentially drive you away. He wasn’t going to mess something like this up, not until he was absolutely sure you would return his feelings.

“We still have whiskey?” He asked and you nodded.

“You know I don’t drink your whiskey unless you let me.” You reminded him and the corner of his lip twitched up. “So movie night while drinking?”

“Yes.”

You smiled and it was like he had won the lottery. You grabbed a piece of paper and a pen, scribbling down a few items on it to get at the grocery store before you handed it to him. You couldn't help the excitement that bubbled in you as you thought about having a movie night with him again for the first time in a while.

“You’re also getting a cake.” You stated and walked back to your room to get ready for classes.

“No-”

“I’m making you a cake!”

Simon listened to you close your door before he looked down at the list in his hands. He read over the items you write down, noting that they were ingredients for a dinner he liked, and he felt his chest warm. It was almost too much, your sweetness but selfishly he couldn’t deny it, not when you so willingly give it to him without any conditions.

He wrote down a couple of things on the list as well before he glanced up at the clock hung in the kitchen. He frowned when he realized that you would have to leave soon. He hadn’t even realized the two of them had sat at the table catching up for that long.

A pit formed in his stomach and he looked around the room, his eyes narrowed as it suddenly felt too unfamiliar to him.

It wasn’t that he hated his flat but it oddly felt less like home when you were gone and he wasn’t. He was too used to your presence when he was home, too used to hearing you piddle around in your room or sit beside him on the couch and he especially was too used to you being around him the first day he was back. Without you around him, he felt like he didn’t belong.

“I just remembered that there’s a festival in town next week.” You came out of your room dressed for the day and with your bookbag. “We should go.”

“What’s it for?” He wondered as he watched you pack your bag.

“I’m not sure but there’ll be food so that’s enough to make me go.”

Simon hummed in thought. He wasn’t one to go to festivals not when there were so many people with overpriced food but the more he looked at you the more he realized that he would at least have some kind of fun if you went together.

You finished packing and he felt sadness slip into him. He wanted to make you stay just a little longer but he couldn’t, not when he wanted what was best for you, for you to do what you wanted to because you deserved it.

Instead he followed you to the front door, looming behind you as if he were your shadow. He gave a quick tug on the back of your shirt to stop you as you grabbed the doorknob to leave.

You immediately understood what he wanted and a smile stretched across your face as you turned around and pulled him into a hug. This wasn’t the first time he had asked for a hug in this way and you hoped that he would never stop doing as you enjoyed the way his warmth encompassed you.

He stiffened in your arms before he slowly wrapped his around you, pulling you into his chest as he rested his chin on top of your head. A long sigh left him almost like you had pulled out a lot of the tension left in his body from being on the field and his eyes fluttered shut so he could just enjoy finally feeling you against him.

“Can you survive without me?” You teased in a soft voice and gave him a comforting squeeze.

No. God no. Just the thought made the pit in his stomach deepen and he was ready to try to convince you to skip class this one time. He could manage the few hours you’d be gone but for longer than that? Before it was hard enough leaving his home for months but knowing that he was leaving you along with it made it so much harder for him to be without you.

You’ve ruined him.

“I’ll be fine.” He stepped away from you and stared at you with those tired eyes of his.

You stared back up at him, getting a good look at the scars that littered his face and the small parts of his skin you could see under shirt. You looked for any new ones and relief washed over you when you couldn’t notice any. You hoped that there weren’t any under his shirt but there was no way to know unless you asked him to strip.

You opened the door but didn’t step outside as you faced him.

“You sure everything’s okay?” You asked one more time because you could.

You were no stranger to the effects his job had on him even if you didn’t know what that job was. You had seen him lock himself in his room for days, not even to come out to eat or to speak to you. Sometimes it started the moment he walked in the door, barely giving you enough time to say hi before he disappeared but other times he seemed fine and then he would immediately crash into a depressive episode. It was impossible for you to tell if it would happen.

“‘M fine.” He assured you and you gave him a smile that lightened the pit in his stomach.

“Be back in a few hours.” You told him and he nodded.

You shut the door behind you and Simon stood frozen where he stood, his eyes trained on the door as a dreadful silence fell over the apartment. His hands curled into fists by his sides and his eyes hardened almost as if he were waiting for someone to burst through the door and attack him.

The silence was only broken by the tinnitus in his ears as he stared down the door, counting the seconds that went by as if it would make time go faster. It felt like a shadow was slowly looming over him, a presence that would drag him down to the darkest depths of his mind just to torment him since he wasn’t distracting himself on the field. He was too antsy to watch a show, too willing to fall back into his mind to read a book.

There was nothing to do. No one to talk to. You weren’t here to remind him that he wasn’t alone, that everything he loved wasn’t gone and that he hadn’t truly died that day.

For a moment, he thought about putting on his mask just to feel the comfort of it on his face. He wanted to get rid of these feelings and the mask could do that perfectly. It would let him push everything down, beat his thoughts into submission because Ghost was so much stronger than Simon was. He could hide from himself with the mask on and just ignore everything until he went on leave again.

He stepped towards his bag but stopped when he felt guilt creep up in his chest.

You didn’t deserve that. You didn’t deserve to be ignored, to be forgotten by him as he tried to forget himself, especially after how happy you’d been this morning.

Ghost didn’t belong here. As much as he wanted to become Ghost again so he could become numb to the loneliness and the sense of dread wracking his body, he couldn’t.

Not when he wanted you, when he wanted to see you again after so long.

Simon relaxed his hands and stretched out the tension in them. He huffed and sat down on the couch rather uncomfortably with his hands on either side of him, his eyes going back to the door.

It was just a few hours but Simon would wait for you to come back.

Link to Part 2

A/N: This is short but I felt like if I continued it would've dragged on. Anyway, hope you liked. Might become a series idk

#simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley x reader #simon riley x you #ghost x you #ghost x y/n #cod ghost x reader #ghost x reader #mw2 ghost #ghost mw2 #simon ghost riley #simon riley

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totalswag · 5 days

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Drew Starkey and Actress Reader are together for a while now, they're in a place, you know celebrities meet at a party or parade or exhibition something like that. That's when they meet the Reader's ex boyfriend, they get along well, they've moved on, on good terms but Drew seems a little jealous, i see him asking little questions, but in reality he has nothing to fear since he trusts her a lot, he knows she loves him so much back. Can you do this please ?

unexpected encounter — DREW STARKEY

authors note thank you for the lovely request! sorry this took awhile to be posted. life has been very busy. i hope this is what you were looking for lovie.

summary drew meeting your ex for the first time and he seems to be jealous.

warnings jealous drew thats it

Golden Globes after-party is tonight.

Since you announced your relationship to the world, this will be your second public appearance together. Drew was dressed in an all-black suit to compliment her basic black dress with a bit of shine to draw attention. You like to match your outfits here and there.

This was also an excellent opportunity for Drew to meet new people in the film industry as well as some of his favorite actors and actresses. When he met some of his favorite people, it warmed your heart to see him so happy and giggly.

As usual, there was a large crowd at the after party. You were able to communicate with other actors and actresses. Your father is a well-known actor, and seeing some of his former co-stars is always pleasant.

In the middle of a conversation with Margot Robbie talking about her recent film, Barbie, you heard a familiar voice call out your name.

Margot excused herself, saying, "I'll see you later." She tells you, "Love you, sweet girl," before pulling away from the hug.

She’s amazing.

"Oh, hello, Y/N. It's been a while; how are you?" Your ex-boyfriend, Adam, came into view, astonished to find you there, but smiled at the end.

“Yes, it has been a while and I’ve been great, you?” You reply with a normal tone. “This is my boyfriend Drew, he’s also in the film industry” wrapping your arm around his, looking up at him with a soft gaze.

No matter how you ended things with Adam, you still had love for him at the end of the day.

You can feel the stress increasing in Drew’s body. He only becomes like this when he detects a threat and he wants to protect you at all cost. You’ve stated to him in the very beginning of your relationship you were in a two year relationship with Adam, also in the film industry. You ended on good terms and moved on from each other.

You have no feelings for Adam.

The only thing on your mind was why your partner was acting like this. A million thoughts race through your mind as you try to figure out why.

You can understand why he is suddenly acting this way. You would have the same reaction if you met Drew's ex for the first time. He knows you just have eyes for him.

"Nice to meet you, Drew," he adds confidently, extending his hand.

"Adam," he said, firmly shaking his hand. "You play Rafe Cameron on the Outer Banks, correct? "My cousin loves you," he says with a chuckle.

Drew was taken back by the chuckle from Adams mouth, “Yeah I play him in the show and I appreciate it, you can tell them that I said thank you” his response was calm.

The two begin conversing, getting to know one other. You continue to stand beside the two grown men, even joining in on the conversation. Drew's questions or comments drew your attention.

Adam nods, turning his body towards you, “Congrats on your movie by the way, you did amazing,” talking about your newest movie you starred in with Sydnee Sweeny.

“Thank you Adam, filming that movie was a hassle but a lot of fun all together” you kept your arms around Drew’s arm the whole time.

Eventually, you realized it was time to leave Adam and finish your night with Drew. The night has just begun, and there is food calling your name.

"It was nice to see you, but it appears that we should get going; I hope you have a good rest of your night, Adam," Drew said, indicating between Drew and you.

"Of course, yes, enjoy the rest of your night" Adam claps his hands together before shaking Drew's hand and hugging you.

By the end of the night, Drew and you are sitting down at the table with a few of your friends while music plays from the band on stage.

Drew and you were facing each other, your hand fiddling with his gold chain while he questioned you about Adam.

"Baby, you understand how much I love you and value our relationship. I'm sorry if I was acting like a dosh," Drew rambles on, but you cut him off by kissing him to silence him.

"You weren't acting like a dosh; you were professional the entire time, and I understand why you were the way you were," you said, placing your palm on top of his and softly pressing your thumb on his hand.

"I actually love you a lot more," he says, smiling.

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emmyspov · 1 year

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Prioritise yourself (Thranduil x Reader)

author's note: happy easter to everyone who celebrates it and a happy weekend to all either way🪻this is honestly one of the most scary things i've posted because it's something so personal that i relate to a lot, but i thought maybe someone else might need it, too🥺 please always remember that nothing will ever be more important than your health and well-being 🩷

warnings: symptoms of burnout, lack of sleep, exhaustion, negative self-talk, skipping meals, mentions of food, nudity (for taking a bath together) - please please please let me know if I forgot something! 🩷

word count: 1.9k

edit is mine, all pics are from pinterest :)

It had seemed like a smart idea when you offered Thranduil to help him with all the paperwork.

His days were filled with meetings and more often than not he only returned to your chambers once it was dark already.

So, for the past few months, you had been - more or less secretly - helping him with whatever you could: sending out invitations to other royals, filing away documents, re-writing contracts so all that would be left to do was sign them.

You were the king's partner after all and you wanted to help him as much as possible. This was your kingdom, your home, as much as it was his, as he regularly reminded you.

Thranduil noticed, obviously. The hours in his study were reduced since most things were taken care of in a perfect way already - he could return to your private rooms right after dinner and spend time with you instead which the Elvenking appreciated immensely.

However, over the past few weeks, things have taken a turn. And Thranduil noticed that, too.

How, on some days, you would get up earlier than him, how you would skip lunch and dinner with him - although it was one of your favorite things since you got to spend it with one another during your otherwise busy schedules - and instead eat by yourself, hunched over some papers. He noticed your tired eyes and dull skin and- lack happiness, to cut it short.

Worry didn't even remotely describe what he was feeling. He felt sick to his stomach when he thought about you being unhappy.

Today was no different.

You had gotten up before sunrise, leaving your husband a little love letter, before entering your own study to take care of all official things.

There was a lot to do. Other elves as much as people from Laketown and even dwarves were sending letters, hoping to schedule a meeting with the king himself to talk over whatever was bothering them.

You made it your mission to answer every single one of them, noting down appointments and also sending out excuses if Thranduil wasn't the right one to talk to when it came to certain matters.

By the end of the day, your head was pounding. You let out a yawn and rubbed your eyes, hoping to relieve some of the pressure behind them, but to no use.

Closing them for only a minute wouldn't hurt. You could still look for your husband afterwards.

A line had been crossed for the Elvenking.

It was the second day in a row that you skipped your shared meals and from what he just learned, you weren't eating them at all.

He needed to talk to you. He wouldn’t - and couldn’t - let you destroy yourself over some work. Your happiness and well being came first and he would make you realise that, no matter the cost.

After reaching your study and receiving no answer to his knocks, he let himself in with determined steps, only to stop abruptly as soon as he saw your sleeping figure. His eyes softened immediately.

"Oh, meleth."

With two big steps, he was by your side, crouching down until he was on eye level with you. Even in your sleep, you looked stressed, your eyebrows scrunched up, reminding him of the times you woke up from a bad dream.

"What are you doing to yourself, hm?"

Gentle, as if you would break like glass if he touched you with too much force, he picked you up and carried you out of the room and into your shared bed chamber where he set you down on the soft mattress and covered you with a fluffy blanket.

Thranduil left the room again for only a few moments so he could blow out the candle in your study and put everything where it belonged. He himself hated to work at a messy desk and didn't want you to deal with the same thing once you would return to work, although he didn't want to think about that yet. For now, you needed rest and all the love and care you could get.

He returned to your bedroom after he spoke to some of his subordinates to let them know neither he nor you would be available in the next three days.

You were still fast asleep, curled up into the blanket. The king walked over to you and slowly began to remove all your uncomfortable clothing before he himself put on a night gown.

Only then did he lay down next to you, carefully maneuvering your body into his arms, your head on his chest. Even in your sleep you wrapped your arm around his waist and entangled your legs, letting out a small sigh.

"Sleep, meleth, you've been working too hard", your husband whispered and brought his delicate fingertips up to brush some hair out of your face before letting them trail down to your back, rubbing some calming circles into your shoulder. "I'll watch over you, I promise."

And Thranduil kept his word.

He stayed up to make sure you slept through the night, occasionally pressing a kiss to your temple or the top of your head while his fingers were always touching you in some way.

It was nearly lunch time when you woke up the next day.

After noticing you were still cuddled up with your husband although the sun was already shining into the room, you immediately sat up.

"I- I overslept, oh Varda, there is so much to do. Why didn’t you wake me, my love?"

With a gentle force, Thranduil pressed you back onto the mattress.

"You've been overworking yourself for weeks and your health and happiness are suffering in return. I told everyone we wouldn't be available for the next few days. For the foreseeable future, we'll only take care of you."

You didn't want to cry. And you tried really hard to keep the tears at bay, but when the Elvenking looked at you with so much love in his eyes, you couldn’t stop them.

"I'm sorry for failing you, my king."

The elf wrapped his arms around you and pulled you close. "Oh meleth, no. No, you didn't fail me, you never have. And you never will."

"I can't even take care of myself", you hiccuped, burying your face in the crook of his neck. "It's like the work and the pressure never stop and I'll never be good enough and now I am sitting here, crying to you, a literal king who has way more responsibility than me. I am so sorry to burden you with this."

Thranduil's heart was breaking. He couldn't believe this was how you saw yourself when, to him, you were the most beautiful being in all of Middle Earth.

"You are never a burden to me. Do you hear me? Never. We can fix this. You have to learn how to prioritise yourself. I can teach you. I will teach you. And we will start right now. You must be hungry, what do you want to eat?"

You fumbled around with your hands before looking up at the Elvenking. "Could I have some pancakes?"

Thranduil leaned forward to press a kiss against your nose. "Whatever you want, meleth nîn."

With one swift motion, he got up, put on one of his majestic robes and made his way to the kitchen to order your beloved pancakes and some additional treats as well as some hot and cold beverages.

He returned to your chambers with a first tray of food, watching your face lit up with delight at the sweet smell.

"Here you go, my love. Eat as much as you want and take all the time you need. There are no other things that need to get done today or the next few days."

You nodded and grabbed a plate, happily munching on the food the servants were bringing in over time.

The king was watching you carefully while he himself ate something. It was more than obvious that all the food was good for your mind, body and soul.

You let yourself fall back against the sheets when you were done, letting out a satisfied sigh. "That was good."

"It is about to get better. What do you think of a bath?"

Your eyes lit up. "Right now?"

The elf couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle. "Is that what you want?"

You sat up, enthusiastically bouncing on the mattress and nodding your head. "Yes, please!"

Thranduil stood up again and walked into the bathroom, filling the tub with hot water and your favourite bath salts and flower petals before coming back to you.

With ease, he wrapped his arms around you and lifted you off the bed, carrying you into the bathroom.

"Arms up", he ordered gently and removed your clothing, doing the same to himself afterwards.

"You're so handsome", you breathed out as you softly pressed your hand against his chest, right above his heart. "I'm so lucky to have you."

Thranduil's heart started to beat faster under your touch and praise and you smiled, feeling butterflies in your stomach at the fact that you still had this effect on him.

He lifted you into the tub, setting you down and lowering himself behind you, pulling your body flush against his chest.

"I'm the lucky one."

You shook your head before letting it fall back against his shoulder. "You take care of me when I can't do it myself."

The king's deft fingers brushed through your hair, letting them trail down your arm. "We take care of each other. You are the one who decreased my work load so I'd have more time."

You intertwined your hands. "Well, of course. I want you to be well."

A kiss was pressed against the top of your head. "Do you see my point?"

You nodded. "I think I do."

Thranduil let his thumb brush over the back of your hand. "Tomorrow, we can take a walk in the garden and look at all the blossoming flowers. Or we can do whatever else will make you happy."

A smile graced your lips. "Just being with you makes me happy."

Gently, the ellon grabbed your chin and turned your head around so he could kiss you. You melted into his embrace, smiling against his lips.

