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wineauntie · 4 months

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FAMILY IS FAMILY— quinn hughes x single mother!reader

summary: when your daughter comes home from school crying, you and Quinn try to get to the bottom of it.

note: I focused so much on Quinn and your daughter’s relationship, because I think they are the cutest!

warnings: use of y/n, fem!reader, use of names: Billy, Rosie, Evie, and Ollie— change them if they’re your name, fluff, Quinn being soft as hell, nicknames like honey, sweetheart, baby, and bug. Q being dad material.

word count: 2.1k+

Your eyes darted around the preschool as you sat on the plastic chair in the reception. You'd received a call approximately twenty-two minutes ago from your child's teacher claiming that your four year old daughter, Evie, wouldn't and couldn't stop crying. To say you had dropped everything and rushed over immediately would be an understatement. The door to your left opened, revealing Evie wailing as she clutched her teacher's hand. You leapt to your feet, bundling your little girl in your arms.

"Oh, baby," you hushed, your hand clutching her head to your shoulder. Your daughter twisted her little fists into your jumper, sniffling as you turned to the teacher. "What prompted this?" You questioned, taking deep breaths to remain calm.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Y/L/N," the teacher grimaced, "it started after playtime, she was talking with her friends one moment and crying the next. I tried to understand what had happened but she wouldn't say. I'm really sorry…"

"It's fine," you sighed, cradling Evie closely as your hand ran through her hair. "I'll sign her out and take her home for the rest of the day."

It was no less than five minutes later when you buckled Evie into her car seat, and her crying eventually calmed, leaving tear-streaked cheeks and reddened wide eyes the only evidence that she'd even been so distraught.

"Mom, is Winnie at home?" Evie croaked, her bottom lip trembling as you tightened the last strap. Your lips quirked up momentarily at the name.

Quinn Hughes— or "Winnie" as your little girl proclaimed, had been your boyfriend of two years. You'd met him when Evie was just over two years old and he'd fallen head over heels. You'd been reluctant to get yourself into a relationship, especially since a relationship wouldn't just affect your life but also your daughter's. He'd understood and had taken things slowly, not pushing or pulling you in any way. He ensured that you had full control over the pace of the relationship, having a complete comprehension of exactly what was at stake.

When you'd eventually introduced him to Evie, he had been enraptured, vowing to protect and love the both of you. Evie, who had yet been able to master the pronunciation of the letter 'Q', had been quick to fall in love with "Winnie" and practically turned to him with every problem she faced. He taught her to tie her laces and how to skate.

The latter was the moment you knew Quinn was the one for you.

You remembered as he'd crouched in front of your sweet girl and helped her lace up her skates, whispering words of encouragement with a small smile. The rest of the Canucks and their families had gathered for the family skate, and your heart had warmed at the thought that Quinn had chosen you and Evie to be a part of it.

You had watched from the sidelines as Quinn had half-carried Evie around the ice, his hands firmly under her armpits as he grinned and let her skate-clad feet skin across the ice. He was cautious as he weaved through the various Canucks and their respective families on the ice, making sure Evie was careful and remained unhurt as she giggled and chatted with Quinn the entire session.

You let out a small chuckle, returning to the present as you bowed your head before brushing your thumb over Evie's cheekbone.

"Yeah, Winnie's at home, baby…c’mon, let’s go see him.”

Once you'd unlocked the door, Evie had practically sprinted through the apartment ahead of you. You shut the door behind you and followed her trail until you arrived at the kitchen.

Evie was clutching Quinn's leg from where he’d abandoned the sandwich he was making on the counter top. He was laughing down at the girl whose arms and legs wrapped around him like a koala.

"Hey, Bug," Quinn laughed, slowly detaching the girl from his leg so that he could crouch down and be eye-to-eye with Evie. "You're home early." The girl shyly looked down at her hands, before she glanced back at you to explain. Quinn's eyes followed Evie's eyeline as his warm eyes locked with yours.

"The school called," you explained, crouching down on the other side of Evie. "This little one was crying and couldn't stop, they didn't know what to do…wouldn't tell her teacher or me why either."

"Crying?" Quinn's eyebrows furrowed together as he retrained his eyes on your daughter. Evie bit her little lip and weaved her hand into Quinn's nervously. "Why were you crying, bug?"

"'s nothing," Evie whispered, her rounded eyes welling with tears. You moved closer as Evie looked towards you before leaning closer to Quinn. "It'll make mommy sad." Quinn's lips formed an oh and glanced at you in worry.

"Evie, baby," you sighed quietly, your hand cupping her face lovingly. "Whatever happened won't make me sad."

"Pinky promise,"

You locked your finger around Evie's outstretched pinky and looked your daughter straight in the eyes.

"I promise,"

Those words were all it took for Evie to begin to cry again. You and Quinn sprung into action immediately stroking her back and hair, comforting your girl as she vibrated with sadness.

"Billy and Ollie said I'm a freak because I don't have a dad," she stammered, her speech broken with sobs. "And I tried to tell them I had a Q, but they just laughed!" Your heart broke as you made eye contact with a concerned Quinn, whose hand remained on Evie's trembling back.

"I told them that Q is just the same!" Evie now cried harder, avoiding Quinn's eyes. "But they didn't believe me, Mom, they said I was being silly! That Winnie was just a boy you clawed onto— that's what their mommies said!"

"Oh, baby girl," you soothed, pressing a kiss to Evie's hairline. You bit your lip in discontent. You knew that some of the other parents at the preschool talked about you behind your back- hell, it's not as if they were secretive over it.

You'd heard them theorise how you'd gotten Quinn in your grasp, how you'd gotten the captain of the Canucks to love you.

It was hurtful to hear, especially when you tried so hard to hide those harmful words from Evie. Seeing your fallen face, Quinn cleared his throat and shuffled closer to Evie.

"Evie," he began softly, tilting his head to try to make your daughter look at him. Evie slowly lifted her head, embarrassment flooding her face as she fidgeted with Quinn's head. "C'mon now, breathe for me…there we go." Evie gulped in some air through her sobs.

"That's it, sweetheart," Quinn spoke slowly. He waited for the girl to calm down before he continued. "Bug…firstly, you weren't being silly, and I'm sorry those boys were mean to you." He looked to you as you silently urged for him to continue.

"Secondly, you, me and your mom are a family," he continued, his voice steady and reassuring. "and we mightn't look like other families, but we are one. Families aren't all the same."

"Like how Rosie next door has two moms?" Evie murmured quietly as if unsure of her answer, she looked to Quinn and you for reassurance.

"Exactly!" Quinn smiled faintly, his hand tucking a strand of hair behind Evie's ear. The girl ducked her head with a shy grin. "What matters is what you feel here," he gently poked the spot above her heart, "not what other people may think."

Your eyes welled with tears as you watched Quinn talk so lovingly and with so much care. You watched as Evie reciprocated the affection, your heart full of warmth for the two of them.

"And just to add on," Quinn softly said, reaching your eyes once again. "I'm the one with claws in your mom and you, and I promise I'll be the best Q, for as long as you and your mom let me. No matter how many mean boys say otherwise."

Evie nodded and slowly shifted towards Quinn, falling into his as he opened his arms to hug her. You watched as she nuzzled her head into his shoulder, his hands lightly squeezing her.

Your eyes watered once more as she pulled away from him with a small, familiar smile, all semblance of tears long gone.

"Why don't you go get changed, honey?" You gently suggest, "We can have a movie day, yeah?"

Evie nodded rapidly with a sudden and wide grin. She looked between you and Quinn, giggling as she stepped towards you and wrapped her arms over your shoulders before releasing you and running towards her bedroom.

The three of you had spent the evening on the couch, all of you adorning pyjamas and hoodies, curled beneath blankets as the third animated movie played throughout the living room. Quinn sat to your left, your head resting against his chest as Evie drifted off to sleep on your lap, her hand loosely grabbing Quinn's in her restful state.

You yawned silently, your hand covering your mouth causing Quinn to glance down at the two of you. With a tender smile and a chaste kiss on your forehead, he slowly shifted to turn off the television. He carefully lifted your body off of his before bending down to face you.

"Want me to take her to her bed?" He whispered, his hand brushing your mussed hair back out of your face.

"Please," you muttered in reply, your hands smoothing circles over Evie's sleeping form. "I think my body has gone dead."

Quinn chuckled briefly before slowly removing Evie from your grip and holding her close to his chest, his hand cradled behind her head as if she were a baby once again. He carefully moved around the couch, allowing you to stretch out your body that tingled with pins and needles. With another yawn, you gradually stood to your feet and made your way down the hall towards Evie's bedroom.

You softly opened the ajar door further, your tired eyes landing on Quinn who sat on the edge of Evie's bed, tucking her under the duvet. You watched as Evie nuzzled into the comfort of her bed as Quinn ran a hand over her hair, pressing a kiss to her forehead- quite like what he had done for you only moments ago. Evie mumbled in her sleep, your heart clenching as she reached out to clasp Quinn's shirt.

"Night, Dad,"

You froze at the door, Evie's sleep-riddled words echoing around her room. Quinn's head snapped around towards you, a shocked expression plastered across his every feature. A second passed before Quinn pulled himself together and kissed her forehead again.

"Night, bug,"

He pulled away, swiftly making his way to your side as you quietly shut Evie's door. The two of you stood close together, your lip between your teeth in anxiety.

"She just called me dad," Quinn murmured, glancing towards the bedroom door.

"I know," You answered, your eyes searching his for any panic or horror. "I…how did you…do you mind it?!"

"She called me dad!" Quinn gathered you in his arms, crashing his lips to yours as he lifted you off the ground. Your hands intertwined around your neck as you reciprocated his loving kiss, your heart swelling with joy at how elated he seemed.

The room seemed to hold its breath as Quinn slowly lowered you back to the ground, his eyes never leaving yours. It was as if time had frozen, all the worries and doubts dissipating into the air. At that moment, you knew that everything was going to be alright. The love between the two of you had always been strong, but this milestone, this connection that Evie had just unknowingly solidified, felt like a beautiful blessing.

"I love you," you choked out, your voice filled with emotions that couldn't possibly be conveyed in those three simple words alone. "So much…"

"I love you too," Quinn replied, his voice filled with a sincerity that touched your soul. "And I love her, our little bug, more than words can explain."

The weight of his words hung in the air, the realisation of what you both were embarking on sinking deep within your hearts. You found comfort in each other's arms, the world outside of the shared apartment fading away as you held onto one another. The future suddenly felt bright, filled with the promise of shared laughter, tears, and unforgettable moments.

As you rested your head against Quinn's chest, you could feel his heartbeat syncing with yours, a rhythmic reminder of the love that enveloped you both. The path ahead might not always be easy, but with each other by your sides, you were ready to face whatever came your way.

He is the cutest and I want to put this man in my pocket and carry him around with me <3

#quinn hughes x y/n #quinn hughes x you #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes fluff #quinn hughes fanfiction #quinn hughes fanfic #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes #nhl x reader #nhl #vancouver canucks #wineauntie #i love him #quinn hughes x single mom!reader #family is family universe

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lovewithmary · 7 months

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(not) moving on — a max verstappen x stark!oc x charles leclerc series

★ fc: madison beer ☆ summary: evangeline "evie" stark is in love with her best friend, max verstappen, but he tries his best to keep her at arm's length. but what happens when she starts to get close to his fellow drivers in the paddock? ★ notes: early chapter bc I am too impatient so I’m taking the poll results as is and assuming charles is the winner. anyways, drama is happening!!!

previous next series masterlist

"Evie's baking,"

"We know,"

"My daughter is baking for two tiny villages or two super soldiers, and none of you thought to ask if there was something wrong?" Tony asked, watching as his fellow Avengers, his wife, and his youngest daughter were all eating the pastries that Evie had been baking since she got off the phone.

"Parker tried grabbing the spatula from her hand, but she threw a bowl at his head. But luckily his Peter Tingle saved him and he dodged," Bucky explained, mouthful with a slice of one of the cakes Evie made.

"I told you not to call it the Peter Tingle!" Peter complained.

"I think she had a fight with Max," Morgan's tiny voice piped up, oblivious to the heads that turned to her.

"Morg, why didn't you say that earlier?" Pepper asked.

Morgan blinked innocently and shrugged, then said, "You didn't ask,"

"Okay, who wants to be the one to ask her about Max?"

A tense air fell between some of the most powerful people in the world, only for them to touch their noses and say, "Not it!"

Unfortunately for him, Tony himself was the last one to do it, which made him curse. "I should've just stayed in my lab," he muttered but went to the kitchen to see that Evie was already starting another batch of cupcakes as if the pile of used cupcake liners between Steve and Bucky wasn't enough.

"Hello, tesoro," Tony greeted, concerned at the fact that Evie barely reacted at the sound of his voice.

"The dining room isn't that far from the kitchen, papa. I don't need to have powers or be a Super Soldier to hear you guys," Evie commented.

"So, will it be easier to ask what happened between you and Max that's made you spiral into a hurricane of frosting— is that macrons? When did you learn how to make macrons?" Tony asked, caught off-guard.

"Max and I had a little misunderstanding. And I didn't know how to make macrons until earlier," Evie responded.

"A little misunderstanding? You're taking over my kitchen with baked goods for a little misunderstanding?"

"I will find a way to bake you if you don't stop!" She threateningly responded, the aforementioned spatula Peter tried taking was in her hand menacingly pointed at Tony.

Tony raised his arms up in surrender, "I won't ask then. I will just be here, in the corner of the kitchen, giving you moral support," he said, taking a step away from his daughter and near the door just in case.

Silence fell between the father and daughter, Evie angrily making a bowl of frosting while Tony was thinking about whether or not he had to bring in Pepper for his own moral support.

That was until, "Do I insert myself into people's business too much? Is it something I do regularly?" Evie blurted out.

"I think you insert yourself into people's business when you think you need to. I don't think it's a lot, but then again, you help me with my business, so I can't say it's too much," Tony shrugged.

She groaned, not getting a clear answer. She should've known that her dad wasn't going to outright tell her when she was being too invasive. "I'm serious, dad," she told him.

"Did Max say something? Whatever he said, ignore it. He drives for a living, he's wrong no matter what,"

"I thought you liked Max. You've known him since he was a kid,"

"I don't like him if he makes my daughter upset,"

"Dad..."

"What did he say?" Tony asked once more.

Evie sighed before washing her hands and grabbing her phone from the pocket of her apron and then giving it to her dad, unlocked and the texts already on the screen. She watched as her dad's face turned angry.

"I'll shoot him out of the sky with one of my repulsors—"

"Dad, no,"

"He didn't have to talk to you like that! That little shit—"

"What do I do?" Evie interrupted him, knowing that if she let him rant, he'd end up wearing one of the Iron Man suits, already on the way to wherever the next race was.

"Do what Starks do best,"

"Which is?"

"To get under people's skin,"

#f1 imagine #f1 instagram au #f1 x oc #f1 ig au #f1 oc #f1 smau #f1 social media au #f1 x reader #f1 x y/n #f1 x you #max verstappen smau #max verstappen x oc #max verstappen fic #max verstappen x reader #avengers crossover #charles leclerc x reader #charles leclerc x oc #charles leclerc smau #charles leclerc fic

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becomingfoxes · 2 months

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The air is sticky-hot as he weaves through a mass of tangled bodies. Tries to tamp down on the beat of his anxious heart as it threatens to bubble over with each door he open-closes. Each time his shouts go unanswered.

Feels the knot loosen, fall slack when he finally finds her. Curled up in a tub of all things. Eyes wet, glazed from too much alcohol, mascara dripping. Closes and locks the door behind him, steels himself for whatever this is.

“Robin.”

Her head lolls to the side, squints her vibrant blue eyes. She grins. “-evie, you found me!”

“Yeah, you, uh- what’s going on? I saw Vickie leave.”

He watches as her lips tremble and oh no.

He’s dropping to his knees before he can blink. Leaning over the tub. She’s gripping a bottle of something, like it's the only thing holding her afloat. Steve reaches, pushes her sweaty bangs from her face.

“Hey it's okay, you're okay.” He folds his arms over the rim of the tub, settles in. “What happened?”

“Nothin’. Just lemme be drunk in the, uh, bathtub. ‘s cozy.”

“It doesn't look very cozy. If I'm being honest.” Steve sits with her, the music outside muffled by the closed door. He waits, watches as she cradles the bottle tightly to her chest, the way her lip continues to tremble.

“‘s just not fair.” She picks at the bracelets on her arm. Steve reaches for her hand, grip loose but there, lest she start chewing on the leather bands he bought her. A habit formed after Starcourt.

“What's not fair?”

“Vickie, she- she got back with Dan.”

Oh.

“And she said, like, She was like-” Steve feels the wetness of her tears drip, drip, drip onto their intertwined hands. “She was so happy Steve!”

“She said I was such a good friend.” Robin sniffs. “I'm the worst!”

“Robin, hey you're not-”

“I am! I'm a terrible friend.” She's sobbing now, body shaking with it. Steve's never seen her this upset before. It breaks his heart.

“I wanted it to be me.” Her voice sounds so small, so quiet as she says, “It's never gonna be me.”

“Oh Robbie.” Steve pulls the bottle from her. Thinks of a different bathroom floor and molotov cocktails and fire. “You're a good friend.” He hands her some tissue, finds a washcloth, wets it, helps her clean up.

“So, no Vicki then. So what.” Robin lets out a pained sound.

“Listen, somewhere out there, there is a girl who's gonna choose you. Who's gonna laugh at your terrible jokes and-

“Not terrible.”

“-listen to you blab on about Latin.”

“Pig Latin.”

“Uh, sure, exactly. Listen to you talk about Latin pigs.”

Robin snorts. Finally cracks a grin. Eyes still shining with unshed tears.

“And she's gonna love you, Robbie. She's gonna love you so much, okay? You'll find her. Or, maybe, she'll find you.”

“You really think so?”

“I promise.” He holds up a pinky for her to take. “Pinky swear it.” And she finally laughs, the sound of it loud and bright.

“Anoth- Another one for the books.”

“What?”

“Bathroom crisis.”

Steve knocks his head to hers and laughs. “Is that what we're calling it now?”

“Yup, and while we're at it we could add, a, uh, ‘nother one to it.” She's grinning a little too sharply now and Steve is already making exit plans of how to get her downstairs to drink some water. His head is starting to pound.

“Can we not?”

“I've heard some, hmm, rumors. From some very rep- reputable sources.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I heard that you're getting awfully chummy with a certain metalhead.”

“Nope, we're not doing this.”

Hah! Erica says you've been reading him The Hobbit. Stevie! The Hobbit. And!” She jabs a finger into his chest, “That you offered to take him to physical therapy.”

Steve feels his cheeks heat as he pulls her from the tub. Knows she notices from the way she clings and shrieks in his good ear. “Let's keep the crises to one a day please. Or rather once a month. A year even.”

“Tomorrow then?” Robin's grin lights up the dark corners of the bathroom, radiant as the sun.

“Tomorrow.”

#Stobin #my art #steve harrington #robin buckley #platonic soulmates stobin #stranger things fanart #stobin art

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penkura · 8 days

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Plz do a Husband corazon + child Law for mother's day 💐💛

Y E S omg I love Corazon, he'd be such a great husband and father. 🥺 On par or even better than Sanji imo.

I hope you don't mind that Corazon and the Reader have a biological daughter as well, I just thought it would be cute!! I also made this a modern AU one, because damn it, Corazon deserved to be happy. :'(

(Note: This is out of order from all requests simply due to the theme. I have made progress on the others!)

