#but that'll have to wait until another post | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

natsaffection · 1 year

Text

My sweet Baby. | part 1 | N.Romanoff

Sugar Mommy!Natasha x Sugar Baby!Reader

Word Count: 2,997

warnings: none (until now..)

A/n: Here it is! The first part of: My sweet Baby. I don't really have a post schedule, so I will post anytime. Maybe every two days. However have fun..

(Pls keep in Mind that English is not my first language. So if you see any Mistakes please let me know)

It's the first day of your hard-earned vacation in L.A. You've wanted to go here since you were about seven, and now the time has finally come. You arrive at your...well, hotel, if you can call it a hotel. It was one of the cheapest in town, and since you were just sleeping here and out on the town the rest of the time, it wasn't too bad for you.

You put your things down and opened the only window in the room. You look out and breathe in the new fresh air that you could only dream of until today. You looked down at the people who were beginning their daily lives. What do you think it's like to live in such a big city forever? What do they work down there, so they can afford it all?

You shake off the thoughts and remember why you are actually here. You went to the bathroom to freshen up, and then you started your first morning of the day.

The first two days went according to your plan. You saw your sights, you bought a t-shirt with the palm tree, you went to the Santa Monica Pier and much more. You could get used to that.

It was already late, and you decided to go to a cafe to wind down. So, you googled again which of the stores serve good drinks and above all at a pleasant price. After all, you didn't have much left. You found one after a while and were surprised when you stood in front of it... "It doesn't look that bad...".

You were at first taken back about the statements of the café, but once you dared to take a look inside, the feeling quickly faded. You went inside and stood at the counter, you looked at the menu card and ordered what sounded best to you. The lady just smiled kindly and went to work. Meanwhile, you looked around and felt a little uncomfortable. You saw people with expensive clothes, expensive watches, was that a Rolex? Is that even a Rolex? All over the place.

You were so lost in thought that you didn't notice another person ordering a drink. And you didn't notice until the barista went back to work. You took a few steps to the side so that the other person would also have more room to wait. You looked at her and..wow. That is now the final sign that you were in the wrong place. How can someone be so pretty? She had long, red, curly hair that went a little past her shoulders. At her neck, a necklace that must have cost more than your whole vacation here. Her clothes must be handled with soft gloves...And of course again, a watch that has more parts than your cell phone. You suddenly had an urge to say it out loud,

"You have a really nice watch.."

"Oh, thank you..Do you own a Philippe too?"

Philippe?

"I'm sorry, what?" You looked at the woman, confused. Why is she asking you about a country now? "The Patek watch, sweet." You looked back down at her wrist and back up at her,

"Oh! No, no...I don't own one." God, this is embarrassing, "It's very pretty! You must have paid a fortune for it..." The older woman looked at you and leaned back a little, "Three million." Now it was your turn again, who looked at her confused, "Three million what?”

The woman just had to smile, "Three million dollars, the watch I mean."

Okay, now what's the quickest and easiest way to leave this store? THREE MILLION FOR A WATCH? Who would do this?...I- Who would spend that kind of money on a device that can only tell the time?

"Wow that's a l-"

"Ms. your late is ready." You were interrupted by the barista as she placed your drink on the counter. You looked at the redhead again and smiled, "That seems to be mine."

She just looked after you as you took it and asked how much you should pay now,

"That'll be 13 dollar."

HUH?

"E-Excuse me, but could you please repeat that? I think I mis-" You clearly misunderstood her, it was three, THREE dollars-.

"That's thirteen dollars." You looked at her as if you had seen a ghost, "T-Thir-"

"Put it on my bill please, here you can keep the rest." A soft voice brought you out of your thoughts again, and you saw the red haired woman with the totally overpriced watch, hand the other woman a $50 bill. The barista just nodded, and you didn't know what to do with yourself. Did a strange woman just give you money? Why? "W-Well, thank you..I'll give you this back-" She held a hand in front of your face to stop you, "Please, that was for the compliment earlier." She smiled and looked back as she got her drink. She looked back at you, "Shall we sit down?"

You looked deep into her eyes and thought about it. What could possibly go wrong? "Yeah sure, why not..."

Her smile widened, and she made her way to a window seat. She pushed out the chair and waited for you to sit down, "Thanks..." You smacked yourself inside, as your voice sounded totally pathetic. She's just trying to be nice, right?

"So, what's a pretty young girl like you doing in one of the most expensive cafes in the neighborhoods?" Most expensive?!"Wait, that's this one, right?" You took out your phone and showed her the picture you had googled earlier. She leaned further forward and looked at the picture, "No, that would be one street over. This one..."

She looked at you for a moment, and you didn't know why. She then took a finger and scrolled around a bit on your phone, "This is it, that's where we are right now." You looked at her before turning your phone towards you and looking at the screen. Your jaw dropped now for the fourth time today. You are in a five star coffee shop. One of the best in town. Well, that explains a lot...

"Okay, this is a little embarrassing..." You held your drink up to your face so the other woman next to you wouldn't see your red face. "You're not from around here, are you?" That the woman finds this amusing was totally audible,

"No...I'm actually from Denver. I'm just here for a few days." The redhead took a sip, "Why?"

"I'm here for a short vacation, since I've always wanted to come here. I mean..we're talking about the real Los Angeles! The city that's probably in most games or movies. I wanted to see it for real." You think your answer was enough for her, "So, what do you think so far?" You thought a little, "Well..Damn expensive..I mean, we are drinking a coffee for thirteen dollars right now! In college, it's 1,50..."

"You're still studying?" I've only known this person for five minutes and still could hear out that the question sounded surprised. "Yes..art history. It's fun, so there's nothing to complain about..."

I smiled at my self and so had to the woman, "May I ask how old you are?"

Can she? I mean, I don't know this woman... "I'm 21." The woman looked at you with a monotone facial expression, but inside she tried to hide her lust, "Still so young..wow," you had to laugh, "Yeah and still doesn't know what to do with me.."

"You don't?"

"No..I mean.. I'm barely managing to pay my college, so..."

The woman looked at you curiosity. She took out her cell phone and typed on it for a bit until she put it back. "What's your name?" The question was unexpected. You just cried your heart out, and she just wants to know your name?

"Y/n..Y/n L/n."

"Well Y/n, I think today is our lucky day..."

"Why? Are you offering me a job? I don't know if you were listening to me earlier, but I'm not from here..I live thousands of miles away..So if that's not a home office job that also pays better than my two current jobs to-”

She watched you as you let your frustration out. She makes a mental note to her to not fire her assistant after all, who screwed up bringing her the coffee and had to go herself. "Believe me ms. L/n this offer will blow you wide open." You looked at the woman and tried to get a glimpse of whether she was joking. However, you realize she is total serious. "Okay.. go ahead Ms?"

"Natasha Romanoff."

Natasha Romanoff..you knew that name from somewhere..But- "But we don't discuss that here. I appreciate my privacy and most of all yours."

What?

"Now you're scaring me a little..If you want me to walk over dead bodies for you, it's going to be difficult-" The woman chuckled, "No..I have another department for that." What- "I'm just kidding."

"I-I knew that! Um..With all due respect, but I'd like to discuss the offer here..."

So I could run..

"I wouldn't do that if I w-"

"Here or not at all..Ms Romanoff." You leaned back, proud of your statement. I mean what could that woman possibly do to you?

Meanwhile, Natasha is trying her hardest not to pull a fist one on you, and spank your ass after that answer. She leans forward again and looks you right in the face, "One more answer like that Y/n and I'll put you over my lap in front of everyone."

You just imagined this. No way- no way did she just say that to you. "Do you understand?"

"W-What?"

No. You didn't imagine it. Did she- "Y/n?"

Perhaps Natasha did act too quickly when she saw your notification on your phone from the app called: Sugar Mommy Fee. However, your concerns evaporated when, "Yes..."

"Yes, what?"

"I understand, sorry..." Natasha nearly moaned. You even have manners, that's a lottery win she wouldn't even need. "So as you wish, I-" you shifted in your chair, "N-No..um..I'll get back to you on that offer from earlier..not here." Natasha just smirked, "All right then, follow me."

The two of you left the cafe and walked towards a black Bentley. In front of it, someone in a black suit waited and opened the back door for Natasha. She stepped aside and let you go in first. You thanked her and sat down in the back.

Your mother would throw her beloved cup against your head if she knew you got into someone else's car. But what could happen? Natasha obviously has something big to lose if she decides to kill you.

"May I ask what you do for a living?" Natasha looked over at you from her Ipad,

"My company is a global leader in communication technologies, eco-production and next generation agriculture solutions."

Her company??

You couldn't keep up with the first word. The woman sitting next to you is a literal doer. That explains the car, the clothes, hell that watch..So why does she want anything to do with you? The one who has a hole in her sock and paints her toe black, so you can't see it. You also take your cell phone out of your pocket and wanted to write your friend whats happening. And maybe send your location. You were about to unlock your phone when you saw the disaster.

You saw a few messages from Instagram, a message from your family group and...a notification from Sugar Mommy fee. That's it. You're screwed. Natasha must have seen it when she wanted to show the real cafe. That's why she was staring at you! Fuck..Is it fuck? I mean.. The app was just a joke between you and a friend, but look where it got you. You're probably sitting in a sugar mommy car right now. Oh god...Nata-

"What's on your mind?"

"N-Nothing!!!" Rule number one, you probably already understood: Don’t tell Lies.

"You're lucky we haven't cleared up the contract yet Ms. L/n."

She looked back at her Ipad and continued reading the article she had open. You put your phone back in your pocket and looked out the window. You are on the complete other side of the city, everywhere you saw only big buildings, and then you stopped at one yourself. Natasha got out and you were overwhelmed because you didn't know what to do until Natasha opened your door. You took a deep breath and got out.

You entered the building and people were everywhere greeting the red-haired woman. You entered an elevator and the man from earlier stayed outside, "Is he here for your safety?" The woman looked down at you, she could literally feel your fear, "Steve?" She chuckled, "No, I'm good at taking care of myself, but my marketing department insisted. Good looks for the public, the normal stuff. "Oh..” The normal stuff, what have I gotten myself into?

Before you could worry anymore, the door opened and Natasha was waiting for you to get off the elevator. "Just follow the red carpet."

"Red seems to be your favorite color, doesn't it?"

Natasha just grinned and put her hand on your back to guide you. Don’t Blush Y/n! The two of you walk a bit until you arrived in front of a large wooden door, which of course was opened again by two staff members. In the room, which is twice the size of your hotel room, has a stunning view over the whole city. You could barely see the people below you. "Have a seat."

Natasha pointed where, and while you sat down, she went to a cabinet and pulled out an envelope. She came back and sat down as well and unwrapped the envelope to put it in front of you.

"What is this?"

"A confidentiality agreement. It says you can't talk to anyone about anything that concerns us. I'm afraid my lawyer insists on it." You looked at the piece of paper and back at her, "Are you putting this in front of everyone you want to start to Date? And as I mentioned..I can't stay here, Ms. Romanoff. I'm going to college for a few more months, I-I'm going to work, and it's all miles away..." Natasha leaned back in her chair,

"First of all. I don't date. Second, we can work out that distance thing, there's more than one way. Besides, it's only an hour flight. I can handle that."

Now the alarm bells were ringing. "You? You can handle that? What about me?"

"Y/n..." She leaned forward again and bowed her hands in front of her, "do you even know what a sugar mommy contract is?" Why does she never mince words and always blurts everything out right away?!

"Answer me, Y/n." You shifted,

"N-Well..Two people enter into a relationship while Person A gives money to person B and Person B gives Person A..Love..." Natasha sighed and took a breath,

"Okay..I want you to listen to me carefully now. In such a..relationship as you call it, it is strictly speaking a soft form of prostitution. In exchange for expensive gifts or other forms of payment, the Sugar Baby," She points to you, "provides her companionship and usually sexual favors. I'm looking for just that. A person who will keep me company at various things and in the nights-"

"I'll be your Toy? Is that it?" She didn't like your tone at all.

"Yes. Just that and nothing more." She looked you straight in the eye to check on your feelings. "Steve is downstairs to drive you to your hotel right now if you want to decline. But..I can give you everything, Y/n. And when I mean anything, I don't just mean financial."

What are you supposed to do? Leave? Stay? BOTH? You don't know..Natasha's offer sounds..tempting, but would you be willing to put your body on the line for it?

"Can..Can I think about it?"

Natasha felt a tiny bit of success. She pretty much has you in the palm of her hands.

"Of course. When's your flight back?"

If I tell her, will she refuse?

"In two days..." You could see a little movement. "Well that's short notice, but we'll work it out, don't worry about it."

She always makes it sound so easy..

"Okay and..are we sleeping with each other now o-or?" Natasha slid her chair a little to the side and opened a drawer by her desk. She took out another sheet of paper and a pen and put the two things in front of you, "Write your email on there please. I will send you all the details." You did as she said and wrote it on the paper. "You can keep the pen." You look at her and see her just smiling, "See as with souvenirs."

"I-I don't have a laptop..And the mail program on the phone is-" Natasha pressed a button at her desk. "Don't worry about it, it's already taken care of." A few seconds later, another woman opened the door and brought you a wrapped box. I rolled my eyes as the paper it was wrapped in was red, of course.