"Gi melin", he whispered after you two had parted for air and you replied with the same sentiment.

Once you two had soaked in the water for a while, the Elvenking grabbed your shampoo and lathered up his hands before bringing them up to your scalp to work in the product.

The more time you spend like this with your husband - in your little bubble of happiness and safety - the lighter your heart felt.

And it only got better when Thranduil's hands wandered down your head to your neck and shoulders, massaging your tense muscles to help you relax even further.

You shuddered and the king grinned to himself. He was just as pleased as you were earlier that his touch could, still, make you weak in the knees.

"Rest, meleth", he whispered as he continued to work on your upper back. "There will be time to talk about long-term adjustments and solutions, but for now, you can let yourself fall. I'll be there to catch you."

Everything-Taglist: @shadowhuntyi @asgardianhobbit98 @fizzyxcustard

-> if you want to be added or removed from my taglist, just shoot me a message or an ask 🩷

#thranduil #thranduil x reader #thranduil x you #thranduil x y/n #thranduil imagine #elvenking #king of the woodland realm #the hobbit #the hobbit imagine #tolkien #elves #mirkwood #reader insert #please don't hate me for writing him ooc #and for making grammar and spelling mistakes #god why am i so nervous to post this #i'll probably throw my phone away after clicking post now

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steddieasitgoes · 5 months

Text

@steddiemas Day 21 Prompt: Home and/or Dinner

I honestly think this is my favorite one yet!

Tags: Pre-Relationship Steddie, Eddie Munson Has A Crush On Steve Harrington, Holiday Parties, Overstimulation (the bad kind, not the fun kind), Steve Harrington Is A Sweetheart

wc: 2215 | Rating: G

Read on ao3 | ao3 collection

The holidays were always a quiet affair at the Munsons.

A few gifts, wrapped in week-old copies of the Hawkins Post, placed under a modest tree from Merrill’s. Wayne’s famous (well, famous to Eddie) chocolate chip pancakes in the morning with a questionable amount of syrup and a reheated casserole from Ms. Jenkins down the street for dinner.

No church or family plans, just the two of them, a couple of beers (root beer in Eddie’s case until a few years ago), and whatever movie Eddie had insisted they watch before he turned the TV over to Wayne and the Christmas basketball game.

It was good. Great, even.

Eddie loved his holiday traditions with Wayne.

He did, but sometimes he’d catch sight of Ms. Jenkins welcoming her brood of kids and grandkids into her cluttered trailer or spot Gerald loading the passenger seat of his pickup with toys for his nieces and nephews and wonder what it would be like to have a big family to spend the holidays with.

Turns out, it’s loud.

So, very, loud.

The Hopper-Byers’ new house is bursting at the seams with guests. The entire We Survived The End of the World gang is here along with some guests — Wayne and Ms. Henderson. Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair stopped by for about an hour before excusing themselves to finish up holiday shopping (said in a hushed tone to not ruin Santa for Erica — as if she still believes, Eddie had thought). But mostly it was just the usual gang.

Eddie learned, in the form of Dustin’s “you’re being stupid” voice that it's become a tradition for them. Gathering a week before the holidays to pig out on food and dessert, play games, and exchange presents. Celebrate the year coming to an end and them making it.

As the apocalypse gang grew every year, the celebration got bigger and bigger until they were tripping over each other inside of the Byers house. That is, until this year when Joyce and Hopper got their shit together and finally moved into a decent-sized house on the outskirts of Hawkins. It’s no Loch Nora mini-mansion, but it works for them — even if it's still a tight fit when everyone is together.

Murray, Joyce, and Ms. Henderson are gathered in the kitchen — arguing over when to take the turkey out of the oven and the proper milk-to-cheese ratio in macaroni casseroles. A small radio sits in the corner, attempting to play Christmas music over the static. That’s the con about living farther out, Eddie supposes.

El and Max have claimed a fold-out table on the outskirts of the kitchen where they’ve been decorating cookies for hours, it seems. El’s simple and artistic, Max’s a chaotic mess of spilled-over frosting and candy sprinkles. (Eddie’s stolen one from each and thinks they’re both delicious much to their delight.)

The den’s been co-opted by Hopper and Wayne, and the TV volume turned all the way up (“We can hear just fine! It’s you kids that are making it hard,” Hopper gruffed when one of them pointed out the volume). They’re switching between basketball games while nursing beers and pretending not to hear the argument going down in the kitchen.

Jonathan and Argyle are hiding out in his room — smoking and trying to drown out the noise with whatever record he managed to pick up from the store he’s working at. Eddie thought about joining him, but the scowl he earned from Wheeler Jr. had him changing course.

The rest of them have taken refuge in the spacious basement. It’s too chaotic for Dungeons & Dragons so the boys and Erica have taken to playing an intense game of Monopoly. The threats he’s heard hurled at each other have been clever and downright terrifying. Way worse than anything they’ve uttered at his DM table. Those heathens.

For some reason, Steve’s taken on the role of the banker. Something about Dustin skimming from the top last time he held the role and played. Now, house rules say the banker has to be an NPC, and well, Steve fits the bill. Unfortunately, he seems to be struggling with the math of it all judging by the scoffs and annoyed eye rolls thrown his way. Eddie would go help, but he doesn’t think he’d be much help. Godspeed, Steve.

Nancy and Robin are there too, sprawled out on the couch and lost in their own little world. Occasionally Robin gets up to flip the record on the record player, but mostly they sit together, gossiping and talking about who knows what in hushed voices. Eddie might understand every little thing about dungeons and hobbits, but girl talk? That’s an alien language if he’s ever seen one.

As for him? Well, he’s hovering in the middle of it all. With Steve occupied, he’s taken on his babysitter role of sorts. Racing up and down the stairs to fetch whatever snacks the gremlins demand, rustling Max and El’s hair on the way in, and nodding at Hopper and Wayne on the way out. He narrowly escapes being sucked into being the official judge for the impromptu Murray vs Ms. Henderson pie off and almost makes it up to Jonathan and Argyle’s room before Dustin is bellowing for him.

It’s fun, mostly.

Getting to see everyone relaxed and having fun. A far cry from the last time they were all together like this back in March.

In some ways, it's what Eddie’s always dreamed it would be like. Being part of a big family, a cog in a never-ending machine of noise and organized chaos.

But it’s also becoming a lot.

Lucas is about to put a hotel on Boardwalk that has everyone shouting and throwing their own pieces at his head. Steve’s trying to keep them under control but it's a losing battle. One that pulls Robin and Nancy from their own little world to join the chaos.

And then there’s even more noise.

A crash from upstairs, the blaring voice of Joe Strummer coming from Jonathan’s room, more shouting, Wayne and Hoppers stopping, and giggles from Max and El.

Suddenly all Eddie can hear is noise.

It gets louder and louder and louder until finally, he’s certain his eardrums are going to explode.

Taking the stairs two at a time, he pushes through the chaos going on upstairs (dropped pies and frosting stains and shouting at TVs) and makes his way onto the wrap-around porch.

The crisp cold air is the first thing that hits him. Like an idiot, he ran out of the house without a coat or scarf or hell, even the warm hat Ms. Henderson knitted for him earlier in the month. He shivers, rubbing his hands up and down his bare arm as he tries to take deep breaths, watching as his warm breath twirls in the breeze.

As his body adjusts, so do his ears. He can still hear the chaos going on inside, but it's muffled now. Distant. He can hear himself think for the first time in hours and for once, it’s nice.

The snow is falling in slow but steady flakes, dusting the backyard in the white. Or, it should be white, but the hoard of Christmas lights decorating the house illuminates the backyard in reds and greens. It’s a real Christmas wonderland out there, now.

Reaching into the pocket of his jeans, he pulls out a pack of cigarettes and his trusty lighter. The first inhale of nicotine warms him from the inside out, sending the goosebumps packing as he focuses on his steady and slow inhale and exhales.

At some point he zones out, so focused on the snow falling and the repetitive nature of lifting the cigarette to and from his lips that he doesn’t hear the creak of the door or the heavy footsteps that follow until the intruder is standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

“Figured you might be needing this,” Steve says, hand outstretched with Eddie’s coat.

“Thanks, man.”

They swap, Eddie takes the coat from Steve and Steve takes the lit cigarette from Eddie, keeping it safe while he shimmies his way into the monstrosity that he calls his winter coat. When he’s finally situated in the plaid nightmare, he reaches a hand out ready to take his cigarette back only to find it perched between Steve’s lips.

Oh.

That’s different.

Sure, they’ve smoked together before. Bummed off cigarettes in the ally behind Family Video and in the parking lot of Palace Arcade waiting for the gremlins to be done. But they’ve never shared the same one. Never pressed their lips to the same filter. Felt the dampness of their mouths on their own lips.

“Sorry,” Steve says, lips turning up in a small smile as he removes the cigarette. “Couldn’t help myself.”

Eddie nods, unable to say much else as their fingertips brush when he takes it back. Is it weird if he puts it between his lips right now? Is he supposed to wait a minute? Let Steve’s taste linger for a moment. God, he’s being so weird right now. In the end, he brings the cigarette to his lips and takes the smallest inhale, nearly coughing as the smoke floods his lungs because he’s so distracted by the way the filter feels different now that it’s been in Steve’s mouth — as if that makes any sense.

“You okay? You sort of booked it out of the room.”

“Yeah,” Eddie sighs, before leaning against the banister of the porch. “Yeah, m’good. It just—“

“Got too loud?” Steve supplies, mirroring his position. “I get it. I remember my first holiday dinner. There were a lot less of us in ’83 but shit. It was still so loud.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m a pretty loud son of a bitch.” Eddie’s caught off guard by Steve’s snorting. Stealing a glance, he finds Steve lit up in reds and greens, a smile etched on his face so deep he can see the spot where smile lines are going to emerge in the next ten years, catching the way his eyes already wrinkle in the corners. Fuck, he’s beautiful. “But, uh, yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever been in a house that loud before. Not even when I’m fucking around with the Corroded Coffin boys.”

“Well, I doubt that. Your music is very loud.”

“Uh, yeah, ‘cause it's metal, Steve.”

“So I’ve been told,” Steve says, smiling that soft, private smile again.

If Eddie was braver, he’d close the distance between them and press his lips to his. But if this year has taught him anything, it’s that he’s not. Not really. So he lets a quiet fall between them instead. They continue to stand shoulder to shoulder, passing the dwindling cigarette between them despite the pack in Eddie’s pocket being brand new, and watch as the snow steadily starts to pick up.

“You know,” Steve says, then stops.

Eddie turns, watching the gears tick in Steve’s brain as he decides what to say next. It’s magical watching it all pass on his face — the knit of his brows, his pupils dilating and returning to their normal size, letting the hazel shine through. The way his lips open and close like some gasping fish.

“If it ever gets to be too much, you can tell us. Tell me. Hell, I know I need a break after a few hours with those shitheads. Maybe we could come up with a code word or something.”

“A codeword? That’s might nerdy of you, Steve.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Steve says, waving his hand through the air as he bites back a chuckle. “But yeah, a code word. It’d be easier to say than “hey it’s too loud and I can’t think” you know. Plus, it would annoy the shit out of Henderson.”

“Well, then. Count me in. You know I love annoying the shit out of that kid. Gotta keep that ego in check somehow.”

They spend the next few minutes going back and forth trying to decide on a word that could work. Steve wants something common — a fruit or a vegetable. Eddie disagrees, saying it has to be something uncommon so they don’t accidentally say it, but common enough that it doesn’t sound weird casually being dropped in conversation.

They wrack their brain, throwing out silly words left and right until there’s a crash from inside. Their heads swivel in tandem toward the source of the noise. A flurry of shadows passes on the other side of the window as Steve shakes his head and sighs.

“Come on,” he says, handing the cigarette back to Eddie. “If we’re not at the table the minute the food gets served, we won’t be eating. The gremlins know no manner.”

Eddie laughs, stubbing out the cigarette on the ashtray precariously balanced on the banister, “Teaching ‘em manners seems like a job for their babysitter.”

“Nah,” Steve snorts. “Maybe one for their Dungeon Master, though.”

Just as the words leave Steve’s lip, there’s a shout from inside followed by another crash.

“Think it might be a job for both of us, actually,” Eddie laughs. “Together?”

“We need all the help we can get,” Steve says. “Together it is.”

#steddiemas #steddie #steddie fic #steddie fluff #steddie ficlet #steddie fan fic #steve harrington #steve harrington fic #steve fic #steve harrington ficlet #eddie munson #eddie munson fic #eddie munson fan fic #eddie munson ficlet #eddie fic #stranger things #eddie munson fluff #stranger things fic #dani writes

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thebadboyfanclub · 1 year

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Lady Wife Falling Asleep Headcanon (Aemond, Aegon, Daemon, Jacaerys)

I haven’t written a headcanon in a minute so I wanted to give you guys a story that explained what I think they would do, hopefully you enjoy my take on it

AEMOND

Everyone was raving about the tourney, it was Aemonds name day so the celebrations were in full effect, (y/n) on the other hand as much as she adored her husband she would be content with laying in bed by his side. Slowly but surely her eyelids felt too heavy to be open and (y/n)s head hung a bit to the side.

Aemond was always a man that noticed details so it didn’t take long for him to realize (y/n) has drifted to slumber, alarmed by just how tired his lady wife was and torn between taking her in his arms or staying at the name of duty, he simply raised his hand for her sworn knight to come closer.

“Take her in our chambers, call the maester, and let him know of this incident”

The knight only nodded before he took her away as gently as possible, Aemond was aware that if he left it would seem inappropriate, his mothers' hawk eyes were already on him so he felt it was best to have his lady wife taken to a more comfortable and private setting while he suffered through the tourney.

AEGON

Aegon always scoffed at small council meetings, however once in a while he would attend just so he can get his mother and grandsire off his back, albeit having his (y/n) by his side made it less boring.

He was holding (y/n)s hand the whole time and sometimes communicate with her via looks or counted squeezing of hands, (y/n) on the other side was fighting with herself to keep her conscious awake, she did not know if it was the long monologue of the grant maester or just the ridiculous time of hour she would go to sleep due to inability to get comfortable but now the beautiful sensation of rest was engulfing her like a warm blanket.

Aegon squeezed her hand once more but surprisingly he did not get a response, her hand remained gentle so he turned his head over to her in a way to figure out what was happening, Aegon had to hold back a giggle when he heard her muffled snores as he found it adorable.

“Is the lady alright?”

“Yes she is quite alright, we must be excused, lady (y/n) is a prime example of how utterly dull this is”

“What?”

Aegon guessed that (y/n) had been awoken by the drag of Aegons chair or his voice, whatever it may be she was staring at him with confusion, only to be met with a kind smile on Aegons lips as he offered his hand for her to take, it was certainly amusing to him to see (y/n) blatantly disregarding everyone around her so she can rest.

“Nothing my love, come along now I know a very comfortable bed you are probably looking forward to laying on”

DAEMON

Dinners were usually (y/n)s favorite part, howbeit the past few days she seemed to feel a bit weak and her stomach was quite sensitive, the smells of certain food stirred up nausea but today they were visiting kings landing, it was a must that they attend.

As everyone talked about everything and anything (y/n) only toyed with her food and soon enough she just laid back on her chair, like a thief in the night the sense of sleep took over and the idea of resting her eyes became a deep sleep.

“(Y/n)? (Y/n)”

As (y/n) was stirred awake her eyes met Daemons, he was visibly concerned by her unusual behavior of her, combining it with the illness that was circling her he was worried that it was getting to her even more.

“I apologize, the trip was quite long”

“It was, you must excuse us, I want to escort my lady wife to our chamber”

“We can call the maester for her”

“No, she needs some warm tea and to stay abed so she can sweat it out, she will be fine”

Daemon dismissed his brother as he linked (y/n)s arm with his to assist her with walking, Daemon was never a supporter of Maesters, he did not want them to taint his wife and the last part was mostly for him to hear more than anyone else.

JACAERYS

Rhaenyra was looking for her son all day, thankfully one of the servants informed her that he was attending his Valyrian lessons with his lady wife (y/n), as she walked in the room she expected to be met with the voice of Jacaerys and the maester as they went over a book or something of that nature.

Imagine her surprise when she was met with utter silence, with worry written over her face she scanned the room with her gaze to find them, there they were, lady (y/n) that was resting her head on Jacaerys lap while Jacaerys endearingly caressed her hair.

“She fell asleep, I brought her to my lap, I did not want her neck to stiffen”

“Mayhaps we should wake her, she will rest better in her chamber”

“No, no, she is so peaceful”

He whispered while he admired her calmness, (y/n) would always attend her lord husband's lessons, as newlyweds she wanted to get to know him and learn his schedule and so did he, duty United them but they both craved love to be the one that kept them together.

Rhaenyra smiled at her son, she raised a sweet boy, a gentleman that abruptly stopped his lesson to tend to his lady, Rhaenyra also agreed that she looked too serene to be disturbed, the scene that was unfolding in front of her was perfect, a memory she would bottle in her mind to be able to reminisce with her grandchildren.

“Alright then, I shall leave you to it”

“Thank you, mother”

Requests are open!

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guillotinebypierre · 7 months

Text

This is a direct continuation of the last story.

3rd Person POV

Following the events of the night prior, Y/n had decided to just not go to sleep at all. Spending his night working out and drinking excessive amounts of energy drinks and coffee, he went to work with bags under his eyes and laser focus.

His job starts at 6 in the morning. Y/n was, much to the surprise of most people, the head cook in the kitchen, having worked his way up the ranks incredibly quickly due to his (sometimes) otherworldly skills, incredible adapting nature and organised way of handling things. He always starts by cleaning everything, as he believes a clean environment is key to being focussed and efficient with your work. After making sure cleanliness isn't an issue, he starts off by prepping the ingredients: cutting vegetables, seasoning everything, refilling and restocking what needs to be restocked and refilled.

