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writersdrug · 1 month

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Training for Two: pt. 5

Simon Riley x Dogsitter!Reader

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Warnings: cursing, obsessive behaviour, pining, still pretty tame at the moment, a hint of angst?

A/N: Ugh I meant to post this sooner but work was kicking my butt - that and I'm a bit sleep deprived. I've got more in the works, though! Hope you all enjoy! PS Running out of gifs to use so I'm using fan art and OMG I am obsessed with it all!!!!!

art by @sleepyconfusedpotato

The drive back to Simon's house was quiet and dark. Price had turned on the radio, letting classic rock play quietly in the background. He tapped the steering wheel every so often, humming to whatever lyrics he could remember.

Simon sat in the passenger seat, staring at the cars ahead, occasionally glancing at the signs that whizzed by the truck. Each sign that brought him closer to home made him ache. He thought about his bed. He thought about Riley. And, of course, he thought about you. He knew you most likely wouldn't be there - it was after midnight. But he liked to imagine that you'd be waiting there, sitting on his couch with your book and mug of tea, Riley settled next to you, ready to greet him with your smile - the smile that he'd been thinking about in every stolen moment during the mission.

"Alright there, Simon?" Price cut through the silence, dragging Simon back to earth.

He cleared his throat. "Yes sir. Jus' ready to be back."

Price scoffed. He knew Simon didn't consider his house a home. If anything, it was a safe house between missions. "I'm sure Riley will be happy to see you."

"We'll see about that." Simon said with a chuckle. "This dog-sitter might've stolen her from me."

"Nah, she's yours. Been with 'er through it all." Price said as he turned into Simon's neighborhood. "I'm sure she enjoyed the company, though."

Simon grunted. "Seems like it." He said, remembering the picture you had sent him; the way Riley had cozied up to you, the way she seemed so docile and calm in your presence. He imagined you running your fingers through her fur, the perfect ratio of scratching to gentle pets. He wondered what it would feel like on his scalp...

A shiver ran down his spine. How does one become jealous of their own damn dog? It was ridiculous.

"Speaking of the dog-sitter..." Price said, "Johnny mentioned she's a real-"

"Whatever Johnny told you, you can disregard." Simon grumbled. "I told him not to worry 'bout it."

Price chuckled, which made Simon burn with frustration. "Touchy subject, eh?"

"There's nothing to discuss." He replied bitterly. Quite frankly, he didn't like the picture Soap had managed to paint of him. His entire team thought he was whipped by someone he had barely known. Despite it being entirely true, it was the complete opposite of the image he had built of himself - and he had a reputation to keep.

"Right." Price nodded. Simon could tell he didn't believe him, but as long as he didn't try to pester him anymore about it, Simon would take it as a win.

Price pulled into the driveway, and Simon immediately unbuckled. He reached into the back and grabbed his duffel bag, then yanked his door open and got out.

"Y' know this isn't over." Price said, right before Simon could close the door. "We most likely 'ave a week 'fore we get sent out again. Just don't get too comfortable 'ere."

"Never do." Simon replied, shouldering his bag. "I'll wait for your call."

Price nodded, sending Simon off with a wave. He watched as he closed the passenger door and walked up the path to his house, before pulling out of the driveway and heading towards his own home.

Simon sighed as he fished his keys from his pocket. He heard Riley barking on the other side of the door, and a small smile formed on his face. When he pushed it open, she immediately jumped on him, whining and sniffing him all over. He knew she could smell the others on him, and probably wondered why he didn't bring her this time.

"Hey, girl..." he said, yanking his balaclava off and kneeling down to ruffle her fur. "Sorry I's gone so long. Miss me?"

She stood her front paws on his knees and licked his face, still whining and swinging her tail rapidly.

"Yeah, missed you too." He chuckled. "D'ya have fun? Did she treat you right?"

Riley dropped down to the floor as Simon stood. She turned towards his duffel bag and began sniffing, eyes focused on the fabric as she took in all the new and familiar scents.

Simon sighed. "'Bout time for a proper cuppa." He said, making his way into the kitchen. Despite it nearing one in the morning, it would be a while before he was decompressed enough to fall asleep.

He reached into the cupboard for a mug, ignoring the way his back popped. When he placed the mug down and reached for a teabag, he saw a note on the counter. With a furrowed brow, he picked it up and read it.

Hello Simon!

Hope your deployment was fun good! Riley and I had a blast! She learned how to play dead - if you want to try it, just make sure to give her a biscuit for it (she's only had one today, and she was a bit bitter that I left before giving her a second one). Also, she's had her medicine for the day. I gave her last dose around 9 pm.

Can't wait to spend more time with her, but I'm sure she's happy to see her dad! Let me know when you need me next!

Have a nice evening!

P.S. I had to use your washing machine, I hope that was alright. I got a bit muddy trying to teach her the new trick.

He stared at the note for a good amount of time. His eyes wandered over your meticulously neat handwriting. He noticed how often you liked to use exclamation points - the same way you did in your texts and emails. It made him annoyed - but not with you. He was annoyed that he found it... adorable. He shouldn't. You were too bright and happy; your personality should burn him, not warm him up.

He tried to brush it off, blaming his obervant behaviour on the recent mission. Old habits die hard, he lied to himself.

"Riley, c'mere."

Upon hearing her name, Riley meandered into the kitchen and stopped in front of Simon. She sat on her hind legs and looked at him expectantly.

He looked back at her - he felt a bit silly, commanding a retired veteran dog to do simple party tricks. But, it sounded like you put a lot of effort into teaching her this - not to mention, you had somehow dirtied your clothes over it - so he decided to entertain the idea.

"Play dead." He said firmly.

Riley immediately flopped down onto her back, sticking her paws into the air. She even let her tongue hang out of her mouth to really sell the image.

He felt an immediate rush of pride. "Atta girl..." he praised, kneeling down and patting her affectionately. Despite all the annoyance he felt a moment ago, Simon couldn't stop the smile from creeping onto his face.

She twisted and sat up, snuffling and groaning as he rubbed her fur. She barked once, sharp and demanding.

"Yeah, yeah- suppose you deserve a biscuit, huh?" He stood up and grabbed the box of peanut butter and bacon treats, fishing one out and tossing it to Riley. She caught it perfectly, crunching it with an open mouth and licking her lips afterwards.

He watched her with a smile, his arms folded over his chest. Sure, tricks were dumb, something only glorified house pets did for small rewards. But he was impressed that Riley had so effortlessly followed a new command, especially after being out of work for so long. And he was warmed by the fact that, not only did you watch her, but you engaged with her. He was confident he'd found the perfect pet-sitter.

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After starting a load of laundry, Simon had taken a cold shower. He scrubbed his eyeblack off with nothing but his hands and the generic body wash from the corner store. He slathered some of his 3-in-one hair gel into his scalp, giving it no more than seven scrubs before rinsing it out. He stood there for a while, letting the water beat against his sore back as the details of the previous mission swarmed throughout his head. He picked apart what he could have done better, what had nearly gotten him killed, and what had probably saved his life.

His eyes flickered to the corner of the tub; there was a cluster of travel-sized bottles, labeled "face wash", "body butter", and so forth. He let himself imagine - who was he kidding, he had no control over his thoughts when it came to you - your body, standing under the stream of the shower. You probably liked hot showers, didn't you? You most likely stayed in there for an hour, going through your meticulous routine, lathering yourself in scented soaps and creams... you'd be appalled if you had seen the three-minute showers he takes, wouldn't you? Maybe you would pull him into your routine, once Simon did eventually get the balls to ask you out, despite how much the thought of being romantic with someone made him scoff. He'd let you wash his face, or shave his balls, or do whatever it is you would do to him.

He suddenly snapped out of his trance, realizing he was holding one of the bottles labeled "conditioner". His thumb was on the edge of the cap, ready to flip it open and take a whiff of the scent - but he quickly stopped himself. He put the bottle back with the rest, then splashed cold water over his face. Quit being a fuckin' creep... he thought.

After turning the shower off and drying himself with a towel, he went into his room and grabbed a pair of sweatpants. He made his way back into the basement, patting Riley on the back as he passed her by the door. He pulled his laundry out and placed it on top of the washing machine, and opened the dryer. Just as he was getting ready to toss his clothes in, he noticed something hiding in the back of the barrel of the machine.

He reached in and pulled it out - it was your flannel. The same green-and-grey one you'd been wearing during your interview.

He paused for a moment, posture rigid as he held the fabric in the air. He wasn't quite sure what to do with it. It was just a flannel... but it was your flannel. He fought with his muscles, resisting the urge to bring it closer and inhale the scent - he tried to reason with himself. Maybe she used my soap, and it would just smell like my detergent. Nothin' special.

He dropped it on top of the dryer, still wrinkly and warm - but, strangely, that felt too rude. It's a fucking piece of clothing, for Christ's sake... he thought. Not her dead nan. He then attempted to hang it on the rack, but that felt too formal. He groaned, rubbing his eyes with irritation. How something so insignificant was causing him so much turmoil was beyond him.

He ended up bringing it back upstairs. Riley sniffed the fabric as he passed her - she thumped her tail eagerly on the floor as she smelled your scent. Once again, Simon was jealous of the dog being able to act so carefree with you - he knew for sure that if he tried sniffing your flannel, he would be a certified creep. Or, worse yet, he might not care, and wouldn't be able to stop himself.

He tossed it over the back of the couch, planning on forgetting you had ever even worn it. He dropped himself onto the cuhions with a groan. Riley immediately took her place in her bed, just a few feet away from him. He grabbed the remote off the coffee table and turned on the telly, flicking through the channels until he found some action/drama that caught his interest. He watched it boredly, drowning himself and his thoughts in the drone of the movie.

Suddenly, Riley barked. Simon looked at her - his gaze was met with hers, mouth opening and tail thwapping against the wall.

"Hmm?"

She let out an impatient, garbled sound. She lowered her head to the edge of her bed, still looking at Simon.

He shrugged internally and looked back at the screen. He settled further into the cushions and let his eyes fall shut. He thought about maybe drifting off then and there - the din of the telly might help keep the nightmares at bay...

Riley barked again, making Simon jolt. He snapped his head towards her - she was standing at the foot of the couch, ears back and panting.

"Wha' d'you want?" He asked in an annoyed tone.

She barked again, shifting her weight from one paw to the other.

"Ya need to go out?" He asked. He stood from his seat, only for Riley to scamper back to her bed and plop down on it. She looked at him expectantly.

Simon huffed. "'M not following." He dropped down to the sofa again. Riley groaned, making a scene of dragging herself out of the bed again and walking over to Simon.

"Now, don't you go 'n start aga-"

She cut him off with a shrill yap.

He pressed his lips into a thin line. He knew it couldn't be time for her medication - you had just given her some at nine. But he was entirely stumped on what she was trying to communicate to him. Was she hungry? She wasn't usually, after she'd had dinner... did she want to play? But... she was acting like she wanted to go to bed.

"What are you on 'bout?" He asked, leaning down to ruffle her fur. She dodged his hand and backed up a bit, yowling out a frustrated sound.

He scoffed. "Fuckin' hell..." he mumbled, pulling his phone from his pocket. Only one way to fix this, he thought, as he tapped through his contacts, until he landed on yours.

He stared at the picture for a moment, familiarizing himself with the details he had spent so long ogling at: your smile, your damp hair, the curve of your cheekbones, the way you marked your spot in your book with your fingers-

Riley barked again, making Simon scowl.

"A'right- just hush." He ordered, sending her a stern glance as she shuffled back to her bed. He started the call - he felt unusually nervous, his gut twisting as he listened to each ring on the line. Maybe he really was whipped, he thought.

Eventually, the call picked up. His shoulders tensed as he heard shuffling on the other end of the line.

"... m... hello?"

Fuck. You sounded tired- no, you sounded like you were still asleep. He quickly pulled the phone away and checked the time; it was nearly two in the morning. Of course you'd been asleep.

"Uh... hey." He said, mentally cursing himself. "Shit, I, uh... didn't even consider you might be asleep."

"No..." You mumbled - were you even awake at all? "No, iz fine... yeah..."

Simon waited a moment, expecting you to say something else - but you didn't. Eventually, he heard the soft sounds of your breathing again.

"Hello?" He asked cautiously.

"Up... 'm up... what's up?"

Simon shifted in his seat, slightly ashamed that he hadn't put two and two together and ended up calling you so late. "Right- jus' a quick-"

Riley barked again, staring at Simon impatiently.

Simon covered the speaker to his phone and sent her a harsh glare. "Oi! 'M workin' on it, hush!"

Your sleepy giggle wafted through the phone and into Simon's ear. "Sweet baby..."

Simon's breath caught in his throat, and he coughed nervously. She means the dog, the fucking dog, you idiot.

"Uh, sorry- jus' got a question for ya."

"Hmm?"

"Well- she's acting a bit funny," he stared at Riley and held a cautioning hand up as she shifted her weight and whined, "she's runnin' around and yellin' at me. Keeps gettin' in 'er bed, then comin' back like- like she wants somethin'. I have no bloody idea. Just wonderin' if she was doin' this with you."

"Oh, yeah..." Simon could hear your smile through the phone, and he desperately tried to push the image of your tired face from his mind. "She wants her blanket."

Simon paused. "She- she's got her blanket."

"No- she wants you to tuck her in."

"She wha' now?"

You laughed again. "You need to tuck her in her bed. She's right under the air vent and she gets cold."

He looked back at Riley. She was now sitting down, mouth closed, as if agreeing with what you said. He scoffed, rising from the couch and shuffling towards her. She slowly thumped her tail as he approached.

"Never 'eard of a dog gettin' tucked in..." he grumbled. He grabbed the felt blanket behind her, swaddling it around her body. She groaned, slowly blinking at him in an appreciative manner.

"Ya spoiled, you hear me?" He said quietly, tucking the blanket in between her and the cushion of the bed. She sighed happily, completely unaware that he was insulting her. She licked his cheek when he bent down close enough, and he grumbled and wiped the spittle away.

You giggled in his ear - Christ, you've got to stop doing that, do you have any idea what it does to him? - as he sat back down on the sofa. "All better?" You asked.

"Seems t' be-" he replied, watching Riley as she settled into her cocoon, "ya turnin' her into a princess."

"Well, she is one." You quickly replied - Simon could hear you stretching your limbs, followed by a long exhale.

He wanted to talk to you all night. Hearing you prattle on was like a balm to his jagged mind. But he knew he couldn't. You were half asleep, after all.

"Well, tha's all I needed- oh, and you, uh..." he grabbed your flannel off the back of the sofa. "Y' left your flannel here."

"I did?"

"Yeah. The green one."

"Oh, bullocks, I knew I-"

"Who are you talking to at this hour?"

Simon felt his heart stop when he heard the other voice. It had hit him like a train, flooding his veins with adrenaline. His brain went into overdrive, thinking of the worst possible scenario. Break in? Crazy stalker? Murderous ex? "Y' aright, love?"

"Simon." You said, and he couldn't tell if you were talking to him or someone else. Were you trying to warn him? To ask for help?

"Talk to me."

"Who the bloody hell is Simon?"

"My client, ya git."

"Oh- sorry love-" Simon heard more shuffling, then a kiss, followed by a grunt from you. He let himself linger in the confusion of what was going on - but, in the back of his mind, he understood it completely.

"Got me right in my bloody eye-"

"Oh, hush."

"Left your flannel at his house."

"My green one?"

"Yeah."