Corazon would have a whole plan, partly put together by thirteen-year-old Law and your toddler, Evangeline. Your daughter would draw you a card, while Corazon and Law focused on making you breakfast and of course, it would go all kinds of wrong.

You wake up to hushed shouting between your husband and adoptive son, Law telling Corazon he's going to burn the bacon and to stop smoking while he cooks. Your husband retorts that it's fine, nothing bad is going to happen. He's not going to set anything on fire, unlike at Christmas. For a few minutes you lay there on your phone, listening to your family down the hall. Evangeline eventually comes into your bedroom, pulling on your blanket and calling for you to pay attention to her.

“Mommy, mommy!”

You roll over and lift her up into your bed, giving her a tight hug while she laughs and returns it. What a joy she is, that last nearly three years have been a blessing with her and Law around, you wouldn’t change it for the world. Yes, some people have given your small family odd looks—what are two twenty-six-year-olds doing with a toddler and a teenager?—but you’ve learned to tune them out and ignore them. It didn’t matter what others thought, they could assume you’d had a teen pregnancy all they wanted. It wasn’t the truth, but some wouldn’t even listen or believe you. After all, you’d tried to explain it to your coworkers when you and Corazon adopted Law just before Evangeline was born, but even those close to you didn’t understand it.

“What’ve you got there, Evie?”

“Your gift!” She beams at you and holds the card she’d made out, the biggest grin on her little face. Just as planned, it’s a card she scribbled together, you can recognize your husband’s handwriting to make the words legible, but it’s still adorable that she tried so hard to make you something. There’s a cute little drawing of your family in the card, making you smile and hug her again,

“Thank you, Evie! I—” you’re stopped by the smell of smoke before the smoke detector goes off and kick off your blanket, running down the hall with your daughter in your arms and hearing Law yell that everything is fine, though you’re at the kitchen doorway before he finishes speaking. “What is happening?!”

Law turns to you and points at Corazon, who is waving a towel over the completely burnt bacon to try and get the smoke and smell out the window. “He burned breakfast again!”

“Not like you were helping, little shi—” Corazon stops himself when you send him a glare and cover Evangeline’s ears, shaking your head at him. After the one time she said ‘bastard’, you’d been very watchful of what words were said in your house, “Look, it’s fine! We can salvage it!”

“No, we can’t! It’s burnt black!”

Corazon ignores Law’s complaints for the moment, coming over to kiss your forehead and smile at Evangeline. “Did you give mommy her card?”

“I did!”

“That’s my girl!” Evangeline giggles while Corazon turns back to kiss you as a proper good morning. “Happy Mother’s Day.”

“Thank you, beloved.”

You’re briefly interrupted by a fancy bouquet of flowers being shoved between the two of you, Law looking away shyly as he holds them there for you, his own gift for you for the day that makes you almost cry and heart ache. He’d been with you as your son for the last three years, but this was the first time he’d given you anything on this day. You’ll never truly take the place of his mother, like Corazon won’t really take his father’s place and Evangeline his sister’s, but you’re glad for the smallest bit of progress that has him viewing you all as his family, and you hope for him to continuing viewing you all in that light, even as he grows up and out of your home one day.

“…Happy Mother’s Day.”

Crouching down enough to be eye level with him, you give Law a kiss on the forehead and a smile.

“Thank you so much, Law. I love them.”

#one piece x reader #reader insert #corazon x reader #rosinante x reader

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misseviehyde · 4 months

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PIERCE ME

"You are not getting your belly pierced young lady, whatever you may say - this is the end of the story!"

Hannah pouted as her Mother screamed at her for the third time that day. She had been nagging her Mom for hours now, but all it had succeeded in doing was to antagonize Linda and make it even less likely Hannah would get what she wanted.

"That's so unfair. Donna's Mom let her get one. All my friends are getting them!"

"Donna's Mom may not mind her daughter looking like a little slut - but I do. You will have to wait till you are old enough to get one with your own consent. I want nothing to do with this," scowled Linda with her hands on her hips.

Stomping her foot, Hannah tossed back her head with a scream of rage and stormed out of the living room. On the way, she nearly bumped into a smirking figure by the door who was enjoying the show.

Hannah scowled as her little brother Eddie laughed at her. He loved watching her get into trouble and was such a goody two shoes. Pathetic little boys like him needed to stay out of her way.

She went to push him out of the way, but he ducked out of the way and stuck his tongue out at her.

What a little shitbag...

She'd show him to mess with her... him and her Mom!

***

Hannah decided she would get a piercing anyway. Once she had her belly pierced it would be too late for anyone to do anything about it and she didn't care if she got grounded so long as she got what she wanted.

She put on makeup and clothes to make herself look older and stormed down to the mall - but as she was too young to provide an I.D - no one was fooled enough to help her.

Sobbing outside a tattoo parlour, her mascara running, Hannah grit her teeth hard. Life was so UNFAIR. Why couldn't she just do what she wanted?

Suddenly she heard a laugh. A cool looking woman with pink hair and tattoos and piercings was leaning against the side of the shop eyeing her up.

"You gonna give up that easily bitch? I've been watching you all morning trying to get a piercing and failing. I was starting to admire your determination but now I see you're just pathetic."

Hannah stormed to her feet. "Fuck you! I'll get a piercing even if I have to do it to myself!"

The woman's eyes flashed with amusement and partial admiration. "Yes! That's more like it girl. Take what you want. Don't let anyone stand in your way. Bully and manipulate others to always get what you want. Sluts ALWAYS win."

Hannah gawped at her.

"I can see some real potential in you, so I'm gonna help you get EVERYTHING you ever wanted. I can give you an slutty magic piercing. Use it when you get home and it will turn you into a sexy eighteen year old bitch. No one will even remember the old you - it will be like you have always been a hot popular slut. Your Mom will never be able to stop you again. You'll finally be the assertive, bullying, spoiled slut you dream of being and you will be able to get as many tattoos and piercings as you like. No one will ever stop you again."

The woman produced a piercing from between her fingers and tossed it to the surprised Hannah. "Just put this into your belly button and let it bond with you. All your dreams will finally come true. Trust me."

Hannah slipped the piercing into her jeans pocket and with a muttered 'thank you' stumbled away whilst the woman watched with a smirk. Hannah truly believed what she had been given was really magic. There was just something so convincing about the woman.

The pink haired woman watched Hannah run excitedly away then turned and walked back into her tattoo parlour. "Evie's Place."

What happened next really wasn't her problem, she just hoped the girl enjoyed the gift she'd been given...

***

Hannah couldn't believe her luck. She wanted to believe in the magic so badly and be a hot older girl. The urge to put the ring in straight away was almost irresistible, but she wanted somewhere private to transform where she could enjoy her transformation. "Soon I'll be a slutty popular bitch and then NO ONE will stop me."

Hannah ran excitedly home, her heart pounding. She couldn't wait to try the magic piercing and get older and hotter.

Once she was a slutty eighteen year old she could fuck boys, drink alcohol and smoke. She would have a body that would make others jealous and would do whatever she wanted. She couldn't wait to be a slutty, spoiled bully and torment her Mom and stupid brother.

She could already imagine wearing the hottest skimpiest clothes, swearing and belittling people... getting tattoo's and maybe even her nipples pierced. It was going to be so fucking hot!

Bursting through the door to the house, Hannah grabbed the piercing and leapt up the stairs. A few more seconds and her dreams would come true. She quickly ran up to her room, but in her haste failed to notice her brother Eddie was once again in the way.

This time he was too slow to avoid her and they collided, Hannah bouncing backwards and Eddie hitting the wall with an 'oof'. The impact caused her to fall onto her backside and the piercing leapt out of her hand and spinning in the air bounced onto the carpet in front of Eddie. Recovering quickly, he pushed himself off from the wall and he picked up the piercing triumphantly.

"Haha, Mom said you couldn't have one of these. I'm telling. You're gonna be in SO much trouble." Eddie was gloating, he loved having something to hold over his stupid sister.

Seeing the piercing glittering in her brothers fingers, Hannah suddenly felt the icy grip of fear. She had to get the piercing back at once from him, but she needed to play it down. If he thought for one moment it was really important, she'd never get it back. Taking it by force could be an option, but was risky. No... the subtle approach was best.

"It's a fake one you douche. Mom says I couldn't have a real piercing so I bought a fake one that stays in your belly without a pin. It's actually a worthless, cheap piece of shit. You're wasting your time, she isn't gonna care about it." Hannah tried to keep her voice calm.

"No! I don't believe you. I'll prove to Mommy you disobeyed her. Look - it doesn't stay in," sneered Eddie, sliding the piercing into his belly button to prove his sister wrong.

"Noooooo" screamed Hannah - but it was too late as the piercing bit into Eddie's belly button and eagerly took root. He instantly transformed - a rippling wave of energy spreading out from the piercing and turning Eddie from a good boy into a nasty little slut and altering reality to create Hannah's bitchy older sister Ella.

Bones cracked and skin tightened - his flesh tanning slightly as Eddie moaned and stretched pleasurably. It felt good to become a girl and he offered no resistance as big tits pushed out of chest, causing his top to balloon out and his little boy dick sucked away to become a tight eighteen year old pussy.

Lying on the floor, Hannah stared up in horror at her transforming brother as his ass pushed out and he grew taller and sexier than she could ever hope to be.

Slutty white expensive nails sprang from each finger tip and every inch of hair on his body melted away to leave smooth tannedfemale flesh.

The girl above her was moaning and giggling in pleasure as her voice became rich and bratty.

"Oooooh what's happening... mmmmhhh it feels so good," she moaned as her short hair lengthened and grew out. Thick slutty makeup coated Eddie's once innocent face and naughty pink lips curved into a surprised look as his insides churned and he became physically fully female.

"Ohhhh shit, I can mmmmh almost feel my ahhhh new uterus in there... oooh I'm a fucking girl and I like it! I feel so feminine. I can FEEL the estrogen pumping around me. Making me girly, making me like boys. Mmmmh."

Thick black lashes fluttered in pleasure as sexy blonde hair fell down around her shoulders and naughty blue eyes twinkled with the desire for sex.

This girl needed a new outfit and Eddie's shorts became a pair of tight white hot pants as his big tits were encased in a slutty pink top. Gold hooped earring dropped from his ears as his trainers turned into bitchy pink cowboy boots - just perfect to get fucked in.

As his clothes changed - Ella's personality rose inside him to take control. A bitchy voice giggled in his head and Eddie allowed it to re-write his thoughts, mind and personality.

Sinking into Ella felt good. Being older and sluttier felt so amazing. The piercing was making HIM the naughty bitch of the family. He wanted it all.

Hey little Eddie. Time to become me... mmmh time to be a bad, bad girl. You're gonna love having my pussy and tits and being a naughty little cock-sucking slut. Let me fill your head with memories of all the boys we gave blow jobs to and all that cock we swallowed. Mmmh you love cum now don't cha bitch? And getting fucked by a big cock... feeling it deep in that tight pussy. Mmmh you live for that now! Yes thats it... you're becoming me... ahhhhh good boy. Now cum and become me fully...

Shuddering in pleasure, Ella creamed her panties and the once pure and innocent boy became a spoiled bitch. His bad girly side was now dominating their body. Eddie was dead.

"Oh fuck yeah - I am sooooo totally a slut now and I fucking love it. Yessss!"

Giggling madly, Ella grabbed her tits and squeezed. She felt amazing. Being a naughty whore was such fun and she was never going to take the piercing off.

Hannah shook her head like she was in a dream. The events of the last few hours were fading as reality changed so that she remembered nothing of her brother.

Looking at her slutty sister, Hannah felt nothing but disgust. "Eugh - why are you always acting like such a slut?", muttered Hannah darkly as she watched Ella play with herself.

Her sisters new personality had slotted into her own life and having grown up embarrassed and disgusted by her exhibitionist sister, Hannah was now a quiet little nerd girl. She no longer remembered she ever had a brother or that she had even wanted the piercing for herself.

Ella did remember though - it amused her to think she had woken up this morning as a little boy. Being a hot bitchy slut was loads better and she giggled joyously. "Whatever sis. I'm off to my room for some real fun. You're SUCH a fucking loser."

Hannah had just picked herself up. She now had bottle top glasses and a preppy outfit on. Laughing, Ella tore the glasses off her face and ground them under a booted heel - then she pushed her blinded sister over again.

"Ohhh but before I go, if you ever call me a slut again in front of Mom and Dad I'll do worse than this you little bitch. Don't forget it."

***

Changed into something more casual and easy to rip off - Ella excitedly examined her room. It was a boudoir fit for a princess.

Calling her latest boyfriend on her expensive mobile phone, Ella examined her new bedroom as he made his way over. It was pink now. Pink, girly and slutty - just the way she likes.

She played with her blonde hair and admired her sexy new grown up body, lusting after herself. Fuck she was hot.

When her bad boy boyfriend Jason arrived she didn't waste anytime. "Baby - I am so horny. I want you to fuck me... hard."

Ella moaned and squealed as Jason threw her onto the bed and ripped off her clothes. His hand closed round her throat as he pushed deep into her tight bare pussy and began to pound her - causing Ella to moan and groan in pure ecstasy. This was how she liked it... to be used like a whore.

"Yes... fuck me you stud! Pound my body with that big cock! I want it deeper... OHHHH YES"

Ella loved being fucked rough. She watched her piercing glitter in her navel as Jason stretched her pussy out good. His cock slid in and out of her tight clinging pussy lips and her big tits shook as he fucked her hard. She wrapped her tanned legs around his strong waist.

"Cum in me baby... I wanna feel it fill me up."

Turning her head Ella giggled as she saw her door was ajar and the tear streaked squinting face of Hannah was watching her. It was so fucking hot to rub her sisters face in it. Hmmm maybe she should make the little bitch eat Jason's cum when he creampied her?

"Cum in me. Ohhhh fuck yessssssss." She groaned as he pumped so much into her it instantly flooded out down her tanned thighs.

Being a slut felt so fucking good...

***

THREE MONTHS LATER

"What's the matter loser?" laughed Ella as she pulled up next to Hannah on the sidewalk. "No friends to walk home with? I'd give you a lift but I'm on my way to the mall."

Of course Hannah had no friends. Ella had seen to that by bullying them all.

Since becoming a slut Ella had transformed her life and other peoples. She was now a spoiled toxic girly girl and so long as she had her magic piercing, no one could stop her. But her desire to corrupt others was now growing.

"I'm on my way to Evie's Place to buy some more piercings. I was thinking it's time to get Mom and Dad a present too. You know... I think Mom might enjoy a clit piercing. Once I get it onto her, she'll become the fake plastic neighbourhood homewrecker I know she can be. For Daddy - a cock ring and a cage. I can't wait to turn him into a simp."

Lauging, Ella threw some wrappers and trash she didn't want out of her car and into her sisters face. The shutting the door she drove on.

It was time to see what else Evie's Place had to offer...

#evie hyde #bitchification #m2f transformation #age progressiom #magic piercing #sluttification #bad girl #reality change

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itsss4t4n · 3 months

Text

How long is Forever? - Harry Hook x daughter of alice in wonderland

Headcanons but the longer version of this post:

a/n: this is based more on tim burtons aiw adaptation as it is the only one that i know, and i might have misremembered some of the story/ characters so i apologize if its inaccurate to wonderland or its characters in any way. I got way to invested in creating the character and story and almost forgot that that wasnt the point. At some point i think the character just completely changes and i low key hate it. Im really bad at writing headcannons instead of full fledged fics.

Trigger warnings: fighting, she /her pronouns used, slight angst toward the end but happy ending, not proofread

-being alices daughter you are considered kind of weird by the aks, (think luna lovegood), you are kind of dreamy and constantly in your own thoughts but you still have a very strong own opinion on everything. You say what you think even if others might not like that.

-You also have a very different sense of style than most girls in auradon. You played alot with different colours and textures always looking slightly crazy (you took inspiration from your godfather, the mad hatter). Your blonde hair was cut to a short messy bob with short bangs, and always changing coloured streaks throughout.

-you dont have the same view of good and bad as most others , and you dont think the vks should be judged by what their parents did and immediately try to befriend them and continuesly defend them

-when mal runs away to the isle you insist on joining the other vks and ben, as you do well in new and different invironments and later because you are an incredible sword fighter, your mother having thought you all she knows, just in case you ever needed to fight a jabberwookie type beast yourself.

-Due to your personal style not being very auradon, you didnt really have to disguise as much as ben when going to the isle.

-On the isle you felt surprisingly comfortable, as you liked the weird and almost liminal athmosphere that it had

-the first time you met harry was right after bens kidnapping, when harry came to tell you all about it.

-Harry has this theatrical almost a little eccentric way of talking and moving, which intruiged you pretty quickly. Of course , You didnt like or trust him, he did just kidnap one of your best friends, but you were intruiged non the less.

"And who is this little lassy?"

You told him your name with a glint of interest and mischif in your eyes. "Daughter of Alice in Wonderland."

"How interesting."

"I was just thinking the same thing. Whats your Name?"

"Harry Hook." He introduced himself with adramatic bow, before making fun of jay and barking at carlos.

- The other three had watched the interaction in confusion and wonder. They knew you were a little odd but seeming this confortable with harry after knowing what he did to ben?

"What was that?!"

"What?"

"Dont be nice to hook! He just kidnapped your best friend!"

"yea.. But he is quite interesting." And as an afterthougt: "and kind of pretty dont you think?"

"NO! Concentrate please. He is the enemie alright?!"

"Yea whatever, lets go tell mal about this shit."

-You go with Mal and evie to see dizzy, and instantly get along.

-Later while Mal and Uma are talking (singing), you cant help your eyes from glancing over at harry every few seconds. He did look good, with his red coat, the old silver jook on his left hand, and the messy black eyeshadow around his striking blue eyes.

"He is really beutiful dont you think?" That question was mostly directed towards evie who just shot you a dissapproving look. "I'm just saying. purely aesthetically."

-You simply shrugged and watched the situation continue to unfold, swordhand on the hilt of your sword at your side. When the fight breaks out you stand against harry. For better of for forse.

"Hello Pretty boy." You raise you swordand get into a defensive position.

"Wonderland girl."

-You kept making little comments about his looks and his sword fighting which he of course returned in his own flirty way. You quite enjoyed going back and forth like that. Witty comments, smirks and flirty smiles, and fighting more for show at this point instead of actually trying to beat each other. Trying to make this surprisingly pleasant moment last as long as possible.

-until you heard an urgend shout of your name from Mal.

"Sorry in advance." In a quick movement you snatched harrys hook and threw it down into the water. Before a shoked Harry can jump after it you catch his arm and talk to him in a slightly hushed voice.

"I really hope this wasnt our last meeting pretty boy." Before running off with the others.

-You dont see each other again until Audrey turns evil, but you do still think about harry. Is it stupid considering you met like twice and he was you enemy? Yea. Did you care? not really. He was georgeous, funny, good with a sword. Your dream guy. Except for the fact that he was supposedly your enemy. but then again when had you ever cared about that kinda stuff.

-His black lined blue piercing eyes were burned into your brain.

-In the six months until you saw him again you had become mal and bens unofficial bodyguard, spening most of your time with them or with evie, your sword has taken permanent residence at your side, only taking it of to sleep or shower and even then it was always in grabbing distance. Mals paranoia about uma had actually started to get to you.

-You are at evies house when audrey shows up and spells mal. You join them in going back to the isle to retrieve hades ember.

-When your bikes get stolen you cant help but smile at the sight. Yea its shitty but he is still beautiful.

"Pretty boy!"

He drawls you name in his scottish accent and you mentally swoon.

"Thats my bike!"

"Oh yea? Come and get it back then." Before driving of.