The first customers normally arrive at 8 in the morning, mostly rich people, who aren't necessarily celebrities, that just want some breakfast. To him, the real work doesn't start until midday, as during that time most idols have their break and enjoy a nice meal at the restaurant. It was at this time that he started seeing familiar faces.

He was greeted by Karina and Giselle of Aespa, with whom he was really close, in addition to a few actresses that specifically requested to sit near the window that looked into the kitchen and offered the chance to talk to the cook himself.

He also saw Yeji, someone with whom he had been texting pretty much every minute following the events of the night prior. Behind her walked in a sulky figure with a black face mask and bucket hat. She had shoulder length hair, not that Y/n had needed any other indicators to help him figure out who Yeji had walked in with.

The pair had ordered their usual meals as take out, probably due to the fact that at least one of them wasn't exactly in the mood to go out of the house, having come to the restaurant only due to hopes of meeting Y/n.

Y/n, however, wasn't having any of that and excused himself to the staff room for the time being. It wasn't that he was scared, more like he had plans for the evening and he was not in the mood to get those plans tempered with. He took his phone out as he felt an all to familiar buzz coming from it, indicating that someone had sent him a message. He opened up the messages app and saw that he had multiple unread chats.

Yeji

>Y/n where are you? Didn't you say you had work today?

>Look, I'm sorry for this, but Ryujin literally fought her way out of the car to join me. She hasn't taken your choice that well and is still hanging onto the idea of you forgiving her for playing with your feelings :/

Rina Noona<3

>Heyyyy Y/n~ We just arrived back at the company, thank you for the food😚

>Ning and Minjeong were really mad that we didn't take them with us but they said something about going later. Will you still be working tonight ?

>I really want to spend some time again, just the two of us you know? When do you have time, please let me know!

He wrote her a quick reply back, smiling at her message while doing so

Y/n

Heyy Noona! I'm happy you enjoyed the food🫶🏼 Tell Ning and Minjeong that I'll be out today since I have a meeting in the evening but I'll be working the full shift tomorrow again and I'll gladly take their orders then. I also really miss going out with you, I'm actually free the whole next week, so just let me know what day works best for you :) Send Ning, Gi and Minjeong my best wishes, ttyl :)) <

The last message was the one he had actually intended on answering first, seeing as it was the most relevant one.

Taeyeon🤍

>hey Y/nn~ hope work is all right today. I can't wait to see you tonight, I missed you a lot :( Hope this can make the last few hours a bit more bearable

*1 Attachment*

The look on Y/n's face changed from confusion to a visible blush covering both his cheeks as he opened the image to find a picture of Taeyeon sitting on a chair while getting her make up done, only covered by a small towel that left little to the imagination.

He was pulled from his thoughts as one of the waitresses walked into the room and asked for his help with a dish. He hastily replied to Taeyeon before putting his phone away and getting back to work, thankfully without having to interact with neither Yeji nor Ryujin.

-------

The day continued more or less the same for Y/n, with the restaurant picking up steam towards the evening as more and more people came in and the kitchen got more hectic. His phone continued blowing up with messages, most of them from Taeyeon who either sent him more soft nudes or sent him risky texts with the goal of making his last few hours at work, literally, harder.

He checked his clock regularly until it finally hit 6.30 in the evening and he took aside his most trusted sous chefs and gave them one last run down on how to deal with everything from nasty customers to a fire in the kitchen. He appointed two of them to cleaning the kitchen, jokingly threatening to fire them if they didn't do their job properly before making his way out to the sound of his coworkers teasing him about his 'date'.

Y/n decided to walk towards the SM building, seeing as it was only a twenty minute walk and he could use the extra steps given the fact that he didn't go to the gym that day. With music blasting through his ears and the cool weather sending pleasent shivers done his spine he walked until finally reaching his destination.

He looked around, not sure what to expect as he never asked Taeyeon what car her manager drove. He sat on a bench near the entrance and as he was about to call her, a black mercedes pulled up in front of him. His first thought was that he was being kidnapped until the windows rolled down and he saw a small but stern looking woman starring at him.

"Are you Y/nn?", she asked.

"Y/n, but yeah thats me", he replied while smiling awkwardly at her

"You're somehow more handsome than Taeyeon described, hop in.", she said while looking him up and down.

"did she just check me out?", he thought to himself while walking towards the back door and opening it.

"So manager noona where are we going?", he asked trying to ease the tension.

"Taeyeon asked me to drive you to the hotel she's staying at. The original plan was for you to go to her house but that's too far and she has rehearsals tomorrow.", she replied while looking at the road.

"Oh-"

"Just relax, I'll tell you when we get there.", she said before closing the small opening through which they had been communicating.

--Y/n POV--

I looked out of the window for most of the ride. The beauty of Seoul never failed to amaze me. In the beginning it was quite hard for me to adapt to it, it was a completely new country after all. Learning the language was even harder, not to mention finding a place to stay. Thankfully, that recommendation by my professor and my experience working in restaurants helped me a lot with finding work and subsequently a place to stay.

These past few weeks have been a wild ride, to say the least. The more I think about last night, the more at ease I am. At the end of the day it was never meant to be, and maybe finding closure will help me find my luck with someone else. Maybe Taeyeon is that person? Would be pretty funny. I always liked older women, maybe she is the one.

I subconsciously smiled at the thought of Taeyeon as we slowly but surely made our way past the KSPO Dome, the place where the show would be held this weekend. My mind wandered towards the concert, the 'private show' Taeyeon talked about. I couldn't stop mind from going there, my pants becoming tighter by the second as I thought about what she had possibly meant by that. I checked my phone for the time. It was 7.45 in the evening. Taeyeon said she'd be finished by 8.30, meaning that I'd probably have to stay a bit on my own before I'd see her. My phone buzzed, leading my mind into thoughts about the pictures she had sent me earlier. I once again found myself thinking about-

"Hey lover boy are you going to get out or do I need to tell Taeyeon her boy toy was too mesmerised by some pictures on his pho-"

"Alright alright I'll get going, my bad manager noona", I cut her off before opening the door and getting out.

"Hey pretty boy!", she called me as I walked towards the hotel.

"Yeah?", I turned around

"We need her at full force tomorrow, please don't go too hard on her and don't hurt her with your....weapon.", she said while shifting her gaze towards my crotch.

I blushed as I turned around and walked towards the reception.

The hotel was very bougie, incredibly luxurious. I know that's rich coming from someone who works at the place I work at, but still, even for my standards this was crazy. My gaze wandered towards the decoration, asking myself how many night shifts I'd have to work extra if I were to accidentally break something here before I heard the receptionist calling me.

"Hello, how may I help you ?", she asked while smiling at me

"Hi, I'm here to see Taeyeon-noona, she said she'd have a reservation or whatever for a visitor under the name Y/n ?", I said to her while smiling.

"Can I see your ID ?", she replied while looking me up and down.

'Whats up with women today checking me out in such obvious ways'

"Here you go, this is the card to get into her suite. She really didn't do you justice with her description, you're even better looking than what she described you as. Her room is room 9, it's part of our VIP suites at the top floor.", she said as she handed me a black card with the letters 'VIP' engraved onto it.

I thanked her before making my way towards the elevator. I looked at the pad before pressing the button with the largest number on it. The elevator rose as soothing music filled my ears. My body relaxed as I now knew I didn't have anything to do except waiting for the next hour or so.

A loud *ding* took me back to reality as the golden doors of the elevator opened and revealed a fancy looking hallway, guarded by security. I gave them my card as they checked some kind of list before finding what I assume to be a message left by Taeyeon and letting me through. I walked around the hallway, taking in the red carpet, the expensive paintings and decoration before standing still in front of a large marble door with a golden nine on it. In front of the door was some kind of pillar with a touchpad on it, a small box in Korean telling me to put the card onto it to open the door. I held my card against it, the door suddenly making a clinking noise as if it were a safe.

I pushed the large door open, taking in the sight in front of me. I walked into the suite, seeing a large living room area that was larger than my own apartment. It housed a gigantic TV, an unnecessarily large couch that resembled a queen sized bed and a coffee table on which I could recognise a few od Taeyeon's favourite books and magazines. I walked a bit further and found a kitchen, made up of a stove, an oven and a fridge and freezer, a sink and lots of cabinets.

I walked over and took a look into the fridge, seeing a few ingredients sitting there.

"Did Taeyeon buy these?", I asked myself.

I continued walking around before entering the master bedroom. It looked like something straight out of porn. Heart shaped bed with a fucking pole in front of it, fluffy, cheap, pink handcuffs sitting on the drawer next to it, candles all over the room and rose petals laying all around the room. There was a box with chocolate and strawberries laying on the bed and a bottle of extremely expensive champagne and two glasses next to it.

I walked around a bit more, finding the bathroom. It was also filled with lit candles and a bubble bath full of rose petals.

As I walked out of the rooms I soon realised that the whole suite was bathed in a jasmine scent. I shook my head as I realised that literally everything in here was an aphrodisiac which made it pretty obvious what my 'private show' was going to be.

*click*

"Hello? Y/n are you here?", a tired Taeyeon shouted as she entered the suite.

She took off her sneakers, kicking them off somewhere near the entrance before dropping her bags too and walking inside.

The room was dimly lit, the only light coming from the candles around the countertops, the living room area and the moonlight that was shining through the large window.

"Y/nn? Reception told me you're here, no need to act all mysterious now"

"Hey Taeng, how was work", he said as he walked past her with two plates of food and two wine glasses.

He sat the food on the table before walking over, kissing her and taking her jacket off. Y/n led her to the table before pulling the chair back and helping her sit on it.

"What's with the look, you make it seem like you've seen a ghost.", Y/n joked as he sat down.

He popped open the bottle of expensive wine he had room service bring up before filling their cups.

"Y/nn what is this?", Taeyeon said while a smile formed on her face.

"What? Don't you like it?"

"I love you- it. I love it. But what did I do to deserve this kind of treatment?"

"Well apart from releasing great music for the past, like what, decade? You've been working really hard and it doesn't take a scientist to see how stressed you are, I just wanted to do something nice to cheer you up-"

Taeyeon leaned over the table and kissed Y/n passionately.

"You really want to make sure you get that private show, huh?"

"This is all just to smitten you, noona. I could get that private show right now if I tried a little."

"You're way too cocky for your own good, Y/nn", she replied while rolling her eyes.

She turned her attention towards the food in front of her before cutting it up and eating.

"Y/nn did you cook this?"

"Of course, did you think the dirty apron was just for show?"

"Shut up I just imagined you asked room service."

"Noona be serious we both know their cooking would never in a million years be halfway as good as mine."

After eating Y/n took both plates to the sink and started washing the dishes while Taeyeon went to her room to change.

He was just finishing putting away the cutlery when he felt a pair of arms wrap around him and someones face make its way to his back.

"Are you finished?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Good."

Taeyeon spun him around before kissing him, her arms interlocking behind his neck and pulling him down. Y/n's put his hands on her hips as the two swayed lightly.

They eventually broke off, a string of saliva connecting their mouths as she whispered against his ear

"Good, because I want some dessert"

Taeyeon dragged him off by his collar before slamming the door shut and pushing Y/n onto the bed.

Taeyeon turned around, an array of candles and incenses lit behind her , as she grabbed a remote and turned on red LED lights.

It was then that Y/n saw what she was wearing, a black see through nightgown with a matching black lingerie set underneath. It contrasted her skin and hair.

The red lights bounced off her body, highlighting her silhouette while making her every move seem sultry and sensual. Y/n could only stare in anticipation as she swayed her way towards the pole in front of him.

Taeyeon winked at him before dropping the nightgown on the floor and kicking it away. Her hands moved across her body as she started walking around the pole, her arms now grabbing it. Taeyeon suddently sank, her ass bent over towards Y/n as he could make out her labia from her see through panties.

Taeyeon continued by moving her body sensually across and around the pole, giving Y/n a show as she slowly started taking off her bra and panties, throwing them at her lover.

As her show came to an end she slowly walked over to Y/n before crawling onto the bed and taking out a blindfold.

"Settle down now", she whispered in his ear while slipping the blindfold around his head and over his eyes, "and remember, I'm the one in charge. Let your noona take care of you."

A sudden noise made Y/n jerk up involuntarily as he felt something tighten around both of his wrists, restricting his movement and tying bim to the bedpost.

"Taeng these cuffs are cheep as fuck, you know I can break these, right", Y/n said jokingly while jingling the handcuffs around his wrists.

"You can but will you want to?"

Y/n laughed but it quickly turned into a groan as he felt and heard Taeyeon rip open his shirt, throwing it aside before taking off his pants and underwear in one smooth motion.

She slid down his body, her fingers sending a pulse through him wherever she touched. It was always like this when they were together: she'd sweep in like a storm, whipping the waves into a froth as he tried to keep his head above water.

But why should he fight it? Why not drift in her wake, even if it was just for tonight?

Taeyeon pressed her lips to his stomach, leaving a trail of languid kisses further and further down, her fingers tracing lines along his thighs. Y/n shuddered, feeling himself throb as she brushed against him, and let his mind slip away.

Y/n moaned when she took him in her mouth, her movements torturously slow as she licked him along his length. He shivered, his senses in overdrive.

Taeyeon took her time in getting reacquainted with him and his body, whispering things that made his head spin and heart race. She had never had much patience when it came to sex, always eagerly getting lost in the frantic throes of passion, mostly due to her wanting to get rid of her own stress, but this time something felt different.

He held his breath as Taeyeon picked up her pace, letting him hear what she was doing to him. Y/n clenched at the sheets behind his head, careful not to break the cuffs. The wet sounds she made drove him wild, and he wasn't sure how much more he could take.

Y/n gasped, and Taeyeon took it as a cue to slow down and replace her mouth with her hands, letting him get himself under control.

"Shit, Taeyeon." Y/n let out a shaky breath, pitching his head back into the pillow and letting his body unwind. He pulsed in her hand and she made a throaty sound, leaning her weight on his chest as she raised her lips to his ear.

"You'll finish when I'm done with you," she whispered, nipping kisses down his neck and collarbone. "But until then, you'll do exactly as I say."

Y/n nodded eagerly, drinking in the warmth of her body as she pressed against him. He felt her hand slip between them, playing with herself as she told him how wet he'd made her, and what she'll be doing to him.

Y/n throbbed with need for her, returning her kisses with all the hunger he felt in his body, and Taeyeon took it all greedily.

"I want you to taste me," Taeyeon said, her breath on Y/n's ear as he melted against her. She slipped two fingers into his mouth, and he sucked at them, tasting her as she pressed into his tongue.

Y/n groaned when she slid them out, and Taeyeon laughed, "There's more where that came from, Y/nn."

She gripped his jaw lightly, straddling his torso as she lowered her breast to his mouth. Y/n took his time, sucking at her nipples and pressing with the flat of his tongue, delighting in the way that she gripped her fingers in his hair and shuddered above him. He lavished her with attention, lost in the motion of her pleasure as she squeezed her legs around him, content that she'd chosen to spend tonight with him.

Y/n breathed heavily when Taeyeon pulled herself away, her own breath shaky as she spoke.

"Are you ready to taste me again?"

"God, yes."

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, noona"

*slap*

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, mommy"

"Good boy"

Taeyeon climbed up to sit on his face, pressing her sweetness into his mouth and tongue. Y/n moaned into her, already lost in her heady scent and taste, her soft sounds of pleasure driving him wild.

"This is where you belong, worshipping me," said Taeyeon, running her hands through his hair, and Y/n moaned his assent.

"None of those other little whores you fuck know how to deal with you. None of them can please you like I can."

He licked and sucked, his breathing picking up pace as she ground herself into him. Y/n kept his tongue wide, letting her use his mouth however she pleased, and Taeyeon clenched her thighs tighter around him, running her fingers through his hair again before pulling off the blindfold.

Y/n watched her from below, a sense of dreamy pleasure passing across her face as she squeezed her breasts and rode him.

"You make me feel so good," she encouraged, her eyes meeting his own. "Yes, just like that."

Y/n could feel himself throbbing as she used him and took her pleasure, and he couldn't look away from her eyes as they shone with desire. He would do anything to make her feel good, to keep her feeling good, as long as she looked at him like that.

"Fuck," Taeyeon managed, her face flushed as she shuddered and climbed off him.

Her breathing came fast and shallow, and she threw her arms around Y/n as she planted kisses along his neck and mouth, tasting herself on his lips.

Her hands moved down his body before she wrapped her hand around the base of his shaft and squeezed, humming excitedly.

"Did you miss me?" Y/n asked.

"You could say that," said Taeyeon, straddling his waist. She brought her face close to his, locking eyes as she slid down onto him, his breath catching in his chest as she clenched his bicep for purchase. She let out a soft moan when he bottomed out into her, and shifted her hips to adjust to his thickness.

Y/n moved inside her, tasting her lips in a blur of pleasure as they kissed. Taeyeon squeezed around him, bucking her hips as she rode him, lost in the throes of passion.

She freed his hands from the cuffs, and Y/n stroked her skin wherever he could, her smoothness a revelation to him. Taeyeon pressed into his grip, rolling her hips with him as they came together and chased their beating hearts.

Being with Taeyeon was like grabbing a live wire or a bolt of lightning and holding on for dear life. Her skin was electric, sending every bit of him tingling as they breathed together, locked in their rhythm.

Y/n slid his hands to her hips, guiding her into his thrusts as he picked up the pace, unable to wait any longer. He pressed his thumbs into her flesh and she shivered, clenching around him as she ran her fingers through his hair and over his chest.