"I'll mail everything to you tonight, and after that, you can still refuse, anytime, okay? But think about it.“ You both got up from your chairs, "Okay..thank you.."

She walked you to her door, "Steve will drive you to your hotel. If you have any questions, don't be shy to ask me okay? I need you to be as comfortable as I am, understood?"

"Got it, thanks..." The older woman looked at you and smiled. She did then walk you to the elevator by herself, and you went inside. You both looked at each other and the elevator doors closed.

"Y/n."

"Natasha.."

#natasha x reader #natasha romanoff #natasha romanov x reader #nat x reader #natasha smut #natasha romanov smut #black widow #dom!natasha x reader #natasha x you #natasha romonova

1K notes · View notes

darkbluekies · 1 year

Text

Dr Kry asks #3

Previous one Next one

Concept: I've put multiple asks into one post to avoid too much loose posts on my account! This way, you have more to read too<3

Warnings: insomnia, medication, drugs, chronic illnesses, broken bones, mentions of overdosing,

☁️ ... this is my last ask for the day i SWEAR. how about dr kry with a sleep deprived darling / a darling who's always sleep deprived. if that doesnt work because of the setting (cause yknow in canon the darling's always napping lol), then how about a darling who has trouble sleeping. OR BOTH if you want to and can make it work. sorry i really wanna request this one cause the only time i can have a good sleep nowadays is when the weekend hits 🥲 i just want a bit of dr kry fluff 😭

He will sit with you for as long as you need, putting your needs before his. He can see that you're struggling to fall asleep. He can see the hollow half moons under your eyes and his heart will break.

"I can't watch this anymore. I'm going to go get you some sleeping pills, okay? And if they won't work I'll go get anaesthesia. Hopefully that'll be able to make you relax."

You'll get your sleeping pills and then rest back against the pillow. Dr Kry will sit with you until morning hours if needed. He'll hold your hand, play with your fingers, hug you if you want one and read for you.

"Are you feeling a little sleepy now, Y/N? Yeah? Are the pills working? Amazing. Just relax and let yourself fall asleep. I'll be here with you until you fall asleep and then I'll meet you in the morning, okay? We'll eat breakfast together, I promise."

Dr kry with s/o who suffers from migraine. Like bright lights aren’t good, eats a lot of pain killers and sleeps a lot bc of it

One of the main things with Dr Kry is that he always forces you to sleep (as seen in his headcanon), but that's because of the poisoned air he puts you in. If the lights we're bothering you as well, he'll turn them down and use small, warm nightlights to keep the room somewhat lit up. He'll try to control your intake of pain killers since he's afraid that you'll take too many, but he'll make sure that you won't be in pain one way or another.

"What? Too bright? Still? But, honey, all of the lights are already off. It's only this little light that's still on ... alright, I'll turn it off. If this continues I might have to develop nightray vision. Why don't you take a nap, Y/N? It'll make you feel better."

How would Dr Kry react to a darling who's very interested in his love life and like to tease him ? Always asking question about his possible partner, what he likes, ect ? Just to say " I don't understand why you're still single, you're so easy to love! Besides you're also very quiet, I know a lot of girls who liked the quiet bo- Wait !! Let me set you up, there's a very nice nurse I think her name is ... Charlotte? You know, the short brunette on the first floor ? She seems very kind or maybe you're gay ?? Well, there's that one dude at the cafeteria, I kinda had a crush on him at the beginning but I thinks he likes men...you could still give it a try if you want 🙂"

He'd let you have a go at it at first, hoping that it'd only be a one time thing ... but you continue to tease him every. single. day. He'll try his best to avoid the subject all together, but in the end would lose it. He'd grab your shoulders and pin you up against the wall in an attempt to make you silent.

"Shut up! Just shut up, alright?! I don't want to hear it!"

He'd noticed that he'd scared you and let your shoulders go. Backing away a step while running a hand through his hair, he'd think on how to save this situation. You'd apologize for making him mad which would only cause him to sigh heavily.

"You're so stupid, Y/N. Why can't you see that I want you? My fingers ache at the need of touching you sometimes and my heart breaks at the thought of you imagining me with someone else! I don't want anyone else. I think I'm going insane! I don't want to hear you talk about other people when you're with me. I just want you to focus on me and me only. Can you do that for me?"

He'd notice how wide your eyes were and how you started pulling your arms closer to your torso. With a hiss, he'd bring you into his arms before you had the chance to run away.

"I love you", he'd whisper.

im going to be sending in two asks bc i am mentally ill. heres the first one: how would dr kry deal with a patient who is chronically ill and frequently needs surgeries? this may or may not be self indulgent because i may or may not have just gotten surgery yesterday on my silly goofy eyeball (im fine)

He'll be right by your side. He'll take care of you and give you everything you need. When you're afraid, he'll kiss your hand and give you a reassuring smile.

"I know you're scared ... I wish I could do something to help you. I wish I could steal you away from here ... but you need these operations to survive. I'm so sorry, Y/N. What can I do to help you? Do you want something to eat? Do you want me to read for you? Yeah? Absolutely, anything for you."

second ask: i literally love dr kry so hear me out 💀 how about dr kry with a patient whos just being a total cranky BRAT to him. acting up, mouthing off, just being a little twerp. (its me. im also a little twerp)

Do you want to die? He controls your body. If you're being a little brat, he'll make sure your air is even more polluted and you 'accidentally' hurt yourself.

"Your arms are broken? Oh dear, how did that happen? Well ... i guess your silly behaviour came to bite you in the butt. Well, now you have to be a little nicer to me if you want me to care for you, okay? I don't want to help an ungrateful brat. Good, let's start over."

What would Dr. Kry do if darling tried to take a lot of pills to overdose and feel independent without him?

You'd be tied to the bed :) and have no privacy :) and never be in control again :)

I just discovered your blog and i'm in love with Dr Kry 😭what would happen if reader was sensitive to loud sounds??

He'd sound proof the room and give you ear plugs. When he's talking to you, he'll use a soft spoken voice and if he gets angry, he'll try his best to keep his composure so he won't yell at you. If there were loud bangings or sounds he can't control, he'll hide with you in the bathroom where the sounds aren't as loud. You'll have your ear plugs and his hands over your ears.

"It's alright, little one, just breathe. The noises will end soon. When they end, we'll go back out into the room and we'll read a little, okay? I'll try to find out who made these awful sounds and make sure they won't do it again."

what if we actually end up living with Dr Kry??

This man would honestly take such good care of you. You'll share a big bed, have many plants and he'd show a more humane side that he can't show in the hospital. He'll smile more, love more, talk more. The constant stress of being in the hospital and having people all around who could take you away from him takes a lot of energy that he wants to project on you.

"I've baked bread! I've wanted to try for a while. How about you come with me downstairs and get a slice with some marmalade? I know your legs are weak, I'll carry you down if you'd like."

i was wondering how would reader and dr krys relationship be if reader was nurse or doctor

He'd make sure you were scheduled together so he can spend his work shifts with you. People in the hospital would think that you're a couple. Exactly as he wants. He'll buy you lunch and stay close to you on break times. If anyone asks him if you're a couple, he'll answer with something that indicates that you are.

"Y/N, do you want to go take a bit of fresh air? You've been working so well these last hours, you're well deserved of a break. Come here, let's go take a few breaths and a bit of coffee before the night shift."

#yandere #yandere x reader #yandere drabbles #yandere x you #yandere imagines #yandere fics #yandere oc x you #yandere doctor #yandere male #yandere headcanons

240 notes · View notes

wheels-of-despair · 13 days

Text

Live A Little | A Worth It AU | Ralph Penbury x You | Masterlist

In This Edition: You and Ralph go exploring and get a little closer! Words: 4.5k

In a completely shocking turn of events… you were awake and out of bed before your aunt. You were nearly dressed when she finally sat up and stretched.

"I wonder what you're getting all prettied up for?" she teases. "Could it be another date with that lovely British lad who joined us for dinner last night?"

"Not a date," you say innocently, inspecting your dress in the mirror. "I'm simply spending time with a likeminded individual."

"How so?"

"He also thinks his sister is a pill."

She laughs.

"This isn't like Italy," she says, turning serious all of a sudden. "If you're going to be with this one, you'll need to be quiet about it. People will talk."

Your face gets hot. Yes, you'd had a brief vacation romance with a handsome Italian waiter. Yes, you'd done things with him that you thought you wouldn't do until you were married. Yes, Aunt Molly had encouraged you to do so. No, she did not to bring it up right now.

"Did you hear me?"

But Ralph isn't some handsome stranger you want to have one or two passionate nights with and then lock up tight like a secret. You enjoy his company. You like talking to him, and listening to him, and joking with him. You like making up stories with him. You like the way his eyes sparkle when he's excited, and how hair looks almost copper when the sun hits it a certain way. It's not like that with him.

You swallow all this down and nod.

"Good," she chirps, and the tension in the air dissipates. "So, what are you two getting into today?"

"I don't know," you admit, grateful for the change of subject. "We're meeting on deck after breakfast. Probably just walking and talking, like yesterday."

"I like him," she says. "He's got this child-like wonder about him. Like the world hasn't broken his spirit yet."

You duck your head to hide the fond smile spreading across your face. You know exactly what she's talking about.

"And he's handsome, too," she teases.

You sit down and start applying make-up to your burning face.

"Honey, they don't make a shade that'll cover that up," she laughs, then ducks out the door on her way to the lavatory.

Aunt Molly grows tired of teasing when the hunger sets in. You have breakfast together in the saloon, and part ways again. Today, you made no plans to meet her for lunch. A bit presumptuous, probably, but you'd spend every remaining moment on board with Ralph Penbury if he'd have you. She understood, and sent you off to meet him with a wink and a "have a nice day with your handsome gentleman friend!"

Ralph is waiting for you when you arrive on deck.

"Good morning!" you speak at the same time, which makes you both laugh.

"What shall we get into today, Mr. Penbury?" you ask.

"Anything you like, my dear."

"Hmmm…" You tap a finger to your chin and pretend to ponder. "Shall we explore the ship? See what kind of activities are offered to keep the youthful passengers occupied and out of trouble?"

"Wonderful idea!" Ralph exclaims, clapping his hands in front of him. "I heard someone praising the well-equipped gymnasium on my way here!"

"Is there anything this ship doesn't have?"

"I don't know," Ralph answers. "But we can find out!"

He offers his arm, and you take it. You approach the gymnasium together… only to discover that men and women are not allowed in at the same time.

"Well, if I can't go in with you, I don't want to go in at all," Ralph says.

"My sentiments exactly, Mr. Penbury. Where shall we try next?"

You run into the same problem at the swimming pool, the Turkish baths, and the squash court. Women were not allowed in the smoking room. And although there was no posted sign, there were no men in the reading and writing room.

There was nothing for you to do together except walk and talk, so that's what you did. And you had a marvelous time.

You and Ralph took a gamble and had lunch together in one of the cafes, and survived without a Victoria encounter. You had no idea what was served. Your focus was the boy with the brilliant mind. You hung on his every word like a schoolgirl with a crush, and Ralph didn't seem to mind in the slightest. Perhaps he was enjoying your company as much as you were his?

You thought his head might explode when you used your napkin to wipe away a bit of cream from his lip during dessert. You very nearly apologized for embarrassing him with your thoughtless action… until you saw the grin that nearly broke his face.

After lunch, you decided to explore other areas of the ship. You hadn't ventured very far off the beaten path since Victoria had dragged you down to the third-class area, but exploring with Ralph felt different. It wasn't malicious. You were simply a couple taking a stroll.

A couple of new friends, your brain corrects quickly.

You chat quietly as you explore, noting the differences between the second and third class areas and your own. The hallways were so narrow in third class, you had to walk close together. Your hand kept brushing against Ralph's. You wanted so badly to just hold it, but didn't have the courage.

Courage? To hold the hand of a man you weren't engaged to? You held your hand stiffly to your side and internally berated yourself.

You and Ralph round a corner in a third class corridor and nearly step on a small child. A little girl, probably three or four years old, in a brown dress. Her nose and cheeks are red, and her curls are peeking out of a kerchief.

"Mummy," she sniffles.

Without hesitation or regard to his expensive suit, Ralph sinks to one knee in the cramped little hallway.

"Hello," he greets. "What's your name?"

"Mary."

"Hello, Mary." Ralph introduces himself, and then you. She wipes away a tear with the sleeve of her dress. "Are you lost?"

She nods.

"Do you know Mummy's name?"

"Mummy," she says again.

"Alright," he smiles. "Would you like us to help you find Mummy?"

She nods. Ralph stands and reaches for her hand, and she takes it. She looks up at you expectantly. You offer her your own hand, and she takes that too. Ralph gives you a smile that makes your heart melt, and the three of you make your way down the narrow hallway.

There are no stewards in sight. No passengers to look at the child with recognition. No one to ask for directions, or for assistance in finding Mary's mummy.

You think of the child Victoria sneered at for daring to get too close to her fancy dress. How can two siblings be so different?