"I thought you were using the grey one!"

"Well, I was, Tyler, and then I wanted the green one!"

"That's it - I'm stealin' all ya knickers tomorrow."

You laughed again - this time. The sound nearly shattered Simon. He felt like it was wrong to hear you laugh so sweetly.

"Well, uh-" he was speaking before he even realized it. "You can pick it up- or I'll drop it off- or, uh, I can drop it- I mean, I'll-"

"You can shove it in the closet until next time, if that's alright?" You said, yawning shortly after.

Simon paused. He needed to get it together. "Yea, that'll work. I'll let you go then - sorry to call so late."

"It's fine, really. But let me know when you'll need me again, ok?"

"'Course I will. I'll send you an email, as usual."

You scoffed. "I know you said we should only text for emergencies, but you can text me if it's something small, Simon."

"Right, will do. I'll text you."

"Is everything ok?"

"It's fine. You should sleep. I'll talk later."

"Ok. Goodnight, Simon."

"G'bye."

He ended the call, staring at the screen for a moment, until your contact photo faded away. He leaned his head back and sighed. His thoughts suddenly came rushing back - except this time, they were about you. How he should have expected you to have a partner. How could you not? You were so bright and bubbly, of course you'd be snatched up. He felt stupid for thinking you'd be single. Maybe this whole idea of you falling for him was stupid. Maybe this was better - he was saved from rejection, even if this situation stung painfully within his chest.

Whatever. Hopefully, your personality would finally drive him over the edge of annoyance and anger, and you'd be more of a nuisance to him. That'd be the easiest way you could let him down.

He looked at the flannel in his lap. It's not even hers. He thought. He crumpled the fabric into his hand and flung it behind him.

Riley's head snapped up at the movement, and she floundered out of her bed, chasing after the flannel.

"Riley, no- don't-" he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as he heard her scuffling across the floor. He kept his eyes closed as he heard her come trotting back, before she stopped at the edge of the couch.

She whined and tilted her head. Simon opened his eyes and looked at her.

"That's not even hers, ya ninny." He said. He looked away and turned up the telly, hoping that everything in his head would just disappear into the back of his mind.

Riley stepped around Simon's feet as she carried the flannel in her mouth. She then hopped onto the couch and settled next to Simon, depositing the (now damp) clothing onto his lap. He grunted as she laid her head down on his leg, whining and flattening her ears. She looked up at him with curious eyes, slowly thumping her tail on the cushion.

He exhaled through his nose. He stared at the flannel, then back at Riley. "Ya really like her, eh?"

She licked her lips and blinked, sighing through her nose.

He chuckled, patting her side and looking at the ceiling. "I know. I do too." He closed his eyes.

"We'll be alright, girl."

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vivwritesfics · 2 months

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Hooked On A Feeling

Chapter Twenty Two - Poor Milo

Daniel is a Formula One driver, but, more importantly, he was a single dad to a wonderful little girl. He wants her to be a normal little girl, to have a normal social life, so he sends her to daycare. That was where she met Milo, her future best friend.

Milo's mother was incredibly stressed. She worked so hard to provide a good life for her son. But then he makes a new friend, a friend who has a hot dad (ofc they fall in love)

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Single Dad!Daniel x Single Mum!Reader

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Milo was miserable, that much was clear. But there wasn't much his mother could do about it. It broke her heart every time she dropped him off and picked him up from school. If she could have, she would have sent him somewhere better, would have put him in school with Olivia, but she simply couldn't afford it.

"Hey Munchkin," she said as he climbed into her car. Milo had stopped using the far seat when he started school. He buckled himself into the back seat and they set off.

He was silent for the entire journey to Daniel and Olivias house. Even when his mother tried to ask him questions, he wasn't answering. Her heart was entirely broken.

She wasn't the only one that noticed it. Daniel tried his hardest to converse with Milo, but he still wasn't answering. The only one of them that could get any kind of reaction out of him with Olivia. Olivia, who took him off so that they could play. Olivia, who got the hint and didn't talk about school.

As soon as dinner was done, Olivia took Milo up to her room to play. Daniel turned to Y/N as she put the dishes in the sink. "Milo is..."

She slipped back into her chair and her head fell into her hands. "I know. Danny, I know." She said, biting her lip to hold back her tears.

Daniel pushed his chair back and patted his thighs. Wordlessly, she climbed into his lap and let the sobs shake her body. "I'm still more than happy to pay for Milo to go to school with Olivia," he said and she shook her head.

"I couldn't ever pay you back, Daniel," she said between sobs.

He kissed her temple and rubbed her back. "I don't want you to pay me back," he said, but she still couldn't accept it.

The next day at school, Mill was clutching his stomach as he walked to the car. "Munchkin, what's wrong?" His mother asked before he could climbed into the car.

"Headache... tummy hurts..." he groaned.

Y/N frowned as she pressed her hand to his forehead. "We'll, you're not burning up," she said. But then she crouched to his height. "Try it for me today, Miley. If you're really feeling sick, tell your teacher to give me a call and I'll see if I can get Daniel to pick you up."

Reluctantly, Milo nodded. He climbed into the car and Y/N got into the driver's seat. If she could have, she would have kept him home with her, but she couldn't afford to take the day off to look after him.

The drive to the the school was silent, aside from the music playing on the radio. When she pulled into the car park, she unbuckled her seatbelt, but Milo was already out of the car, walking into the school.

She took a minute to sit in her car. Her head was against the steering wheel as she sucked in a breath. Her heart hurt as she gathered the strength to drive off to work, calling Daniel as she went.

It was maybe two hours into her shift before she got a call from the school.

She immediately picked up her phone and held it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Oh, Hello. Is this Mrs L/N? Milo L/N's mother?" Came the voice from the other end.

"That's me."

The woman on the other end of the phone let out a light cough. "We've got Milo here. He's not been feeling too well. Is there anybody that could come and pick him up?"

"Yeah," she immediately replied. "Yeah, I'm going to try and get my partner to come and pick him up."

"Can we get a name?"

"Daniel Ricciardo," she said.

The woman from Milo's school fell quiet. Y/N knew what she was wondering, whether it was the Daniel Ricciardo or not. Finally, she answered. "Okay, that's all sorted. We'll be waiting in the office with him."

She said her goodbyes and hung up, immediately calling Daniel.

Daniel, who picked up the phone the moment she called. Daniel, who stopped his workout the moment she told him what was happening. Daniel, who talked her through her tears as she cried at her desk, all while driving to pick up her son. Daniel was one in a million.

He drove straight to Milo's school, jumped out of his car as soon as it had stopped moving and strode into the office.

The collective gasp from the women that worked there was unsurprising. It really was him, they all thought. As soon as he saw Milo, sitting on the uncomfortable chair in the corner of the office, he walked over to him. "Hey, Milo," he said, getting down to his height. "Your mum sent me to pick you up."

Milo nodded. He climbed out of his seat and grabbed a hold of Daniels hand. Quickly speaking to the women at the desk, he signed them both out and walked Milo to the car.

He climbed into the back seat, sitting where Olivia normally did. "What's up, kiddo?" Daniel asked him as he began driving. But Milo stayed silent, holding his stomach. "Are you hungry?" He asked, and Milo nodded. "McDonalds?"

They went to McDonalds. Daniel took Milo inside, got him a kids chicken nuggets meal and an ice cream. The two of them sat in a booth, Daniel sipping his drink while Milo ate his nuggets and chips. "Feeling better now?" He asked.

"Yeah," said Milo, reaching for his own drink. "Thank you, Mr Ricciardo."

Daniel put his finished drink to one side. "You can call me Daniel," he said. By this point it was clear that Milo wasn't actually feeling unwell. Daniel didn't think he was lying, though. More likely, he was so anxious that he thought he really was sick.

"Is it school?" Daniel asked as Milo bit into his last nugget piece.

Milo hesitated before he nodded.

"I thought so," he mumbled, stealing a chip.

Milo finished his own drink and pushed the empty cup away. "I know my mummy can't send me to a different school," he said. "I know I can't go to the same school as Olivia, but I hate it so much," he said. "I've got no friends and the kids are mean," he said.

Daniel really felt for the kid. The first time he'd met Milo he'd been a shy little thing, and Daniel couldn't imagine that starting school couldn't have been easy for him. He didn't blame him for wanting to be at school with Olivia.

"Come on," he said when Milo finished his food. They stood up and Milo took his hand as they headed back out to the car. "We can watch cartoons until we have to pick up Olivia."

***

Y/N was the last of them to arrive home. Well, it wasn't her home, not yet. But it would be, Daniel knew. One day soon. She used the key Daniel had given her and walked into the house.

"Hey," said Daniel as he strode towards her. "Milo is upstairs with Olivia. He's feeling better now," he said.

She let out a breath and let her bag fall to the floor. It was been an exhausting day, even if she'd barely gotten any work done. All day she'd been so worried about Milo, her hands had been shaking as she tried to type at her computer.

Daniel could see it written on her face. "C'mere," he said as he walked towards her and placed his arm around her shoulders. "I've got Chinese food on the way."

"You're wonderful," she said through a sigh, stopping her walking to wrap her arms around him.

He did the same and kissed the top of her head. "We do need to talk, though."

They were the scariest six words she had heard since the beginning of their relationship. Daniel took a hold of her hand, kissed it, and took her through to the kitchen.

He sat her down at the table and sat opposite her. "Milo wasn't sick today," he said. "I think that he thinks he was sick. I think that he was anxious, so anxious that he felt sick." Daniel reached across the table, grabbed her hand. "Y/N, you can't send him back to that school. He's miserable, and if he keeps feeling so anxious that he's sick, he's never gonna get any learning done."

She squeezed Daniel's hand. "What can I do, Danny? I can't afford to send him to school with Olivia, and I don't have time to drive him out to any of the other schools."

"Let me pay for it," he said and she immediately shook her head.

"No, Daniel. I could never pay you back."

"I don't want you to pay me back." He said it so quietly she almost didn't hear it. "I love you and I love Milo. Let me look after you as best I can."

But she was still shaking her head. "Danny-"

"Okay, no. Let me do it for Milo," he said as he stared into her eyes.

She swallowed and nodded. "I am gonna find a way to pay you back," she said as she stood up and walked around the table.

"I'm sure you will," he said with a grin, pushing his chair back to pull her into his lap. His hands were on her hips as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Taglist (CLOSED): @biancathecool @rewmuslupin @prettiest-at-the-party @hellowgoodbye @spideybv28 @andydrysdalerogers @landossainz @purplephantomwolf @ggaslyp1 @layazul @phantomxoxo @minseok-smaus @gills-lounge @hollie911 @annispamz @lily-ann-b @cixrosie @amalialeclerc @teamnovalak @tallrock35 @chiliwhore @darleneslane @sava207 @thatsusbitch @formulaal @leptitlu @landosgirlxoxo @msolbesg @cherry-piee @bathedinheat @chanshintien @ilove-tswizzle @woozarts @trouble-sistar @mysticalnightenthusiast @lewisvinga @spilled-coffee-cup @starkeyellow @fxrmuladaydreams @viennakarma @lightdragonrayne @millinorrizz @xemiefx @ellies-world61 @the-depressed-fellow

#daniel ricciardo #daniel ricciardo imagine #daniel ricciardo x reader #daniel ricciardo fluff #daniel ricciardo smut #daniel ricciardo x reader smut #daniel ricciardo x you #dr3 #dr3 imagine #dr3 x reader #f1 #formula one #f1 imagine #formula 1 #f1 x reader #formula one x reader #formula one imagine #formula 1 x reader #formula 1 imagine

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loveharlow · 3 months

Text

SEVEN - 004

PAIRING ‧₊˚ JJ Maybank x Fem!Reader

SYNOPSIS‧₊˚[2.9k] based on 1x04.

WARNING(S)‧₊˚ swearing, mild violence, detainment

NOW PLAYING‧₊˚

A/N‧₊˚ The shortest and most boooooring chapter to date but it's for a reason :(. And to make up for it (and the late post). I'll post chapter 5 much earlier than intended (AND THAT'S THE MIDSUMMERS CHAPTER WOOO).

˗ˏˋ series masterlist ˎˊ˗

AND WITHIN MINUTES ALL THAT HOPE DIED. There was no gold. Just a shipwreck. The drone passed over the entire thing three times and nothing. The metal detector didn’t make a single sound.

“Just pull the damn thing up.” John B said, frustrated. “Somebody beat us to it.”

“Or it was never there.” JJ muttered, steering the boat back in the direction you’d come.

WAKING UP TO MARLEY LICKING YOUR FACE WASN’T AN UNCOMMON OCCURRENCE, you assumed it’d just felt so unfamiliar because of the fact that you hadn’t slept in your own bed the last few days since this whole gold rush started. You groaned, lightly pushing the dog away from you with your palm.

“I’m awake, Marls…” You groaned out sleepily, rolling off of your bed with a grunt as you hit the floor, your side still sore from the events of yesterday. The pain was mostly gone, all that remained being a tenderness and slight redness surrounding the area.

Rolling onto your back and sitting up, you pet the chipper animal as she snuggled up under you. “Jesus, your morning breath is worse than mine.” You said, face twisting. Reaching for your phone as you scratched the top of her head, you saw that it was close to noon, you sighed, getting up and walking downstairs to get your day started.

You were surprised to find your mother shifting through documents on the kitchen island when you got there, slowing in your steps. “Hey, mom…” You said, eyeing the woman as you opened the fridge to pull out the milk. She merely glanced up at you, before averting her eyes back down to the documents in front of her.

“Morning.” She muttered. You faced away from her, hearing the pen she was writing with hit the counter as you walked to the side and grabbed the cereal from the pantry. “Did you hear about Topper’s boat?”

You bit your lip, completely forgetting about that. Realizing you hadn't responded and stood frozen in place, you cleared your throat and continued making your breakfast. “No, what happened?” You asked, faking obliviousness and pouring the cereal into a bowl, now facing her again. She had the papers in her hands, reading glasses sitting low atop her nose as her eyes scanned the pages as she spoke.

“He and Mrs.Thornton found it sunken this morning. What a waste of money. I hear it was brand-new.”

“Yeah, well, it’s Topper.” You remembered, pouring the milk over the colorful pellets of food. “Him and his friends aren’t exactly known for being careful.” You muttered with disdain.

“Speaking of caution,” The woman began, clasping her hands in front of her. “I had an interesting meeting with Sheriff Peterkin and Shoupe. They said John B was being chased through town by some dangerous men earlier in the week and he apparently ran from his social worker when she went to pick him up this morning. Do you know what’s going on with him?”

“I don’t know, Mom, maybe the fact that his dad went missing and DCS has been trying to drop him into the system ever since?”

All she could do was sigh. “John B’s father is gone. It’s been almost a year. He needs to accept that and move on.”

“...He needs to just accept the fact that his dad is gone? Do you hear yourself, right now?”

“Listen, I don’t have the energy to argue with you, right now. If you see him or know where he is, it’d be very much appreciated if you could tell Shoupe or Peterkin so they can alert his social worker-”

You scoffed, looking your mother in her eyes. “I'm not doing that. You're crazy if you think I'm going to help you and your cop friends put one of my best friends into foster care-”

“Excuse me?” Your mother was baffled at your tone. But it seemed like everytime you came home recently, on the rare occasion that you did, she always had questions. Scratch questions, accusations. And in your mind, either she knew something or she just wanted reasons to be on your ass. “I don't know what's gotten into you recently. If your father could see you now-”

“No, mom,” You cut her off shortly. “If only he could see you.” You spat, making your way back up the stairs, bowl of cereal in hand, slamming the door behind you.