Taeyeon wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and leaned her forehead against his, meeting his eyes. Her gaze was deep with meaning and Y/n felt as if he'd been swept away, his mind jumping to old hopes and habits as if he'd been born to it.

He lost himself in the rush, the sound of his name on her lips as his senses shivered with mounting pleasure.

"Ruin me, Y/n," she whispered — or screamed, he couldn't tell anymore — as she came undone around him, and those three little words were nearly on his lips before he gave himself to abandon, cumming inside of her and releasing every last drop of semen he had story in his body.

Taeyeon breathed heavily, her breasts expanding on her chest as it rose and fell again, her pulse so fast that she thought her heart was about to shoot out of her. Her hair was messy, it stuck to her forehead. Her skin was glistening with sweat while her legs felt like jell-o.

Taeyeon's entire lower body felt sore and sticky, a large puddle of white liquid having formed between her legs where she had fallen asleep. She looked over and realised her tossing and turning had woken Y/n up.

"What- what time is it?", he yawned while stretching.

"It's five in the morning. I need to go to the venue in like two hours. You can continue sleeping..."

"Or..?"

"Or you can join me in the bathtub for a bath?"

"Lead the way, Taeng."

Taeyeon slowly made her way towards the bathroom while holding Y/n's hand behind her.

"The slap still stings, by the way."

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me-"

"I know what came in you."

"Do you want to get slapped again.", Taeyeon threatened before Y/n slapped her ass.

The pair soon got into the bathtub. The water was still warm, curtesy of the jets and heater of the tub. The room was still filled with aphrodisiacs, which made it almost impossible for the two to keep their hands off each other. It didn't take long before a heavy make out session was started.

Taeyeon sat on Y/n's lap, grinding on him and making the water overflow, not that they cared about it at all. Her fingers dug into his back as he left hickeys across her body.

Things were getting heated and, unfortunately, had to be cut short.

"Y-Y/nn MHHH I think we should sTOP here."

"Why noona"

"I have to be there in a bit more than an hour and if you fuck me again right now I will definitely not be able to do the choreo properly."

"But noona-"

"No, I promise I'll make it up to you tonight. You'll even get another private show."

"Alright fine."

"Love you", she kissed him before getting out of the bathtub and getting dressed.

The week passed quickly, with Y/n working full shifts and spending the rest of the night with Taeyeon. His phone kept buzzing as a certain someone tried reaching him, but he just turned it off and asked his coworkers to call his work phone if they ever needed something.

The weekend arrived in a blur and Y/n finally saw Taeyeon's concert in person, from a VIP position. A lot of idols were present, a lot of his friends and people he'd rather not have seen.

The show was fantastic, and aside from greeting and talking to a lot of his friends, Y/n got pulled by Taeyeon into an empty staff room at the end of the show for a preview of his own private show he'd be receiving later that night.

Unbeknownst to him, however, the confrontation he had been avoiding all this time was soon going to catch up to him, forcing him into an incredibly uncomfortable situation.

*You have one missed call*

*sobs*

"Hello? Is this Y-Y/n? Look, I know why you hate me, and I also know why you're avoiding me but I STILL LOVE YOU Y/N.

'What is she doing, Yeji'

'YAH RYUJIN YOU'RE DRUNK STOP CALLING PEOPLE'

Y/N PLEA- PLEASE JUST CALL ME BACK."

*the call has been disconnected*

to be continued

#kpop fanfic #kpop imagines #kpop smut #kpopfap #idol x male reader #kpop x male reader #x male reader #male reader #itzy ryujin #taeyeon #snsd #sm entertainment #girl group smut #femdxm

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perotovar · 5 months

Text

ásjá - a winter solstice story

Ásjá by Heilung (i highly recommend listening to this while reading)

Our second single release is a love song. Maria sings to the listener of love, recovery and prosperity, chasing away evil and welcoming love. The piece contains a quotation of some lines of “Hávamál”, combined with a selection of blessing words meant to provide help to the listener in a troubled time. Kai brought his vocal part of 'Asja' back to us after a month of isolation, fasting and meditation in nature. Only the spirits know the full meaning, but we do know that the context is love, prosperity and protection.

pairing: pero tovar/ofc!helga (but this is mostly a character study) rating: T word count: 7.4k (idk what happened here) warnings: minor swearing, google translated spanish (sorry), historical inaccuracies in favor of fantasy/magic, my american norse pagan perspective of these practices, if i missed anything else lemme know! dividers by @saradika-graphics beta and norwegian translations by the lovely @chloeangelic thank you, honey ♥

summary: Pero picks up a contract that leads him "somewhere up North", but what he finds instead is unlike anything he imagined for himself. Or, what would happen if Pero encountered the Vikings during their winter celebration?

this is apart of @hellishjoel's 12 days of pedro. thank you for including me, kylee, and make sure you all read the other presents!

god jól, everyone🌲❄️🌙🐺

It was fucking cold.

With shaking hands and numb limbs, Pero made his way further up the hill. The wind picked up the further he went into the trees.

The contract he’d taken up was for a man by the name of Ingvar. A strange name to Pero’s ears, but that hardly mattered to him. This Ingvar was to be taken care of, and Pero had to show proof.

Not a problem.

The problem, at least for the moment, was the fucking weather and his own lack of foresight. He was told that Ingvar was “somewhere up North”, and that was it. He didn’t exactly plan for just how cold it would be. His fingers were going numb and red, and he saw every breath that left his lungs. If William were here, he’d tell Pero to quit his “bitching” and to make camp.

The camp, he could do. The bitching? Unlikely.

Pero and William separated after the… events in China. They stayed together to do a few jobs together, but William decided to make his way back to China and meet up with Lin Mae again, possibly even settle down. Pero didn’t fancy seeing the people that had arrested and almost killed him, and black powder wasn’t worth the trouble anymore. At least not to him. He rather liked the uncertainty of his job. Found comfort in it, in fact. His future was set for him in this line of work. He would live doing the things he loved most; fighting, fucking, and drinking. And the ending was always the same. At least, that’s what he told himself.

A low whisper brought Pero out of his thoughts. He snapped his head towards the direction of the sound and furrowed his already heavy brow. The sound of a raven cawing caught his attention, making him hum skeptically to himself before deciding this was as good a spot as any for a fire.

Once settled on a fallen tree and attempting to warm his hands with his meager fire, Pero dug into his travel pack. He grumbled at the pitiful excuse for food he had left. He grabbed a piece of thick, dry bread and started ripping off chunks and eating that. Perhaps he could hunt? Find a rabbit, or something a little bigger. He remembered to make a bow this time. Swallowing the last chunk of the bread, he picked up his bow and arrows, and threw his cloak-slash-blanket over his shoulders. It was going to be dark soon, and he didn’t like the idea of starving his first night in this frozen Northern hell.

Another whisper.

Pero’s body went taut. He looked between the tall trees and the endless sea of white ahead of him. Nothing. A rabbit hopped by, distracting him. Before he could think too hard, he knocked an arrow and let fly. The arrow landed in the snow just after the rabbit hopped away.

“Mierda,” he grumbled. (Shit.)

He crouched low and slowly followed after the rabbit. He made his way toward a small clearing, which seemed to be in the center of the forest, if his tracking skills were getting any better.

There was a large stone in the middle, towards the top of the clearing. There looked to be a large blood stain in the center of it. Pero raised a brow and grunted quietly. This was none of his business, clearly.

Suddenly, the rabbit made its way to the middle of the clearing, next to the large stone. Pero sighed and lined up a shot, hoping for the best. He released a breath at the same time that the arrow left his fingers, and another whisper passed through his ears.

He gasped quietly and time seemed to stop as the arrow traveled through the cold air. A shiver ran down his spine that had nothing to do with the weather. He closed his eyes and let out a heavy breath, trying to make himself as still as possible.

The sound of the arrow piercing the rabbit startled him out of his frozen state. He blinked a few times, the white forest coming back into view as he looked down at the dead rabbit in the clearing. He exhaled and slowly stood, settling his bow on his shoulder. He looked around again, and when he saw nothing, slowly made his way down the hill and towards the center of the clearing.

He picked up the dead rabbit and removed the arrow, tucking it into his belt to clean and use again later. Standing in the center of the clearing, he looked over at the bloodstained stone and felt that shiver go down his spine again. He looked up at the gray sky and decided it was time to go back to his camp. He hooked the rabbit’s carcass onto his belt, pulled the cloak over his shoulders tighter, and shoved his hands inside the fabric.

“Maldita nieve,” he grumbled to himself. (Fucking snow.) As he climbed back up the hill, he felt a sharp pain in his foot and lost his balance, catching himself with his hands in the snow. He hissed loudly and looked down at his boot. A small spike was poking out through the top, meaning the sharp rock was piercing through his foot. He groaned and leaned against the hill, steadying his breathing. He counted to three in his head and yanked the rock from his foot. “Fuck,” he exhaled loudly, a few drops of his own blood covering his palm as he looked at the rock. A small symbol was carved into it, making him squint his eyes, trying to decipher what it was. Pero shook his head and sighed, pocketing the strange rock to inspect later.

On his way back to his little camp, limping the whole way to not put too much pressure on his foot, he grabbed some branches to make the fire last a little longer. Once the meager fire came into view, he swore he saw someone sitting on the log he was using before. He froze in place, heavy boots landing in the snow abruptly. He squinted his eyes and grew confused. An old man? What would he be doing out here?

Pero looked around the frozen forest to see if there was anyone that could be with the old man. When he didn’t see anyone, he looked back at the campfire, and the old man was gone. He’d completely vanished. Pero grunted quietly and rubbed his eyes with frozen fingers. He shook his head to snap himself out of it and made his way over to the campfire.

After putting the rabbit on the spit and it started to cook, Pero made his bed for the night. He’d do his best to sleep, but didn’t have high hopes. Once the rabbit was cooked, he stabbed it with his knife and started eating it messily. He groaned at the taste of fresh, hot, cooked meat and enjoyed it, even if it was pretty bland. It warmed his bones a little and made him more comfortable, pulling the cloak tighter around his shoulders.

The sound of a branch snapping behind him went unnoticed by Pero’s ears, too focused on the food. He hadn’t eaten in days. The second snap, however, was heard, and it made him drop the rabbit onto the ground and grab his sword, brandishing it in front of him as he stood.

“¿Dónde estás, bastardo?” He grumbled under his breath, his heavy breaths puffing out into smoke. (Where are you, bastard?)

He sighed in frustration when he didn’t see anything. He was seriously starting to consider if this contract was even worth it. And if it wasn’t, would he be able to make it back without dying? Either from the cold, or whatever it was that was playing with him. He mumbled obscenities to himself and sat back down on his fallen tree.

He picked up the rabbit and groaned at the dirt now covering it. He blew off what he could and decided to continue eating it, dirt be damned. He was hungry.

Once full, he looked up at the moon in the sky, trying to figure out how late it was. He rubbed his hands over his arms to keep warm and added a branch or two to his fire. He grabbed a piece of spare cloth from his travel pack and quickly wrapped his foot. He laid down next to the fire and pulled the cloak up over his shoulders and shut his eyes. He didn’t feel tired, but he couldn’t help closing his eyes. He tried to fight it, to keep his guard up, but it was useless.

He started to feel lightheaded and turned onto his back, looking up at the moon again. The moon and the stars, so bright he almost didn’t need the campfire, were swirling around and moving in close and further away. The trees surrounding him looked to be moving side to side.

What was happening? Did the old man poison him somehow? Who was that old man?

His vision went blurry and he felt like he was spinning in place despite laying on the ground, completely still. He let out a weak groan and tried to move, reaching for his sword.

The last thing he saw before his vision went black, was the silhouette of a large dog, or perhaps a wolf, in the distance hidden behind the trees.

Warmth. He felt warm. And a pounding headache.

Pero slowly blinked awake and groaned at the light that hit his eyes. The smell of cooked meat and root vegetables hit his nostrils. His stomach whined in protest.

“For en merkelig fyr…” An older male voice said, somewhere behind him. (He is a strange one…)

“Kjekk, da,” A younger, female voice replied. (Handsome, though.)

He didn’t understand any of it. It wasn’t a language he’d heard before. Eyelids fluttering, he slowly opened his eyes to a small gathering of people all looking down at him. He startled and reached for his knife, and grunted when he didn’t feel it.

“Vi har våpnene dine. De er trygge.” (We have your weapons. They’re safe.)

Pero turned his head in the direction of the voice and squinted his eyes at the woman. She looked to be in her 30s, with a baby attached to her breast and drinking.

“No entiendo,” he grumbled, voice hoarse from lack of use. “¿Dónde estoy?” (I do not understand. Where am I?)

He took in his surroundings, now sitting up, and saw that he looked to be in a small room cut off from a much larger group of people. He heard laughter and song outside the cloth separating the, assumed, larger hall from where he was now. He furrowed his brows. A celebration? What for?

“¿Dónde estoy?” He repeated, voice slightly harsher. (Where am I?)

“Har ikke hørt det språket før,” one of the men said. (Haven’t heard that tongue before.) Pero looked up at him and squinted his eyes slightly. The man was large, with a full beard, and an even fuller middle. But there was no denying his strength; age hadn’t stopped this man from doing well in a fight, Pero assumed. Not that he couldn’t take him, of course. He looked at the man’s belt and saw a one-handed axe attached to his belt and thought better of it, especially without his own weapons.

Suddenly a small sting came from his foot and he snapped his head down at the young woman tending to the wound he’d gotten on his way back from the clearing. He’d almost completely forgotten about it, too cold to even really feel it. The young woman startled and blushed, keeping her head down as she cleaned the cut.

“Det er et vakkert språk, da, er det ikke?” The first younger woman’s voice came through, a slightly entranced tone to it. (It is a beautiful tongue, though, no?) He looked to his left and saw her batting her eyelashes at him. He huffed a breath in amusement. He’d had his fair share of women giving him looks like that, almost always with a payment in mind, but his thoughts were elsewhere, even if it did feel nice. And she was a tad too skinny for his own tastes.

Pero exhaled. This was clearly getting nowhere. Fine. “Where am I? You know English, yes?” He asked, exasperated, in the general direction of anyone who might be able to answer him.

The shy girl cleaning his wound lifted her head and smiled softly at him. “I know a little,” she said quietly, her voice heavily accented.

“Finally,” he sighed. “What is going on?”

“A few of our men found you in the forest, passed out. Your lips were blue.” She won’t make eye contact with him, bur her brows furrowed like she was worried for him. “We have lost some of our own men in a similar way before. It is not pretty.”

Pero hummed softly and nodded his thanks. “Did any of them see an old man? In the woods?”

The girl tilted her head and asked the man next to him, the one with the axe in his belt, if any of them had seen such a man. The man raised a brow and shook his head, looking at Pero skeptically.

“Ingvar says–”

“Yes, I understood, thank you–” Pero cut himself off and looked back at the man with the axe. This was Ingvar? Pero looked back at the girl and nodded his head as she bandaged his wound, his own cloth wrapped around his ankle. He would have to be careful if he was to carry out this contract. “Thank you,” he repeated, the words foreign on his tongue.

The girl nodded, cheeks pink, and stood to leave. As she left, the cloth covering them moved to show a large fire in the middle of the hall with an even larger feast around it. The girl came back with a tankard of something for him and he took it gratefully. As the sweet liquid hit his tongue, he coughed slightly.

“What is this?” He wheezed a little, looking at the cup like it slapped his mother.

The girl giggled before saying, “Mead. It is honey wine.”

Pero rolled the words around his tongue for a moment. “Interesante,” he hummed to himself. (Interesting.)

“Vel, han er våken. Tilby ham noe å spise, men hold øye på ham. Han ser ut som en leiesoldat, og jeg stoler ikke på ham,” Ingvar grunted, leaving the room and rejoining the festivities. (Well, he is up. Invite him to eat, but keep an eye on him. He looks like a mercenary and I do not trust him.)

Pero watched him closely as he left, and took another drink of his mead, eyes hard.

“Would you like some food, mister-”

“Tovar,” Pero grunted. “Yes. I am very hungry.” He turned on the cot and got to his feet quickly, but quickly lost his balance, a couple of the women catching him as he stood on shaky legs. He sighed in frustration and stood on his own, shrugging off their help. The girl held her arm out to him, and didn’t seem too offended when he just stared at it.

“Tovar. This way,” she smiled, her face a little pinched.

“What are you celebrating?” He asked, looking around at all the food. His stomach roared at the smells.

“It is the third night of Jól. You have heard of Jól?” She asked excitedly, turning to him as she found a place for him to sit. He slowly made his way down at a long table nearby where Ingvar sat at the head of the table. A leader. This contract was getting more difficult by the second.

“I have not,” he grumbled. “What is this… Yool?”

The girl giggled again, this time at his attempt at the word. “Jól is the celebration that welcomes back the sun from the harsh Winter. Our crops start growing as the sun comes back, and the snow melts away.”

Pero hummed as he listened, nodding his thanks when she handed him a full plate of different meats, root vegetables, bread, and cheese. “You are farmers?”

The girl nods. “Most of us. Some are warriors.”

Pero hummed again, chewing on a piece of meat. “How did you learn English?”

The girl turned a little sad, but smiled anyway. “We used to have a man that came from… Eng-land? He died last year,” she sighed. “He taught me and a few of the children how to read and speak English. How did you learn?”

Pero frowned around his food and sighed.

“I am sorry, forget–” Pero held up a hand to stop her. “Apologies. I am… unused to kindness from strangers,” he grunted, not meeting her eyes. “A dear friend of mine is from Scotland. We have separated so he could be with his woman. He taught me.”

“Scotland?”

“It is near England.”

She nodded, slowly picking at her own food. The two of them grew quiet and just ate for a while. The celebrations continued around them, and it gave Pero a chance to take it all in.

