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#i don’t think they’ll ever see this but i hope y’all are doing well <3
planetxiao · 2 years
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nothing quite like being on the bsd side of tumblr june 2021 - december 2021 </3
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echosrobotarm · 2 years
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i’m seeing a lot of disappointment from st4vol2, and while valid criticisms have been made, i want to talk about will, and my thoughts on his character this season.
obviously spoiler alert for season 4, volumes 1 and 2
in my opinion, will is as close to the edge of the closet as he could feasibly get, given the time period and the state of everything in his life. this was 1986, “sodomy” was still technically illegal in some states, and gay marriage wasn’t even close to being on the table.
it’s now 2022. we’ve come miles from where we were in the 80s in terms of acceptance, but still the lgbtq+ community receives all grades of vile shit on the daily.
i’m only out to one of my friends. i have friends across the sexuality spectrum, friends i know would accept me with opens arms if i told them, and still i haven’t managed to come out to them, let alone my family.
now imagine you’re will byers. zombie kid. adoptive brother to your best friend’s girlfriend. adoptive brother to your best friend’s girlfriend, the best friend you’re secretly in love with. at the tender age of maybe 14 years old, your life has been uprooted and changed in incomprehensible ways, and you’ve hardly reached puberty yet (in the show, obv mr schnapp is well on his way to being a man, cute sweet thing that he is).
now, your life has just been uprooted for the 4th time, your family is scattered, and you are now on the run with your stoner, ptsd-riddled bro, his stoner bestie, and your best friend while on the way to find said best friend’s girlfriend, the one who is basically family to you at this point.
it’s not even a question of being gay at that point, it then becomes “how do i tell my best friend i’m in love with him when he’s in love with my adoptive sister?” will is an exceptionally sensitive kid. empath to the nth degree. he feels things very deeply and wears his emotions on his sleeve. the last thing he ever wants is to see his friends or family hurting, and to possibly drive a wedge between his best friend and his sister just isn’t something he’d do, hence why i don’t think he’d tell mike about his feelings for him.
jonathan obviously knows will is gay. the finale made that pretty clear with their talk.
we obviously know he’s gay. we’ve grown up with his character, seen ourselves in his behavior, especially since they’ve dialed it up to 11 in this last season.
i would never try to speak on behalf of others, especially not in our current social climate, however, for me, i can honestly say that will came out in every way that mattered to me. his conversation with jonathan had me sobbing. will is so loved. so so very loved. i’m just hoping that with season 5 on the horizon, he’ll finally feel comfortable enough and have the peace of mind enough to decide to come out to mike and the others.
they’ll never make byler canon, y’all have to know that. but, we could very easily get canon gay will in the last season, and that is all i can hope for at this point.
yes, we got robin in season 3, while she was literally under a truth serum. do you really think even for a second that if her and steve hadn’t been drugged that she’d have come out then and there? because i don’t. yes, her and steve had effectively just forged an incredibly deep trauma bond on top of their budding work friendship, but in the 1980s, i don’t think she’d have felt comfortable enough to come out to him of her own volition had these extra things not been going on. especially when we think about keith and eddie and pretty much everyone else who wasn’t part of the cool crowd when steve was in school. they all thought he was a massive douche. robin was aware of steve’s reputation, knew that he was widely regarded as king douchebag. yes, she moved past this and became his friend, but i would be very hesitant to trust someone like that with my deepest secret back then.
while on the subject of robin, she means so so very much to me. maya hawke does a phenomenal job and it’s been so beautiful and frankly inspiring to have a canon lesbian character who isn’t just some lame side character with no dialogue or purpose as a character other than just being gay and checking the diversity box. she’s smart, insightful even. she’s beautiful but not to the detriment of her intelligence like is so often done with female characters. she has flaws, and she owns them. she’s witty, brave, and unfailingly loyal to her friends, all while being a non-offensive representation of a wlw (in my opinion). if i had a big sister, i’d give anything for her to be like robin.
anyways, in conclusion, will is as out to me as robin is. just because he hasn’t said “i’m gay” doesn’t make him any less out to us, the audience. his actions speak volumes, and i love him with my entire heart. he’s been my favorite of the kids from the start, and i just hope he gets a satisfying end to his story in season 5.
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yyunari · 2 years
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nari as one of the younger kids on sfw enhablr (i’m assuming you’re around 05’ - 08’) how do you feel abt the current content for the maknae line? like ik it’s not always super sexualized or anything but sometimes i see stuff that’s just the way it’s worded really rubs me the wrong way ☹️ esp bc some of the kids on here like you are so young it makes me feel like if they see stuff like that , they might start think it’s okay for others to treat them the same or vice verse … whenever i see edits of niki on tiktok , i have to avoid the comments bc there’s almost always like a “daddy” , “how is he 16” or “you don’t know what you do to me” like wtf he’s a literal child ?? it makes me so mad and honestly so uncomfortable :( and i saw an article on kboo today too that said niki apparently has around 200 explicit or mature fics written abt him on ao3 … sometimes even the fboi trope (usually when it’s written abt minors) bothers me bc i see minors writing abt it (like 13-15 y/o) and i don’t understand why they don’t just use the term player or smtg … bc they’ll go out of their way to mention how the character has sex a lot an whatnot , even that feels way too suggestive for me personally for a minor too write let aline abt a minor too , sorry for the rant,, i was just wondering how you felt … omg also though tbh i noticed that some of the minors on here / blogs in gen seem way too comfy on here like they’ll be sharing where they live , their actual names and sometimes like giving a lot of personal info … like did they not learn abt internet safety or do they just no care? as one of the older kids , i kind of worry abt them :( i really hope everybody stays safe on here <3 & some reminders: never be afraid to block anyone ! bc i’ve seen a lot of minors on here get sent stuff from the p*rn bots or just weird dms :( & u don’t need to force yourself to interact with someone , make sure ur comfy with them first !
oh my god i’m so glad u sent me this because ive been wanting to talk about it for a while 🫶
im quite literally the same age as niki and seeing how many people are constantly sexualizing him makes me EXTREMELY uncomfortable. most tiktok edits of him are borderline sexualizing him too, when the songs people use are about sex and things like that. even if the intention wasn’t to sexualize him, they still do so by using sexual content for him. it pisses me off how people see that as normal and even comment weird things (like how u said ‘how is he 16’, i see that comment a lot and its SO weird. why do people think this is a normal thing to say?? its implications make me feel iffy.) when niki is still a child. he is a child. “how is he 16” because he was born in 05 that’s how.
also 200 mature fics on ao3????? the majority of writers on ao3 are adults so thats really fucking weird and honestly disgusting. fuck anyone whos ever written a mature fic about niki or even portrayed him in a mature light. i agree with ur point about him being portrayed as an ‘fboy’ or whatever, why would u put him in that position as a minor????? “hes aged up” “hes in college” so its okay to change a real person’s age when it’s convenient for you?? enhypen has a hyung line, write your fboy fic about someone else.
im not saying you have to baby him or only make cute edits about him, but what i am saying is if you can’t appreciate niki without borderline sexualizing him, then unstan him. and this goes for other idols who are minors as well.
and dont even get me started on jungwon and sunoo. from my understanding jungwon is a minor because legal age in korea is 19? koreans please correct me if im wrong. but regardless of whether or not jungwon is a minor, he’s still just barely an adult. it’s still weird to make sexual things about him when he’s in this place in his life. and when sunoo became legal, y’all were fucking rushing to make smut about him and it was GROSS. yes he became legal, but he was still the same person he was before. you can wait for a while after they become legal to write things about them. they need to go through the transition period from being a minor to becoming legal.
and yes, some minors on here forget that there are sex bots and just gross people on this app. i got one of these bots in my asks a few days ago and it grossed me the fuck out (i blocked the user, and if u ever get one of these u should too). this is why i share so little about my personal life, and if i do im very vague. if you are my age or younger, please be careful on the internet. p3dos are so fucking gross and are something you don’t want to risk being involved with. so as much as u can, hide your personal life. i promise you that your life is worth so much more than some stupid app :))
anyways i really like answering questions like these so u guys should ask more, i like speaking my mind 🤗
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bonky-n-steeb · 3 years
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𝐶𝐼𝑅𝐶𝐿𝐸𝑆
𝘽𝙐𝘾𝙆𝙔 𝘽𝘼𝙍𝙉𝙀𝙎 𝙭 𝙍𝙀𝘼𝘿𝙀𝙍 | 𝙎𝙏𝙀𝙑𝙀 𝙍𝙊𝙂𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙓 𝙍𝙀𝘼𝘿𝙀𝙍
𝗦𝗨𝗠𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗬: After miraculously staying youthful for nearly seven decades, you thought you had buried your past well. But what will you do when the same past comes right out of its grave?
[𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗱𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲]
𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦: ANGST..!
ᴛʜɪs ɪs ɴᴏᴛ ʙᴇᴛᴀ ʀᴇᴀᴅ, sᴏ ᴀʟʟ ᴍɪsᴛᴀᴋᴇs ᴀʀᴇ ᴍʏ ᴏᴡɴ
I hope y’all like it!
MASTERLIST
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𝟭𝟵𝟰𝟱
“It’s not gonna be a safe landing!” You slumped back into the chair when you heard Steve shout from the other end. You had been so happy when you had come to the military base, you wanted to tell Steve something that would be soon changing your lives.
But instead what awaited you was this conversation with Steve. “I’m in the middle of nowhere, I have to go down. A lot of lives are at stake if I don’t.”
“Don’t. Steve, please don’t. Everyone here is trying, Steve. They’ll find a way.” You said as calmly as you could despite the tears rolling out of your eyes.
“It’s my choice.” You openly let out a wrecked sob at his words. Why did he have to always sacrifice himself? Why couldn’t he once, just once choose his own happiness?
“Steve, I have to tell you something.” But before you could continue, Steve’s voice blared through the speaker. “I love you.” After that all you heard was the deafening monotonous tune of static from the other end.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
𝟭𝟵𝟳𝟯
The Soldat’s mission was simple. 1. Find the target; 2. Track the target; 3. Kill the target; 4. Get the files and 5. Report back. He had done this a million times, and he was sure he would do it a million times more.
He had traversed the world for his missions; missions that he didn’t remember the details of but were engraved in his muscle memory. This particular day, he found himself in France.
As he had slept the night before in the small inconspicuous hotel, so as to not attract any attention, he had momentarily thought about the beauty of the place. He had let his mind wander to the dark pit of freedom. Wondering that if he was anything but the Soldat, what he would have done here.
Thinking about living even a moment being himself and not a killing machine brought him more pain than relief. It made him realize what he didn’t have and couldn’t possibly ever have, freedom. He thought he had long lost his emotions. But he was wrong, on such nights he felt pain.
He couldn’t remember who he was before or where he came from. He feared that even if he did go back one day, there would be no one waiting to receive him.
As he now stared at his mission who was carelessly walking through the passages of Louvre, chattering about his knowledge to the girl on his arm, clearly trying to impress her, something or rather someone caught his eye.
You were standing across the hall, staring deeply at a painting he couldn’t quite place and was too distracted to read the plaque. You were absentmindedly clutching your sling bag which was hanging down your left shoulder.
Wearing a maroon checkered sweater atop a plane white shirt and matching high waisted flared pants, you looked captivating. He could only see a part of your face from where he was standing and he was twitching to see more.
Enchanted that he was, he followed you as you slowly sauntered through the grand museum. What attracted him most towards you was your calm aura. You weren’t in a rush neither were you restless. Unlike him, you were lost in beauty of the museum.
And more than that, there was something known about you, something familiar. Some bond that he couldn’t place but it was telling him to protect you. For as long as he could remember, he had never felt like that.
Almost as if sensing his presence, you turned around. As the upper half of his face was covered by a hat and the lower half shadowed by a beard, you didn’t recognize him.
Seeing that there were just you two in the vast hall, you gave him a polite smile and said, “Magnificent, isn’t it?” At that exact moment, his brain short circuited.
A little girl was smiling up at him, her hair was blown around by the wind. She was looking up at him with so much acceptance and hope, he didn’t feel deserving of it. Her smile was identical. It was the exact one you gave him now. So were her warm eyes and soft hair. It was you.
Just as it ended, his brain produced another memory.
You were dancing. And so was he. You were wearing a plaid skirt, your hair was neatly combed unlike the previous memory and you had grown up. There was a lot of noise around him, but he didn’t care for it as he saw you dancing gracefully. You were the most beautiful and charming person he had seen till date.
But what he didn’t like was that you weren’t dancing with him. You had your arms around a scrawny little boy with blond hair. Even though he was around your height if not a little shorter, you didn’t care for it. You were looking at him with such devotion and love that his heart ached for it.
He knew that you wouldn’t ever look at him like that. He didn’t know what you saw in that guy that you didn’t see in him. But he desperately wanted, no, needed you to be with him. He himself was dancing with another lady, but all he wanted to do was dance with you. He deserved that much, didn’t he?
He blinked rapidly as he snapped out of the trance. He had tears in his eyes, the ability which he had thought he lost a long time back. As you looked ahead, you were nowhere to be seen.
He sprinted to the other section but he couldn’t find you anywhere. Just like his memories, you were gone too.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
He had completed his mission, though a little late than usual. He wasn’t going to inform them, but he had spent a day or two searching for you. But he hadn’t succeeded. He didn’t know who you were, he didn’t know your name, he didn’t know how you were even there.
Just that in between, he would be flashed with broken memories and images of you. He tried his hardest to remember at least your name, but his brain was so damaged he couldn’t even do that. Finally giving up, he had reported back.
Just as he sat on the chair, his brain conjured up another montage:
You had tears in your eyes as you looked up at him. “Don’t go.” You incessantly pleaded. He didn’t remember where he was going, but wherever it was, it was compulsory because he knew he hadn’t stayed. It must be the war, he deduced.
“Promise me you’ll be safe. Promise me you’ll come back.” You had gently placed your hand on his cheek and he still remembered that warmth.
“I promise, Y/N.”
Y/N. His Y/N. His brain sparked up with the realization. He knew you. He had known you since his childhood. You were his friend. You were his best friend. He loved you. He had always loved you.
And you were still there. You were waiting for him. Relief washed over him as he realized that if he did go back, you would be there. He wasn’t so alone anymore. He just had to reach you.
But it was late, the cuffs were already in place and machine had already began its work and Bucky was rendered immobile and helpless. He wanted to run to you, he wanted to hold you and tell you how much he has missed you. But he was a little too late.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗗𝗔𝗬
Bucky had no clue what he was doing or even how he ended up in this extravagant restaurant. Just that he had to be on his best behavior and smile. Only if the avengers knew how tedious smiling was.
Apparently, he was on a charity date. He didn’t know why the avengers had to do such stunts. Wasn’t saving the people more important and enough? Why did he have to go on a date with unknown people?
He wondered if even Steve and Sam felt like this while they were in some other lavish restaurants. His date was late by an hour and hadn’t even apologized. He would’ve lashed out only if she hadn’t paid in millions for charity.
Throughout the entire time he had tried his best to smile and be polite and he knew he was failing miserably even though it had barely been half an hour since her arrival. While she was talking away, he was just nodding and pretending to listen. Not that he could talk anything interesting, he thought.
Bored beyond his capacity, Bucky started idly staring at other tables. And that’s when he saw you. You were sitting across an old lady as you both chatted happily. You were much too engrossed in the conversation to care about any other person.
He couldn’t believe himself. He rubbed his eyes comically and squinted. It was you, it was definitely, surely, unquestionably you. He got up from the table only to realize he had been caught by his date.
“Could you excuse me for a moment.” He asked with as much politeness as he could muster. His date only sighed and nodded. Quickly dodging the other tables, he reached you. He was too excited to question your existence.
“Y/N!” When you heard your name being called, you casually looked up. Even despite taking at least fifty different identities by now, in your heart, you still were Y/N.
As your eyes locked with Bucky, all the blood from your face drained. You always dreaded this day would come and you would bump into either Bucky or Steve. You had made up a million scenarios and a billion excuses, yet you were unprepared for the actual moment.
Bucky was happier than he ever had been and suddenly smiling was not so tedious. “Y/N! It’s so nice to...” before he could say further, his brain caught up with him. “Wait. Wait a minute. How are you here? How are you so... so young? How?”
“Winter Soldier!?” Your purposely exclaimed. You had read how he actually wasn’t the soldier anymore and just Bucky. But you wanted him to hurt, so that he would go away.
You saw Bucky’s face fall and he simply answered, “Bucky.” He shook himself mentally before asking again, “You are Y/N, right? You... you shouldn’t be here.”
You inhaled sharply and started the gears of your train of lies. “I’m not the Y/N you think me to be. I’m her granddaughter who didn’t just inherit her genes but also her name.” You said with a fake laugh.
In all your long existence if you had become a master in something, then it was lying. You still remembered the first time you had realized that you hadn’t aged a day. And it was almost twenty years since the lightning hit.
In the beginning you had just thought you were youthful but then when your daughter had turned almost 20 and you still looked in your 30s, the realization had hit you like a freight train. After that you had always hid from the government and people by taking fake names and personalities. You were sure there was an FBI file on you.
“Granddaughter?” Bucky asked baffled. “Did she... did she marry?” Bucky’s throat had suddenly gone dry. Did he just expect you to wait for them to come back from the dead?
“Yeah.” You and your daughter lied in unison. You had never married. You had dated very few men after Steve, but didn’t stay with anyone too long fearing that you would be caught.
You had wanted to tell Steve that you were pregnant before he died, or rather froze. You had been so excited that day to tell him that you were going to have a baby. He would’ve been a great dad; you were sure of it.
But just as you had reached the army station to tell him, you had been called urgently inside the bunker only to have your last talk with Steve. But you hadn’t told anyone else that Sarah was Steve’s daughter.
You knew they would’ve kept her under observation to see if she inherited his super soldier genes, which she hadn’t. Also Steve’s name and legacy would’ve been tarnished as he had impregnated you outside wedlock. And you couldn’t let that happen to Steve.
When Steve had resurfaced, you wanted to tell him about your daughter. But then he was too much under limelight for anyone’s good. The revelation would not only endanger you but your daughter too.
“Whom did she marry? Do I know him?” Bucky was curious just as he was heartbroken. “Daniel.” You said with faux confidence. But at the same time, your daughter, Sarah (yes, you named her after Steve’s mother) chimed in, “George.”
You and your daughter looked at each other with pursed lips while Bucky stared at you confused. “Daniel George.” You said trying to improve the situation only for Sarah to say, “George Daniel.”
Bucky raised his eyebrows at you two. He did smell something fishy, but he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what. Why were you both saying different names?
You huffed out an annoyed breath and smacked your face. You were going to get caught with this speed. “Daniel George was his name. I used to call him grandpa Dan. Seems like the old age is catching up on Sarah.”
Your heart shattered at the last line. It was difficult being young yourself and see your own daughter grow old. You had prayed day and night that she would take after either you or Steve and be young too, but the prayers went unanswered. But you were glad she had a normal, fulfilling life.
“Oh. I didn’t know him then.” Bucky rubbed his nape nervously and you wanted nothing more than to console him, but you knew better than to give in to your feelings. “And you two?” He asked pointing towards you and Sarah.
“Aunt.” You replied and just as before, Sarah contradicted you by saying, “Mother.” Bucky made an incomprehensible face and asked, “What?”
Why couldn’t you both get one thing right? “This is Sarah. She is my aunt. But she raised me like her own. Sarah means everything to me.” You finally said blowing out a breath. Bucky nodded but you knew he was suspicious.
Before Bucky could ask any of the other hundred million questions he had, you interrupted him. “I’m sorry, but we should be leaving. We had our dinner and I have an important meeting tomorrow and you have your date.” It was all lies, you both had just arrived.
You could see Bucky’s disappointed written clearly across his face. But he gave you a pressed smile and nodded. “Hope to see you again.” Bucky said and now it was your turn to nod. You wished you wouldn’t ever cross paths.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
You were both standing in some museum. You were entranced with the paintings while he was staring at you. Just then you turned around and with a gentle smile and said, “Magnificent, isn’t it?”
Bucky woke up heaving and in cold sweat. This wasn’t the first time he had dreamt about you. But this wasn’t a dream, this was a memory. He had seen you in 1970s in the louvre, he finally remembered.
You weren’t Y/N’s granddaughter, you were Y/N. That’s why you were so terrified after seeing him and not one of your answers matched with Sarah, because you were lying to his face.
But then who was Sarah? Her face had this odd familiarity Bucky wasn’t ready to accept before. Her warm blue cerulean eyes reminding him of someone he rather not think of at this moment. Was she... was she Steve’s daughter?
He clutched his hair at the thought. Was he thinking too much? But then why would you lie? Why would Sarah be so similar? And out of all the names in the world, why would your ‘aunt’s’ name be Sarah?
Bucky had always been curious to a fault. He wanted answers and he wanted them now. But how would he find you? You definitely changed names if his assumption was even close to the actual thing.
He could search the database and find you. But then it would be too late and the others, especially Steve would know it too. He believed there was a reason you met him and not Steve. You could’ve chosen another restaurant and would’ve met Steve instead. But no, you were meant to meet him. This was fate.
If not you, then he could always find Sarah. Taking his smart phone in hand, he searched your aunt’s/daughter’s name and he hit the jackpot. Sarah was a Pulitzer Prize winning author and very well loved by the people. He mentally noted to read her books soon.
She was married to a rich businessman and had two kids. Seeing their photos, he knew he was right. Her younger son was an exact copy of Steve. But being famous came with some cons. A little bit of searching and he easily found out her phone number, address and email id.
He knew he was being selfish. He knew it was morally incorrect to not tell Steve. But then what would he get? If he did tell Steve, Steve would get everything and he would be left behind like always.
All his life he had been second to Steve. He had been the shoulder for you to cry on the day Steve had rejected you. Steve had thought he didn’t deserve you and had broken your heart only for you to go to Bucky for solace.
That was the only day in his life Bucky had wished Steve would die. Bucky regretted even thinking something that heinous, he was sure he would be the one most broken if something were to happen to Steve.
Bucky didn’t know when you and Steve had started dating as he had been away fighting. But he was glad he wasn’t there as he couldn’t have possibly taken the blow. And knowing himself, he would’ve been selfless and wouldn’t have ever come in between you two, no matter how much it shattered him.
You were the smartest among the three. Being exceptionally street smart, you always knew what to do to get out of a situation with minimum harm. While Steve got into fights and Bucky sorted them out with his strength, you always took care of the aftermath.
As kids, you always made peace between their moms and them. Their moms were always worried but you assured them by saying they won’t act like this. Though you three always broke the promise.
He had loved you since as long as he remembered despite knowing very early that you always only wanted Steve. He genuinely couldn’t understand what you saw in him. He was the better choice amongst the two, wasn’t he?
If he did tell Steve, Steve would get his family and most importantly, you. While he would have to go through the hurt all over again. Hadn’t life given him enough pain? Wasn’t hydra enough? Wasn’t losing himself enough? Hydra had made him forget you, but they couldn’t wipe his feelings for you. He had unknowingly carried them with him all this time.
He had got one more chance. Though the final decision would be yours, but he could always try, couldn’t he? Maybe Steve wouldn’t ever forgive him for what he was about to do. But after going through so much in his life, he deserved a happy ending.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
You leaned against the window as you stared out at the vast runway of the airport. You still hadn’t recovered from the shock of meeting Bucky yesterday. So you did what you knew best, run.
It was always difficult saying goodbye to Sarah, but you had to. She had made her own life and while you were always by her side through thick and thin, you couldn’t mingle in it.
You didn’t care to lift your head and see when someone came and sat on the seat beside you. “So, where are you going?” You scoffed at the question. It was practically the stupidest question anyone could ask the other on an airplane.
“Tokyo.” You answered without lifting your head. “I thought this plane was going to Athens.” You rolled your eye and answered, “Then why are you asking?”
When you heard a surprised laugh from him, you finally turned your head only to squeal loudly, “Bucky!?” Due up the intensity of your shout, almost everyone around you turned and stared.
“Oops. Sorry.” You apologized and looked back at Bucky. “How did you come here?” You asked skeptically. “By car.” Bucky said smirking. Now this is the Bucky you knew. You playfully hit him on his thigh. Only to freeze with fear. You shouldn’t have done that, you chastised yourself.
“Your daughter told me.” Bucky finally answered. Hearing this your breath left your lungs. “What...? I... I don’t have a daughter.”
Bucky folded his hands and sighed. You opened your mouth to further explain, but his face clearly told you he knew everything. “No, no, go on.” Bucky reprimanded. “How... how do you know?”
“Sarah told me.” Your blood boiled at his words. “What did you do to her. I swear to god Barnes, if something happens to her, I’ll kill you.” Bucky simply chuckled at that. He knew whenever you got angry, you would call him by his last name.
Sarah had never once revealed your secret to anyone. “I didn’t do anything to her. I just called her and asked to tell whether my assumptions were right or wrong. She told me everything willingly. So now, you tell me the whole story.”
Sarah had seen how much you had sacrificed to raise her. How you had never once thought of yourself. She knew you were lonely, though you wouldn’t admit.
And she knew there was no one better to understand you than Bucky. So not only had she answered his questions at 4 in the morning, she had also told him that you were leaving.
“It’s a long story.” You said finally relaxing. “We have time.” Bucky felt like the luckiest person now that he had found you. And he wasn’t going to let you go anytime soon.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
“So you mean after the lightning hit you, you haven’t aged a day?” Bucky and you were stargazing, lying down on the sandy shore of one of the serene beaches of Athens.
“Yes.” The sound of waves crashing was better than any therapy. “And why didn’t you tell us?” Bucky urged. “Because I didn’t know. I realized it when Sarah was almost 17.”
“Are you going to tell Steve?” It had been three days since you had come to Athens and both of you had gone back to being best friends as if the years in between hadn’t passed.
Riding on a scooter, going sightseeing and frolicking on the beaches, you both were having the time of your lives. Slowly over the time you were telling him your story.