“AREN’T YOU GLAD I MADE YOU COME?” Kie asked cheerfully, carrying a cooler full of snacks and drinks while you laid out a blanket on top of the grass, JJ and Pope unfolding lawn chairs to sit in. Kie had rounded you all up to see a movie in the park with her. You’d already informed them of the reason for John B’s absence, seeing as this isn’t his first marathon from DCS. If he got away successfully, per usual, you all would be seeing him by tomorrow.

“My couch was pretty comfy, I’ll be honest.” JJ replied. While Kiara was preoccupied, Pope whispered to JJ, but you could still hear them.

“We are in enemy territory. Way out of the green zone, man.” He was visibly anxious, eyes fleeting all across the crowd of people that littered the lawn.

“Dude, tranquilo, okay?” JJ tried to calm him.

“We are in the middle of Kooklandia.” He hissed. “This is the last place I wanted to be.” He ranted, the two boys not even noticing when Kiara got up to go get drinks.

“Shut up. Both of you.” You reprimanded, sternly. “God, you have the worst poker faces I’ve ever seen.”

“They could be lurking in the bushes right now, we don’t know.” Pope tried to make you understand.

“Dude, just chill out.” JJ said. Just then, Kie had come back, four cans of soda in her arms that she distributed evenly amongst the group of you.

“Just saw Rafe,” The name alone sends a small wave of chills down your spine. “He said to ‘tell your girl that we know what she and your boy did’. What does that mean?” Her eyes fleeted towards you for the most part.

“Where is he?” You questioned without hesitation.

“Right there,” She motioned behind her, prompting you to whip your head around to where Topper, Rafe, and Kelce stood menacingly by a tree, sipping on beers. Even from that distance, you could tell he was staring dead at you. It brought back so many unwanted feelings and memories, so badly it made your head hurt.

“Great, the whole death squad.” Pope’s voice cracked.

“Hey,” Kiara’s voice called from beside you, just loud enough for only you to hear. You turned back to face her. “What’s going on? Is he still bothering you? Is it about what happened-”

“No, it’s not.” You were quick to cut her off in case the guys were listening. “It’s not about that.” You said sternly, tuning back into JJ and Pope’s conversation.

“If they corner me, I’m comin’ out swingin. I’m on edge right now.” JJ spoke seriously. “If that doesn’t work, I got this right here.” He assured, holding up his backpack that looked mostly empty but oddly heavy.

“JJ, please tell me you did not bring a gun here. JJ, there are kids!” Kie started, being oddly loud for not wanting people to know that JJ may or may not have brought a gun.

“I didn’t bring the gun, Kiara. Everything’s fine.” He tried to calm her.

“That’s really convincing.” She said, voice full of sarcasm. “...What happened? What did you guys do?” She asked, eyes going back and forth between the three of you that remained quiet. “Founding principle, no secrets among pogues. What is Rafe talking about?”

“Kie,” Pope started, voice low. “It might go down tonight.”

YOU ALL WERE A GOOD WAY INTO THE MOVIE AT THIS POINT, the sun had gone down and the air had cooled. The only sounds filling your ears were the movie playing and crickets in the trees. You were sitting in between JJ’s legs, using the base of his lawn chair as a backrest to ease the pain on your side from trying to keep yourself up. You’d heard him and Pope whispering but paid no mind until the blonde was tapping your shoulder, signaling that he was getting up.

“Where are you guys going?” You questioned, looking up at him and adjusting the chair from where it had slipped behind you once he got up.

“We gotta wring it out.”

“Together?” Kie asked.

“It’s bro code. Bro’s who piss together…” He struggled to find a rhyme with the made-up honor code. “...stick together. We’ll be right back.” You watched as the pair of boys crouched, creeping through the crowd and over to a tree next to the projector screen. You questioned why they didn’t head to the actual bathrooms but quickly got your answer with a quick glance back, seeing Rafe and his goons blocking it.

“Now, do you want to tell me what’s going on?” Kie whispered.

You sighed, curling in on yourself slightly. “Trust me, it’s better if you don’t know.” The girl scoffed and shook her head.

“Do the guys know? About what happened?”

“No. Why would they?”

“Do you ever plan on telling them?” You rolled your eyes, starting to get frustrated.

“No, Kie, I don’t. I’d like to forget it ever happened, if that’s okay with you.” You snapped, silence falling over the two of you as the movie continued to play.

You assumed maybe a handful of minutes had gone by before you noticed the guys hadn’t come back yet and one weary glance behind you told you all you needed to know — Rafe, Kelce, and Topper were gone, too.

You immediately shook Kie’s arm, startling the poor girl.

“What? What is it?”

“We need to go. Now.” Was all you said before you got up, taking JJ’s bag with you as you and Kie swiftly walked in the direction the guys had gone earlier so as to not alarm any movie viewers. Coming around the back of the projector screen, you were met with a brutal scene in front of you — Kelce held JJ by his arms as Rafe delivered blow after blow to his face while Topper beat up Pope.

“Let go of him! Fascist asshole!” Kie yelled as she whacked Topper in the back over and over. You made a b-line for Rafe, throwing JJ’s bag down and jumping onto the boy’s back, wounding your arms around his neck, allowing JJ an open opportunity to push Kelce off of him.

“Leave him alone, Rafe!” You screeched.

“You don’t wanna do this, sunshine!” He yelled back, throwing you off of his back and onto the grass. Just like yesterday, you were on your back as he stared down at you, breathing heavily. “I’m being nice. Only ‘cause you’re my favorite.” He smirked, huffing with blood in the corner of his lip before turning back to JJ.

You rolled on your side in the grass to see Topper choking out Pope only after having seen him throw Kiara to the ground. JJ had Rafe handled. You reached for JJ’s bag that had been abandoned, flipping it open to reveal the gun and a lighter. Your eyes went back and forth between the gun and Topper, who had Pope in a deadly chokehold at this point.

You wanted to do it, so bad.

But a gun to a Kook's head was what caused all of this in the first place, so you dismissed the thought, kicking the lighter over to Kie, the object hitting the sole of her shoe.

The girl looked down at the lighter and then at you, you motioned towards the projector screen and she caught on quickly. It wasn’t long before the projector screen was going up in flames, scaring the movie guests and breaking up the fight, spooking the guys. Topper released Pope as JJ pushed Kelce back once more, Rafe stood off in the middle of the four guys, staring directly at you as you got up.

When he snapped out of whatever trance he was in, he gathered up Topper and Kelce and fled the scene. Kie helped Pope up as you turned your attention to JJ. He was fixing his clothes but you didn’t miss the scars on his cheek and bottom lip.

“Are you okay?” You asked frantically, eyes roaming his entire face for any more cuts.

“Fine, I’m fine.” He calmed you as you laid a hand on his shoulder before trailing it up to the back of his neck, but he looked like he wanted to say something. Like he was thinking extremely hard.

“C’mon, let’s go.” You urged the rest of your group, leaving before the fire department and cops inevitably made their appearance.

“I JUST ACTED OFF INSTINCT, MAN. I WAS A CORNERED ANIMAL.” Pope told JJ as he restocked some items on the shelves inside of Heyward’s. It was the next morning but you were all still on edge about the fight last night. It was clear now that Topper knew Pope and yourself were the ones who sank his boat and you were just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Don’t feel bad, dude. It was three of them and two of us.” JJ tried to remedy it. “That’s some typical Kook shit right there.”

“Hell yeah.” Kie agreed.

“Hey Pope,” Heyward’s voice rang out in the small crab-shack, towel slung over the older man’s shoulder. “There’s someone here to see you.” He motioned behind him, Deputy Shoupe making his appearance.

Pope’s posture immediately straightened, his eyes going wide as the shop went silent with Shoupe’s arrival. “Evening, officer.” He barely got out. Shoupe’s eyes went between you and Pope before replying.

“You’re both here. Great.” He said, reaching into his holster. “I have an arrest warrant for felony destruction of property. For both of you.”

“Woah, woah, woah…” Heyward was stunned as he stood back and watched the scene play out in front of him.

“Keep your hands on the counter where I can see ‘em.” Shoupe handcuffed Pope first, the boy putting up no fight in his daze. He looked like he’d faint any moment.

“Shoupe, what’d they do?!” Heyward tried again.

“Look at the warrant.” Was all the deputy offered in response, remaining stoic. Once Pope was secure, he moved onto you, looking you in the eyes somewhat pitifully before beckoning for you to turn around and put your hands behind your back. Heyward, Kiara, and JJ were causing commotion, talking over one another as he secured you in handcuffs.

“Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law. You have the right to an attorney…” He continued but you could barely hear him as he single-handedly guided both you and Pope out of Heyward’s Seafood. Pope’s father, JJ, and Kie follow close behind.

“Shoupe, it was just me.” You tried, craning your neck to look at the officer. “Pope didn’t do anything.”

“Nice try, kiddo. But there were two people on that boat, caught it on camera. And your face is as clear as day.” He dismissed you.

“It was me!” JJ yelled, causing Shoupe to stop in his tracks. The three of you turned around to look at the blonde. “...Pope tried to talk us out of it. But Y/N and I were just too mad because they’d just been beaten up. I was so sick of those Figure Eight assholes." He spoke convincingly, eyes landing on Pope's ashamed figure. "I can’t let you take the blame for something I did.” JJ was now right in front of Pope, looking the boy dead in his eyes. “You’ve got too much to lose.”

“JJ, what’re you doing?” Pope said hushed but still aggressive.

“I’m telling the truth, for once in my damn life.” He said without much hesitation at all. “I took his old man’s boat, too.”

“What the hell…” Heyward looked crazily at the blonde boy.

“He’s a good kid.” JJ told Shoupe. “...You know where I’m from.” Shoupe nodded lightly, agreeing with the statement before his attention was on you and Pope.

“That the whole truth, Pope?” Shoupe inquired, cocking an unbelievable eyebrow.

He seemed to ponder on it before gulping heavily and nodding his head shakily, looking at JJ one last time. “Yeah…that," He huffed. "That covers it.”

YOU’D NEVER SEEN THE INSIDE OF A JAIL CELL, not that you ever planned on it. It was suffocating. The walls, the color of the walls, the dingy bars, the stale air. You felt like a caged animal, an unwelcome chill making the experience that much more unbearable.

You and JJ sat across from one another — on the floor, legs bent underneath with your heads thrown back.

“Why’d you do it?” You questioned, your voice echoing out within the cell. "Take the fall, I mean..."

“I couldn’t let Pope go down for it.” His raspy voice replied. “I would’ve taken the fall for you both. But I heard Shoupe, they had footage of two people and your face was ‘as clear as day’.” He mocked the older man’s southern twang.

The action made you chuckle, craning your head down to look at him, not aware that he was already looking at you.

You sighed, shaking your head and running fingers through the base of your hair. “I should’ve never suggested it in the first place. I knew it was a stupid idea, I just wasn’t in the right headspace…”

“Because of Rafe?” The question made your heart stop, eyes jumping up to his before fleeting to the ground. “It’s not hard to notice. He clearly knows you, knows you. But I just…can’t put the pieces together. What happened between you two?”

You looked down at your hands that were now wound around your knees, your fingers fiddling with each other. “A lot of things happened, when I first moved to Figure Eight and fell in with Kiara and I’s old friend group. Let’s just... leave it at that.”

The blonde was looking at you like he wanted to press for more information and you knew one day he would, and with the way recent events have played out? That day might come sooner than you were comfortable with. But for right now, you just couldn’t wait until you got out of this cell. Somehow.

feedback is appreciated! thanks for reading.

SVN Taglist; (let me know if you'd like to be added!) @esquivelbianca @fallingwallsh @calmoistorm @i-love-ptv @liability28 @rivaiken @sophiahristov @rafxcameronss (striked means i'm unable to tag you!)

©loveharlow.

#Spotify #jj maybank x reader #SVN #jj maybank #jj mayback x reader #jj mayback imagine #obx jj #jj maybank fluff #obx jj x reader #jj maybank smut #jj maybank x you #jj maybank imagine

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stevelieber · 1 year

Text

Thoughts on giving critiques to comics artists.

Seeing lots of discussion from students about sour experiences with an unhelpful art teacher, so here's a long, long post about giving critiques.

NB: I have no formal training as a teacher, but I was a student, and I've spent decades giving artists feedback on their work.

When someone brings me a portfolio, I like to establish my limitations & clarify my perspective. My work is firmly rooted in traditional US comics storytelling (i.e., not manga or art-comics.) I can give feedback on other approaches but they should know where I’m coming from.

“We've only got a little time for this, so I'm going to spend that time focusing on things to correct. That doesn't mean you're doing everything wrong, or that there’s nothing good here, but it’ll be more helpful if I identify some problems and show you how to fix them.”

Why? Because for many young artists their entire sense of self worth is wrapped up in being good at what they do. (It was for me!) In school they were probably the best artist in their peer group. But now if they're hoping to turn pro, they’re at the bottom.

Sometimes you know what’s up when you see page 1, but try to keep an open mind. Some build their portfolios by sticking new pages at the back & don’t weed out the old stuff up front, so the work gets better as you go. When it’s like that I ask: “Show me your best 8 pages.”

I ask questions: "What's the goal? Do you want to be hired to work on someone else's project, or to get the story you're showing me here published?"

If 1, I steer towards a portfolio that'll showcase hirable skills. If 2, I look for what tweaks will make that particular story more effective.

"Do you have teachers giving you regular feedback? What are they telling you?" Sometimes a student is getting bad advice. In cases like that, I'll do my best to be extra clear WHY I'm giving them advice that's 180 degrees from what they've been hearing.

“What artists are you looking at? Is there someone you admire or try to emulate?” This often helps me understand choices they're making, and I can sometimes incorporate things those artists do into my suggestions.

I ask myself questions about what I’m seeing. First: Is there a narrative? If not, I make it 100% clear I'm not speaking as any sort of expert. I'm good at critiquing storytelling, but don't have anywhere near as much to offer illustrators or designers.

Can I follow the story? Or am I confused about what's going on? Are the characters and settings drawn consistently? If not, is the artist at least making use of tags (distinctive clothing, hair etc.) to keep the characters recognizable?

Does the artist demonstrate a good command of basic academic drawing? If not, Do I think they need it? Do I focus on "how to draw" or on "what to do when you can't draw?" Is the artist putting the viewer’s eye where it needs to be to tell the story effectively?

(At this point I’m usually doing little doodles to go with my instructions. I scribble out ugly little 5 second diagrams that I hope will clarify what I’m talking about. Or they might make me seem demented. Hard to say!)

Is the artist making choices that are creating more work than necessary? Is there a particular weakness? I once spoke to an artist with a portfolio full of great work when he was drawing animals and monsters, but his humans were amateurish in comparison. I spent that critique talking about drawing people.

A crit can be a grab bag. In addition to big-picture advice, I'll point out tangencies, violations of the 180-degree rule, wonky anatomy, weird perspective, places where the artist neglected to do important research, odd choices in how they spotted black, whatever catches my eye.

I also try to make a point of defining the terms, so that jargon like “tangency,” “180-degree rule,” and “spotting black” don't go over their heads. Find simple, concrete ways to talk about these things, & clarify why it's a problem when they aren't done correctly. Draw diagrams!