-You run after them (except mal and celia ofc),and at one point you split upbecause the boys on the bikes did so. You follow harry and when the others are out of sight he slows to a stop. You catch up to him with a grin.

"Nice to see you again Hook. I was hoping we would meet again."

"I was too Lassie."

-The next 10-ish minutes are filled with flirty banter and tales of what happened in the last six months. It felt like you've known each other for years (as clichee as that sounds).

-You almost forgot why you were there until you heard jay shouting your name.

"Where are you, Mal got the thing come on."

You quickly turn to Harry again.

"Go! Before they see you and make it a whole thing."

"What bout your bike?"

"Keep it pretty boy, i doubt the others got theirs back so it would be weird if i did."

With a last sly grin harry leans towards you "I will see you again very soon."

Before you could question what 'very soon' meant, he had already driven of.

Just in time because Jay and the others turned the corner behind you.

"There you are! What are you doing? come on!"

"Sorry. Was chasing after the bike." You Give them a small smile before walking past them. "You coming?"

-To say you were surprised when harry and gil jumped through the barries after them would be an understatement.

"Pretty boy?!"

"'ello Darling. we're just coming for a wee visit"

-You tried , just like evie, to get the two groups to work together. Harry mostly walked next to you or Uma. At some point you hung back so he culd walk in between you and doesnt have to kep switching. He caught up with uma but still kept the constant flirts towards you up.

-Everyone was really confused on why you two seemed so good and almost comfortable around each other, not to mention the flirting. Evie was the only one who knew of your little crush so she send you a few knowing smirks.

-During the knight fight you and harry fought as a team. Incedibly well might i say.

-You were somewhat enthusiastic about evies icebreaker idea, enjoying the idea that the two groups could finally work together.

"Harry great accent."

"Shes right. It is a good accent."

-The flirting just wouldnt stop, comments thrown at each other, bumping shoulders while walking, even brushing your hands against each others on occasion. You had joined the boys in looking for ben.

"To make sure jay and harry dont kill each other."

-Gil doing the icebreaker and bonding with jay.

meanwhile you and harry in the background:

"We should do that icebreaker pretty boy."

"oh yea?"

"Yea. You've got really pretty eyes."

"And you are really good with a sword lass." His hook just slightly gracing your cheek before something in gil and jays conversation sparks his interest.

-When finding ben you had immediately pushed harry behind you and unsheathed your sword out of instinct. Jay has to pull both of you out of bens way because both of you got distrcated by how close you were standing to each other. After making sure ben was alright you made sure harry was too.

(instead of flirting with jane he flirts with you)

"Well well well, thank you for trying to protect me there darling." The hook was under you chin this time.

"No problem pretty boy." You smirk back.

Ben had his little freak out. Jay and carlos had one too for slightly different reasons.

"when did this happen? you and hook?"

You just shrugged and started walking off.

The boys just looked at eachother thouroghly confused.

-After everyone reuniting and you secretely updating evie on the harry situation you all made your way to fairy cottage. When you found chad you had to half hide in harrys shoulder to hide your laughter because god was it good to see chad taken down a few pecks like that.

-Then Mal dropped the bomb. Closing the barrier forever. You couldnt believe it. You were always a firm believer in the vk programm. And you had honestly hoped that even if harry etc were send back, they would get out someday, or you might go visit them. You considered them freinds at that point. But now that wasnt possible. You tried to comfort harry and uma in some way but it was to no avail.

"Im so sorry you guys... I didnt know." You had tears in your eyes yourself.

"Dont worry about it Darling. Its nae your fault." Placing his hand, his actual hand, on your cheek for a second, to wipe away the tear that had fallen. Before he walked of with uma.

"Harry....."

Mal was shocked to see your tears at the fact that harry was leaving. she had absolutely no idea this was a thing. It wasnt really. you didnt have enough time for it to actually become a thing. You watched harry and uma leave before evie walked up to you to hug you.

She talked to mal but you didnt want to listen.

suddenly there was a bright light before it went dark for a bit. When you came to again, Mal was gone. It didnt take you guys long to piece together what must have happened. so you went to find mal.

-You and harry were both incredibly relieved to see that the other was okay. *cue big hug and an almost kiss that turned into a kind of awkward cheek kiss before another hug *

-Harry announcing that he is actually going back to the isle felt like another punch in the gut. Again that sounds dumb considereing how little you actually knew each other but you didnt care.

-Harry and you talked before he left. He gave you one of his rings "so you wont forget me darling". So you give him one of yours "then dont you forget me either". *cue more crying and hugs, between all of you *

-Mal announcing that the barrier will be taken down during the engagement party was the best thing that couldve happened to you at that point.

"Looks like you get a chance with your pretty boy after all." Evie.

Uma to harry on the isle: "Now you can get your pretty girl, pretty boy." While bumbing his shoulder.

As soon as you could spot eachother on the bridge you ran into each others arms.

-Kith

-like a lot of em

-Your friends from both sides were incredibly happy for both of you.

#descendants x reader #descendants #disneys descendants #harry hook #harry hook x reader #alice in wonderland #alice in wonderland reader #writing #reader insert #fem reader

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justagalwhowrites · 5 months

Text

Wonderland

You and Joel get away for your first wedding anniversary.

A canon Lavender No Outbreak AU one shot inspired by a request for a fic based on the song "Your Body is a Wonderland." Can be read as a stand alone fic with the understanding that Joel and Reader have been together for years and are married with a daughter. You can find the original Lavender here.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader from the Lavender No Outbreak AU (AKA Joel and Doc)

Length: 6.9k

Warnings: Smut :D! Oral sex; unprotected P in V sex; reader is described as being post-pregnancy and having a different body as a result but no broader description of her body beyond the fact that she has hair; age gap (reader is late 20s, Joel is late 30s.) No use of Y/N. Minors DNI, 18+ only.

January 2005

“Baby.”

Joel’s hand found the small of your back but you didn’t look back at him. You stayed focused on the child in your arms, on her brown eyes and dark curls and skin so soft all you wanted to do was nuzzle into her and breathe in her sweet, baby scent.

“It’s gonna be fine,” your husband pressed a kiss - gentle and slow - to your temple. “We’re only gonna be a few hours away…”

“I know,” you said softly. Evie made a breathy little baby sound and you smiled. Couldn’t help it.

“Tommy’s watched a baby before,” Joel continued as you swayed with your daughter. His hand shifted so it was below your shirt and on the bare skin of your lower back. “And Sarah will be here, too. And it’s just for two nights.”

“But she’s never been apart from me,” you said softly, tears pinching at the back of your throat as you brushed her hair away from her little forehead. “What if she’s afraid? She’s going to look for me, she always looks for me right when she wakes up and I won’t be here and what if she can’t calm down and she doesn’t keep food down when she isn’t calm and…”

“Hey,” he said, taking your chin delicately in his fingers and turned your head to face him. He smiled gently, his brown eyes soft and crinkling at the edges. “I promise, it’s gonna be OK. We can be back here real quick if something goes wrong and she’s with family. It’s OK.”

You looked back at your baby girl. She wasn’t even a year old yet, it seemed too soon to be going away for a weekend, no matter how much you really wanted to.

One of the downsides to getting married just a few months before having a baby was that you didn’t get much time to enjoy married life before it became all about the new life you’d brought into the world.

Of course, Sarah had always been top priority for both you and Joel but, since she was a teenager, you could rely on her to look out for herself some so the two of you could get quality time. Before Evie was born, you and Joel regularly went out just the two of you. You could leave Sarah at home with cash for a pizza or she’d go to sleep over at her friend Lizzie’s place and you and your husband could go and make out at the back of a movie theater like teenagers.

A baby was a whole other story.

You’d always loved children, loved spending time with them and seeing how they experienced everything, all of it brand new in their eyes. It was a joy to watch them discover themselves and the world and you adored hearing their thoughts as they puzzled through everything from basic societal rules to trying to figure out if there was a meaning to life. But you hadn’t been prepared for just how attached you’d be to your own child, who was both so much larger than she’d been when you’d given birth to her but still so impossibly small and fragile that even having her in another room made you anxious. It took months longer than it really should have for her to consistently sleep through the night because you kept checking on her, ensuring that she was still breathing and lying in the position that was supposed to be safest and that she didn’t seem bothered by dreams or colic.

Being a few hours away was terrifying.

But it was your first wedding anniversary with Joel and you really wanted it to be special. Wanted time just the two of you that you hadn’t had in the months since your daughter had been born. You missed being able to spend hours and hours with nothing in the world besides you and your husband.

You just needed space from the baby to get that.

So Joel had booked the hotel you went to for your wedding night the weekend of your anniversary and gotten Tommy to agree to stay at the house with Evie and Sarah for the two nights you’d be gone. You’d overheard him talking with his brother about it a month earlier, when Tommy was over for dinner and you’d gotten up to change Evie.

“I’ll leave good instructions but you can’t be callin’ all the time,” Joel was saying as you made it to the living room, Evie squirming in your arms. “She’s gonna be a nervous wreck, rather just stay here if…”

“Joel,” Tommy said, voice soothing. “I got your girls, it’s alright. Handled Sarah when she was that age, right?”

“You’re why I can’t do exponents,” Sarah said dryly. “Dropped me on my head a few too many times…”

“Someone needed to reel you in,” Tommy replied and you could hear the teasing wink in his voice. “Can’t have you being too smart now.”

“Mean it,” Joel said, tone serious. “Need you to actually do this…”

“Joel,” he replied. “I got her. It’s alright.”

It wasn’t that you didn’t trust Tommy. You did. You just didn’t know how to be this far away from your daughter, knowing how vulnerable she was and how much she needed you for everything.

But you needed time for you and your husband, too. You were so dangerously close to getting lost in your identity as a mother, already struggling to remember just what you were before Evie existed. You needed a weekend away. Some distance would be good, for the both of you.

“Come on, Mama,” Tommy smiled, holding his arms out. “Gimme that one and you two love birds get on the road. I promise if something goes wrong, I’ll call.”

“But you won’t need to,” Joel said, raising his eyebrows at his brother. “Right?”

“Course not,” Tommy waved him off. “We’re gonna have the best time, Uncle Tommy is going to be her favorite person, just you wait.”

You sighed and nodded, pressing your lips to Evie’s soft little forehead and breathing in her sweet baby smell before passing her off to Tommy’s waiting arms. He pulled her into his chest and smiled, wide and open mouthed, making a happy coo. She cooed back, reaching her tiny hands up toward his face.

“I know,” he said, voice high and childish. “I’m so much better lookin’ than your daddy! Yes I am! And so are you!”

“Be a good girl,” you said as Evie totally ignored you in favor of her uncle. “Love you so much, big sister will be home soon and…”

“Kid,” Tommy looked up from your daughter in his arms to meet your eyes. “I’ve got this. Go have fun.”

“Thanks again, Tommy,” Joel said.

“But…” you began but Joel just shook his head and looped an arm around your waist, tugging you to his side and guiding you to his waiting truck.

“You grabbed the bags?” You looked up at Joel and he smiled a little.

“Sure did.”

“And Tommy has the number for the hotel in case we don’t have signal?”

“The hotel and the restaurant we have reservations at tomorrow and even the diner next door with the good waffles since I figure we’ll end up there at least once.”

“And…”

“Baby,” he cut you off, opening the passenger door of the truck for you. “It’s going to be fine. There’s a stash of your favorite snacks in the truck and if you just get in the truck, we can go.”

You looked back at the house, biting your lower lip and twisting your fingers around on themselves.

“OK,” you said, climbing in the front seat. Joel smiled, leaning in to kiss you before jogging around to the driver’s side door.

The drive felt longer than it was, you seemingly hyper aware of every mile you were further away from your baby. But there was something invigorating about it, too. You had your husband all to yourself for the first time in almost a year. You’d had a few date nights, of course, and the two of you made a conscious effort to spend quality time together, even if it was just watching late night TV in Joel’s arms while Evie slept in her bassinet a few feet away.

But this? Two nights with no obligation to anyone but each other? It seemed like the purest form of indulgence.

“How we doin’ over there?” Joel asked about halfway into the drive.

“Good,” you smiled. “The snacks have helped.”

“I know my wife,” he smiled back. “Lookin’ forward to getting to know her a bit better the next few days…”

Your cheeks got hot as Joel’s hand found your knee, gently trailing his fingers over your inner thigh.

“Is there anything you want to do when we’re in Galveston?” You asked, suddenly feeling oddly self conscious. It had been so long since you’d last had this much time just you and Joel, what if things were different now?

“Mostly?” He asked, brow cockily raised. “Spend time with you where no one else can get to ya. If there’s something you want to do we can but if it’s up to me, we’re stayin’ in that room.”

“Joel!” You gaped at him, trying not to laugh.

“What?” He glanced over at you, smiling a little. “I’m selfish. Don’t wanna share the best thing that’s ever happened to me with anyone else on our anniversary.”

Joel pulled up to the hotel and parked under the overhang by the door, squeezing your knee as he turned off the truck.

“You stay put just a second.”

“OK,” you laughed, watching as he got out of the truck and jogged around the front of it to open the door for you, offering you his hand to help you down. You laughed again. “My my, so attentive.”

“Least I can do,” he winked, giving your fingers a squeeze as you got out of the truck.

He wouldn’t let you carry any bags besides your purse, either. When you tried to go with him to the front desk, he put a hand on your lower back and nodded to the lounge across the lobby.

“Why don’t you go there,” he said. “Get yourself one of those flowery cocktails you like so much.”

He steered you in that direction before you really had a chance to argue, so you went and took a seat at the bar and ordered a drink you’d never heard of but there was honey and lavender syrup in it so you figured it’d be good. You sat there sipping your cocktail, listening to the pianist in the corner and watching your husband in line at the check in counter, just admiring the shape of him. He was so tall and broad, his shoulders pulling a bit at his flannel shirt, and he was probably three weeks past when he usually liked having his hair trimmed but you’d been so busy with Evie’s first Christmas and everything that came after you hadn’t had a chance to cut it.

But you liked him a little on the shaggy side. You smiled a little at the thought of running your fingers through his curls while kissing him and feeling him deep inside of you.

The pianist changed to a new song and you fished your phone out of your bag, flipping it open and texting Sarah.

Made it! How’s it going?

Mercifully, Sarah responded quickly.

Good! Tommy hasn’t dropped her yet.

You laughed a little.

I’ll take it. She eating? How was school today?

Yup! Some baby food chicken and peaches. Tummy time now. And school was fine. All is OK Mom.

“In town for business or pleasure?”

You looked up from your phone and flipped it shut to find a man in khakis and a button down leaning against the bar next to you.

“Oh,” you almost jumped at his proximity as he looked you up and down. “Hi.”

“Hi,” he smiled. His hair was blond and his eyes were blue and he looked a little bit like a Ken doll. Definitely not your type. “Can’t remember the last time I saw someone as pretty as you drinking alone at a hotel bar.”

“Oh,” you said again. “Um…”

“So I think you must be in town on business,” the man continued as though you hadn’t said anything. You tried to peer around him to see where Joel was in line but he followed you, cutting off your view. “No way you’d be here by yourself otherwise.”

“Well, I’m here on vacation,” you said, fidgeting in your plush high top chair. “And my…”

“Must be here with friends then,” he smiled. “Girls’ weekend?”

“Well, no,” you laughed a little. “Actually…”

“I know you can’t be here with a boyfriend,” he said. “If you were my girl, I’d never let you out of my sight…”

“She’s here with her husband, actually,” Joel said from behind the man, who stood up straighter and turned, slowly, to find your husband at his back. Joel smiled. “Hi. Appreciate you keepin’ my wife company while I got us all checked in but, if you’ll excuse me, you’re in my way.”

“Sorry, man,” he shoved himself up off the bar. “Didn’t know she was spoken for.”

He trudged off to the other side of the lounge and you watched him go, making sure you didn’t audibly laugh until he was out of ear shot.

“Oh my God,” you half laughed, half whispered to Joel.

“I know,” he kissed your temple and laughed into your hair. “Leave you unattended for half a minute and got guys tryin’ to steal you out from under me.”

“No accounting for taste in hotel bars, apparently,” you teased, going to polish off your cocktail but Joel put one of his large hands on your arm.

“Take your time,” he said, taking the seat next to you. “Wouldn’t mind a beer after that drive. They’re gonna put the bags in the room, anyhow.”

“Oh,” you gasped in faux shock. “So fancy!”

“Only the fanciest for Mrs. Miller,” he kissed your cheek as you giggled.

The two of you had some drinks and you were pleasantly tipsy for the first time in almost two years, only a glass of wine here and there since Evie was born and you were nursing. She’d only weaned about a month ago but you’d been too busy to indulge. Joel put an arm around your waist and guided you to the elevator and you draped yourself over him, giddily kissing him as you held yourself against him.

“So,” he said between kisses. “Been thinkin’.”

“Have you now?” You smiled against his lips.

“There is something we could do to keep random men from tryin’ to pick you up the second you’re out of my sight,” he smiled back as the elevator dinged.

“Really?”

He turned you around and pointed you at the doors and kissed the side of your head before nudging you forward.

“Room 1023,” he said. “And yeah, think there’s somethin’ that’s pretty easy to arrange.”

“And what’s that?” You asked as he steered you down the hall toward the end of the building that faced the gulf. He pulled a room key card out of his pocket and swiped it at the door, opening it for you.

“Well,” he said, nudging you into the room. “Bet they’d leave you alone If you had ring.”

“I have my wedding band,” you frowned down at your hand and the simple white gold ring that matched Joel’s. “I like my wedding band.”

“I know,” he said, closing the door behind him. “But thought you could use something with a little shine.”

You made it all the way into the room and gasped, a bottle of champagne on ice, chocolate covered strawberries and a bouquet of roses waiting for you near the door leading to the balcony.

“Joel!” You gasped, your hands flying to cover your mouth. “What….”

You looked back over your shoulder to see him down on one knee, a little box open in his hand.

“Joel!” You yelped it this time.

“Never did ask you properly,” he smiled a little. “Figured I was overdue. Especially since you’ve given me the entire world, only fair that I get on my knees to ask you to do me the honor of continuing to be my wife for as long as we both shall live.”

“Of course I will!” You dropped to your knees next to him and kissed him, pressing yourself against him.

He more beamed than smiled against your lips and pulled the ring - a diamond-encrusted band with no center stone, the gems making an almost floral pattern all around your finger as he slid it into place.

“If you don’t like it, we can pick somethin’ else,” he said as you gaped at the ring. “Thought this was more your style and would be out of the way with the girls and then medical school…”

“It’s perfect,” you whispered, the stones reminding you of the flowering vines you painted on picture frames and table legs. You sat down fully in the floor and tore your eyes away from the ring to look at Joel. “But… I mean, can we afford this? I love it, I really really do, but…”

“I had some money set aside for it,” he sat down next to you. “Wasn’t joking when I said I should’ve asked you years ago. I’d been saving up for a ring for a bit but then…”

You looked back at your hand and just nodded, not wanting to think about the few weeks the two of you had broken up because Joel thought he was holding you back.

Then your eyes went wide, looking back at Joel.

“But I didn’t get you anything! We said the trip was our gift to ourselves and…”

He laughed.

“Didn’t want you stressin’ about it, Baby,” he said. “Now, why don’t we go get some dinner without worrying about the kids waiting for us at home?”

You got changed into a dress that had been a little big before Evie and now was a little snug and hoped that it didn’t look too noticeable once you put a cardigan over it. But Joel didn’t seem to mind, looking at you with warm, soft eyes as he sat across from you at the restaurant. He put his hand on the table, fingers reaching for you, and you put yours in his. He smiled bigger when you did and gave your hand a squeeze.