From teaching English at a University and barely making ends meet when Sarah was a child to later on travelling the world, you shared all your experiences with him. While in between he confessed the things he was guilty for, only for you to reassure him.
“I think it is time. How long am I going to hide the truth from him. And even he has the right to know.” You said somewhat dejectedly. “Why didn’t you tell him earlier?”
“You know Steve. Sometimes he is so focused on doing the right thing, he doesn’t realize what’s pragmatic.” You inhaled sharply before continuing, “I didn’t know how Steve would feel about Sarah. I know he would love her, but I don’t think he would’ve been comfortable back then.
Just think you come back from the dead only to realize you have a daughter and she has sons who are around your own age. Difficult to digest, isn’t it?” You said turning your head back to Bucky who was intently listening to you.
“Does Sarah know Steve’s her father?” You nodded at his words. “Yes, she does. She knows everything Bucky. She even knows you. I’ve told her all about our childhood.” You replied excitedly.
“And what about you?” Bucky asked inquisitively. “I don’t think I’ll tell him about myself. I’m better as Y/N’s granddaughter. I don’t think he would be okay with all the identity frauds I have done.” You said with a breathy laugh.
“Do you know how many times the FBI have tried to trace me thinking I was a spy or something. Do you think the SHIELD would sit quietly if they knew I had unlocked immortality? They’ll probably experiment on me and I do not want that.” Bucky nodded considering your point of view. You were right.
“Can I tell you something?” Bucky asked after considering for a moment. “Tell me anything Buck.” After you answered, Bucky went silent.
“You killed JFK?” You asked fake gasping. Bucky shook his head laughing. “I don’t know, to be honest. But that’s not what I wanted to say.
Do you... do you know I’ve always loved you.” He didn’t know what had gotten into him. Maybe it was the calm of the night or the warm of your being. But he knew it deep within that this was his moment.
You stared at him slack jawed. He loved you? He had always loved you? Why hadn’t you realized before? Why had you been so blind? Was this why Steve had told you to go to him?
Back when you had just become adults, you had told Steve how you felt about him. He was still sick and weak and hadn’t yet taken the serum. But when you had confessed your feelings, Steve had lashed out saying how undeserving he was of your love. And in the heat of the moment, he had told you to love Bucky instead of him. Though Steve had asked you out once he had taken the serum, had Steve known that Bucky loved you?
“Bucky... I didn’t. I never thought you loved me. I’m sorry.” Your voice was a barely above a whisper. “No. Please don’t be sorry. I... I just wanted to tell you. I’ve been wanting to do that since very long actually, but I couldn’t.”
You both sat in a very long silence as you stared at the stars. Both of you didn’t know what to say next. “What are you going to do now?” You pursed your lips at his question, unsure of what he meant.
“I mean, are you going back to Steve?” You could actually hear his hesitation in his words. You had thought about it a lot of times and always arrived at the same answer. “No.”
“No?” Bucky asked suddenly hopeful. “No. I don’t feel it’s right. You know I’ve changed so much in all these years. I’m not the same girl from Brooklyn I once was. And I’m sure he has changed too.
Steve and I had the perfect relationship. I fear if we begin again, with our differences of personalities, it will all fall apart. And I don’t want to taint the memories we had together with a break out.” You hoped Bucky understood you.
“That’s actually true. We aren’t who we once were.” Bucky did agree with you, but at the same time his heart was soaring. There was still a chance, he thought to himself.
“I know this is selfish to ask and probably too soon. But would you like to go on a date with me?” Bucky was either going to regret this impulsive choice or was going to be the happiest man on this planet.
In the past few days, you had pondered on this. You had spent most of your life alone and on a run. By now, truth be told, you were tired. The Bucky you roamed around Athens with was much different that the Bucky you once knew. He was more accepting, more responsible and more caring, even though a little broken.
And at this stage of life that’s what you needed. You needed someone who would understand you and accept you. Bucky had done just that; he hadn’t questioned your choices.
Unlike your younger self, you didn’t need someone perfect like Steve, for he wouldn’t understand your edges. You needed someone who was just as rough, so that together with your cuts and curves, you would make a perfect picture.
Maybe with Bucky you wouldn’t have to run anymore, you would be safe just in his arms. You deserved another chance at life; you deserved a new sunrise. So you answered without hesitation, “Yes.”
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
Finally, the day you had dreaded ever since Steve was found in the ice had come. Today you were going to meet Steve and introduce him to Sarah too. There just one catch, you would be meeting him as the granddaughter of his Y/N and Sarah’s niece.
Your heart was hammering in your chest as you entered the elevator in the Avengers Tower. You had seen it from afar quite a few times, but from inside it was majestic. Sensing your tension, Bucky rubbed your back encouragingly. “You can do it. I’m with you.”
Bucky was the best partner you could ask for. While he brought vigor to your somewhat stale life, you provided him his safe space and comfort. You both were like pieces of jigsaw; without each other, you had knobs and sockets that rendered you incomplete, but with each other, you fit perfectly.
Somewhere at the back of your mind, you weren’t sure how Steve would react to Bucky dating you. You had this feeling that he wouldn’t be happy.
Bucky was just as nervous as you but was better at hiding it. He too was coming back to the tower after months. In all this time you both had travelled the places you wanted to go since childhood.
You wanted the meeting with Steve to be private so you had planned to meet in Steve’s suite. Steve still didn’t have any idea that Bucky was dating you.
Exiting out of the elevator on Steve’s floor, both you and Bucky sucked in a loud breath and held each other’s hands tightly, gathering enough courage to enter his house.
“I was so excited to meet you... Y/N!?” Steve had begun on a happy note, glad that Bucky had finally found his soulmate (in Bucky’s own words). Bucky had told him how much his girlfriend meant to him, how she was perfect for him and how she was all he could ever ask for and more. Just that, he never once mentioned her name. Neither had he given a slightest hint that it would be you.
“How?” Was the only word Steve could mutter. He had a lot of questions he wanted to ask but his mouth was too dry and his brain too shocked to formulate any.
“It’s not what you think. I’m Y/N’s granddaughter. My parents named me after her and I do look a lot like her too.” You said still not leaving Bucky’s side. “Granddaughter?” Steve asked the same question Bucky had asked when he first met you.
You and Bucky shared a look before you finally revealed the truth, though only half. “Yeah. Steve I need to tell you something. I know this might be difficult to digest, but I thought it’s better if you knew. You have a daughter.” You said without wasting any further time.
Steve fell back into the sofa after hearing you. “I have... we had a daughter?” Bucky went and sat besides him, and put a hand on his shoulder reassuringly. “I need a minute.” Steve said before disappearing into the bedroom.
As Steve went, you finally let out the tears that had accumulated in your eyes. This moment was very emotionally charged for you and it was difficult to keep the pretense.
You finally let go when Bucky held you in his arms. You didn’t know how Steve would react, but this wasn’t what you were expecting. Agreed he was shocked, but you thought he would be happy at least. You didn’t expect him to walk away.
You dabbed your tears away just in time as Steve walked in. His eyes were red and cheeks wet, a clear indication that he had been crying. “Can I meet her?” You could see the hesitation on his face. You looked at Bucky once before answering, “Yeah.”
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
You and Sarah already had a long talk about this potential meet up. Since Sarah was a kid, you had told her who her father was and how brave and noble he was by nature. She had undoubtedly looked up at him.
You rode the shotgun as Bucky drove and Steve sat in the backseat of the car while driving up to Sarah’s place. You had told him all about Sarah and he had heard every single word with great concentration.
Though he had been a little sad when informed she didn’t take after his super soldier genes, he was rather relieved when you told him she was healthy all her life unlike his sickly self.
What came as a shock for all of you, was that Steve had already read her novels and was indeed a fan of her. He himself couldn’t believe she was his own daughter.
“You will be proud of her Steven.” You said as you turned back to look at him staring outside the window of the moving car. “I am.” He solemnly replied.
“This is what she must have wanted to tell me back then. After I came back all I thought about was what she wanted to say, but now I know.” Steve said with tears slipping from his eyes. You rapidly turned your head away from him and sobbed in your handkerchief. He was right, this is exactly what you had wanted to tell him.
“Are you my granddaughter?” Steve asked after considering for a moment. “What? No. God please no.” You squealed. Steve couldn’t get what he said wrong.
“Well, after you were gone, Y/N gave birth to Sarah and later on married Daniel George. They had a son together and I’m his daughter. So Daniel was my grandpa. You and me are not related.” You, Bucky and Sarah had made up this whole story.
“Daniel George.” Steve muttered to himself thinking if he by any chance knew a man by this name. You had decided to make Sarah your aunt as you didn’t want to make it any more awkward by being related to Steve.
As you all reached Sarah’s house, she was already waiting for you. The first thing Steve did was to dearly hug Sarah. You and Bucky left the room under the pretense that they both should get some time alone together. But the truth was you couldn’t have possibly witnessed their meeting without breaking down.
“I hope I haven’t done a mistake. I tried my best Bucky. I didn’t tell him earlier because he wouldn’t have been able to take it. I didn’t mean any harm.” You said through broken sobs. You hoped Steve didn’t hate you for keeping this secret. “I know you did your best. Nobody else would’ve done better. You were always the smartest.” Bucky said pressing kisses to your temple.
Hours had passed when Steve finally came out of the room with Sarah. They both had tears in their eyes and their raw emotions were written clearly across their faces.
The four of you preceded to talk, while Sarah shared various anecdotes of her past, you and Bucky talked about your trip to divert the topic a little. Though Steve was nodding and laughing here and there, he was oddly silent.
Before leaving, Steve asked for only one thing, a photo frame. The photo was of you and little Sarah with her sitting on your hip. You were laughing carelessly and clearly enjoying the morning sun.
Seeing the four of you happily smiling and hugging each other, you though your separated family was finally together.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
“Coming in a minute.” You shouted as you finally set the dishes on the table to your liking. You sprinted towards the door as the doorbell finally stopped ringing, from the pattern of the bells, it was mostly Steve.
“You’re early.” You said as you opened the door to see Steve, wet with the rain, standing at the door with a bottle of wine. “Should I go back?” Steve asked jokingly and you laughed along.
You informed him that Bucky had gone to get some items at the last minute. Looking at the table and the food half served in the kitchen, Steve replied, “You didn’t have to do all this.” You simply shrugged at that.
Since the revelation, Steve and Sarah met very frequently and by now had developed a special bond. The four of you always had dinners together. Today was one such day. Due to the thunderstorm, Sarah had decided not to come, so Steve, Bucky and you decided to carry on without her.
“You still like pie, don’t you?” You asked and he happily nodded, still unaware of your mistake. As a kid Steve had been devoted to pies, they were a rare delicacy due to your financial conditions, and maybe that’s why Steve liked them even more.
Still lost in the sweet high of dopamine, you raised your hand for a high five. Seeing your palm, Steve’s blood ran cold. You had the mark; the exact same mark that his Y/N had on her hand. All this couldn’t be a coincidence, he thought.
When you were young adults, Steve had been cornered by bullies as usual. When you had gone to stop them, one of them had pushed you, only for you to fall and get your palm pierced by an iron nail.  
Steve clutched your hand in a death grip and realizing your mistake, you quickly closed it off. “Open your palm.” Steve commanded and you shook your head. “Y/N. Open. Your. Palm.”
“Steve, let me go.” You said trying your best not to cry. “Why?” Steve asked one simply word and you broke. It was because maybe even you didn’t have any answer.
“Why did you lie to me?” When you didn’t say anything, he pressed his fingers deeper into your wrist, sure to leave marks. “Answer me!” Steve shouted.
“Steve, you are hurting me.” Steve quickly let go of your hand. No matter how angry he got, he wasn’t going to hurt you. “I didn’t want you to feel bad Steve.” That’s it, that was the only explanation for your lies.
“How are you even here?” Steve asked somewhat annoyed. “I was hit by a lightning. I haven’t aged since.” Somehow for Steve this wasn’t the most shocking thing he had known today. “Then why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you come to me after I came back? We could’ve been the family we always wanted.” Steve was hurt at your betrayal.
“You were at the wrong place at the wrong time, Steve. We all thought you were dead, you yourself thought you were dead. And then one day you wake up and realize that not only somehow am I magically alive, but you have a daughter and grandsons who are your own age. Would you have been able to digest all of it at once back then Steve?”
Steve thought for a moment, you weren’t wrong. He would’ve been completely broken. All his life he had wanted a family, and to know that your kid grew old without you would’ve been more heartbreaking than not having a family at all.
“But why did you hide? You could’ve told someone. You could’ve told Peggy, you could’ve told Colonel Phillips. You didn’t have to run away.” Just then the door opened and Bucky came in. He removed his coat and placed it on the rack, unaware of what had conspired between you and Steve.
Looking at Bucky, Steve asked you, “Does Bucky know? Or have you lied to him too?” You looked down at your feet as you knew the worst was yet to come. “Yes. He knows.”
Steve had never felt more blinding rage before. You had told Bucky the truth but not him. You had trusted Bucky but not him. And you both were shamelessly dating right under his nose the entire time.
Unable to hold his rage in, he stormed towards Bucky. Holding him by the collar of his shirt, he pinned Bucky to the door. “How dare you, Buck? You knew everything still you didn’t tell me.
You got what you always wanted, didn’t you? I shouldn’t have saved you Buck. You ruined everything. You broke my family, Bucky!” If Bucky wanted then he would’ve put Steve away. But he knew he had been selfish. No matter what he said though, Steve’s word hurt more than any whip. Steve’s accusations hurt deep.
“Enough Steve! You want answers? I’ll tell you. If I had revealed that she was your daughter out of a wed lock back then, then you wouldn’t be standing on the mantle of captain America today.
We weren’t married, we weren’t even engaged and it was the 1940s. People wouldn’t have taken it lightly. Also, they would’ve kept Sarah under observation all her life to see if she got your super soldier genes.
And should I have gone and told them I haven’t aged a day so they could’ve experimented on me too?” You rhetorically asked. Steve had let go of Bucky by now. He hadn’t thought from this point of view. Maybe he reacted too much in the heat of the moment.
“I...” Steve began. You stopped him by raising your hand. “Don’t.” You needed to be alone. You needed to get away for a moment. Without thinking further, you took off. Only managing to wear your shoes, you opened the door and left. “Y/N! Wait.” Bucky called after you. But you didn’t pay any heed and kept running in the rain.
Bucky saw it with his own two eyes as the lightning crashed down upon you. It all happened in a fraction of a second, and all he could do was stand there helpless. The electricity clearing its path through the sky and aiming right at your body. The only thing he could do was scream your name in terror.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
Bucky paced furiously around the hospital lobby as Steve sat in one of the chairs with his head in his hands. You were being operated in the hospital, while the two were being restless.
Steve finally looked up through tears at Bucky, “Bucky, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said all that.” He had been nothing but guilty throughout this entire time. He knew it was wrong of him to blame Bucky.
When Bucky didn’t respond anything but stopped from walking any further, he continued. “I was angry and I didn’t think it through. I only thought about myself, I didn’t think what she had to go through.”
He stood up and walked up to Bucky who was standing still. “We have changed Bucky, I know that. Back then I and Y/N were perfect for each other, now, I’m not so sure.
But you, you both complete each other. I’ve seen you two for a long time now. Long enough to know that you both are meant for one another. You understand her better than I ever could. This will hurt me, I’m not going to lie. But I’ll pull it through.
You are worth saving Bucky. You are worth much more than that.” He said as they finally hugged each other. “I can’t lose her. I can’t lose her now, Steve.” Bucky said as he clutched on to Steve tightly. “She’ll be fine. She is a strong woman, stronger than any of us. She’ll make it. I know she will.”
Just then the doctor came to interrupt their moment only to inform them that you were safe. Both of them let out a victory shout, as if they weren’t Avengers but young boys from the alleys of Brooklyn. Bucky knew at that moment, that everything would be fine; everything would be perfect.
☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎
“Come on, we’ll get late.” Bucky said as he hugged you from behind. Tony Stark had arranged one of his grand parties on New Year’s Eve.
“Give me a minute, Buck.” You said as you put on the earring on your left ear. Just then your eyes fell upon the most precious thing that you had been dying to see. Hiding amongst the tuft of your hair near the temple was a fine line of grey.
“Bucky, it’s happened.” You said with happy tears in your eyes. You touched the grey strand with such reverence as if it was the most precious thing you had ever seen, and it indeed was. You were finally growing old; you were finally living.
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lunaastoir · 3 years
Text
fluff/relationships w the liyue crew
characters included: xiao, childe, beidou, and zhongli
ik i forgot ningguang i promise i’ll include her in part 2, i just didn’t have time :(
all x a gn! reader 
my liyue babies :,) ft. ningguang in spirit
an: i was listening to my soft playlist (more like listening to cupid’s chokehold on repeat, no i am not basic 🔪) and i thought some fluff headcanons would be cute w these sweet people
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xiao
ok so no surprise that he hates liyue harbor
he hates anything w a lot of people in it so he prefers to stay at wangshu inn tyvm
but by contrast, you love liyue harbor sm (it’s gorgeous i mean c’mON)
you go there often to retrieve your commissions in order to stay closer to xiao (liyue harbor is closer than mondstadt he argues but you’re well aware that they’re both equally far away)
so if anyone asked, xiao would absolutely refuse to go to the harbor like i hate people??? why would you even ask???
but,,,he’s so sOFT for you
if you asked??? he would agree in a heartbeat
but since he’s >:( angsty boy, he makes you think that he won’t go even when he’s already decided that he’s coming w you
he puts up the “if you so require, then i guess i will assist you with your travels in liyue harbor” but in reality he would definitely have said yes even without the almond tofu
while he hates the harbor, he thinks that with you anything is bearable :,) simp
you take him to see xinyan to vibe w her music and you can tell he really enjoys it
even tho he’s like 🕴 the entire time, you see the softer look on his face and the very slight smile on his lips as he listens to the music and watches the crowd
so so so cute very soft for him
i do see him as a subtly touchy person in public like brushing the hair off your face, swiping his thumb across your cheek, or gently pulling your hair back when you have a plate of food in your hands 
the type to link your pinkies together - he claims it’s so you don’t get lost but yk better 
after the concert is done you take him to that one waypoint near mt. tianheng and the both of you just watch the city lights and the way they reflect beautifully on the water surrounding the harbor 
personal headcanon that xiao absolutely loves stargazing since he believes the stars are the one true constant in his life especially since he’s experienced so much loss (basically they’ll never leave him god i hate myself why do i make everything SAD)
mini headcanon off of that - he doesn’t stargaze with people,,, like ever 
it’s something he loves to do alone so the fact that he lets you stargaze w him and even allows you to shift your head onto his lap while you watch the sky is a huge deal 
he loves it when you softly whisper abt how your day was or something you saw that made you laugh 
he just loves hearing your voice, it automatically calms the voices in his head 
you absolutely ADORE when he has flowers in his hair especially cecilias (cecillias? ceccillias? idfk) and you make a point whenever you go to mondstadt to pick a fresh batch of cecilias just for xiao while enlisting the help of your favorite bard  
these soft moments on the mountain are usually when you’ll sweetly tuck in a flower or two in his hair while laughing 
he’ll blush fiercely while looking away but will tuck the cecilias in securely as you’re unable to do so due to the position you’re in on his lap
all in all - this was not meant to come out as a date idea but we’re going w it 
this is so cute xiao pls let me put flowers in your hair sweet boy <3
childe
god, loml, my favorite war criminal after eren yeager 
there’s never a dull moment w this man - if you wanted peace and quiet, why the hell are you dating him bestie???
is the type of person to yell out “Y/N, i can’t believe i ran into you here!” if he sees you somewhere even tho you explicitly told him you were going to be here in the morning (ik you have a good memory ajax don’t lie to me 😐)
i don’t see him as being obnoxious w pda unlike someone else kaeya but he would definitely participate (think: handholding, cheek kisses, an arm around your shoulders)
loves it when he comes home and sees you in an apron cooking 
domesticity just makes his heart melt so you can be sure that your face will be peppered w a lot of kisses afterwards <3 
absolutely ADORES it when you trace his scars absentmindedly when you’re lying down or even when you’re having dinner in public  
he’s been far from his family for so long that small acts of mindless affection like this really make his heart happy 
you have him drunk on your love luv haha see what i did there 
he will let you put makeup on him. no i do not take criticism ⛄️
he already has on lowkey thick eyeliner,,, don’t be shy put some more bestie 
he will shamelessly go out in public w whatever you made him wear - doesn’t really give a shit even tho he has a reputation to maintain 
speaking of reputation,,, yk his mask? yeah that one - the red hair accessory that he has on his head
well on the mask, he attached a little charm the both of you got together on your first date during lantern rite 
it’s this adorable fox that we all shamelessly kill for meat and he placed it so it anchored to the side of his mask so when he fights it isn’t a nuisance or anything (does that make sense??? i hope it does) 
his subordinates notice and while they’re stoic around childe, behind closed doors they do whisper abt the mysterious person who’s captured his heart 
not so mysterious anymore when they literally see him cling onto you during his daily patrol around the harbor 💀
it’s ok tho he’s lucky he’s cute 
bestie,,, pls give him a neck massage 
i just KNOW he’s tense there idk something abt the way he carries himself just screams “my neck hurts so bad someone pls help me i would ask but my pride literally will not let me”
so give him a neck massage :) don’t worry tho he’ll definitely return the favor and then some
LOVES TICKLE FIGHTS 
he’s obsessed w them,,, it’s just the faces you make??? he can’t get enough 
he loves seeing the pure joy and the brief fear (he’s kind of a sadist) in your eyes before he attacks you w those damned hands 
it reminds him a lot of simpler times w his siblings and he’s happy he brings you joy and makes you forget your worries - at least for a little while 
all in all, he’s a good boy and no i will not tolerate childe slander 🔪 kaeya slander tho 😏
beidou
you pulled beidou??? wow everyone’s jealous (pulled as in literally from the banner and in this context but no i do not have beidou and no i definitely do not want to talk abt it)
god made beidou and zhongli just so all of us could have a sexuality crisis 
anyways, being w her is hard i will not lie 
not bc she isn’t a capable lover - no, quite the contrary 
she’s an amazing partner but the problem here lies in the fact that she’s almost never on land 
it’s hard working a long distance relationship but y’all love each other so it works out :,) 
when she is physically present however, expect to never be bored 
she’ll quietly fix the wrinkles on your shirt or fiddle with your fingers in her hands while she recounts her adventures out on sea 
she sometimes gets worried she bores you, however the way your eyes light up every time she tells a tale always reassures her otherwise
definitely the type to let you use her claymore if you want to learn 
she’ll provide useful tips as she tucks her hands into your sides gently, positioning you correctly so you don’t hurt yourself 
miss girl is an AMAZING cook 
i just know she cooks the best meals - i mean she’s friends w xiangling after all 
whenever she comes home from a voyage she’ll always insist on making something for you even if she’s abt to pass out 
pls tuck her into bed and promise her that she can make you something in the morning <3 the poor woman needs rest 
brings you back trinkets but they’re actually very practical 
she knows you won’t have much use for a simple charm (not that there’s anything wrong w that) but she believes you’ll like something practical more so she might get you a new engraved knife from the most recent place she’s been to 
definitely the type to surprise you when she docks 
i can imagine her anchoring her ship out a little ways from liyue harbor and rowing to the dock in order to make sure you aren’t alerted of her presence (i’m sorry the mental picture this made in my mind is SENDING ME INTO ORBIT but she means well i love you)
will take you to remote spots she’s found in her travels through liyue 
for example - the little heart shaped island and the island quest (?) that you had to use kaeya the bridge maker for in order to get to im sorry i’ll stop w the kaeya slander
she’ll get you seashell bracelets or necklaces idk why but she gives me those vIBES 
they’re super nice ones too, only the highest quality for you 
yes she’s a bruh girl but i also see her as someone who would enjoy intimate moments like watching the sunset or something 
“yo wanna catch the sunset, i heard it looks sick from the jade chamber” said before ahem it yk fell from the sky
kasdjksfashfjsahf yes ofc i would love to catch the sunset w you pls come home luv
anyways, she is a woman i would give the world for 
zhongli
ok gimme a sec i need to get my gentleman mode on 
this man,,, THIS MAN 
everything w him is so soft like your entire eXISTENCE w him could go in a museum it’s that beautiful 
in the morning when he visits you, he always brings you a cup of your favorite tea and a bouquet of glaze lilies he got from madame ping
holds the door for you, pushes the chair out for you, uses a napkin and brushes sauce off your lips when you’re eating - you name something sweet, he’s done it
secretly loves it when you fuss over him 
he doesn’t like to fight but say he encountered a group of hillichurls he couldn’t avoid and promptly defeated them but ended up tearing a part of his tux(?) (is it a tux? i could not tell you)
not that big of a deal, i mean it’s a scratch, he’s a 6,000 year old god, he’s dealt w much worse 
but seeing the worried crease in your brows as you usher him to sit at the table while quickly grabbing antiseptic to clean his wound
“it’s just a scratch, my dear. do not worry i’ve dealt with much worse.”
you quietly protest abt how “yes zhongli, i understand you’re an archon and have gotten worse injuries but i’m worried about infection just please let me take care of you ok? <3″ 
when you say that he feels weird emotions,,, wdym take care of him? 
he’s always taken care of himself or been expected to take care of others as the former ruling deity of liyue so having someone else genuinely worry abt his wellbeing creates a warm feeling in his chest 
he strikes me as the type to knit you something??? idk maybe it’s the grandpa vibes but i headcanon that he would knit you a scarf for the colder weather, it’s cute 
in the privacy of your home, he really likes picking you up
he loves it when you wrap your legs around his middle while he gets up to go do the dishes or smthg 
domesticity go brrrr
if you’re into making flower crowns, he would totally have you on his lap and wordlessly hand you a glaze lily whenever you expectantly hold your hand out while weaving the flowers together 
he expects you to make the crown for yourself but when you place the crown on his head and it fits perfectly while simultaneously tucking a glaze lily behind your ear, he looks at you dumbstruck 
his mouth parts open in awe and it’s quite literally the cutest thing
you’ve broken him 
thinks it’s the sweetest thing - will keep it on his head for the whole day 
he’ll even put it in water before he sleeps so it won’t wilt and he can wear it the next day <3 
scenic picnics!! scenic picnics!! 
the type to take you to the nicest spots in liyue to chat abt the history of the land w you over a cup of tea and your favorite food (whatever you like, he doesn’t mind)
recounts the people he’s met in his long life before finishing off by saying you’re by far the best person he’s met 
zhongli strangles lovingly come home soon 
thanks for reading! if you have any requests don’t hesitate to send them in <3 
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elysianslove · 3 years
Note
helo love! i hope you're having a good day. kinda want a break from bf hq boys. can i ask for miya twins as reader's older brothers? 👉👈 i was thinking if she can be the manager of inarizaki just because i want aran to lose his mind from dealing with three miyas hahahaha. thank youuu ily!! ʕ•ε•ʔ
omg i lovelovelove the concept of the miya twins having a sister and now that i’ve gotten an ask about it skfsbfkj <3333 thank you for sending this and i hope you like it!! 