Recognize that even a perfectly phrased explanation might not sink in. Some lessons can only be learned when a student is ready, and it might take a year or two of work before they can understand what you were saying. It's good to plant seeds.

Are there other artists who are particularly good at solving the problems the student is trying to solve? I steer them towards that artist's work. And I always recommend life drawing & the use of reference to give work variety and authority.

Despite what I said earlier about focusing on what's wrong, I try at the end to find something encouraging to say. And if I’ve really piled on the criticism, I emphasize that I only spent the time and energy to do so because I take their efforts seriously.

If I've done my job right, they'll leave my table with tools to make their work better. And maybe in a few years they'll be looking at some younger artist's work, surprised to discover just how much you can learn when you're asked to teach.

#comics #protips #my work #comic book art #essays #teaching

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ultrone · 1 year

Note

can you do a blurb about jock/fuckboy amber driving you home after a party?

YOU were already quite tipsy, chatting and laughing with your group of friends. not long after, the alcohol had numbed your senses to the point where you didn't notice the drunken guy who was standing right in front of you, clearly trying to flirt. you just stared at him with your blurry vision and a silly smile, nodding your head as he spoke to you.

suddenly, he took a step forward, clearly attempting to kiss you. to your luck, you felt someone grip your arm tightly and swiftly pull you away from him. "we're leaving, i’m driving you home." was all you heard before being dragged out of the house and placed inside a black 2023 ford mustang.

amber had been observing the entire interaction from afar. she was seating between two girls from the cheerleading team, her arm draped around their shoulders. but despite their evident interest in her, she couldn't help but fixate on you and scrutinize your every move.

"i don’t like it when you talk to other guys," she said nonchalantly, her gaze fixed on the road.

"yeah right," you chuckled, “you're such a great role model yourself, amber. i mean, you practically had the entire cheerleading team lining up for you today," you retorted sarcastically.

as soon as those words left your mouth, she abruptly pulled over on the street, swiftly maneuvering the steering wheel. she leaned closer to you, forcefully gripping your chin with her right hand, turning your gaze towards her as her left hand rested provocatively on your upper thigh.

"let me make one thing clear, okay?" her hazel eyes gazed deeply into yours. "no matter who the fuck you see me with, where you see me at, or what the hell i feel like doing, you are mine and mine alone," she declared as she chewed on her words, her liquored-minty breath brushing against your face. her hand moved from your chin to your cheek, gently caressing your lower lip with her thumb, exerting a slow and intense pressure. she stared at it with desire before returning her hand to its original position, turning your face to the right. she brought her lips closer to your neck, her cold breath contrasting with your warm skin, and proceeded to deliver slow, wet kisses to it. "do you understand me, baby?" she asked with a low voice, continuing to shower your neck with kisses.

"y-yes," you grunted in a whisper, trembling under her mouth. "i understand," you said desperately, now focusing on amber's hand resting on your thigh.

"good," she said, abruptly moving away from you. she used the hand that had been resting on your thigh to open the car door, which snapped you out of your daze with a groaning moan, making you realize that you were already parked in front of your house.

"be ready for tomorrow. i'll pick you up at 7:45 am sharp for school," she declared, leaving you with no room for negotiation. she planted a loose, wet kiss on your lips before commanding you to exit her car with an unwavering gaze. with a lingering look, you walked towards the front door, the remnants of tipsiness now completely gone.

once you stepped inside your house, amber drove away, leaving you to your own thoughts.

#amber freeman x reader #amber freeman x y/n #amber freeman x you #amber freeman #amber freeman blurb #fuckboy amber freeman #jock amber freeman #scream blurb #scream 5 blurb #scream 5 imagine #scream 5 blurbs #amber freeman blurbs

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thought--bubble · 8 months

Text

Kitty Cat Part 1 (Revised)

Ettore X (Neuro-Divergent Reader)

Warnings Below

Word Count: 1,365

Kitty Cat Master List

Ettore Master List

Full Master List

Banners by @arcielee

Biggest warning is Ettore ( since he needs his own warning) , mention of murder. Unhealthy coping mechanisms. I think that's it. Anything else I should add, please tell me.

For as long as you can remember, you had an obsession with touch. The feel of skin against skin was a calming presence for you. When you were a child, whenever you were hurt, afraid, or sad, your mother would stroke your cheek and whisper comforting words into your ear.

This need for comfort persisted long after your mother died in that car accident. Long after, you committed a crime that would change your life forever.

This need was still ever present as you were loaded into a ship set to bring you and a group of the world's most unpleasant people up towards a black hole to do God knows what.

Your heart is pounding in your ears as you are loaded into the ship, the leather seat smooth to the touch. The man tasked with strapping you is murmuring under his breath, clearly annoyed.

You couldn't help yourself, you have been trying to rub your face on him the entire time. His arm, hand, wrist, anything really.

Make it stop, make it stop

Anything to bring you that endorphin release and bring your blood pressure down. When the seat belt is pulled over your right shoulder, you start to rub your face against it furiously. The sensation begins to calm your anxiety, and the rushing in your ears starts to subside, and you are finally clear minded enough to start to take in your surroundings.

You feel eyes on you, and your heart rate begins to pick up again.

No no, make it stop make it stop

You bring your hand up to the side of your face. It isn't what you truly needed, but it could help. But then, true relief comes, you feel cold knuckles up against your temple. Foreign. Not an inanimate object or your own hand but the flesh of another. You close your eyes as you begin to nuzzle into the hand, your blood pressure dropping as a wave of euphoria floods over you.

Your mind again begins to clear, you are able to think again, so you look to your right and the red-haired girl seated next to you is holding out her hand that you have been nuzzling up against for the last few minutes. She gives you a small confused smile but doesn't pull her hand away.

Maybe I'll survive on this ship after all

Since your initial meeting, you and the red head who you found out is named Boyse had been what would pass for friends on this ship.

She seemed to accept the fact that you were non-verbal and seemed dedicated to learning how best to communicate with you.

So you would sit next to boyse at meal times and stay close when time allowed, and she would allow you to rub your face on her shoulder or would stroke your cheek.

This kept you in a state of contentment . A few of the other crew mates had expressed how odd they found it, but Boyse paid them no mind.

Life was as happy as it could be on this little ship full of criminals. Each day passing without incident. Boyse by your side filling you with relief when you needed her most.

The only caveat being work assignments.

Most of the time, you were assigned to separate duties, and you had to cope with the lack of touch. You would stroke your own cheek or rub your face into your shoulder to keep the anxiety at bay. You had tried to elicit touch from other crewmates when you worked with them, but most made sure to steer clear from you.

But today, you were assigned to work with him. The one crewmate Boyse had suggested, no ordered you to stay far away from. She had pointed out on numerous occasions when he would watch while she pet you or while you nuzzle her shoulder, and this gave her a sense of unease.

You are aware of your own inability to pick up on proper social cues, so you decided to take her word for it, avoiding Ettore at all costs.

This wasn't a particularly difficult task given his penchant for staying alone. Opting to Leer from the outside.

That was until today. When standing next to Boyse and looking up at the assignment sheet, there was his name in bold black lettering directly next to yours. Both are seemingly assigned to laundry.

Boyse let out a long sigh as she looked at the assignment sheet.

"This can't be right. They can't leave you alone with him!"

Hearing her frustration, your heartbeat began to increase. You move towards her and start to rub your face on her shoulder.

"Not now, kitty, this is serious!" She looks towards you with concern, causing a deep furrow in her brow.

"There's something not right about him and you. You're just a little kitten," she says, rubbing your cheek with her hand. You smile and close your eyes while nuzzling into her.

"I'm going to find someone to switch with you. No way are you working alone with that creep," she stalks off, leaving you standing there before the assignment board.

You wait less than a minute before you scurry off in the direction she took off in.

Why did I wait so long?

Where did she go?

Your panic starts to bubble as you hear Boyse yelling.

" He's a predator! She doesn't even talk! How is this safe?!?"

You come flying around the corner with a crash. Dibs, the insane doctor who is somehow in charge, looks down at you unimpressed and then turns back to Boyse, a condescending lilt to her voice.

"Ettore knows and understands the rules. Everything and everyone will be fine. Go to your assignments."

She looks back and forth between you and Boyse. Boyse opens her mouth to say something else, but you interject by nodding your head furiously.

Boyse looks at you stunned. Then anger spreads across her face as she stalks away.

Please don't be mad, your all I have

You arrive at the laundry room. Blood rushes in your ears as your head swings around like a meerkat sticking its head out of the sand.

He didn't even show up. This isn't so bad

You start rubbing your face against your shoulder and feel the anxiety start to abate.

You fall into a false sense of security and begin to load the pile of clothes left by the machine in, when more drops on top of the pile.

You lift your head up and are met with the steely blue eyes of Ettore.

"That should be all of em"

"I collected you can load em yeah?"

You nod and begin to load the washer. Slightly hunched over, your heartbeat starts to pick up, and your face starts to flush. You instinctually start to rub your face on your shoulder again, the rushing in your ears getting worse as you feel that Ettore has moved much closer, the heat of his body radiating onto your back.

His closeness, his smell, his domineering presence all together cause something to snap in you, and you turn, guickly looking up at Ettore. As he stares back at you, you move closer, closing the small gap between you.

Shoulder is too far up

You can't reach his shoulder, and it fills you with frustration, you place your face against his arm and start to nuzzle.

At first, he tenses, and his breath hitches. But he doesn't push you away, so you keep going feeling the flush in your face start to cool, and your heart beat start to relax. Ettore places his hand under your hair on the back of your neck and slides his hand up into your hairline while scratching his nails against your scalp.

The feeling is nice, calming even as he continues lightly scratching at your scalp, you continue to nuzzle him feeling more and more at peace. Then, as if something has taken over him, he grips your hair tightly and pulls you up against him, his nose buried in the hair on the top of your head.

"OH kitty. You are in trouble "

Part 2

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#ettore x reader #ettore #ettore fanfiction #ettore high life #ettore fanfic #ewan mitchell verse #ewan mitchell fanfic #ettore x you #ettore imagine #ewan mitchell #ettore smut #ewan nation #ewanverse #jess fics #my red flag bf

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madiomens · 8 months

Text

Just Pretend [n.s.]

Chapter Fourteen

A knock at my door brought me out of my staring contest with the window, causing me to jump slightly. I spent all night curled up in a ball with my hood on my head, tears soaking my pillow as the storm got louder and louder. I pushed out of bed and sniffed, unlocking my door and cracking it open to see who it was. Folio's concerned face came into my view and I wiped my face of any tears that were left.

"Can I come in? I have food." He said, holding up a plate of hashbrowns and bacon.

I nodded and opened the door more before walking back to my bed and crawling in. I clenched my jaw and jumped at the thunder outside as Folio climbed in beside me. I rolled on my side to face him, sniffing to try and clear my stuffy nose.

"What's going on with you and Noah?" He questioned softly, setting the plate on the nightstand.

"Nothing." I muttered, voice hoarse from crying.

He sighed and laid on his side to face me, propping his head up with his hand. "You're wearing his hoodie. And before you say it's not his, I can smell his cologne on it. So what's really going on?"

My eyes searched his for a bit before my own welled up with tears again. "It was supposed to be casual. I don't know how we got here." I said, voice cracking.

He reached out to wipe a tear away. "Do you love him?"

I swallowed and reached up to wipe the rest of my tears off my face. "I can't, he's practically my boss."

"That's not what I asked." He said.

I sighed. "I shouldn't." I whispered.

He softly smiled. "Just because you shouldn't doesn't mean you don't."

"It doesn't matter." I said, taking a shaky breath to stop the sob that threatened to escape. "He doesn't feel the same."

He chuckled and shook his head. "Maddie, his actions last night were those of a man in pain. I'm not defending him because God was he stupid, but even I can see they were geared towards you."

I sighed and swallowed, chewing the inside of my lip. "He really hurt me, Folio."

He smiled softly and reached out to tuck a piece of hair that escaped the hood. "You didn't deserve it." He said before grabbing the plate of breakfast to put in front of me. "We're all stuck in this house today, so you can stay in your room the entire time if you want. Forecast is calling for tornadoes and hail at 5, so I'll get you to join us in the storm shelter then. For now, eat. And I'm not going anywhere."

That's how my entire day went. I cried and tried to nap off and on but woke up anytime the thunder was extra loud or Folio left to get something. Before I knew it, it was getting close to 5 and the storm was raging outside. I laid with my hood up and eyes squeezed shut, jumping every time the room shook from thunder. The sound of hail slapping the window caused Folio to get up and pull me with him so we could make our way to the storm shelter built into the back of the house. I opened my door, eyes landing on Noah leaving his room as well. My heart leapt out of my chest looking at him. His eyes were bloodshot and hair messy under his hood. He paused and looked down at me, eyes looking over my face. I'm sure my own eyes didn't look much better than his. He looked down at his hoodie I still had on and opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something but was cut off when Folio joined my side with two pillows off my bed.

"Come on, Maddie." He said, placing his hand gently on my back to steer me towards the shelter. "Dumbass." He muttered to Noah as we passed him.

I looked over my shoulder as we walked through the house to see Noah standing in his doorway still, watching us walk away. We walked in the room to see Jolly and Nicholas already there, a pile of blankets and pillows beside them. They looked at me with sympathetic smiles as if they know the hours of crying I had and who it was over before patting the spot beside them. I settled beside Nicholas and Folio sat on the other side of me, handing me a blanket and pillow to get comfortable. Noah appeared in the doorway with his own blanket and pillow, looking around the room as everyone stared at him.

"Come on, man, we have snacks." Nicholas said, gesturing to the spot beside Jolly that just happened to be across from me. "According to the forecast, we will probably be stuck in here most of the evening so we have games." He said, sliding game boards and decks of cards to the center of our circle.

Jolly pulled all the snacks to the center as well, opening a bag of chips and popping a couple into his mouth.

"I also have some gummies if you need some help calming down, Maddie." Nicholas said, bumping my shoulder with his.

I smiled at him, pulling the blanket tighter around me. "Thank you, but I think I'd have a panic attack focusing too hard on my heart." I said, causing the guys to laugh.

We played a couple rounds of Gin before the first shake of the house happened, sending me hiding under the blanket that was wrapped around me. The guys all placed their hands on me on comfort, two squeezing my shoulders, one squeezing my leg, and a very familiar tattooed hand under the cover holding my ankle but I was too scared to care. The storm was at its all time high; shaking the house and thunder so loud I could barely hear what the guys were saying. My body shook and I held my hands over my ears to block out the sound, rocking side to side as Nicholas and Folio rubbed my back.

"Noah help her." I vaguely heard Nicholas say through my hands on my ears.

There was shuffling with the blanket I was under and I opened my eyes to see Noah sliding under it in front of me. His eyes searched mine before he reached out to wipe a tear I didn't realize fell, grabbing my hands from my ears and holding them in his own. He squeezed them tightly to stop my trembling before he started softly humming to me, which then progressed into him singing a slowed down version of Burial Plot by Dayseeker. He held eye contact the entire time, as if trying to drill the lyrics into my brain. Tears filled my eyes as I looked at him, his thumbs tracing the backs of my hands.