You keep walking until you begin to hear voices. You follow them, and wind up in the same lounge that Victoria had brought you to a few days before. It feels different now. People pay you no mind.

"Pardon me," you say to a table of young ladies. "This is Mary, and she's lost her Mummy. Do you recognize her?"

"No, but we'll find her!" The girls get up and and scatter, and moments later, they return with a very worried woman.

"Mummy!"

Mary releases her grip on your hands and takes off running. Her mother scoops her up in a hug. They exchange words, and Mary points at Ralph. The mother approaches cautiously, still holding Mary in her arms.

"Thank you," she says, "for finding my Mary."

"No trouble at all, madam," Ralph smiles. "We're so happy to have helped." Your heart swells.

"What are you doing down here?" one of the searchers returning to the her seat nearby asks. She winces after, as if someone has kicked her under the table.

"Not sittin' on their rears gossipin' like you lot," Mary's mother admonishes. The girls blush. More eyes are on you now, reminding you that you don't belong here. You take it as your cue to leave.

"We should be going now," you say gently. "Goodbye, Mary!"

"It was wonderful to meet you!" Ralph adds.

You and Ralph give Mary a goodbye wave and turn to leave. You walk quickly and quietly until you're out of sight. When you enter another tight hallway with no one in it, you begin to slow your pace.

That's when you realize you're holding Ralph's hand.

You drop it in a panic and stare straight ahead, not daring to look at him. Would he be more offended by you taking his hand, or by dropping it like a hot potato?

"Where are we?" you ask, hoping for a distraction. You both stop, looking around for a sign to tell you what deck you were on, or which way to the staircase.

A group of children appears out of nowhere, running through the halls and laughing loudly. Ralph reaches for you, pushing you against the wall and shielding you with his body as they pass by.

When they disappear, the sound of their laughter is replaced by the pounding of two hearts. Your eyes meet Ralph's. He's centimeters away. If he hadn't been holding his breath, same as you, you surely would've felt it on your face. You lift your chin slightly. He lowers his.

Slowly, cautiously, your lips meet in a gentle kiss.

Which is interrupted far too soon, when more people pass through the cramped hallway. Ralph takes your hand, and you let him lead you away. The lifts are just around the corner.

The same man that advised Victoria not to go into a third-class area is operating it, but he doesn't say a word to indicate that he recognizes you as he pulls the lever and takes the lift upward. When it stops and the man opens the gate, you and Ralph both mutter a "thank you" and exit.

You stand outside it awkwardly, not entirely sure what comes next. You still haven't recovered from the sweetest, most wonderful kiss you've ever experienced. Not that you were an expert or anything; your romantic endeavors were somewhat limited, but you knew for certain that no one had ever made you feel this way before.

"I'm growing so bored of this bloody ship!" someone loudly complains.

"So am I, Victoria!"

Before you have time to panic, Ralph grabs your hand and pulls you away from the lifts and the voices. You turn this way, and that, and eventually end up in another hallway. This one is considerably wider than the ones below, and carpeted, and better lit.

But your real focus is on the man in front of you. He peeks around the corner, making sure his sister is nowhere in sight. Once he's determined that you're alone, he heaves a sigh of relief and straightens.

"That was close," he smiles.

"Too close," you agree, leaning against the wall for support. You're not sure if you're winded from running way from Victoria, or if you're still feeling the effects of that kiss. It's all you can think about. You want more. No, you need more. Would it make you feel the same the second time? The third? What if you never stopped?

Ralph walks toward you, one slow step at a time, and by the time he stops, you're nearly as close as you were down below.

"Is this too close?" he whispers, his face barely an inch from yours. Your knees wobble.

"Not close enough," you breathe.

He closes the distance, and your lips meet again. You close your eyes and lose yourself in the taste of him. How is he doing this to you?

"Come along, darling!"

Your heads whip in the direction of the voices, and you see a young couple exiting their suite. Ralph stands back a respectable distance, and nods to the man as they pass.

When the hallway is clear again, Ralph looks at you with... longing? Does he need this as much as you? He licks his lips. You reach for him the same time he reaches for you.

His mouth crashes to yours, innocence and sweetness gone now. Your arms wrap around him, pulling him closer, closer. Your tongues meet in a passionate dance, and you forget how to breathe. You forget everything but Ralph Penbury and the way he makes you feel. You don't care about your lungs burning from the lack of oxygen, or the way you suspect he's holding you up because your legs have turned to jelly, or that you're out here in the open, where anyone can see you.

Ralph. All you care about is Ralph.

Eventually, he pulls back, and you both gasp for air. His eyes are nearly black. His lips are red and swollen. His chest heaves. If he asked, you'd let him take you right here in this hallway.

Your staring contest is interrupted when someone exits a stateroom nearby. You turn away, not wanting anyone to see you in what is surely a disheveled state. An elderly man passes without a word, and you look to Ralph.

He opens his mouth as if to speak, but closes it before any words come out.

"What is it, Ralph?"

"Nothing," he lies.

"Tell me," you beg.

He shakes his head and looks at the floor.

"Please?" you ask, reaching for his hands. They envelop yours in warmth, and his eyes meet yours again.

"I don't want to be presumptuous."

"Tell me," you whisper, giving his hands a squeeze. You hold your breath, hoping he's thinking the same thing you are.

"Promise you won't be angry with me?" he asks quietly.

"I promise."

Ralph takes a deep breath and braces himself. "Would you like to come back to my stateroom and continue this without further interruption?"

Before you can respond, you can see him mentally kick himself. "I'm so sorry, you're a lady, that was entirely--"

You silence him with a kiss.

Once you're both breathless again, you pull away. "Does that answer your question?" you ask impishly.

Ralph laughs in relief and pulls you through the winding halls toward his room. He fumbles with his key at the door, but manages to unlock it. He swings it open, gesturing for you to go ahead. You step inside and view the suite in awe.

It's considerably larger than your own. It's decorated in warm colors, and contains more furniture, more windows… and a bigger bed.

"Victoria's is bigger," Ralph notes, watching you inspect his room from his place by the door. It remains open. Does he think you're going to change your mind and bolt?

"It's perfect," you smile, coming back to wrap your arms around his neck. "This whole day has been perfect, Ralph."

Ralph smiles warmly and comes in for another kiss. You return it, and feel your knees go weak again. His hand leaves your waist just long enough to close the door. You cling to him, and he begins walking you backward. When the backs of your legs hit the bed, you fall onto it, landing on your rear.

"I'm sorry!" Ralph says hurriedly. "I didn't mean to imply--! I just thought--!" He scrunches one eye closed, like he's afraid to see your reaction. "I thought you might like to sit down?"

You glance around at the numerous chairs in the room and look at him in amusement. His face burns scarlet. You scoot back from your perch on the edge of the bed and make yourself comfortable.

"Are you going to join me?" you ask. Now who's the presumptuous one?

Ralph all but leaps into his bed with you. The kissing is much easier when you don't have to worry about remaining upright. Take that, traitorous legs!

Your hands wander through Ralph's hair, down his neck, across his back. His roam from your face, to your sides, to your hips. Somehow, his leg slots itself between yours, and even through your dress, the friction makes you moan into his mouth.

Ralph pulls back in surprise. You feel as though you should apologize… but why? He wants this too, doesn't he? You stare at each other for a moment, chests heaving and lips hungry, unsure what to do next.

"If you want me out of this dress, you'll have to help me," you say eventually. Ralph's face splits into a grin, and he rolls out of bed. You follow, and he pulls you out and spins you around with a laugh.

"Why is this so complicated?" he grumbles as he fumbles with all the buttons and laces and layers. You laugh together until you're down to your chemise. You turn back around to help Ralph undress, but his jaw drops when he sees you. A wave of self-consciousness washes over you, standing there in a lacy little thing that's practically see-through, and you attempt to subtly cover yourself.

Ralph knows what you're doing. He takes your hands in his, letting the thin fabric reveal every curve, leaving you feeling exposed.

"Don't do that," he whispers. "You're perfect." He leans in to give you a soft kiss, more like your first than your most recent. It makes your body buzz just the same.

You help him shed his clothes as well, and fall back into bed together. Ralph guides you upward until your head rests on his pillow and looks down at you with an unexplainable look in his eye. Before you can begin to unpack his expression, his lips distract you with another kiss, and your hands gravitate toward his shoulders. Ralph's hands begin to roam your body again, but this time, they feel so large and warm with only your chemise separating them from your skin. You want them all over you.

You soon get your wish. Ralph's hand finds your bare leg, and rubs upward. He breaks your kiss to look to you for permission, and you nod. Ralph glances down and lets his hand drift into that place you want him most, and you both let out a puff of breath when he makes contact. You stare into each other's eyes as he slides a finger through the slick he's helped you create.

Your hips jerk when he circles that most sensitive spot, and he removes his hand. Before you can protest, he raises it to his lips and licks it clean. You don't know how to react, but you don't have long to ponder. Ralph leans back down and kisses you again, letting you taste yourself via his tongue.

Your brain is on fire.

You moan again, completely by accident, and he grinds his hips against you to let you feel how aroused he is. You want desperately to reach down and stroke him, but what would he think about that?

You roll your hips against his, and it's his turn to moan. You need him. You need him inside you, right now, like you've never needed anything else in your entire life.

"Ralph," you beg. "Please."

Ralph hurriedly hikes your chemise up to your hips and settles between your legs, pulling his shorts out of the way. He looks to you one last time for permission.

"Ralph," you breathe, eyes pleading.

He reaches down to line himself up with your entrance, and slowly brings his his hips forward. You feel him stretching you, and close your eyes and clench the covers in your hands. When he's fully inside, you open your eyes. His elbows rest on either side of you, and he looks down at you with concern.

You smile up at him and try not to cry.

You're not hurt.

You've just never felt this way before.

You reach out to touch the side of his face, and he leans into your hand. You stroke his cheek with your thumb. His eyes close.

And then you give a slight roll of your hips, and he springs back into action.

Ralph begins rocking into you. He maintains eye contact at first, when it's gentle and slow, but when his pace and intensity increase, his head moves to the crook of your neck. You hold him to your chest, gasping and moving with his frantic thrusts, until you can't handle it anymore. Your back arches, your eyes close, and pleasure washes over you as Ralph keeps up his inhuman pace. His release soon follows, and he collapses on top of you.

You lie there and stroke his hair absentmindedly, eyelids heavy and body feeling as though it's made of lead.

"Are you alright?" he mumbles.

"I'm alright," you answer, still running your fingers through his hair.

Alright is an understatement. You've never felt better in your life.

You spent the rest of the evening in Ralph Penbury's bed. You skipped dinner, deciding you'd rather consume each other than anything the cooks had prepared tonight. You never wanted to leave him. When you were with him, you felt… happy. Present. Alive. Like life was worth living, and everything was going to be alright.

All your life, you'd felt inadequate somehow. Like you were never quite good enough. Teachers pushing you to get better grades. Your mother nagging you to be more like the other girls. Donald wanting you to…

It hits you like a ton of bricks.

You're engaged.

When you get back to the States in four days, you'll be expected to go home and start planning a wedding.

A wedding to a man you feel nothing for. You'd thought for the longest time that there was something wrong with you. If Donald Andrews is as perfect as everyone says he is, why did you feel nothing for him? Were you broken inside? Were you incapable of love?

A few days with Ralph Penbury had blown that theory out of the water.

You gaze at the boy sleeping on his stomach next to you and try not to cry. He's so beautiful, so kind, so imaginative. He's perfect. But he's not yours. He'll never be yours, because you cannot be his.

What would a sweet person like Ralph want with a lying, unfaithful harlot like you, anyhow?

He opens his eyes and catches you staring. He smiles and stretches.

"Why d'you look so sad?" he asks, eyes barely open.

Do you tell him? Is honesty really the best policy? Do you want to break this poor boy's heart again?

"Our trip is nearly over," you lament, reaching out to smooth his messy hair.

"Doesn't have to be," he yawns, nuzzling his face into the pillow.

How you wish he were right.

"Ralph, in four days, we'll dock in New York. And then you and I will part ways, and go on about our lives."

Sadness flashes through Ralph's eyes.

"But we have four more days," you keep talking, knowing that if he protests, you'll cave. You'll tell him anything he wants to hear. "And I want to spend as much time as I can with you."

Ralph gets a tragic look on his face, like his internal battle is raging as fiercely as yours. "I understand," he eventually says. "I want that too. To be with you, as much as possible. While we still can."

Part of you had been hoping that he'd put up a fight. Beg you to love him, to stay with him, to marry him on this ship tonight and become his forever. And you? You'd have done it, consequences be damned.

But even Ralph, the most romantic person you've ever met, knows that this isn't permanent. You both have lives waiting for you on shore. What if he has someone waiting for him, too?

The thought breaks your heart.

You lean forward for a kiss, hoping that Ralph's magic lips will provide enough healing to get you through the night.

"It's getting late," you sigh when you pull away. His heart's not in it either. "I should probably get back to my room before my aunt beats your door down."

Ralph smiles, but it doesn't reach his eyes. "Need help getting back into your two thousand layers of clothing?"

"Yes, please," you answer, leaning over to kiss the tip of his nose.