In the center of the hall was a large hearth, with an even larger tree in the middle, lighting up the hall. It looked like the one he was using earlier as a bench, so they must have gotten it from the same forest. He can’t be too far from there, then. There were candles and flames everywhere, lighting up the hall brightly, but warmly.

He looked back at the girl and found her already staring at him. She startled, cheeks going pink again, and looked down at her food. He smirked a little, but hid it well. She was amusing.

“What is your name?” He asked.

“Sigrid,” she said softly.

“It sounds strong.”

“Yes. I am more drawn to medicine, so I suppose the name is ironic.”

Pero chuckled. “Hardly.”

Sigrid smiled up at him. “Thank you.”

A comfortable silence fell over the two of them again before Pero asked, “Who is Ingvar? He seems like a powerful man.”

“He is our Jarl. Our leader.”

“Is this like a king?” Pero furrowed his brows. He didn’t think this contract would be finished.

“Not exactly. But no less powerful.”

“I see,” Pero grunted. As if on cue, Ingvar stood from his seat at the head of the table, a large grin on his bearded face.

“Venner! Kvelden er ung, og festen er rik. Vær så snill, nyt, for mine gamle beindekk. Jeg ser dere alle i morgen tidlig.” Everyone raised their drinks and shouted… something, but Pero didn’t catch it. Sigrid leaned over and translated what Ingvar said for him. He nodded his thanks, but he was skeptical at best. Ingvar left through a door behind the throne that sat in the center of the hall. (Friends! The night is young, and the feast bountiful. Please, enjoy, for my old bones tire. I will see you all in the morning.)

“He cannot be that old, no?”

“He has been around much longer than I,” Sigrid shrugged. Pero laughed softly, eyes crinkling at the corners.

“You are a child, of course he has.”

Sigrid rolled her eyes, but didn’t deny it. “If seventeen winters makes me a child, then yes.”

Pero choked on his mead and hit his chest to keep from coughing too hard. “Yes, it does,” he wheezed, laughing quietly. Sigrid laughed, too, eating some bread and cheese. A small child ran up to Sigrid and asked her a question as he tugged on her dress. Sigrid looked back at Pero apologetically and he waved her off, eating some more meat.

This was hardly the setting he expected for himself when he took the contract, but he couldn’t deny it, it was a pleasant one. The food was good, and the people seemed friendly enough. He couldn’t help but be confused by the contract; who was dumb enough to put a hit out on a powerful leader like Ingvar?

Sigrid mentioned that some of them were warriors. That didn’t surprise him at all. Just by looking at the people around the table, men and women alike, he could’ve figured that out on his own.

He sighed to himself and chewed thoughtfully. Suddenly, he remembered the small stone that pierced his foot. He looked around at the people around him to be sure no one was watching before he felt around his pocket for the stone. When he didn’t feel anything, his body went taut and he froze. Shit. They probably found it when they grabbed his weapons. Where were his weapons?

Sigrid came up to his side with the small child from before holding her hand and looking at him from behind her. “Tovar?” She asked softly. He looked up at her, heavy brow still pulled down. She gave him a quick once-over before clearing her throat. “We have sleeping quarters for you, but Lord Ingvar wishes to speak with you first.”

Pero chuckled humorlessly around his food before putting it down on his plate. He grabbed the mead and took a drink, making a face at the taste. He wasn’t sure he’d get used to that anytime soon. “Of course he does,” he sighed. “You will translate for me?”

Sigrid nodded, braided blonde hair swinging with the movement, and looked like she was trying to steel herself. He admired her mettle.

Pero followed after her, keeping light pressure on his foot as they went through that door Ingvar went through before. It led down a short hallway and ended up in a large bedroom. Ingvar was sitting on the edge of the bed before standing tall and fixing Pero with a hard look. Pero grunted and rested a hand on his hip as he leaned on the uninjured foot, waiting to get this over with.

“Hva heter du?” Ingvar grunted. (What is your name?)

“He asked your name,” Sigrid said softly.

“Tovar,” Pero narrowed his eyes.

“Hvorfor er du her?” (Why are you here?)

Sigrid translated quietly.

“Your people brought me here. I was wondering the same thing,” Pero shrugged with an attitude. Ingvar gave him a look, clearly unimpressed. Pero rolled his eyes.

Ingvar looked at Sigrid and she blushed, nodding. “He didn’t mean–”

“Yes, I know what he meant,” Pero sighed. “I had a contract. I came to fulfill that contract.”

Sigrid spoke quietly and Ingvar seemed tired as he nodded.

“Var navnet mitt på denne kontrakten?” Ingvar sighed. Pero gave Sigrid a look as she quickly translated. (Did this contract have my name on it?)

“It did…” Pero raised a brow, crossing his arms over his chest. Ingvar nodded again, but Pero spoke up before he could say anything. “I decided not to complete the contract when I saw your celebration and… status. I may be a mercenary, but I am no fool. I do not go after lords or kings.”

Ingvar raised a brow and chuckled quietly before letting out a loud, hearty laugh. “Jeg vet ikke om du er smart eller dum,” Ingvar smiled, cheeks flushed with mirth. “Jeg takker deg, men tilgi meg for at jeg ikke stoler på deg helt, Tovar.” (I do not know if you are smart or stupid. I thank you. But you will forgive me for not completely trusting you, Tovar.)

Pero nodded and shrugged. “I understand.”

Sigrid looked between the two of them, looking much less nervous. She quickly spoke to Ingvar quietly, asking him a question. Ingvar nodded, a small smile on his lips.

“Nyt festen, Tovar. Vi diskuterer hva vi skal gjøre med deg om morgenen.” (Enjoy the festivities, Tovar. We will discuss what to do with you in the morning.)

“I wish to leave,” Pero grunted, looking between Sigrid and the Jarl. Sigrid looked a little crestfallen, but took one more look at Ingvar before he waved them off. She pushed Pero out of the Jarl’s quarters and back out into the celebration. “Sigrid?” Pero asked, confused.

She sighed before looking up at him. “The Jarl wishes to keep you here until Jól ends. To keep an eye on you, make sure you keep your word.” She started wringing her hands together and bit her lip.

“How much longer is Yool?”

Sigrid went quiet.

“Sigrid.”

“Nine more days,” she sighed, looking down.

Pero’s eyes went wide before he shut them and sighed heavily. He looked up at the ceiling and mumbled, “Joder yo,” under his breath. (Fuck me.) “Fine. Nine more days and I will leave.”

Over the course of the first four days, Pero was treated like he belonged with these people. He still didn’t quite know where he was. If someone were to give him a map, he couldn’t tell them, but he knew he was probably at the top somewhere. He was shocked at how much he liked it there despite the bitter cold.

He felt eyes on him the whole time and he didn’t like the feeling, but he understood it.

He taught Sigrid and some of the children some Spanish words and in turn he was taught some words in their tongue. Norse, he was told.

Pero also found himself helping the warriors Sigrid mentioned before, called Vikingr. Their job was to sail to faraway lands, raid strangers of their belongings, and bring it back home. He didn’t judge. He’d done worse, and frankly, it sounded like something right up his alley. He mostly helped with keeping their longships cleaned for their next raid when the snow thawed.

And he ate. He ate a lot. There was so much food at the feasts in the evenings. He tried to eat as much as he could in the hopes that it would carry him on his journey home. Wherever that was. Every feast started with a chant and “offerings” to their Gods. Some of these “offerings” came in the form of the mead Pero had - reluctantly - grown to like, and other times it came in the form of one of the farmer’s poor goats.

While he didn’t understand a lot of these people’s customs, he couldn’t deny it, they were a hearty people.

He’d also caught the eye of some of the women there, too, but he mostly ignored them. They were all too young for him, and he was too busy not getting killed. He still wasn’t given back his weapons. Or the strange stone. His wound would take a while to heal yet, but he could put pressure on it again.

On the fifth day, he was helping chop wood for people’s homes. During the feast, everyone in the village congregated in the Jarl’s home to be surrounded by the fire given by the Jól Log and enjoy the food, but they all needed wood for their own homes as well.

He stopped to take a break and wiped the sweat from his brow as a cool chill blew past him. Pero looked to his left, the feeling of someone looking at him catching his attention. When he saw it wasn’t one of Ingvar’s men, he startled a little. It was a woman. Older than the ones that mostly watched him, and far more… Interesting. To him, at least. He raised a brow as she turned and left, clutching her basket closer to her body. He’d seen her around during his time there and she seemed to keep mostly to herself. She was unattached from what he could tell, and wondered why. She was beautiful.

Pero snapped himself out of it and shook his head, going back to chopping the wood.

On the sixth day, he saw her again. He’d asked Sigrid what her name was as he saw her making her way through the market, and she said it was Helga.

Helga.

He liked the name.

Helga was a thread-weaver. She made blankets, scarves, anything to keep one warm and covered. Pero was given clothing that suited the temperature better, and he felt strange without his armor, but he was never given a scarf. He didn’t think he’d ever wanted one before now.

He asked Sigrid if she could ask Helga for him for a scarf, and the girl giggled, pushing him toward the woman. He sighed and walked over to her, looking at the weapons and tools surrounding them at the market. He tried not to make himself too obvious, and it mostly worked, he thought. He was genuinely impressed with the craftsmanship of the weapons.

Pero sidled up to Helga’s side, but before he could say anything, she stepped away from the stand and walked back to her house. He watched her go and frowned.

This was going to be tougher than he thought.

The seventh day was much like the day before, but instead of chopping wood, Pero was asked to help around the Jarl’s home. He noticed a lot of the young women that stared at him worked there, so he tried to keep mostly to himself. He’d never cleaned linens or blankets before, but found it to be quite relaxing. There was a rhythm to it, and he could do it without much help.

“Tovar,” a young voice asked from his left. He looked up, finishing the fold of the blanket he was holding. He grunted in acknowledgement. “Jeg og noen av kvinnene har lurt på noe,” the girl was blushing hard up to her ears and biting her lip. (Some of the women and I have been wondering something.)

Pero smirked a little and nodded for her to continue. He picked up on the gist of what she was saying, thanks to Sigrid’s teachings of Norse.

“Hvor fikk du arret fra?” she asked meekly. (Where did you get your scar?)

Pero’s face pinched slightly and he shook his head. “I do not wish to talk about it.” The girl’s eyes went wide and she started scrambling out apologies, her hand pressed to her chest. A sad smile crossed his features before he shook his head. “It is okay,” he said quietly.

The girl frowned, cheeks bright red, but nodded as she turned and left. Pero exhaled quietly and looked down at the linens he was folding.

“I do not believe she meant any harm,” a low, feminine voice said to his left. He hummed in acknowledgement before he froze, realizing that she spoke perfect English. He turned his head and nearly jumped out of his boots when he saw Helga standing there. She smiled and started helping him with the linens. “Tovar, yes?”

Pero huffed a laugh and nodded.

“I have noticed you watching me.” She had a soft smile on her lips, brown hair pulled away from her face in a braid. She turned to look at him, blue eyes full of heat as she looked over his face and chest.

Pero blinked, eyes slightly wider. He went to speak, but all that came out was a croak, making him cough. “Apologies,” he wheezed, the side of his fist pressed to his chest. “I am sorry for staring,” he mumbled, turning back to his own linens as his cheeks flushed. “I am still getting used to the customs here. There are two days left of your celebration, and I will be gone.”

Helga hummed noncommittally and pushed her small stack of folded linens toward him to add to his pile. “That would be a shame.”

Pero furrowed his brows and added her stack to his. He looked at her incredulously, but her head was faced down as she continued folding. He didn’t say anything and continued as well, his thoughts running a mile a minute.

“I thought only Sigrid and a few of the children spoke English,” he said after a few moments of silence.

“They are not the only ones.”

Pero snorted and shook his head. “Clearly not,” he hummed to himself. He cleared his throat and glanced at her before continuing. “When I arrived at this place, I was in the forest. I am not sure how far it is from here, but I saw an old man,” he started, keeping his eyes downward. “I was hoping I would see him here in the village, but I have not.”

Helga hummed a noise for him to continue.

“He wore a cloak, the hood covering his head. He sat in front of my campfire, but I only saw one of his eyes,” Pero’s brows furrowed further, confusion filling his head. “I am not sure if he was missing one or if it was covered.”

Helga stopped folding and looked at him, a small smirk on her lips. “Did he have a long beard?”

Pero looked up and blinked. “Y-yes. You have seen this man?”

“Once or twice,” she said. “He is a wanderer. He does not stay in one place for very long.”

“Who is he?”

Helga bit her lip and shrugged. “He has many names. We cannot be certain which he likes best.”

Pero sighed in frustration. “Why was he at my camp?”

Helga smirked again and finished folding her linens. “Perhaps he was looking out for you,” she shrugged again, leaning over to pick up her basket of fabrics. “Enjoy the feast tonight.” She grinned and left the Jarl’s home, leaving Pero quiet and watching her retreating form.

Pero exhaled and looked up at the ceiling, shaking his head. When he looked down, there was a scarf folded on top of her pile of linens.

“Du får tingene dine i morgen, etter den siste festen,” Ingvar grumbled. (You will receive your belongings after tomorrow’s final feast.)

“Must I stay the whole time? I wish to return home,” Pero growled, crossing his arms over his chest. Not that he had a home to return to.

Ingvar rolled his eyes and waved him off. Sigrid grabbed his elbow and pulled him out of the Jarl’s bedroom. Pero grumbled obscenities in Spanish to himself until he was sat at a table in the hall. It was the eighth night, and he was getting tired of being watched constantly. He had no intention of hurting anyone here. He might if they didn’t give him his things, though. The people around him continued to have the same energy this night that they always seemed to. He supposed that came from actually understanding what you were celebrating, and not having to worry about death or arrest at every corner.

“You leave tomorrow evening, yes?”

Pero startled and looked to his right. Helga sat next to him, a plate of food in front of her. She smiled warmly at him and he softened. “How do you do that?” He huffed a laugh and shook his head before grabbing a piece of meat and eating it.

“You do not pay attention,” she said simply.

He squinted his eyes at her and grumbled around his food that he did too pay attention, thank you very much. She laughed softly and it made him bite his tongue. She had been nothing but kind to him while he was there and she didn’t deserve the frustration he felt to be forced on her.

“Where do you live?” Helga asked softly. “Where will you go?”

Pero bit his lip as he tore a piece of bread in two. “Nowhere. I am a mercenary. I go where the work is,” he shrugged, shoving the bread in his mouth.

“You enjoy this?”

Pero raised a brow as he chewed.

“You like not having anywhere to call home? You do not have to leave,” she hummed around her own food, taking a drink of some mead.

“What do you mean? Of course I do,” he scoffed. “Ingvar wants me dead. His men are constantly watching me.”

Helga rolled her eyes. “You really do not pay attention,” she sighed, setting down her cup and turning to face him. “You have not heard how people talk about you?”

“I am still learning the language,” he frowned, chewing messily and lips greasy.

“Why are you learning the language if you want to leave?”

Pero blinked and looked down at his plate. He frowned, thinking about it. Why was he learning the language?

“Because you like it here, Tovar,” she said softly. “We like you.” It went unsaid, but he got the feeling that she liked him, too.

“Pero.”

“What?”

“My name is Pero.”

Helga smiled, pink dusting her cheeks. “I do not think you will have many people protesting if you stay. The children love you. And I think you would make an excellent Viking.”

Pero raised a brow and exhaled, thinking about it. Having a place to call his own would be nice. And he was familiar with the kind of work the warriors did, from what he’d heard.

“You do not have long to think about it, Pero,” Helga hummed. She picked up her plate and stood before leaning over to kiss him on the cheek. “I would like it if you stayed,” she whispered into his ear. He looked up at her with soft eyes and she smiled down at him with her hand on his shoulder before turning and leaving.

Pero shut his eyes and exhaled once again, then looked in the direction of the Jarl’s personal quarters.

Would it be such a terrible thing to stay?

On the ninth day, Pero woke with a startle. He thought he’d heard a whisper next to his ear again. He’d been mostly dreamless while he was in the village. Last night, after his talk with Helga, he dreamt about the old man and the wolf in the woods. He didn’t understand any of it, and he barely remembered what the dream actually entailed, but he remembered the feeling. He felt… odd. Not bad or wrong. Just… different. Comforting.

As he got dressed in the clothes that were given to him, he looked over at the scarf Helga gave him. It was a brown color and the material was rough, but also thick and soft. It kept his ears warm. He wrapped it around his neck before slipping his feet into his boots, making sure to be careful of his injured one. He made his way over to the Jarl’s quarters and knocked on the door.

“Er du sikker?” (Are you sure?)

Pero nodded, arms crossed over his chest. “Yes.”

Ingvar sighed and crossed his arms, too. “Du forvirrer meg, Tovar. Men hvis dette virkelig er det du vil, tror jeg ikke at jeg ser noe problem med det.” He shrugged and looked at Sigrid’s smiling face. “Gå og hent tingene hans.” (You confuse me, Tovar. But if this is truly what you want, I don’t suppose I see a problem with it. Go get his things.)

Sigrid nodded happily and ran from the room. Pero and Ingvar awkwardly avoided eye contact. Even if neither of them were enemies, the circumstances of their acquaintanceship were less than ideal. When Sigrid returned, she was carrying Pero’s weapons in both arms and looked to be struggling to do so.

Pero furrowed his brows and gently took the weapons from her. She sighed in relief, but smiled shyly up at him. “I am happy you decided to stay,” she giggled.

Pero smiled down at her, then gave a grateful nod to Ingvar before leaving the room. Sigrid walked next to him while he attached his sword and hunting knife to his belt. He carried the armor under his left arm. “Me too,” he grunted awkwardly. “I am unsure how I will fit in, but…” He shrugged, scratching the back of his neck.