"It's my fault that you're gone I've been digging in the dirt, finding every way to hurt There's no light, it's just dark Feel my body growing numb Watch me as I come undone"

His voice sent goosebumps down my body, wrapping around me like a velvety blanket and washing a wave of relaxation over me. He scooted closer so that he could rest his forehead against mine, his legs outstretched on either side of me. His voice was barely above a whisper as he sang the rest of the song, voice shaking from the emotions he was feeling. I felt like we were in our own little bubble. A part of me knew the other guys were witnessing the exchange outside of the blanket but the rest of me didn't care. The rest of me didn't care about the fact I was so unbelievably hurt and upset with him. I only cared that he was here and I was calm.

We stayed like that until the house stopped shaking and the thunder was more sparse between loudness.

"I think it's a little calmer." Folio's voice said close to my ear, pulling me out of the trance I was in.

I blinked my eyes open, landing on Noah's. He stared deeply into mine, thumbs still rubbing the backs of my hands.

"I'm sorry." He mouthed to me.

I looked over his face before sighing deeply and removing my hands from his to pull the blanket off my head. I squinted at the lights in the room, taking a deep breath and letting it out shakily.

I closed my eyes. "I'm sorry, guys."

"No, don't apologize." Nicholas said, squeezing my shoulder as I looked at him. "You can't help trauma."

Noah pulled the blanket off his head, causing me to look at him. He gave me a slight smile, which I returned after a few seconds. I grabbed a can of Pringle's and bit into one as Folio started shuffling a deck of cards.

"Wanna play another game of Gin until it lightens up a little more?" He questioned.

We all agreed and were dealt our cards. The next thirty minutes consisted of a very intense game of Gin, me coming out on top at the end. I chuckled at the guys groaning at my win, tossing their cards onto the pile. We packed up everything and pushed open the door to the storm shelter, the rain louder in the main house area. The tornadoes and hail had passed but the storm was forecasted to last all night. The guys started putting together dinner and I excused myself to go take a quick shower in case we lost power.

"Maddie." Noah said from behind me, halting my steps down the hallway.

I stood with my back to him for a few moments, contemplating if I should turn around or not, before deciding to turn and look at him. My heart annoyingly sped up when my eyes landed on his face, sadness on his features.

"Can we talk? Please?" He questioned softly.

I clenched my jaw before nodding, following him into his room. He shut the door behind us and I made my way over to his bed to sit on it, sighing happily when his scent enveloped my senses. He sat in front of me, keeping some space between us but still close enough that his body heat radiated onto me. I picked at my chipped black nail polish as anxiety threatened to spill over, avoiding Noah's eye contact.

"I cannot explain how sorry I am, Maddie." He spoke up gently.

I rolled my bottom lip into my mouth as it started to tremble, tears blurring my vision.

"I don't deserve your forgiveness. I'll never forgive myself for it." He said, placing his hand on mine to stop my picking at my nail polish.

I took a deep breath before raising my eyes to meet his, my lip trembling more as big tears threatened to spill over. "You hurt me." I whispered, a tear falling down my cheek.

His brows furrowed as he looked over my face. "I know." He whispered back.

Another tear fell down my face. "You left me alone when I needed you."

"I know." He said again.

My breath caught in my throat as a sob threatened to escape. "I needed you and you weren't there."

He nodded. "I don't know how I will ever make it up to you, but I'll never stop trying." He said, voice wavering as his own eyes got teary.

I chewed on my trembling lip as my brows pinched together. "You can't break another promise." I said, half of a sob escaping me.

He shook his head. "I never will again."

My eyes searched his for a few more moments before I launched myself into his lap, throwing my arms around him as I finally let the sob bubbling up in my throat escape me. He wrapped his arms tightly around me, his own tears running down the side of my face and mixing with mine.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." He repeated over and over through his tears, rocking us back and forth.

"Don't do that again." I sobbed into his shoulder, body shaking.

He shook his head against mine.

"Never."

#noah sebastian #bad omens #noah sebastian fic #noah sebastian smut #noah sebastian fanfiction #noah sebastian fanfic #bad omens fanfiction

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jpitha · 1 year

Text

Just a Little Further 25

Part 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

By the time I make it back to the Royal Dawn, there's only one bored looking person behind the desk. They wave me up, and I go to my rooms. I look longingly at the bath, but it's so late, I should just go to bed. I'll ask Omar about the work on High Line tomorrow.

Maybe the dreams tonight can help shed some light on what's going on here.

I am the Empress.

I am on Reach of the Might of Vzzx, continuing my tour with Aeche. She has grown attached these last few weeks. She's by my side at every moment she can, stands behind my Throne, tries to steer the residents away from me. I worry that she thinks herself higher because of our relationship.

I ask her when Worldshaker will be ready to leave. I am ready to go visit the K'laxi and open their gate, to hear their complaints, to find out what caused them to kill their Builder and lock their Gate so long ago. This is only the first step in re-taking my empire. Soon, Aeche says. Very soon. We only have a few more preparations to make.

"No more excuses. We leave tomorrow" I am firm.

"But Janais my love, we are almost ready. I have a surprise for you. It just needs a few more days to prepare."

My eyes flick over to Aeche and my brow furrows. "Empress when we are out in public, Aeche. I am still Empress."

She casts her eyes down, dissapointed. "Yes, Empress."

With two fingers I tip her chin back up. "Aeche, you are my most prized Builder. What we have is special. I am glad to know you and I am glad you are here, but I am Empress. There is much that I have to consider beyond what brings me happiness."

"Of course Empress, I did not mean-"

"Shh, I know you didn't. I am just making sure that we are clear as crystal about what this is, about what we are."

"Yes, Empress, I understand." Of course I feel terrible. I've clearly broken her heart. I do not need the Nanites to see this. But, I must be firm. She is not the only person that exists.

As much as I'd like her to be.

I try and change the subject. "What is this surprise you have for me?"

That causes her to perk up immediately. "Empress, you will love it! My Builders and I are working on a new way to transit the stars! We can avoid using the Gates entirely and may shorten the distance to worlds even further."

I raise my eyebrows. This is news.

"And how does such a miraculous device work, Aeche? And why have we not developed it before?"

She shrugs. "I do not know the science Empress, I leave the details up to my Builders. They say that we have a way to... cut a hole in spacetime and jump from one point to another. It requires a tremendous expenditure of energy, but they think that one of the reactors that we use when we construct Gates is sufficient. As I know the Reach has the proper equipment to make a Gate, I decided to refit Worldshaker with a Gate reactor. Once it has completed, we can leave."

"Is this safe?" Aeche seems not to mind at all that she is installing a Gate reactor into my ship and is going to use it to power an unproven design with me aboard. I for one, am slightly worried.

"It is perfectly safe Empress. We have used it to jump small beacons vast distances. I sent a ship through the Gates to a location far away from here and then jumped a small beacon to them. They collected it and brought it back to us via the Gates. It works flawlessly. This is merely the culmination of our research. We will leave, jump to the Wilds of Besmara as a final test, and then jump to the K'laxi world. We will surprise them utterly."

I'm still not sure, but it sounds like she's done some testing. It would be impressive to jump right there without using the Gate. That would really show the K'laxi that their little rebellion is ultimately futile.

"Okay Aeche, finish your refit and we shall leave when it has completed. Before we jump for the first time though, I must visit the Gate and complete the Upload. It has been too long since I've done the last ritual. It must be done regularly."

Aeche raises her eyebrows and touches my arm as we walk. "Does it matter which Gate you use for your Upload? I don't think you've used the Gate here yet."

"No it doesn't matter which Gate. There is only one Gate. All the Gates we have in our Galaxy are... echos, or shadows of The Gate. As Empress, I can do the Upload from any Gate, and it will work. You are correct though, it's been too long since I've done an Upload, I've been slacking."

"My Empress." Aeche bows low. Is she being sarcastic? I feel like maybe a little, but I probably will cause more trouble than it's worth if I point it out.

I awake with a start. Aeche's engineers were developing a wormhole generator! But the Wilds of Besmara was destroyed utterly. Was it a wormhole accident? Ugh, I wish I paid better attention in history class. No new system is perfect, early wormhole generators must have blown up. Would it be that catastrophic? Could a failed wormhole link crack a planet?

Unknown Empress. Perhaps if they misjudged their coordinates and linked into the planet itself?

Maybe. I do know we have to be extremely accurate with our wormhole calculations. The coordinates aren't enough, we have to know where all nearby celestial bodies are and likely locations of traffic. Its one of the main reasons we don't link close to stuff. It's too dangerous. Get a hundred kilometers off and you're in a starship with no control surfaces screaming through an atmosphere.

Or worse, link into a planet.

It doesn't explain the time difference though! Aeche and I, er, Janais were here not 100 years ago. at least 74 based on the last time the Royal Transport was used and yet, the K'laxi Gate was closed for a thousand years. She mentioned it being a long time since the K'laxi closed their gate, that wasn't clear earlier. Just how long had the K'laxi been alone?

Where are those thousand years?

My head is swimming as I head down to breakfast. I decide to keep the gown, but I make it more casual this time. Remove the flowing train, raise the neckline just a bit, lower the heels. Huh, my feet didn't hurt, but I was in those tall heels all day long. I wonder if that's the Nanites doing. Before this anything higher than a kitten heel annoyed me to no end.

At breakfast I explain my afternoon yesterday and tell them about the security office I visited and the dinner I had after, making sure I mentioned the really good tea. When the server came by, I described it to them and they brought some for us to have with breakfast. I still made some coffee though. "Okay, before we begin today, do any of you know... about the wormhole generators?"

Omar blinks. "That's an odd question Melody. Anything specific about them?"

"Well maybe more about their history. Do you know if there was a lot of accidents with them when they first started out?"

"Well sure. It uses a tremendous amount of energy to rip a hole in spacetime. There were a lot of mistakes in the beginning. That's why it was so crazy that the scientist from Ganymede went off to Parvati on his own. I think he had only tested it like 3 or 4 times before he climbed in himself and left."

"Is there enough energy say to... crack a planet if you accidentally linked inside one?" I take a sip of coffee. I really wish we had more beans, this whole one cup a day thing is murder. It makes every cup delicious though.

Ava picks up what I'm thinking. "Melody, do you think it was a wormhole accident that destroyed that other place, the Wilds of Bes...Bas?"

"Wilds of Besmara. Yes, I'm wondering. Last night when I was dreaming the Nanites showed me that Aeche and her team were here with Janais - that's the previous Empress - and they were refitting her ship with a wormhole generator and were going to link to the Wilds as a final test, then link on to the K'laxi homeworld. We go to the Wilds first and see a destroyed planet. It sure seems like maybe there wasn't a revolution, just an accident. Also, Janais had mentioned it was a long time since the K'laxi closed their Gate. I have a feeling that they were here a long time."

Um'reli's ears flick irritated. "Right, it has to be something like that. The K'laxi gate was closed a thousand years ago. Everyone around here says that it was 100 years or less since the Builders left. As good as this station is there's no way it lasted one thousand years on automatic."

I downed my coffee and set the cup down. "I know! That's what is tripping me up. The evidence says that the Builders left one thousand years ago, but there's also evidence they left less than one hundred. I took the Royal Transport last night actually. I missed the last scheduled train home, but I found the Royal Transport parked in a siding. It's so beautiful, I have to show you later. Anyway, its logs weren't corrupted and it said that it was last used 74 years ago. That's hardly any time at all!"

"What is going on here?" Ava looks around the hotel as we eat. "It's almost as if we... no, that's silly."

"We what, Ava?" Omar is finishing off his tea. I told them about it this morning, and they all wanted to try it. Um'reli loved it, I love being right.

Ava sighs. She's worried we're going to think her theory is silly. "It's almost as if... we time traveled. But, that's impossible right?"

"It's not impossible but it is highly unlikely." Omar finishes his tea and sets the cup down. "It's possible, but I think we should explore other options before we jump to... time stuff. We don't need to be violating causality here. It's too messy."

"I agree with Omar. Let's not rule it out, but we shouldn't jump to it either. Let's first get High Line refitted and spaceworthy, then go to the Wilds of Besmara and see what we can find. Maybe it was just an accident."

"Wait, that's it!" Um'reli was lost in thought, but at the mention of an accident she snaps back to us. "What if that's the answer. All the builders didn't disappear, just the Empress."

"What do you mean? Ava looks curious.

Um'reli's small hands are moving as she talks, trying to shape her ideas as she speaks them. "Melody says that Aeche and her team were trying out a new drive, what we think is the wormhole generator. That says they were looking for an edge, for a way to get ahead of someone. What if Melody's empire was already in decline. Maybe we're wrong about the timing of the K'laxi locking their gate. They locked it a thousand years ago and the Empire had to just... deal with it because they didn't have the resources to go and take it back. Here comes Aeche with a new way to bypass the Gates and the previous Empress goes "Hot damn! Now I have a way to retake my Empire" and they zoom off to try it out... but it blows up. Now, no more Empress, but there are still Builders. For... some reason... they don't - or can't - make another Empress and they run on without one until.. ugh. Where did the Builders go then?"

We admit, the theory has merit. Remember, you are long lived now thanks to us. We don't know how long Janais was here after Aeche brought her. We don't know what the Builders did after Janais and Aeche left.

"Ugh. I wish we had a clear timeline of events. Everything is so messy. Maybe we'll learn more if we go over to the Wilds of Besmara. Speaking of that Omar, how are we with High Line?"

Omar's eyebrows and shoulders shrug. "It's only been a day Melody, but I think we're on the right track. We've got the printers going full speed now. It turns out Starlight knew of some people who can work their printer. They were still using it for repairs. I was able to integrate most of our database into theirs and we're off and printing. As parts and pieces are completed, River has personnel that can help install them. We're also working to make sure our refit is modular too. There are still 4 other ships around the docking ring here. Once High Line is done, we should move right on to the next."

"Good work Omar. When all the ships have been refitted, we should begin construction of our own. I wish we had a full shipyard, I'd love to make our own Starjumper and make that my flag carrier."

Omar grinned. "In time, Empress, in time. For now, High Line will have to do. It won't be very large, but it should be poweful - especially for ships around here - and it should do well to help you project power. Give me a month or so, and I'll give you a ride to the Wilds of Besmara."

"A month then. I'm holding you to it!" I laughed and turned to Ava and Um'reli. "Okay, what's up with the Reach it self. Did you learn anything useful yesterday?"

Um'reli looks up from her tea. "Actually yes. Remember the food thing? How people said that food was unreliable and expensive and the Administrators said it came from a hollowed out planetoid a little bit away?"

I nodded, lots of people asked about it. "Yes, I remember. What did you learn?"

"For one, the system to deliver food to the Reach is automated! The crops are processed and packed on the surface of the planetoid and then packed into boxes, and those are clipped to automated thrusters and they are then launched towards the Reach. When they arrive - at their own special docking bay on the top, nowhere near the dock for starships - they're unloaded and the empty boxes are sent back to be filled. It's actually a pretty efficient process. I can totally see it running without any input for one hundred years. Now though, I think the thrusters are wearing out and through regular wear and tear the boxes are breaking. Once we have some ships, we should devote print time to repairs of the food delivery system."

"Good idea Um'reli, let's do that. Let's get High Line and maybe one other ship done, then we'll pause the refit effort to repair the food delivery system and then continue on with the refit. When I first connected, I saw some old, closed off places that were listed as "food distribution centers" any idea about those?"

"I saw them too, and looked into it. As near as I can tell they were very old, and left over from when the Reach was new. They were never meant to be used forever. They were always meant to be shut down when restaurants and shops come online and they were kept to be used only if there's issues with food production or a disaster where a lot more people come all at once needing food."