By the time you headed back to the room, you were having a hard time not ripping his clothes off in the elevator, his arms around you, holding you tight against his front as you kissed him deeply, his cock hardening against your stomach.

When you got to the room, you dropped your purse on the dresser and tugged off the cardigan before going to turn out the lights but Joel caught your wrist, running his thumb over your pulse point. You frowned.

“Joel…”

“Was thinkin’,” he said, tugging you close to him. “If you wanted to give me something…”

“I do,” you said, a little breathless as he trailed kisses over your forehead.

“You don’t have to,” he said, his lips still against your skin. “I don’t want to make you feel obligated or uncomfortable but…”

He trailed off, working his way down your jaw to your throat, your shoulder, until he lifted your wrist to his lips and kissed you there, too.

“I’d like it if we left the lights on.”

You frowned a little, looking up at him.

“Really?” You asked. “That… I don’t know…”

“Miss seeing you,” he said quietly, kissing your wrist again.

“It’s different now,” you said, chewing on your lower lip. “I don’t look how I used to look…”

Before becoming a mom, you’d never really been shy about your body with Joel. He made it very clear that he thought you were the most beautiful, most sexy woman on the planet. You might have questioned his judgement but you never doubted that he felt that way. But things were different after having a baby. There was just more of you now. You were hyper-aware of it, the fact that - even almost a year after giving birth - you weren’t anywhere near wearing your pre-pregnancy jeans and that, the more of you there was wasn’t exactly sculpted and smooth. You weren’t stupid, you saw the kind of woman who was on magazine covers and in movies, the kind of woman men liked. You’d never been further from that kind of woman than you had been in the last year.

The last time you remembered being naked in front of Joel where he could actually see you was just after Evie was born, when he helped you in the shower while you recovered. It wasn’t like you’d been trying to turn him on then and that had felt strange enough, your husband’s hands on a body you didn’t fully recognize as your own.

Ever since, you always put on a robe as soon as you were out of the shower. You’d stopped styling your hair and doing your makeup naked, even at the height of summer. And, while you and Joel had found a good groove with your sex life even with a baby at home, you always turned off the lights before you started undressing.

“I know,” he shrugged. “I don’t, either. Didn’t have quite this much of a belly when I first conned you into bed with me…”

You scoffed but smiled a little.

“I like your belly.”

“And I like your whole body,” he said, his hand going from your wrist to trace over your arm to the curve of your breast, down to your waist. “Love it, actually. Every damn inch of it.”

You crinkled your nose at that.

“But I have stretch marks,” you said. “And…”

“Baby,” he smiled gently. “You’re my wife. Most beautiful damn woman on Earth. I love lookin’ at you. Loved it when we first got together, love it now. Hell, if I had my way, all I’d do would be look at you and our girls.”

“Really?” You asked, brows raised. “Even right now?”

“Especially right now,” he nuzzled against you before kissing you gently. “I know you don’t look like you did when you were 21 but I fuckin’ love that. Your body got you through college and helped raise Sarah and grew our baby girl. I want nothing more than to be able to really look at you, especially while I’m inside you.”

“And that’s what you want for our anniversary?” You asked. “Just… me with the lights on?”

“More than anything.”

You took a deep, shaky breath.

“Well, let’s pop that champagne because I think I need some liquid courage,” you said. “But OK.”

Joel kissed you, gentle and deep, before opening the wine and pouring you each a glass.

“To the most amazing wife anyone could ask for,” he said, tipping his flute to you. You touched the edge of yours to his with a quiet clink.

“And to the most perfect husband.”

You drank two glasses of champagne and ate a strawberry before you put your glass down on the table and took a deep breath, standing in front of your husband and feeling almost like you did the first time you got undressed in front of him.

“Promise if I’m not what you want, it’s lights out?” You asked, stomach tight and heart pounding.

“Oh, Baby,” he gently brushed your hair back before cupping your cheek in his large hand. “There’s no world where you’re not what I want. You’re exactly what I want. Promise.”

You swallowed hard and nodded, holding his gaze as you reached for the zipper at the side of your dress, tugging it down slowly.

Joel’s hand traced down your throat to the strap of your dress, slipping it down your arm until it hung near your elbow. He did the same with the other side before delicately tilting your chin to kiss you. His lips were soft and gentle, not desperate for you so much as savoring you. You moaned into his mouth and his lips grew firmer against you as he nudged you back toward the bed. You shrugged out of the straps entirely, your dress only held up by the fact that you were pressed tightly against Joel. He pulled his lips from yours just enough that you could look in his eyes.

“I’ve got you, Baby,” he said softly. “Promise.”

***

Where the hell you’d gotten it in your head that he wouldn’t want to see you, Joel had no idea.

He couldn’t imagine something more ludicrous. All he wanted to do was look at you. If he could buy a ticket to sit and just look at you all day, he would.

But you hadn’t let him in months and fuck, he missed seeing your body.

It took Joel weeks to even figure out what was happening. Immediately after Evie was born, everything was exhausting and hectic. You needed rest, Evie needed constant care, Sarah needed to keep on top of her school work and extra curriculars, Joel could only take so much time off work. Sex hadn’t been on his mind at all, he only wanted to take care of his daughters and the woman who has given him everything he could ever need. He didn’t notice the small changes that happened alongside the huge ones.

But as the two of you started to come back into yourselves as individuals and a couple - instead of just Mom and Dad - Joel started to notice a difference.

You never got changed in the bedroom anymore. At least, not when Joel was there. You always went into the closet or the bathroom. The closest you’d come was tugging on your pants under your robe and putting on your shirt with your back to him. You always put at least one of his shirts on after sex, never sleeping naked in his arms anymore.

And then he started noticing that you always turned out the lights before sex.

You did such a good job of making it seem romantic or flirty, he was worried, for a moment, that it was because of him. If you weren’t really attracted to him anymore. But he caught you watching him with a hungry look in your eyes as he looked for a clean pair of boxers when he got out of the shower one day after work. Evie had been napping and Sarah was out with a friend and Joel practically pounced you.

“You just got all cleaned up!” You laughed as he kissed along your throat. “You’ll get all sweaty…”

“Sounds great to me,” he growled before nipping at your neck.

“Here,” you pulled back from him. “Got a better idea.”

You nudged him down onto his back and you took him into your mouth, licking and sucking him until he came down your throat with a desperate groan.

“See?” You panted, wiping your chin clean. “Better.”

While it certainly wasn’t bad, it definitely wasn’t better. Joel didn’t want to just get off. He wanted you. He wanted the rest of the world to fall away, to feel you everywhere, to watch you come apart while he was deep inside of you. You sucking him off was fun but it wasn’t what he craved, what he really needed.

Once he pieced it together, he wasn’t even sure how to bring it up. What was he supposed to do, look at you and go “Hey, Baby, I’ve noticed you haven’t let me gawk at you like some stupid fucking teenager lately. Think we can make that happen?”

He hadn’t even intended to bring it up this weekend. He’d kind of hoped that if he could make you feel special, that if he could give you some evidence of how much he adored you, you’d just… forget to turn off the lights one night.

But then he was a few beers deep and looking at you from across the table, your dress tight across your breasts and eyes all but glowing in the candlelight and he couldn’t help himself. He needed you. He needed you to overwhelm all his senses, he needed to be able to worship at the altar of your sex. He needed to see you.

But you looked so nervous - as though there was a snowball’s chance in hell that he’d look at you and not want you - it made his heart ache.

“I’ve got you, Baby. Promise.”

You just nodded and Joel took the sides of your dress and pulled back enough from you that it fell away from your breasts, the soft flesh pressed high in your strapless bra. He tugged the dress over your stomach and hips until it fluttered to the floor around your feet and you looked at him through your eyelashes, your breaths coming quick and shallow.

You were so much more beautiful than he remembered.

The swell of your breasts, the soft curve of your stomach, the plushness of your thighs. He wanted to touch and taste and sink into all of you, every inch.

“Oh, Baby,” he breathed, not able to take his eyes off you. “You are fucking gorgeous.”

“Really?” Your voice was quiet, doubtful. He managed to pull his gaze from your body to look in your eyes.

“Really,” he said. “Most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen.”

You still looked uncertain.

“Here,” he said, nudging you down onto the bed. “Let me show you.”

He unhooked your bra and delicately removed it before pressing gently on your shoulders so you were lying back. He unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt before he pulled it over his head and cast it aside. He desperately wanted to feel your skin, fabric was just going to be in the way. You watched as he crawled up the bed beside you, his hand skimming over the softness of your stomach to your chest. He cupped your breast, cradling the warm, plush weight in his large palm before he thumbed gently at your nipple, the flesh peaking and pebbling under his touch. You groaned and squirmed a little, your thighs pressing tight together as your eyes closed, face sharply focused and he smiled a little. Fuck, he’d missed this.

“Love how full you are here after nursing our baby,” he said, taking that firm little nipple in his mouth and sucking you gently as he held your breast, making your back arch. “So damn sexy, knowing I can make you feel good like this…”

He moved to the other side, giving you the same treatment there, too, looking up at your face as you whimpered and moaned beneath him.

After a while, he reluctantly moved down your body, trailing his lips over your breastbone to your stomach, his hands at your waist.

“Love how soft you are here,” he said. “Love that you’ve grown and changed with me and our family.”

He kissed slowly down your stomach, pausing at the top of your panties to tug them down, you lifting your hips from the bed to help. He dropped them to the floor and traced a finger over your glistening slit, making you gasp.

“Love how warm and wet you are for me,” he said, thumb circling your clit. “That it seems like you want me almost as much as I want you…”

“I do,” you were panting below him. “I want you, I want you so bad…”

“Good,” he said, leaning down and giving your slit a gentle, almost teasing lick. “Because I’m gonna make you come for me. Gonna make you feel so good, Baby. Gonna make you see just how much I want you.”

He sucked your clit into his mouth and you gasped, your back arching and your fingers knotting in the bedspread and he couldn’t help but smile against you as he looked over your body to how your head was pressing back into the mattress.

Joel released you and ran is nose over your slit, pressing between your lower lips to nestle against your clit as his tongue dipped ever so slightly into your dripping core.

“Joel,” you whimpered, trembling, body tense. “Fuck, Joel, I…”

He slipped his tongue into your tight, wet heat and you gasped, back arching as you ground your hips down against his face. He couldn’t take his eyes off you as he ate at your sweet, tight little pussy. One hand stretched up to your stomach, spreading wide over your impossibly soft skin, the other sinking into the flesh of your thigh to pull the supple warmth of you against his cheek.

Joel could feel you starting to tighten and tense around his tongue, your wetness dripping down his chin, and he was so fucking hard in his pants that he was rutting down against the bed. The taste of you, the heat, the musky sweet smell, the sight of you as you arched into him. He released your leg and thrust a finger into you alongside his tongue, pressing into the tender, deep parts of you he knew so well and you came with a choking little sob, your channel fluttering over him. He worked you through it, his touch easing as your orgasm did, until he slid himself from you as you lay, limp and gasping below him. He quickly removed his pants and underwear before kissing up your body, leaving a trail of your slick on your skin. When he reached your lips, he kissed you there, too, desperate and deep and you moaned into his mouth as his tongue slipped into yours.

“See?” He said softly as he gently traced your hairline at your forehead, your eyes wide and pupils blown. “You even taste fuckin’ amazing, Baby. Not a damn thing about you I’d change. Except maybe that you could see yourself how I see you.”

“Joel,” you whispered in that way you did when you were blissed out and couldn’t remember much outside of his name. He smiled a little and gently kissed your lips.

“It OK if I keep makin’ you feel good, Baby?” He asked, pressing slow, deep kisses to your cheeks and jaw between the words. “You have no idea how bad I need to be inside you.”

“Please,” you breathed. “I need you, I need you so bad…”

He slowly reached between your bodies and traced your sex, making you gasp, and dipped two fingers just inside your entrance, gathering your slick and bringing it to his cock. He spread his precome and your wetness over himself, moaning a little at the feel of both of you together on his skin.

“Here,” he said, pushing back from you so there was enough space between your bodies that you could look down and see where he was working his length. “Look, Baby.” You lifted your head just enough to obey and he looked down your body, too, as he brushed his thick head against your clit before he started to sink into you. “Look how good you take me with this gorgeous fucking body of yours. It’s like you were made for me, just to drive me wild…”

“I was,” you whimpered, still looking down where he was entering you. “I was made for you, nothing feels as good as you, nothing…”

“Love seeing how you take me,” he said as he stopped half inside you, thrusting shallowly in and out of you, the ridges inside your tight channel catching on his head. “Love seeing you like this, all bare and hot and wet for me.”

He sank all the way into you then and you moaned at the feeling of him stretching you, your pussy holding him so close and tight.

As he looked down at you, he couldn’t understand how anyone - even yourself - could look at you and see anything but perfection. Your body was paradise, wonderland, heaven incarnate. He longed to hold and kiss and memorize every inch, wanted to spend the rest of his life doing nothing but worship you and everything you’d given him.

Joel thrust slow and deep and hard a few times that way, where he could see him disappearing into you, your fingers digging into his biceps as you moaned and panted below him. But he wanted to see your face and feel your skin even more than he wanted to drink in your body. He pressed himself deep and lowered himself onto you so he could feel your skin everywhere on his. Your eyes latched onto his, your gaze looking almost as desperate as he felt and he worked his cock impossibly deeper into you, making your back arch up into him. You rocked your hips against him as you pulled him closer, your pussy already getting tight over him. You were so beautiful like this, all needy and so full of pleasure it looked like you might burst with it.

“Fuck, Baby, think you can give me another one?” He asked, breathless, as he set an aching rhythm inside of you. “Want to feel you come while I’m inside you, want to make you come.”

You just nodded, a little frantic, your hips working back against his, your channel getting even tighter around him, making him moan.

“Fuck, don’t think I’m gonna last,” he dropped his lips to your throat, kissing and sucking the soft skin there. “You feel too good, Baby, not gonna make it inside you…”

“Joel,” you whimpered. “Please…”

“Together,” he said, lacing his fingers with yours and pinning your hand to the mattress over your head. “Want to come together, Baby, love you so much, want to come with you. You just tell me when you’re gonna come and then let go for me, just let go for me.”

He adjusted his angle ever so slightly, his cock harder than he could remember it being anytime in the recent past, and he ground himself down inside of you, his hips pressed against your clit as he worked you from the inside. His head barely left the place deep within you that made your toes curl and your back arch, just giving enough room when he pulled back for each stroke to feel more intense than the last. Just when he felt like your channel couldn’t get any tighter, your fingers gripped his skin so hard he knew it would leave marks but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

“I’m gonna come, Joel,” you sounded so desperate. “I’m gonna come, I’m gonna…”

Your orgasm took hold and your pussy throbbed and pulled around him, pulling his own release from him in hard, thick ropes as he emptied himself into your dripping heat.

“Fuck, Baby,” he pressed his mouth into your shoulder to muffle his moans as he held his cock so deep inside you it almost hurt with the intensity of it. “Fuck, you’re doing so good, Baby. Let it all go for me, just keep… keep milking my cock, just like that, doing so fucking good…”

You moaned, clinging to him as you came undone, this orgasm stronger than Joel remembered feeling from you in months. Eventually, you went limp below him and he collapsed, half on top of you, half beside you. You trailed your fingers through his hair and down his back and he could feel the thick, heavy thrum of your pulse from inside of you.

He wasn’t sure quite how long the two of you lay like that before he adjusted, bringing you with him so his softening cock was still held within you, making it so you were facing each other on your sides.

“Missed seeing you like this so much,” he said softly, brushing your hair back from your face.

“I missed it, too,” you whispered back, biting your lip for a moment. He frowned.

“You OK Baby?”

“Oh I’m great,” you smiled gently. “I guess I just… I feel a little silly for worrying about that now.”

He tugged you closer to kiss your forehead, breathing in the lavender scent of you as he did.

“We’re going to be together forever,” he said. “Forever’s a long time. There’s gonna be a lot that we see change but you better believe that I will always be crazy about you and this beautiful body of yours. Hell, every time you look at me I feel like the luckiest man alive because you’ll even breathe in my direction, never mind be with me. I’m always gonna want you, Baby. Can’t be helped.”

You smiled a little.

“Don’t think it’s silly for us to come all this way just to never leave the hotel room, do you?” You asked. “Because I’m not sure I want to go anywhere tomorrow.”

He smiled back.

“Sounds like the perfect day to me, Baby. Any day is a perfect day if I get to spend it with you.”

A/N: Thank you for reading and for still being here for Joel and Doc months after their main story wrapped.

Love you!

#fanfic #joel miller x female reader #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #lavender #smut fic #joel miller x oc

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trickphotography2 · 8 months

Text

(Every Step You Take) I'll Be Watching You

Pairing: Robert 'Bob' Floyd x female!reader (Evie)

Word count: 6.2k

Synopsis: Bob disliked Friday team nights at The Hard Deck but knows they're important to the squad. That is, he disliked them until Penny hires a new summer bartender who gently pushes him to try new things. But when he comes in to find the police asking for her, the last thing he expected was to find himself protecting Evie. Trigger warnings: stalking, attempted assault

Written for @roosterforme's '80s Rocktober Playlist challenge.

Prompt: Every Breath You Take by The Police

Master List | Ao3

----------------------------------------------------

The Hard Deck slowly filled with the usual Friday afternoon crowd, the noise level increasing as Bob crushed peanut shells between his fingers. He’d never been one for the bar scene, but team cohesion was necessary, and this was where the Daggers had decided was home. He could put up with a regular night out if it meant better dynamics in the air.

“Who's ready for another round?” Fanboy asked, holding up his empty beer bottle. There was a handful of answers, and Bob quickly stood.

“I’ll get it,” he said, eyes darting to the bar. It was still early enough that it wasn’t swamped with patrons, the perfect time for him to make the run. He’d always had a hard time with crowds. Some of that had been trained out of him by the Navy, but he avoided them when he could. That was one of the things he loved about being up in the air - the knowledge that it was just him and the pilot, that he could focus on his job instead of navigating the world. It was easier to have set parameters and expectations to operate within. Once he climbed the ladder to the cockpit, his entire focus shifted to the mission, executing it to the best possible extent and getting back home.

A spot opened up at the bar as he neared, and Bob made a beeline for it, setting the empty bottles and glasses on the counter. Pushing his glasses up his nose, he glanced at the pretty bartender Penny had hired a few weeks ago. Evie slung a towel over her shoulder and used the back of her wrist to push her purple glasses up as she built a drink in a shaker tin. Her gaze drifted across the patrons, and the corner of her mouth tipped up when her eyes landed on Bob. He felt his lips curving in an answering smile.

“Another round?” Penny asked, stepping in front of him.

“What? Oh,” he said, eyes darting between the two women. Penny gave him a knowing look, her lips thinning as though trying to repress a smile. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Evie? Lieutenant Floyd’s getting another round for his squad. Think you can help him out?”

“Yup, just need a minute,” Evie replied, grabbing the cocktail strainer and a clean glass. Her eyes darted over the beer bottles. “What were the drafts?”

“It was the, uh… IPA?”

“Do you remember which one?” Rose dusted his cheeks, and Evie shook her head. “Don’t worry about it - who was it for?”

“Payback and Hangman.”

“Finch and…?”

“Fitch and Seresin.” She nodded, placing the cocktail before a woman, and quickly entered the sale. Grabbing clean glasses, she pulled the drafts. She retrieved the bottles from the under-counter refrigerator, caps flying as she quickly opened them before returning the bottle opener to her back pocket.

“And what can I get for you, Bob?” she asked, setting the beers down in front of him and clearing away the empties.