He helps you back into your clothes, and you help him button his shirt. It's the longest silence you've experienced with him since the night you ruined Victoria's game.

"You don't have to walk me back," you tell him, even though he's already mostly dressed.

"Nonsense," he says, leaning down to tie his shoes. "A lady ought not be wandering alone at nighttime." Your heart pangs with the memory of the night that bonded you, and a tear threatens to spill from the corner of your eye. Why does this have to hurt so much?

Ralph holds up a finger in a wait-one-second gesture and pokes his head out the door. After ensuring that the coast is clear, he reaches for your hand. You take it and step into the hallway.

"There you are!"

Your heads whip toward the shrill voice. Victoria has just rounded the corner, clearly drunk, being supported by Georgina.

"I knew you'd found a strumpet somewhere, but I didn't think it'd be that one," she said, as though you weren't standing there looking right at her.

You don't know what to do, so you stand there, frozen, at Ralph's side.

"I thought you weren't looking for romance," she smirks, turning her attention to you. "Knew you were on the wrong side of that game. But you can't switch sides now! You entered under false princes! Princesses!"

"Pretenses!" Georgina supplies helpfully.

You hazard a glance at Ralph out of the corner of your eye, and your heart plummets through the floor. He looks devastated.

You shake your head, hoping he knows you weren't playing with him. You ruined their game! You ended it the night you exposed Nora on the bench! You saved him from further humiliation! You were with him because you wanted to be!

"She's engaged, you know. To some hayseed back on the farm. She couldn't even afford a first-class ticket on her own. She's a maid for her old aunt. Bet she thought she'd get away with a piece of jewelry and buy her family a house!"

Victoria and Georgina guffaw with laughter, and your heart continues to sink.

"Ralph," you begin, not knowing what to say next.

His eyes fill with tears, and he takes off down the hallway.

"Ralph!" you call, taking a step to go after him. "I can explain!" Victoria and Georgia shift to the side and block your way.

"Oh, look, another game ends with Ralph in tears," Victoria snarks. "What a refreshing change of place."

"Pace," Georgina corrects.

"How do you two sleep at night?" you spit.

"On feather pillows," Victoria smirks. "And you? Under whoever's desperate enough?"

The slap that you land on her face echoes through the hallway. She stares, jaw dropped and handprint blossoming. You stomp past her to look for Ralph.

After the third steward asks if you needed help finding your room, you retreat to it. Aunt Molly is already asleep. You fall into bed, still wearing your clothes, and cry yourself to sleep.

#writings of despair #ralphtanic #ralph penbury #ralph penbury x you #ralph penbury x reader #ralph timewasters

20 notes · View notes

floralcrematorium · 4 months

Text

OKAY WOW THERE WAS A VERY BIG POSITIVE RESPONSE TO THE TELEPHONE GAME, HI

FOLLOW THE TELEPHONE GAME BLOG! @hws-telephone

I thought about making a discord, but to be entirely honest, I really don't want to manage that. In hindsight it might be good for discussions and feedback's sake, but my moderator days are behind me (I used to be a discord and in-game mod for a Minecraft server and I think I would rather eat my hand than do that again.) We will. See.

PLEASE READ MY FOLLOWING THOUGHTS ABOUT THE EVENT! I would love to hear feedback, but I think this kind of event may have to be a trial and error sort of situation. I've never hosted an event before and this is one that will move semi-fast. I will also need to be holding decent communication with people!

• Skill level does not matter. Anyone is allowed to participate regardless of their skill level or materials of choice, so long as those who work traditionally are able to get clear/well lit photos of their submission

• I will need to hold an experimental round capped at 5-7 participants. I do not know how long I should give people to complete their part. Life gets in the way and I know not everyone is fast (I am very much not fast). However, considering there will be a large number of participants, we gotta get moving! I think as of right now, everyone would have 3-5 days to complete their parts, and if they need an extension they get 2 days. If we need more time, that's possible! THE FIRST SIX PEOPLE TO FILL OUT THE GOOGLE FORMS (linked further in the post) WILL BE CONTACTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE EXPERIMENTAL ROUND.

• Once we get into it, there could be a short-format and long-format group? Short format being people only get 1-3 days to work while long-format gets a week? The different groups differ based on complexity? Unsure. Need community feedback on this. OR we could just have two separate groups co-running so people don't have to wait forever to play.

• GOOGLE FORMS SUBMISSION HERE FOR PARTICIPANTS

• Once I have The Participants, their usernames will be ordered randomly and that'll be the order the drawing is passed around.

• If this is an event with multiple rounds... Maybe each round has a different theme? I know I have different groups of people following me (off the top of my head, FrUK, FACE fam, and Nordic centric blogs in particular). I think the first round will just be using my design for Nyo!Austria because I'm interested to see if we use a character whose clothing isn't able to be referenced by a quick google search, how that will be affected by the telephone. Unsure.

• I will start the experimental round and the very first Big Round. Other people can volunteer to be the starting artist in the future!

• No posting your submission until the end of the round!!! This is very important. The point of a telephone is you only know what the person right before you did!

• When it comes to someone's turn, I will be reaching out via Tumblr DM (or through another contact method if that is preferred). I'm considering asking someone to co-host this event with me for organization's sake, but I don't. Really have someone to do that. So!

If there's anything else we need to talk about, throw it in the replies!!! This is really going to be a trial and error kinda event until we get it down! Ideally, this would be a fun year round project/event!

BELOW THE CUT IS JUST ME TAGGING EVERYONE WHO REPLIED TO/REBLOGGED THE ORIGINAL POST

Hi, you replied to/reblogged the interest check so you get Priority News that there is a telephone game sideblog to follow @hws-telephone and that if you're still interested there is a submissions post pinned to the blog.

THE FIRST SIX RESPONSES WILL BE CONTACTED FOR THE EXPERIMENTAL ROUND.

@doodlin-moons @hws-lceland @ironic-orange @vikingosten @soulsembers @yaqamole @dappy-dappernette @losnordiquitos @tema-makes-art-sometimes @dandelion-coffee-bear @spiritmoon23 @genpaele @astrophilic-soul @batataaurdoodh @the-heaminator @krazys-ass-emporium @sixcatsinajacket @hoasens @wackylittlegal @starsilversword @untitled-kitsune @2p-nyotalia

#hetalia #hetalia fandom #hetalia event #hetalia fanart #hetalia telephone game

22 notes · View notes

yourlocalnerd07 · 2 months

Text

So about that post I made about CoHost

Turns out it was all a fucking lie. Check out Kaara's response. This was a complete lapse in my judgement and I am fully to blame. My sincerest apologies.

Oh, and please get cohost plus to support CoHost especially after this whole incident. (it's at the bottom of the settings page which is linked.

Instructions on how to get mastodon are still below if you'd like to hop on early!

So about that CoHost....

So uhhh. One of the cohost peeps turned out to be uhhh not a cool person. I only found out about this after a mutual brought it up to my attention when they showed me a post.

If any of my mutuals are still here, get off of cohost and add me on the fediverse. My handle is @[email protected] and you can add me by clicking the follow button and entering your instance name, or going to your home page and typing in that handle into the search bar.

If you have no idea about Mastodon or the fediverse and just want an account, I suggest making an account at wetdry.world. If you want a similar experience to transfem.social but don't feel comfortable joining that instance, there is of course lethallava.land, and you can still add me on there to get notifications for my posts. There's some brief information on this page about some aspects of mastodon, but you can always feel free to send me a DM on Tumblr if you need any help with anything!

Now, you may be asking, "How is the fediverse going to solve this?" Well the thing about it is there is no one central company or server to run it all, it's an interconnected web of servers, each with their own rules and governance. If that all sounds confusing to you, don't worry! You don't need to think about it. It just means that there's less likely to be controversy and messy migrations. Migrating from one instance to another is as easy as clicking one button and all your followers get copied over automagically.

Juuuust as a reminder: I'll be sticking here on Tumblr for the time being. I don't see this changing any time soon because I'm stubborn as a stick. They're not getting rid of me or any of the others. They can try if they want to, but I won't let them win. I'll at least give them a fight. I just want to give you guys a way to still connect to me if I get banned or we truly lose this site. Additionally, the fediverse isn't quite so mature yet. There is no good Tumblr-like experience and the closest thing, wafrn (wiki), is still in development. But the seeds are sown, and so I will wait patiently until they ripen and once they do, that's when I jump ship (But that'll be so long in the future, you won't have to worry about me leaving. I'll probably still be here, though, for the foreseeable future)

Feel free to spread this around to your mutuals to share the news MASSIVELY IMPORTANT UPDATE and help them get on the fediverse, a more permanent solution. I've archived the pages in the first paragraph in case they disappear, just add "https://web.archive.org/web/*/" to the beginning of the URL.

19 notes · View notes

imtrashraccoon · 2 months

Text

What do you guys think of a multiverse that is connected through various oneshots?

I was brainstorming today for how to write a oneshot with our favourite monochromatic pal (can you guess who?) as the focus and I realized that I can connect it to another long fic I've been hyper focused on lately.

It occurred to me that some of the other oneshots I've written for my blorbos (like Baston, G!Sans, and even Classic Papyrus) could theoretically take place in the same multiverse. Unless I write follow ups that include hints to it though, it doesn't matter.

So, this oneshot is technically going to hint at a future plot point in The Nightmare of Apathy. I'm just so excited that I couldn't wait until I finish writing and post it to tell you guys. It will also tease a few characters that'll make an appearance later on in the story.

I swear I'm obsessed with Nightmare guys. All I want to do is write about him and I'm seriously debating writing another random oneshot for him to sate me. I don't think he would mind having a simp an adoring fan though...

#raccoons rambles #i love coming up with fun stuff!#oh and it's totally core!frisk...#how many black and white undertale characters can you name anyways?#i'd put more here because the LORE is coming out of my ears!#but spoilers would ruin any big reveals and i've probably already partially ruined it with this post

14 notes · View notes

sussysatann · 8 months

Text

MY THOUGHTS - HALLOWEEN EVENT: SPECTRAL SOIREE

[Spoilers for a Twisted Halloween: Spectral Soiree under the cut!!]

OKAY, SO...

I started playing TWST around February/March time this year, so I haven't been able to play the first Halloween event from last year. Though I'm missing context from what happened in the previous event, I still enjoyed playing through the story. There were some good moments during the story and really seemed like the stakes were high, but I can't help feel that the ending diminished that and left me feeling unsure. The ending twistune was super cute! It was nice seeing everyone come together and I did find the ending humorous, but also wished it had leaned into those high stakes more and have actual consequences for it?

I haven't seen many people posting about this event. I thought there'd be more posts about it since it's a new second part - I didn't realise until much later on that the EN server already had the event later last year. Why would they re-release it in August?? It's such a strange choice, but I've seen many people theorize they did it to prepare for the Masquerade event, which might be next (I will scream if it is i have been SO EXCITED to play this!!) and will hopefully happen either in September or October. We will have to wait and see...

Anyways,

Short story short, I liked the event. The never-ending Halloween concept was super cool and the ghost fights and possessions really upped the stakes, making for a really suspenseful and fun story. There were several memorable moments throughout, one of my favourites being when Leona and Ace were trying to get Floyd to not touch a possible dangerous artifact and Ace questioning Leona's entire party boat story afterwards. I really loved the group pairings in the spectral realm, it was so nice to see the different dynamics and interactions they had with one another. Riddle, Ruggie and Ortho's conversations about adventures and puzzles were so sweet!

Speaking of puzzles and escape rooms...

I can't help but feel a little bit pissed off at Lilia and Malleus for putting them through all this. But then again, they didn't know what was going down behind the scenes and weren't informed of the ghost fights, so they're not entirely in the wrong for that.

But they DID make it incredibly cryptic in the worst way possible, to the point where even the teachers were concerned. Students vanishing into thin air, appearing to be kidnapped, is not something that'll get taken lightly. Especially when Lilia was yelling outside Silver's dorm, seemingly getting kidnapped too. That really must've fucked him up, especially since no-one else heard him scream. I felt so sorry for him - he genuinely thought his father was in danger the entire time, only to find out he was helping Malleus host a grand party for the ghosts. Obviously I'm glad they ended up being okay but MAN that wasn't fair on him. Sebek as well - they both thought Lilia and Malleus were in peril and were so genuinely distraught over the whole situation, it made me pretty annoyed that they didn't think through Silver and Sebek's reaction to something like this.

On the one hand, it was the ghosts' fault for fighting and possessing students. On the other hand, Malleus and Lilia are also to blame for the setup of the 'prank'. And on the other other hand it was also technically the students' fault for fighting the ghosts in the first place, but when you're put into such a seemingly dangerous and unpredictable situation, you go straight into fight or flight mode. I don't blame them for reacting the way they did.

That aside, I also kinda wished that the event was actually that dangerous, that Lilia and Malleus really WERE possessed. Imagine if there was an actual boss fight. An actual enemy. Someone who genuinely DID want an eternal Halloween, and needed the mirror shards to create a mirror portal to the human realm and take over even more bodies of the living. A ghost uprising if you will.

Imagine the teachers and the few survivors having to fight off an entire army of possessed students with a genuine intent to harm.