I nod. "Okay, so at least people are getting fed the way they're supposed to be. And I stopped by a bank yesterday and spoke to the manager. They're going to honor all payment receipts we send their way so now we can pay folks, and I asked some people on the subway if they wanted a job and... oh! I have to get to the Throne! There's going to be people waiting for a job." I stand up quickly.

"Feel free to stay and finish your breakfast, but I have to get going, I don't want people just sitting around!" Ava stands up too and after a moment Omar and Um'reli do as well. "We were finished anyway Melody, let's get to work."

We take the short walk over to the Throne from the hotel and there is a small group of people there maybe a dozen. Nothing like the mob from yesterday. I'm glad for that at least, I can probably find work for everyone here. Oh hey, I see Roar of Thunder and Sound of the city! Vaaqo is here too! Ava, Um'reli and Omar go in the back as I sit in my Throne. I come online and call everyone to approach closer. If they're going to work for me they need to get used to being closer to me.

"Thank you for coming everyone. I'm so pleased to see so many people who want to help us out with our important work. Please line up and I'll talk to you individually and figure out how best we can use you."

I was right, there was something they could all do to help. Now I have people who can take messages for us, who will keep my Throne clean and watched, and people who can tell me about the social workings of the Reach as well as groups I should know about and their political power. I have a retinue!

I spend the rest of the day connected to the Throne and working with everyone to get an idea of our overall status and what needs immediate work. The fire suppression systems for sure should be online everywhere, the food distribution tugs need to be refurbished and I need to contact Rain. Actually...

I sit back and think about The Smell of Soil After Rain. What they look like, what they sound like... there! Higher level, walking around, talking to people. Others are coming up and reporting to them. Wow, they were taking my edict to be my bishop seriously.

"The Smell of Soil After Rain. It's Empress Melody, can you hear me?"

With a start, Rain jumps and looks around. "I-I can hear you Empress! What is it you need of me?"

"There was a riot yesterday. Some of the rioters said you were threatening people that if they didn't worship me their children would be taken out of schools."

"I was merely being... emphatic with my urges that everyone attend services and render their worship and..."

Ṣ̵̛̟́͜i̶̗̲͙̾̉̐l̶̢̇̍͛ë̶͕̲͈́n̸̩͖̉̒c̸̘̃͌e̶̞̊͐̌

His mouth slams shut.

"Rain, you will threaten nobody. Nobody is required to worship me. I am their Empress, not their God. If people choose to worship me, so be it. They will not be coerced into it.

Am. I. Understood? Speak."

"Y-y-y-yes Empress, I understand. I obey. I will spread your word but I will make sure everyone knows it is not compulsory."

"See that you do. You are replaceable." and I disconnect.

It was a little harsh, I admit but I will not tolerate Rain making people hate me because they think I need them to go to church for me. The last thing I want is a religious war in addition to any other kinds of wars I might have to deal with here.

Part 26

#humans are deathworlders #humans are space orcs #humans go on adventure #humans are space oddities #sci fi writing #writing #humans and ai #humans and aliens #the k'laxiverse #jpitha #just a little further

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steddielations · 7 months

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I'm not looking to start The Discourse so if you don't feel like answering this I'd totally understand, but I'm really glad to know I'm not the only one who feels like I'm losing it when I see people complain about how supposedly Eddie focused everything. I struggle to believe how these people can be serious about this. almost every fic ever in some way involves Eddie being a bad or downright terrible bf and it's always so OOC because people like to make Steve really angsty. Or the ones that really get me are the ones where Wayne's relationship with STEVE is focused on more than Wayne and Eddie. Half the time it reads like a small but loud chunk steddie of fandom don't even really like Eddie, he's just there out of convenience. I do understand the appeal of that for people who really love Steve but like, it shouldn't come at the expense of Eddie as character. Some of these fics you could easily replace him with other characters and it'd make no difference to the fic. Like I said, totally understand if you don't feel like answering this, I genuinely don't mean to be bitchy cause I don't like yucking peoples yums, but it did feel like I was in the twilight zone for a while seeing people's complaining, so I just wanted to have a little rant 😭

I’m glad to know someone has had the same experience as me! Like I’m not trying to dissuade people from writing Steve centric stuff or even complain, but truly I don’t understand when people say steddie fics are majority Eddie centric. I filtered this down to just the steddie ao3 fics but it’s not even close

And these are just the ones that are tagged. Personally I consider a fic to be Steve centric just based on if it has majority Steve focused tags, like Steve has bad parents, Steve needs a hug, hurt Steve, stuff like that and then it doesn't have any Eddie focused tags. Which is majority of Steddie fics and again I'm not complaining, I'm just saying that's how it is. Also on tumblr, in my experience, I'd say 8 times out of 10 when I come across a steddie fic it's Steve centric. I only notice because I look for Eddie centric stuff personally because there's such a lack of it. That's also why I started to pretty much write only Eddie centric stuff too. But I'm also careful not to erase Steve's trauma or demote him to the stand in perfect boyfriend or erase Robin's role in his life and replace her with Eddie, but I can't say the same with the way majority of Steve centric fics treat Eddie's character.

I think having an issue with the way Steve and Eddie are most often characterized in Steddie fics is a different conversation. I'll be honest, most of what I come across in my opinion is the writer projecting onto Steve and then Eddie's either the perfect boyfriend who talks like a therapist and has a magical healing cock, or he's the worst person in the world just to manufacture Steve angst. I have some major gripes about fanon Steve and fanon Eddie too, I have to steer clear of a lot of fics and keep my mouth shut to avoid discourse. Not saying I have perfect characterization or anything, but I definitely go against a lot of fanon popular stuff. I understand that some people hate popular fanon Eddie (so do I usually lmao) but its clear that it's being projected onto canon Eddie too. I see a lot of Eddie hate from people that ship steddie and that's fine, I'm so used to seeing Eddie hate it doesn't even faze me anymore, but I don't understand how you fixate on a ship that you hate an entire half of.

I'm glad you brought up the Wayne thing because that bothers me so much, I've spoken to a friend who noticed this too. To be clear, I love Wayne and Steve fics, I've written Wayne and Steve fics, but there's a difference when it's a fic about Wayne and Steve developing a familial relationship and when the whole purpose of the fic is Wayne growing closer to Steve than Eddie, choosing Steve over Eddie, loving Steve more than Eddie, etc. Especially when the fic has Eddie as a neglect/abuse survivor, honestly I just think it's weird to write a story where a neglect/abuse survivor's only caretaker is choosing someone else over him, and it's supposed to be a good happy thing? Also when the writer has clear disdain toward Eddie, Idk, maybe take your Eddie-hating lens off for a second and get some perspective on what you're writing. And the crazy thing is, those types of fics are usually received really well. I don't know, it's just not for me.

Anyway, this is the most discourse-y I've ever been on my blog lmao. I'm just at the point where I don't care anymore, everyone's voicing their opinions so I'll voice mine too. Thank you for sending me this, I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling this way!!

#asks #fandom discourse

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biaswreckingfics · 2 years

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Blurred Lines: Part 14 (M)

*This can be read as a standalone fic as there is about 5% plot in this part. So, if you're looking for some Sunwoo smut, here you go. For my normal readers, you can absolutely skip this part if you're uncomfortable!! You won't miss anything.*

Pairing: Kim Sunwoo x Female Reader

Genre: Acquaintances to Lovers AU, Roommates AU, Fuckboy AU

Word Count: 4k

Warnings: vaginal sex, fingering, oral sex (both rec.), slightly dominant Sunwoo, language, feels, KIM MF SUNWOO

Previous Chapter

The hot stare Sunwoo gives you overwhelms your senses. The lust is so clear in his dark eyes that it steals the breath from your body. Your nerves tingle and light with fire in anticipation, and you bite down on your lip to ground yourself. You feel like a live wire, and only Sunwoo knows what to do to help.

Sunwoo suddenly closes the distance between you and crashes his lips into yours. You breathe him in, letting him dominate you with his tongue much like you hope he does with his body. It's only a moment before his teeth bite lightly on your bottom lip, and he pulls away.

He stops a couple of inches from your face. His gaze admires your lips before looking up into your eyes. His hand - which you have zero idea where it previously was - comes up to lightly caress that same lip he nipped you on, and you swallow.

"Only I can bite your lips," he tells you in a husky voice that makes your knees weak.

A feverish urge has you knocking his hand away, and your arms wrap around his neck while your lips find their way back to his. Your frenzied state sets off Sunwoo, and he crushes you back against the counter, pushing his body so tightly into yours that you're almost positive the two of you are going to fuse together.

His lips are soft and hungry, and you lose yourself in him. Your entire world could implode, and you'd have no idea. The only thought and care you have is to be so wrapped up in Sunwoo that nobody would be able to tell where one of you begins and the other ends.

When Sunwoo pulls you to him and begins to steer your body, you give him full control. The cabin isn't that big, and you have faith that Sunwoo isn't going to mess this moment up by ramming you into anything that'd hurt you. So, while he pushes you backward through the cabin, you focus on making his eyes roll to the back of his head with your tongue.

The two of you fumble your way into the bedroom, and Sunwoo backs you up until you feel the bed hit the back of your legs. You're forced to fall back until you're semi-sprawled on the bed. Sunwoo crawls over top of you. He gives you a very languid kiss while his hands grip your waist and slide under your shirt. When your hands dig into his soft hair, he decides to bring his focus to your neck.

"You have no idea how badly I want you," he murmurs against your skin.

Breathlessly, you respond, "Then, why don't you show me?"

A puff of air from an amused laugh hits your neck, and he starts to nibble on your earlobe. "Oh, I'll show you alright. I've already told you I want to hear all the pretty sounds you make."

You hum as his hands work their way up your stomach. He pushes your shirt with them, exposing your skin, and moves back so he can pull you up and tug it off your body. Just before your shirt goes over your head, you hear him say, "At least, I'd like to hear them in person this time."

As the fabric slides over your head, you pause in confusion. This time? What on earth did that mean? Once your shirt is gone, Sunwoo takes in your baffled face and smirks. Instead of responding to your obvious bewilderment, he bites his lips and brings his hand up to play with your bra strap. His fingers slide under it, and he slowly pulls it down your skin.

"What do you mean this time?" You have to ask.

His eyes flash up to yours, and the heat in them causes you to swallow. "We were roommates, love. No matter how quiet you were trying to be, I still heard you moaning my name while touching yourself."

You stay still for so long that you have to remind yourself to breathe once you feel pain in your chest. He heard you? Masturbating?! He heard you saying his name?

Sunwoo takes advantage of your frozen state, leaning in to kiss your naked shoulder. When his nose trails its way up your neck, and he starts sucking on your skin, you begin to thaw and bring yourself back into the moment.

"You sounded so sexy saying my name like that," he murmurs. "I've always wondered what you did to make those sounds come out. Wondered how they'd sound with you underneath me… Wondered if I could make you cry out even louder."

You whimper in response to his words and feel heat pooling in your core. There's no chance for you to be embarrassed because you're so absurdly turned on. The racing of your heart is almost all you can hear until you feel the snap of your bra strap coming loose. You watch Sunwoo as he pulls off your bra and exposes you to him. For some reason, seeing him close his eyes and take a deep breath gives you satisfaction.

When he opens them again, he pushes you to lay flat on the bed. One of his hands comes up, ghosting around the edge of your breast. He teases you in a circular pattern, getting close to your nipple, but never touching it. When he finally does swipe his thumb over the erect bud, you gasp with a jolt.

While his fingers tweak and rub one nipple, he lowers his head and attaches his mouth to the other one. You arch your back, shoving the mound against his mouth, and he lightly bites it in response before soothing the sting away with his tongue. Your hips lift on their own accord, searching for the pleasure they know is close by. You've waited for this for too long. Too much teasing is going to make you want to rip the skin from your body. Sunwoo must be able to tell when his name comes out of your mouth like a plea.

His hand abandons your breast and slices down your stomach to the waistline of your shorts. You've never been so grateful in your life that you're wearing something with an elastic waistband. Sunwoo easily slides his hand into your underwear, bypassing your shorts entirely. His hand lightly cups you before his fingers spread your folds apart. You both whimper as his fingers put pressure against your nub and slide down to your entrance, gathering wetness to spread around.

Sunwoo pulls away from your breast and watches your reaction as he slides a finger and then another into you. "You're so fucking wet."

His words have your body shaking, and you bring your hips up to meet his hand. He curls his fingers, and you throw your head back against the pillow and bite your lip. When you're able to look back at Sunwoo, you see him staring at you in absolute awe. He looks like he's trying to commit every single one of your expressions to memory.

It turns you on so much that your hand snakes down in between your bodies and finds the hem of his basketball shorts. You see his body tense up as your fingers slide against his skin, and once you wrap your hand around Sunwoo's length, he lets out a groan. His fingers push into you faster, and your hand matches his pace. The two of you stare at each other until you both become overwhelmed, and Sunwoo leans down to give you a crushing kiss.

It only lasts for a moment before he pulls away, taking his delicious fingers with him. You let out a needy whine in response, but once you see Sunwoo scrambling to take his clothes off, you quickly join him.

As you yank down your shorts and underwear, thoughts of Sunwoo kissing you through the fabric or slowly pulling them down your body vanish. You can save those for another time because you need him to fuck you right now. You feel like you'll literally explode if he doesn't fill you up immediately.

Sunwoo echoes your thoughts as he crawls in between your legs. His naked body is a sight to behold. "I need to be inside of you right now. I don't think I can wait any longer."

In the second you agree, Sunwoo lines himself up with your entrance. You feel the tip of his cock brushing against your folds in a teasing way, but you can see the strain on Sunwoo's face. Hell, you can feel it throughout your whole body.

"Just fuck me, Sunwoo. Please," you whine.

In response, he pushes his cock inside of you, inch by glorious inch. You gasp as he slides in and spread your legs open wide. Once he's fully sheathed, he tries to wait for you to adjust, but you're beyond that. You move your hips, and Sunwoo instantly begins thrusting into you.

His elbows cage your body between his arms. He leans down and kisses you, pushing his tongue into your mouth and timing it perfectly with his thrusts. You bring your legs up to wrap them around his waist and pull him closer. The friction this causes against your clit has you moaning into his mouth.

Your hands slide up the sides of his body, and you can feel his muscles responding. Digging your fingers into his skin, you love the way his body feels as he pumps into you. Sunwoo's hands find their way into your hair, and he grabs onto it with a tight grip. You feel so thoroughly trapped underneath him, and you'd have it no other way. You want to do nothing but worship him like a God.

The feeling of him sliding in and out of you is the best thing you've ever experienced. It's like the two of you were made for each other. You feel him everywhere, and your body sucks him in with zero intention of ever letting go.

Sunwoo's hands loosen in your hair, and he sits up, adjusting his position so he can watch himself slide into you. His hands grip your waist, pulling you against him as he fucks your body. Leaning onto your elbows, you breathlessly watch his cock disappear inside of you. You swear you bite your lip so hard; that you can taste blood.

"You like watching me fuck you?" Sunwoo asks, noticing your stare. "Like seeing how well you take my cock?"

You whine out a "yeah" because you're pretty sure that's the only word you know right now. You moan with every thrust of his hips, and this new angle has him hitting that beautiful, sweet spot inside of you. Your body falls back down to the bed as you let out some variations of "fuck, Sunwoo" until your brain can comprehend a sentence.

"God, you feel so fucking good," you breathlessly tell him, feeling a coil tightening inside of you.