MIYA TWINS WITH A YOUNGER SISTER 
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considering you and the two of them are only a year apart, you’re pretty close with one another. of course, the older you got, the more annoying they were, and there was this one era when they were like 9-12 that they made it their life mission to annoy you. but then they grew out of that phase eventually, and as they matured, they became more tolerable. 
they’re not only teenage boys, but also your older brothers. they’re going to be annoying. 
atsumu definitely does that sibling thing where he’s like eating a bowl of cereal or whatever and he enters your room, just stands there and chews really loudly, then walks back out without closing the door. it makes you want to kill him every time.
osamu probably just like tugs at your hair whenever he sees you because why not yk, especially if it’s in a ponytail or a braid. and this isn’t 9-12 year old osamu. this is like 15-17 year old osamu. he just grabs your braid and pulls. you might snap your neck one day honestly. 
atsumu eats your leftovers. all the time. like literally all the time how do u still have 2 brothers and not 1
osamu comes and sits in your room like on ur couch or bed cause you have better wifi or whatever. he farts and goes “sorry :D.” he is not sorry.
sometimes the both of them team up on you and it’s so exhausting. but if you manage to get your mom on your side? consider them obliterated. 
and yk what’s even more fun? when you and a twin team up on the other twin. it’s just always hilarious cause the other twin will act so betrayed vjshsdsk
anyways because you’re only one year apart, their friends are your friends and your friends are their friends. have you ever had to deal with a “best friend’s brother” type of thing where a friend of yours only wanted to come over because she heard that miya atsumu likes to walk around the house shirtless? yes. 
she ended up being extremely disappointed at the fact that miya atsumu has a lot more respect for those living in the same house as him and doesn’t walk around shirtless. ironic. 
but also atsumu does flirt with every single one of your friends. 
flirt with his it’s okay <3
you’d think atsumu would be more protective or selfish about you being close with him and samu’s friends? nope. 
it’s osamu
like, for example, every time he sees you walking alone with suna he wants to either deck suna or deck you. he can never decide on which one. 
he’s just very good at hiding things like that, and atsumu isn’t, so it always seems like atsumu gives more of a shit than osamu does. and honestly, osamu’s not even sure why it bothers him so much. he’s not mad that you’re friends with his friends, like, obviously he isn’t, because he’s happy to share, especially since you’re his sister. but at the same time, he can’t help but feel like he really can’t have anything for himself you know? sounds pathetic and selfish but he can’t help it. 
i think you bring it up at some point and ask him if he’s bothered by it, and it took a whileee before he admitted that yes, it kinda does. it made sense in your head though, only because he’s your brother, and obviously you’re not gonna stop being friends with them, but you understand. they were his first, in a sense. 
but!!! he’s not gonna lie, osamu loves the fact that he can trust his friends with you. like if anything were to ever happen to you, he knows his friends will react the same way he would, and that alone kinda reels him in. 
since you’ve known aran since you were really young, he’s kinda like a third older brother to you. he always acts like a mediator between you and your brothers (and is always on your side, even if you’re in the wrong. so what if his favoritism is showing?). you genuinely feel like you can turn to him for anything at any point if you can’t turn to your brothers first. 
but out of all their friends, you’re closest to suna and you can’t explain why. he’s just so nice to be around and if you’re left alone with him, it can’t ever be awkward, even if it’s completely silent and quiet. plus, suna’s probably covered for you a couple of times if we’re being honest :)
anyways! 
protective wise, they’re honestly a lot better than you’d think they’d be. like yeah they’ll give you hell if you even mention the fact that you might have a crush on someone, but in reality, they just want what’s best for you, and they want you to always be happy.
obviously, if the person of your choosing really doesn’t seem like they have your best interest in mind, your brothers will be extremely blunt about it. like i said, they want what’s best for you, and they’re not going to sugarcoat anything at all. 
good luck trying to get your opinion in on their love interests they’re suddenly incapable of hearing. hypocrites and double standards <//3
they will do the whole interrogation thing, but it’s mostly because they don’t wanna look like they’re softies. they want the person to fear for their life if they even consider hurting you. 
in regards to comfort; 
osamu is the best listener there is. genuinely. he just sits there and lets you talk his ear off. he won’t care if you spend hours doing it. if it helps you relax, and calm down, then he’s all for it. 
atsumu is who to go to when you’re sobbing and need to get your mind off of something. he’s great at distracting you, but healthily. he’s not very good at the talking thing, and he will listen if you need him to, but go to him when you don’t want to think about anything anymore, yk? 
btw!! both of them are secretly huge suckers for the drama in your life. if there’s some friendship drama, they want all the details. they’re giving you the best reactions and the most ridiculous advice, and are definitely heating you up more than they should be but, what else are you expecting?
as each other’s siblings, you’re insanely supportive of each other and your respective dreams. like when you found out osamu wanted to go into a completely different field than atsumu, you spent a thousand nights trying to convince him that what he was doing was right, and spent another thousand nights trying to convince atsumu that osamu choosing a different career path didn’t mean he was leaving him behind. 
whatever your own dream may be, they’re hella supportive. like suffocatingly so. if it’s something they’re well versed in, like volleyball or cooking, they’re helping you out in every way they can, every second they can. but if they’re unfamiliar with it, they’ll either pretend they’re the most knowledgable people about it and end up embarrassing themselves, or will just support you any other way they can (for example, buying or promoting your things, or proofreading, or helping you edit, etc). 
when the three of you are older and have lives of your own, you still take the time out of your day to catch up. sometimes other days are harder than others, because your lives are so different that there can be no time at all, but every time you see them through a screen or you meet up after hours in osamu’s restaurant, or you and osamu sit front row at one of atsumu’s games, it genuinely doesn’t feel like any time has passed. you’re so different but the exact same. 
they piss you off, insanely so, and you get on their nerves too. you’ve spat ugly words at each other, words you didn’t mean, and made each other cry, frustrated and angered one another, but at the end of the day, you’re siblings. at the end of the day, they’re the most important constants in your life. no matter what, they’re there. 
you can always count on that, you know? :) 
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so are y’all gonna send me more prompts like these? 😼 please? 
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userholland · 3 years
Text
all for her [3]
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pairing: dad!bartender!tom x female!reader
warnings: cursing, lots of angst
summary: a single-dad bartender, a supportive best friend and their continuous, unrequited love noticed by his optimistic daughter. is it possible to break a heart they never knew they had?
word count: 8.7k! 
a/n: another month has passed but! finally here’s part 3!!! sorry for the delay but i was caught in between this rut & midterms so it took a while for any big ideas to spark. but i’m so happy that so many of y’all have enjoyed this story. i want to say again that this is my favorite fic series i’ve ever written so thank you so so much for appreciating it! i may end with 5 parts, but i won’t leave y’all hanging!
— masterlist ☆彡
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
A week had passed since the gruesome bar fight and Tom was still left with a dark bruise surrounding his right eye along with another on the side of his chin and the start of his jaw. Luckily, there were no broken bones or dislocated limbs, but it was made known that he had a concussion after you forced him to go to the emergency room and get properly looked at by a doctor. As stubborn as he was, Tom tried listening to the careful instructions given for the follow-up appointments that would come, but everything went in one ear and out the other.
“We want to make sure each part of the brain that was impacted is still intact, so we want you to see this specialist and they’ll run a few cognitive tests to make sure everything is okay.” The doctor explained in simple terms as he scribbled the information on his prescription pad and ripped it off.
You nodded, taking the paper from him, “How much is all this?”
“It’s not too costly, but insurance should cover most of it.” He reassured, glancing at you before looking back at Tom’s chart, “I recommend a lot of rest and time away from work for at least two to three days.”
Tom quickly looked over, “I can’t take off work right now. I really can’t afford to do that right now.”
“Mr. Holland, we want to make sure that there’s no way you could injure yourself even more than now. You need to take a few rest days in order to relax and stay away from anything strenuous.”
“I’m a bartender, I think I can-”
“Tom... relax, please.” You retorted at him, your jaw slightly clenched.
Tom stared out the window with his side against the wall, feeling like he was miles away even though he was just across the room. You peered over at him a few times throughout the appointment, but you knew he didn’t want to be here. One of the strings of his black hoodie curled around his pointer finger, pulling on the coil before letting it spring back, repeating it a few times as the doctor continued informing to you.
He’d been fixated on the results of the DNA test. It was rooted in his mind from how many times he read over it, convincing himself it wasn’t true and it was a huge mistake. Doubt consumed his thoughts, wondering how he could have been so stupid to fall for the entire ruse even though Tom never regretted one moment of raising Summer. He loved her so much and would do anything to have her back, but finding out the truth made it harder for him to figure out if he should still be fighting for her.
Throughout the nights, he tossed and turned enough to wake you up, feeling his pull on the sheets. Sometimes you’d hold him from behind, curling your arms and locking them to make him feel safe. You pressed your cheek against his back, the eerily sound of his heartbeat against your ear as it quickly thudded. His thumb brushed over the top of your hand, remembering that you were still there, but when he closed his eyes, every thought crawled its way back in and cluttered his mind enough to make him want to burst into an angry fit.
After a few minutes, the doctor left you two to gather your things. Tom ran his hand over his hair as he started to walk to the door, but you blocked him from taking another step. With your arms crossed in front of your chest and your eyebrows furrowed, Tom knew that look was never good.
“Talk to me… C’mon, what’s going on? What’s on your mind?” You softly asked, still looking into his eyes.
Tom ran his hands down his face, a light groan leaving his lips from the frustration slowly building inside his entire body.
“I don’t want to talk about it now, Y/N. Please. I’m fucking embarrassed enough.” He huffed.
“Then when are you gonna talk about it?” You retorted, your eyebrows furrowed from concern, “You can’t keep the weight of the world on your shoulders forever.”
He shrugged, “I’m not Summer’s dad. That’s it! It was all fucking nothing. It doesn’t matter-”
“It’s always mattered, Tom!” You whisper-shouted, not wanting to make a scene with everyone passing by even though the door was closed, “What Maggie did to you was fucked up, but you raised that girl to be who she is now and that’s what matters.”
Tom gulped, his tired eyes beginning to water as he kept eye contact with you. His bottom lip quivered, but he quickly wiped his tears with his hoodie sleeve. The dryness in his throat hurt and even closing his bruised eye was painful to do, making him curse under his breath every time. He clenched his jaw tight as he rubbed the back of his neck, but you placed your hands on each side of his delicate face. 
It was hard to see him in this state where nothing mattered to him and there was a greyness that clouded over the great and wonderful person he truly was. It wasn’t the Tom you grew up with, not even close, so to see this side of him for the first time astonished you, and you weren’t sure what else it would take to see his old self other than getting Summer back.
He ran his hand over his soft curls, “Can we just go home?”
“Yeah, but remember we have a call with a lawyer tomorrow morning. He thinks you could get a good settlement deal since the guy who beat you up had prior arrests.” You reminded him, pecking his cheek then rubbing your thumb over the bruised skin under his eye.
Tom nodded, “You know we can’t afford this guy.”
“We’ll make it work.” You said, wrapping your arms around his waist with his around your neck.
He licked his lips, “Y/N, I’m not gonna make you pay for it.”
“Who said you were making me? I know you want her back as much as I do.” You sniffled, gently holding his face so he could look into your sincere eyes and saw the way they gleamed.
Neither of you wanted to surrender and it never crossed your minds to give up on Summer, but it was getting harder when you felt like Tom was a ticking time bomb and it could only take Maggie’s choice of words to pick at the one nerve no one else could reach to make him completely snap.
Your noses brushed together with your foreheads lightly pressed, both of you reminding yourselves that you had one another. Tom placed his hand on your cheek before leaning in, feeling how soft and light your lips were against his and tasting your minty chapstick. As your eyes tightly closed, you shared a slow kiss with your arms still loosely wrapped around his neck. It was a blissful kiss, one you hadn’t shared in a while, but it was comforting in moments like this where you were terrified of what was to come. 
When Tom pulled away, he planted a faint kiss on the center of your forehead, “I love you so much.”
“I love you so much more.” You mumbled as you looked into his beautiful, russet eyes, “C’mon. Let’s go home and put some ice on that eye again, maybe take a nap after.” You hinted.
He half-smiled, “That sounds nice.”
You quickly furrowed your eyebrows, pouted your bottom lip, “Hmm, and maybe take a shower, you look like hell.” You joked, raking your fingers through the front of his messy curls to the crown of his head.
Tom rolled his eyes and smirked, “You know you used to be nicer to me, like when we were kids.”
“Well that’s before I fell for you, I can’t get too soft… plus, I think it balances your ego.” You smiled, pressing your lips against his while the two of you giggled within another kiss.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
Later that afternoon, you and Tom were napping on the couch with the TV on low volume. The birds chirped by the window and traffic was below the terrace, the sudden honks echoing between the buildings. You were laying between Tom’s legs, the fluffy blanket over your whole body. With your arms loose around Tom’s torso, you slumbered with your head comfortably against his chest. Tom wanted to go some sleep, blinking his dry eyes every few seconds to keep himself awake, trying to distract himself with his phone.
Light snores left your lips, your face hiding in his neck as you unconsciously curled up more. Tom stretched his neck a bit, making sure you were okay before running his hand over your hair. If he could lose Summer, Tom worried that you could slip away just as easily. He never realized how protective he was, hoping it wouldn’t push you away from his own faults and insecurities; he didn’t want to be left alone.
Tom kissed the top of your hair, nuzzling his face against the top of your head. Throughout this, you were his rock, an anchor to hold him down when things got to be too much and he couldn’t believe how supportive you were with how confused he was. You held him when he cried and you listened to him when he needed to vent. It was things you’d done before, but you both felt emotionally closer like another wall had fallen and there was nothing you couldn’t tell each other.
He slowly raked his fingers through the crown of your head to the end of your back, over and over as you peacefully napped before his phone vibrated against the coffee table. You stirred in your sleep, turning your head away and loosely wrapping your arm under Tom’s neck. As his vision cleared from his sleepy daze, Tom furrowed his eyebrows at the contact name.
“Hey, baby, I have to take this,” Tom said in a low tone, not wanting to completely wake you up.
You nodded, your eyes still closed, but Tom slowly got on his feet. After he placed the blanket over you, Tom went out to his bedroom so you could have some quiet.
“Hey, dad.” He answered.
“Hey, Tommy.”
His father always had the same monotone voice, like a poker face that he had to figure out since he was born.
“What’s going on? Is Sheryl okay?” Tom replied, sitting down on the bed.
Ever since his dad got remarried a few years ago, Tom and his father’s relationship slowly parted over time. With work, school, and a kid, Tom didn’t have time to take the backhanded compliments and concerned parenting skills that his new stepmom persistently gave to him on any family occasion. They used to have dinners together every Saturday night when Tom could get away from the city and school, but each one got worse. The last straw was around this time last year, it was Thanksgiving dinner and the blowout was something Tom tried to forget every other week. He couldn’t even bring it all up to you which was hard to keep since it’s been biting at his nerves for the last year.
As Summer got older, Tom didn’t want her to think she was “some kind of mistake” as Sheryl would put it. So for the sake of her, he told himself that his family wasn’t going to cost his daughter’s happiness and he never returned a call back until now. She asked about her grandparents around birthdays or holidays throughout the year, but it was getting harder for Tom to avoid the question when she wouldn’t give up sometimes.
Even though Tom’s mom was usually out of the country, she made sure to send presents, pictures and call every other weekend to make sure he and Summer were okay, but Tom would never admit to her if something was wrong. His mom was never there, not for him growing up and rarely now, but he knew she was trying to make up for it holiday after holiday.
“Uh, she’s well. We’re fine. I just wanted to call you and ask what’s going on… How’s Summer?” His dad genuinely asked.
Tom chuckled, “Why do you ask?”
His father hesitated for a second with his answer, “I haven’t heard from you in a while. Your mom called me and said that she hadn’t heard from you either. So, we’re just worried about you…”
“Yeah… yeah.” Tom raised his eyebrows as he rolled his eyes.
He heard his father sigh, “I know things weren’t the best the last time I saw you-”
“Some woman I barely know tells me that I can’t raise my daughter? That she was a mistake? No, dad. I should be visiting even more after that.” Tom retorted, grinning to mask how the anger was building up inside him slowly but surely.
“She’s your stepmom.”
“Not to me.”
Tom’s dad didn’t fight back his bitter attitude, “Tom, I just want to talk to you. It’s just you and me.”
“Dad, I’m really… not in the mood.” 
“Let’s get lunch… or dinner, maybe? Just the two of us.” His dad suggested, almost pleading.
There was silence between the conversation as Tom thought for a few seconds. As damaged as his bond was with his dad, he didn’t want to push him away. It would be what Maggie was doing to him, and to feel the separation from a child hurt like hell.
Tom sniffled, “Fine, yeah. Sure.”
“Great. Well, what about dinner tonight? Where do you want to meet?”
“Um, we can meet at the bar I work at… before my shift starts. Six o’clock.” Tom trailed, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Okay, I’ll see you then.”
Tom quickly hung up before he could burst into tears. In the back of his mind, he thought there was an ultimatum behind the real reason he wanted to talk, not thinking it was just some catching up. But, the stress of the past month had made Tom into a walking mess. Maybe this would bring back some old times, like when he was a kid in a baseball cap and his dad brought him to baseball games and carnivals when his mom was on business trips.
“Fucking Christ,” Tom said under his breath, running his hands through his hair. He blinked away the tears at the waterlines of his tired eyes, wiping them with his t-shirt before getting up.
It was still hard to pass Summer’s room and see it still untouched and empty. Tom kept it neat and clean, hoping it motivated his hope to have her back home. Sometimes he’d sit on her bed and think about the little life the three of you had together. She probably missed her stuffed animals she had tea parties with or the t-shirts she couldn’t fit in her bag. Maggie refused to let him over anymore, not after the last time they saw each other and how frustrated he got. It was hard to think that Tom was holding out for nothing, and Summer could never be in his life again.
He leaned against the doorframe, staring at the bunny sitting on her bed. It was the bunny you and Tom spent hours looking for sometimes, one day realizing that Summer started to do it on purpose. She would hide it in the last place you could think of and it became a race of who could find Mr. Fluffycakes first. She finally admitted one day that she thought it was a game that you and Tom liked to play, so she would try to find the perfect place to almost camouflage the soft, grey bunny.
Tom held it in his hands, bring it up to his face, and smelling the familiar, lavender-vanilla detergent. He sighed, glaring at the small paintings taped with scotch tape to her wall by the dollhouse in the corner of her room. It was Summer’s favorite Christmas present she had ever gotten, Tom’s mom hoping she’d like it after getting it from London. She traveled a lot, always sending things in the mail to Summer, but rarely making appearances with how much she did work. Tom hoped that would change from when he was a kid, but now he understood how his parents ended up separating.
“You okay, babe?” You grinned, leaning on the doorframe and glaring at Tom sat on Summer’s book nook.
“Yeah, just miss her.” He half-smiled, biting his bottom lip after and tossing her bunny on the bed.
You walked over, sitting next to Tom and wrapping your arm around his shoulder before kissing his temple trailing to the apple of his cheek then lightly pressing your nose against his cheek.
“I bet she misses you a lot too.” You replied. “Have you heard from Maggie? Any chance of… seeing her? Maybe a short visit.” You asked, pulling your head away to turn to him.
He nodded, “We haven’t talked. I don’t want Summer to see me like this anyways.” Tom said low, lightly touching his bruised eye.
“C’mon, you look noble and tough. She’ll think you’re more of a hero than you already are.” You joked, trying to get a smile out of him.
“Hmm, I wish I felt like that.” Tom sighed.
Trying to figure out the gears working in Tom’s head was always a mystery. You watched his brown eyes shift back and forth as he was leaned over, his elbows against the top of his knees. Another long sigh passed his lips and you could tell something else was really bothering him, not needing him to say it.
“What’s wrong, baby? C’mon, you have that furrow in your brow.” You tilted your head.
He bit the inside of his cheek, his pride fighting his urge to just open his mouth, but he had a soft spot for you like no one else could. The instant Tom looked into your eyes, he felt the comfort he knew he needed.
“My dad called me, just now.”
“Oh… Is that good or bad?” You asked.
He cracked his knuckles, shrugging, “Both, kind of...”
You didn’t know much about Tom and his dad’s relationship other than Tom hating his stepmom, in light terms than he used. But, he wanted Summer to keep in contact with them for as long as he could. So many years had passed since you last saw his dad, so it didn’t feel right to butt in when you knew the bare minimum, but last Thanksgiving was unforgivable in Tom’s book so you stood by his side on what he felt.
“We’re gonna meet for dinner tonight… at the bar. I want to take a shift tonight.” Tom added.
You sighed, “Tom, you can’t work. We have to go to the doctor soon.”
“Just tonight. I promise. I… I need to do something with myself.” He groaned as he ran his fingers through his hair, rubbing the top of his head before looking back into your eyes.
“Okay… I understand. But, just tonight.” You agreed and rubbed his arm, pressing your cheek against his shoulder.
Tom sat up, straightening his back and you pulled your face away from his shoulder to look him in the eye. Your faces were close together, a few inches away before he asked, “Can you come with me? ‘Cause, I don’t think I can do it alone.” He admitted then bit the inside of his cheek.
You tried to hide your smile, happy that he was opening up a bit at a time.
“Of course, babe. I’ll go with you for however long you need me.” You said as you trailed your hand to his, intertwining your fingers together and giving him a quick squeeze. Tom’s smile slowly painted on his tired face, bringing the top of your hand to his lips.
“Thank you. Really, thank you. You don’t know how grateful I am for you.”
“Well, I have all day.” You jeered and it made him smile again, wrapping his arms around you to scatter kisses on your cheek and neck.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
The bar wasn’t busy during the late afternoon, before the fleet of college students and single women came through for the nightlife. But it was a relaxed spot when the sun was still out. A few husky men sat at the bar, eating chips and drinking pints to watch the various games on the flat screens or truckers stopping by for a nice meal and taking a smoke outside. It wasn’t the most formal place to meet up, but Tom had work in two hours so it was more convenient than worrisome to impress his dad.
You and Tom sat at a table for four, sitting next to one another and your arm linked around his. He was dressed in his work attire which was a dark-blue button-down paired with a white t-shirt with his name tag on the right side of his chest, solid black jeans that were a bit baggy on him, and his raggedy converse with the laces looped around the ankle once. He kept checking his watch every few minutes while he tapped his right foot against the floor and it began to make you a bit antsy.
“Baby, you need to relax.” You reminded him, lightly pressing your hand down on his thigh.
“I am. I’m just mentally preparing for what he’s gonna say to me.” He sighed as he sat up in his chair.
“Like what?”
“Oh, you really want me to go through the entire list?” Tom sarcastically joked, a half-smile on his lips.
You humored him with a giggle, but nodded your head, “You’re overthinking it. It’ll be okay and I’m right here next to you.”
Tom leaned in, giving you a light kiss that made your stomach fill with butterflies. You never knew how tender he could be when he didn’t seem like the kind of guy who enjoyed PDA. But, he became putty when he was around you by this point that it was hard not to want to kiss you when you comforted him.
He quickly looked down at his watch again, “He’s almost an hour late. He probably bailed.”
“Don’t say that. He’s gonna come, maybe, he’s just in weekend traffic.” You tried to keep his head up.
Tom rubbed the back of his neck, but he couldn’t help but slowly feeling the creeping feeling of abandonment on his shoulders. He wanted to give his dad a chance, he really did, but this was reminding him of how he was never the most reliable. It twisted Tom’s trust issues in every person he met and having to be forced to sit there, wondering and waiting, was eating Tom alive.
Another half-hour passed and Tom decided to clock in early. He didn’t feel like having to sit there for another hour, only to be asked and told exactly what he expected to hear. You told him that you’d sit at the end of the bar, staying with him until he specifically asked you to go home, but really you wanted to hang around to make sure Tom didn’t get into another bar fight that ended up with him having more than a concussion.
Some college students fled in and asked for a round of beers while others waited for their favorite cocktails. There was enough staff tonight that Tom didn’t feel overwhelmed like last few times, sometimes having to clock in on days he didn’t work because someone called in sick. The new guys were nice, most of them young and needing something to do during graduate school or trying to make rent.
As Tom wiped down the bar when a group of girls left, his manager, Teddy, called his name from behind. He quickly looked over his shoulder and tossed the rag in the bucket underneath the bar, walking over to Teddy who never failed to not have a clipboard in his hands. He never took off his wedding ring at work like some of the other servers and bartenders and even so, he gushed about his wife, Anna, when he could. Even though he sounded like a broken record some days, Tom admired how Teddy flaunted his stable, almost 20-year relationship.
“Glad to see you back, Tommy!” Teddy grinned at him, putting his hand on his shoulder.