“I think you will be fine,” she nodded, sure of herself. One of the small children, a younger brother of hers he found out, came up to her and tugged on her dress. He mumbled something Pero didn’t quite catch. Sigrid tapped on his shoulder to get Pero’s attention, making him look down at the two of them, dark eyes intimidating, but soft. “She lives at the end of the village,” Sigrid winked, then took off with her younger brother.

Pero’s cheeks flushed, but he chuckled to himself. He made his way through the village, waving or nodding to people as he saw them. It was strange, being accepted as he was. He wasn’t the only gruff and hardened warrior here, and no one seemed scared of him for his scars or his accent. The feeling was so foreign to him.

As he walked up a small hill toward the end of the village, he heard a quiet thud against the grass. He looked down and saw the strange stone from the forest laying there. Right, he’d completely forgotten. It must’ve fallen from his belongings. He picked it up and looked at it, thumbs running over the strange markings. It was almost shaped like a fork, but with three prongs. Maybe Helga would know what it meant.

When he made his way in front of the door of the last house in the village, he hesitated before knocking. The sun was slowly setting and it was getting a tad colder, so he eventually knocked.

“Et øyeblikk!” (One moment!)

Pero smiled to himself as he heard her voice behind the door. Once the door opened, he raised his head and smiled sheepishly, the shape on his face still foreign to him.

Helga’s face softened as she saw him and rested a hand on her hip. “Well, come on in, then,” she grinned, opening the door wider for him. He nodded gratefully and stepped inside her home, the smells of burnt leaves and the feeling of a warm fire engulfing his body.

“I will find my own home, you need not keep me here if–”

“Hush,” she chuckled softly, taking his armor from his arms and putting it in her bedroom for cleaning later. “You are more than welcome to stay here,” she looked up at him with a bit of shyness. The first time she’d ever looked at him like that. “If you want to, that is.”

Pero took two steps closer to her until his face was mere inches from her own. “I want nothing more,” he said softly, rubbing the knuckle of his index finger against her cheek. She shut her eyes and exhaled softly, nodding.

“I was just getting ready to go to the feast,” Helga smiled, looking up at him. “Would you like to join me?”

Pero’s lips quirked up into a soft smile of his own before he remembered the stone he was holding. “Yes, but first,” his brows furrowed in thought. “It is silly, but… I found this strange stone while I was in the forest.”

Helga hummed and tilted her head to the side, letting him continue.

“It has a marking I have never seen before. Do you know what it means?” He asked, showing her the stone lying in the palm of his hand. She picked it up and rubbed her thumb over the marking like he had before.

“Where did you find this?” Helga asked, face pinched in confusion.

“In the forest. There was a small clearing with a bloodstained stone, and–”

“The ritual site,” she smiled up at him, clutching the stone in her hand. “We sacrificed one of the cows on the first day of Jól there.”

Pero blinked down at her, hands holding her arms and rubbing softly. “I see…”

Helga laughed softly. “You’ll get used to it,” she winked. “This is one of the runes. It seems we forgot one.”

“What does it mean?” He hummed, cupping her face in his large hand. He rubbed his thumb against her cheek.

“Protection,” she said softly. She looked at his lips, then looked back up at his eyes. He did the same and leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. They stayed there for a few moments before he released her and pressed his forehead against hers.

“Surely the feast can wait a few moments,” he growled into her neck, kissing against the soft skin there. Helga bit her lip and smiled, fingers tangling into the thick curls at the back of his head.

“It can,” she gasped, startled by the small nip he left against her shoulder. Pero slowly walked them toward her bedroom and laid her on top of the bed. The curtains in front of the window were drawn. Something caught his eye in the window and he looked out, hovering over Helga’s body.

In the distance, on top of a hill, was a large black wolf. It seemed to make eye contact with him before it turned and left.

A chill ran down Pero’s spine.

a/n: if you're at all curious, here's a decent idea of what i imagined the stone to look like 🥰

#pero tovar #pero tovar fanfiction #pero tovar fic #pero tovar x ofc #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal character fanfiction #ppcu fanfiction #12 days of pedro #12dop #oaksfics

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janesaridoll · 10 months

Text

Birthday princess

pairing || woc!reader x mob!ari levinson

genera || fluff.

summary || how’s Ari dealing with someone trying to disrespect his girl.

wordcount || 2,4K

Donate to my ko-fi!

A vicious man who will go to any length to make his sweetheart smile.

Growing up, Ari enjoyed his mother's elaborate celebrations, where everything had to be extravagantly flawless—whether they were birthday parties, wedding anniversaries, or charity events. He thinks his mother did all that to compensate for her husband, his father’s harsh reality.

He especially gets excited whenever his birthday is nearing, he loved when he was ten and he loves it now, almost thirty seven years old.

Even though, it's different from when he was younger, he still enjoyed it. However, the idea of someone not celebrating their milestone were awful to him, So when he found out his precious girl never celebrated her birthday he was horrified.

He couldn’t fathom that someone not celebrating their birthday especially someone as sweet as his girl.

Your birthday was never acknowledged by your parents. Not even a happy birthday was said. Although, your siblings celebrated theirs, no one ever seemed to remember yours.

As you got older, you just forget about it. You knew you missed something, but there was nothing you could do to persuade your parents to celebrate your birthday because they always had some excuse not to.

At first, you resisted Ari's insistence on throwing you a birthday party. Therefore, Ari did not celebrate your first birthday together as he had intended while you two were together. But of course he did do something to celebrate.

He took you to an upscale restaurant, after both of you finished eating, he gave you your gift; an elegant pair of earrings. That was the first time anyone had ever given you anything. You were appreciative, till this day you never taken them off.

The following year, when your birthday approached, Ari broached the subject once more, you told him you didn't care and that what you both did last year was enough yet Ari didn't think so. He wants to give you the experience of celebrating your birthday properly.

After much persuasion, you agreed to the birthday party, Ari got his mother's party planner number in order for you to contact her to plan your birthday, he didn’t set a budget for it; just told you to do what your heart desired.

"I want everything to go as smoothly as possible, Steve, I don't want anything to go wrong," Ari says as he sips from his brownish liquor.

"Of course, I'll tell Peter to oversee everything," you'd assume from the way they're both talking seriously in their black suits that it had to be about business. No, it's Ari's princess 24th birthday celebration. Which, if you think about it, is more important.

Ethan, your bodyguard and friend, is racing with with staff members making sure everything is perfect for your birthday, including the lights, decorations, DJ, food and drinks.

“She even got Ethan to do all the work” steve mumbled to Ari who let out a chuckle “I can’t believe he’s the toughest one of our men” He sips the rest of his drink before smiling to himself “wait for me in the werehouse” Steve only nodded.

He went upstairs to the guest bedroom where you had your makeup artist and hairstylist stay because Ari doesn't like it when people are in his room.

He stared at you from the doorway, completely captivated; the expression of happiness in your eyes brought happiness to him as well; he can't believe someone could be so cruel as to not love or spoil you in the way you deserve.

"Can you leave us for a minute?" As soon as he said it, the room quieted down, and your best friend, Nat, who you met through Ari's friends, spoke up, "sure, we will be outside," she patted your shoulder. She had already dressed in a black silk dress, done her makeup beautifully with smokey eyes and her signature red lipstick that matches her hair, she looks stunning.

"You look pretty," he began, staring at you from the mirror “you do, too," you said, turning around to face him.

He takes a step closer to you, as soon as he is within reach, you wrap your hand around his neck, drawing him closer to you, tilting your heads up to lock your gaze on him smiling lovingly.

"Ethan needs a day off tomorrow," when you noticed that the party planner were demanding you gave her Ethan's phone number so she could organize everything with him rather than you, you just told them what you want the theme of your party.

He initially objected, after all, he is the toughest man. But he agreed simply because he likes you and he wants you to have the nicest and most memorable birthday celebration ever.

"Sure, anything you want." Even Ari is taking a day off tomorrow, he wants to spend it with you while business is calm nowadays.

"You spoil me a lot," you said, kissing his jaw. He smiled “that's the least I could do for you. honey"

"Thank you, I love you too much." You kissed him again. "I love you too."

"I’m leaving for a bit; I've got a business to take care of, and I’ll be back before the party starts."

"Why?" You pout. Is he going to skip your birthday? You know it was stupid. You shouldn’t have agreed. Maybe your parents is right; it is a waste of time.

"They need me there; it won’t take too long, maybe an hour max," he told you while curdling your face between his large hands and kissing your lips softly.

“You promise?” You smiled softly at him.

"Absolutely,I wouldn’t miss it for the world” he replied, you kissed him again.

“I’ll leave you now to finish, honey."

“Okay be careful”

“Always”

He left, and the girls returned to do their tasks. Wanda followed Nat into the room; it appears that your friends are already showing up, so you should finish quickly.

“Hey! Nat told me you invited Ema?” Wanda said as soon as she’s stepped beside you, “hello to you too” you turned to her smiling.

“Im sorry babe” she kissed your cheek before continuing “is it true?”

“Yes, i thought it would be rude to invite all of our friend group except her!”

Nat spoke looking at Wanda “told you”

“Yep, she’s tooooo nice” Wanda replied.

“I don’t know, Ari is inviting his friends and business partners, his mom and sisters are coming as well as their friends, so I think it would be crowded and she won’t be a bother!”

“I hope so” Nat said before looking at Wanda who was fixing her red dress, adjusting her breasts “what are you doing?”

“I’m gonna go see Ethan, wish me luck” Wanda and Ethan has been flirting a lot lately, you know they would end up together it was just a matter of time.

Everyone has arrived an hour and a half later, including your friends, Ari's friends, and family. Nat helped you dressing up in your pink gown, you wore your jewelry as well. Wanda is working as your personal photographer; she took many photos of you before you had to go downstairs so the party could begin.

When the DJ announced your entrance, everyone's eyes turned to you, yelling and clapping, while your eyes scanned the the place looking for Ari.

As soon as your gaze latched on him, you smiled brightly, relaxing for a while before getting down and everyone began to approach you, wishing you a happy birthday.

You were quite apprehensive because it was the first time you had ever been the center of attention at any form of event.

Nat gave you a microphone so you could thank everyone who came to celebrate with you, and you specifically thanked Ari, none of this would happened if it weren’t for him. You wished them a good evening.

After you handed the DJ the microphone, you felt like you were being crushed in a hug by someone, and when you looked down, you discovered it was Ari's younger sister, Amara.

“Happy Birthday!!!!!” She said screaming a bit. You laughed before hugging her back.

“Stop squeezing my girl to death” Ari teased his sister before greeting his mom and his older sister Sadie.

When Amara separated from you Sadie hugged you, as well as his mother.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart; i loved the party theme!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Levinson," you respectfully said. The elder woman scoffs at you, "sweetheart, we've been through this a lot! Please call me Freya; you make me feel old."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'll start calling you Freya," you said hesitantly, knowing she had told you that several times but you always forgot. Your mother taught you to never address someone by their first name; instead, use Mr. or Mrs.

Sadie looked around “are we finally going to meet your family?”

Your communication with your family has diminished since you left for college; you text and call, but they don't reach out to you as frequently as you would want. It's what they've wanted ever since you were born. To forget all about you.

You gave them an invitation to your party, but they did not respond. And when you called they didn’t pick up, No surprise.

You didn’t tell Ari that, you didn’t want him to feel sorry for you. But he can see it in your face when his sister mentioned your family.

“Oh they’re busy, they couldn’t make it!” You hoped your excuse was believed and by the look they gave you they did.

After a small talk they left to join other people for dance and chatting.

Ari left you alone for a minute to talk with his friends while you drank and danced with your friends.

Hours later, it was time to cut the cake, two servants brought the cake to a table in front of you. Ari hand wrapped around your waist while your hand was on top of his, him and everyone else singing happy birthday for you.

"Make a wish!" Nat called for you, and everyone else joined her, you giggled before closing your eyes and making a wish.

After opening your eyes and blowing on the candle, everyone clapped and whistled for you.

"I want to show you something," Ari whispered in your ear. You turned around, looking into his eyes. "What?"

"Come with me," he said, taking your hand a bit further and directing you to the double massive doors, which opened immediately.

A Rolls-Royce Ghost in Champagne Rose pulled in, you could hear the stunned screams of the people surrounding you; you were as surprised as they were.

“Oh my god!!, you didn’t!!!” You looked between Ari and the car, Ethan stepped out of the car, passing the keys to Ari, who handed them to you.

“All yours baby” you jumped on him, hugging him firmly, thanking him constantly “I love you i love you i love you!!”

Nat and Wanda came close to you both “girl you have to take us for a ride!!”

“I can’t wait to show off my first car ever!!” You smiled big and jumped up and down while clapping.

Wanda smiled “let me take pictures of you with the car!” She took her phone out and you got beside the car posing while she took a couple of pictures of you.

You grabbed Ari hand wanting him in the pictures. He smiled before letting you posing him in whatever way you wanted.

If he could, he would have given you the entire world without asking, but for the time being, he will give you anything your heart desire.

Life has its own way of repaying you. While you spent the previous twenty-three years begging someone to spare you a glance, right now you could ask for anything and it wouldn’t be trouble to give.

From behind, an irritating loud noise was heard. "I told you that he is her sugar daddy!!" Everyone fell silent, wondering who it was.

Your smile faded slightly; you weren't a particularly confrontational person to begin with. People would walk all over you while you excused them. You were too kind and too afraid to ever react to anyone.

“Who said that?" Ari stated calmly yet furiously, everyone got quiet surprised at the person who is brave enough to insult Ari’s girl

Wanda and Nat exchanged knowing glances. Finally, Ema made a fool of herself in front of Ari.

They know Ari doesn't accept disrespect, especially to those who don't deserve it, and to disrespect his girl? Oh, she just dug up her grave.

“Ema did," Nat answered, unconcerned about your glares.

Ari doesn't want to ruin your first birthday celebration, but he can't let this individual get away with it.

When he observed a girl who appeared shaking with fear, everyone's gaze was drawn to her, he knew it was her, and he approached her moved in front of her eye sight, almost nothing can stand between them.

"There are two reasons for saying this; one is that you are jealous because no one has ever loved you enough to provide you with something you desired, or YOU don't deserve to be loved or cared for like i do with my girl, I believe the latter it is," he said as calm as he can be

He could hear Wanda and Nat laughing mockingly at her. Finally, someone standing up to this bitch.

“Get the fuck out of my house and don't ever think of disrespecting my girl; or the next time you won't have a tongue to talk with; are we clear?" She nodded so quickly

“Good," he said, motioning for two of his guards to accompany her out; Bucky pointed out for the DJ to play some music to keep the party going.

Wanda yelled “ oh my god i love this song”

Her and Nat went dancing on the dance floor, while everyone else seemed to have forgotten what had happened and continued to have fun.

"Are you alright, sweetheart?" Ari spoke to you in hushed tones.

"Yeah, I'm fine," you replied, smiling back. "Do you know this is the first time I've seen you in your mob mode?"

“Really??” Ari was taken aback, saying, "I hope I didn't scare you."

"You did not, thank you for standing up for me; I really thought inviting her to my party would make her nice to me," you said, "I didn't want to divide our group into two sides."

"Sometimes, honey, being nice to someone so low is not the solution; if they don't respect you, they have to go; it's either they do or they don't." His huge hands comforted you by moving circles behind your back.

You thought for a moment about what he said "Yeah, you're right"

You got closer to him, your lips almost touching, "do you want to take my new car for a ride?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

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fallinforerling · 1 year

Text

LOVE ISN'T ETERNAL. chapter 12 - jb

ೃ⁀➷ jude’s masterlist

ೃ⁀➷ jude’s taglist

ೃ⁀➷ masterlist

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

After seeing for yourself that nothing could affect Jude’s performance or relationship with one of his teammates, you felt more relaxed. The conversation that you needed to have with him was still very present in your mind, but at least you found yourself relaxing through the almost two hours of the game due to the added time. You were worried for Jude’s physical state since the DT didn’t make any changes, but he seemed more than fine running around like he was just two minutes into it.

The four of you were chatting while watching intently through the screens, all of you making jokes about Jude’s faces after a missed goal, commenting sometimes about a tiny mistake or how unfair the referee was against a particular player. Jobe made sure to keep you entertained during the recess, giving you tiny plates full of food from the catering area, both starting a game of ranking them like you were Gordon Ramsay. It was a great time, and when the match ended, you felt a bit sad. The games always felt like mini-vacations.

You made your way back to the dressing room, celebrating that BVB had won the match. You knew Jude would be thrilled; you could tell the players were extra happy since a lot of songs and shouting could be heard meters away.

“I think we should wait around a bit more; they’re going to take showers and all that.” Jobe said, sighing. “I’m exhausted.”

“That’s because of all the food we had.” You said, jokingly poking his stomach.

“Ha, ha. What about you? That’s about the size of a three month pregnant belly” He poked yours back.

“Rude!” You hugged your "belly," making your best offended face. “How do you know it’s not, in fact, a pregnant belly?”

“Excuse me?” Gio’s voice startled you, coming from behind.

“Gio, my god.” You laughed, turning around to face him. He had a happy but surprised expression. Your brain clicked when his eyes went straight to your stomach. “No! No, no, no… That was a joke. No pregnancies.”

“She’s just bloated.” Jobe added, laughing when you gave him a nasty look. “What? You are.”

“Stop it, dear.” Denise said, trying to hold her laugh. “Hello, Gio, my dear. How are you?”

“Tired but good, Mrs. Bellingham. Thank you!”