“I’m fine with a Coke.” She cocked her head, raising an eyebrow.

“Have you tried a Roy Rogers before?”

“I don’t, I don’t drink.”

“It’s not alcohol - it’s grenadine and Coke. Just a little more flavor.”

“Oh, that… that might be okay.” She smiled softly, grabbing a shot glass and the bottle of grenadine, uprighting it to pour a small measure before filling the rest with soda.

“Try it first.” Her fingers held the glass in the middle, and he carefully lifted it from her hand, making sure not to touch. “Thoughts?”

“It’s not bad,” he replied, setting the glass down. Evie quickly grabbed it and set it on the container with dirty glasses. “I’ll have that, please.”

“You’re not just saying that since I suggested it, are you?” she pressed, filling a glass with ice and setting it in front of him.

“No, ma’am. It’s good.”

“Alright. Happy it’s the weekend?” Bob watched as she poured the red syrup into the glass while using the soda gun, lifting his gaze to see her watching him. He nodded. “Doing anything fun?”

“Not really. You?”

“Working. Studying. The usual.” He watched her pluck two cherries from the garnish tray and drop them into the drink.

“Oh. Well, uh, I hope you have some time to relax.” Evie’s smile didn’t quite meet her eyes.

“Here’s hoping. Need a hand to get all of this to the crew?”

“Backup has arrived,” Hangman said, appearing at Bob’s elbow. He winked at Evie. “Much obliged, darlin’.”

“Of course.” Her gaze met Bob’s again. “Lemme know if you need anything else tonight.”

“I will. Thank you, Evie.” She nodded, turning her attention to the next patron.

“You’re welcome, Bob.”

Another Friday. Another Hard Deck night.

Bob arrived before the others and sat in his truck. A glance at his watch showed that they should be getting there soon, so he steeled himself to go in first. If he did that, he could make an excuse to leave earlier.

“Hey,” Evie greeted him, a rack of clean glassware in her hands as she backed out of the kitchen. He nodded, eyes darting down to the rack and wondering if it would be strange for him to offer to carry it. She set it on the counter before he could figure it out and ducked under the bar. “What can I get for you?”

“A Roy Rogers, please.” Her teeth dug into her lower lip as she fought a smile.

“Okay. What are your thoughts on trying something else?”

“Like what?”

“A cherry lime Ricky? Lime juice, cherry syrup, and soda water.”

“Sure.” He watched her retrieve a glass and two bottles. “What are you - ”

“So how was - ” She paused. “Sorry, you first.”

“I,” Bob cleared his throat. “I was gonna ask what you’re studying.”

“I’m working on a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Just finished my first year.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Her gaze flitted up to meet his before focusing on building his drink. “Decided it was time for a change, so, yeah. New city, new career.”

“Where were you before this?”

“DC. I was a legislative policy analyst.” At his raised brows, she shrugged. “It sounds more impressive than it was. And it paid horribly. I bartended on the side, so at least there’s some continuity. Tell me what you think of this,” she said, setting the glass in front of him on a napkin.

“It’s good. Thanks.”

“No problem. Can I ask you a question?” When he nodded, she leaned on the bar and cocked her head. “What’s a wizzo? I heard someone call you that.”

“WSO - Weapon Systems Officer. I fly with Phoenix and handle the comms, datalinks, and targeting systems in our jet, among other things.”

“Sounds complicated.” Bob chuckled, ducking his head.

“Yeah, yeah, it is. I like it, though.”

“That’s important.”

“Is that why you’re doing psychology?”

“Yup. Wish I’d realized that while I was in undergrad instead of doing a whole career shift at 28.”

“That’d be… that sounds like it’s hard.”

“Gotta do the hard things sometimes to get to the long-term goal,” she sighed before looking over his shoulder. “The rest of your crew just got here.” Without warning, a hand came down on his shoulder, making him jump.

“Hey, can I get a Sam Adam’s on draft?” Rooster asked. With a nod, she retrieved a pint glass and flipped it in her hand, sending a sly smile to Bob, who ducked his head. Drinks in hand, the two men went to claim the pool table.

From there, Bob saw Evie tense as a man slid into his vacated stool. Her smile was fixed as she set a napkin in front of him and took his order, going to the far side of the bar to use the soda gun. Penny leaned closer as Evie whispered something, then turned to grab a bottle, eyes darting to the patron. After serving the man his drink, it looked like he was trying to talk to her, but she moved on to the next person. His eyes followed her as she worked the bar, trying to talk every time she neared to grab something, to which she nodded with a fixed smile.

Slowly, so slowly it almost seemed accidental to anyone who wasn’t paying attention, Bob watched as Penny took over the section the man was in as Evie swapped to the other side of the bar. When the man tried to request Evie’s help with a drink, Penny shrugged and crossed her arms, a tense smile on her mouth. Bob’s eyes flit to Evie, who looked like she was trying hard not to pay attention. After a few minutes, the man threw money on the bar, walked towards Evie, and said something before leaving. Penny was quickly at her side, and Evie shook her head. She turned as though feeling eyes on her and met Bob’s gaze. He frowned when she quickly looked away.

When he was ready to go, he made a point to close his tab with her. “Here you go,” she said, placing his card and receipts in front of him with a pen. Though she had other customers, Evie stood before him, retrieving a cloth from her pocket and cleaning her glasses. “What are your thoughts on frozen drinks?” she asked.

“I don’t mind ‘em.” Her smile grew as she nodded.

“I can bust out the blender next Friday and do a Virgin Piña Colada or whipped lemonade. Or a blushing Arnold Palmer if you want something simpler.”

“I’m sure whatever you make’ll be great, but you don’t have to go through the hassle for me.”

“It’s no hassle,” she shrugged, pushing back ingrained bartender dread of using a blender. Shoving the cloth into her pocket, she put her glasses back on and cocked an eyebrow.

“I look forward to it. Have a good night, Evie.”

“See you next week, Bob.” When their fingers accidentally brushed as she reached for the receipt, he couldn’t help the smile that tugged on his mouth.

The following Friday, Bob tried not to grin whenever he caught sight of the pink cocktail umbrella tucked behind Evie’s ear, matching the one in the Virgin Piña Colada she’d made him.

“He’s back,” Penny whispered as she passed behind Evie to restock the straws.

“Shit.”

“I’ll have Jimmy take care of him.” Evie nodded, keeping her head down as she crouched low to restock the beer case.

“I’m sorry about this, Penny,” Evie whispered and swallowed hard when the older woman squeezed her shoulder. The bar was too busy for this shit to be happening on a Saturday night. One of the ships had just come in, and The Hard Deck was already packed. It should have been an all-hands-on-deck night, and now she was trying to figure out how to avoid one of her sections. A part of her wondered if she should have called out and let Penny schedule one of the other summer bartenders, but the tips tonight would be too good to pass up. With the summer semester over for undergrads and her tutoring students gone for a couple of weeks, the extra cash would ensure she could pay her rent without dipping into her savings. It wasn’t like she was getting paid for the hours spent at the community mental health clinic where she interned.

But that didn’t make it easier to ignore Shaun, eyes boring into her as she circled the bar to get around him. Breaking down the beer boxes, Evie tucked them under her arm and turned to her boss. “Gonna make a trash run.”

“Make it quick,” Penny nodded. “Grab some whiskey and tequila on your way back, please.” With a nod, the younger woman grabbed the trash and ducked under the bar, weaving through the crowd to the back exit. A few of Penny’s aviators glanced up as she pressed her back against the door, and she gave them a tight smile and nod.

Music spilled out of the building, melding with the sound of waves crashing on the shore as she tossed the bags and boxes into the dumpster. She stopped and enjoyed the sight of moonlight bouncing off the ocean and the cool breeze ruffling the strands of hair that had escaped her ponytail. While she missed the hustle of DC, there was something to say about the laidback California lifestyle. Being removed from the constant job comparison was also lovely. If Evie never dealt with another Capitol Hill bro again, it would be too soon.

Mentally preparing to reenter the fray, she took a deep breath and stepped back inside, beelining towards the bathroom to wash her hands. But as she exited the stock room, juggling four bottles, she froze. “Hey, Eves.”

“Shaun.” The blonde smiled at her, leaning against the wall to block her exit.

“How have you been?”

“Busy. I need to get back to work, so if you’d excuse me.” When she tried to step around him, his hand landed on her hip, finger threading through her belt loop.

“C’mon babe, don’t be like that.”

“Move your hand,” she said through grit teeth.

“You’ve been avoiding me.”

“I was very clear when I told you it’s over. I will ask you nicely to leave before you’re kicked out.”

“Too late.” Standing behind Shaun was Penny’s boyfriend, Maverick, backed up by Jimmy. The two men looked annoyed, and anger flared in Mav’s eyes when he saw where Shaun’s hand was. “Now, you can leave through the front door, or I’d be more than happy to get some of my guys to throw you out. Decision’s yours.” Evie blushed, seeing they were drawing the attention of Penny’s aviators, who all frowned in her direction.

“I’ll see you around,” Shaun begrudgingly said, letting his fingers drag along the waist of her shorts. If her hands weren’t full of alcohol, she would have slapped him.

“No, you won’t,” Mav promised, forcefully steering the taller man towards the door. Jimmy followed after patting her shoulder. Evie forced a smile, happy that her coworker had her back, and drew in a deep breath, holding it for four beats and exhaling. Slowly, she forced herself into a quick round of box breathing to ground herself, her eyes closed. It was just like taking a beat between clients, she told herself before stepping back onto the floor and hustling to the bar.

“You alright?” Penny asked.

“Fine.”

“Wonder what that’s about,” Phoenix said, pushing her sunglasses to the top of her head as she and Bob entered The Hard Deck. Penny glanced at them, forcing a tight smile as she spoke to the two police officers across the bar. Bob couldn’t help but look around for Evie. The squad had mentioned that something had happened over the weekend, and he wanted to check on her.

Evie stepped out of the stock room, flexing her hands. Bob wasn’t sure, but he could have sworn that the corner of her mouth lifted when their eyes met. “Jimmy and I got the new kegs on, Penny. I’m going to…” she trailed off, catching sight of the officers. “Everything okay?”

“They actually need to talk to you. You can use my office.” Evie’s paled, making her red lipstick more vibrant. Bob felt a surge of protectiveness, and only Phoenix’s pointed look checked his instinct to move closer.

“O-oh, alright. This way.” When their eyes met again, Bob tried to give her a reassuring smile.

“Everything alright?” Phoenix asked as Penny moved towards them.

“Did Pete say what time he was going to be here?” she asked instead.

“He shouldn’t be far behind us,” Bob replied, glancing towards the office. With a nod, she started to pull Phoenix’s beer.

“What about you, Bob?” He ordered a soda. While Phoenix went to secure the pool table, he stayed hunched over the bar, the pile of peanut shells growing on the napkin in front of him. When the office door finally opened, and the officers stepped out, he waited for Evie to emerge.

When she did, he felt his heart drop. Her usual composure was gone, eyes wide as they darted around the bar. Her red lips parted, blowing a breath as she swiped at her eyes, smearing her eyeliner and knocking her glasses askew. As she neared, he could see that she was shaking.

“Hey,” she said softly, forcing her voice steady as she stepped behind the bar.

“Are you okay?”

“F-fine,” she replied but jumped when Penny appeared beside her.

“You okay, sweetie?” the older woman asked, taking a few steps away from him. Evie rolled her lips together, tears appearing in her eyes. Her trembling became more pronounced, and when she caught Bob looking at her shaking hands, she balled them into fists.

“I’ll b-be okay.” Penny let out a heavy sigh and shook her head.

“Take the night. I’ll call Chelsea to cover and give Pete the officer’s card so he can give a statement, too.”

“I’m so sorry, Penny,” Evie breathed.

“Don’t be. Go home and take care of yourself. We’ll figure this out. But send me a picture of him so I can make sure everyone’s on the lookout. I’ll trespass him if he shows up.” The two women embraced before Evie circled the bar, giving him a weak smile before going to retrieve her purse. Penny’s eyes landed on him, and she sighed. “Would you mind walking her out, Bob?”

“Of course,” he said, quickly pushing to his feet. When Evie returned, she’d swapped her glasses for sunglasses. Penny jerked her head, and Bob scrambled to follow. He quickly got in front of her and held the door open, brows furrowing at the brittle smile she gave him.

“Thanks, Bob.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll, uh, walk you to your car?” The statement came out as a question, and she shook her head.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to.” Her breath hitched as her lips thinned, and she gave a curt nod. They didn’t speak as he followed her toward an old, beat-up blue car on the far corner of the parking lot. It apparently didn’t have automatic locks because her hands shook so badly that she scraped the paint twice while trying to fit the key into the lock before dropping the keys.

“Fuck,” she hissed. He was faster than her and plucked them off the ground.

“Evie - ”

“I’m fine.” When he didn’t say anything, she sighed and held out her hand for the keys. He watched as they shook, slowly raising his eyes to meet hers. “I’ll be fine.”

“Can I drive you home? I don’t think… I want to make sure you get there safely.” Her chin wobbled, and Bob’s hand flexed, trying to resist the urge to reach out to touch her.

“You don’t have to.”

“Please.” After a moment, she nodded, and he unlocked the car before circling around it and holding open the passenger’s side for her.

“The air conditioner doesn’t work,” Evie said once he’d adjusted the driver’s seat and turned on the engine. Nodding, he rolled down his window as she did the same. “I didn’t have a car in DC and didn’t want to have a big car payment while I’m in grad school.”

“I had a car that smelled like fuel the entire time I was in flight school,” he shrugged, pulling out of the parking lot. “Got it on the lemon lot on base.”

“Lemon lot?”

“Yeah. You can put your car and stuff up for sale there. They’ve got one here if you’re ever looking for a new car.”

“I don’t have base access.”

“I could take you.” She nodded, then gave him directions to her apartment. It was a quiet ride, the silence broken by the radio and wind, and he saw her wiping her eyes occasionally. They drove to one of the older parts of town and pulled into an apartment that was a bit dated from the outside. Evie seemed a bit embarrassed as she got out. “I’ll just order a car,” he said, handing her the keys.

“Do you want to come up while you wait?” she asked.

“No, it’s fine,” he said, taking his phone from his flight suit pocket. He saw a text from Phoenix asking where he’d gone but ignored it in favor of pulling up the rideshare app. “It’ll only be… forty minutes.” She sighed, shaking her head.

“Come on.” He followed her into the building, climbing a staircase to the second floor. “It’s a bit of a mess,” she apologized, pushing open the door to her studio apartment. He quickly removed his boots when she kicked off her sneakers and followed her down the narrow hallway into the main living area. A folding room divider separated her bed from the couch, and books covered the coffee table and a small desk tucked into the corner. The back wall was a large window covered with curtains, and he could see a small patio overlooking the pool. Her eyes were red-rimmed when she turned to face him. “Can I get you something to drink?”

“Water, please.” She nodded, putting on her glasses before tossing her purse onto the bed and retreating to the small kitchen. Unsure of what to do, he followed, watching as she retrieved two glasses, glancing over at him as she reached into the refrigerator. She looked calmer now that she was in her own home, but he could tell she was anxious. “Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really,” she sighed, handing him the water, eyes not meeting his own as she pushed her glasses up her nose. He recognized the nervous tick as one of his own.

“Does it have something to do with the guy who makes you uncomfortable at work?” Her wide eyes darted up to meet his, and he shrugged. “Mav asked us to be on the lookout for him, and I noticed that you avoid him.” She took a deep breath before sipping her water, her hands shaking again.

“Yeah. Shaun,” she said after a moment, dropping her gaze to the floor. “We went on a couple of dates, and he didn’t like that I told him I wasn’t interested. I must have mentioned working at the bar once, and he figured that bothering me there would make me give him another shot.”

“Was that why the police talked to you?” The trembling was back, and she quickly set her water on the counter before crossing her arms over her chest.

“H-have you ever heard of the Tarasoff Rule?” Frowning, he shook his head. “It’s a law that all mental health professionals have to follow. We have to warn and protect if we think a client is an active threat to someone. It’s…one of the few reasons we’d break confidentiality. And I guess… and Shaun said something to someone, and I - ” She gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth to stifle the panicked sob that escaped. Without thinking, he quickly walked towards her and set his glass beside hers, pulling her into his chest. Evie hesitated a moment, pushing her glasses to the top of her head before her arms wrapped around him tightly. He could feel her tears dampening his flight suit, drowning the usual urge to keep physical distance.

“Honey, does he know where you live?” he asked softly, then swallowed hard when she nodded. Careful not to jostle her, he reached into his pocket and canceled the car. There was no way he was leaving her alone.

When her sobs dissolved into hiccups, Evie slowly pulled away, eyes downcast as she tried to clean the eyeliner and mascara from her face. “‘M sorry,” she mumbled, reaching to scrub her thumb on his chest. He saw a smear of red lipstick on the fabric and caught her hand.

“‘S fine. Is there anyone… do you have someone that can stay with you? Or somewhere you can go?” She shook her head, hand quickly shooting up to catch her glasses when they slid from her hair.

“I don’t want to drag anyone else into this.” Bob’s jaw ticked as he looked at the floor, thumb absentmindedly stroking her knuckles.

“Can I stay?”

“You don’t have to.”

“I want to.”

It was awkward at first, only really knowing one another in the context of the bar. They sat on the couch, the television droning to break the silence. Evie had changed into a pair of sweatpants and a baggy shirt, makeup scrubbed off, and glasses perched on her nose. Bob had tied the top of his flight suit around his waist.

But then he noticed one of the books on her coffee table and chuckled. “Didn’t take you for a Tolkien fan.” Her gaze followed his, seeing the cover of The Silmarillion hidden under one of her textbooks on psychodynamic theory.

“I’m a Tolkien nerd,” she admitted. “I even have an Elvish tattoo.”

“You do?” Rather than answer, she turned her back to him and lifted the hem of her shirt, revealing her black bra band and the delicate script trailing along her spine. “What’s it say?”

“‘Deep roots are not reached by the frost.’ It’s from - ”

“The poem about Aragorn,” Bob finished. Evie dropped her shirt and turned to face him, an eyebrow cocked.

“You like Lord of the Rings?”

“The Hobbit’s my favorite book.” A smile curved her lips, and he felt a surge of pride that he’d put it there.

“So what did you think about them breaking it into three movies?” He groaned, tipping his head back against the couch. Evie laughed, and he grinned.

The conversation carried them for a while, and after she warmed up some leftover chicken and pasta, they put on the extended version of Lord of the Rings. They discussed how sad it was that Tom Bombadil was left out of the films and how Arwen’s role replaced Glorfindel. When she took their empty plates to the kitchen, Bob was pleasantly surprised when she sat closer to him on the couch.

It was edging close to 10:00PM when the movie ended, and they debated putting on The Two Towers before deciding against it. Instead, Evie put on some music, and they talked. She told him about growing up in Maryland and realizing that she wasn’t happy in a career writing reports and wanted to help people instead. She talked about her work at the community mental health center and how hard but rewarding it was. Bob told her about growing up on the ranch in Montana, spending days in the saddle and nights under the stars. He told her one of his favorite things about being on the carrier was seeing those stars again. Night flights were his favorite because even the glow of the instrument panel wasn’t enough to block them out.

When he stretched his arm across the back of the couch, his fingertips accidentally brushed her shoulder as she faced him. He didn’t want to pull away when she leaned into his touch.

Bob felt himself losing focus as they talked about their families and clenched his jaw to keep from yawning. Evie seemed to catch it, though. “Sorry, I forgot not everyone keeps bartending hours. I’ll let you get some sleep.”