Imagine Malleus and Lilia being genuine threats and holding the prefect and Grim captive while everyone is trying to fight back without overblotting.

...That might be a little overkill.

BUT.

It would've been interesting to see actual consequences arise from this. I can especially imagine the prefect being really affected by the Spectral Realm.

They're already in a world that's not their own, so being thrown into that world's literal afterlife would really mess them up - whether emotionally or maybe even physically. Maybe they get really sick once they get back, maybe they were (unknowingly?) on the verge of disappearing permanently. Maybe that's why they were so worried about joining Malleus and Lilia. Because they were scared of what could happen to them, Grim not really understanding that. I love that Ace was so concerned about them both, he really is a great friend and I kinda wished these concerns were brought up a bit more.

Anyways, if you've made it this far thank you for reading!!

Feel free to add on to this, I'd love to know your thoughts and opinions! ♡

#this event kinda reminded me of the Masked event from obey me in a way #especially with the way it ended #twisted wonderland #twst mc #twst yuu #twst malleus #malleus draconia #twst lilia #lilia vanrouge #twisted wonderland yuu #twst silver #twisted wonderland silver #twst sebek #twisted wonderland sebek #sebek zigvolt #twst #twst wonderland

32 notes · View notes

thesugarclubs-blog · 1 year

Text

More to the Story - Bucky Barnes x OC

warnings: post-tfatws, fluffy bucky barnes, strangers to lovers, grumpyxsunshine

word count: 11.1 k

WP: https://www.wattpad.com/1334925555-more-to-the-story-priya

Masterlist

It was only nine in the morning and Bucky Barnes was already losing his mind.

His phone woke him up, ringing obnoxiously loud enough to wake even the neighbors. Bucky had heard air raid sirens that weren't that aggressive. After a lot of grumbling from the super soldier and supportive yowling from Alpine, he'd figured out how to turn the volume down. Except now the vibrations had started, rattling against the glass coffee table Bucky had just put together last week and interrupting the little bit of peace he enjoyed every morning after he woke. There were only a hundred pages left in The Two Towers, the second installment of a series by Tolkien he was still waiting to be able to read, and Bucky intended on finishing before noon.

He called Sam in confusion, reluctant but eager to eliminate the source of his irritation. Why the hell did he even need a phone, especially one made almost entirely of very breakable and vibranium arm susceptible glass, was just one of the questions Bucky asked himself as Sam walked into the apartment. Or who Bucky thought was Sam.

"I'm here to save the day, gramps!" Peter Parker exclaimed as he entered, a broad smile on his expressive face. He was dressed for class, a black backpack on his shoulders, with jeans and a t-shirt that matched.

Pushing his sunglasses onto the top of his head, Peter held out his hand, ignoring Bucky's confused state.

"What are you doing here?" Bucky groaned as he passed Peter the object of his annoyance.

"Well, Cap texted me, said he was busy and that you needed help," Peter replied, tapping at the screen. "Can't say I'm not disappointed it isn't, I don't know, aliens or terrorists, but setting a phone to "do not disturb" is pretty cool too, I guess."

Bucky scoffed and suppressed a smirk, the kid's eagerness never failing to remind him of Steve. A low whistle from Peter made Bucky snap out of his thoughts and furrow his brow.

"What? Why did you do that?" Bucky asked, reaching to swipe the phone and failing at being faster than someone for once.

Peter's eyes went wide and he couldn't hide his amusement, the corners of his under eyes crinkling. Holding out the phone towards Bucky, the young man scrolled through row after row of unread messages in Bucky's inbox.

"Dude, you have, like, a million emails! Have you ever checked this thing?!"

"Give me that," Bucky growled, this time succeeding in snatching the phone from his grasp. "And don't call me dude."

Peter snickered and ran a hand through his dark curls, walking back from the living room to the door.

"Well, Mr. Barnes, it's been fun but I gotta run to class. Hopefully, that'll help and seriously, check the emails. Maybe you'll find something cool!"

Bucky grunted, scrolling through the app Peter had pulled up as the door clicked closed. He would have to remember to tell the kid thank you whenever he wasn't so goddamn irritated. Messages filled the screen, all promotions and requests for photo ops and interviews. It was one mindless subject line after another until one caught his attention.

"Request to Interview: Bucky Barnes"

It struck him as strange, someone using his nickname in one of these requests rather than his official name, James. He deemed that his excuse for clicking on the message, an email based out of the New York Times.

He scanned through the text, the tone of the message professional yet somehow lighthearted, asking him if he would consent to an interview. It would be “informal”, the request stated a quiet chat over a nice lunch. Bucky grunted once more but this time in amusement as the sender quipped that the Times would even foot the bill for the food. There was an electronic signature at the bottom of the mail, Priya Abalan, a picture that was too small to see on his phone screen and of course, he couldn’t remember how to do the finger thing to enlarge the image.

He held the phone closer to his face, trying to make out the woman’s appearance. He heard that name before but he never got a face to match it. From what he could see, she had dark long hair that was slightly curled and tanned skin - that’s it.

For a second he thought about just deleting the email but then he heard Sam in the back of his head, saying he should get his head out of his ass and socialize some more. Maybe he was right for once, and well, from what Bucky heard about Priya, she used to do professional interviews with lots of famous people, mostly politicians, so it couldn’t be that bad.

Bucky stared at his phone for a minute longer before he groaned and hit reply. “Goddammit, Sam,” he said under his breath.

Ms. Abalan, he started, moving as fast as his big finger would allow him on such a small keyboard.

“I could mail a letter faster,” he grumbled but continued to type.

While I am honoured, your request to interview me appears to be misplaced. I’m doubtful that the people of New York want to read stories from the mouth of a mean war-torn old man. You’re better suited requesting the time of Captain America.

He signed his name and fumbled with the send button for a beat too long. The incompetence a blow to his ego.

“You’ve murdered aliens Bucky,” he mumbled to himself, “aliens!”

He tossed the phone to the coffee table and rubbed the frustration off his face with his hands. Completely defeated, until he heard the soft chime of a new email in his already crammed inbox.

That sound was going to get annoying fast, he thought to himself as he let out a short huff, reaching for the small box that was making noise. It was something he was still getting used to in this new world of freedom, that people could just contact him any time they wanted. The old him probably would have loved it, but this him after everything, liked the quiet during the day.

Still ignoring the long list of red dots in his email, Bucky clicked on the top notification, revealing a reply from that reporter already.

Maybe she had realized she'd emailed him by mistake.

Thank you for getting back to me, Mr. Barnes! I understand the hesitation with everything that's happened in recent years, but believe me when I tell you this is a story the city of New York would love. This is a story the city needs to hear and I truly believe they should hear it from you yourself before other news outlets run with rumours. Let me do you and your life some justice, you deserve that.

Bucky’s eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he read the message. He gaped at the screen and then shook his head, the comfortable frown settling across his forehead once more.

He typed then deleted, typed then deleted again, staring at his blank response in consternation.

“Well shit,” he said aloud as he typed once more and then tapped send.

Pinching the bridge of his nose he closed his eyes and let out a sigh as he slumped back into his couch. He was already regretting agreeing to the interview but he’d be damned if he knew how to unsend an email.

He received a response back from Priya, almost immediately, asking him if he would be able to meet her in an hour at the establishment of his choice. She expressed that she wanted him to feel comfortable and have an enjoyable lunch rather than be thrust somewhere he might not like.

Bucky responded back affirmatively and gave her the direction to Izzy's so they could meet there.

As soon as he sent his message, he got up from his couch and padded across the living room to the bathroom. Looking at himself in the mirror, he debated whether he should change into something a little dressier for lunch and made sure his hair wasn't doing the weird thing it did in the morning anymore where it flipped up in different directions.

He would never admit it to Sam but going out like this, out of his comfort zone, in a world he didn’t fit into, was nerve wracking for him. He didn’t really like it but he had to do it. He couldn’t live on like this forever, though his little apartment and his books were enough for him.

After doing his hair and changing into some new jeans and a dark dress shirt - Peter bought this for him, saying it would look “lit” on him (whatever he meant by that), he grabbed his bike keys and he felt something furry touching his leg.

He looked down to meet the gaze of his little white cat, Alpine.

“Hey girl, I’ll be back later okay?” He kneeled down and patted her with a soft smile on his lips. This cat was the best thing that happened to him after all the fights he’s been through. Besides Steve and Sam, Alpine was his best friend.

He locked the door behind him and made his way to the elevator, inhaling as deeply as he could before pressing the button.

He could do this.

The parking garage below his complex was pretty dead this time of day except for Lottie, the kind security guard that manned the front gate. Bucky pulled his bike up slowly to her gate.

“Oh look at you,” Lottie leaned out the door, “all handsome. Where do you think you're going looking like that?”

Bucky offered her a smile, she had that effect on him. “I have an interview,” he squeezed his legs tightly to the low rumble of his bike. Grounding himself to the feeling and giving himself something to hold onto while he battled his nerves.

“You’re gonna do great,” she encouraged. “Don’t forget to show her some of that Barnes charm!” Lottie lifted the gate for him.

“You’re the only woman in my life that gets that Lottie, you know that.” He pulled the bike from the garage into the warm sunlight and turned onto the busy New York street without hesitation.

The mixture between the sunlight and cool breeze that whipped past him as he rode seemed to calm the explosion of butterflies that threatened to take over his system. He'd done small interviews before but they were always focused on the fight or Steve and the rest of the team. This was the first one where he was asked about himself, and that was the scariest part.

Although he wasn't exactly sure what was going to be asked of him, thoughts of the Winter Soldier flashed in his mind. That was a point in his life he was not willing to relive, especially not to some reporter. Hell, he hadn't even spoken to his therapist about that fully.

Bucky did his best to switch his focus, mostly on the road but ideas of the reporter herself floated through. Her long dark hair and caramel skin, and what had looked like a bright, infectious smile. The corners of his mouth upturned at the thought of the small photo he'd seen of her.

"You got this, old man," he whispered to himself as his bike hummed to a slow stop in an alleyway beside the restaurant.

📰📰📰

Her heeled boots clicked along the sidewalk as she slipped away from the Uber she took over to Izzy's. Her recorder sat neatly in her bag, just in case Bucky was comfortable enough to let her use it. But if not, her small notebook would be more than enough for her profile. The idea wasn't to scare him off in any way, she just wanted to hear his true story and let the world see him for him, not whatever the government chose to put out there.

She was ecstatic this morning when she received the notification of his message back after a few days had gone by. She had worried that she might have been too eager in her initial message, or not enough to show she was serious about her request.

Priya pulled open the entrance to Izzy's and she quickly scanned the floor meeting Sergeant Bucky Barnes' bright but nervous blue eyes looking back at her sitting at the table by the window farther back. The restaurant wasn't too full but the table he chose was private enough that if it were to fill up they'd still be able to talk at a normal volume.

As she made her way to him, she saw him stand, stopping the anxious fidgeting with his metal fingers in the process and couldn't help but smile.

"Hi Sergeant Barnes, it is so wonderful to finally meet you," she voiced happily, extending her hand between them.

He responded with a quiet “hi”, shaking her hand rather quickly before he pulled her chair back to let her sit down. She was startled by his gesture, saying a quick thank you and sat down. He nodded in response and took his seat on the opposite side of her. His brows were furrowed as her eyes met his. She didn’t know if he was just nervous or if he didn’t like her - maybe it was both.

However, she tried not to let his behavior demolish her confidence and the plan she had for this interview.

"You can call me Bucky," he said, well he blurted.

"I'm sorry?" Priya fished her notebook from her bag, instantly knowing from his tense, pinned back posture that pen and paper would be the best approach.

She watched him carefully, setting the things down on the table beside her glass, which had already been filled with water much to her surprise. Sergeant Barnes, a true gentleman after all, she thought. She knew her contacts wouldn't steer her wrong. This interview was exactly what she had been waiting for. Refreshing honesty from a soldier's perspective.

"You called me Bucky in the email, you can... here too. I prefer it, I'm not that man anymore. The Sergeant." He swallowed thickly, his blue eyes clocking his nine and three as more people entered the restaurant.

It was obvious now that she’d noticed, the way his eyes would rapidly scan the room before returning to her and she felt a twinge of sorrow for him having led a life that had required him to be so vigilant that it was now an ingrained part of him.

Realising the silence might have been a little too long she nodded and widened her smile.

“Bucky it is,” she agreed. “Thank you again for meeting me, and at such short notice.”

Bucky made a grunt of acknowledgement and then seemed to check himself. He cleared his throat a little and the line between his brows deepened slightly before he spoke.

“You’re welcome.”

Priya looked around at the bar, a short walk from the subway station and in a part of Brooklyn that she never really had a chance to visit. The walls were a dark green, soft black accents and dim lighting that made her feel comforted. She wondered as she looked at the anxious hero in front of her if he received any small relief from the hole in the wall bar.

"At the risk of sounding like a bad pickup line," Priya said with a tinkling laugh. "do you come here often?"

Bucky chuckled back with a nervous smile and she beamed hoping she'd get to see more of that throughout their conversation.