“Yeah, yeah. I feel better, I just have to go to a few doctor’s appointments, if that’s okay with you.” Tom asked in the moment, crossing his arms.
“Of course! Of course. For how long you’ve been working here, I don’t think you’ve ever taken a sick day or called in last minute.”
“It’s just been two years, Teddy. You make me sound old.” Tom joked, cracking a smile.
“Yeah, but I still appreciate you. You’re a valuable asset.”
Tom didn’t want to take the compliment, but he still nodded and grinned.
“Hey, have you heard anything from that guy’s lawyers? Are they giving you any compensation?” Teddy curiously asked as he wrote with his signature, blue pen on the paper of the clipboard.
“My girlfriend and I found a lawyer, but I don’t know if he’s good enough to make sure I get the money I’m supposed to get. We’re working it out.” Tom reassured him as he glared at his feet.
Teddy smiled at Tom, big and sincere, “Well, as long as you have that support, you’ll be prepared for anything that comes your way. I’m sure your daughter will too.”
Tom nodded, “Yeah… She’s a great kid.”
He still hadn’t told anyone at work what had happened with Summer, seeing it was no one’s business other than everyone knowing he got hired because he was a single dad trying to provide for his daughter, at least who he thought was his daughter.
“Well, I’ll let you get back to work. Let me know if you need anything.” Teddy acknowledged before walking to the kitchen through the doors.
Tom bit his bottom lip before sealing his lips, looking out at the crowd coming in. Out of habit, he checked his watch again, but quickly turned away to not keep holding out with his dad to come. When Tom’s gaze landed on you, his eyes softened a bit at the natural glow you had. You were talking to a girl who you knew in college, both of you still sat at the end of the bar and you smiled and laughed with her.
As he walked over to where you were, your eyes went to him and your friend looked over her shoulder.
“I’ll see you around, Y/N.” She grinned, flashing Tom a friendly smile before she walked back over to her table of friends.
Tom’s eyes followed her then turned his focus to you, leaning on the bar, “Who was that?”
“She was in a few of my classes in college. Good friend. She thought that I had a pretty cute boyfriend too. Apparently, his black eye makes him look very brawny.” You teased, bringing your class of water to your lips as you watched him chuckle.
“Is he here tonight? I’d love to meet him finally.” Tom joked back.
The brightness was back in his brown eyes, a glimmer of hazel under the warm light. You hadn’t seen that gleam in a long time and it was a good sign and as much as you couldn’t know what was going through his mind, you just wanted more moments like this. Both of you away from the apartment where you weren’t secluded to walls that had too many memories built within them.
You leaned on the bar, your nose brushing against Tom’s before you shared a sweet, short kiss. You giggled against your lips as he did too, but you pulled back when you heard someone say his name from behind.
Tom’s dad stood there, his hair was a salt-and-pepper shade and a few lines along his face. The shoulders of his cargo jacket were wet from the downpour outside, a few raindrops dripping down his forehead and nose.
“Hey, Dad…” Tom sighed.
You turned to Tom, “Go, it’ll be okay, baby.” You reassured him, placing your hand on top of his.
“Okay. I’ll see you in a bit.” Tom said before giving you another kiss then walked around the bar to meet with his dad in the middle of the floor.
“Do you wanna sit?” His dad asked him, gesturing his hand to the table next to them.
“Yeah, I just have a few minutes,” Tom said, pulling out the chair.
His dad furrowed his eyebrows, “What happened to your face? Did you get into a fight?”
“Uh, yeah. Sort of. It’s not important.” Tom deflected as he lightly touched his eye, not thinking his bruise was that noticeable in the dim lighting of the table.
“I think it’s important.” His dad chuckled, leaning on the table to get a closer look, “C’mon, who was it?”
Tom nodded his head, “That’s not why you’re here to talk, Dad.” He said lowly, crossing his arms.
“Well, I wanted to catch up. How are you? How’s Summer?” His dad tried to carry the conversation in a more positive manner, hoping he could connect with Tom without it becoming an argument.
“Um, Summer’s fine. She’s in kindergarten this year.” Tom replied.
“Wow! Kindergarten already? It’s like yesterday you were that age. You would always wear that damn baseball hat everyday… your mom would throw a fit and she tried to hide it from you all the time, but you managed to always find it. Ah, she just loved when your hair grew out.” His dad chuckled, leaning back in his chair and he glanced over at you.
“Yeah… She’s getting older.”
“You have a picture?” His dad quickly asked.
Tom pulled out his phone, scrolling through his gallery until he found a picture from a few weeks ago at her birthday party. It was when Summer was blowing out her candles, her knees pressed into the chair cushion and her one hand pushing her up on the table while the casted one was by her side as she tried to reach the top of the cake.
“She broke her arm? Geez, what’s going on in your lives?” His dad smiled at the picture before Tom took his phone back.
“Her and Y/N went ice skating and she fell and… it was a whole thing, but she’s okay now.”
His dad grinned, “Is that Y/N over there?” He nodded his head in your direction.
Tom looked over his shoulder at you, still sat at the bar and you were talking with one of the bartenders. You crossed your leg over the other as you carried the conversation with a glowing smile painted on your lips, gesturing with your one hand while the other cupped your drink. The red and yellow lights strobed against your face, highlighting it past all the people passing by to get drinks or dance on the other side of the room. You felt Tom’s eyes glued to you, making you stare back at him and give him a playful wink.
“Yeah. We’re... dating now.” Tom admitted, glancing down at the table and drawing slow circles with his index finger on the polished wood.
Tom’s dad smiled, “Yeah well, you always had a crush on her. Glad to know you guys are still close. She was always a nice kid and… from what you told me, she was good with Summer.”
Every time Summer’s name was brought up, it struck Tom’s nerve and it made his face heat up. The more he talked about her, the more upset he got about what was going on complied with the other things going on in his life. Tom clenched his jaw, not able to reply and his dad could see he was upset. Even though Tom was growing older and he was his own man, his father could always tell when something was wrong. As much as Tom didn’t think anyone could figure him out, his dad could read him like the back of his hand.
“Is something else going on? Other than me just showing up?” His dad tilted his head to try to look at Tom.
As Tom’s pride fought his ego, he didn’t want to feel like he was suddenly giving into his father now that he was sitting in front of him. The idea of talking to his dad made him upset and brought back cruel memories, but now that he was venting and talking about things he thought he would be angry about, this seemed like a better time than any other to explain what was really going on.
Tom picked at his nail, trying to find the first words to say to how he felt without it feeling like a corny, emotional sitcom moment.
His face heated up, “I… I sort of found out that I’m… not Summer’s biological father.” Tom pinned his lips, tears developing by the corners of his eyes saying it out loud.
Tom’s father was shocked, not showing it on his face, but he gulped, “Are you sure?”
“A hundred percent. I took a DNA test at the doctor’s and… it sort of just… Well, I trust it enough to take it one time. The girl who’s her mom took her away, probably just for the child support, but I can’t figure out what to do… It’s been a month without her and I can’t sleep anymore, Dad. I raised her and I never doubted she was my daughter until now.” Tom choked up, a dryness in his throat making it hard to take a deep breath. He ran his hand over the top of his hair, weaving his fingers through the fluffy brown curls and pushing it away from his forehead.
His dad took a few seconds to contain his thoughts, wanting to truly think before he spoke and knew how much Summer meant to Tom.
“And on top of that, this asshole threw a punch at me at the bar last week and that’s how I got this.” Tom gestured to his eye, “And now I’m trying to get a settlement, but I don’t think I can afford the lawyer, and… everything is falling apart.” Tom trailed, finally looking right into his dad’s eyes who’s were similar to his.
Tom lowered his head, trying to hold his tears back at the sudden release of everything on his mind.
“I know you raised that little girl so well and I’ve always admired you for that.” His dad started.
Tom ran his hands down his face, sniffling as the whites of his eyes turned a light red. He couldn’t look at him as his father started to talk, worrying it was going to be a backhanded compliment and it was the wrong decision to do this.
“But, it’s gonna be hard to get her back if she’s not yours… but, if you find out more about how the mother feels about Summer and the whole situation, I can get in contact with a good lawyer or steer you in the direction of one.” His dad offered, but Tom nodded his head in response.
“Dad, I can’t do that.”
“I’m your father and I’m not gonna leave you hanging like this… I know you love Summer and you raised her. I’m not gonna let you drown yourself in a settlement on top of that, okay?”
“I’m not a kid anymore. I can take care of this-”
“You’re not, I know that! You’re a grown adult who’s just needing some help and that’s fine.” His dad emphasized, understanding how hard-headed his own son could be.
Tom nodded, “I want it to be a loan. I can pay you back for however long it takes.”
“No, no. Let me help you out… as your dad. I’m not a bank, I’m not… anyone else. I’m your father and I know that if you were taken away from like Summer was to you, I’d want everything to be as smooth as possible.” His dad explained, trying to show how much he truly cared about his son despite the cold, bitter tension between them for the past year and a half.
The two of them sat there with the noise of the people’s conversations around to fill the silence, but Tom came to his decision and he nodded, “Okay. It’s a deal.”
They didn’t even shake hands, let alone hug, but the thankfulness was implied. Tom’s dad grinned at his son, the one who was just a little kid he wishes he truly gave the world to instead of sitting here thinking he had a lot to make up for. 
“Other than all of that, have things been good otherwise?” His dad asked, glancing up at him.
Tom chuckled, “Just this and not much else. It’s been pretty boring without Summer around. But, Y/N has made it better.”
“Is she a keeper?” His dad grinned.
“She’s more than that. She’s really great and I could… see her in my life forever.”
His dad smiled, “I remember when she broke her arm and you just went on and on about dropping her homework at her house. I had to… call the school and get the parent contact information and then you were all jittery and nervous in the car. Even gelled your hair that day.” He recalled, smiling at the memory.
Tom blushed, “I wasn’t that nervous.”
“She really is a sweet girl. I’m happy for you.” His dad appreciated him, nice to see a smile finally on his face.
“Thanks, Dad.” Tom’s smile curled up, patches on red painting his cheeks at the thought of you even if you were sitting a few feet away.
“Well, it looks busy here so, maybe we can reschedule for an actual dinner. One that I don’t have to tip you for.” His dad jokes as they both stand up from their seats.
“Yeah, yeah. Of course. Definitely.” Tom nodded, running his sweaty palms down the front of his pants.
“It was really nice to see you. Don’t be a stranger.” His dad stood in front of him, staring at the mature and put-together man his son had become in the blink of an eye. It was a bittersweet feeling that maybe their time apart was leading up to this moment.
“I won’t.” Tom grinned, leaning in and wrapping his one arm around his dad.
His dad linked his arm around him as well, his hand meeting Tom’s back and giving it a few rubs before they pulled apart.
“I’ll keep in touch with you about the lawyer.”
“Thanks again.” Tom nodded.
You glanced over your shoulder, watching them go their own ways and his dad gave a quick wave to you. When your eyes shifted to Tom, he had a glow on his face, wanting to hide his smile by sealing his lips. You couldn’t help but grin, swiveling the barstool around to face him and you reached out for his hand.
“How did it go?” You simply asked, placing your hand on top of your knee.
Tom nodded, “It was fine, we can talk about it more when I get home.”
“No, tell me now.” You giggled, not wanting to put a damper on his news.
He half-smiled, “Just know that everything is going in the right direction. My dad said he’d help me a little bit with the settlement stuff and that way I can focus on Summer and what we’re gonna do.”
You ran your thumb over the top of his hand, “I’m really proud of you, you know that?”
“It was nothing-”
“It was something.” You retorted with a sweet smile, giving a light squeeze to his hand, “C’mhere.”
You placed your hand on his cheek, pulling him in to press a soft kiss on his lips. Deep down, he knew it wasn’t easy, but he didn’t want to take pride in something that seemed silly after it had happened. Luckily, he had you to remind him that he was taking the steps he needed to get Summer back. It was the first time you could see the light inside him even if he didn’t want to show it. Just from the difference in his smile, there was that gleam of hope.
As you pulled away, you sealed your lips and grinned at him. Your nose scrunched up as you both giggled, suddenly overwhelmed by the happiness filling yours and Tom’s hearts. You brushed your nose against his, your foreheads pressing together before he gave you another light kiss.
“Okay, I gotta work. You should go home, get some rest.”
“Well, I kind of wanna stay. It’s nice here and you’re just someone cute to look at.” You tilted your head.
“Why don’t you order something, on me, relax for a while and I’ll try to get off work early. Maybe, we can pick up ice cream on the way home to celebrate.” 
“Celebrate? Must have been really great news that I can’t wait to hear in detail.” You jeered and he planted a light kiss on your forehead before rounding behind the bar. He grabbed his rag, shoving it in his back pocket and you turned around toward him.
“What would you like to drink tonight, ma’am?” Tom said jokingly, placing a cocktail napkin on the bar in front of you.
Your lips to the side, “A rum and coke and make it dirty, Mr. Barkeep.”
He chuckled as he pulled a glass off the bottom shelf, beginning to make your drink in swift moves. He looked so natural behind the bar as he poured the bottles in intricate ways, finishing off the beverage with two cherries.
“Let me know if you need anything.” He smiled followed by a wink.
“Nothing I can say in public.” You teased before taking a sip of your drink.
Tom smirked at you before moving down the bar, tending to other customers with a natural smile on his lips. You tilted your head with your drink in your hand, almost in awe of him and how handsome he was.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
The night was getting louder while the crowd was growing, some people passing by bumping your shoulder even though you were still sat at the bar. You saw a few friends and struck up conversations with them to catch up, not completely bored while Tom was working, but you were worried about him. You hoped that he wouldn’t oddly hurt himself, having to take him to the ER and give him a good “I told you so” talk on the way there.
As you worked on your second drink, your phone vibrated in your purse and the screen lit up. You furrowed your eyebrow at the unknown number but still decided to take it in case it was important. You asked your friend to save your seat as you took your purse, moving through the crowd to get outside. The rain was pouring still, but you stood underneath the awning of the bar as people ran under it, drying themselves off before entering.
“Hello? This is Y/N.”
“Y/N? It’s Summer.” She whimpered, her voice at a whisper.
She stole Maggie’s phone that she left on the charger in her room, sneaking it away and using the emergency numbers written on the tag of her backpack. Tom didn’t answer first, making her worried so she decided to call you and hoped to hear your voice she missed so much.
Your heart dropped, “Summer? Are you okay?”
“No, the lady is mean. She makes me go to bed early with no bedtime stories like Daddy said she would. She-she’s not fun and she leaves me with a strange lady next door.” She sniffled, curled up behind her bedroom door.
“Wh-What strange lady?”
“She’s old and mean too. I don’t wanna be here anymore. I wanna be with you and daddy.” Summer continued to cry at a low volume, muffling her whimpers to not let Maggie hear in the next door.
You felt your heart breaking, not sure what to say since she wasn’t your kid but, in a way, she was. You pinched your nose bridge and the heavy rain making it hard to have a clear mind.
“Um, um, have you talked to your dad? Are you safe?” You asked, frantic as her.
“N-no, Daddy didn’t answer. Please come pick me up. I hate it here.” She wept, her voice shakey as she begged.
You nodded, not able to take it anymore, “You wait there, we’re gonna come to get you.”
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
The time was almost midnight, but a loud knock echoed against Maggie’s door. She groaned, getting herself out of bed and thinking it was a drunk at the wrong apartment or someone playing a prank. As she approached the door, Maggie put her hair into a bun to clear her vision when she approached the door in the dark. After flicking on the light switch for the warm light above her, she opened the door and saw Tom dripping wet.
“Tom?... It’s almost midnight. I told you not to come here again.”
Tom sighed, “Y/N got a call from Summer and she was upset.”
Maggie rolled her eyes, “I can’t believe she took my phone. Jesus, what did you teach her? Because she’s been acting out in school, whenever I’m at work, I can’t take her anywhere!” She complained, her arm slapping against her side as the other held the door open.
“I didn’t teach her that. You’re the one who doesn’t know her and I know you’re not treating her right.”
“Oh, how do you know?”
“You leave her with some strange woman when you’re not here?”
“It’s my mother, Tom. I work, I have an actual job, okay? Not some side gig at a crappy bar where I can live on my tips.” She retorted, but it made Tom’s anger quickly grow.
Tom ran his hand through his wet hair, almost defeated by how defensive she was.
“Why are you doing this? She’s upset and she wants to see me.”
“Well, Summer is just a kid, she’ll get over it. Not getting her way is a part of life, Tom. God! You babied her so much that she just comes crying to you.” Maggie hissed at him, ready to slam the door in his face.
“She is a baby! She’s a kid, Maggie. She called Y/N because she can’t stand you. Do you think that’s good for her? Being here?” Tom yelled back, his jaw clenched and his face heating up.
“You know, I’m getting really sick of you saying what Y/N thinks is good for Summer like she’s her stepmother or something.”
“And where were you being mom of the year? Huh? Why do you have such a problem with her, Maggie? She’s the one who helped me throughout raising Summer, not you because you were never here!”
Maggie crossed her arms, her only defense since she didn’t have any words.
“Where were you when she took her first steps? Her first words? When she got her first A in kindergarten? Did you take her to the hospital when you thought she had a peanut allergy or when she fell ice skating? Who was there for her, Maggie?!” Tom persisted, his eyes filling with tears at how angry he felt.
Maggie couldn’t look Tom in the eyes because it was all true, she knew it this whole time, but hearing it out loud made her even feel a bit guilty.
“So, why do you suddenly want her now? Is it money? Or do you really want her to be in your life? I can arrange it any way you want if you really do what her back in your life, but I don’t think it’s fair that you just swoop up and take her away when she’s my kid too. A kid that I raised since you left her on my doorstep six years ago.”
Maggie chuckled out of spite, “You’d never get it.”
“Then tell me! Tell me so I understand. It’s just us right now. Y/N isn’t here and all I want is Summer back home so, what is the reason, Maggie?” Tom asked, his voice a bit more calm, but still frustrated that he hadn’t gotten a straight answer the entire time they had been standing there, “I know there’s a reason why you didn’t tell me all these years that she wasn’t mine. You know it and I know it… I just want you to be honest with me. Okay?” Tom retorted.
She sighed, stepping outside and closing the door behind her. As she rubbed her hands down her face, her breath was shaky as the truth was trying to inch out of your mouth.
“I… Summer’s dad and I were dating and I told him about her and he was… upset. Like, he thought I was just a bad mom and he said he’d leave me if I didn’t just take care of her.” She huffed, shrugging at how stupid it sounded coming out.
Tom was baffled, but he let her explain herself without interrupting.
“H-He left to Vegas or San Diego or wherever. He left me again and now I just… I wanted to prove myself!” She whined, gritting her teeth as a tear trailed down her cheek, “But, she hates me and I don’t blame her, but I know I’m not a mom. I never… wanted a kid, okay? I just… I wanted him back.”
All Tom thought was that she was selfish. He could yell and scream all he wanted, taking Summer away from her in the next few seconds, but nevertheless, he controlled his breathing and tried to hear her out.
“Anything else?” He asked looking down at his feet, his arms crossed and feeling a chill from the AC.
Her eyes were teary, but she nodded, “Don’t hate me, please. Please.” She begged at a whisper.
“I don’t… Just, do the right thing now and let her come back home.” Tom sighed, his voice broken as well.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
Your body felt on fire from how anxious you felt, your foot tapping against the floor of Tom’s car. You waited, thinking your heart was going to burst in your chest if you had to wait any longer. A few minutes went by, concentrating on the time on the radio, but the heavy rain made the car windows look like stained glass. You hated biting at your nails, but you couldn’t help it after hearing Summer’s scared voice.
You curled up in the passenger seat, pulling on the seatbelt. You couldn’t just sit there anymore and do nothing, but stare at the dashboard and listen to the rain hitting the windshield. Your eyes began to tear up, wiping them quickly with the sleeves of your shirt, but you turned your head when you heard the back door open.
Tom was soaked from head to toe by this point, but Summer was curled around him before he set her on the seats. She had her backpack on, her hair damp and she was in her matching pajamas. Rain dripped off her noise and she wiped her wet forehead with the back of her hand.
“You get buckled in, just buckle in, okay?” Tom told her, still standing in the rain as he gave her the buckle of the seatbelt.
She nodded, guiding it across her body and pushing it in the lock until she heard the click.
“There you go.” He nodded, shutting the door and walking around the front of the car.
You sealed your lips as tears ran down your cheeks, tasting how salty your tears were. When Tom sat down, practically throwing himself into the car, your eyes met and you smiled at him. There was a sense of relief back in your lives at this moment, possibly a perfect one. As you glanced over your shoulder, Summer’s head was against the door and her eyes were heavy, but you reached your hand back to meet hers, holding it so tight that you never could think to let go again.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜
tags/taglist: @felicityparkers @dhtomholland @duskholland @sinisterspidey​@itstaskeen​ @tomhollandsgirlfriend​ @bi-writes​ @infinite-imagination​ @honeyspidey​ @hollandcrush​ @sunsetholland​ @pparkersbitch​ @namoreno​ @calltothewild​ @spideyspeaches​ @veryholland​ @osterfieldshollandgirl​ @slutforsebstan @bi-lmg​ @sunshinepeterparkr​ @annathesillyfriend​ @madmadmilk​ @antigoneidk​ @hollandcreep​ @wierdflowerpower​  
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script-nef · 4 years
Text
How their relationship gets revealed (iii)
Characters: Akaashi, Oikawa, Sakusa, Tsukishima, Ushijima
Category: fluff
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Akaashi Keiji
You’re a best-selling novelist and incredibly famous
Akaashi has been your editor for 3 years now
He’s such a hardworking and dedicated worker
You buy him a lot of presents and he does as well
Constant uploads onto social media with new gifts and meals together
Which happens a lot because you need constant feedback and reviews
And so your readers kind of ship you with him
Lightly, like “Y’all are cute together” and “I wish I have this kind of support”
They don’t actually think you’re together and also don’t want to force it on you
But little do they know that you’ve been dating for over a year now
Because Akaashi is:
1. Kind and caring 
2. Really hot/pretty 
3. The gentlest person you’ve ever met and 
4. Is incredibly professional and can separate work from personal feelings 
5. Just look at him
He confessed his feelings for you after your last book sold over a million copies
Because he was drunk after the celebration
But you also liked him and a new relationship was born
Mainly kept on the down low because it’s just easier
You and him both have meddling people around you
But feelings grew day by day
And you desperately want everyone to know your boyfriend is such a wonderful and amazing partner like scream it from the top of your lungs
And so a new book was made
In the dedications page, you wrote “To my other half, thank you for taking care and loving me”
Reader are surprised at the relationship update
But are super happy for you even though they don’t know who it is
The book is a really sweet and cute novel
Readers think it sounds kind of familiar for some reason…
And at the end of the book, it says “To Akaashi Keiji”
(Turns out it was loosely based on yours and his relationship)
The reading community is flipped and your book reaches bestsellers in record time
Oikawa Tooru
Oikawa comes to Japan for a match against the Schweiden Adlers
His return was met with thousands of fans and plenty of photographers and reporters
Every one of his fans were saying how much they love him and hope he wins
And tons of gifts are given left and right
He gives his ever-so charming smile and gracefully accepts them
An interviewer asks him what he missed most in Japan
He rattles off a list
“My family, my friends—Iwa-chan isn’t here though—Japanese food. There’s this wonderful ramen place in my hometown! I also have to see Mattsun and…”
The reporter smiles and nods to his replies
His fans are screaming how they’ll buy anything he wants in the background
He thanks them but that just makes them scream louder
Then his face goes soft, like he’s remembering a really happy thing
“...but I missed [Name]-chan the most.”
The reporter’s eyes widens along with all his fan’s
Even hardcore, and I mean hardcore, fans didn’t know about this
“They’ve been supporting me so much and it’s been ages since my last visit… I just want to see and hug them.”
His small smile is so full of love and affection, even a blind person could see he’s in love
They had zero idea he was in a committed relationship
Most of his fans scream that they hope he has a good relationship
(He ignores the ones that are shrieking“No!”)
Photos of you with him are uploaded after he wins against Schweiden Adlers 
He’s smiling like the sun in every single one of them
Sakusa Kiyoomi
Sakusa hates interviews and reporters
Because they keep sticking microphones, which is covered with theirs and everyone else’s germs, into his face
And expect him to be polite when he’s so uncomfortable
So he has a reputation for being a little (read: extremely) difficult for post-match interviews
Nearly everyone had given up
And then all of a sudden, he’s actually civilised in interviews
Like, answering questions and even smiling a little
Everyone’s thinking 
“Is he okay?” 
“What’s happening?” 
“Oh god he’s finally lost it after being in a team with 3 crackheads #PrayForSakusa2020”
In reality, it’s because you’re the one interviewing him
He doesn't want to do it for anyone else, but you insisted that he has to
And now he responds to other reporters as well (albeit incredibly unwillingly)
But he only smiles for you
Fans start noticing after 3 – 4 interviews
“Is it me or is Sakusa really nice when that reporter asks him” 
“No I noticed as well” 
“DOES HE LIKE THEM ASDISJDW IS MY BOY IN LOVE” 
“WHY IS EVERYONE DATING OR IN LOVE WHEN I’M SO ALONE”
After a match, you finish a live report which people can chat on (just say there is one)
It’s in a sheltered place so currently not a lot of people are around
And he doesn't walk away, just keeps standing there
He thinks the camera is off now, and so do you
But is isn’t it’s still on and going live
You’re about to pack up and walk away
But a small tug stops you
It’s Sakusa and the people are going wild because holy shit, is Sakusa actually touching someone??? Our clean freak?? Are my eyes deceiving me??
You take his hand (“What the hell?”) and softly ask “Kiyo? What’s wrong?” (“DID THEY SAY KIYO UGH CARDIAC ARREST”)
He mumbles about how he doesn’t want you to talk to his teammates, even for the sake of interviews (“IS SAKUSA JEALOUS??? OUR DETACHED BOY???”)