Right then, Jude came up, walking next to Marcus, laughing and chatting. He was covered in sweat, but still looked amazing. Your heart did a little thing that made you almost groan, and when he looked up, both of you smiled at each other from afar. He gave Gio a little side-eye once he was next to him, but nothing else. You pursed your lips tightly together, so the smile you wanted to hide didn’t escape.

“Who wants a sweaty hug?” He asked, already looking at you.

“She does.” Jobe, being the traitorous little devil he was, pushed you directly into him.

“No!” Jude didn’t let you move from the prison of his arms, pushing you into his chest, rubbing his neck against your face, and putting his sweaty jersey (that he had taken off) around your neck. “Ugh! Gross!”

“What do you mean by “gross”? This is the smell of victory, love!” He kept rubbing himself into you, making you laugh and groan out of disgust at the same time.

“You’d been running and tackling people for two hours! You don’t smell amazing.” You muttered against his chest, giving up on escaping his embrace.

“Whatever you say.” He replied once you were free. His jersey was still around your neck; you grabbed it with two fingers, not believing that he dared to put that shirt full of grass and sweat on you without hesitation.

“Hey there.” Marcus said after Jude was done with you, smiling at all of you before entering the dressing room.

You all said hi, and when some other players came in as well, Jude followed them, shouting that he would be out soon. You awkwardly waited a little bit farther away with Jude’s family, avoiding the knowing looks of Denise and the eyes of Jobe, who kept smirking at you and taking photos of the sweaty shirt that was now hanging from your arm.

“Very funny.” You said to him, covering your face after he shot some photos very up-close.

“Of course it is.” Was the only thing he said, laughing while showing his father the results of his photoshoot.

Jude did as he promised, and after fifteen minutes he was out of the dressing room with fresh clothes and a big smile. You knew how happy he felt after every win. You all waited a bit more for the rest of the team. Adeyemi and Gio came out a bit later than Jude, walking straight to you.

“Hey! Are you coming tonight?” Adeyemi said as soon as he was near enough. You thought he was talking to Jude, but his eyes were on you, so you just gave him a tiny smile and shrugged.

“Sorry, where?”

“To the pub. Some of the guys want to celebrate later.” Gio said, paying no attention to Jude’s eyes, which seemed to be digging holes in his skull for how hard he was staring at him.

“I don’t think so, we’re pretty tired.” Jude replied for the both of you, smiling with only his lips. “Maybe another time.”

The disappointed look on Gio’s face was evident, but he replaced it with a smile immediately.

"Okay then, next time it is.” Both of them said their goodbyes and went on.

You looked at Jude closely while you followed his parents, who chatted a few steps ahead. You nudged his arm, smirking when he gave you the look again.

“Stop it with the jealousy thing, Bellingham.” He blushed a little, avoiding your eyes. “Not hot.”

“I’m not jealous.” He said, smiling once you nudged his arm again. “Just making sure that Gio gets out of his head the idea of having a chance with you.”

“And rubbing your sweaty self against me is the best option for that, right?”

“Rubbing my sweaty self against you is always the best option at any given opportunity, darling.”

“You guys know I’m right here, don’t you?” Jobe’s voice was next to you, sounding disgusted. “Stop with the sexual innuendos in front of me, please.”

“We weren’t-”

“Sorry, bro. I got carried away.” Jude smiled when you pushed his arm.

“Everything I’ve learned about your relationship was against my will.” Jobe said before walking a bit faster so he could be next to his parents. “I’ll treat you like the plague.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetie!” You shouted, laughing when he just gave you a disgusted look. “It won’t happen again, I promise!”

“Just let him be.” Jude hugged your shoulders, lowering himself until he was next to your face. “What about we just do a movie night? The flight is in the afternoon— enough time to sleep in and eat something, don’t you think?”

You raised an eyebrow, pretending to ignore how close his lips were to your own.

“Are you inviting yourself into my house to sleep?” You whispered, enjoying when his face grew redder by the minute. “How bold of you, sir.”

“Not like that, obviously!” He said immediately, looking like a tomato by this point. “Just like… Quality time!”

“Oh, so you don’t want to?” You acted offended. His face went through all the states of confusion.

“Well, yes, of course, but...” He stopped mid-sentence, frowning. “No, no, I’m not letting myself say something stupid right now!” You laughed, making him smile. “I knew you were going to make me all confused! I’m just out here wanting to watch a movie and sleep with you like a good Christian couple!”

“Christian couple?! Oh, my god. We’re far away from that.” You couldn’t stop laughing, feeling some tears run down your face. “You’re going to use me as a pillow! I’m going to be buried under 75 kg of an exhausted footballer.”

“It’s not like you aren’t used to it.” He kissed your cheek. You couldn’t help but smile.

Looking ahead, you were almost at the exit, so you grabbed his hand, trying to get his arm off your shoulders. He gave you a confused look, but you just pointed ahead.

“We’re almost out of here. People are going to take photos of you.” It wasn’t like you cared by this point, but you knew he was very private.

“Let them.” He simply said, taking your hand with ease. “If you want to, of course.”

You looked at your intertwined fingers, feeling like you were in front of a different person. He didn’t care? Your eyes returned to his face; he was smiling and walking like nothing was important enough to make him care about it. You tightened your hold around his fingers, looking straight ahead. You passed photographers from the staff before making it outside; they all took some photos of not only you, but also the other footballers that were walking behind you. It was a weird experience.

“Mom, Dad. We’re going to head home, is it okay if you get my suitcase from my room?” He said, already leading you to a different hallway than his parents.

“Sure, dear.” Was all that Denise had to say. Her eyes were sparkling with something that made you look away again. She definitely knew. “Very well, remember I’ll pick you up in the afternoon, okay? I want both of you ready.”

“Yeah, Mom. Don’t worry.” Both of you gave them a final hug to everyone before going separate ways; you didn’t know where you were going, but you figured it was fine.

“Who’s driving us?” You asked after saying goodbye to some more people that apparently knew Jude. They all looked at you with curiosity, like asking themselves if Jude had always been holding hands with someone while walking around the hallways.

“I don’t actually know. Here, put this on.” He covered your eyes with… sunglasses?

“Why would I need these?” You tried to take them off, but he stopped you.

“Just leave them on and follow me, darling.”

You were suddenly out of the building; you heard voices shouting names and other things that you couldn’t understand, and when you looked up, you realized you were walking by the main entrance, where fans waited for the players to come out. People were flashing photos, startling you a bit before Jude made it to a black car, opening the door and allowing you to get inside first.

“Wow.” You said once the door closed, taking the glasses off. “That was... an experience.”

“Can you get used to it?” He said with a smile, greeting the driver and giving him your address.

“Are you used to it?” You ask instead, still watching how many people were near the car, asking for a sign or photo. “Aren’t you going to sign something?”

“Maybe? I don’t want to if it makes you uncomfortable.”

Being honest? It did make you a bit uncomfortable, but just because you weren’t used to it. People never paid attention to you in the way Jude was used to. You just shrugged, figuring that maybe it would be a couple of minutes.

“Mate, I’m going to roll down the window for a moment. I’ll be quick.”

“Sure, no worries.”

So you just stayed there, awkwardly avoiding the gaze of the few people that acknowledged your presence in the seat next to Jude’s. They seemed curious, but again, they had Jude Bellingham singing their goodies and shirts, no time to gossip about who you were. Which was appreciated.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

“Finally.” You said once the door was locked behind you.

“I’m so tired.” Jude hung from your shoulders, making you groan from the extra weight. “I don’t think I can watch that movie after all.”

“Oh, so all this was an evil trick to get into my house, you pervert?” It was pretty funny to joke about it since it was obvious you weren’t going to have sex tonight… Or soon.

“Stop it with that!” He laughed, hugging your shoulders a bit more. You held his forearms, stopping by the kitchen. “I truly want to spend time with you without the sweaty body rubbing.”

“No way you just called sex “sweaty body rubbing," Jude.” He leaned against the kitchen island, shrugging.

“Isn’t sex just that? Well, the basics of it.”

“Can we stop talking about sex?” You were getting a bit nervous by the way he was looking at you. “Are you hungry?”

“You started it! And not making it better by asking if I’m hungry right after it… But yes, I’m pretty hungry. For food.”

“No need to make that clear, sir.” You smiled. “Grilled chicken, rice, and salad?” You said, already opening the fridge.

“Please do. I’ll help you.”

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Jude stayed in the kitchen doing the dishes so you could hop in the shower.

If you were honest with yourself, you were a bit nervous about having him a few meters away from you while you were fully naked. It was stupid since you knew he really meant it by saying he just wanted to spend quality time; sex wasn’t even on your future plans. But you couldn’t help it. It felt too dangerous.

After finishing, you got dressed inside the bathroom, just in case an accident happened. Luck wasn’t a thing to be tempted right now.

“There you are.” Jude said once you got out of the bathroom. He made himself at home, already wrapped in the covers. You could tell he was absolutely pleased to be allowed in your bed again. “Wait, do you have any of those masks that you like to put on?”

“Do you want to do that?”

“Yeah! Why not? My skin has been a bit dry lately.”

You laughed.

“Very well. Go wash your face.” He got up fast, making you smile with his excitement. “Use the blue one!”

“Okay!”

You went through your vanity drawers until you found the little box of face masks. You used to put them on together a lot. When he got out of the bathroom, you made him sit on the vanity; you made sure to get all the spots and get it really smooth on his face. He was so relaxed that you almost kissed him.

Not now. Not-now.

“Ready?” He asked, opening his eyes.

“All ready. Let me put mine on.” You grabbed another package.

When everything was ready, you both sat on bed, waiting for the twenty minutes to pass. He even offered to brush your hair, which you accepted. He gave amazing scalp massages. It all felt so domestic and back to normal that it made your heart ache. Even when you were ready to let all go back in Scotland, you realized this thing happening right now was something you’d missed. You missed him a lot.

“I had a great time today.” You told him, taking his hand. “I missed it.”

“Thank you for coming. I really missed you. Having you with me today made it all better.” He kissed the back of your hand.

You stared at him, not caring that his face was covered in a silly face mask, and felt the urge to kiss him again. You weren’t fooling anyone, especially yourself. You miss him, you love him... You want him back as much as he wants you. You’d told yourself a million times that you needed more time, more space, and a bit more healing. And you had it. You had all that, and you still wanted him by your side no matter what.

He was an asshole two months ago; everything that had occurred the past months were because of the miscommunication, the fear. But you knew, no matter what, that you two could make it work. You loved him so very much.

“Jude?” You asked suddenly, feeling the need to say what you were thinking or you’ll explode.

“Yeah?” He put his phone down, giving you his sole attention.

You swallowed, taking his hand a bit harder to make sure he was there with you.

“I’m ready to give us a second chance.”

He frozed, blinking rapidly. If it wasn’t for your rapid heartbeat and your own fear, you would have laughed at his face; between the shock and the face mask, he looked very funny.

“Are you-” He got out of the covers, getting closer to you. “Are you sure?”

Now you laughed for real, taking his face between your hands.

“Yes, I am very sure.” You gave him a little peck, looking into his eyes. “Are you taking up my offer?”

“If I’m-? Hell, of course I am. Come here.”

He took your face in a fast movement, kissing you so deeply you thought it was a dream. You waited for so long to be kissed by him again. You returned the kiss with all the love and force you could, showing him that you’d missed him as much as he’d missed you. You both fell into the bed, laughing when the face masks fell off; his eyes were sparkling while giving you the most beautiful smile ever once the kiss was over. You giggled when he started to kiss your cheeks and neck, playing with his hair when he stayed on the crook of your neck. His scent was so familiar that it almost made you cry.

Maybe it was a curse, but you sure loved this man with all your heart. May God help you.

“Thank you.” He spoke after a while, kissing your neck once more before looking into your eyes. “I promise I’ll never-”

“Don’t promise me anything.” You interrupted him, putting your fingers on his lips. “Just do it, no more words. Prove it to me.”

He looked deeply into your eyes for a few seconds before kissing you shortly.

“I’ll spend the rest of my days proving how much I love you if it’s necessary.”

This time, it was you who kissed him.

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚⋆·˚ ༘ * JUDE'S TAGLIST

#jude bellingham x reader #jude bellingham imagine #jude x reader #judebellingham #jude #jude bellingham fic #jude bellingham x you #jude bellingham fluff #jb22 #jude x you #footballfics #footballer fic #footballer blurb #footballer fanfiction #football imagines #football fic

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thebisexualdogdad · 10 months

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An eventful holiday - Thea Queen x Male!reader

A/N: based off the 1x09 holiday episode because I've started a DC show rewatch and forgot how much of a crush I used to have on Thea

When Oliver came back from the dead he had a lot of new things he had to adjust to, one of the hardest being that his little sister who was only twelve the last time he saw her was now seventeen with a boyfriend.

He wanted an opportunity to bring his family closer after learning they stopped celebrating Christmas when he and his father went missing so Oliver planned a big Christmas party to make up for lost time.

However he didn't expect you to be invited as Thea's plus one.

He, Thea, Moira and Walter just got their photo taken when you walk in holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Hi, uh Thea invited me," you say seeing the angry look on Oliver's face, "Mrs. Queen these are for you."

You hand Moira the flowers and she thanks you, Thea kissing you on the cheek and showing you to the food table.

"I didn't get a chance to tell you how amazing you look tonight," you smile, grabbing a christmas cookie and taking a bite of it.

"You clean up pretty nice yourself," she says, drinking a glass of champagne and taking in the sight of you in your suit.

"Well I wanted to impress your brother, I don't think he likes me very much," you admit.

"Because he doesn't know you and he still doesn't want to believe I'm not a little kid anymore," she tells you.

"Maybe we should hang out sometime, just the three of us so he and I can actually get to know each other," you suggest.

"You're putting in a lot of effort to get the approval of my brother," she chuckles.

"That's because I love you, I want him to know that I'm serious about us and would never do anything to hurt you."

Thea smiles and kisses you sweetly, putting her empty glass down on the table, "I love you too and I think we should go upstairs for some privacy so I can give you your christmas present."

"But we exchanged gifts already," You say confused as you and Thea had a small get together with your family a few days prior.

"This is the part of your gift that I couldn't give you in front of your parents," she grins.

You had no idea what was in store for you but you quickly down a glass of champagne as she takes your hand and guides you towards the stairs.

Oliver sees this and glares at you, about to follow you two with intentions of kicking you out of the party but his mother puts her hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Let them be Oliver," Moira says calmly.

"You're really okay with what they are going to do up there?" Oliver huffs.

"They are young and in love, in case you've forgotten your father and I tried to stop you sneaking around with girls when you were their age and yet you still always found a way," she chuckles.

"She's not ready to be in a relationship this serious," Oliver states.

"And you were?" Moira laughs, "you have to accept that Thea is not the same twelve year old she was when you left."

"Excuse me mom, I need to get some air," Oliver sighs, heading to the front door.

Meanwhile upstairs you are sitting on Thea's bed as she locks her door, sauntering towards you and climbing in your lap.

"Go ahead and unzip my dress," she says and you reach up, pulling the zipper down her chest to reveal the black lacy bra she has underneath.

"Wow," you mutter, the top of her dress falling off her shoulders and bunching around her waist.

"You like it?" She asks it.

"You are so beautiful Thea," you say putting your hands on her waist and kissing her deeply.

The kiss intensifies, Thea slipping your suit jacket off and tossing it to the floor before unbuttoning your shirt.

You pick her up and flip her over, letting her get comfortable against the pillows.

Thea moans softly as you kiss down her neck and along her chest while pulling her dress the rest of the way off her body exposing the lacy black panties that matched her bra.

"Merry Christmas Y/N," she says, biting her lip.

"This just may be the best gift I've ever received," you mutter, your lips traveling along her stomach which results in her hips rocking up for any form of friction.

You spend a while exploring her body and working her up, fully enjoying your gift, your fingers are gently rubbing her over the lace and her arousal is starting to soak through the material so you finally rid her of it.

You stand up and remove the rest of your clothes as well but look around, "Wait where's my jacket?"

You spot it on the floor and dig around in the inside pocket pulling a condom out.

"Were you expecting to get laid tonight?" Thea teases as she lifts her chest up to unclip her bra and tosses it aside.

"Not at all but it's always better to be prepared right," you chuckle, taking the condom out and rolling it on.

You reposition yourself back on top of her, spreading her legs apart and settling in between them.

Thea gasps when you ease the tip of your cock inside her, slowly pushing it the rest of the way in.

"Does this feel okay?" You ask and she nods.

You give a few rolls of your hips so she has a chance to adjust before you find a more steady rhythm.

She throws her head back, her chest in the air so you take the opportunity to nip at her neck and collarbones.

"Just like that," she moans, grasping at the sheets under her.

After a few minutes she feels her release approaching and reaches down, rubbing firm circles over her clit.

"I'm so close," she groans.

"Me too," you grunt, picking up the pace.

With just a few more thrusts Thea is cumming, her walls tightening around your cock and her eyes rolling back.

Seeing her like this takes you over the edge as well, riding out your highs together.

After cleaning yourselves up you're blissfully laying naked in her bed, a sheet loosely around your waists with her head on your chest when there's an urgent knocking on her door.

"Thea make yourself decent quickly, Diggle just called and Oliver's been in a motorcycle accident we need to go to the hospital right away," her mother says through the door with an obvious worry in her voice.

"Oh my god," Thea says, jumping out of bed and grabbing her clothes off the floor.

"Hey, what can I do for you?" You ask trying to comfort her as you both get redressed.

Thea opens her door surprised to see her mom is still standing there.

"Y/N you can help by seeing our guests out after we leave," Moira says.

"Of course Mrs. Queen," you say awkwardly, pulling your suit jacket on and kissing Thea's forehead before heading downstairs.

"Walter is bringing the car around," Moira says as they follow suit, "and Thea dear fix your dress, I do hope you two were using protection in there."