"Quite a bit actually," he started, "I come to lunch with a um, an old friend here every week. Or used to, maybe we will again some day."

He pressed his lips into a tight line as his eyes fell back to the table and Priya felt a small pang in her chest.

"Did something happen between you two? And this is not for the profile or anything, but I'd love to hear more about your friend if you feel comfortable and it helps to talk about it..."

"There's a negative side to every story Ms. Abalan," Bucky said, his hand flexing against the table like a nervous tell. "My time spent here with Yori was spoiled by the crimes of the Winter..." he inhaled through his teeth and his jaw ticked.

"The Winter Soldier?" She asked and Bucky gave her a tight nod in response. "Listen, this interview is about you. I didn't ask for one with the man you were, I want a new perspective on who you are as a man now. The journey you took to get here. And please, call me Priya."

Bucky watched her for a moment longer, Priya just wishing she knew what was going on behind the icy glare. "Yori was a friend when I was acclimating to New York. The city you know, not the city I grew up in. The sounds," he inhaled again, puffing his chest and stretching out the muscles, "the lights and the crowds... the technology. It was too much. But Yori, he taught me how to navigate it."

"Do you mind?" She pointed to the notebook.

"It's what we're here for isn't it?" He offered her a tight smile.

She scribbled down words, thoughts, and he waited for her to finish but before she could question him again the waitress arrived at their booth to ask for their order.

“I haven’t even looked at the menu yet,” Priya chuckled, reaching for the laminated card, but then paused and looked up at Bucky, “unless you could recommend something? You’ve got to have a favourite, right?”

She almost laughed out loud at the expression on his face, he almost looked baffled. Pulling his bottom lip between his teeth in thought he hummed a little.

“The, ummm, the salmon and avocado temaki are good. Goes well with a beer.”

“Then let's go with that,” Priya smiled at the waitress before turning back to Bucky. “I trust you.”

Bucky’s eyes went wide at her statement, his cheeks flushed and he sighed almost like some relief washed over him at her words. His eyes drifted back to the table. Priya wondered when the last time someone expressed any kind of trust in him, especially a stranger.

He flagged down the waitress and she watched him as he ordered for them. The waitress seemed to know his usual order, down to the type of beer he liked to drink. She could tell that he was nervous. He kept flexing his hands, fiddling with his fingers. "Bucky..." She wanted to redirect him, make him more comfortable. "What do you do for fun?"

"Well," Bucky drawled as his eyebrows furrowed, the perplexed expression making Priya smile softly. "I like...to read?"

This time Priya couldn't contain her giggle and the grin she got in return from Bucky caused a surprising warmth to rise in her cheeks.

"Why did you phrase it like it was a question?" Priya asked with a tilt of her head, black waves falling over her shoulder.

"Because, I'm not sure if that's what normal people even do anymore," Bucky said with more enthusiasm than she expected, gesturing out the window. "All this technology and convenience, people don't slow down anymore. Don't take the time to just..."

"Read? Something calming and quiet, is that why it appeals to you?"

His blue eyes met her umber ones again and she felt that pull again. This wasn't planned. She was a professional and didn't get caught off guard easily. But here was James Barnes, making her blush in the middle of an interview with just a look.

"Yeah," he murmured, his voice raspy as he picked up his glass of water. "It gives me somewhere to escape to. Helps me think of times where everything was simpler."

Priya watched the flexing of his jaw as he took a few gulps from the glass and set it down.

"But I don't think your readers want to hear all about a boring old man and his books," Bucky laughed softly.

"Well, I've never cared what the readers wanted to hear," Priya replies sweetly, sipping from her own glass. "Only what they need to hear. And I feel like all of New York needs to hear more about you."

"That's encouraging," Bucky said, "do you...read?" He asked, his tone a little more lenient as he spoke.

Priya had the urge to chase the sound of that laughter, she liked the way it made his eyes soften and shoulders relax. "I'm a journalist, it's kind of my job. What's your favorite book?" She asked, straying a little further from her preplanned topics but curious about the man before her.

She had come into this interview with the expectations of meeting a hardened, battle-worn soldier but she was met by a book loving, sushi eating old man who looked at her like she was glowing. It made her feel warm, and seen for the first time in a while. Throwing elbows in the breakroom with a bunch of ancient white men who believed they were god's gift to earth had been leaving her feeling anxious and angry.

He dipped his head and Priya would even go so far as to say he looked bashful when he replied.

“There’s so many, I couldn’t pick just one. But at the moment I’m reading The Two Towers. It’s part of a series called…”

“The Lord of the Rings,” Priya finished with a smile. “It’s a good one. Have you seen the movies?”

She gasped slightly as Bucky raised himself out of his seat a little, his eyes going wide with surprise.

“They made them into movies?!” He exclaimed, and it was the most animated he’d been so far.

Priya let out a laugh, tilting her head back. "They're really good. About an entire day's worth of Frodo and the gang." Somehow his eyes went even wider, a child like quality washed over him that she could tell lived below his stony exterior. She didn't blame him for hiding it away, she only wished he would get more moments to show it.

"Are they as good as the books?" He asked with a raised brow. The corners of his mouth curled upwards into a grin as she smiled back at him.

"Just about."

Bucky leaned back into his chair, shaking his head gently. The excitement coming to a head. "The world has changed so much..." He breathed in a gentle laugh.

Priya watched with an inquisitive quirk of her brow as Bucky tilted in his seat and reached into his back pocket, pulling out a small notebook. Cover faded and pages worn, she could tell it was well used, flicked through and carried around.

“Sorry, I just—uh…” Bucky waved the book, “gotta write this down.”

She nodded in understanding as he opened it to a page half way through the book, a list already started, and he glanced up looking a little lost.

“You need a pen?”

“Please,” he smiled, reaching out when she held hers up for him to take. Their fingertips grazed as it was passed between them and Priya gasped softly at the touch. But then Bucky was writing and the moment had passed, instead she waited patiently as he scrawled onto the page.

Lord of the Rings - MOVIES.

She chuckled quietly as he underlined it twice.

"How long have you had that thing?" She asked.

There was other writing in it, mostly lists. Some of it was consistent with Bucky’s handwriting and some of it wasn’t. Blockier, less slanted to the right. Definitely not his.

She spotted more names: books, movies, public figures, and TV shows. Bucky’s face fell a little, sadness eclipsing it as it crept into his eyes. Suddenly, Priya felt like she shouldn’t have asked that question. She shook her head.

“We don’t—“

“No, it’s… it belonged to an old friend.” Bucky cleared his throat. “Kind of gave me a blueprint for coming back to the 21st century.”

He flipped it closed and tucked it back into his jacket, handing her the pen back with his left hand.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.” When she reached for it, the tips of their fingers brushed together.

Sparks. Butterflies. They were swarming her belly, almost tormenting it. She took a deep breath. Professional, Priya. Professional. Bucky’s cheeks reddened before he quickly withdrew his hand and reached for his water, taking a long drink.

Priya did the same and Bucky set his glass down.

“What else did you want to ask me?”

"Well... I want New York to know more about the real you, Bucky," She answered. "We know about the crime fighter, we should know about the man underneath all of that."

Priya clicked the back of her pen a couple of times as she looked down at the few notes that she'd made for herself. Why can't I think straight? I had all of this thought out before I sat down.

At that moment, the waitress stepped back up to the table with their order of food and sat it between them before giving Bucky his beer. "It's on the house today, Bucky. Don't even try to leave anything for it. You overpaid for your lunch yesterday."

Bucky tried to protest as Priya's eyes grew wide, looking up at the waitress.

"Does he do that often?" she asked the server, the girl's dark bob moving quickly as she nodded.

"Oh all the time," she continued, her eyes lighting up. "Our girls get cheated out of a lot of tips and Bucky never fails to make up for it. You picked a good one for a date, girl."

Before Priya could stammer out that this was not in fact a date, the waitress was making her way back to the bar. She looked embarrassed at Bucky, who was busy fixing his chopsticks to pick up the first roll of his lunch.

"Don't worry about it, she likes to tease me all the time." Bucky scoffed, waving his other hand slightly and he dug into his food. "Says I don't get out enough so she just assumed-"

"That's okay," Priya murmured softly, starting into her own food with butterflies in her stomach. "I don't mind."

"Don't mind what?" Bucky grinned and Priya saw the man in the photos at the museum for a brief moment. "The teasing or thinking this is a date?"

She flushed, feeling it high in her cheeks as she glanced down at her food.

“Either. Both.“ Priya looked back up and met Bucky’s widened but pleased eyes. “I figure she’s right anyways- I did pick a good one.”

Bucky stared at her, his eyes full of something that looked like gratitude, before he shifted his gaze down to his metal hand, flexing and clenching on the table. He quickly relaxed it when she looked, flattening it on the table and drumming his fingers.

“So, what uh- what else d’you wanna know?” Bucky asked, and Priya blinked a few times before looking at her notes again.

She was getting distracted by his looks and his charm, and that wouldn't do. Keep it together Priya, he's handsome, like real old time handsome. Open the doors for you and bring you flowers handsome, but you gotta focus on the interview first!

She looked over her notes, searching for what she should ask next, before finally settling on, "I'm sure you've faced a lot of changes, what's your favorite, well, anything, that you've encountered in the 21st Century?"

When she looked up, Bucky was looking at her, curious but contemplative.

"Honestly one of the first things that comes to mind is food which probably sounds ridiculous," he said with a shy laugh.

"Hey I love food, so I'm all for that answer."

Priya gave him a reassuring smile, urging him to go on.

"Well back when I was young I liked food too and my ma made this great cobbler anytime she could but that was a once in a while thing. Then in the war and before I um- well before I became me again, I mostly just ate whatever field ration was available just to survive, you know?" he took a swig of his beer and continued, "Now I can actually enjoy it."

"What kind of cobbler?" She asked him, genuinely wanting to know the answer.

"Peach," he smiled, "but I'd eat cobbler with just about any fruit."

"You like fruit?" She jotted down and slipped the pen between her teeth.

"Have you ever eaten a meal out of a can? The field rations tend to be slimy, and taste worse than a bullet between your teeth." He described to her, "coming home, getting the freedom to eat whatever you wanted. Fruit, it's the opposite, juicy and sweet. Erases some of the memories of tin from my mind."

"You're nothing like they describe," she sighed, staring across at him she realized that underneath all that scary stuff that the news outlets had spewed was just a young man trying to figure it all out after having it all taken from him.

She watched as Bucky's muscles tensed under his dark dress shirt at her comment. Even her boss was very reluctant to let her come to this interview alone, but something deep within herself made her believe that this was a story worth telling.

“Thanks…” Bucky mumbled, taking a long swig of his beer.

Priya watched him carefully, a soft smile lifting its way onto her plump lips, “you really are a good man, Bucky, I mean it.”

Her heart leapt at the blush that crept across his face and he busied himself with the food, pushing the plate of sushi towards her so that she could make the first selection.

“So the sushi then, that was obviously new to you. What did you think of it?” She asked, using her chopsticks to pick up one of the temaki.

“When Yori first suggested it I was dubious, you know?” Priya nodded and he continued, “but I liked it. Maybe it’s the company too, first Yori, now you…”

It was Priya’s turn to blush at his words but he continued to speak.

“You just gotta watch out for that wasabi crap. I thought I was gonna die. You shouldn’t be able to feel food in your damn nostrils!” He shook his head in exasperation and Priya couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled out of her throat.

His eyes flicked up to her, that charmed smile forming on his lips once again. Another wave of warmth coursed through her at the gesture.

"Wasabi is like your Kryptonite then I suppose." She grinned, picking out one of the sashimi rolls, placing it between her lips feeling the weight of his gaze on her.

Bucky cleared his throat, realizing that he was staring although she didn't quite mind it. Keep it professional Abalan. "Krypto-what?"

She smiled, covering her mouth to swallow, "Superman?"

He shook his head softly, "He's a comic book character. Strong, super speed, super hearing, among other things," Priya continued, "Kind of like you, but he can fly--" Her brows knit together, "You can't fly can you?"

Bucky chuckled, shaking his head, "No, Cap flies. I prefer two feet on the ground."

Priya nodded before continuing, "well, he's got one weakness, it's called Kryptonite. Some alien crystal thing... but he's also just trying to live as a normal human man, so I'm sure he's got more than just that."

He considered her words carefully, "Are you comparing me to Superman?" He breathed a laugh, shoving another roll into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully.

"You two are similar..." She smiled, "I prefer the real thing though."

“You always such a sweet talker when you interview people?”

He caught her eye and Priya glanced down, not sure how to handle the twinkle in his soft blue irises, or the way his lips curved into a smirk — teasing in every sense.

Bucky was oozing the charm that the old stories told of, and nothing like the recent reports. She felt a small glimmer of pride over that, that he felt he could relax a little more than usual in her company, given the circumstances.

“Gotta be sometimes,” Priya replied truthfully. She glanced at her open notebook, pen laid across the page untouched since their food arrived. “But I haven’t written a single thing down in the past ten minutes so I’m not sure if we can class this as an interview anymore.”

When Priya raised her eyes from her notebook, they found his blue ones staring at her. Her lip upcurved a little and she quickly grabbed one of the sushi rolls with her chopsticks.