You giggle and ruffle his hair, kissing him over the mask (“I AM FAINTING CALL 119”) while saying you need to do your job
And then look over to the cameraman
Whose jaw is on the floor
And you can see the red blinking light from the camera
“Ah, shit”
Tsukishima Kei
His teammates (*cough* Koganegawa *cough*) outed him on social media
You were working overseas and came back after months
The day coincided with a practise match, but Tsukishima was able to excuse himself
So you’re having the time of your life with your saltTM
He’s actually a really nice and sweet boyfriend underneath all that salt and sass
Even made a date course to explore the city
Had a good lunch and some strawberry shortcake in his favourite bakery
You enjoy it immensely, so he was smiling secretly
But then his phone starts blowing up for some reason
When he checks it, there are thousands of questions flooding his messages and social media
Turns out Koganegawa slipped up
He was doing an Instagram Live and when someone asked where Tsukki was
Did he come up with a good excuse?
Nope, he immediately said “Oh, he’s out on a date!”
Everyone’s confused because our salt has a partner?? Since when??
And then he realises he screwed up, especially with how private Tsukki is
The only thing stopping the exposed boy from returning to the gym and throwing hands with the setter is you
You kept saying it’s fine and it’s okay
He reluctantly gives up on planning his revenge (not really though)
You distract him enough to go to the museum he’s going to be working at
And he later uploads a photo of you from behind while you’re reading a dinosaur’s description
(And a separate one where Koganegawa is in a dogeza pose)
Ushijima Wakatoshi
Schweiden Adlers won another match
Ushijima answers interviews, like he does every match
One particular reporter asks the root of his energy and passion
They expected an answer like “thirst for success” or “pride and honour” or something along those lines
But he smiles softly, which breaks everyone watching because they have never seen that before
But the next thing breaks them even more
He says “[Name], my spouse.”
His teammates knew about you but not everyone else
People are spitting their drinks out and absolutely flabbergasted
Even his own teammates because he didn’t seem like the person to say that
He says it’s your first anniversary as a married couple
But he’s overseas so he can’t be with you today
Says that he sent a present and he hopes you’ll like it
Then bows and just walks away to change
Like he hasn’t said the most scandalous thing since the start of his career
Tons of articles and Twitter posts are made about him and this new revelation
To the point where it’s trending #1
He doesn’t care though, and you really don’t either
It wasn’t that big or important of a secret
He just didn't mention it up to now because he didn’t see the need
He doesn’t have to publicise the extent of his love for you because you already know that
The present was a brand-new, top of the line laptop along with a new phone
The same brand as his (awww couple items)
So that he can FaceTime/video call you with HD quality
His teammates have to listen to him being sickeningly cute every night now
And complain about it on interviews 
#BestHusbandUshijimaWakatoshi starts trending
4K notes · View notes
worstloki · 3 years
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Top Forty Thor-Being-Thor Moments from Thor 1
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just absolute dumb*ssery that this 7yr old kid’s life goal is to “hunt down the monsters and slay them all”. I’ll go easy on him here and let the Thor/Loki expressions do the talking because of “...just like you did Father” but seriously can his hands even fit around a sword handle??? this kid isn’t even punching the air right??? if there was a sword in his hand he would’ve cut his head with the way he’s moving???? pure tiny-himbo energy here just look at that >:o face he’s making. contrasts very nicely with Loki’s ‘,:|. 10/10. such a baby idiot.
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“the jotuns must pay for what they have done! they broke into the weapons vault! if the frost giants had stolen even one of these relics!” thor. thor please. can you even name one of these relics. thor. hey thor. thor. shut up. “well, what would you do about this?” odin asks him. “march into jotunheim! like you once did! break their spirits! so they’ll never try anything like this again!” wow okay so we’ve fast-forwarded by like a thousand years and thor is still going on about genocide. huh. that’s funny, i thought loki was the genocidal one. hmm. i also just realized that the loki exclusive clip gives loki the same hairstyle thor has here so do what you will with that information.
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0/10. horrible. terrible. i dont care how angy thor is about not getting to kill some jotuns or become king today this very instant, that is a tremendous waste of food. an absolute fool. how can he just remorselessly throw the bread to the floor. if loki stabbed him when he was 7 he would deserve it for this table flip alone. what a privileged white *ssh*le.
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loki came skulking around a corner and suggested not to go to jotunheim and not only did thor not suspect anything but he also then went on to decide to go to jotunheim. 10/10 himbo material. 
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if tumblr didn’t have a picture limit i would put every instance of thor smiling in this list because look at that stupid smile. he’s such an idiot. 11/10. this is the thor content i’m here for.
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“I have no plans to die today” thor says with the stupidest open-mouthed smirking smile ever captured on film. right after he also told heimdall not to tell anyone they’re gone. he’s literally planned to strand them on jotunheim. thor’s grand plan was to strange themselves on jotunheim and also start a fight. i repeat: thor’s plan was to successfully slay all the frost giants and not need to return until they’re all gone. what an absolute d*mb*ss. this is getting ridiculous. this was originally a top-ten-thor moments list but i’m not even twenty minutes in so i’ll have to extend the list. thor. thor are you listening? thor, you’re such an idiot.
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“HOW DID YOUR PEOPLE GET INTO ASGARD?!” thor you sweet sweet summer idiot, please, i am beggin,g you,, learn to rea,d , a room,, literally everyone else who came with you is regretting it, there is complete silence and only the rumble of the opposing king is meeting your “I AM THOR, SON OF ODIN”s, please, please take some notes from Loki, or, you know, literally anyone else in the room, since everyone is asking you to get out of this realm while you still can,
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thor’s stupid smile makes an appearance after he gets called a princess and decides to fight a whole realm over it. you know what? thor is a princess. he’s the prettiest princess in all the lands. what’s thor gonna do about it? is he going to fight me too? I hope he does the stupid grin first. minus 15 points for the sexism. thor is a complete and utter sadistic fool who needs to get a hobby. seriously, he’s 1500 years old and still going on and on about slaying all the frost giants. boi, i hate to break it to you, but your dad is not the best or only example of greatness out there. i don’t think your dad even qualifies as an example of that. 
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“THEN. GO!” 🥰 ahh yes, just thor thingz 🥰🥰 like when one friend has had his arm burnt 🥰 and another friend has been impaled and needs medical attention, 🥰🥰 and all the rest of your friends are yelling for you, 🥰 and your brother is telling you they must go, 🥰 and you decide to buy everyone time by laughing maniacally and killing more frosties because you care for them and dont find joy in destruction like a loon 🥰🥰🥰 
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THIS is the iconic Thor moment that makes my day whenever I think about it. Just Thor, an absolute bumbering 6′6′’ giant boodlusting dummy sees Odin and just decides to yell “FATHAA!! WE’LL FINISH THEM TOGETHAAA!” as if the last thing Odin told him wasn’t “no, thor, we’re not going to do anything to the frost giants, do not go after them and try to kill them all.” 11/10 d*mb*assery right here folks, I couldn’t ask for Thor to be more of a fool. This is PEAK Thor energy. Look at that face. I feel like Thor spends half this movie with his nostrils flared. I love it.
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okay i gotta give thor credit for rightfully calling odin “an old man and a fool” but also there was not even 1 frame of the scene where Thor had a decent face so now all i see is >:O >:| >:o >:[ when i watch that scene. yelling at odin was great, not yelling at odin after he HUAERGHed at loki was less great, but to be fair it’s thor and he is the definition of Peak D*mb*ss. 
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thor literally GROWLS and starts yelling “HAMMAA?? HAMMER??” over and over. He was hit by a van, he fainted, he woke up and started growling. I don’t know what else there is to say about this.
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“you dare threaten me? puny human?”. so. uhh. basically. Thor knew she was threatening him? He KNEW she had a weapon? instead he made a face and started yelling as he tried to walk his way closer????? thor you complete and utter dum dum. you frickin hairball-for-brains. im not even surprised darcy tasered him. with that kind of face, i’d taser him too.
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when you wake up in an unknown place to a person smiling at you without a stupid smile, the first step is always to attack first and ask questions later 😌😌😌 (but seriously thor you imbecile why didn’t you ask where you were instead of throwing multiple people around the room and getting your butt needled. you clueless buffoon. you’ll remain a clueless buffoon if you don’t listen to anyone.)
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just a quick recap but thor was knocked unconscious by a van and these people kidnapped him aboard and the next scene we see him in he’s checking himself out in  mirror after presumably changing right there in the open?????? these are the things that make thor thor. any other character and i’d question it so much, but this is thor, and i truly believe this is in-character for him. just change in the open because why not? thor is a beefcake and that’s his only redeeming quality and he knows it. 10/10 thor moment. 
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I am now convinced that Thor saw Jane and “5k van-hitter to lover slow-burn height-difference himbo-scientist trope” flashed through his mind.
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“but no more smashing!” Jane says, and then Thor proceeds to check her out and smile unlike an idiot and like a douche. was this his version of flirting???? i’m not one to decide, but yes, yes it was. He threw a cup to the ground and broke it, and she’s getting mad at him and berating him about it, and he’s liking it. y’all i’m sorry to break it to you like this, but thor has a canon fetish. i am so, so sorry.
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im DYING. THAT ISN’T EVEN A KISS, HIS MOUTH IS OPEN. he SMUSHES his mouth around her knuckle???? WHY. I can’t keep noticing things like this. send help. please. Jane’s response makes so much more sense now; she’s laughs for a solid 3 seconds and shakes her head and is like “uhh, thank you? ahaha,” and then she keeps looking back longingly when walking away. they are doing this in PLAIN sight of EVERYONE. Darcy and Erik are standing RIGHT THERE, and Thor is doing weird things to her with his mouth. I’m out. I am done here. goodbye. 
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return of the stupid smile AND the douche smile in quick succession through the entire trip. their entire dialogue is peppered with innuendo. “I’ve never done anything like this before. have you ever done anything like this before?” “many times, but you are brave to do it.” “I have nothing else to lose.” “ah but you are clever, far more clever than anyone else on this realm.” “realm? rEaLm?” “you think me strange?” “yes” “good strange or bad strange?” “I haven’t decided yet.” I AM DYING OVER THIS. plus, we get Return Of The Himbo with Jane asking after Einstein Rosen bridges and Thor is like “uh, actually, more like a rainbow bridge 😜🤪” i feel so sorry for jane here, didn’t know how much of a d*mb*ss Thor was when signing up for this van-trip and knuckle-sucking 😭😭😭 i also no longer have questions about how the trip that SHOULD HAVE BEEN A HALF-HOUR ONE turned into one that LASTED TILL THE SUN WENT FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE SKY TO SETTING by the time they arrived. I have no questions. please. I don’t want to know what they were doing in that van. please no. don’t make me think about it.
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thor’s plan had 3 steps and they were 1. give jane his jacket 2. walk in and get his hammer 3. fly out. that was literally his plan. he had the first “I have a plan. attack.” moment in the MCU. pure concentrated 0-brain-cells energy right here. how can you not stan this king of d*mb*ssery. look at him, flaunting his big boy muscles. he’s about get his hammer and fly out, like he just told jane with a trademark stupid-smile.
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crop-top hair-mop thor is my favourite thor. the way the entire fight scene parallels a hamster in a maze only exemplifies the thor vibes for some inexplicable reason.
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“you’re big. fought bigger.” + Thor douche-smile + subtext from earlier + rolling around passionately in the mud = not a happy me. 
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I swear i’m not making up this romantic subtext but it’s barely even subtext. the entire scene leading up to Thor’s attempt at lifting the hammer is actually filmed erotically. I’m not kidding. First there’s a shot where Thor pulls aside a hamster-cage-wall blind which mirrors a shower-curtain, and THEN he walks around the hammer while smiling douche-ly at it, we get a few close-ups to his face which are shot from angles slightly lower than himself, giving him an aire of superiority, plus the music adds to this, he reaches out for the hammer’s handle with a mud-covered arm in the rain, in non-slow-motion slow-motion, and he wraps his arm around it, like, he fully twists his arm, unecessarily sexually, around it as he grabs the hammer. This is not okay. On the plus side, it makes the movie much more entertaining,, on the down side,,.
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im not going to call Thor dumb for not knowing he’s not worthy. im not going to. because odin literally whispered the enchantment to mjolnir after he’d thrown thor to midgard. it is very funny watching thor grunt in frustration though. he starts yelling because he couldn’t lift the hammer and just lets himself get caught. like, dude, get a life, go buy a new weapon from the store, seriously. he mourns for the hammer on-screen longer than he does for loki. he also looks like he’s in far more pain here. he becomes catatonic and unresponsive after this, but when loki dies he’s already feasting the same afternoon. 10/10 dum dum thor material. never change thor, never change. (that’s code for please change, thor, please,)
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thor trying to establish dominance wherever he goes is the funniest thing because at this point he’s being a complete asgardian *ss about it and it’s reaching points of pettiness never seen before. side note: he is possibly flirting with selvig too. maybe. i’m not saying anything happened, but Thor’s openning lines when bringing him home carried over his shoulder are “he’s fine, not injured at all,” followed with an apology to selvig, and an explanation to jane which consisted only of “we drank, we fought, he made his ancestors proud,” and then he puts the man to bed and before he falls asleep erik says “i still don’t believe you’re the g*d of th*nder, but you ought to be,” so... your choice, i guess...
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thor’s got his trademark stupid smile and stupidly takes jane’s life’s work notebook and starts doodling in it about trees. the last time his father told him this story about Yggdrasil was when he was 5 and he clearly hasn’t payed attention to any lesson about anything since and it shows so so much. thank you thor. very insightful knowledge you’re passing on hear. ‘i come from a world where [science and magic] are one and the same,’ ok great, now elaborate on that please. oh, right, you can’t because you’re thor, my bad, 20/10 thor behaviour. he couldn’t even doodle nicely. all his lines are wobbly. epic art fail. i wouldn’t trust him near my sketchbook with a 2B pencil.
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THIS is thor’s realization face. in case anyone was interested in what ‘dawning truth’ looked like on him. 😰😪 THIS is the face of a thinker, of a man betrayed by his own beloved brother for unprecedented reasons. look at the nuance in his expression. 😩😩😩 so many emotions, I can’t even count them all 😩💯😪
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stupid smile and “do not worry my friends, i have a plan,” he says, “i’ll just try and abuse the fact that Loki’s super selfless and kind and has no self worth to my benefit as i have countless times before which is exactly what he’s rightfully angry about this time,” he doesn’t think to himself because that is NOT the smile of someone who is thinking... like, at all. +10000 points to gryffinthor. the d*mb*ssery really jumps out.
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“im sorry bro for whatever i did and whatever you’re blaming me for as an excuse to do this, im sorry bro, but you’re disturbing innocents that i don’t really care about but you’re the one making a scene in front of them so why don’t you admit you won’t kill me and are just having a temper tantrum and we move on? hmm?” and then he proceeds to get slam dunked in the face with a metal arm like yEAAAA BOI that’s what you GET for going up against the SENTIENT LAVA-SPEWING metal-man ya absolute dunderhead clod. thunderhead clod? yeah, that. he’s just so dumb, your honour, please, you must understand, the victim pleads guilty on all charges of d*mb*ss and d*mb*ss alone.
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I can NOT describe the emotions I feel knowing that Thor is suck-kissing Jane’s knuckles. Like, his mouth is literally jelly-ing it up against her hand. There is suction there and it shows when he is placing and removing his mouth. I promise that’s what is happening. I’m not any happier than you about this. I regret everything. This is why Loki should be what is focused on and not Thor; Thor’s going around trying to frick frack everything in sight even if it’s just Jane’s hand. He’s maintaining eye contact with Jane while he licks her fingers. Why did I decide to rewatch this movie. 
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i’m only adding this in as a thor moment because of how desperately and badly they kiss. seriously. 2/10 kiss. im not surprised jane broke up with him. they look like two actual seals fighting over an actual grape. while i’m here i’m going to criticize every fic ever that decided thor is an experienced gentle lover. what were y’all on when watching this movie. thor can and will f*ck literally everything in sight and he won’t even do it well because he is the peakest of peak d*m d*m. look at this man. look at his face. that is the face of an absolute himbo idiot, and it’s the face of an absolute himbo idiot who knows it. he’s been stranded on earth for 2 days, max, and his flirt-count is at 69 people because his name is one letter away from thot. i bet his terrible use of a pen from early means he writes his ‘r’s like ‘t’s and he doesn’t even care. 1000/10 thor moment. doesn’t get much more romance-thor than two individuals smooshing their faces together after some finger sucking. that finger sucking is gonna leave jane simping for years. and that’s true love babey. <3
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“I’ll handle my Brother!” Thor says, as if Loki didn’t send a metal-murder-bot that quite virtually killed him less than ten minutes ago asdfhkhsdgsdjf Thor, you horrific himbo you, Loki’s weapon of choice is literally throwing knives he will literally kill you before you enter the room if he’s on his game and wants you dead which he just proved he would do and you’re just gonna???????????? jog on over to him????? Thor??????????? bruH???????????? buddy??????? pal???????? you really wanna go 1v1 the brother you very clearly underestimate and know nothing about????????????????? im loving the confidence, but, no.
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Loki: “you literally can’t stop this from here.” Thor, immediately: “i’m going to hit it with the hammer and see if that works” and then it does in fact work later... technically speaking, even if it ends up causing chaos destruction and death and loki falling off the bifrost 😔😔😔 but Big Brain Thor is the Biggest Brained Thor!!! The plan worked!! in a messy-Thor-ish way, but it did!!!
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“you can’t kill an entire race!!!!” Thor yells, teeth gritted, as he faces his brother, his coward pacifist brother, who has suddenly decided he wants to join the age-old family tradition of realm-destroying, when this is supposed to be Thor’s dream, Thor’s, not Loki’s. How dare he, Thor thinks to himself, fist clenched around Mjolnir in anger, the pain of the handle pressing against his palm perhaps the only thing preventing him from lashing out at this thought, that’s my planet of monsters to slay, he should go get his own! Loki hits Thor across the face with the back-end of his spear. “Now fight me,” Loki says, but Thor, well, Thor cannot fight, as he remains stunned that of all things Loki would dare steal his life’s ambition, and he is sent sprawling backwards across the observatory, slowly but surely sliding to a stop despite his catatonic, very symbolic silence.
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the elegance, the poise, i see your time on earth has made you no less graceful, Thor. the simple magnitude of this sprawl. the spread of the arms. the turn of the feet. this is not a dude, this is a man.
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sometimes your brother starts vehemently talking about he’s gonna kill the race of monsters and about how he’s only ever wanted to be your equal and about how he’s not your brother and never was and sometimes you just have to say “this is madness” instead of addressing the issues or asking for any of the  deets 🔥 👊💯😩
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Loki is whipping Thor’s butt. Both literally, and metaphorically, Loki is whooping Thor’s d*mb*ss. Earlier he knicked Thor’s face, now he’s just pushing Thor around, he uses the spear as a pole and later kicks Thor’s face by kicking vertically up, and Thor, bless him in all his blond golden muscled glory, doesn’t think anything is up with this, gosh he’s such an absolute utter idiot
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sometimes your brother laughs way too much and also cries too much in a fight and there are also too many of him so you just need to blast lightning so you get a shot at all of them 😌😌😌 and then put your magical infinitely-heavy hammer on his chest 😌😌😌 but it’s okay because Thor left holes in Loki’s container 😌😌😌
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now THIS is the meat to Thor’s funny bone, just the pure unadulterated humour that is Thor saying that there will never be a “wiser king” or a “better father” than Odin, it cracks me up every single time without fail, just the way he says it with a straight face and— what do you mean he wasn’t joking
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look at Thor’s stupid smile as he asks Heimdall to spy on jane every single day while conveniently never asking after Loki ever. This is Thor’s face in mourning after he attended a feast after everyone was celebrating after Loki’s death. Look at his stupid smile. I love him your honour. He’s just,, he’s just so frickin stewpeed, just Thor being Thor, just the purest of d*mbest of *sses. 
410 notes · View notes
nanasparadise · 3 years
Text
“Losing my senses for you” Yan!Joseph (Part 3) x female reader
Hiya everyone! Here’s a little Yan! Joseph (Part 3) x female reader for y’all because apparently, I like to see Suzi suffer lol
Summary: You and your soulmate Joseph share a pleasant dream, as always. Though suddenly, the elderly wants to take your friendship to the next level...
TW: age gap, implied cheating, implied kidnapping, toxic relationship, MATURE AUDIENCE ONLY/MINORS DNI 
I do not condone any yandere behaviour in real life.
Word count: 2022
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Joseph had always thought of himself as a sensible man. Sensible enough to fall in love with his current wife and have a child with her, disregarding the fact that Suzi Q wasn’t his soulmate. Why would he have denied himself love, a family? No, Joseph had been rational enough to not care about that ‘dreaming of your soulmate’ humbug. That had been the case until he’d met you.
The male would have never imagined seeing his soulmate in his dream, not after all these years being married and especially not as an elderly man. You were still so young, a blooming flower in your twenties, ready to conquer the world. How could Joseph be your soulmate? But there was no denying that the Brit was constantly dreaming of you. Nearly every morning he’d wake up, your face still lingering on his mind while his spouse slept peacefully next to him, knowing nothing about her husband’s dream invader. Sometimes, he’d even whisper your name. Joseph didn’t have the heart to tell her, after all, Suzi had been his love for most of his life. But apparently, not the one to spend the remainder of it with.
This night wasn’t an exception when it came to your nocturnal visits. This time, the two of you sat on the terrace of a café near Joseph’s flat in New York City. The crowding streets of the metropolis filled the air with a cacophony of sounds: honking taxi cars, chatting people, the occasional dog that barked loudly. Even though every tiny thing seemed to buzz with life, Joseph knew that none of this was real- all would cease to exist once he’d wake up, except for him and you. Politely, you smiled at the Brit. 
“Hello Mr. Joestar, how are you doing today?”, you greeted him, as you always did. Both of you had agreed that you wouldn’t refer to the elderly man with his first name, wanting to keep some distance between you. Just like Joseph, you had been more than surprised to notice that your soulmate wasn’t a person around your age. Though never having been openly said, you two knew you wouldn’t pursue any romantic advances towards each other. At some point, Joseph had even revealed to you that he was married and had a daughter and a grandson. But since you hadn’t found a way yet to end these dreams, you were behaving on an amicable basis. The male believed you’d probably see in him a grandfather figure. Though Joseph couldn’t tell anymore if he saw you as a granddaughter …
As per usual, the pair consisting of you chattered the whole time. You told him about your new job, how you were nervous to meet your colleagues, wondering if you’d get along well. While you were talking, you kept fiddling the napkin next to you, demonstrating your anxiety. During your countless encounters, Joseph had learnt to read your body language. Confidently, the man rested his real gloved hand on top of yours, stopping your tic. You stared into the male’s green eyes, astonishment written on your face. 
“Y/N,” Joseph said softly, “you don’t need to be nervous, dear. How could they not like such a ray of sunshine like you?” He flashed you a big grin at his final words. You averted his tender gaze. Oh, how Joseph loved this bashful expression on your face. You were so easy to tease. 
“Thank you, Mr. Joestar, though I think you’re exaggerating.” 
“Please, call me Joseph”, the elderly man blurted out. A big thumb idly drew circles on the back of your hand. He didn’t know what had driven him into saying this, into breaking the formal distance between you -  at least he didn’t know consciously. Deep inside, he was well aware that he loved you - more than just a friend, than a granddaughter, hell, even more than Suzi. In the end, you were his soulmate. Suddenly, all the previous talk about how any other kind of love paled compared to the love for your soulmate didn’t seem like humbug to Joseph anymore. No, the once reasonable man had been utterly struck by the arrow of a foolish love, a love he hadn’t experienced beforehand – not even with his wife. He had been struck by you. Your surprise only grew. 
“Are you sure? Wouldn’t that be awkward?”, you asked hesitantly, eyeing your hand. Joseph stayed persistent though. 
“Not at all, Y/N. It’s only natural to call me by my first name after all our dates, isn’t it?”, the man winked playfully at you. He really wanted to see how far he could go with his flirtatious banter until you’d retreat. Or maybe, just maybe, you wouldn’t. Maybe you’d feel the same as him, wanting more out of these encounters. Maybe… Hope blossomed in Joseph’s chest, making the elderly man feel like a lovesick teenager all over again. Only you held that much power over him. Your following words crushed that spark of hope fairly quickly though. 
“I don’t know, Mr. Joestar…,” you retorted, obviously refusing to address him as Joseph, “Don’t you think it would enable unwanted feelings between us? This is quite a hard situation anyway for us – you with your family, me with my young age – I don’t think we need to complicate things further.” At this statement, the light in Joseph’s green eyes extinguished like a flame. Of course. He might have lost his mind, but you didn’t. No, you remained rational, cool-headed. 
“Ah, I see”, Joseph simply replied, barely hiding the disappointment in his raspy voice. “This is for the best, you old fool,” the tiny voice whispered in Joseph’s head, “How could you keep up with her?” Bitter at his own thoughts, the man made a crestfallen grimace. 
“I’m sorry, I don’t intend to hurt your feelings in any way. I do enjoy the time we spend together and I appreciate you, Mr. Joestar”, you added remorsefully. The Brit’s heart warmed at your words of consideration. You cared for him, you must, he was convinced. The effects of the soulmate bond couldn’t just be ignored by you. Maybe, there was still a chance for him. Maybe…
“Y/N”, Joseph murmured your name ever so gently. Surprised by the softness of his tone, you looked up to him. He briefly wetted his lips before he proceeded talking. “I appreciate you, too. A lot, actually. Every time I’m in your company, I’m the happiest man alive. You draw me in and I can’t help myself but wanting more.” You tried to interrupt him, but Joseph quickly stopped you by raising his hand and continuing his speech. “Ah ah, honey, please let me finish. I know what you want to say: ‘But Mr. Joestar, what about your family?’ Well, they’ll understand, they have to. We’re soulmates, I can’t just ignore that. I’ll leave my wife for you, then we can start a life together. Please, my love, consider my words. After all, even without knowing it, I’ve been waiting the whole time for you.” Joseph gazed intensely in your eyes, yearning painted across his face. He patiently watched you gulp heavily and waited for your answer while he put his hand back on yours. 