“I’m fine,” he said quickly, reluctant to have the evening end. He hated why he was getting to spend so much time with her, but Bob wanted to savor every moment together. Phoenix teased him about his crush, and tonight only worsened it. Shaking her head, she stood and stretched, the hem of her shirt rising to reveal a thin strip of skin before falling again.

“I’ll get a pillow and blanket. And I’m sure I have a spare toothbrush somewhere.” He nodded, and they took turns in the bathroom while she spread a sheet over the couch for him and tossed a blanket at the end.

“Will it bother you if I, uh…” he motioned to his flight suit, a blush creeping up his throat.

“Oh, no. That’s, um…” Evie said, a pretty pink dusting her cheeks. Bob nodded and waited for her to turn off the floor lamp and duck behind the room divider before taking off his flight suit and folding it. He didn’t usually sleep in a shirt, but it felt like pushing to only wear his boxer briefs in her home. “Night, Bob.”

“Goodnight,” he called back, putting his glasses on the coffee table. Tucking one arm under his head, he stared at the ceiling until she turned off her bedside lamp. He could see the light of her cell phone for a while before it turned off.

And then she started crying. Soft little gasps that she was clearly trying to muffle in her pillow, just loud enough for him to hear. It broke his heart to lay there and listen to it until her breathing evened, and she drifted off to sleep.

Knocking woke him, and Bob was momentarily confused about where he was. He snatched his glasses from the coffee table as Evie turned on her bedside light. “Bob?” she said, voice rough with sleep and laced with apprehension.

“Stay there,” he ordered, flinging off the blanket and pushing to his feet. He glanced over his shoulder as he entered the hallway. Evie clutched her blanket to her chest, teeth digging into her lower lip.

“Babe, I can see your car out there. I know you’re home,” Shaun said, knocking louder.

“Call the cops,” Bob hissed. She nodded, grabbing her cell phone and quickly dialing 911.

“Evie!”

“You need to leave right now,” Bob shouted as he neared the door. The knocking stopped.

“Who the fuck is that?”

“The police are on their way.” He could hear Evie talking to dispatch. Glancing through the peephole, he saw the man pacing, hands buried in his hair. Bob stepped back when he turned and resumed pounding on the door.

“Who the fuck is in my girlfriend’s apartment?” There was movement behind him, and Bob turned to see Evie standing at the mouth of the hallway, cell phone tucked between her shoulder and ear with a baseball bat in hand.

“Please hurry,” she begged. Her wide eyes met his, and he motioned for her to give him the bat. The hallway wasn’t wide enough for him to get a good swing if Shaun made it through the door, but he could do some damage if necessary. Her voice retreated for a moment, and he heard the slide of a drawer before she was back, a small canister in hand. Bob recognized a can of pepper spray when he saw it and had to fight back the visceral reaction. He’d been sprayed with it during Officer Candidate School, then had to take down and fend off a potential threat.

“Careful with that,” he warned, not wanting to have to re-experience it. Evie nodded, eyes fixed on the door as the pounding continued.

“Evie, open the goddamn door!” Bob held out a hand to keep her from answering. They didn’t want to make Shaun angrier. If she didn’t answer, he might think he got the wrong place and go away.

There was a boom, and the door shuddered.

“Please, please, please tell them to hurry,” Evie pleaded. Bob wanted her behind a locked door, but the bathroom was closer to the entrance.

“Go on the balcony, honey,” he said softly. There wasn’t a lock, but at least she’d be further away. She shook her head, and they heard a second boom. He spun, lifting the bat when he heard the crack of the door frame splintering.

“EVIE!”

“Go!” Bob ordered. There was no way her neighbors weren’t hearing that, and he hoped that they were on the phone with the police as well. A large shard of wood hit the floor at the next hit, and he adjusted his grip.

In the distance, he heard the wail of a siren. Apparently, Shaun did as well because he paused. Creeping towards the door, Bob squinted to look out the peephole and saw the man leaning over the banister. Blue and white lights flooded the area, and he took off. Glancing over his shoulder, he met Evie’s gaze and held out a hand to stop her from coming inside. What felt like an hour later, but was probably just a few minutes, there was another knock.

“Police! Open up.” Leaning the bat against the wall, Bob quickly unlocked the door and let the officer in.

“They’re here,” Evie breathed, stepping inside. “Thank you.” The phone dangled from her hand for a moment before falling to the carpet, and Bob quickly crossed the apartment to tug her into his arms as she started to sob.

It took an hour for the officers to take their statements and to talk to the neighbors. While the doorframe was splintered and the door scuffed and dented, the lock still worked. Bob showed the officers out while Evie sat on the edge of her bed with her head in her hands, forcing herself to practice deep breathing. She couldn’t stop shaking but had managed to stop repeating, “I don’t know why this happened. I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.” They’d assured her that Shaun wouldn’t be getting out of jail for the weekend and walked her through getting a restraining order. She was thankful Bob was there because she couldn’t concentrate enough on their words to follow what they said.

“Hey,” he said softly, crouching in front of her. “Honey?” He lightly touched her knee to get her attention. Her red-rimmed eyes met his. “Do you want to stay here or go to my place?”

“I’m so sorry, Bob. I didn’t mean for y-you to get involved.”

“Shhh,” he said softly, thumb lightly stroking her leg. “I’m glad I was here.”

“You’ve already done so much,” she rasped, shaking her head. “I can’t… I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t here.”

“You would have hit him with the bat and then the pepper spray.” That pulled a tired, huffed laugh from her. “Let’s go to my place?”

The streets at 4:30AM were nearly empty, and they both felt the adrenaline crash as they walked into Bob’s condo. Their fingers entwined as he led her through the dark house, unwilling to burst the soft, tired bubble they’d found themself in by turning on a light. Wordlessly, he led her to his bedroom. “I’ll see you in the morning,” he said softly, dropping her quickly packed bag on his dresser. But Evie held tight when he tried to let go of her hand.

“Stay?” she breathed. “I don’t want to kick you out of your bed and… I don’t really want to be alone.” Bob hesitated, watching the streetlights reflecting off her glasses, and nodded. Silently, he stripped off his flight suit and crawled into bed after closing the curtains. Evie lay beside him, staring up at the ceiling. Her hand slid under the covers to find him again. “Bob?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you. For everything tonight. And I’ll completely understand if you never want to see me again after this. But I just wanted to let you know that I a-appreciate it. You.” He was silent for a moment.

“I want to see you again. You’re my favorite part of the week.” He heard her breath hitch and turned to see her looking at him.

“You're mine too.”

Later, he wouldn’t be sure who moved first. But he would remember vividly how soft her lips felt against his that first time, tentative at first and then her muffled gasp as his fingers traced the curve of her jaw. Her breasts pressed against his chest as they moved together, fingers hesitantly slipping under shirts and exploring unseen skin. “Honey,” he breathed against her mouth. “Not tonight. Not like this.”

“Not tonight,” she agreed. Her hand lifted, thumb tracing his lower lip before her gaze rose to meet his. “‘I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging.’”

“And it's very difficult to find anyone,” Bob finished the Tolkien quote, shifting his fingers under her shirt to trace the Elvish script that decorated her spine.

Evie lay awake long after he drifted off, replaying the night and everything that led up to it. She could already tell there were gaps in her memory. When her heart started to race, she forced herself to recite the 14 symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the differential diagnoses of PTSD, acute stress disorder, and adjustment disorders.

She watched the sky grow lighter through a gap in the curtains. The mattress shifted as Bob moved. Quickly shutting her eyes, she feigned sleep as he curled around her, slotting his thighs behind hers and tossing his arm across her waist. He mumbled something in his sleep.

Her eyes grew heavier as she focused on the steady beat of his heart and his slow, deep breathing.

As she drifted off, Evie had one last conscious thought.

Safe.

----------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: Sting said this about the song

"I think it's a nasty little song, really rather evil. It's about jealousy and surveillance and ownership... I think the ambiguity is intrinsic in the song however you treat it because the words are so sadistic. On one level, it's a nice long song with the classic relative minor chords, and underneath there's this distasteful character talking about watching every move.

Tarasoff's Rule came about after a man murdered his ex-girlfriend after disclosing his intent to his therapist. You can read more about the case here. Duty to warn and protect is one of the few reasons a mental health clinician can break confidentiality, and only when there is a plan/intent to act; having thoughts with no plan/intent does not meet the threshold for breaking confidentiality. Confidentiality is taken very seriously in the mental health world.

This story came about due to one of my colleagues was alerted to a patient making homicidal threats against him. When I saw this challenge, I jumped on the song because the connection to the case and the way the song is catchy and sweet but sinister.

Evie's tattoo comes from this poem:

“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.”

Thank you for reading!

#bob floyd #bob floyd x reader #top gun fanfiction #top gun rocktober #top gun maverick #Bob Top Gun #tw: stalking #protective! Bob

244 notes · View notes

sequinsmile-x · 1 month

Text

Occlusion

She can’t help but think of the first time she sat by his hospital bed.

They hadn’t been together then, not even close, but it was when she’d realised she was in love with him.

AKA the one where Emily gets a phone call from her daughter to let her know that Aaron has had a heart attack.

-x-

Hi besties,

This is a birthday fic for the lovely @eobangingwhen <3 I hope you had a day as lovely as you are. Thank you for always being so supportive and letting me send you unhinged ideas <3

I really hope you enjoy this!

-x-

Words: 4k

Warnings: Whump, hospitalisation

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

“Mom, I’m ready.”

Emily smiles as her daughter yells up the stairs for her as she tugs her shirt over her head and pulls her grey hair from the neckline, letting it fall naturally over her shoulders.

“I’m coming, Evie,” she replies, checking her reflection one more time in the mirror before she heads out of the bedroom, almost walking straight into her husband in the hallway. She smiles as he stops her from getting any further, placing his hands on her hips to hold her in place, “Hi.”

“Hi,” he replies, stamping a kiss against her lips, making her chuckle when he rubs his cheek against hers as they pull away, the scratch of his beard against her skin making her scrunch her nose up, “You look beautiful.”

She presses her lips together and shakes her head, she reaches up and runs her fingers through his hair, smiling softly at the salt and pepper flecks that shone in the light of the hallway.

“You don’t look bad yourself.”

He’d aged like a fine wine. He had a slight thickness he had to his waist now, his large frame somehow deliciously larger, something she loved. She’d been self-conscious about getting older herself, and had carried on dying her hair for longer than she thought she would. Eventually, it was Aaron who convinced her to stop. A soft smile on his face as he assured her he’d find her beautiful no matter what, something he’d taken the time to prove to her again and again as she grew it out.

When they first got together she worried that the love they had for each other would fade. She’d never been loved unconditionally before him, never believed that love could last forever, convinced from her own experiences that it was doomed to fizzle out. Sure that nothing lasted forever, but, if anything, she was more in love with him now than she was when they got married 17 years ago.

The life they’d shared, the things they’d enjoyed and endured together, had only made her love him more.

“I should have known I’d find you two making out up here.”

Emily smiles at her 15-year-old daughter over Aaron’s shoulder and then she looks back at her husband and winks at him before she steps away.

“Sorry, honey,” she says, stepping towards Evie and tucking some of her hair behind her ear, willfully ignoring the ache in her chest when she shies away from her touch.

Emily missed the days when Evie would seek out her affection, when she had to be convinced to go to sleep in her own room instead of in their bed pressed up against her mother. She loved watching her grow up, loved that their little girl was turning into a strong and self-assured woman, but sometimes she longed for when she was little, when she actually needed her.

“Shall we get going?” Emily asks, but before Evie can reply her phone chimes in her pocket. Emily pulls it out and sighs when she sees Penelope’s message on the screen, “Shit.”

Sorry, Em. I know you had a day planned with Mini Peaches, but the Deputy Director is insisting all the SC’s come in for a last minute meeting

“Please don’t tell me you have work,” Evie says, crossing her arms over her chest and throwing Emily a look that was all Aaron.

Emily sighs and looks between her daughter and her husband, “I’m sorry, I have to go in,” she says, guilt climbing up her throat at the look of disappointment flashing across Evie’s face, “It should only be for a couple of hours-”

“You promised we’d go to the mall.”

She closes her eyes for a moment as she sucks in a sharp breath, and feels her husband’s hand ghost her lower back. She hated breaking promises, hated when she felt like she was repeating history, her mind immediately equating missing a day of shopping with her mother missing her college graduation.

Logically she knew it wasn’t the same, that she’d done better raising Jack and Evie than her mother had done with her, but it still picked at an old insecurity. Pulling the scab off a wound that she’d had ever since she’d found out she was pregnant with her little girl.

“Why don’t I go with you,” Aaron suggests, “Then Mom can meet us when she’s done at work.”

Evie sighs and clenches her teeth, irritation licking at her insides as she looks back and forth between her parents, “Dad you hate the mall. And shopping.”

“I can put up with it for a day,” he says, winking at her, “Mom might even let me have the credit card.”

Emily rolls her eyes at her husband and throws him a look over her shoulder, a wry smile on her face, “Don’t act like you don’t enjoy being a kept man.”

He’d retired a few years ago. It suited him in a way neither of them had anticipated, the slower pace of life something he both needed and deserved after everything he’d gone through. He kept trying to convince her to join him in retirement, only half joking whenever he brought it up, but she wasn’t quite ready yet.

She still, even after all this time, felt like she had something to prove.

“Okay, fine,” Evie says, sighing as her shoulders sink slightly before she looks at Aaron, “Please don’t embarrass me though. And don’t be all…weird about the clothes I want to get.”

“Of course,” he says, his expression serious as he agrees to her terms, “Why don’t you meet me in the car?”

She nods and flashes a smile at Emily, a hint of disappointment still tainting it, “See you later Mom.”

“See you, sweetie,” she replies, “I am so sorry.”

Evie shrugs as she turns and heads down the stairs, “It’s okay, it happens.”

She disappears from view, and they stand in silence until the front door opens and closes. Emily blows out a shaky breath and closes her eyes as she dips her head forward, trying to re-centre herself before she leaves for work.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Aaron says as he wraps his arms around her and turns her around, encouraging her to look at him when she opens her eyes, “And it’s not true,” he says, his smile encouraging as he pulls her closer, “You’re an excellent mother.”

She chokes on a laugh and leans forward, resting her head on his shoulder as she hugs him back, “How do you always know exactly what I’m thinking?”

“We have been together for close to 20 years, sweetheart,” he says, turning his head to kiss her forehead, “And I was a profiler for most of my career. I wouldn’t be a good husband if I didn’t know what you’re thinking.”

She hums as she pulls back to look at him, “You should get going,” she says, kissing his cheek before she pulls back, “Our daughter has a very famous lack of patience.”

He chuckles and squeezes her hand before he steps away, “I wonder where she gets that from.”

She narrows her eyes, “It’s a mystery,” she says innocently and then smiles at him, “I should put on one of my suits,” she says turning back into their bedroom as he heads towards the stairs, “I’ll see you later.”

“See you later, Em.”

When she gets to work she can’t help but wonder why the meeting was so urgent, nothing about it seeming like it couldn’t have waited. It makes irritation bubble under her skin as the room full of mostly men all talk at each other without listening to each other. She blows out a breath as she checks her watch, wishing she was with her daughter and husband.

Her phone rings, the sound making her jump slightly as the screen lights up from where she’d put it on the table. She flashes a smile of apology at the Deputy Director before she looks down, her heart seizing in her chest when she sees Evie’s name on the screen. Her stomach twists and her heartbeat thunders in her ears, worst-case scenarios overwhelming her as she looks at the picture of Evie and Jack on her screen, their arms wrapped around each other and wide smiles on their faces.

Evie never called her when she was at work. She never called her at all, claiming that calling someone was what ‘old people’ did.

“I’ve got to take this,” she says, picking the phone up and leaving the conference room without looking back. She’s barely out of the room before she answers, not wanting the call to ring out, “Evie? Honey?”

“Mommy,” Evie sobs, her voice thick as she answers, heightening any concern that Emily had been feeling into panic, the moniker of Mommy that she hadn’t heard in years sending ice through her veins, freezing her in place.

“Evie, what’s wrong?” Emily asks, already walking back towards her office at speed to pick up her purse, desperate to get to wherever Evie was, “Where’s your Dad?”

The question only makes her daughter sob more, the sound muffled slightly as if she was covering her mouth, “I’m at the hospital, Dad…” she chokes out, “Dad collapsed. The paramedic thinks he had a heart attack.”

___

As she arrives at the hospital Emily realises she doesn’t remember a single second of the drive. The entire way she’d been worried about her husband, her grip on the steering wheel tight as she desperately tried to remember if she’d told him that she loved him that morning.

She’d struggled to say it at first, the words always dying in her throat in those first few weeks and months even though she knew she felt it. She’d never been one to throw the words around, to say them to people because she knew they wanted to hear it, but every time she tried she found she couldn’t. Looking back on it all these years later, when I love you was something they’d exchanged countless times, the three words never enough to truly express how they felt about each other, she knew it was because she’d been afraid of something like this. Of loving him so much that just the thought of losing him would destroy her.

She knows she can’t break. Not now. Not when Evie needed her, not when Jack would when she’d call him when she had spoken to the doctors. She didn’t want to tell him until she had something concrete to say, not when she knew he’d immediately jump in his car and drive the 8-hour journey home from college - midterms be damned.

Emily walks up to the nurse's station the second she’s in the emergency room, poised and ready to intimidate whoever she needs to with her badge in order to find her husband and her daughter as fast as possible, but she doesn’t even have a moment to get anyone's attention before she hears Evie call out for her.

“Mom!”

Emily turns to look at her, and her heart breaks for her little girl. Evie’s hair was a mess from where she’d clearly nervously run her fingers through it, the locks she knew she would have carefully curled that morning frizzy and out of control. Her eyes were swollen from crying, bright red and shining as she runs towards her, her face sticky and hot when she presses it into Emily’s neck as she throws herself at her.

“I’ve got you, sweet girl,” she says, holding her tightly, pressing a fierce kiss to the side of her head as she runs a hand up and down her back, Evie’s sobs hiccuping from her chest into her mother's. Emily looks around and sees some chairs just a few paces away and she leads Evie over, sitting her down without breaking their embrace. She pulls back just enough to look at her daughter and she wipes the tears from her skin, her knuckles softly running up and down her cheeks in a soothing pattern, “I’m right here, okay,” she says, clearing her throat to hide the shake in it, “Mommy’s right here.”

Evie nods and tries to suck in a deep breath, and Emily can’t help but think how young she looked in that moment. She was confident and brave and everything a parent could be proud of, and Emily often thought that she was looking at who she could have been if her parents had been half as supportive as she and Aaron were, and it was sometimes easy to forget that she was just 15 years old.

It was only when Evie had turned 15, her face bright and full of excitement as she opened her presents, that it really struck Emily how young she herself had been when she was in Rome, forced to make choices that most adults would struggle with.

Emily smiles encouragingly at the teenager as her breathing calms down a little, and she tucks some of Evie’s hair behind her ear, “Can you tell me what happened, baby?”

Evie nods and swallows thickly as she sniffs, “Yeah, we were in the food court, and he was taking so long to decide what he wanted,” she says, her voice shaking, “And I was impatient so I turned to get my food, and he said my name…” her lower lip trembles, “And as I turned around I kind of yelled at him but he had this look on his face and then he just…collapsed.”

Emily briefly closes her eyes in an attempt to gather herself but it fails when she sees a flash of it in her mind, an image as clear as day of her husband collapsing painted on the back of her eyelids. She smiles and squeezes Evie’s hand, “Did the doctor say anything when you got here?”