"Yeah? You like how good I'm fucking you, baby?" His body is covered in a sheen of sweat as he focuses on making you cum. "Does my cock feel good filling you up?"

While Sunwoo brings his thumb to your clit, you choke out a “yes”. He puts the perfect amount of pressure on the nub as he rolls his hips into your body. He circles his thumb frantically, and your body arches off the bed as you feel your climax approaching.

"I'm so close, so close," you whisper out, barely able to warn him of your swiftly approaching orgasm.

"Cum for me," he groans out, and that's all it takes.

You gasp loudly as your orgasm hits you. It's like an explosion inside of you, sweeping over your body in waves. You moan as Sunwoo continues to fuck you, determined to ride out your high for as long as he can. Your body clenches his member, squeezing him tightly, and you feel him twitch. His moves become sloppy, and soon, he's cumming inside of you with a loud, sexy groan.

He collapses on top of you to catch his breath. When you bring your hands up to his back and rub his muscles, breathing hard yourself, he lets out a labored laugh. Once he gets enough air, he gets up on his elbows and looks down at you. Your breath catches in your throat when you see the happiness radiating off of him.

"Well, that was fun," he smirks, causing you to laugh and drop your arms.

He leans down and gives you a soft kiss. When he slowly pulls out of you, you lightly gasp at the sensation and clench around the emptiness. He rolls over to the side of you and plops down on the mattress before gathering you in his arms and pulling you to him.

You lay your head on his chest and listen to his heart steady. Closing your eyes, you feel a rush of emotions flying through your head. Sunwoo quietly caresses your arm while you both just take everything in. There's so much that you want to say, but it doesn't seem like the right time to say anything. Until a thought hits you.

Turning your head, you look Sunwoo dead in the eyes and ask, "You heard me masturbating?"

Sunwoo's startled by the question before a cheeky grin grows on his face. "A couple of times."

You immediately whack his stomach, causing him to make an "oomph" sound. He playfully glares down at you. "What was that for?"

"For being a perv!"

"You're the one that was moaning my name over and over again."

You whack him on the stomach a second time. Sunwoo grabs your arms, and using his legs, flips you over onto your back. You look up at him, only too happy to be pinned underneath him again. He leans down and kisses you. His tongue moving in a tantalizing pattern that has you rolling your eyes into the back of your head.

He moves back enough to see your eyes but stays close within the region of your lips. "You know… now that I think about it, I don't think I made you moan loud enough that last time."

"No?" You breathe as he lightly bumps his nose against yours.

"Mm-mm," he hums with a shake of his head.

"I guess you have to do better this time then."

He raises his brow and pulls back to fully see your face before he laughs. "Well, lucky for you, I can't seem to get enough of you."

Now, it's your turn to hum. "Lucky for you, the feeling is mutual."

He lowers himself onto his elbows. Kissing your collarbone when it's within reach and then spending time licking and nibbling each breast until he's satisfied enough. He lowers himself down, kissing and biting a path across your stomach. Your heart crawls into your throat in anticipation, and you can only watch Sunwoo while being completely under his spell.

"This time," he says as he approaches your hip. "I'm gonna take my time with you. I'm going to learn every inch of your body until I know it better than my own."

You swallow. Your body is electrified. Your nerves feel like they're vibrating under your skin as you watch Sunwoo lower himself until he's face-to-face with your sweetest spot. He nestles himself in between your legs.

When he grabs your thighs and hooks your legs over his shoulders, your mouth parts with an anticipatory gasp. He takes it a step further, using his thumbs to spread apart your folds and admire them. You nearly choke on your tongue when he licks his lips, and his eyes find yours. You see the burning desire you feel reflected there.

"You're so fucking beautiful," he whispers before his eyes return to your core.

Somehow, amid its racing, your heart flutters. However, your mind quickly forgets it since your core is throbbing almost painfully now. His head is right there, just tempting you evilly. When he lowers his head, you finally think he's going to taste you, but he just hovers and breathes. His warm breath messes with you in unbearable ways.

Finally, his tongue darts out. He flicks the tip of it in a light kitten lick against your small bud, and you nearly come out of your shell. He continues the torture for a moment before laying his tongue flat against you and slowly lapping at your folds.

Your breath quickly becomes ragged as he licks and sucks. Your hips match his pace, lifting to press harder against his tongue. His arms slide down your thighs to your hips, and he pins you down so he can control your pleasure. You whine in his tight grip, but soon the moans take over, being ripped from your body.

"Oh my god, Sunwoo," you cry out as he wraps his lips around your pleasure point, teasing you with his tongue and driving you nearly mad.

When he growls against you, adding vibrations to the mix, your body nearly comes off the bed. He holds you tightly, torturing you some more. He eventually pulls his tongue away and takes a deep steadying breath. He kisses the side of your thigh, mumbling words that you have to concentrate on.

"You taste so good, baby girl."

You whine, wanting him to shut up, and he thankfully gets the message. He dives back into your folds with even more vigor than before. One of his hands leaves your hips and quickly finds your entrance. He inserts two fingers, pumping and curling them in a delicious pattern that matches his tongue.

All the muscles in your stomach begin to tighten until you feel the tether inside of you snap. Your mind leaves your body, flinging itself out of the earthly realm, while your mouth cries out Sunwoo's name like it's a praise. Sunwoo skillfully continues to work you through your high and slowly lets you come down when it's over.

You try to take deep calming breaths once the ride is over, but Sunwoo’s silence has you unnerved. Peeling your eyes open, you see Sunwoo bring his fingers to his mouth and suck your wetness off of them. Your eyes roll back at the sight, and you mumble out a curse that has Sunwoo laughing.

"I could watch you fall apart a hundred times over," his voice approaches you as he makes his way up your body.

"You can do that any time you want," you breathlessly reply.

You quickly shut up when Sunwoo leans down and thrusts his tongue into your mouth. You taste yourself on him, and you groan. Bringing your legs up to wrap around him, you feel his hardened member hit your thigh, and you pull away.

Looking down, you see his hard length glaring at you. It looks like it needs a lot of love, and you're only too happy to please it. You push Sunwoo's chest, and he lets you roll him over onto his back. His cock springs up, and your mouth instantly waters.

"I think it's time I return the favor," you suggest, glancing at Sunwoo to see him nodding eagerly.

Getting onto your knees and positioned in front of his cock takes a matter of seconds. The tip is an angry red, already leaking precum that has your tongue darting out to catch it. Sunwoo takes a loud breath as your tongue glides along the head. You give him cute little kitten licks like he gave you and are instantly satisfied when his hips lift, trying to get more of his member inside of you.

Obliging, you take the tip of him in. Swirling your tongue around the top for a moment, you take it out and lick down his length. You spread the spit with one of your hands, twisting lightly until he's wet enough that it won't hurt. Then, you take in his length until he hits the back of your throat.

Sunwoo lets out a loud groan as you hollow out your cheeks and suck on him like he's a piece of candy. His hands slide into your hair and grip it tightly, making sure to keep it out of your face so he can watch you choke on his dick.

You try to take him down your throat, ignoring the tears that prick at your eyes. When Sunwoo lets out the loudest moan you've ever heard from him, you feel nothing but pride. You suck and lick until Sunwoo suddenly pulls your mouth off him. Confused, you look up at him and see his eyes frantic and blazing with lust.

"I want to finish inside of you," he quickly says. "I need to feel you around me when I cum."

You nod, and almost instantly, Sunwoo is pushing you onto your back and climbing on top of you. His knee spreads your legs apart, and he lines up with your entrance, gliding in with ease. He buries himself to the base and shudders. You moan at the fullness and clench around him before he can even move, causing him to hiss and drop his forehead onto your shoulder.

"I really want to take my time with you," he groans, "but I just can't stop myself once I'm inside of you."

"I'm sure there'll be plenty of opportunities for you to take your time later." You move your hips, and Sunwoo's hand moves to tightly grip your waist and stop you.

His head pops up, and a gleam sparkles in his eyes. "I'm holding you to that."

You nod, and he finally starts moving his hips. He pulls nearly all the way out of you before slowly sliding back in again. He does this a couple more times, and you whine his name to get him to stop. He doesn't. You claw at the sheets as he tortures you slowly. When Sunwoo feels like he's tormented you enough that way, he finally speeds up.

With each slam of his hips, your body scoots up the bed until he grips your hips tightly and pulls you back against him. You wrap your legs around his waist, holding him close, and the new position has him going deeper.

The pressure builds in your abdomen again, and you start clenching around his length in response. Sunwoo's thrusts become wild. He reaches down to your sensitive bundle of nerves and rubs his fingers against the nub, trying to pull you over the edge with him. You're gasping as he slams into you, and you can feel that coil within you snap. You climax so hard; you see stars exploding behind your eyes. You're vaguely aware that your orgasm sets off Sunwoo's, but you're too far gone to appreciate it.

Once your mind comes back to you and your breathing returns to normal. You focus on Sunwoo, who is just as gone as you are. His head rests on your chest, and his arms snake their way around your back. You lay there in complete and utter bliss.

Nearly five minutes pass by before Sunwoo's head slowly lifts, and he looks at you. He admires your face with a gentle smile. You can see he's holding himself back like there are words on the tip of his tongue, but he keeps them to himself.

"What're you thinking?" You finally ask, bringing your hand up to brush his messy hair back from his face.

He shakes his head with a knowing smile. "I'm just trying to figure out how I got so lucky."

"Me too," you joke, and he mocks you.

Consequently, he pulls out of you and rolls off to the side. You watch him with a pout, not wanting him to be so far away from you. Once he notices, he quickly gathers you into his arms and cuddles himself around you. He holds you tightly like he never wants to let go of you, which is completely okay because you never want him to.

As you fall asleep in his arms, your brain catches on to whispered words that you're not entirely sure you've imagined or not. You tell yourself you're dreaming as you hear Sunwoo's quiet "I love you" against the top of your head, and you fall into a deep sleep.

Tagging: @wooya1224 @lilyujin @brie02 @itbtoblikethatsometimes @internetmemeofficial @timedoesntliketolisten @jungkooksworld18 @ja-jjangmyeon @noempathyy @sunwoosclouds @cowboyjaehyun @sanghak-enthusiast @simpforsunwoo @en-boyz @lavayeon @rindomo @kunxcii @love-svt @winterbeartaehyungbestboy @ilovechanhee @jisungsleftcheek @sunwoahkim @allorysayshi @thethreekims @dontflailmenow @dearestbutlost @sunwoossunflowers @flwrtbz @cloudsficrecs @ohgeezitsbreadgenie @glxwingstar @asjkdk @maybeifyoutrieddd @auroraichimaru @sawadabegum

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uchiha-7thsingularity · 9 months

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Despair pt. 1

Imagine the MC is acting out of their element around the Felix. Hear me out, the stress is real and the burden on their shoulders is heavy but they try to smile. Until they can't anymore. And of course, who blames them but themselves despite the fact felix is attempting to reconnect with them and yet it just makes them push everyone including him away. Yes. I'm going there with the angst. Grab your tissues. MC being in a spiral of despair they created that toxic traits (that they never had before or suppressed) start to pour out only to hurt their spouse. (I'll do the other LI later on)

Felix Escellun

He notices at first glance. It's MC. Who knows them better than him...right? He doesn't say anything on a whim he can't find the words to say. So, he watches at first.

Dwelling on their own work only to sigh heavily in one instance and to tap the quill on the desk with consistency.

When they sleep or take a nap the insomnia never fades or the twisting and turning on the comforter leaves them beaten. Nightmares are no treat either for the matter they give them dread and cause them to suffocate until finally to wake in a weak state.

Occasionally there are times they tend to cuss under their breath. Other times their pitch rises in their voice almost yelling at someone or him. When he gets agitated with the conversation going nowhere it bothers him when MC walks off dismissing the entire thing.

Slamming doors so much that Stella steers clear along with the others as well.

What really hits him hard is that they've stopped trying to make an effort to look at him...at all. It breaks his heart and leaves him bewildered of how they got to this point. And how does he fix this!? It's all to much to process altogether.

One day he pulls mc aside into a private room to confront them. "What is it you need me to do?" 'What?' They roll their eyes and turn away with a sigh. "This needs to stop." He walks in front of them with a pinched expression. "Please, what are you-" "See what I mean the things your doing right now. That. It needs to stop at this moment."

Biting their lip with a huff mc looks to him with a glare. "Oh, I need to stop, I-I...please I don't need this."

They try to leave but he gets in their path. "Did I do something to you? Is it stress from the nightmares? MC, you cannot just get up and walk away every time!" 'Like your any better' "I never said that" 'You didn't have too!!' He runs a hand down his face, irritated.

"What are we doing?" 'I don't know what your doing? Other than wasting my time when I need to get back to work.' They pace the room. "Work can wait!! He gestures to the both of them. "We've waited enough. What is it, MC? What's wrong that you have to act out?"

Their arms uncross with a sneer. 'Act out?! Like I'm a child! Some animal!!' They start to rise. "Lower your voice. Not what I implied. You know better." 'Do I now? Well, then if I knew better I say we're done here, m'kay.' "No!" Felix surges forward blocking their path to leave them both startled at his tone.

"Do you see me? I'm here, MC! For us! For you. How can I understand you when you want to walk out or stop talking to me?" He grabs their hands rubbing his thumbs over their knuckles in a gentle manner.

"Let me be your person. If not me, then I don't know what else to do." Their eyes water a bit as they look to felix. In a shallow breath they pull away, 'Then just go.' "Is that what you want?"

His eyes glaze over as he waits for their answer. 'Yes.'

I know this is short and rushed. Still working on the prologue. Thanks for being patient. Might edit this later. My inspiration for this little bit came from Grey's Anatomy. Don't you just love how every great couple succumbed to fall apart by the hands of the writers trying to figure out how to write characters (actors/actresses) out or by death.

#fictif #last legacy #felix escellun #last legacy felix #fictif last legacy #angst #toxic relationship #Don't worry I'll write a make up one #we also deserve healthy relationships

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lavenderwhirls · 6 months

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Dr. Keh x Ovenist (Fem)

Reroute Part 1

The ovenist was about to leave without a word as Dr. Keh rambled insults in front of them. They surpressed a wince when they placed their hand. It hurts . on the countertop to get the health checker watch Nasir gave them. Before they could get to the door, Keh's moved his body to block the way. "And where do you think you're going, ovenist? Didn't you hear what I said–" He scoffed as he didn't notice the condition of the ovenist's hands at the moment. "Can you please move out the way—" the ovenist was clearly annoyed, her tone making it obvious.

"..." Dr. Keh was silent for a while as the ovenist just look at him in annoyance, he still wouldn't let go of their wrists. "When did you injure them..." Dr. Keh asked with a stern tone, his eyebrows furrowed as the ovenist shrug off. "None of your concern, Doctor" the ovenist said, trying to pull away from his grip on their wrists. "..." Dr. Keh was silent for a moment before letting go of one of the ovenist's wrists, only for him to still hold their other wrist and pull them outside. He got his car keys from his pocket and unlocked his car. "What the—" the ovenist yelped as Dr. Keh let go of them and just made them sit in the back seat while he closed the car door to walk to the driver's seat of his car. "Hospital" The usually cocky(?) rival's tone was unsually quiet and down?(the ovenist couldn't read his expression in the moment)...

The ovenist sigh, telling him the address of the hospital. Confusion clear on her face as Dr. Keh took a different route "Hey this isn't the way—" they try to inform him but he cuts them off. "—I know" Michael said in a matter of fact tone "that's why I'm taking you to another hospital. A much better one" he said sternly with finality when the ovenist tried to object.