“Your words are sweet and I’m grateful for your sincerity, Mr. Joestar,” you eventually sputtered, “you’re dear to me, I’d be lying if I said you weren’t, but not in the way you intend it to be. I don’t think I could ever see you in a romantic way. And even if I could, I don’t want to be a homewrecker. I know you love your family, you shouldn’t toss them away for me.” Joseph sighed deeply. He’d learnt with experience to tame his quick temper, but still, impatience flared up inside him. 
“Why can’t you give me, give us, a try? I’m aware that our initial plan was to keep some distance between us, but if we both have feelings for each other, why deny them then? You said you couldn’t see me as a lover, but I don’t believe that. Give me a chance and I’ll prove you how much I love you.” Joseph slightly squeezed your hand while spilling out his passionate words. “You said I shouldn’t toss away my family, but you want me to throw you away. How could I do that? Every morning, it’s your name that escapes my lips, your body I want to feel next to mine, your scent I want to inhale.” The man grew desperate the more he talked. “Don’t worry about our age difference, I know a way for you to grow old with me.” Joseph perceived your puzzled face from the corner of his eyes as he fixated his gaze on your hand, but kept speaking. “I can give you so much Y/N, if only you’d let me. Please, let us try it.” He finally looked up to you, fearing and yet anticipating your reaction. Yes, only you could make him this nervous… Your brows were tightly furrowed, though a hint of sympathy seeped through your kind eyes. 
“Joseph…”, you whispered softly. The Brit’s heart fluttered like a hummingbird upon hearing you finally say his first name. “I’d hoped I wouldn’t have to reveal this to you, but it’s only fair for me to be honest to you as well. I’ve actually met this man a while ago.”
Joseph’s jaw dropped at your confession and his eyes widened. No, this couldn’t be true. He felt as if his whole world had shattered in this moment. Cruelly, you decided to hurt him more with your words. “And to be frank, things are going well. We’ve even talked about moving in together. I think he might be the one I want to spend my life with, Joseph.” Thud. Joseph’s prosthetic hand slammed harshly on the table. Instinctively, you winced at the loud noise. 
“Why would you say that to me?!”, the man in front of you shouted, desperation coating his voice, “Why would you break my heart like that? I can’t believe it! Here I am, thinking about leaving my wife for you while you’ve been having fun with some other guy!” Joseph’s grasps painfully tightened around your hand. His handsome features had transformed into a terrifyingly furious grimace. You gasped fearfully, trying to retrieve your hand from Joseph’s hold. “Why would you bother to be with him when I’m right here? He isn’t your soulmate, I am!” Hot anger flooded the male’s body. It’s been years since he felt this kind of raw emotion again. Joseph glared at you while you still tried unsuccessfully to escape his grasp. Eventually, he let go of your hand. Hastily, you pulled it away from the table. Taking a deep breath, you spoke up. 
“I think you forget that I’m still an independent woman, Mr. Joestar.” 
“So we’re back at the surname, huh?”, the Brit thought gloomily. 
“No matter if we’re soulmates, I’ve still got my own life, as you do. Which means I can choose with whom I’m in a relationship. I hope this incident here is non-recurring and that you’ve come back to your senses the next time we’ll see each other.”
With these final words, Joseph woke abruptly up. Adrenaline was still pumping through his veins from his intense outbreak. While laying down on his bed, he tried to calm his agitated breaths. “I should come back to my senses, huh?,” the male muttered quietly into the room as to not wake up Suzi, “What a bold thing coming out of your mouth, since you’re the source for my irrational behaviour.” Yes, Joseph had always thought of himself as a sensible man. But times had changed. And drastic times called for drastic measures. Subconsciously, the Brit knew exactly what had to be done if he didn’t want to lose you to that pest you thought was your boyfriend. Slowly, he climbed out of his bed. Joseph glanced one more time at his spouse’s sleeping form. 
There was no turning back now.
Out of a drawer, the man grabbed a polaroid camera and called out his Stand.
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Text
New Girl
An OBX Story
Part IV: HMS Pogue
Part 3 Part 5
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I do not own the rights to this GIF
________________________________________
John B’s POV
(Y/N)’s front door swung open and out walked an older woman who could be (Y/N)’s twin, she must be her mother. I understand where (Y/N) got her looks from. Her mother was a beautiful woman she had dark brown hair that hung well past her shoulders and mesmerizing green eyes just like (Y/N)’s. She was followed by a tall man, I’d say he was likely 6’4, he had light brown hair and blue eyes.
(Y/N) followed behind her parents, she was the perfect mixture of her parents. She was wearing jean shorts and a tank top, I could see the straps of her swimsuit tied behind her neck, I could see the light bruising on her neck from where Rafe choked her. It infuriated me that he put his hands on her, but she was okay and that was all that mattered.
“Good morning y’all” (Y/N) said as she walked up to the Twinkie, “this is my mama Stephanie and my dad Scott. They wanted to meet you guys.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. & Mrs. Landry,” I said as I got out of the Twinkie, and stuck out my hand to shake theirs. “I’m John B. Rutledge.”
“Nice to meet you,” Mr. Landry said, “thank you for what you did for our daughter.”
“You don’t have to thank me sir.” I smiled.
“From my understanding we have to thank you and JJ,” Mrs. Landry chimed in, “can we meet the rest of your friends?”
“Guys come meet Mr. & Mrs. Landry,” I called through the window. They one by one filed out of the van. Kie introduced herself first, followed by Pope and finally JJ. Mr. and Mrs. Landry were very kind, they were nothing like the kook parents I had ever met.
“It was nice to meet y’all,” Mrs. Landry smiled, “please come by for dinner tomorrow night, I’m cooking gumbo and we would love to have y’all as our guests.”
“Yes ma’am,” we said in unison.
“Alright mama they’ll be here tomorrow night,” (Y/N) smiled. “Now we’re gonna head out, I love y’all”
“We love you too,” her parents waved. “Be careful please.”
We all climbed back into the Twinkie and got situated before I pulled out of (Y/N)’s driveway.
“So what are we doing out on the boat today?” (Y/N) asked as she crossed her arms over the back of the seat.
“We found this sunken boat we’re going to go explore,” I said looking at her in the rear view.
“John B is going to explore the boat, we’re just the look outs,” Kie sighed.
“He was only able to hijack one set of scuba gear from Ward,” JJ rolled his eyes. “So we’re stuck surface side making sure no one catches him.”
“What do you mean?” (Y/N) asked.
“The sheriffs office is looking for this boat too,” Pope stated, “but John B thinks he can find evidence to help find his father on it.”
“So we’re about to hinder a police investigation?” (Y/N) sighed.
“Only if we get caught,” JJ said putting his arm around her shoulder.
“Y’all are absolutely fucking crazy.” (Y/N)’s accent got thicker as she talked.
“We won’t let anything happen to you,” I smiled.
“That’s not what I’m worried about,” she sighed. “I’m worried about getting arrested.”
“Don’t worry,” JJ smiled, “we have a plan.”
_______________________________________________
(Y/N)’s POV
We had finally arrived at the dock after we spent the last 10 minutes listening to JJ’s idea on how to evade detection from the sheriff if they showed up. From how everyone reacted JJ must always be the one coming up with crazy plans. But this plan didn’t seem that bad, it was actually kind of believable.
“So you guys really think they’ll buy JJ’s plan?” I asked.
“We can only hope,” Kie replied”
“Hope you’re a good actor that is,” Pope laughed, “we all know JJ could never pull a girl like you.”
“Hey you guys know that’s bull!” JJ shouted.
“He does seem to pull all the tourons,” I laughed
“Those tourons aren’t nearly as pretty as you.” He whispered as he walked past me.
Did he just call me pretty? No I must’ve misheard him. There’s no way he just called me pretty. I shook off the statement and climbed into the boat and took my seat.
“How far out are we going?” I asked.
“Not too far,” John B looked over at me, “maybe 20 minutes.”
“Oh that’s not bad then,” I stretched out on my seat and laid back to relax for the ride.
_______________________________________________
The sound of a splash startled me awake, I must have dozed off on the ride. I sat up and looked around the boat, Kie was the only person missing.
“I tied my shirt to the anchor chain,” Kie said as she surfaced from the depths. “It’s about ten feet down, that’s where you need to do your safety stop.”
“Keep an eye on this,” Pope stated holding a monitor for the scuba tank. “Be sure you have enough air to decompress.”
“How much is that?” John B asked.
“It’s unclear.” Pope responded.
“Think zen,” JJ said.
“If you see a splash or see someone in the water,” I grabbed John B’s shoulder. “That means someone is here and to steer clear.”
“I got it guys,” John B said positioning himself on the side of the boat. “I’ll be back shortly.” He leaned back and into the water he went.
“Can we get some music guys?” I asked.
“What kind of music you in the mood for?” JJ asked.
“I’m not really picky,” I smiled, “I listen to just about anything.”
A familiar tune played out across the open water. Without thinking I instantly sang along to the opening lyrics of “Iris” by The Goo Goo Dolls. The sound of an engine snaps me out of my song and that’s when I see the boat approaching.
“JJ come sit with me,” I called over to him thinking about the plan.
“What?” He asks.
“Come sit with me, act like we’re enjoying each other’s company. It will add to the believability of our story.”
Rolling his eyes with a slight smile he makes his way over to me. “Is this seat taken?” He asks sitting down next to me.
“Hmmm actually yeah, it’s taken by some blonde guy I think his name is like Ray Ray or something” I laughed.
We sat there talking about random things as the boat approached. The closer the boat got to the HMS Pogue, the closer JJ got to me.
“Lean your head on my shoulder,” JJ said putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me as close to him as he could.
“You know that’s just an excuse to get closer to me,” I teased him.
“It’s not everyday I get to cuddle up to a pretty girl.” He smiled, “so I’m going to take full advantage of this opportunity.”
Before I could say anything I was cut off by the officer in the sheriffs boat that had finally reached us. “What’re you kids doing out here, you know that marsh is closed.”
“No we didn’t know the marsh was closed,” Pope said.
“We we’re just taking our new friend out on the boat for the day,” Kie added.
“She wanted a day on the water,” JJ chimed in, “and what my girl wants she gets.” He tightened his grip on me and pulled me closer. I leaned my head over on his shoulder.
“I’m terribly sorry if me wanting to come out here is and issue officer,” I said putting on my best innocent act. “What is the marsh closed for sir?”
“We’re conducting a search out here.” The officer replied, “a boat went down, have y’all seen anything?”
“No sir we haven’t.” We responded in unison.
“Are there enough life jackets on this boat for all of you?” The officer asked as he tossed a rope over to us. “I’m going to come check.”
“I’ll tie them off,” I said taking the rope this would be the perfect way to send John B a signal. I pulled the rope as tight as I could one I got to the tie-off handle on the boat. I pulled the rope just enough to send the officer’s boat into the side of ours and overboard I went.
I resurfaced to see everyone on the side of the boat looking at me.
“Babe are you ok?” JJ asked.
“Yes,” I responded. “I guess I was just unbalanced when the boats collided and I fell in.”
I swam over to the the boat and began pulling myself back in. I was met by a pair of hands that were outstretched willing to help me back in the boat. I looked up to see JJ smiling at me waiting for me to take his hand. I smiled taking his hand and he helped be back into the boat. Once I was back in the boat JJ took a towel and draped it over my shoulders.
“Well it looks like you kids are all good but I suggest you get out of here before I get back.” The officer said.
“Yes sir,” we all said in unison.
“We’ll get our things and make our way back.” Kie said.
“Let us know if you see anything on your way out.” The officer said stepping back on his boat. In a matter of seconds the boat was out of site and John B was resurfacing.
“How’d it go down there?” JJ asked, “did you find anything?”
“Did I find anything,” John B said throwing a bag into the boat and climbing back in.
“Hey guys bogey, two o’clock,” Kie said.
“Anyone recognize that boat?” Pope asked.
“Never seen it,” Kie replied, “the marsh is closed what’re they doing out here?”
“Let’s not hang around and find out,” JJ said.
“JJ check the bowline,” John B ordered. “Pope get the stern.”
Before the guys could complete the tasks given to them by John B he had the boat in gear and ready to get out of there. As the boat was approaching a sense of urgency came across the group.
“Go into the marsh,” I stated to John B.
“Guys, they’re following us!” Kie shouted as we turned into the marsh.
“This can’t be good,” John B stated.
“Go faster!” JJ shouted.
Everything was silent for a few minutes until a gunshot rang out across the marsh followed by an array of expletives from our boat as we all hit the deck.
“Get down John B,” JJ called.
“We’re gonna die!” Pope shouted.
Gunshot after gunshot rang out across the marsh. The next thing I knew Kie had made her way to the front of the boat and grabbed a net. She threw the net overboard and the boat chasing us stalled, no doubt the net was caught in the motor. One last gunshot rang through my ears, we had narrowly escaped.
_______________________________________________
“Do you guys ever have a normal day?” I asked as I was climbing out of the boat and onto the dock.
“What’s this normal you speak of?” Pope laughed.
“I’m going to take Pope’s reaction as this is normal for you guys.” I said looking over at John B.
“It’s been the norm for us since my dad disappeared.” He said looking down at his feet. “Since he disappeared I’ve been trying to look for clues to finding him.”
Instinctively I made my way over to John B and wrapped my arms around him. I couldn’t imagine what he must be going through and my heart truly hurt for him. “I am so sorry.” I whispered, “if you need anything let me know.”
“Thank you,” he said softly returning the hug. “I just hope we’re able to find something that points me in the right direction to find him.”
“We will,” I smiled releasing him from the hug. “I have faith in us.”
“So what did you find down there?” Kie asked.
“It’s got to be money or something right?” John B laughed.
“Can we please just open the bag?” Pope asked.
“That’s a rare outburst from you,” John B stated.
“I’m sorry we almost died over this,” Pope said. “Not to mention you’re killing me with anticipation.”
John B opens the bag and pulls out a metal canister and begins trying to open it. He fiddles with it for a few seconds and then he manages to get the lid off. He turns the canister up and in his hand falls a compass.
“Wow good job everyone we found a compass,” Pope says sarcastically as John B continues to stare at the compass.
“Dude it’s not worth anything,” JJ says.
“This was my father’s” John B replies chuckling.
For a moment I saw a glimmer of hope in John B’s eyes. Although the contents found in that boat weren’t what they had hoped it was, in a way it was a treasure for John B. He had found a piece of his father, a clue to help him find him.
“How long has your dad been missing?” I asked John B.
“Nine months,” he sighed.
“I’m so sorry,” I reached out to squeeze his hand. “I can’t imagine how you may be feeling, I know it’s not easy.”
“I’m making it,” he smiled. “I’m a survivor it’s what I do.”
“It’s what we all do,” JJ said as he put his arm around John B’s shoulder. “We always keep pushing on and we have each other’s back when they need it.”
“You guys remind me so much of my friends back home.” I smiled at them.
“Tell us about home,” Pope chimed in.
“What do you want to know?” I asked.
“First of all what is this gumbo your mom was talking about?” JJ asked.
“It’s like a soup or a stew that you put over rice or potato salad and you can either make it with seafood or chicken and sausage.” I smiled.
“That sounds amazing!” John B sighed.
“You have no idea!” I laughed.
“Was your mom being serious about having us over for dinner tomorrow?” Pope asked.
“Of course she was,” I laughed. “My parents want to thank you guys for saving me.”
“They don’t have to think us,” they all said in unison.
“They do, and so do I.” I said looking down, “y’all saved my life and some of you took a beating for it.” I looked over at John B.
“(Y/N) it’s what we do,” JJ said. “We defend our friends no matter what.”
“I was so afraid I wouldn’t make any friends here but I’m so glad I met you guys.” I smiled at them.
“For a kook you’re not too bad,” John B laughed as he wrapped me in a hug.
“For a bunch of pogues y’all aren’t so bad either.” I laughed as everyone else joined in on the hug.
We sat on the dock and we all talked for a while. When the sun began to set that was when we decided it was time to get me home. The ride back to my house was pretty uneventful. The Twinkie pulled in my driveway and once it stopped I bid farewell to my friends and made my way inside. My parents were sitting in the living room when I walked in. They asked how my day was and I told them the clean version of events leaving out the crazy things. I knew if I told them we were shot at I’d never be allowed to go with them anywhere again. After speaking with my parents for a few minutes I told them goodnight and made my way up stairs to shower and get ready for bed.
Once I had finished showering, I made my way to my bed where I happily fell into the covers. It had been a long and tiring day, but I couldn’t help but replay the events of the day back over and over again. The sly comments JJ made to me today made me think there may be some kind of feelings there for me. Then to see John B vulnerable for just a few minutes it stirred something inside of me. Could I have feelings for the both of them I thought to myself as the tiredness finally consumed me.
Tag list:
@jjpogueprincess @khiaraaa-in-spacee
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ptergwen · 4 years
Text
heartbreaker
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warnings: angst, swearing, drinking, and smut OK WOW
summary: never have i ever with your ex and current boyfriends is an interesting experience
a/n: excuse me for taking such a long ass time on this but super big shoutout to whoever requested it for being patient <3 i’ve been trying to write what y’all would actually be interested in so don’t be shy tell me what you want to read!! also italics are flashbacks and as always i hope everyone enjoys hehe
-
“never have i ever...” harry purses his lips and looks around at your table, “cheated on schoolwork. successfully.” everyone easily takes a sip of their beers, except harrison. you snort and tilt your bottle to where he’s sitting across from you.
“haz, how are you the only one?” “because this div used to copy all my shit in year eleven, and i’d be the one to get in trouble for it.” he elbows tom’s side, tom nudging him back. “should’ve turned yours in first, bro.” rolling his eyes, harrison bends the rules of the game by sipping his drink.
their silly bickering makes you realize how much you’ve missed hanging out with the boys like this. it makes you realize you how much you’ve missed the boys in general. the last time you even saw tom, really saw him, was for a catch up lunch. you had to rush it because he was in between onward press junkets.
before that was the day he left to film cherry, almost a year ago. it’s not at all something you like to remember. dwelling will just set you back, and you’ve come too far to let that happen. as far as one can go when the person they gave their whole heart to breaks it.
now you have luke, and tom has anyone in the world he wants. it’s a new relationship. you’ve only been seeing luke for about three months. you met him while buying some post-breakup ice cream. he randomly started a conversation with you on the line. you bonded over your hatred for chocolate and ended up trading numbers. since you’re slowly getting more serious, you invited luke to the pub tonight.
the meet the friends stage is an important one, and it’s not often that one of your closest would be available for it. tom’s thoughts and opinions still mean a lot to you. you’ll always love him, even if it’s not in the same way you once did. you know he’ll always love you right back. that’s why he did what he did in the first place. that’s what he told you, at least.
you spot luke searching for your table in the pub not too much later. sitting up straighter for him to see you, you wave him over. none of the boys knew that he was coming tonight, so you’re a bit nervous about what they might say. you just hope they’ll like each other as much as you like all of them.
“hey, y/n.” luke leans down and kisses your cheek. you smile up at him, scooting over in the booth to give him room to sit. you’re in between him and tom now. it’s pretty metaphorical if you think about it. “hi. good day?” “yeah, and super busy. i’m luke,” he reaches out his hand for any of the boys. harrison gives him a friendly shake. you haven’t noticed the way tom has been looking at you this whole time.
it’s like he wants to say something, but he’s biting his tongue.
harry shakes luke’s hand, then tom. he uses a firm grip paired with his signature lips pressed together smile. “good to meet you, man. what do you do again?” “i’m in journalism, so mostly chase people around all day.” tom clicks his tongue in a way that sounds like he approves. you’re not exactly sure what’s going through his head at the moment, but it seems to be good things so far.
“he’s just taking the piss. your writing is seriously amazing, luke. don’t downplay it.” you lean into the arm he outstretches across the back of the booth. he lets his hand move to your shoulder and pulls you in closer.
tom stares down at the floor. his leg bounces next to yours, one of his nervous habits you’ve become familiar with. picking up on his brother’s mood change, harry clears his throat to change the subject.
“let’s keep playing never have i ever. we were enjoying that earlier.” “great, i’ll go get everyone another round,” harrison volunteers himself and takes off for the bar. that was obviously his way of escaping the sudden awkwardness that came about.
you tap tom’s foot lightly with your own, making him look up at you. “doing okay over there?” “‘’m fine. my jetlag picked a bad time to act up, is all,” he lamely excuses himself and shifts the tiniest bit away from you.
you’ve seen jetlagged tom plenty of times, and this isn’t him. something else is clearly on his mind. you’d call him out on it and have a heart to heart, but it isn’t your place to do that anymore. you’re both still adjusting to the whole friends thing. it’s going to take time to get back to how close you were, especially with different boundaries in place.
harrison comes back with fresh beers and sets them down on the table. each of you grab one. tom immediately chugs half of his without bothering to wait for the game to continue. you’re not in the mood to watch him act like this, so you turn to face luke. that only encourages him to drink some more. harry is the one who steps in and pulls his bottle away.
“easy there, alcoholland. you gotta save some for when we play.” “right.” tom wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, eyes already glossy. this isn’t how tonight was supposed to go.
“speaking of,” harrison starts, overly cheerful to make up for the way his friend is behaving. “it’s my turn.” “go for it,” you force a smile at him and swish the beer around in your glass. “this’ll definitely be good. never have i ever gone skinny dipping.”
the heat that rises to your cheeks gives you away before you can take a sip. with a shit-eating grin, tom snatches his beer out of harry’s hand. “gonna need this back, baby bro.” you shyly pick up your drink, tom and harrison being the only others who are guilty. harrison clinks his glass with yours, then you’re both gulping down your poison.
luke playfully raises his eyebrows at you when you’re finished. “i’m sorry, y/n, but i have to hear this story. you went skinny dipping?” cockiness absolutely oozing out of him, tom cuts in. “we went together, actually. i can help her tell this one.”
you spare everybody the explicit details of what happened, but it isn’t hard to guess them. tom is thankfully mature enough in the moment to not reveal much. now that luke knows the story, it feels like there’s tension between him and tom. he’s just too nice to let it show.
taking notes from tom, you impulsively finish off the rest of your drink in hopes of clearing your mind. you earn looks of concern from everyone except the man of the hour. he’s enjoying messing with you.
“that was a fun night, huh?” tom smirks at you. you close your eyes and rub your temples. sensing how off everything is, harrison leaves the table again to get you another drink. he sure has a talent for that.
you’re not sure why tom has to be such an ass tonight of all nights. you’ve already told him about you and luke before, actually he was the first person to know. he should’ve expected to meet him at some point. maybe then, his coping mechanism wouldn’t be getting drunk and making both of you look stupid.
“you okay?” luke nudges your shoulder with his hand. you give him a tight lipped smile. “yeah. sorry about all of that.” “no, it’s fine. i’m a big boy.” he glances over at tom, who’s poking harry’s cheek with a spoon. jesus christ.
harrison brings over another beer for you and a water for tom. you take your drink and push tom’s over to him. he decides to be immature and drops the spoon to switch your glasses. drunk tom is a child.
“are you serious right now? you need to learn when to cut yourself off.” you switch them again, taking a sip of your beer before tom can take it from you. he huffs and drinks his water like you said. you’re only doing this because you care about him. he’s probably too gone at the moment to understand that. if he’s going to think you’re a buzzkill for helping him out, oh well.
“so, babe,” luke makes a point to stress the word, “how about you do the next round of the game?” he leans into you again. you still haven’t taken your eyes off of tom.
“sure,” you agree absentmindedly. “um, never have i ever...” tom smiles lazily at you when he notices you’re looking at him. you forgot that drunk tom is also cute, but you’re not supposed to think that way anymore. not about him. you clear your throat. “never have i ever given myself a really bad hairstyle?”
everybody takes a drink this time, tom finishing his water. you’ve styled your hair in so many awful ways so many times, but only one comes to mind. it’s technically tom’s fault.
-
“come on, y/n/n, let me do it. i’ll even say please. please?” tom all but begs you for the third time. you look up at him from your phone to see him making puppy eyes at you. saying no to those is physically impossible.
you’ve been on hold with your hair salon for almost half an hour trying to make an appointment. they’re normally never this busy, but you really need to go. a person can only let their ends become so split.
for some reason, tom decided he wants to be a hairdresser today. he keeps offering to cut your hair for you instead. you’re not so sure you trust him with scissors, but he won’t stop asking about it unless you let him try. plus, this could be interesting.
you end the call with a sigh. perking up, tom grabs your hands. “so? that’s a yes?” “don’t make me regret this, tom.” he pulls you off the couch by your hands and leads you straight to the bathroom.
“should we wash it first? i think that’s what they do.” he turns on the sink, then goes into the shower to get your hair products. you lean back against the counter and watch him set up. you’re starting to feel kind of nervous about this. tom is usually good at everything he attempts, but something as permanent as a haircut, you’re not sure about.
“relax a bit, darling. you’ll be fine.” tom ruffles your hair with his fingers, making you crinkle your nose. “if it looks bad, no i won’t.” “it’s just hair.” he gets a towel off the rack and drapes it around your shoulders. you look at your hair in the mirror one more time, then lean back so your head is under the faucet. “you’re the one who uses a bottle of hair gel every day.”
“anyways,” you can hear the eye roll in tom’s voice. “let me know if the water’s too hot or too cold.” “nah, it’s good.” he opens your shampoo and squirts some into his hand. “see, i know what i’m doing.” you hum in response, tom’s fingers combing through your hair to make sure it’s wet enough.
you lift your head up from the water so tom can do the shampoo. it feels good, like you’re getting a massage but on your scalp. tom notices your small smile as he eases you down to rinse it out. “enjoying yourself?” you open an eye to see a smug look on his face. “for now, yeah.”
after all the shampoo is gone, tom starts with conditioner. he pulls all your hair to one side and runs through it with a brush a few times. you’re honestly impressed he knows what he’s doing. he must have learned from watching you do your own hair. he puts in the conditioner and twirls a loose strand of hair around his finger, letting it sit for a bit.