She shakes her head, “Just to call you,” she says, her face crumbling as she’s hit by another wave of emotions, “I’m so sorry, Mom.”

She frowns as Evie presses her face into her neck again and she cups the back of her head, holding her close as she tries to soothe her, “What are you sorry for, baby?”

“I was such a bitch to him all day,” Evie says, her voice ever so slightly muffled until she pulls back, “I was grumpy because you weren’t there and he’s Dad so he was being embarrassing,” she shudders, more tears slipping onto her cheeks, “And I was so mean and what if it’s my fault.”

Emily is sure that she can feel her heart break in her chest and she has to stop herself from falling apart right there, covering her fracturing emotions by leaning forward and kissing her daughter’s forehead.

“Evie, you didn’t cause this,” She says as she pulls back, a hand on each of her daughter’s cheeks, “And no matter what your dad knows you love him, okay?”

Evie nods, “Okay.”

Emily smiles and pulls her into a brief but tight hug, “I’m going to find the doctor, you wait here just for a second-”

“No,” Evie says, tightening her hold on Emily, wrapping her hand tightly around one of hers as they stand at the same time, “I want to come with you.”

She can the desperation in it, the same shine to her daughter’s eyes that she used to have as a little girl when she had a nightmare. Her monsters real to her even though they never left her dreams as she stood next to her parent’s bed seeking out their comfort.

“Okay,” Emily says, squeezing her hand, “We’ll go together.”

___

She can’t help but think of the first time she sat by his hospital bed.

They hadn’t been together then, not even close, but it was when she’d realised she was in love with him. The panic she’d felt when she couldn’t find him suddenly giving a name to how she’d felt around him for months.

It was hard to think that was so long ago, that they’d both lost and gained so much since then. She sits next to his bed, her hand wrapped around his as the beep of his heart monitor soothes her, a repetitive reassurance she needs that he’s okay. That she hadn’t lost him.

Emily has no idea how long she sits there before he wakes up, his hand twitching in hers drawing her out of her seat, her eyes fixed on his face as he slowly opens his eyes.

“Hi,” she says quietly, not wanting to startle him or wake up Evie who was asleep on the couch in the corner. He frowns in confusion as he realises where he is, something that’s immediately replaced by concern, “Evie’s okay,” she assures him, nodding towards the couch, “I managed to convince her to get some sleep.”

“What…what happened?” He asks, his voice gravelly, and she reaches for the small cup of water, holding the straw so he can take a sip.

“Well,” she says, placing the cup back down when he’s done, wrapping both of her hands around one of his as she sits on the edge of his bed, “You had a heart attack,” she says, squeezing his hand, using the warmth of it to remind herself once again that he was okay, “The doctor put a stent in,” she says, her gaze drifting to his chest, to the place where he had a new scar she hadn’t seen yet, a new part of the pattern that she’d memorised so long ago, “He said you’ll be okay,” she smiles sadly when she looks back up at him, “Although, no more unhealthy eating for you.”

He chuckles humourlessly and looks back over at their daughter, “Evie…”

“She saw it happen,” Emily says, pushing his hair from his forehead, “She’s…upset, obviously. But she’ll be okay. She thought it was her fault,” she says, pressing her lips together, “She said she was giving you a bit of a hard time.”

He smiles fondly, “Well, if that caused heart attacks I would have had one years ago between her attitude and yours.”

She narrows her eyes, her breath catching in her chest as she leans forward and presses her forehead against his, “Not funny.”

“Sorry, sweetheart,” he says, stamping his lips against hers, “Let’s just blame the meds they’ve got me on,” he says and she hums as she pulls back, concern still lingering in her eyes, in the tightness of her jaw, “How are you?”

She blows out a shaky breath, “I’ve had better days,” she says, running her fingers through his hair, “Jack is coming in the morning. I told him to wait until then, to get some sleep before he drove here.”

“Good,” he says, thinking of his son, grateful not for the first time that he’d seemingly inherited his inability to say no to Emily.

“When I was driving here,” she says, her voice shaking a little, her shoulders tight as she refuses to let herself fall apart “I couldn’t remember if I’d told you that I loved you this morning.”

He sighs sadly and lifts his arm to wrap it around her, his body heavy and uncoordinated, “We’ve never needed the words, Em,” he says, encouraging her in for a kiss, “I know.”

She nods and presses her forehead against his again, letting herself feel his breath skip over her face, the weight of his heavy hand on her back.

“I love you,” she says anyway, unable to fight the soft smile that breaks out across her face to match his.

“I love you too.”

___

As she walks through the front door to their house, it feels like a lifetime since she’d last been there, not just that morning. She can’t bring herself to think about how it would have felt to walk back in here having lost him, anything that made it a home dead and gone with him.

“Ok, sweetie,” she says, turning to look at Evie as they step into the house, “Why don’t you go get ready for bed and I’ll make us some hot chocolates,” she suggests and Evie nods, shrugging off her jacket and placing it on the hook, “I’ll call the school in the morning and say that you won’t be in for a few days.”

“Thanks, Mom,” she says, wrapping her in a brief hug, any usual distance she liked between them these days currently nowhere to be found, “Can I have-”

“Extra marshmallows,” Emily says, smiling as Evie nods, “Of course.”

Evie goes upstairs and Emily takes a moment to suck in a breath, abandoning her shoes just inside the door as she walks to the living room just to have a few minutes to process what had happened. She sits down on the couch and as soon as she’s settled her eyes land on a photo from her and Aaron’s wedding. They were sitting together at their table, his arm slung over the back of her chair as Dave told an inappropriate story during his best man speech. Both of them were laughing at whatever he was saying, their eyes fixed on each other, love radiating out of both of them.

She feels herself break, her chest folding in on itself as she sucks in a breath, an implosion that makes her shudder as she slumps forward, almost folding in half with the weight of what did happen, and how much worse it could have been.

“Fuck,” she says to herself, the tears she’d been suppressing all day breaking free of the dam she’d forced them behind, the wave of emotion so intense that it takes her breath away, the sob she fails to conceal catching in her chest and hurting as she tries to swallow it down.

She could have lost him today.

She covers her face with her hands and cries into them, feeling everything she hadn’t allowed herself to since Evie had called her now she was in the safety of her own home, the assurances of the nurses and the doctors that Aaron was out of the woods on a loop in her head.

“Mom, is it okay if I…” Evie walks into the room and drifts off, and Emily jumps, wiping her tears from her cheeks as she looks up at her, “Oh my god, did the hospital call? Did something happen? Do we-”

“No, Evie, no one called,” Emily says, her smile shaking as she tries to force it, tears still falling onto her cheeks, “Dad’s fine, I promise. I’m just…” she blows out a trembling breath, “so glad he’s okay.”

Evie frowns and sits next to her on the couch, “You were scared.”

Emily chuckles wryly and nods, wiping a tear from her cheek, “I was so scared.”

“I was scared too,” Evie says quietly as if it was a secret and she stares at her for a moment before she hugs her tightly, all but ending up in her lap like she was to when she was small, “I love you, Mommy.”

Emily feels more tears press at the back of her eyes and they drop into Evie’s hair, she rests her cheek against the top of her head.

“I love you, sweet girl,” she says, taking a moment to breathe her in, “What were you going to ask me?”

“Oh,” Evie says as she pulls back, a slightly sheepish look on her face, “I wondered if I could sleep with you in your bed tonight?” she asks, her cheeks going pink, “I don’t want to be by myself.”

“Of course you can,” she smiles and nods, tucking some of her daughter’s hair behind her ear, “I don’t want to be by myself either.”

Evie smiles and snuggles back into her side, content to sit with her on the couch for a while, “Mom?”

“Yes?” Emily replies, running her fingers through Evie’s hair.

“I hope that one day I meet someone who I love so much it grosses out my kids, just like you and Dad.”

She smiles, the first true smile she’d had since that morning, and she kisses her daughter’s temple, “I hope you do too.”

-x-

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holeintheboat · 5 months

Text

The Outsiders Mafia AU (Headcanons)

!!WARNING: This may contain some spoilers!!!

-Johnny loves Jazz (blues are a close second)

-Darrel is called ‘Superman’ because he once stopped mid getaway to help a woman cross the street

-The entire mafia group worships Frank Sinatra

-Tim got his scar in a violent one-on-one fight with Dallas, which also led to him losing the eye

-Johnny is a FANTASTIC cook, and shares his love through food

-Ponyboy used to watch a ton of Mafia/Secret Agent movies to ‘study’ for his future job

-The Shepherds are all from Sicily, and lived there for most of their teen years

-Johnny learned to speak several languages so that he make international deals

-Angela puts hours of efforts into her curls, and once killed a man for trying to run his fingers through them to flirt

-Curly prides himself in his height, he grew to the same height as Tim just a year before the events of ‘No Permanent Death’ and loves to remind everyone

-Johnny actually has a hatred for alcohol, but drinks it (or pretends to) to make himself seem older

-Tim will only ever drink beer

-Dallas became an assassin because he wanted to be like Charlie Chan and almost quit when he realized the man was, in fact, not an assassin

-Johnny has faked his own death about six times, and has gotten creepily good at it

-Darry hates swearing, and only does it when he’s very very upset

-Darrel is the only Curtis who can speak more than just English, He learned Italian so he could understand exposed messages within the Mob

-Dallas has actually run into the Shepherds several times, he never realized Johnny was Bambi because usually the boss doesn’t participate in the fights

-The socs do exist in this universe!! Most of them are businessmen/women who the mob has killed :P

-Sylvia also exists!! She is Dally’s ex-girlfriend, she left him after she figured out he kills people for a living

-Soda and Steve are still dating Evie and Sandy in this verse. Sandy isn’t aware of what Soda does, Evie actually is also a member of the mob and often helped out Steve at work

-When Mr.Shepherd died, all of his jewelry was given to Johnny because he was taking his place. The only thing he kept was a ring (a thick, gold, engraved ring with a red ruby) the rest was given to the Shepherds to disperse amongst themselves

-The Shepherds each got one ear pierced when they were teens to be more like their father

-Johnny sees the Shepherds as his equals, which is the reason they all dress similarly. This is also why it doesn’t occur to someone that he is the boss.

-Angelas callsign “Bella” comes from the word Bello: which means Beautiful in Italian

-Johnny once shot a very important client just because they shoved Curly

-Curly is actually really bad at his job, but gets away with it because of pure luck

-Soda got the name ‘Dice’ because he's known for taking chances on the job

-Johnny called Tim ‘Scarface’ after he lost his eye in an attempt to raise his spirits, and the name just stuck

-Tim has a glass eye, but often takes it out because he thinks its funny how grossed out his coworkers get

-Johnny wanted to be a musician, and can play the sax and guitar (he couldn’t decide if he wanted to be Louis Armstrong or Chuck Berry lmao)

-Curly wholeheartedly thought he and Johnny were related for most of his life, because he wasn’t on the mission where they found him

-Johnny gives out most of the nicknames, he was actually the first person to call Darry ‘Superman’

-The Sicilian Mafia is usually very specific about only letting in Italians. Johnny called bullshit on this, and that's how Steve(slick) and Buck(comma) got put in

-Steve used to work at the DX, he got invited in to the mafia because he was the only one who was willing to take Johnny’s car (all of his former coworkers thought a scruffy child with a century old car wouldn’t pay well)

-Buck got invited in after Tim and Johnny saw a man throw a drink on him (he beat the man to a pulp and Johnny said he had good enough aim to work for them)

-Angela LOVES compliments (She forces her brothers to hype her up 24/7)

-Johnny holds large dinners with everyone who works under him once a month to get to know them. The reason so many people are willing to take orders from him is because they know he’s the kindest boss they’ll get

-Tim is incredibly well-versed in dressing wounds, it's become somewhat of his job

-Curly cannot aim for shit, and has repeatedly just handed the gun to someone else

-The Curtis’s used to have a dog before Ponyboy was born, but they had to get rid of it to be able to pay for his upbringing

-Curly is known for full-on tackling people in fights, which actually works incredibly well

-Johnny is a horrible driver and has hit several pedestrians, animals, and trees (and got very upset after each one)

-Ponyboy has a binder that he uses as a dairy, he had pages dating back to his parents death

-Curly once tried to tackle Darry on a mission, Darry then simply pulled him off and tossed him out of the room

-Darrel refuses to do any work that involves a woman, and has lost to the Shepherds several times because he wouldn’t detain Angela

-Soda once drove a getaway car straight into the side of a building, and it almost got him and Darry killed

-Johnny paid for Steve to get braces, and he had the nickname ‘Lock Jaw’ for a VERY long time

-The Curtis’s often have movie nights!!

-Johnny refuses to hurt children, and often makes someone take the kid to another room if they do anything violent

-Ponyboy LOVES the arts, and his knowledge of Italian literature and art has saved him many times

-Angela is an excellent baker, and often tries to get her brothers to help her (they fuck it up every single time)

-Ponyboy still has nightmares in this universe, and has climbed into Soda/Darrys bed several times

-Darry hates that Pony often sees him as the bad guy, but knows he has to be to keep him safe

-Johnny is known for having an odd sense of humor and it has almost gotten him killed a million times

-Tim has “la famiglia” tattooed on his right bicep, with three little hearts under it (very similar to the one his father has on his neck)

-Though Steve doesn’t have and important role in the Mafia, him and Johnny are very good friends

-Tim is what's known as the ‘consigliere’ which means he serves as an adviser to the leader and resolves disputes within the family. (Johnny refused to make anyone the underboss because he didn’t like to think of any of them beneath him in rank)

-Ponyboy is a stargazer

-Johnny was been confused for a girl several times due to his long hair, but he refuses to cut it

-Tim gets very upset when people flirt with Angela (he’s the definition of a over-protective older brother)

-Johnny has never dated anyone- he knows whomever they are will be put in danger, and he doesn’t like the thought of people he loves fearing for their lives

-Soda once got a concussion because he ran into a wall during a chase with Curly, Curly only remembers him as ‘the wall kisser’

-The Shepherds all have a violent hatred for Ponyboy because Johnny told them about what happened in the first chapter (though Johnny has never spoken about him with even an ounce of malice)

-Darrel has been shot many times, so much so that the hospital knows him by name

-Johnny can’t stand hospitals because his parents once left him at one for three weeks. So even if he is on his damn deathbed he will NEVER go to one

-Just about everyone in the Mafia is not proud to be in it, but they all know it’s the best thing they can do with their backgrounds

-Buck and Johnny are rather close, and Buck often makes him fake drinks (ones without alcohol) because he knows how much the boy hates it

-Darry and Soda are both REALLY into cars. it’s actually helped them a lot in car chases, because they can always remember the make and model of the car

-The Shepherd Family was actually not very well known until Johnny took over, but he still worships Mr.Shepherd as if he’s the most famous man on earth

-most named characters has been to prison at one point (aside from Angela, Curly, Ponyboy, and Darrel)

-The job as Boss is incredibly stressful, and Tim has taken over for Johnny on several occasions

-Tim taught Angela, Curly, and Johnny hand-to-hand combat. He’ll often brag about it to anyone who will listen.

-Johnny goes by the Shepherd name, and only signs ‘Cade’ under important documents

-Angela has the best aim out of her entire family

-Tim actually was very upset when Johnny got his job as boss, but got over when he realized just how much the job SUCKEDD

-Two-Bit and Dallas worked together when they were rookies, but Dallas eventually moved on to do bigger and better things

-Ponyboy loves August weather, but feels he can’t enjoy those months becuase that’s when his folks died

-Two has run into Angela several times and made several (failed) attempts to flirt with her

-Johnny and Dallas have actually had several conversations in this universe, But Dallas never thought he was worth killing

-Sometimes random pastries/foods would appear on the Curtis doorstep during the Great Depression, they never knew where or who it came from but it helped them to survive (take a wild guess who made them lol)

-Johnny used to play the guitar while Angela sang to help Curly sleep <3

-Darry has never once touched a cigarette, but will drink jus tan out anything put in front of him

-Pony LOVES Italian food, but refuses to eat it because it just feels wrong to him

-Red is Angela’s favorite color, which is why the whole group is forced to wear something red (she picks out their clothes literally every day)

-Mrs.Shepherd died while giving birth to Curly, so Johnny and Curly have both never met her

-The Shepherds love spring because it reminds them of Sicily

-Bucks original nickname was FAG (Funny Accent Guy), given to him by Curly

-The Curtis brothers were all relatively short as kids, but shot up the second they hit puberty

-Tim tried to kidnap Louis Armstrong for Johnny's birthday (it did not work.)

-The Mafia has two main cover restaurants. One being a bar (that we see in the first chapter) and the other being an off-brand Italian place (Whenever someone fails an important job, they are banished to work at one of these two places)

-Johnny is the shortest person on his team, so he’ll often just step on their feet when they upset him

-Darrel is an avid people watcher

-Johnny actually looked up to many of the agents, and will excitedly tell people whenever he gets in a fight with one of them (even if he completely beats their ass he's still a total fanboy)

-Dallas has a really good memory, and can easily recall every fight he’s ever been in

If you have any other things you want me to write into the story, but them into the comments :D

#writing #headcanon #the outsiders #fanfiction #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #no permanent death #the outsiders fanfiction #1940s #mafia #mafia au #mafia fanfic

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wineauntie · 3 months

Note

Omgggg how about a little blurb of Quinn doing evie’s hair for school?

TWIRLIES — Quinn Hughes x single mom!reader

summary: Quinn Hughes is multi talented and fears nothing…but it seems like he’s finally met his match– Evie’s school hairstyle.

note: I know this isn’t a blurb but I’m such a sucker for headcanons, hope this was okay!

warning: brief mention of vomiting, nicknames like; bug, sweetheart and darling. Other than that it’s just fluff!

Two months into a relationship with Quinn, he’d begun to study how to be a dad/dad-like figure all so he could help you out and because he wanted to be sure Evie would be well looked after.

He would literally read so many parenting and self-help books and so. many. podcasts.

He just wanted to be so prepared for whatever Evie needs at any given time.

He even called his mom a couple of times for advice on how to go about helping you with Evie.

He was so scared of messing things up or doing something wrong. (You thought it was the funniest and the cutest thing you’ve ever witnessed)

You’d watched him calm tantrums and soothe Evie to sleep. But the true test of patience came when you were sick one morning.

You’d woken up, vomiting, with a groggy Quinn holding back your hair for you.

Your immediate thought was who is going to drop Evie to school? Quinn had hockey practice and your parents lived nowhere near by.

Quinn’s first thought was to get you back into bed, knowing he could handle the rest.

You’d feebly tried to argue but he’d dragged you into bed and bundled you under blankets, with a kiss to your forehead and a promise to take care of everything.

Then it came to waking up three-year-old Evie.

He’d switched on her lamp and gently brushed back her tussled hair, smiling softly at her sleeping figure.

“Bug, it’s time to wake up.”

It only took a few minutes for Evie to wake, his soft words easing her discomfort in the morning air.

Evie had tried to pull him down beside her so she could snuggle into his side but he carefully lifted her, letting her rest her head against his shoulder.

“Bug, Mama is sick today so I’m going to drop you off this morning.”

“You bring school?”

“Exactly, bug!”

He’d helped her get changed, dressing her in her favourite pair of purple overalls and a jumper.

The hair was the most daunting challenge.

“All right, Eve, this’ll be easy…right?!”

His words were more for himself than the little girl who’d now woken up completely.

“Twirlies! Twirlies!”

Quinn had absolutely no idea what Evie was demanding, and that’s when the panic set in.

“Ponytail?” He’d asked, as Evie sat between his legs.

“No! Twirlies!” Evie had proclaimed.

Let me stress this, Quinn was a mess.