Bucky watched her every move, before copying her and grabbing a sushi roll himself.

"I could live with that." he mumbled with a shy smile, before placing the roll in his mouth with ease.

"You're rocking the chopsticks, Bucky." Priya commented on his movements.

"Oh you should have seen my first try, doll." he responded before a grumbling laughter escaped his throat.

Priya felt the butterflies in her stomach again and she couldn't stop herself from laughing with him. "Yeah, first times are always embarrassing." she chuckled.

"Oh, yes. Should have seen me trying to order a coffee at Starbucks the first time. I've seen high-tech stuff in Wakanda, but none of that was as complicated as Starbucks. After the fourth weird question, I literally ran out of the building and never entered a Starbucks again."

“So not a coffee guy then.”

“No, I am,” he laughed. “I just… latte, cappuccino, cold foam… what the hell is all that stuff? I just want a black coffee in one of those little paper cups with the shitty lids.”

“The ones that burn your hand because the paper’s too thin?”

He pointed at her, his eyes lighting up.

“That’s a real New York cup of coffee. Gotta be tough to even carry the damn thing.”

Priya chuckled and shook her head.

“Well, I like lattes usually, but after a really long night out, I could get on board with an old fashioned bodega cup of coffee. And one of those greasy breakfast sandwiches.”

Bucky’s eyes rolled back and he let out a groan.

“They’re the best. I could live on those things.”

She chuckled. The more he opened up, the more she didn’t really care about the interview. She just wanted to get to know him. There was so much bullshit out there about him in the press. Assumptions, things that didn’t match up at all with the gorgeous blue-eyed man sitting in front of her. He was charming and funny, and the little nickname he dropped oh so casually made her heart skip a few beats.

Priya fell silent and picked up another sushi roll. Bucky did the same and she took a deep breath as she chewed.

“What’s been the hardest adjustment for you? Outside of running screaming out of a Starbucks and never coming back?”

“I didn’t scream,” Bucky retorted as she giggled. But the question made him suddenly contemplative, pain clouding his features. “But, if you want the honest answer, I’d have to say… that coming back to all of this felt like walking into a party that nobody wanted me to come to.”

Her brows scrunched.

“What do you mean?”

“Just… after everything I did… it’s hard to get people to—“ He cleared his throat. “Accept you. I felt like an alien. Everything I did, everything I said was all wrong. Everyone I knew was gone except for Sam," his eyes misted with tears that he blinked away in an instant. "I didn't think about how lonely it would be."

Priya frowned softly and without thinking, reached to rest one hand over his metal hand, ignoring the coolness she felt. "Bucky... I know whatever I say doesn't really help the matter. But I'm doing my best to change that if I can."

She ran her thumb over the back of his hand, glad that he hadn't pulled away from her yet. "I've been to the museum and I know what you've been through... from the stories..." her words and her thoughts were getting tangled.

Priya sat up, shaking her head, starting to pull her hand away. “I’m sorry, I just mean-“ Bucky caught her hand in his, gentle but keeping her from withdrawing.

“Thank you,” he said quietly but earnestly, blue eyes fixed on her dark ones. Priya felt her heart stutter a beat, and she nodded, realizing a beat too late that Bucky had released her hand. She pulled it back, grabbing her pen and spinning it between her fingers, nervous excitement bubbling within her.

"You know," Bucky started, then hesitated, poking at his food for a moment before he started again.

"You know, I thought this would be horrible. But you're, uh, you're nice," His voice dropped to almost a whisper, so Priya had to lean forward to hear his next words, "You have a nice voice."

Priya felt the heat crawl up her neck and over her cheeks, "Really?"

“Yeah, it’s beautiful,” Bucky’s face softened and he blinked slowly. Smiling, he added “your accent reminds me of someone I knew once, a long time ago.”

Priya lost herself in his eyes. They glistened with such emotion as he remembered. She wondered if the person he was thinking of had been an old flame or a lost love. She took a breath, ready to speak, when he spoke again.

“Your voice is softer though. More soothing,” he refocused himself on the dwindling platter between them, “I could listen to you talk all day.”

Priya’s face flushed as she watched him casually place another roll into his mouth. His cheeky grin closed around the rice as he watched her. This 40’s boy had not lost one iota of his charm.

"Perhaps I should be asking you the questions."

“Perhaps…” she said in a softer tone as she looked at him through her lashes, catching him getting flustered at her flirty look. “But maybe not today…today shouldn’t be about me.”

“Oh, so you’re assuming there’s gonna be a next time then?” Now Bucky was the one who got into his flirting skills, raising one eyebrow and pushing his tongue against his cheek as he leaned forward on the table.

“We’ll see,” she said confidently, her eyes not leaving his.

“Can’t wait,” he smiled as he leaned back again and got back to his sushi.

They ate in silence for a minute or two but it wasn’t awkward, which surprised her. Priya had always read about people “making eyes at each other” and now she finally knew what they meant by it. A whole conversation was held between them without a word being uttered until Bucky’s gaze turned mischievous, his eyes crinkling at the corners.

He leaned across the table and slid Priya’s notebook towards himself. Flipping to a new page he tapped the pen against the pad a couple of times and spoke, his mouth twitching into a charming smile.

“So, Ms Abalan, if you could describe your ideal date, what would it be?”

Priya watched the confidence wash over him in beautiful waves. The light of the bar glistened against the flecks of gray in his eyes, making it extremely hard to answer the question without saying, this.

She sucked in a deep breath, leaning back into her chair as a smile formed across her lips. "Well, it would start out with dinner," Priya grinned when the pen started moving across her pad.

"Hmm, okay go on," he grinned up at her.

Priya laughed softly, "you're very eager Mr. Barnes," his tongue flicked over his bottom lip forcing her eyes to watch before flicking back up to his own. He rolled the pen silently asking her to keep going, "alright, alright..." she conceded, "after dinner we'd take a walk by the waterfront, the lights are beautiful at night."

The pen stopped for a moment as he looked back up at her, "We?"

It was her turn to grin at him.

"Then--" She said ignoring his question, "enjoying one of those bodega coffees on the walk home."

Priya watched her pen dance across the page before Bucky finished up the last bullet point with a flourish of the word ‘coffee’.

“Looks like a pretty good date to me,” he breathed, “could I maybe add one thing?”

“I thought this was my ideal date?” Priya teased, and Bucky scrunched his nose in playful rebuttal.

“Humour me, sweetheart? We’re off topic as it is.”

And she couldn’t resist the happy crinkles at the corner of his baby blues if she tried as she gestured with her hand for him to continue.

“Make it dinner and a movie. You talk at dinner, you get to sit close in the movie theatre, or couch if you do that — what is it they call it… Netflix and chill?”

Priya laughed as Bucky wiggled his eyebrows and her belly flipped. An all encompassing feeling of ‘this could be something good’ simmering through her limbs as they fell into a companionable silence.

"You know what Netflix and chill means, right?" she laughed while watching his brows knit in confusion while tilting his head a little.

"Yeah, watching a movie on the television. Through the internet. Isn't it?" he asked while quickly grabbing his own notebook to note down her explanation.

"Actually..." Priya started but struggled to hold back her laughter. "... it's more like ignoring the movie and having... you know... sex instead."

Bucky had started writing down every word Priya said, but before he could write the word "sex" his eyes raised and he looked at her.

His eyebrows slowly raised, his lips pulling apart.

"Oh. OH." he mumbled, his cheeks cherry red while he quickly closed his notebook and put it in the pocket of his jacket again.

"That would be a lot for a first date, huh?" he added, trying to hide his embarrassment as best as possible.

"Yeah. But dinner plus watching a movie for real sounds like a pretty amazing date." Priya said, trying to change the topic and make him feel comfortable again.

"Would you be up for that?" Bucky asked, his facial expression a mixture of excitement and fear.

"Absolutely!" she answered almost immediately with a big grin on her face.

Bucky’s lips twitched in a smile, beaming back at her. “Wh-when would you like to go out? I mean, we didn’t really get to do much of an interview… I uh… could answer more questions for you.”

“I mean… it wasn’t dinner, but I’m not busy now,” Priya said, grinning widely as he stood up, walking behind her and pulling her chair out with her nod. Bucky made a wide gesture with his metal arm.

“Shall we take a walk?” he asked, a crooked smile on his face as Priya tucked away her things, picking up her bag and sliding out of her chair.

She could feel Bucky’s hand light on her lower back as he guided her out of the restaurant, saying goodbye to the waitress. As they stepped onto the sidewalk, Bucky offered her his arm, and she smiled, turning to look up at him, his eyes scanning their surroundings.

The afternoon weather was perfect for a stroll through the local park. Bucky led Priya along the winding paths as they talked and laughed. She enjoyed getting to know more about him, and the more she shared about herself, the more comfortable he became, opening up to her like a blooming flower nurtured by her presence.

Bucky talked about what Brooklyn was like back when he was a teenager and, at Priya’s request, talked about his family, but she never once asked about the war. She wanted to know all of the parts of him that existed now – some of which were remnants from his youth – not the parts he wished he could forget. Never those darker parts.

When the shadows grew longer and the afternoon turned to a cool evening, Bucky walked Priya to a quaint little hole-in-the-wall café for a hot cup of coffee. The kind that almost burned you through the cup, just as they had discussed. Everything about him was alluring. She knew she should have kept it professional but being with him was effortless, and so refreshingly good.

She hadn't realised they had stopped walking by the wrought iron gates that lead to the street. Warmed by hot coffee and the outstanding company, Bucky stepped closer. He looked down into her upturned eyes and asked…

“How about that movie, doll?”

Priya's tongue swiped across her bottom lip before she pulled it between her teeth, keeping her dark eyes locked with his gaze, "I - I honestly probably shouldn't. It's against my ethics training to date my sources," she paused.

The way Bucky's eyes flickered to the ground away from her and the nod of his head caused a mischievous smirk to cross her lips as she kept him waiting.

"I understand..." he all but mumbled, the disappointment coming through in his tone.

Breathing out a laugh through her nose, she reached forward and softly placed her hand on his chest, bringing his eyes back to her face, "but for you, I'll make an exception," she teased, shooting him a sweet grin.

A smile exploded across his face and she got another glimpse of that almost child-like joy that she wished would stay for longer. It belonged there and Priya vowed that she would do everything she could to make sure it returned.

“Is there anything in particular you wanna see?” He asked, pulling his phone from his pocket.

He tapped the screen a few times and stared daggers at it, as if it had done him some great insult.

“I can book us some tickets…apparently,” he grumbled.

“Do you actually have Netflix Bucky?” She asked, patting his chest gently.

Bucky glanced up from his phone, brows furrowed, before letting out an awkward breathy laugh, "I--uh.. I think so. Sam set it up for me, but I've never used it."

She smiled, "I can show you how to use it," Priya offered, knowing that she was dangerously stepping over that ethical line, "I mean if you're up for it. Movie theaters are great too."

He glanced up and down the street, the nervousness returning to him. "You want to come to my place?" He asked, the unsureness in his voice leaking through.

"If you're up for it," She reminded him, not wanting to push him too far.

"I'm up for it." He said a little more confidently, holding out his arm for her.

Priya smiled, wrapping her hand gently around his bicep, "such a gentleman. I'm pretty sure the Lord of The Rings is on there, we can watch that if you're up for diving into three more hours with me."

Bucky shot her a playful look, "I've lasted this long darling."

“Well then, lead the way.”

Bucky paused as they approached the street where Izzy’s was.

“I uh— I forgot I rode my bike here, are you— we can walk back if you don’t want to—“

“I’ve been on a motorcycle before, Bucky. Plus, the quicker we get back the more movie time we have.”

With the decision made, she followed Bucky onto his bike, trying not to think about how close they were as she clung to him, arms wrapped around his strong build as he zipped through the streets back to his building.

Before she knew it, they were rolling up to a security gate guard as they made their way through.

Her kind eyes softened as they flitted from Priya to Bucky and back again before she shot the super-soldier a wink.

“Not a word, Lottie.” Bucky chuckled as if he could read her mind. Priya raised her brow inquisitively and it seemed Lottie couldn’t help herself.

“Looks like you put that charm to good use, Barnes.”

Bucky shook his head, riding off to his usual space before anything more could be said.

“You are very charming, you know,” Priya told him once they were inside and waiting for the elevator.

“You haven’t seen me first thing in the mornin’, Priya.“ Bucky countered, flashing her a lopsided grin as they entered the carriage and zoomed up to his floor.

Priya laughed as she got off of the elevator and waited for Bucky. “You haven’t seen me either. It’s a bit of a sight to behold.”

She followed him down the hall to his apartment and watched as he unlocked the door. As they stepped into the apartment, the sound of a trilling meow filled the room. “You have a cat?”

A petite white cat with the most vibrant blue eyes slinked its way towards Bucky, winding around his legs and purring loudly before sitting between its human and Priya. The cat eyed her curiously.

Bucky scooped the cat up into his arms and approached Priya as if showing off a newborn baby.

“Priya, this is Alpine. Alpine, this is Priya.” The cat chirped in Bucky’s embrace as if it knew its name. “She’s seen me through some tough nights,” Bucky stroked Alpine and brought her closer.