“i’ll admit it, you’re actually good at this,” you reach up and poke at his chest. tom pokes your cheek back, then gathers all of your hair again. “mm, thanks. you should let me do your hair for you more often.” “that’ll depend on if you can cut it.” with a chuckle, he lets the ends of your hair fall under the water again.
your hair all washed, tom helps you stand back up. he takes the towel from over your shoulders and uses it to scrunch your hair up. it falls over your face. you know he’s trying to do it so it stays in place, but that’s not what’s happening.
“i’ll do this part, babe,” you laugh to yourself and flip your head over. “pfft, yeah, i was totally gonna try that next,” tom jokes, searching through a drawer for scissors while you wrap your hair. he opens and closes them before dropping them on the counter.
“wanna sit? i don’t know how long this’ll take.” “oh, god. sure.” tom easily lifts you up by your waist and sits you on the counter. you giggle a little at the gesture. he’s full of surprises today. “there you are, m’lady. let’s get started.” he takes the towel off your head and squeezes your hair out with it one more time. pouting, you grab a few strands. “i’ll miss you guys so much.”
”stop it, i’m not even cutting that much off,” tom groans and stands in between your legs. you put your hands on his shoulders. “that’s the plan, but knowing you, you’ll end up giving me, like, a mohawk.” “you think i know how to do that?” your legs wrap around his waist, scooting yourself closer to the edge of the counter. “i hope not.”
tom wraps an arm around your waist and gives you a wicked smile. you probably should’ve asked him to section off your hair so he could cut it evenly, but it slipped your mind. he splits your hair in half the best he can and picks up the scissors. you’re facing him, so you can’t see what he’s about to do in the mirror.
“i’m gonna count to three, okay? one, two, three.” tom takes half of your hair and starts cutting it in a straight line, which is already a problem. it ends up creating this weird zigzag look that can’t be saved by just him. he realizes his mistake after he’s already holding your hair. “oh, shit..” he puts down the scissors and covers his mouth with his free hand. your eyes go wide. “what? what did you do?”
“i- i, um, we can fix it,” he tries, backing away before you freak out. you hop off the counter and turn around to see what happened. it’s long in the back and too short in the front. how did he mess up this bad in not even two minutes? you gasp and touch your disaster of a haircut.
“tom, what is this? it looks... i don’t even know what to say!” you spin back around, pointing at your half cut hair. he winces when he sees it again. “i’m so sorry, y/n/n. i thought-“ “no, you didn’t! you thought nothing! your mind literally must have been empty.” you sit on the floor with your head in your hands, tom crouching down in front of you.
“look at me, darling.” he puts a hand on your back. you scowl up at him. “it’s really not that bad. you’ll figure out a way to make this work.” “you’re so helpful,” you mumble, leaning your head forward so it’s resting on his chest. you’re being dramatic. he was trying to do something nice for you, and it’s not like this was on purpose. tom rubs circles on your back, you nuzzling your cheek into his shirt.
“should i leave the other side, or would that be worse?” “i can do it for you.” “absolutely not.”
-
“i could only wear my hair up for months because of you,” you laugh to tom, warming up to him again from the memory. he puffs some air out of his cheeks with a smile. “be happy you didn’t ask for bangs.” “that’s because i’d never be able to pull them off.” tom messes with your hair so it’s over your eyes, you pushing his hands away with a breathy laugh. “not true.”
luke shifts in his spot next to you to remind you he still exists. you glance over at him and move your hair out of your face. “um, what was yours?” “i dyed my hair orange once. ginger definitely isn’t my look,” he jokes. it seems like he’s just trying to compete with tom now. you muster up a small chuckle for him anyway.
“tom, you haven’t gone yet,” harry points out, picking up his glass. tom considers the fact for a second. “true, but it’s not much fun if i don’t get to drink. can i get another since i’m behaving?” he juts his bottom lip out at his brother. harrison lets out a long sigh. “mate, i really don’t feel like getting up again. take a break.”
you slide your beer over to tom without a second thought. “you can share mine.” he looks at you like you said something wild. “are you sure we should do that?” he’s clearly referring to luke and how he might take it. at this point, it doesn’t matter to you. luke has been acting off since you started playing, and you’re not going to let him ruin your time with your friends.
you shrug your shoulders and tap the glass. “i’m the one who suggested it. drink up.” he hesitates, but takes it.
“ok, never have i ever gotten kicked out of somewhere.” harrison shakes his head and harry rests his chin in his hand, bummed he can’t drink. luke raises his hands up in surrender. that leaves you and tom. you know exactly what he’s thinking about right now. he takes a sip of your beer and hands it back to you, you finishing off the rest of it.
-
tom brought you to a super fancy restaurant for date night. it’s one of those places that has their own dress code and mood lighting. here you are, sat across from him in your most uncomfortable pair of heels and picking at course three of your meal; a bland salad. tom isn’t thrilled with it either, so you don’t feel too bad.
you rarely get the chance to go out for dinners like this because of tom’s ever-growing schedule, so you’re giving this place a try to make up for it.
“i wanna ask if they have dressing, but i’m scared i’ll get yelled at,” you murmur to tom, stabbing a piece of lettuce with your fork. he bites his cheek. your look of disgust makes a giggle slip out of him. “try holding your breath so you don’t taste it,” tom suggests, fiddling with a button on his jacket to stall from eating.
you take a big gulp of water in hopes of cleansing your tastebuds. tom looks at you from over his cup, doing the same. it’s so hard to take this seriously. “i know you wanted to take me somewhere nice, baby, but this kinda sucks.” you whisper the last part. “you’re right. i’ve heard great things about their dessert, though.”
“we’d find out if they didn’t take five years to serve us every course,” you laugh a little too loud at your own joke. an older woman with diamonds around her neck shoots you a glare. tom finally cracks, joining in your laughter over the situation. your waiter comes back at that moment, and he’s less than pleased by the behavior from both of you.
“is everything okay over here?” he asks sharply. “we’re, uh, we’re fine. thank you,” tom hides his laugh with a cough and makes an overly serious face. your waiter places a check on the table. “we didn’t ask for this yet,” you tell him politely. “i’ve heard several complaints about you two throughout your meal, so i’m going to have to ask you to leave.” he explains, handing you a pen to sign the check.
tom’s fake serious face is now a real serious face.
“you can’t-“ “let us pay for what we had, and we’ll be on our way.” you take tom’s arm from across the table. he would’ve pulled the ‘do you know who i am?’ card without you stopping him. your waiter walks away and goes to serve someone else.
“i can’t believe they’re kicking us out. this is so unfair,” tom complains, but gets out his wallet. he grabs the pen from you to take care of everything. “to be fair, we were being pretty annoying. we didn’t even like our food,” you try to reason.
tom does his signature and leaves money on the table. he’s going to be sulking about this the rest of the night. you stand up with your arm still linked in his and walk him over to the exit. he squeezes you closer to him on your way to the car.
“that was disappointing,” tom speaks again once you’re in the car. he rests a hand on your thigh. you put yours on top of his. “and funny. the only thing is, i’m still hungry.” “yeah? how about we go for burgers?”
you’re in the mcdonald’s parking lot eating your second dinner not too much later. it’s a lot better than your first. your heels are kicked off, your feet on the dashboard while you and tom eat and listen to your favorite songs.
tom steals one of your fries and shoves it in his mouth, sticking his tongue out at you after. that earns him a flick from you. “you have your own fries, weirdo!” “yours taste better somehow. here, i’ll trade you.” he lifts the bun off his burger so you can have his pickles. he knows you so well.
“can i tell you something?” tom asks all of a sudden. you stop eating and turn down the radio with a nod. “i know this isn’t as cool as fine dining, but i’m happy we get to have these moments together. wish they could last a little longer,” tom admits to you while staring out the window. you bring his hand up to your lips and kiss it.
“i’ve had so much fun tonight, and every night i spend with you. i don’t care about some gross rich people food. the only thing that matters is is being together, okay?” tom grins at your words, then leans forward and presses his lips to yours. it’s a short but sweet kiss. it’s a kiss that says the words he doesn’t have. “love you, y/n. thank you.” “i love you.”
-
you and tom are doubled over, giggling like kids with your heads bent together. you’re both pretty buzzed from your drink. you try to get yourself together, but he makes eye contact with you and you bust into another fit of laughter. even harry and harrison join in. it’s nice to finally have all of you getting along.
“i think it’s time to head out,” luke announces, moving to get up from the booth. you turn to him and wipe under your eyes. “oh, ok. i’ll text you later?” “you’re not coming?” he sounds more bitter than surprised. “i’m gonna get a ride back with tom when he’s ready to drive. it’s too early for me.”
luke fully sits himself back down and places his almost full glass in front of tom. all the boys are looking at you, but you have no idea what‘s happening. “why’d you do that?” you ask just to him. “i’ve changed my mind. i’m staying for another round of the game.”
you have a bad feeling about whatever he’s going to say. he’s been salty about you and tom all night, as if he didn’t know you’re still friends. it’s not like him at all. not the him you thought you knew, anyway.
“never have i ever,” luke intentionally directs the question at tom, “broken up with the most amazing girl so i could make shitty movies and fuck models. i wonder who’s done that.”
everyone stays silent. you could swear you’ve just been knocked sober. tom gets up from the table without a word, not bothering to wait for harry and harrison to move. he ignores them telling him not to go and steps over them. he’s out the nearest exit of the pub before anyone can stop him. you want to go after him, but you’re stuck in the middle of the booth.
your ‘boyfriend’ put his jealousy before your feelings for the last time tonight.
“what the fuck, luke?”
-
“are you sure you have everything? you remembered all your stuff from security?” you hold tom’s hand impossibly tighter as you get close to his gate.
he leaves today to film cherry in the states. you’re dropping him off at the airport like you always do, but something feels different about this time. it seems like a more permanent goodbye.
“mhm, it’s all here.” tom squeezes your hand back. you stop walking when you reach the sign that has his gate number on it. this is it. the last time you’ll see him for who knows how long? he stands his suitcase up off to the side and moves so he’s in front of you.
his arms are around your neck now, hugging you so close. you wind your arms around him so there’s no space between you two. he rests his chin on your shoulder, letting out a breath. “gonna miss you so much, baby. fuck, i hate this.” “it’s okay, tom. we’ve done it before. we’ll be okay.” you’re trying to convince yourself and him.
he pulls back from you and holds you by your waist. you stay flush against his chest, grabbing on to his hoodie. you don’t trust yourself to look at him right now.
“y/n, i can’t keep doing this to you,” tom says into your ear, his voice oddly steady for such a big thing to say. “doing what? you mean your job?” your fingers play with his hoodie strings. “i’ll be fine. i always am.” “that’s the thing. i don’t want you to just be fine all the time.” he can’t be saying what you think he is. you shake your head against him.
“you should be happy. it’s not fair that i make you settle for less.” “tom, stop.” you move off of him completely, your throat getting tight. “we’ve already talked about this. you do make me happy, even if it’s from another country sometimes. i don’t care.” he takes your hand again.
“this is something i’ve been thinking about for a while, honestly. it’ll be good for both of us.” “i- what are you trying to say?” tears are already clouding your vision. tom lets go of you. “we need to break up, y/n.”
you can feel your entire heart shatter into millions of tiny little pieces. this isn’t happening. not now. not ever. he’s not leaving you so easy.
you’re crying in the middle of the airport for everyone to see, and tom isn’t too far behind you. “i thought you loved me,” you manage to get out. tom chokes back his tears and wipes yours instead, his thumbs running over your cheeks. “i do, angel. i love you so much that it’s hurting me to say goodbye.” “then why can’t we make it work? please,” you lean into his touch for probably the last time.
“because you deserve more. i’m away all the time, and there are things i can’t give you. you deserve someone who’s here for everything.” tom’s fingers trail down to grab your chin gently, you looking up at him with bloodshot eyes.
“i want more for you, y/n.” “i have you. that’s all i want, tom.” neither of you say anything for a good minute. tom almost gives in, you can see it. you whimper when he grabs the handle of his suitcase instead.
“this is because i love you. i... i need you to understand that.” his voice is soft. you wish he could’ve done this way earlier since he was planning on it. “it’s all happening so fast.” tears are dripping down your cheeks and chin. you want to reach for tom, but there’s no point. his mind is made up. an announcement plays through the airport that tom’s flight is boarding.
“i really don’t wanna leave you like this, but i have to go. i’ll call you after i land, okay?” who are you to stop him now? “o- okay. be safe.” tom presses a kiss to your forehead, letting it linger for a few seconds. he puts his hood up and turns around. you watch him walk to his gate. this is the first time he’s left you without looking back.
you start making your way to the parking lot as soon as he’s gone. it takes everything in you not to scream and sob the whole way back. none of this feels right. if you both still love each other, you should be together.
after the longest walk of your life, you get back to your car. you break down all over again.
-
“i’m trying to help you, y/n. it seems like you forgot what he put you through,” luke scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest. you can’t believe how he’s acting. “let’s talk about this somewhere else. sorry, guys,” you smile awkwardly at harrison and harry. harry waves you off. “it’s okay. we understand.”
luke gets out of the booth, you following behind and leading him over to an empty corner in the pub. your smile fades. “that was fucked up, luke. we didn’t end things for his career. you know that.” “not officially, but it definitely helped.” does he not realize how crappy that sounds? like you were holding him back?
“you’re wrong. i told you exactly what happened. everything you’re saying is some weird story you made up in your head.” “then he should’ve said that for himself.” you throw your hands up in the air. “you made him fucking uncomfortable! i would’ve left, too.” luke laughs bitterly. “he’s really good at that, you know. leaving.”
“he did it because he loves me. fuck you for joking about it, like it wasn’t something that took me a really long time to get over. it’s sad that my past makes you jealous.” there’s a beat of silence before luke says anything. “do you still love him, y/n?” you both already know the answer. “well?” “yeah. yeah, i do.” you push past him and go out the door tom left from. luke doesn’t bother following.
you’re ready to start searching for tom, but he ends up being right outside. he’s leaning against the side of the building. his head snaps up when the door opens. “didn’t mean to scare you.” you walk over to him. he sniffles and shoves his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “‘s alright. rather you than someone else.” “tom, i’m-“ “don’t apologize.”
“i have to. the things luke said to you were really gross, and i hate that i didn’t stop him.” you take a step closer to him. “you couldn’t have predicted anything he said.” tom gives you a tight lipped smile. “he’s... not the kind of person i thought he was.” “he’s a bit of a dick, to be honest.” you giggle a little at that. you’re just relieved tom isn’t taking this too hard.
“so, he didn’t pass the friends test. i guess that’s okay since things are kind of over between us.” tom finally meets your eyes, furrowing an eyebrow. “why? what happened?” “i cursed him out. said some pretty mean stuff.” he holds out an arm for you. you let him put it around you, instantly settling into his warmth. you’ve needed this.
“you can do better. he seemed too boring for you, anyway.” you shrug your shoulders with a small smile. “i wanted to talk to you about that. i’m not really sure how to say this, so i’ll just... say it.” tom’s heart is beating so fast you can feel it next to you. “yeah?”
you turn to face him, his arm still around you. “i haven’t stopped loving you. this is bad timing because you’re about to go film uncharted, and it’s out of no where, but i thought i should tell you. it might not mean anything now-“ “come with me.” you’re both shocked by each other’s words. you laugh in disbelief, tom nodding to urge you to say yes.
“for real? you want me to go?” “i wanna work on us, and i’m not making you wait any longer. i was stupid for ever giving up. we can figure everything out, and it would only be for the summer-“ now it’s your turn to cut him off, your lips crashing into his. his eyes flutter closed as he kisses you back. he grabs your arms and both of you pull back to catch your breath.
tom kisses you again, this time softer. you smile against his lips. “god, i’ve missed doing that. i really, really love you, y/n.” “i really love you, tom.”
and just like that, he put the pieces of your heart back together.
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heyitssmiller · 3 years
Note
How funny! I was just thinking about it too........pt 3 🍰✨ [characters belong to @lumosinlove]
Leo had Bad Suns blasting from his phone as he frosted the latest cupcakes - a Devil's food cake batch he was making for an engagement party. He bopped his head to the tune with a smile as the sound filled the small space. The kitchen window was open to let in a breeze, and he could hear Marlene’s motorcycle pull up.
She came in from the back door, placing her helmet upside down on the equipment shelves. “Your music’s too loud.”
“You call me poison but you won’t stop comin’ around,” he sang to her, grabbing her arm and twirling her haphazardly.
“You’re singing off-key!” She laughed.
“No, you won’t stop comin’ arounddddd,” he ignored her, dipping her backward in his arms. Marlene rolled her eyes with a grin, clinging tight to him so she wouldn’t fall over.
He spun her once more for good measure before swiftly loading the cupcakes into a box and tying it up with yellow twine. “Remember to secure it,” he warned.
“Have I ever had an order fall off my bike?”
“Ah, let’s see. Sunday, November second-”
“That should not count. It was my first week, it was years ago, and spice cakes are inherently accident-prone.”
“Oh, are you gonna make me up a statistic?” Leo leaned back on the counter with his arms crossed, raising a playful eyebrow.
Marlene socked him in the shoulder. “I’ll secure this one, don’t worry.” She glanced at the time on her phone and turned off his music. “Now, I’ve got seven minutes before I really need to get going. Why don’t you tell me who it is you’re crushing on?”
“What?” Leo blurted, caught off guard by her question.
“Come on, Frank told me you were all blush when he came in for his shift Saturday afternoon, but you’d left before I came back to see for myself.”
“I-”
“Don’t lie to me, Leo Knut,” Marlene stuck a finger in his face.
He sighed, defeated, and told her an abridged version of what went down at the bakery on his solo shift. Marlene chewed her lip thoughtfully before pulling out her phone.
“What’re you doing?”
“Looking these guys up. They’re hockey players, right?”
He nodded as she typed ‘Gryffindor Lions’ into the search bar. Her eyes scanned the player’s photos before lighting up. “Here we go, Finn O’Hara and Logan Tremblay, right wingers.”
He leaned closer to get a better look.
Finn was smiling wide, red hair just a shade brighter than the burgundy jersey he was wearing. Leo decided his freckles looked just as cute on camera.
Next to Finn’s picture was Logan’s. The brunette’s eyebrows were slightly raised, his full lips just barely parted, giving him a faintly confused look that Leo found insanely adorable.
Marlene let out a squeal. “Oooooooooh, you do like them!”
“No, shut up.” Leo felt the blood rushing to his cheeks as he glared down at her.
“I mean, good choices. They are really hot.”
“No! Not good choices! Did you forget that they’re dating each other already?”
“And did you forget that they both flirted with you?”
He grumbled a reply as he turned to wipe down the counter.
“Leo, you said you put your number in their wallet, yeah?”
He nodded.
“So if they felt what you felt, they’ll call you.” She rubbed his arm soothingly. “Worst case scenario, you forget about them and move on. But you’re honestly a catch, Mr. Tall, light, and handsome. I wouldn’t worry.”
He smiled at her. “Thanks, Marley. You should get going with the cupcakes, though.”
“Crap, yes, I should.” She grabbed the box from the counter and her helmet from the shelves. “I will be back later!”
Leo pressed play on his music, turning it up again as he heard her motorcycle pull away. Then he started on the next order - a two-layer pistachio cake he’d already gotten half done. Three more Bad Sun’s songs and Leo was finally starting to loosen up to the music. He needed to put those hockey players out of his mind, or he would never be able to get anything done. “He’s a moth drawn, to a flame, he’s going in, he’s going all or nothin’,”
The customer’s door opened and Leo fumbled to pause the song. He was fine with Marlene hearing him sing, but he really did know that he had an awful voice.
“I’ll be right with you!” Leo called. He wiped his hands on his apron and stopped the mixer before walking out of the kitchen with a smile that promptly grew. “Hey!” He greeted the two men.
“Hi,” Finn said, sticking his hands in his pockets as Logan smiled back.
“What can I do for y’all today?” Leo placed his palms flat on the counter, suddenly painfully aware of the way his tank top showed off his arms. “I’m assuming y’all want some cake?”
Secretly, he was hoping they would say no, that’s not what they wanted. That they wanted him. That they came back for him.
Logan slipped his arm into Finn’s. “Well, we, uh, we wanted to tell you something.”
“Yeah?” Leo’s skin felt magnetic, pulling him towards the pair.
“Yeah,” Logan said. “We’re engaged.”
His heart, which had been beating out of his chest a minute ago, screeched to a halt and shattered in his chest. “You are? I-I-I mean, congratulations! Yeah, congrats, y’all, you’re engaged!” He ran a hand through his hair. “Wow! When’s, uh, when’s the wedding?”
Finn looked between Logan and Leo. “We’re not exactly sure yet. But we knew we wanted to come back and see you. For the cake.”
“For the cake,” Leo echoed.
“Oui, do you have time for us to sit down now?”
Leo looked around desperately for his appointment book, not trusting himself to meet either of the other two in the eye without dropping the act that he was happy for them. “I can, uh, I can make you an appointment, if you want, um.” He fumbled the pages to turn to a blank line. “Yeah, but I can’t meet right now, sorry. We can put you on the calendar, though? If-if you want.”
“Sure,” Finn nodded. “We’d love to.”
“Our next free day is Sunday, does that work?” Logan asked, leaning in to try and read Leo’s handwriting upside down.
“Yup, yup yup yup. Mhm. I can squeeze you right in. How’s noon work? Noon sound good?” Leo was smiling too widely, and rambling, he knew, but he had no idea to respond to this. The two guys he’d been non-stop thinking about, who he’d given his number to, had just come in to ask if he could bake their wedding cake.
For their wedding.
To each other.
And of course, Leo would.
“Noon sounds great,” Finn confirmed for him, and the blonde’s smile got tighter.
“Swell,” he gritted out. “Well, if that’s all...”
Logan and Finn looked at each other, and he couldn’t read the expression in their eyes.
“That’s all,” Logan said. “Merci Leo. We’ll see you Sunday, then? Noon?”
“Uh-huh,” Leo could tell his voice was too chipper. “Congratulations to y’all again!”
They offered him smiles before Finn held the door open for Logan.
His fiancé.
Leo went back into the kitchen and washed his hands before starting the mixer back up. Far too heartbroken by what just happened, he pressed play on the music and tried desperately not to cry.
They look so pretty from afar
Like the gates of heaven are open now
And my one true love has just waltzed right out, yeah
My brain reading this:
BADSUNSBADSUNSBADSUNSBADSUNS
LEO BABY
JUST FLIRT WITH HIM ALREADY FINNLO GOOD GRIEF GIVE HIM A HINT PLEASE
LEO BABY 😭
Ohhhh I love this story so so much!! Thank you for gifting us with this 💕
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coracandy · 3 years
Text
So. About that 6th wedding option.
Long post. Not sorry.
Trigger warning for #beemoovnegativity I guess. Probably throw that warning on everything I’ve posted since UL launched and everything I am likely to post for the foreseeable future because I hate beemoov. So much. I hate very nearly all of the writing choices that were made through LL, with everything surrounding Eric taking 2nd place on the worst story choices of the whole game list right behind the student falsely accuses their teacher of sexual assault plot. I just really hate cheating plots. I have also been obliquely accused of hating the Eric fans and I just want to clear up here and now that I only hate some of you. Most of you I am happy for. But man.. some of ya’ll have some utter garbage opinions and I’ve had a couple wine coolers today so I’m ready to no filter on all my own opinions about this whole mess. Click through if you want them.
Starting off.. Yeah, I said it would be funny if the wedding episode ended with Candy cheating on Eric and you know why I said that? Because if your Candy is with Eric in the first place it’s only because your Candy is a cheater. Canonically. In the real story of the real game. Not your fanfic version which we’ll get to in a bit, I promise, but in the actual game as it is actually written, if this is the path you chose then, canonically, your Candy is a cheater. She is selfish. She cares about no one and nothing but herself and what she wants in the moment. And, frankly, it seems like some of the players feel the same. I vividly recall many screen shot posts by Eric fans getting offended that their former love interests were angry about being cheated on. Citing that anger as justification for the cheating even. “This is how they react to the news? Ugh! I’m glad I cheated on them. They deserved it.” And that’s just.. reprehensible. Truly. Ya’ll remind me of beemoov, tbh. Treating someone’s anger at being stabbed in the back as a good enough reason to have stabbed them in the first place and an excuse to never have to apologize or even acknowledge the hurt.
So that’s Camp One of the Eric fans (probably the smallest camp tbh, but still very much one that exists) - the people who acknowledge the cheating aspect of the storyline but think it’s a good thing and yeah, I actually do just hate those people and their attitude. So to those people let me just say - 1) Monogamy isn’t sex negative. You’re ridiculous. 2) This storyline isn’t non-monogamous representation. It’s cheating. Those aren’t the same thing. 3)Betraying someone’s trust is always -always- a selfish, cruel, morally reprehensible thing to do. (And before anyone starts strawmanning at me about but what if that person was abusive - stop. That’s not what we’re talking about here, and you know it.)
So on to Camp Two of the Eric fans -  the drama addicts. The people that took the cheating route just because it was the first interesting thing to happen in the story in about 15 episodes. This is a camp I don’t hate but man oh man do I get frustrated by the way that all media and storytelling panders endlessly to them. This type of fan is the reason I can’t have nice things. The reason I can’t have a simply told story that builds to a narratively satisfying conclusion but instead get ass-pull twist endings that are exciting by dint of being unexpected but make no sense when you stop to think about them for five seconds. They’re the reason I get to be constantly frustrated by slow burn romances that last seven seasons and then end with the characters finally hooking up only for one of them to die two episodes later because happiness and contentment are boring. Heaven forbid a story ever slow down to focus on character development. If no one’s being killed, or cheated on, or getting pregnant without knowing which of three guys the father might be, or getting kidnapped, or diagnosed with a fatal disease, or lying to their best friend then there’s not even a story there. No tension. No drama. Why bother watching? Who wants to see characters being happy? I do. Please. For once. For more than a scene or two before something devastating happens to end it again. Just let me have nice things. For the most part this camp of players seems kinda meh about the idea of a wedding episode and would probably agree with me that Candy cheating on Eric during it would be funny. Feel like a lot of them meme on Eric as best LI because they like watching drama in the fandom as much as in the game. And I do genuinely hope they’re enjoying it while it unfolds. We have polar opposite tastes but I dream of someday living in a world where we can both have our own definition of nice things and both be happy.