He didn’t know what to do. He literally sat and stared at Evie as she babbled before he eventually gave in and started doing random hairstyles trying to soothe Evie.

“No, Winnie! Twirlies!”

Quinn disassembled his neatly constructed braid, with a huff, brushing out the tangles.

“NO, WINNIE!”

Quinn opened his arms and let Evie fall into them, tears of frustration leaking from her eyes as he brushed out the buns he’d tied up.

“Bug, sweetheart, I’m sorry, I don’t know what Twirlies are!”

Quinn felt absolutely awful, his heart had sunk to his stomach. He couldn’t shake off the feeling of guilt and disappointment in himself as he finally admitted defeat and carried Evie into your shared bedroom.

You were half-awake when Quinn started apologising profusely, his eyes saddened.

You immediately sat up, your eyes adjusting to the light filtering into the room from a crack in the curtains.

“I tried every hairstyle, but she wanted twirlies, I…I don’t know what they are.”

Your heart swelled at the thought of Quinn doing Evie’s hair in so many different styles, knowing he must’ve learned specifically for her.

“Oh, Q,”

You’d brushed a hand over his cheek, your tired face peeking up with a smile.

“Twirlies are Evie’s way of saying pigtails. One on either side of her head.”

Quinn nodded with a slightly open mouth as Evie clapped. He carefully brushed back Evie’s hair, separating it into two bunches and tying it with purple hair elastics as per your instruction.

“And sometimes she wants her pink bows...Whatcha say, Evie, bow or no bow?”

Evie, of course, wanted her bows, so Quinn made sure she was sitting far away from the edge of the bed, so she wouldn’t fall as he ran to her room to grab them.

“Mama, Winnie’s silly!”

You’d laughed and scrunched your nose at Evie’s wide-eyed expression.

“No, darling, he’s not being silly, he just isn’t used to this.”

Quinn had returned with sixteen different pink bows varying in sizes, looking rather confused as you and Evie both giggled.

“I didn’t know which ones to get so I got them all!”

You gently nudged Evie and lowered your voice as the little girl laughed.

“Okay…Maybe he’s a little silly!”

#wineauntie #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes imagine #nhl x reader #quinn hughes fluff #i love quinn hughes what a man #quinn hughes x single mom!reader #quinn hughes x y/n #quinn hughes x you #quinn hughes fanfic #quinn hughes fanfiction #quinn hughes #family is family universe

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celandeline · 4 months

Text

Summer of Like // Farleigh Start x OC (18)

My fatal flaw is that I can’t say no to Venetia. I’ve known since I met her, when I moved into our suite at Cambridge, that I wasn’t going to be able to say no to her - not when she’s as pretty as she is and as pitiful. Which is how I find myself singing karaoke in the library with Venetia.

I didn’t know the words to Head Over Heels by Tears for Fears before Venetia pulled me out of my seat. I doubt that I’ll remember anything I’ve sung after we finish given how much wine I had at dinner. But it makes her smile, and everyone scattered on the couches around the rooms claps when we’re done.

I hand off my microphone to another of the Henrys, and flop down on the couch, next to Felix. Venetia perches between our laps, one leg over mine, one leg over her brothers - her right arm around Felix’s shoulders, her left hand laid on my thigh. I wrap my free arm around her waist, and tuck my head into the junction between her neck and her shoulder, watching as the Henry who took the microphone from me starts to swagger as Flo Rida’s Low starts playing.

“Oh god.” Venetia laughs as an exasperated sigh leaves Felix.

It’s very evident right from the start that he��s not very good. It’s made even worse by the way his British accent tries to mimic Flo Rida’s tone. I huff out a laugh as he shrugs off his jacket, tossing it to a woman that I presume is how wife.

Felix is the first one to call it quits. “Alright, fuck this. I'm getting a drink.”

“Me too.” Venetia says, rising from her spot in Felix and I’s laps. “Coming Evie?”

I stand up with them, fixing the straps of my borrowed dress. “‘Course.”

I follow them back into the dining room, leaving the library behind us, letting the noise of the karaoke fade into the background. In the dining room, the plates and silverware have been cleared away, but the bar is still set up to the side of the room.

Felix gets there first, pulling three glasses over from the side. “What do you drink, Evie?”

“Depends.” I say. “What are the options?”

“Anything you want.” He says, pouring himself some whiskey that looks like it costs five times my rent in New York. He starts on Venetia’s drink, pouring gin, vermouth and bitter campari into the same glass, and swirling it all around a few times before handing it to her.

“Some tequila would be good.” I say.

Felix grabs a bottle and pours me a healthy helping, and drops a lime wedge into the drink for good measure. “Alright?” He asks, handing the glass to me.

“Yeah, thanks.” I say, taking a small sip. The tequila burns, just a little, the impact softened by the wine that’s already in my system.

Venetia grins as she sips her own drink. “Nobody makes a negroni like you, Fi.”

Felix scoffs, and downs his glass of whiskey like it’s a shot before pouring himself another. “I’m sure you’ve had better negronis than that.”

“I didn’t say it was good.” Venetia says. “Just that nobody makes them like you.”

“Shove off.” Felix says, but there’s no bite in it.

Glasses in hand, we wander back to the library. The song changes abruptly as we slip back into the room, as I spot Farleigh at the karaoke machine, sorting through the selection, microphone in hand.

“Okay, well done Henry, that was great. Round of applause for Henry…” He grins as he finds the song he wants, and stands back up to his full height. “Okay now it’s time to take things up a notch. We have someone here who is a very talented singer.”

The intro to Rent, by the Pet Shop Boys begins to play. I turn to Venetia, already knowing what he’s going to do before he does it, but she’s only smiling, not recognizing the song.

Farleigh turns towards Oliver, that wry smile on his face. “He’s your best friend and mine: Oliver Quick!”

“No, no, no…!” Oliver protests as Farleigh grabs his hand.

Farleigh only smiles as he pries Oliver out of his seat and presses the microphone into his hand. “Yes, yes, yes… don’t be shy!”

Oliver stumbles forward, pushed by Farleigh, wide-eyed. “I don’t even know this song!”

From the couch, James claps his hands. “The words are on the screen, Oliver! That's the best bit! That's the best bit!”

The first verse of the song starts, and Oliver starts to sing, a little off the melody, but smiling anyway. Farleigh sidles up to me, a playful smile on his face. “What’re you drinking?”

“Tequila.” I say, holding my glass out to him.

He takes it, and swigs some into his mouth before handing it back to me.

I keep eye contact as I take a sip, sure to place my lips right over where his just were. “You’re cruel, you know. Making him sing this song.”

His grin widens. “You know this song?”

“Yeah.” I say. “My mom loves the Pet Shop Boys. She’s always playing them around the house. Says they remind her of the ‘good ‘ol days’ before she had kids.”

“Harsh.” Farleigh laughs.

“Either way, it’s mean.” I say.

“Shhh, he hasn’t realized yet.” He says, fishing a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it with glee as he watches Oliver stumble along to the music. I watch as Elspeth realizes exactly what song is playing, casting a look at James. The cheering only gets quieter as more and more of the crowd realize where this is going.

The music swells into the chorus, and the lyrics change on the screen. I watch Oliver’s face shift as he reads the words, and the joke dawns on him all at once. He falters only for a moment before he finishes it off.

“I love you, you pay my rent.”

Full of malicious glee, Farleigh whoops. “Whoo! You tell ‘em!”

“Farleigh.” Felix’s voice is low. I glance over to him to see a glower on his face, not unlike his expression at the breakfast table the night after Venetia’s moonlit escapade.

“What?” Farleigh mocks innocence.

Whatever Felix is about to say is cut off by Oliver. “This is your song as well Farleigh, come finish it.” His tone is friendly, but his stare is anything but. A shiver runs up my spine just looking at him.

Still, Farleigh grins. “Only if you insist.” He tucks his cigarette between my lips before dashing away, taking the mic from Oliver. He doesn’t have to look at the screen to know the words, and he leans into the performance, dancing and spinning the wire of the microphone as he croons.

I puff on his cigarette as he looks over to me and winks.

< previous part | next part >

#farleigh start x oc #farleigh start x reader #saltburn #farleigh start #farleigh x reader #saltburn x reader

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starksbabie · 5 months

Text

The Ink That Binds Us - Chapter 1

Summary: Omega reader moves to Stark County, ND after her grandmother dies and she inherits her house. She gets a job at a local diner where she meets charismatic asshole alpha, Deputy Gator Tillman. Will his rough around-the-edge ways push her away before she even knows that he’s her perfect match?

Tags/Warnings: Soulmates AU, A/B/O, eventual smut, 18+ mdni, mentioned unwanted touching, soulmates have matching tattoos, Gator Tillman (he’s his own warning).

Word Count: 2.4k

“We were just two broken souls trying to fix one another… Somehow I ended up with a piece of you and you, me.” — Evy Michaels

- 10 years earlier -

You wake up and stretch, your nest is cozy and warm around you. The blankets, pillows, and stolen clothes from the people important in your life are arranged just so. Slowly, you sit up and climb out, headed to the bathroom before you head to school. On your way past the vanity you freeze in your tracks. There on your right bicep is a large tattoo.

When a soulmate permanently marks their skin, their other half also receives an identical mark. You gasp and cover your mouth, tears forming as you inspect closer. It’s the letters LOL in dark colors, and the O is clearly made up of barbed wire.

Why would your match do this to you? Why would your alpha mark up your pretty skin with such a crude tattoo? You don’t know who your alpha is, but you're upset, and this has left a sour taste in the back of your throat.

- Present Day -

Gator walks into the diner pulling the door open with gusto, knowing he’s late to meet Roy. It seems he’s always late lately. He slides himself into the booth across from his father and sags into the cracked and creaking leather.

“What kept ya?” Roy asks, not even bothering to look up at his son from his paper as he takes a sip from his coffee.

“Was dealing with that… uh, assignment you gave me.” He smiles at his father as the waitress sets down a mug, and begins to fill it up for him.

“Would you like anything else?” You look at the deputy, your hip cocked as you wait for his response, setting the carafe on the edge of the table.

“You’re new.” Gator looks the new waitress up and down, he knows all the staff in the diner. He eats here more than he eats at home.

You nod and pull out your notepad.

“Mhmm just moved here recently.” You pull out a pink pen, tapping the end of it against your plush lower lip.

He tries to scent you and finds himself a little disappointed when he can’t pick up any trace of you. Damn scent blockers, he’ll never understand why you omegas use them.

Meanwhile, you’re taken aback by this man’s strong scent. It’s almost as if he’s intentionally giving it off, trying to fill the air around you. Notes of palo santo and sage wrap you in warmth, and nostalgia while still being refreshing, exciting, and new. Your heart begins to race, and you’re nervous that these two alphas sitting in front of you are able to hear it beating out of your chest. You almost miss his order as he asks for what he wants.

“Western omelet. Bacon and white toast.” He sits back and looks at his father as you make your notes and lift the carafe heading back to the kitchen. He can’t help himself watching the way your hips move as you walk away.

Roy reaches over and slaps his son upside the head, “If your eye causes you to sin son, pluck it out.”

Gator immediately drops his gaze and keeps it on the table when you deliver his and Roy’s food.

He mumbles a soft, “Thank you, miss.”

Having noted the lack of a mating mark on your neck when you originally took his order.

You come and refill coffee and check on them, before setting the check on the table. At the bottom you’ve written Thank You in your loopy handwriting, followed by a smiley face.

You bid them both good day before walking away. The smell of palo santo and sage lingering around you for the rest of the day.

The next day you’re leaning against the cool bricks outside the diner, trying to take some deep breaths and slow your heart rate, when some black steel toe boots enter your line of sight. You slowly look up the khaki-clad legs, your breath catching when you see a gun seated in a holster wrapped snugly around their thigh. That’s when the scent hits you. Palo santo and sage, your eyes snap up to meet the honey-colored ones of the alpha you served yesterday morning.

“You hiding out here?”

His eyes aren’t the only thing that’s like honey, the timbre of his voice pours over you like a warm drink on a cold winter’s morning, soothing your heckles that were raised from the alphas inside.

“I’m not hiding from anything.” You snap, your voice harsh.

Gator’s not used to being spoken to like that, certainly not by an omega. He draws himself to his full height and steps closer.

“Then what’s got you so riled up, little one?”

He gently tugs on the hem of your sleeve, and his eye catches on the ink hidden there.

“What’s that?” He asks, as he goes to lift your sleeve but you slap your hand over your bicep stopping him.

“Don’t touch me! You alphas are all the same. You don’t know how to keep your hands to yourself.”

That stops him dead in his tracks. His voice gets low and serious.

“Who touched you?”

You fix your sleeve, making sure the embarrassing tattoo is completely covered, “it’s not important.”

“It is to me, I’m the law. It’s my job to protect.”

You notice he doesn’t finish that statement but don’t say anything, your eyes dropping back to the ground.

“Who touched you?” His voice drops even lower, this time into his alpha register, the one that makes it hard for you to resist, your omega hindbrain begging to submit to him.

When you’re still silent, he’s slightly impressed. Most omegas he knows submit as soon as they hear that tone.

“Don’t make me ask again.”

“The alphas sitting in the corner booth… one grabbed my ass as I walked by. Told me I should be raising pups, not working.” The words rush out of you even as you try to hold them back, sometimes you hate your designation.

A growl rumbles low in Gator’s chest as he stalks into the diner. He spots them almost immediately, two alphas and a beta sitting in the back corner booth by the entrance to the kitchen. You follow after him, nervous about what this hot-headed alpha is going to do.

He slams his hand down on the table, effectively shutting them up.

“If I ever hear about one of you touching another omega without their permission again. We’re going to have problems. Do you understand me?” He glared, at the three men.

“Yeah? I don’t see your mark on her pretty little matting gland. So why don’t you mind your own business?” The biggest of the alphas says, straightening up.

Gator opens his jacket to reveal his badge and rests his free hand on his holster, the alphas pale as they realize who they’re talking to.

“I said, do you understand me?” He repeats.

They nod and throw some cash on the table, pushing past him to leave, not even casting you a glance as they make their hasty retreat.

You look at him, “You didn’t have to do that.”

He straightens up and turns to look at you, “How about a little gratitude? If anyone else bothers you, you come straight to me.”

You look at him, and after a long pause you nod, even though it wasn’t a question.

“Good.”

He grabs a seat at the counter and looks up at the specials board.

“Can I get a Coke and a burger? Fries too…” He trails off, realizing he never got your name.

“Y/N.” You supply, smiling a little as you write his order on the ticket.

“Y/N. That’s pretty. I’m Gator.” He sits back as you ring in his order and slide his drink across the counter.

“Gator… like the animal?” You ask, looking at him as if he’s playing a joke on you, and at any minute, he’s going to bust out laughing because you believed him.

“Yeah, just like that.” He smiles and pulls a business card from his pocket handing it to you.

You hold it in your hands and inspect it. Sure enough, there in the center, it says ‘Gator Tillman’ Deputy Sheriff.

You smile and nod, sliding the card into your apron pocket.

“Well, alrighty, Deputy.”

After lunch, Gator spends most of his afternoon sitting at the counter talking to you between customers.

You find yourself rolling your eyes as he makes terrible jokes, mostly at the expense of the other patrons.

As your shift ends, you clock out and wash your hands, drying them as he watches you.

“How are you getting home?” Gator asks as he stands, following you outside.

You kick your feet in the dirt a bit.

“It’s not that far from here. I just walk.”

“Let me give you a lift. C’mon.” He turns and heads to his truck without waiting for your answer.

You freeze, watching as he jumps up into the cab of his truck.

“C’mon, it’s too late for you to be walking home. Get in.” He doesn’t leave you any room for argument.

You hesitate a moment longer before walking around and climbing into the passenger seat of his truck. His scent is so much more intense in this confined space. You find yourself a bit dizzy as you buckle yourself in, and hesitantly begin to give him directions to your house.

Gator considers himself a pretty good officer. After a moment, he glances over and watches your face as you guide him through the turns towards your home.

“What’s the matter?” He asks, relaxing back into the seat, and sucking on his vape, being careful to blow the sweet-smelling smoke away from you.

“It’s just,” you anxiously rub at your matting gland, “I’m an unmarked omega taking an alpha to my house…” You trail off, your skin heating in embarrassment.

He smirks and takes the last turn onto your street.

“Yea? Well, I mean… you don’t have to be unmarked for long.” He drapes his arm over the back of your seat, and suddenly it feels as if the temperature in the car shot up 20 degrees.

You let out a small squeaky noise at which Gator laughs.

“Relax, I’m just kidding. I’m just dropping you off at home. No funny business, I mean… unless…” he looks you up and down, his gaze lingering on your thighs.

You let out an indignant sound, “Gator!”

He laughs and turns into the driveway of the little 1950s ranch you call home.

You grab your bag and climb out of the truck, breathing in the fresh air clearing your head. He leans across the center console of his truck watching as you walk up the steps to your door.

He rolls down the window and hollers after you.

“See you soon!”

He says it with such sincerity that you shake your head and roll your eyes fondly, looking back at him.

“Goodbye, Gator!” You wave before slipping into the house, locking the door behind you.

You peek out the front window and watch as he takes his time backing down the driveway and pulling away.

That evening, after taking a shower and changing into pajamas, you flit around your kitchen making yourself something to eat while you relax in front of the TV.

You turn on the sink to fill your glass when you hear a sound coming from the cabinet below. You frown and open the oak-colored door, gasping when you see water spraying from one of the pipes.

You quickly turn off the sink, but unfortunately, that doesn’t stop the water from spreading across the bottom of the cabinet and out onto the floor.

“Shit!” You try to block the flow of water with your hands, but it’s no use.

You panic, not sure what to do, but you know you need help. Then in a moment of clarity, you remember Gator’s card in your apron pocket. You grab your apron off the hook by the door digging in the pocket before snatching your phone off the counter. You call him in a bit of a daze, watching as the puddle on your floor grows.

“Pick up, pick up!” You mumble under your breath.

“Hello?”

His voice is deeper, gruff over the phone. You feel guilty for inconveniencing him, but you really didn’t have anyone else to call.

“Gator..?”

“Y/N? What is it? You okay?” You hear some shuffling, on his end of the line.

“Um… no? My sink is leaking everywhere, and I don’t know what to do. I… I didn’t have anyone else I could call. I’m sorry.”

He runs his fingers through his hair, a little surprised at your admission.

“I’ll be right there. Okay?”

“Okay. Thank you.” You relax a little, knowing that help is coming.

You hang up and run to the linen closet grabbing out towels, in the meantime. Your ears perk up when you hear a car pulling up outside only a few minutes later. You run to the door and pull it open. Smiling wide when you see Gator’s truck in your drive.

He puts his truck in park and gets out, grabbing a toolkit from the truck bed before heading to your front door. He looks good in dark wash jeans and a white shirt, his hair soft no longer styled from the day.

“Thank you again for coming, I don’t know what else I would have done.”

He hops up your steps and steps into your home and the first thing he notices is your scent. It permeates every inch of your space, fresh greens, mimosa buds, and beechwood wash over him, fruity and floral.

The second thing he notices stops him dead in his tracks. Your pajamas consist of shorts that show off your legs, something he’s sure to appreciate later, and a tank top. There on your arm, the mark that he’d noticed earlier, is his tattoo plain as day. Etched onto your skin.

You are his soulmate.

#onyx writes things #gator tillman x reader #gator tillman #a/b/o #a/b/o dynamics #a/b/o au #alpha!gator Tillman x omega!reader #gator tillman x y/n #gator tillman x fem!reader #fargo fx #fargo s5 #fargo season 5

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