“Aww, she’s gorgeous!” Priya held her hand out gently for Alpine to sniff, trying not to force herself into the cat’s space. “Are you a good girl? I bet you’re a very good girl for your dad, huh?”

Alpine reached up to boop Priya’s hand with her nose and purred. Only then did Priya move to pet her.

“She likes me!” Priya beamed a huge smile and looked up at Bucky to find the strangest expression on his face as he watched the two ladies interact.

Narrowing her eyes at Bucky, she kept a soft smile on her face as she tilted her head to the side, "what's wrong?" she chuckled.

Bucky shook his head, and moved his vibranium hand to scratch the special spot behind Alpines ears, "no, nothing, I just -" he paused, smiling down at his little girl, "I've never seen her like someone so quickly," he looked back at Priya, a small twinkle in his blue eyes, "she must know you're special..." he all but whispered.

A blush crept up the sides of her neck as her hand slowly dropped from the cat, turning herself slowly to look farther into Bucky's apartment. The story of Bucky Barnes was writing itself in her head but for now, her reporter brain shut itself off and allowed her to be just herself. Just a girl with a swarm of butterflies in her chest every time she looked into those ocean blue eyes.

"You have a really nice home here Bucky, the plants, the books, it's really... you," she turned back to him with a smile, "I like it."

Bucky shifted on his feet, that lopsided smile returning as he looked around, assessing the room. Everything had it's place. Books were lined up neatly on the shelves, small medallions and picture frames sat in between the stacks. His free hand came up to rub the back of his neck as his eyes met hers again, "Thank you. It's finally... starting to feel like a home now."

Priya ignored the pang in her chest at the thought of it once not feeling like that for him before turning to head towards a line of frames hanging in between a pair of windows.

Alpine wrestled herself out of his arms only to beat Priya to the windowsill earning a chuckle from her father.

"That's her favorite spot," he grinned, taking a step sliding himself next to her, "She likes to yowl at the kids on the street."

She let out a chuckle, "Like father like daughter I'm guessing?" Priya raised a brow at him.

"They get loud sometimes," he grumbled, biting back the smile on his face before moving to the TV and picking up the remote. "Here, if you can work your magic and get that thing to work, more power to ya," he said all but shoving the remote into her hand, "You want something to drink? I have water… beer, tea if that suits you. I usually only drink it when I can't sleep."

With a nod, she let him take her bag and smiled, "Tea would be great."

Bucky nodded, “make yourself at home, there are blankets in that basket if you wanna get comfy.”

“Thanks, Bucky.”

With a soft smile, Bucky turned on his heel and headed to the kitchen, leaving Priya to her own devices.

She got Netflix up and running easily enough and then turned her attention to the frames on the wall, wandering over to inspect them more closely.

Black and white photos filled the two of them. A much younger Bucky — although only by ten years or so in looks — stood side by side with a scrawny Steve Rogers in the first. The second, a family shot, weathered and torn but taped back together. Something in her chest lurched at the sight of Bucky as a young boy and she turned away, suddenly feeling like she was invading his privacy.

“You can look, sweetheart.” Bucky was there, two cups of tea in his hands and a melancholy expression on his face, “I trust you.”

Priya turned and looked at him, her cheeks colored pink. “That’s who you were talking about earlier… the notebook. It was Steve’s.”

Bucky’s head hung just a little lower and he nodded, his solemn expression more than enough to tell her that perhaps now wasn’t the time to press him for more memories, he had already gifted her with enough for one day.

“Nothing gets past that journalist brain of yours, does it?” His smile was weak but full of care. It was obvious that he didn’t want to push her away.

“Bucky,” she stepped closer, taking his hand that lay limp at his side and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Whenever you’re ready, I’ll be here to listen.”

He nodded, meeting her compassionate gaze with acceptance.

“But in the meantime, I’m here for the child-like delight you’re going to experience when you see the movies they made of those Tolkien books you’re reading. Don’t think I didn’t see that bookmark near the end of The Two Towers. And mister! I’m here to tell you that we’re watching them all in order.”

“Them all?” Bucky perked up, that excited glint returning to his eyes.

“All three of them.”

“Tonight?”

“God no! We can save some for other dates.”

“I like the sound of that.”

Priya's heart swelled in her chest as the two of them smiled at each other for another moment. This soft, sweet man was not at all what she had been expecting. Rumours of the short, cut answers he had given to other reporters floated around the city like red leaves in the fall, and knowing what she did of others in her field, she didn't blame him at all. Her mind wondered what she herself had done differently to make him trust her, but that would be a conversation for another day too. Right now, she just wanted to enjoy the company of a perfectly good man who she really liked.

She plopped herself down onto his black leather sofa, and patted the cushion next to her, "You ready?" She teased.

A confident smile spread across Bucky's lips as he took a seat and draped his arm lazily along the back of the couch behind her shoulders, "as I'll ever be."

She beamed up at him before turning towards the TV and pressing play. The opening credits began and like a moth to a flame, his eyes were glued to the screen. Priya settled into the couch, her knee bumping his leg gently as she did. His gaze flicked to hers for only a moment as the smile grew on his face before they returned to the screen.

As they got deeper into the movie, she glanced over at him. His lips moved gently with the monologues but his focus unbroken by her watching him. She couldn't help but smile to herself, seeing his favorite books come to life on a screen that she was sure he never thought he'd be able to see.

Alpine had jumped down off the window and planted herself in Bucky's lap, curled up into the tiniest white fluff ball that Priya had ever seen. His eyes flicked down to the cat and then over to Priya.

"You like it so far?" She asked, feeling his body lean towards hers.

"There's how many more of these?" He asked, pausing as wraiths flickered over the screen.

"Six if you include the Hobbit movies," she whispered, nudging him gently with a grin, feeling herself drawn to his warmth the closer he got to her. Priya sucked in a breath gently before scooting closer to him, his arm falling from the top of the couch and finally resting on her shoulders.

His eyes went wide as he pulled her closer as if out of habit, "Six! We have a lot of dates to plan then sweetheart."

Priya laughed, her nerves settling when he didn't push her away, "well… five now." She grinned.

"Make it ten," he bantered with a smile.

“I’m sure we can find things to watch for an extra five dates,” Priya couldn’t hide her smirk as Bucky looked down at her resting against him.

“No doubt.” He gave her shoulder a playful squeeze and turned his attention back to the movie.

The wraiths had cornered Frodo and the other Hobbits in the ruins at Weather Top. Bucky tensed as the music grew more ominous and they drew in for their attack. The screams of the wraiths made Alpine jittery in his lap, and she shifted, looking around for whatever heinous creature was lurking out of sight.

Instinctively, Priya reached to stroke her, soothing her with gentle long strokes down her back until her fingers brushed something without fur. Bucky’s hand lay underneath her fingertips, stilled by the contact and heated, just like the rest of his body. He lazily parted his fingers so hers would dip between his and he stroked there almost absently, cosseting Alpine with the motion.

On the screen, the Witch-King stabbed Frodo and Bucky jolted, causing Priya to gasp. She realised she had been holding her breath, captivated by the feel of his skin against hers, and by their closeness.

Bucky cocked an eyebrow as he turned his gaze down toward her, a glimmer of a playful smile dancing at his lips, "Are you okay?" He whispered.

Her head nodded against his shoulder and she returned the smile, giving his hand a small squeeze, "never better," she whispered back.

Nuzzling herself deeper against him, Priya did her best to turn her attention back to the screen, but the feeling of Bucky's thumb gracefully rubbing the side of her hand pulled her focus away from the movie once more. Every movement he made was careful and soft, purposeful and filled with intention. Through whatever he had happened in his life, some semblance of a man remained, tethered to the darkness that he so clearly thought followed him.

It broke her heart to think about this good man stuck behind bars, watching the terrible things that went on around him. But the strength that radiated from this survivor was captivating in every way. It made Priya hold on to every moment with him. Every smile he'd flashed her had gotten brighter as their day had gone on, the confidence in not only his voice but his demeanour. A warmth spread throughout her body as she turned her dark eyes up to Bucky once more, catching him once again mouthing a few of the words as the film started to draw to a close.

Priya hadn't even realized the movie ended until he glanced back down at her, breaking the gaze she had studying his features. Every line, freckle and crinkle his eyes made when he smiled was not lost to her now. Nothing more perfect and nothing out of place. He squeezed her hand playfully drawing her attention back, "What'chya lookin' at darlin?"

Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she sat up gently, "You." She admitted softly, "I just..." Priya knew she was about to cross a line and the raise of his brow and gentle curve of his lips egged her on, "I'm just grateful you replied to that email," she pulled her toe back from the line.

"Y'know, considering how tonight has turned out, I am as well." He smiled, everything in her core turning to fire.

Alpine jumped off his lap, stretching her little body across the dark rug. Not once did their eyes leave each other hearing her yowl softly trotting her way into his kitchen. He untangled their still intertwined fingers and trailed his fingertips to her wrist. "Priya," he breathed gently, crystal blue eyes searched her own, "I'd really like to kiss you now..." he trailed off.

She felt herself smile before nodding, "I'd really like that."

That charming smile returned to his features as he lifted his hand, gently resting it against her jaw as he leaned in closer to her. Priya met him halfway, leaning into him with her hands planted firm against his chest. The hard muscle doing nothing to hide the racing beat of his heart hammering against his chest. Knowing he could hear hers trying to escape her chest.

Bucky slotted his lips over hers, taking her top one first and leaning into her like she'd melt away if he didn't. Her fingers dug into the cotton of his shirt and she swore she heard a small moan fall from his lips as he pulled away from her sucking in a breath. "Was that okay?" He asked almost nervously.

Priya nodded, twisting her fingers into his shirt even further, grasping onto anything she could, "more than."

He beamed, the blue in his eyes glistened as he dipped his head again, pressing his lips to hers once more.

Priya felt like she could melt in his arms right then and there. One of his arms wrapped around her waist, and she let out a small, happy sigh.

Bucky smiled against her lips, her sweet sighs making him deepen the kiss so tenderly she felt like she might sublime from solid form to vapour just from the subtle heat of it all. He was truly a marvel, a paradox of hard edges and primal ruggedness offset with such gentleness and vulnerability that she thought she might never tire of his facets.

Bucky suckled her lower lip gently, pulling her body tighter against his chest so their hearts beat so close to one another. His tongue sought hers out, but he didn’t push himself into her mouth – no – they met in the middle and danced there, exploring and teasing until, with a heavy sigh, Bucky pulled back. He rested his forehead against hers, where a disbelieving laugh escaped them both together.

“That was…” Priya’s words were lost in that exuberant giggle again.

“I’ll say!” Bucky grinned.

Their eyes locked as the tips of their noses brushed together softly, breathing in each other's scent and relishing in the moment that they had created for themselves. Here in Bucky's apartment, it felt like a safe space for him to be himself and he had allowed her to see this side of him.

The black and white photos on the walls, with greenery draped about. The classic books that lined his shelves and the dark brooding furniture showed every bit of who Bucky Barnes really was underneath all the rumours and badness that surrounded his past. This wasn't who the government was telling him to be, or who Hydra tried to make him. This was him. This was Bucky. And it was clear to Priya that his story in life was just beginning, allowing her to be a small part of that.

A loud ring sounded from Bucky's phone and brought the two of them back to the present. With a reluctant groan, and another soft, quick peck to her lips Bucky swivelled his hips to grab his phone off the coffee table, checking the messages with an annoyed frown.

"Sweetheart, you have no idea how sorry I am for this, but it's Sam..." he grimaced, sliding his phone back away and returning his attention back to her, cupping her face in his hands.

Priya hummed and leaned into his touch, turning slightly to place a light kiss on his metal palm, "It's okay, really... we have 9 more dates to plan anyway," she giggled, running her fingers gently on his forearm, "it's late anyway, I should probably go."

With a disappointed sigh, Bucky stood from the couch and extended his hands, helping her up from the couch and pulling her flush into his body, smiling softly down at her, "you're really pretty, you know that?"

Feeling the blush creep onto her cheeks, Priya's bottom lip found a home between her teeth, as she stretched up to place a kiss on his cheek, "don't let Alpine hear that," she winked, spinning herself out of his grasp and sauntering herself to the front door.

Bucky's feet followed her quickly and he softly caught her waist, turning her back to him, "seriously though, I will call you as soon as this is taken care of and we can plan, I promise."

"That sounds perfect," Priya whispered.

Dipping his head once more, Bucky's lips caught hers in a soft, lingering kiss, followed by quick messy pecks down her jawline, pulling sweet giggles from her lips.

"Ok Mr. Barnes," she laughed, tangling her fingers into his dress shirt and gently nudging him backwards, "I'm really looking forward to your call," she smiled brightly, "After all, I think there's a lot more to this story..."

With a playful wink and another gentle kiss on his cheek, Priya left him on the other side of his apartment door. Bringing her fingers up, she placed them on her lips and let out a breathy laugh as the butterflies returned to swarm in her chest.

That was something she was leaving out of the story. This Bucky Barnes, she was going to keep all to herself.

65 notes · View notes