And now on to Camp Three -  the people I think this wedding episode is mostly for. This is the camp I have nothing but sympathy for. These are the people who just genuinely liked the character. He simply clicked with them more than the other LIs, was closest to their idealized partner. So they ignore the way he was used in the story, headcanon away the cheating or write in their own version where the breakup happened before the sex scene, or the original LI was abusive, or maybe they were just never in another relationship through LL at all in their version of events. They just really like this character and want to have their Candy get a happy ending with him. And I have sympathy. I do. I would have loved for beemoov to give an option to end up with Eric without being dishonest. But they didn’t. That version of the story is just fanfiction. And it frustrates me when people get so invested in a fanfic version of a character or story that they start insisting the canon version is wrong and that people reacting to the canon version are misinterpreting it. I sympathize. I do. As a Lysander fangirl, I understand very well the emotional attachment one can develop to a character and story you mostly had to invent yourself because the source material never bothered to. But you can’t get offended at people being disappointed or even angry that the cheating route got a happy ending just because your personal fanfic version of the story didn’t include the cheating. The anger really isn’t being directed at you but at the canon story choices you probably also hated. I wish the story had been different for you. I really do. And hey, you all get the last laugh, in the end, as it seems the story is getting whitewashed or retconned or just generally is planning to ignore the ugly parts of what happened to give you the big white wedding of your dreams with your perfect man. And I’m happy for you. We should all have had that chance.
But we won’t. Because beemoov still doesn’t care about a lot of us. That’s where this anger mostly comes from. And it’s why I can’t agree, even slightly, with the people who are pointing to this decision and saying “Look! They’re listening to the players finally. Maybe things will get better.” Because they’re only listening to some players. Some of us have been begging to be heard for years now and they still won’t listen. And they never will. Much as I'd love to be wrong about that, I’m not wrong and you all know it. I’m happy for the people who are happy right now. But I’m warning y’all.. Don’t get comfortable. Don’t ever trust them. They’ll rip your heart out, tell you you should like it, and turn their backs on you forever while you bleed out. Don’t think it can’t happen again. It can, and knowing beemoov, it probably will.
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Here’s the final part of the “Raph is a system” theory compilation post! It’s the last of what I can scrape up from canon; while I still have ideas on how it might loop back into character interactions and plot and so on, they’re much more speculative in nature. (Part 1 is here) (Part 2 is here) (You’re reading Part 3)
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"Red” is the alter with the least screen time, so it took a while for me to connect the dots on when and why he formed.
His shadowed face, the dramatic background music when he speaks, and his seriousness are reminiscent of the “brooding on rooftops in the rain while gloomily staring off into the distance” thing that Raphs throughout the franchise will do sometimes. That’s easy to poke fun at on a superficial level because most of us look back on our edgy phases with self-deprecation, but it’s a lot less funny in the context of the life he lives. Being a normal human teenager in normal human society is a fucking nightmare; being a mutant teenager who has no idea what to expect in terms of development or lifespan, only five people he can safely interact with ever, and a very limited future hiding from everyone else for as long as he lives has got to be just awful.
RR’s few lines in “Pizza Puffs” tell us a lot. “It’s the only way they’ll learn” and “this is for their own good” suggest that he formed when the turtles started exploring more of the sewers and going aboveground, and Being The Leader became more of a responsibility. A thousand new ways for them to get in trouble meant a thousand new ways Raph would have to bail them out, and that got old fast- especially since they didn’t have April’s knowledge to help them in the beginning. I doubt they met her the very first time they left the sewers. The wiki says April knew the boys for five years as of “Mystic Mayhem”, so they would have been nearly eight at the time, perhaps the mental equivalent of a ten- or eleven-year-old human.
A while back I sifted through all the eps with Raph in them in the vague hopes that “Pizza Puffs” wasn’t the only episode featuring RR... and lo and behold, I found something! The shadowed face and dramatic background music are also present in “Minotaur Maze”!
“I can’t do it. I got no mystic mojo. I’m useless.”
“Hey, that’s not true, brother. You just gotta believe in yourself, and know this: If I die in this maze, I will haunt you for the rest of your life.”
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(I know that’s only two data points, but y’all canonically cannot scoff at me.) RR shows up when HR is no longer able to tolerate the bullshit at hand. “I’m not going to baby you Leo, get your shit together before your ego kills us all” was a reasonable response to nearly being shish-kebab’d.
“Pizza Puffs”, on the other hand... LDM pulled through in the end, but that RR got HR to stay behind added an unnecessary level of risk. Getting his brothers to learn a lesson should have waited until after the giant mutant cannibal had been dealt with and they were no longer poisoned.
This hands-off “figure it out on your own” approach probably came from Splinter. I swear to Pizza Supreme In The Sky I’m not trying to shit-talk him, but his lack of involvement with his sons was a major flaw. Before all that character development he was terrible at things like “emotional support” and “life lessons”, leaving Raph without the blueprints to deal with a lot of problems. HR would respond by rushing in and figuring things out as he went, but sometimes RR would have to say “No, we’re maxed out and can’t deal with this, we’ve gotta step back”. As we’ve seen in other iterations, when Raph is maxed out and doesn’t step back...
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...he goes too far. Plenty of folks have commented on how rarely the Rise turtles smack each other around compared to other versions; it’s telling that RR spoke up just a moment after HR smacked Mikey in “Pizza Puffs”.
Raph is much bigger and stronger than his brothers this time around, meaning such an outburst would have a much higher risk of Genuine Grievous Injury. And while his size and strength also mean a measure of gentleness has been baked into him since day one, there would still be times HR would feel himself boiling over and RR would head off somewhere quiet for fear of the above situation; which was potentially alluded to in “Hot Soup: The Game”.
“You went out on your own when you were his age.”
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The context of “Man vs. Sewer” suggests Raph isn’t going to go off on his own without very good reason- such as cooling down before he does something he regrets. That this detail shows up in Casey’s debut episode suggests it is how they will properly meet and bond, since befriending Casey and doing vigilante shit with him is what usually gives Raph a way to blow off steam while having someone nearby to keep him in check. But that probably won’t happen until partway through season 3, since I doubt we can cram the rest of Casey’s redemption arc into the movie alongside the invasion and time travel trauma shenanigans and leader drama. So in the meantime RR will continue to brood on rooftops in bad weather and listen to Ephemerality songs and monologue to himself because he knows nobody’s going to hear him over the incessant background noise that makes up the cities above and below.
I was a bit stumped about how that meeting would take place- the events of the finale (and possibly also the movie) would no doubt have both the human and yokai populations on high alert, making it dangerous for RR to slip away for some peace and quiet. But the events of the finale also gave us some insight on Raph’s powers; he has a way to leave without actually leaving!
Hardlight Clone Jutsu, baby!
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So whenever HR finds himself in a particularly sour mood, a wisp of power winds its way up through the open-air portion of the lair and forms into a clone aboveground. HR doesn’t have to leave for a while to cool down before coming back and dealing with the situation calmly, because RR is already on a rooftop somewhere dissipating those bad feelings by listening to the rain and/or yeeting trash cans.
But mutants can’t freely walk the streets of New York, and the Hidden City Police probably still have it out for Raph. And someone, hero or villain, will eventually realize that Raph has a gloomy stray clone running around and ask questions that can’t be answered without cracking open the can of worms that is This Whole Situation. RR needs to get creative. That we’ve seen clones have both full color and the basic red/white palette suggests their color could be altered in other ways; and that the holo-form grew extra arms in the lair fight vs. the Shredder suggests their shape could also be changed further.
So what will he choose to look like, if not his body?
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Obviously he’ll use a red and black color palette because it slaps, leaning more towards black since I compared him to Batman back in Part 1. A low-detail design makes it hard to identify him, giving onlookers the impression that they just couldn't see him well in the dark. Mentally filing down his spikes and decreasing the curve of his shell are easy enough, but it takes him a while to figure out five fingers instead of three, and there’s not much he can do about his voice other than lowering the pitch so he just opts to not talk much within earshot of others. A cape further disguises his silhouette and again, it slaps. The impression of a mask means he doesn’t need a face and it lets peoples’ assumptions work for him. Humans are more likely to think he’s human than a Very Human-Shaped Mutant, and yokai come in so many shapes as is that he could be anything from a witch to a dehydrated googlyschmootz.
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(You know how it is with franchises. Old patterns repeating in new ways.)
New York City never sleeps, and I doubt the Hidden City does either. He’ll run into Casey eventually, but in the interim he stumbles across and intervenes in some attempted purse-snatchings and kidnappings and the like. Most of the would-be victims use his arrival as their chance to escape, but one of them is too frozen with fear to move until their attackers are chased off into the dark. He escorts them home, and it’s only once they’re at their doorstep that they work up the courage to ask him who he is.
It’s... a difficult question, in more ways than one. “Raph” is out of the question. “Red” isn’t quite right, and neither is “Angel”- they’re a tad too identifying still, and the R.A.P.H. thing was HR’s idea anyway. So he shrugs, and melts away into the shadows.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m Nobody.”
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Fools
[[zuko x reader]]
->next
Summary: Zuko and Y/N had liked eachother for a while even though neither of them knew it. Y/N tries to get over her crush for him, failing miserably. So just when she decides to let go and embrace her feelings, the new Fire lord finds himself feeling jealous and decides to take matters into his own hands
A/N: this is the first Zuko/ATLA fic i’ve ever written, so go easy on me plssss, i just finishes the show a couple days ago (a little late ik) and ever since then i’ve been OBSESSED with this man (if he’s too ooc pls let me know) . This is set a while after the coronation and it’s an AU where zuko and mai were never a thing. Hope y’all like this <3
ps: this may get a little long, i’m writting this before i finish it but i get a feeling it’s gonna be a long one so be prepared lol also it will most definitely have a pt.2 if y’all like it.
Warnings: Angst but it’ll end well i promise, swearing
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-IF YOU HAVE ANY REQUESTS DONT HESITATE TO ASK-
Things after the war ended had been chaotically peaceful. Turns out that leading an entire nation, specially when it was the one that caused the war, and reuniting the lands that had for so long been against eachother was harder than all of you thought. The fact that a group of teenagers were the head of the operation wasn’t a big advantage either.
Sure, Aang and Zuko, who were the ones who had the most important positions when it came to politics and diplomacy, had advisors and people around to help guide them, but it was still a hard job. Nevertheless, without a war or fighting, you were sure it was good for the entire group to keep busy. They’d kept a lifestyle of always moving around and being on guard for so long it would’ve been a big shock to be forced to stay still after that.
Katara and Sokka travelled back and forth from the Southern Water Tribe to the Fire nation a few times, not too often though because of how far apart the two were. That was a shame because of how close you’d grown to Katara and her motherly self, her advice and her unconditional friendship, and even to Sokka and his bad jokes, his way of teasing everyone and how he could make you smile even when you weren’t in the mood, you even missed how mad he made you sometimes. Suki went with them to spend some time away from everything, she loved her life as a Kioshi warrior but she decided she needed a break after everything she had gone through.
Aang, on the other hand, was traveling all over but mostly between the Earth kingdom, were he would very often meet with Katara, and the Fire nation. You got to see him way more often than you got to see Katara, Suki and Sokka, although he tended to be busy with avatar business. He was doing a great job, you had to admit. The people loved him, he found a way to spread his teachings and the teachings of the Air nomads to the world and uniting others helping them put aside their differences seemed to be his thing now more than ever. But most importantly he seemed truly happy, one time he even told you he finally felt like he was making all the air nomads proud, wherever they were.
Toph still wanted to be away from her parents, so she refused to go back to the Earth Kingdom. She hated the cold, not being able to use her seismic senses in the snow and being bossed around by katara, so she refused to go with them too. So when you offered her to stay with you, she accepted. She made it seem as though it was her last choice because she had to keep her tough girl reputation, but actually she liked you a lot, she saw you kind of as a big sister. You took care of her in a way no one had before, not seeing her as helpless and weak but still being there for her when she needed you. Though she’d never tell this to anyone aloud.
And Zuko was still Zuko, just that now he was a Firelord. He took his job very seriously, determined to prove wrong everyone who had said he was too young or too weak for it. He knew the big responsibility he had in his hands and he seemed to be doing really well. He had his moments, of course, where he would have outbursts of emotion and anger, but he always found his way back to being who he needed to be for his Nation, and you always helped with that. He was the one who suggested you stayed in the Fire nation as a representative of the Northern Water tribe. You were hesitant at first, but after thinking the idea over you realized you had no business up in the tribe, you’d been away for a long time and you weren’t ready to go back just yet.
The two of you had never been incredibly close in the time since he joined the gaang, but you couldn’t denied there was a connection between the two. You got his humor and he got yours, you could tease eachother all day without getting butthurt, you could open up and talk about deep stuff under the stars on a sleepless night, and spending time with him seemed easier to do than with most people. You’d brushed this off as the two of you being good friends for a good while, even after you moved into the palace and started to hang out with him more, but for the past few weeks it’s been getting harder to do.
Every time Toph, him and you ate lunch together and he sat in front of you, you couldn’t help but end up staring at him, not in a weird, creepy way but in a ‘I’m mesmerized by you why am i mesmerized by you and since when are your eyes such a beautiful shade of gold’ way. You were in denial about it but deep down you knew you were starting to have a crush on him, and eventually Toph caught up to it too.
One night after diner she pulled you into her room, closed the door and said “Listen, Snow queen, I’m kinda tired of your heart going crazy every time mister flaming pants is around so you either get over your little crush, tell him how you feel or I will personally snitch on you directly to him, understood?” You didn’t even have the guts to deny it to her, specially since she’d know if you were lying, so you just heavily sighed and looked at the floor. She must’ve felt bad for you cause she took your hand and dragged you to sit on her bed to interrogate you about the situation.
“Out of anyone you could’ve ended up liking I never saw this one coming” she told you taking a seat on the opposite side of the bed
“Don’t get me started” you threw yourself back to the bed and stared at the ceiling for a second before speaking again “Like how dumb do I have to be to crush on someone who isn’t only probably the busiest man on all kingdoms right now, but also royalty and... well Zuko. He would never like a girl like me and even if he did, he probably has to end up with a princess or something.”
“I’m not letting you drown in a pity party here, ok?” Toph pulled your wrist and forced you to sit back up and look at her. “He’s lucky a girl as decent as you is willing to put up with that temper of his and how annoying he can get. Now what are you gonna do about it?”
“Nothing?” You replied in a low voice not taking a second to think about it. Toph punched you in the arm in response “Hey, what was that for?”
“What I said before still stands, I can’t deal with you being all flustered every time he’s around, so get over it or tell him how you feel.” She spat and all you could do was grunt and throw yourself back into the bed
So you were gonna get over it then. Easy task. Never done anything easier before.
It wasn’t.
Turns out that by trying to avoid Zuko at all costs you ended up stumbling into him even more. Around the corners, in the hallways, everywhere. The plan was to just avoid him as much as possible until eventually your feelings faded away, you couldn’t have a crush on someone you didn’t even see right? Wrong. Even when you weren’t around Zuko he was still on your mind. You tried to go to the palace library and distract yourself with literature, but reading romance books only made you feel more miserable and the only other option there was were war strategy books which you weren’t very interested in. The next distraction you chose was gardening, you loved nature and you were a water bender, it was the perfect task you thought, but once again you were wrong. You turned out to be such a bad gardener, Kya who was the one in charge of the royal gardens (and who was the sweetest lady) ended up banning you from messing with her flowers ever again. The last thing you could think of to stay away from Zuko was feeding the turtle ducks. It seemed like a good idea and on the few occasions you’d been in the pond before, the little animals seemed to be very fond of you. You couldn’t mess this one up, anyone could feed the ducks, but there was a little problem as it seemed to be the theme of that day, the Fire lord had forgotten to tell you that the pond was his place of choice when he needed to clear his head.
You didn’t even notice he was there until you heard his voice behind you. “Keep feeding them like this and they’ll get obese”
You jumped a bit out of surprise and turned around to face him with your palm pressed to your chest. “Spirits, Zuko, don’t do that to me, you’re gonna kill me one of these days” It was a bright and sunny day, the heat of the Fire nation weather made his face glimmer a little, his hair was up held by the royal Fire lord hair piece and he was wearing a version of his formal attire made for a hotter weather, leaving his muscly arms on display. As soon as you realized you were staring once again, you turned your attention back to the pond in an attempt to hide the blush that was slowly conquering your cheeks.
He took a sit next to you and waited a couple seconds before breaking the silence. “Hey... um... I don’t know if this is just me but you’ve been acting weird lately, is everything ok?” He asked looking at you.
“Everything is fine, definitely just you.” you replied not taking your eyes away from the shining water of the pond. The ducks had grown tired of waiting for you to keep feeding them and swam away.
“I... don’t think so. You didn’t come to breakfast today, everytime we’re together you seem to wanna leave as soon as possible and right now you can’t even look at me.” He paused before taking in a deep breath. “Did... did I do something to upset you?”
You finally turned around to look at him and the look you saw in his eyes was heartbreaking. Ever since he joined Team Avatar, Zuko had been making a huge effort to be good. You could see how sometimes he struggled to pick being kind and gentle over being erratic and explosive, and you also knew that had a lot to do with his childhood. But he had been doing such a good job at it, specially since he became Fire lord, he was so much more friendly, better at socializing and overall improving. And right now it was clear to you that you had made him feel like he was failing at being a good person and he’d somehow messed up with you.
You turned your body around slightly and put a reassuring hand on his knee before saying “Oh, Zuko, no. You haven’t done anything and I’m not upset at you, I mean that. It’s just...” coming up with lies and excuses had always been your strong point but having Zuko there making you ridiculously nervous wasn’t a factor that helped. “I.. uh...I’m getting a little homesick, you know? With Toph gone most of the day and you busy, I’ve been feeling a little melancholic about my home, but it’s nothing I promise. I’m just trying to find something to do with my time.” You we’re impressed with yourself with this one, it actually sounded pretty convincing.
You thought you had the situation handled until Zuko spoke again a few seconds later. “Y/N, I’m sorry. I hadn’t realized until now with all the chaos of being Fire lord but I asked you to stay here and represent the Northern Water tribe and I haven’t even given you time out of my day. I haven’t been the best host, have I?” Before you could even reply he widened his eyes and said “I have an idea, tomorrow I’ll take the day off and we can go on a small field trip to this cabin my family has on the ourskirts of town, there are some nice fields and it’s very peaceful, we’ll have a picnic lunch there and just relax. You can even ask Toph to come with. How does that sound?”
He looked at you expectantly and you started to look for reasons to turn him down, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. It was true that you hadn’t had much time to spend with him ever since he took his position, and in all honesty, crush or not you really did miss him. Your weakness for him won the battle and you ended up accepting the plan saying it was a great idea. The regent stood up from his place and assuring you he’d have everything ready for the next day he left.
You really had messed up this time.
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The next morning you put on a flowy, flower-print dress. It was classy but at the same time comfortable and light enough to handle the summer weather. You had nervously been looking at yourself in the mirror for way too long now. Before dinner the past night you at least had hopes that Toph would come with to the field trip and she would help you contain yourself when it came to Zuko, but of course that wasn’t the case. When he had brought the topic up at the table Toph limited herself to look at you knowingly and say “You know what? I happen to be very busy tomorrow, you know, I’m trying to get a name for myself in the Fire nation’s fighting scene and I have a fight tomorrow, sorry.” You knew she was lying because she had told you about her fight but instead of the next day it was three days from then. All you could do was look at the little devil and make sure you wrote a mental note of getting back at her as soon as you could.
So here you were, minutes ago from embarking in a field trip with the person you were supposed to avoid, and you had no idea how you were gonna get out of this one.
A knock on your door startled you and took you out of your worrying thoughts. A few seconds later a maid’s head popped in as she said “Lady Y/N, Firelord Zuko and the carriage are ready for you.” You took a deep breath and walked towards the door while replying with a soft “Thank you, Yun”
The carriage waited for you in front of the palace and so did Zuko. He was already inside, sheltering himself from the unforgiving sun, so you startled him when you hopped inside. “Y/N, you look...nice” he complimented you, a faint blush running through his cheeks making him gain a more childish and youthful look.
“Thank you, Zuko. Likewise.” You responded attempting to stay as calm as you could. You hated that he had so much power over you.
He ordered for you to be in your way before the carriage started moving swiftly. Your eyes flowed to the window, looking out at the capital city of the Fire nation. “You’ve done a great job leading this people. They look... so happy.” You drew your eyes back at Zuko as he stared at you. It was you who was starting to blush now.
“I hope so. I’ve done everything I’m capable of to change the old ways of this nation. I hope I’m making the right choices.” A worrisome look took over his eyes as he let his own attention drift towards the streets.
“Hey” you called to him as you stretched your hand to cover his. “You’re doing just fine Zuko. You’ve done so much for these people and all the other nations as well, I’m sure you’ll do even more good.”
He faintly smiled at you as a response and you could tell that although he did worry about the future, your reassurance helped.
The rest of the ride was spent pointing out the animals you saw on the road, sharing childhood stories about when Zuko and his mom used to come here when they both needed to get away from everything, and a bit of teasing about how Zuko had no idea what to pack for a picnic and had to ask the head chef of the kitchen for help. Luckily you had become friends with chef Karou in the time you’d been living in the palace and he knew your taste rather well.
When you finally arrived there was no sight of the usual movement and noise proper of a big city, the air was filled with the peculiar scent of flowers you couldn’t recognize just yet and grass. In the distance at your left you could see a small cattle of Hippo cows and Komodo chickens. And at your right a long field of grass and flowers that seemed to go up in a small and almost unnoticeable hill.
You and Zuko stepped down the carriage just as a guard handed him the picnic basket. The tall regent turned to you and ordered “Follow me, I wanna show you something”. You did as you were told, being led by him all the way up the hill until you were at the very top. When the two of you got there your breath was taken away by the beautiful view you had in front of you. A huge field of flowers layed gracefully at the end of the hill and extended far enough that it connected to the horizon.
“This is...” you started but were so taken aback by the view you didn’t finish your sentence.
Zuko seemed to understand regardless and replied “I know.” Behind you he started to set up a cloth for the two of you to sit on. You forced yourself to remove your attention from the field and place it on what was going on behind you. Taking a seat on the opposite end of the cloth you helped him take out all the items chef Karou had packed for you. When you were done you looked at Zuko and said “Thanks for this. It’s really nice.”
“No need to thank me, I’ve been leaving you alone so much time lately. I know aside from Toph I’m pretty much all you have here so take this as a ‘Sorry I’ve been a terrible friend’ offering.” He smiled wide expecting you to do the same but that smile faded away as soon as he saw the expression on your face.
‘Friend’
The word echoed in your head as your eyes dropped to the food you had in front of you. Of course he saw you as a friend. You had almost convinced yourself you should confess your feelings to him and he goes on to call himself your friend. A knot in your throat started to form and you did your best to show it as little as you could. But you obviously failed.
“Everything ok?” Zuko asked tilting his head to catch your eyes.
You looked up and faked a smile. “Yeah... just thinking how far we’ve come.” You lied through your teeth before continuing. “Anyways, enough of all the cheesiness, I’m starving.”
“Agreed” He replies picking up something for himself. You chose a small salty biscuit with a mix of meats on top and decided to distract yourself with it. “Chef Karou said you’d like that one. He also said you hated onions and peas. What type of weirdo hates peas?”
You chuckled a little, the feeling that oppressed your chest fading away quickly. “I do. They’re disgusting and if you like them I don’t trust you.”
Zuko laughed loudly before remarking “Its not like I like them, Y/N. It’s just a weird thing to be picky over. They’re peas, they don’t really taste like anything.”
You widened your eyes and quickly swallowed the bite of biscuit you had taken. “What do you mean they don’t taste like anything? They taste disgusting and they are mushy and just... gross”
Zuko replies with another laugh. His laugh made you feel warm inside, it could make you forget about everything, Toph’s threats, your previous plans and even the now faint voice poking the back of your mind telling you to be careful or you’d get your heart broken.
The two of you kept eating and chattering at the same time. You’d finished the salty food and it came time for the desert. Chef Karou had made a type of cake and stored it inside a small glass jar. You tried opening the lid but it was too hard. You heard Zuko in front of you offering you help but you refused it telling him you could do it on your own. After a couple minutes of struggling , Zuko took your deep sigh as a sign of defeat and scooted closer to you. “Here, let me.” He took the jar from your hands and quickly opened the lid, handing it back to you. You looked up expecting to find a smug smirk that felt way to familiar to you at this point but instead you found his serious face dangerously close to yours.
You took the jar back and set in down. “Thanks” you muttered softly and quietly. His only response was to slowly but firmly raise a hand up to your face to put away a strand of hair that had fallen. His touch sent shivers down your spine. All thoughts of caution escaped your mind as you felt his face so close you could feel his warm breath mixing with yours. The tension between you seemed to almost be to much to handle when you thought you saw Zuko lean in a little. Before anything else could happen, one of the guards that had come with and stayed back where the carriage was spoke. “Firelord Zuko”
The golden eyed boy dropped his hand from your face and turned around to face the guard. “Have they not taught you to not interrupt people when they’re talking privately?”
“I am very sorry, Firelord.” The guard bowed in sign of respect. “But we have just received a messenger hawk with a letter from the palace. The Avatar and you other friends are here.”
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