"Mom now is not the time for that!" Thea yelps in embarrassment realizing her dress is still half unzipped.

Well this certainly was the most eventful holiday Thea has had in a long time.

#arrow imagine #thea queen imagine #thea queen x reader #x male reader #fic

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jukey · 1 year

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Blue Lock x Reader Headcanons

Bllk boys cooking for you!!

(nagi, reo, hiori, ness, isagi, chigiri)

let me knoe if yall want part 2 gang and with who🚨🏈🔥🦅🇺🇲

Nagi x Reader Headcanons

he suggested it at first, which was quite surprising knowing how lazy he is

said he wanted to do 'boyfriend things' for you (he doesn't even cook for himself)

he kept messing up in the kitchen, adding the wrong ingredients, setting the temperature too high

dont blame him, he always bought his own meals, this is new (he cant even tell spinach and mint apart)

you just knew it was going to taste horrible once he set your plate down

to your surprise, it actually tasted good, like really good

he didn't think much of it but felt fuzzy when you complimented him

better salvage the taste while you can 'cause this is the last time he'll be doing this

Reo x Reader Headcanons

oh!

he warned texted you beforehand that he was cooking tonight

reo grew up with all kinds of people working at his mansion so there was no need for him to learn how to cook

once you've accidentally taken some wrong buses to avoid going home it was time to face him (and his creation)

a very happy reo welcomed you and lead you to the dining table

he was wearing one of your aprons and you could've sworn you saw some burned food remnants smudged on it

you smiled in pain wholeheartedly when he brought you your plate (it looked like 4 diseases mixed up)

that quickly changed when he insisted on feeding you

with no way to hide the food or run away, you gave up

first bite in you felt your tongue going through the 5 stages of grief

he was so happy when you told him it tasted amazing (it tasted like battery acid)

(i like to think he sent you this before you went home)

Hiori x Reader Headcanons

he is such a sweetheart

he actually takes you out for dinner almost everyday

you suggested it to him first and he agreed (he got that 'everything to make you happy' mindset)

he saw it more like a challenge than doing something nice for you tho (its the actions that count shhh)

he just went with something simple so it wouldn't get too bad

he lied saying he put no effort into it, that its just something small he whipped up (he counted the amounts of salt grains he needed)

after that day he decided to test his cooking skills more often thanks to your words of praise

Ness x Reader Headcanons

AWW MY DAYS

you dont even need to ask him, he already cooks for you evey single day

and if he's busy that day, he'll make food at ungodly hours and wakes you up to eat

he absolutely LOVES it when you eat his food and then waits patiently for you to say what you think of it

i feel like he gets a burst of excitement when you tell him you love it, this is why he prefers you eat his food instead of anyone elses

he tries finding excuses to make you plenty of food

one time you came home to him celebrating you for being yourself, the person whom he loves<3 (he made a whole feast for you)

he even wants to be the one to bake you your own birthday cake (watch out before its a kaiser themed one)

Isagi x Reader Headcanons

he absolutely adores your cooking so this was quite a bit of a wasted opportunity thing for him

however, he seemed really focused while working on your food

he kept asking you for help and after a while you stopped and he just whined about how unfair that is

bro would ask for 3 hints like this is some kind of quiz

he was very nervous about bringing you your food (he almost wanted to trip on purpose)

the food wasnt that bad but missed a bit of flavour or something to strengthen the taste

ofcourse you didnt tell him that as the good person you are

was happy about you liking his food but wouldn't be open to trying this again

Chigiri x Reader Headcanons

he loved this idea a lot, even wanted to ask you to participate as a competition but eventually decided to go against it

he wants to be able to cook for his partner at all times if needed

he used to chat with his mom a lot while she was busy cooking so he learned a few things from watching her

he took quite some time on presenting the food, made sure it looked very appealing

he would make cute animal faces on it<33

it was so hard for you to take a bite when the food looked so cute, he giggled at this

it tasted great, you didn't get to eat everything because chigiri stole his food back

greedy smh

i want to be one of those justin bieber memes🤕

requests are open!!!

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impossiblescissorspeachpaper · 1 year

Text

from the moment you leave i can’t help but miss you

elriel month prompt one: shy glances & restricted touches

Light angst, slightly NSFW.

Meet me in the second-floor library.

That was all he had said.

Months. It had been months since Azriel had stepped foot in this house whilst Elain was present and the first thing she heard from him were those seven words.

She shouldn’t have been so surprised he had shown up for this, of course he’d be here today. It was Nyx’s first birthday after all; he would have never not come.

He had become so proficient at providing excuses for missing family dinners that she had expected more of the same. He was off on a mission, he was needed in the Hewn City, he was overseeing training in the Illyrian Steppes. It was always something.

But today he had shown up, wearing a fine fitting black shirt and perfectly tailored pants that had Elain’s stomach twisting in knots with the way it showed off his truly magnificent physique. His cobalt siphons still sat atop his lovely hands, his tanned forearms catching Elain’s attention when she noticed he’d rolled up his sleeves, but otherwise he was the picture of effortless ease, strolling into the garden party where the rest of their family and closest friends assembled to celebrate the young heir.

All afternoon she had tried to avoid his attention, feeling a heat creep up her cheeks each time she thought of him. But every time she glanced in his direction, she found him already staring, quickly averting his eyes before having them flit back to her. As if he couldn’t help his gaze from drifting toward her.

His attention felt like a hot brand on her back, Elain remaining distractedly aware that his piercing hazel eyes were following her about the garden as she swapped out empty platters of food and chatted merrily to Feyre and Rhys’ guests.

She’d worn a strappy, lavender silk dress for the occasion, the colour an homage to the blooming spring around them as well as a compliment to her nephews sparkling eyes. But had she known he would be attending she’d have chosen something less… revealing. Not that her dress was revealing per se, but the way the Shadowsingers’ gaze followed her as she flitted about the garden had Elain’s skin feeling flushed, and she desperately hoped the blush creeping up her cheeks wasn’t mirrored elsewhere on her exposed skin.

Forcing those illicit thoughts from her mind, Elain feigned a pleasant smile, plastering that tepid expression on her face until she grew distracted enough to forget her anxieties and it became sincere.

She had been engrossed in conversation with Helion, his amber eyes gleaming in the late afternoon sun, when she’d felt the soft touch of a familiar shadow.

Meet me in the second-floor library.

Gone before it was noticed, the message had been whispered in her ear, the silken threads of its darkness caressing her smooth skin like a lover. The lone shadow had twined about her neck, lingering at the shell of her pointed ear before flitting back to its master unseen.

The second-floor library was seldom used, and Azriel knew that. It housed a few stacks of ancient books, a mahogany desk and a few plush armchairs scattered throughout, but Inner Circle meetings were usually held in Rhys' study on the first floor. He mustn’t have been summoning her for official business then. Elain gulped, attempting to tamper the heat that was rising within her.

All it had taken were those seven words, and here she remained, contemplating the decision between ignoring the whispered message, or succumbing to his forbidden request.

Deeming it improper to drop her hostess duties at his every whim, she ignored his message and continued her conversation with Helion, overzealously requesting additional details about the formal gardens surrounding the grand libraries his court boasted. No matter how much she wanted to run back into the house and meet him. Distraction was key, but that heat never abated.

After a while, she couldn’t help but be enthralled by Helion’s charismatic demeanour and easy-going nature, so at odds with the intimidating High Lord he portrayed to those outside of his closest circle. Elain found herself thoroughly enjoying his company.

But it wasn’t long before a second shadow had come slinking along, winding itself around the silky strands of the hair, laving at her the skin behind her ear.

Please, Elain.

The shadow-carried message was more desperate and pleading this time, accompanied with a lingering caress from that tendril of darkness on the delicate skin of her throat.

She hadn’t noticed Azriel make his way over to them through the small crowd, nonchalantly edging his way closer to no doubt listen in on why she was so enraptured in conversation with a dashing High Lord. Was that a hint of jealousy glinting in his hazel eyes?

Azriel’s gaze locked on hers for the briefest of moments before he brushed passed her, a solitary scarred finger stretched toward hers as he did. Their fingertips found each others in the folds of her dress, the swaths of smooth silk ensuring no one caught sight of the small, intimate interaction.

Her breath caught in her throat at the brief touch, his warm skin igniting hers in a way no other male had ever managed to do. His touch sparked a rush beneath her skin and Elain prayed that none of the astute fae ears around them heard her thundering heart.

Her concentration had finally slipped from the attention of the High Lord of Day; surely Azriel’s intention with the subtle caress. But try as she might, she could no longer ignore the Shadowsingers’ request. He had accomplished his mission.

Cad.

Awaiting an appropriate break in the conversation, Elain politely excused herself and made her way toward the River manor, picking up a few empty platters on her way inside.

On silent feet, she casually meandered her way through the manor, consciously shifting her expression to simply appear absent-minded to any unwanted eyes that may be following her movements throughout the halls.

Climbing the grand staircase, she strolled up to the second-floor library where she was instructed to go, and as soon as she had clicked the heavy mahogany door closed behind her, the Spymaster materialised from a swarm of shadows milling about between two stacks of old books.

Elain’s breath caught in her chest. It was always prone to doing so when he was nearby. He was devastating.

He stood before her, broad-shouldered and solemn faced, pausing as his eyes once again raked over her, taking in every inch of her from head to toe. She burned under his heavy gaze.

With sure, fluid movements, it took him all but three long strides before he was standing before her, his imposing frame crowding her senses, leaving just a hairsbreadth of space between their yearning bodies.

“I wasn’t sure you’d be here today.”

Azriel didn’t answer straight away, he merely shifted closer still, his hand coming to rest on her waist, its warm weight heating her skin.

Craning his neck down toward her, Azriel gingerly rest his forehead against hers, breathing in her honey and jasmine scent, and his eyes fluttered closed. Finally content.

He stood motionless for several moments, the only movement was his chest rising and falling as he slowly took lungfuls of her in, as if he needed her very essence to carry away the time they had spent apart before he could continue any further.

Opening his eyes but making no movements to pull away, he responded.

“I would never have missed it. Besides Rhys and Feyre would never forgive me if I did.”

“I just thought, with the way it’s been lately—”

“I don’t want to talk about that,” he murmured softly.

She didn’t blame him, the growing tension between the Shadowsinger and High Lord had been palpable lately.

To prove his point, he brought his other hand up to twine into her hair, his fingers grazing the delicate skin of her neck on its way. It sent a shiver up her spine that didn’t go unnoticed by Azriel, his eyes smouldering at her reaction.

Elain sighed into his chest, turning pliant in his arms as Azriel brought his lips to her throat, skimming her smooth alabaster skin with his nose as the fingers at her waist gripped her tighter.

A searing heat scorched its way up Elain’s insides, her veins thrumming with hedonistic desire, the sudden need to feel more of him engulfing her senses.

Elain had thought she had known the intoxicating feeling of passion when she was human, but in her fae body, the concept took on an entirely different meaning. Those fae instincts were sometimes all consuming, screaming at her to take, and feel, and want.

She dragged her hands up into his dark hair, scraping her nails across his scalp as his lips continued to lightly graze the skin of her neck, feeling his body shudder against hers at the sensation.

He was barely touching her, barely allowing those lips to flutter across her flesh, and yet Elain burned. She burned with a desire so ferocious she feared one day it would consume her wholly.

She whimpered, and in answer Azriel finally allowed let his mouth to lave at her pulse, tasting the skin there, letting the steady thrum of her heartbeat set the pace of his actions.

His tongue darted out from between his full lips, suckling at her flesh and he moaned, moaned at the taste of her. He was so proficient at leaving her needy and pliant, that all she could do in that moment was angle her jaw, giving him more, silently urging him to take it all.

Wrapping her arms tight around his neck she pulled his chest against hers, fusing her softness with his hard lines, revelling in the feeling of every inch of her flushed skin being pressed against his.

The only barrier between them now was the clothing that hung off their forms, serving as a feeble obstacle to the kindled flames that roared within them, begging to twine and dance together.

His mouth didn’t leave the curve of her neck, continuing its march up her throat to lick at the delicate skin behind her ear, sucking her lobe into his mouth before releasing it from between his teeth. She bit her lip at his ministrations, stifling another whimper.

It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that they had to be apart. The periods he was away proved to be utter agony for the both of them. The endless longing only growing unbearable in his absence. It never dissipated, never wavered. And every time he’d return, they were only granted these fleeting, secret moments when it was assured they wouldn’t be found. This had been their most daring meeting yet with a garden full of fae just one level below. But in this moment they found it near impossible to care, both clearly desperate for each other after weeks apart.

They were not granted the privilege of being able to share their feelings in public, did not have the honour of being openly intimate whenever they pleased. They had been forced into shadowed corners and midnight affairs, the gentle grazes of skin as they passed each other by and weighted glances they traded across the room serving as small appetisers before they could be sated once again. Until they found themselves in each other’s embrace once more.

Clutching her firmly into his hard chest, Azriel’s broad hand paused on the small of her back, his nimble fingers inching their way down the smooth silk of her dress toward her behind.

Elain arched into him, silently urging his hands to move, touch, take. She fisted a handful of his hair in her fingers causing him to reluctantly tear his lips from her neck.

He pinned her with his heavy gaze, hazel eyes swirling with a hungry passion she had only ever witnessed when thrust upon her. A warm hum tingled low in her belly.

Nuzzling her nose to his, his cedar and mist scent turned headier, the air surrounding them becoming intoxicated with the fragrance of their mingled arousal.

“Azriel.” His name passed through her lips on a desperate, wanton breath.

She needn’t say anything else. From that single, uttered word, Azriel was able to discern her every desire. He knew. He tasted her need in the air between them, he sensed her arousal wafting around them like a bewitching mist. He understood her every gasp and twitch and whimper, as he too felt it deep within his soul.

His hot breath fanned across her face, his eyes flitting between hers before he gripped her plump behind in both of his palms and squeezed.

His rough hands groped her delicious curves, fingertips pressing into the plush flesh of her ass before they slid up her body, up her back and across her waist, marvelling in the feeling of the soft contours of her figure.

Finally capturing her lips with his, Azriel held nothing back as he kissed her. His mouth was hot and bruising, his tongue tracing the curve of her lips before it stroked its way further along her jaw and back again. He groaned into her mouth, relishing in her sweet taste and softness, his hands remaining busy as they roamed across her body; grasping at her hips, her thighs.

Dragging his broad hands up around the sides of her waist, Azriel traced a thumb along the side of her breast through the thin material of her dress, and she couldn’t help but throw her head back at the inferno it ignited, breaking their kiss with a heavy pant.

She gasped, her eyes fluttering open and finding Azriel’s beautiful face, his eyes shimmering with want and lips swollen from their ministrations.

She wanted to kiss him for an eternity. Even longer. She’d give Azriel everything, and she knew he’d give her everything and more in return.

She wanted to give him all of her and have every little piece of him for herself. And she knew once she did, once they traded those final pieces of themselves, she would never be the same again. She would be irrevocably changed, Azriel branding himself forever on her very soul, a scar she would never want to see fade.

But as she continued staring up into his magnificent face, the haze of their passion began to retreat, their minds clearing for just a moment, long enough for both of them to realise now was not the time…

They had already been gone for long enough and surely, they would have been missed. The spymaster was well aware of this, his shadows always watching, listening.

One day, they would be able to share more than a heated kiss in a quiet garden or an abandoned room. But for now, a small prince was waiting. And although it pained her to do so, they both needed to go.

Clutching the lapels of his shirt, she dragged Azriel’s face down to hers once more, pressing a tender kiss to his lips. Elain allowed their tongues to tangle languidly, allowing one more taste of each other before they returned to their nephews’ party.

The regret in Azriel’s eyes never ceased to pain her. Every time they were forced apart, still needy and wanting, that look in his eyes was like a dagger to her heart. But he understood, he always understood.

His palm came up to cradle her cheek, his forehead once again resting against hers.

“I’ll find a way, Elain. I promise you.” It was barely a whisper, his voice rough with unanswered need.

His eyes shone with the hurt they both felt, and she knew it was reflected in her own. That after years of friendship, and months of these feelings of… something more, it pained her that they were only granted these fleeting, stolen moments.

“I know.” She reached up on her tiptoes and gave him one last, sweet kiss.

She didn’t doubt him for a second.

One day, they would be able to love each other openly as her sisters did their mates. One day, they wouldn’t be forced to pretend they were nothing more than friends. One day, their sleepless nights and agonised yearning would be nothing but a distant memory.

But for now, they’d remain in the shadows, those small touches and shy glances sustaining them until they could meet again.

*******

EM tag list:

If you’d like to be added/removed from my elriel month tag list, or I’ve somehow missed you, please let me know. T xo

@waternymphia

@shedoessoshedoes

@nightcourtseer

@tealeaves-and-rosepetals

@jasmineandshadows

@zdenkah

@dottielovegood

@casuallivi

@azrielslight

@ultadverb

@tswaney17

@batboyazriel

@duskwhisperer

@thoughtsaboutshows

@mardereads19

@a-frog-with-a-laptop

@123moiaussi

@reverie-tales

@britishwings

@glasscupsss

@gracie-rosee

@massiveattackangel

@thesistersarcheron

@dreamsandwings

@shadowflorecita

@elainsweetcobalt

@demarogue

@lesolehabitantdelalune

@elrielbaby

@happy-go-lucky-fangirl

@nivem565

@broodybatboy

@edanmaia

@booksnightowl

@saz-griffin

@elriel-month

#elriel month #t writes #elain archeron #azriel #elriel #elriel fic #acotar #azriel x elain #elriel month 2023 #prompt one: shy glances and restricted touches #acotar fanfiction #scheduled post so I’ll be replying after my vacay

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