"You're not seriously going to take me to a different hospital...right?" The ovenist asked again, Dr. Keh's eye twitch in annoyance for the third time that whole trip. "I'm serious."

"Wait— wait. I didn't even withdraw in my bank account! And knowing you, this hospital you're probably driving us off to is expensive.—" the ovenist rambles as she stares at her hand, it still trembles and with every objects she hold with it, it still hurts. Michael just rolled his eyes at the ovenist's rambling, focusing his attention on the road.

"..." The ovenist just stayed quiet the entire trip after she talked earlier, as Michael was not even responding verbally. The only response she got was either a roll of his eyes or a annoyed glare. 'Wait—' the ovenist's eyes widen "NASIR!" The ovenist yelled out in sudden realization. Dr. Keh heard the ovenist curse as she try and get her phone from her pocket, only for her to wince in pain and stop. It hurts— it hurts... Dr. Keh stayed quiet for a bit before he speaks "what's his number, I'll call him?". The ovenist look at him as he controls the steering wheel with one hand before reaching for his phone with his free hand.

"Give me his number, you're going to experience more pain in your hands if you keep touching things so suddenly." Dr. Keh says as he and the ovenist made eye contact in the rear view mirror. "And what if I don't?" The ovenist cross their arms over their chest. Ow. She knows that she would eventually need to tell Nasir or else. "Stop being so stubborn and cooperate with me" Michael glared at her at the rear view mirror before focusing his eyes again at the road. Before the ovenist could speak again, the sound of her ring tone rang in the car. Unable to get her phone without hurting her hands, she sat hopelessly as the ring tone died down after a few seconds. "Fine" the ovenist had no other choice as she gave Nasir's number to him.

After informing Nasir that the ovenist will be check in at another hospital, the ovenist finally let herself be atleast a bit relaxed. "..." a silence lingers inside the car until Michael speaks again. "I've noticed something...."

Their gazes met as the ovenist look at the rear view mirror. She raised her eyebrow, a sign for him to continue speaking. "You're close with the detective despite only knowing him for a short while." He said with a assuming tone. "And you always use his first name"

Dr. Keh waits for the ovenist to reply as she went quiet to pick the right words for her answer. "We were classmates in college —" the ovenist said with a bit of a quiet voice. "–the detective automatically attends a detective collage considering his occupation....wait what" Dr. Keh paused as he double check looking at the ovenist in the rear view mirror.

"You were classmates?" Michael speaks again after getting over his small shock. He glanced at the rear view mirror when the ovenist nods.

"We were, I just dropped out of the collage when I was called back to my home country." The ovenist lean her head on the black tinted window of the car. "I see" He said after a while, the rest of the ride was quiet after that with the exception of the news playing on the radio of his car.

They finally arrived at the hospital Michael have specifically chosen. 'Ugh my bank account is gonna cry after this' the ovenist thought to herself, ignoring the fact the multiple archery competitions she have won when she was younger. 'I can already hear Nasir calling me out on my thoughts about how expensive the hospital is despite my separate bank account for things like this' the ovenist paused realizing she can't open the car door. The ovenist turn her head to Dr. Keh as he got off the car and opened the car door for the ovenist. The two just stared at each other before Dr. Keh cleared his throat, making the ovenist snap out of it and get out of the car. "Thanks" the ovenist said under her breath as Dr. Keh close the door after she got out.

They both walked in the entrance of the hospital, She just follows Dr. Keh because this hospital is new to her. The ovenist took her time observing the interior of the hospital and before she knows it they arrive at a doctor's office. Thankfully she stopped before she could bump into Dr. Keh, Who knows what would have happened if she did. She would rather spare herself from his insults. Dr. Keh turned to her and explained who this office belongs to, a trusted doctor he says. They stare at each other when Dr. Keh opened the office door (wow he didn't even knock. rude) thankfully the ovenist didn't feel like being stubborn today so she entered the doctor's office.

The ovenist walked out of the doctor's office. The doctor have recommended a cream/ointment to help lessen the possible damage the cold temperature have done to their hands. She paused as she see the blue haired—...? Wait why is he still here? Michael was standing near one of the hospital bench, his gaze drifting from his watch to the ovenist. The ovenist really shouldn't be surprised that he refuse to sit on the hospital benches. "The checkup is done I assume?" He speaks up after a while of silently staring at each other. The ovenist nod "the doctor recommended a few things" she shrug before her body stilled again when Dr. Keh walked over to her and gently (gently?) grabbed one of their wrist. "I'll ask you again because you didn't answer this question earlier, ovenist." He made eye contact with them, his gaze stern. "When did you injure them?"

The ovenist was quiet for a few seconds before sighing. "The freezing process" she said after a while 'the freezing—' Dr. Keh's mind came to a halt at that revelation. She injured it yesterday?! "...I was there..and you didn't bother to tell me" Dr. Keh said, the volume of his voice almost got loud but thankfully it didn't. He was glaring at the ovenist now, though his grip on their wrist remains the same, still gently (why is he holding it so gently...doesn't he hate her!?) "You can't do anything about it even if I did tell you" the ovenist respond back with her own glare.

Dr. Keh scoffed and finally let go of their wrist.

#good pizza great pizza #dr. keh #gpgp #dr. michael keh

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aspd-culture · 1 year

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What ASPD stereotypes do you think are the most ridiculous and untrue?

Ooooo, a fun one. In no particular order -

• That every pwASPD hates animals or is violent towards them. This is a super vicious stereotype that has made it's way all the way into the DSM. We are not super likely to hurt animals, at least no more than any other traumatized child. It does happen, yes, but many of us actually feel closest with animals because our lack of empathy and remorse and all that doesn't mean much to them. Depending on the animal, they either love you unconditionally anyway, or they tolerate you on the basis that you keep providing snacks. Plus, they don't require us to understand or care about social code. They also affect a different part of your brain than other humans your own age (more similar to how one bonds with a young child - instinct to protect and care for), so we are more likely to be capable of experiencing close bonds with them. Whilst not everyone with ASPD likes or gets along with animals, we also do not all attack them.

• That lacking remorse is what predisposes us to violence. These are entirely separate symptoms that have next to nothing to do with each other if you put them in that order. Sure, I don't feel remorse besides with Exceptions, but that's not what causes my violent urges. The people who say this are thinking from the perspective of making decisions in fear of feeling bad for things, which if you never experienced remorse in the first place, does not affect you. The people who say that without remorse we must go around violently hurting and k*lling people around us ("because what's stopping you??") are really just telling on themselves & admitting on main that they would st*b their loved ones given the chance. Super weird of them.

• (A classic) That they can pick us out in a crowd/we have a specific look in our eyes. Peak comedy is the many people who say "Don't worry, I'll let you know if you're dealing with a sociopath. They're easy to find if you know what you're looking for" directly to a pwASPD who hasn't told them. Literally my favorite thing ever that prosocials say.

• That a "true sociopath/psychopath" will never tell you they are one/that someone who is good at manipulation would never tell you they're manipulative. Well that's a funky lil trick you got there - you just gave me an easy in to abuse the crap out of you. Good thing I don't want to, but really? You don't see the flaw in saying that out loud to someone? It's also just false. Pretty funny again tho, except I hate the urge to manipulate or abuse people who say this just because I obviously easily could, so I try and steer clear or call them out for how fucking stupid that is.

Many, many more are untrue but these are the more lighthearted, ridiculous ones.

#aspd-culture-is #aspd culture is #aspd culture #tw sociopath #tw psychopath #tw ableist term #actually aspd #aspd #aspd awareness #actually antisocial #antisocial personality disorder #aspd traits #tw aspd stigma #aspd stigma #anons welcome

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itfitsitshipsart · 1 year

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🎶 I'm a sucker for song analysis!

Alright! I'll actually write for two characters cause I can and shall explain. So buckle up cause this is a LONG one!~

🎶 Select a piece of music to relate to your ship. What themes or ideas about your ships does this piece of music share or highlight?

The song i shall pick today for analysis is Someone Like You - by Aurelio Voltaire. His music is amazing and I highly recommend listening to some of his stuff if you haven't.

youtube

So, before I start rambling on, I have to say that, if I'm made it clear or not, I can't help but love angst when it comes to my fiction, and even in the happy parts I like that somber undertone. There's always something there. And because of this, I have a lot of songs that I can use for many different boys of mine. And while in some ways I'm beating on a dead horse, so to speak, the somber is as different as it is the same, and I suppose that's from the importance of backstories and the like.

SO, I'm going to describe the song in relation to Raven first (I guess these are more essays on characters and relations, with the music to direct and supplement) , because he's the main man and I have things to say, but I'll afterwards also describe the song as it relates to Weiss because he's an obsession right now, and when I was trying to pick music this stuff came to me (the ideas for plot are turning in my head~).

As usual, there'd by spoilers but... well, there's a warning XD

But, without further ado...

Raven

'I was lost. I was shattered I was lonely. I was blue In my world full of shadows Covered in cobwebs Draped in gloom'

To say Raven is a broken character would be an understatement. He went through hell and back and suffered with depression before the events of the game even started (a depression that still lingered even after the game, as these things do. He had no magical 'all better now' moment). As a young man, he had no direction in his life, being a 'problem child' to his father and elder sibling. He didn't know what or who he was supposed to be. But through events he first took as humiliating, he found friends and direction through joining the knights, and more specifically a group of knight led by a woman named Casey. She steered him into a path he was happy with, and he felt like he belonged and was doing things right.

Until he lost her, and all the friends he made, from a horrible war. The only survivor in his entire group, he lost everything, and everyone. There was nothing for him, and he told himself that he died right there with them. That he was a walking corpse and a puppet to be used by his superiors. And he was like this for almost 10 years, before meeting my S/I, taking the name Schwann Oltorain and then Raven as well.

'And then, something happened You just came waltzing in Like a warm summer breeze And spring bloomed again And I caught myself smiling For the first time since I don't know when'

When My S/I first met him, It was a small start for a gradual change. He didn't feel happy and better immediately, but there was a warmth to her, something genuine and gentle that soothed him. And he did find himself smiling a few times. Sure, he smiled before during those years, but they weren't genuine. They didn't count, they were smiles to merely placate others. But with my S/I, he felt the few joyous sparks. And even when it was uncomfortable, and he distanced himself, she gently would go to him and wait for him. It was love he hadn't felt in years, since Casey and his old comrades...

'Because of you, because of you How long I've waited for someone like you Say it's true, tell me it's you All my world needed To see it through was you'

I'd be lying to say she was all he needed, as the friends he made along his journey through the game were a major help for his depression, identity crisis, and guilt. But he still needed her. And she needed him, and wanted it so much to be him.

'What is this feeling that's got my heart reeling I'm scaling the walls and I'm pacing the floor I know this desire that's loaded with fire 'Cause it's a fire that's burned me before And I don't know if I have the power to try The last time I did left me battered and bruised I felt my heart die, I've got nothing inside Well, then I guess I've got nothing to lose'

Raven struggled with his feelings for a long time, falling in love with her, and then pushing her away for a while. And while he was her first love, he had fallen in love before. And that woman was Casey, long ago. But it was unrequited, as she loved another and not him as such. But he loved her and held those feelings silently in his heart, and did his best to protect her, if not for himself, then for her and the man she loved. But Casey died, saving him of all people, and even in her sacrifice, he in essence... died.

'I felt my heart die, I've got nothing inside'

This would be the line in the entire thing I'd say describes Raven early on, both figuratively and literally. When he died with his friends, after Casey tried to give him more time with her sacrifice, he was pierced clear through his heart, it being destroyed, and only through magic technology was he resuscitated when he would have rather died with his friends. This was, at the center of it, what left him empty and feeling more corpse than man.

But... through new friends and love, he realized he was someone worth living and loving, and he had everything to still live for.

'I will tear the blinds and let all this light Wash out the hurt and lies I went through I will wave goodbye to sobbing in the night I'm gonna let my life start anew Because of you, because of you'

It wasn't a night and day change. He still struggles with the guilt, and the emptiness, but he works through and despite it, thank in part to my S/I. With her, he starts living again.

Did any of that make sense? Hopefully! Did it properly answer the thing? Also hopefully! Now the next one!

Weiss

'I was lost. I was shattered I was lonely. I was blue In my world full of shadows Covered in cobwebs Draped in gloom'

Before digging into the lyrics, I have to make a note on the vocals. The moments with the soft echos, whispery and soft, I immediately was reminded of Weiss's magic. His magic through written and spoken word, that one hears growing more powerful as Shades are defeated.

Both Weiss and my S/I were lonely individuals, though my S/I felt it more than he. She kept mostly to herself, and didn't feel like she quite belonged with the other people. Meanwhile Weiss's loneliness he stopped feeling. After being Grimoire Weiss for a thousand years, he had forgotten his past, and only knew what he was then. A tome of knowledge and power. But there was little he did, waiting for the purpose of his creation, and he collected dust and slipped in and out of consciousness. Both lived in a world haunted by physical shadows, Shades, but those were merely part of life.

'And then, something happened You just came waltzing in Like a warm summer breeze And spring bloomed again And I caught myself smiling For the first time since I don't know when'

My S/I found him by chance, or perhaps fate, who could say. And it was not long until a connection was made, and it grew between the two. They felt things they didn't know or understand, but were hungry to learn more about, and they felt a joy and love for one another.

'Because of you, because of you How long I've waited for someone like you Say it's true, tell me it's you All my world needed To see it through was you'

Neither were actively waiting for each other, as far as they knew. But it was one of the things that, once it started, then they learned how badly they needed it, and needed each other.

Perhaps this part better suits their relationship, centuries later, or perhaps not. Anyways, either of them really felt this way to another before. Perhaps Weiss did ages past, but if he did, it was no longer known to him.

'I will tear the blinds and let all this light Wash out the hurt and lies I went through I will wave goodbye to sobbing in the night I'm gonna let my life start anew Because of you, because of you'

Weiss, according to an old song, was portrayed as one of two books, and the one to heal and save everyone, and rid the world of darkness. Fitting, though the nature of how he was to save humanity was... not as my S/I or the others thought. Since she and everyone else were (spoilers) not human, but vessels made for human souls that he would help move to them, at the expense of the people who came into existence.

Weiss was willing at the time to turn away from his duty, what he was made for, purely from the knowledge that if he did what he was made to eventually to her, she would be lost. And that enough was too much for him.

Because of you, because of you How long I've waited for someone like you Say it's true, tell me it's you All my world needed To see it through was you How long I've waited for someone like you Say it's true, tell me it's you 'Cause you just came waltzing in from out of the blue Please say, it's you

I add the final refrain, because like the words repeating themselves, is like their feelings for one another growing anew after centuries. Fate, and choices good or bad, tore them apart. Weiss lost his memories of her, and she clung to her memories of him and fell into a cursed sleep, to wait for him.

And he found her again, and even though he did not fully remember, he once again fell in love with her.

Woo, I wrote a lot! Maybe too much? XD It felt like the right amount tho. Thanks if you made it this far! I had a lot of fun.

#answered ask #answered asks #I guess this gives you the rundown of my S/I and Weiss's story huh? XD #and Raven of course I can talk all day about him and his story #seriously if anyone wants me to rant further please tell me to!#all my heart ❤#book's lover ✨✒

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tothedarkdarkseas · 1 year

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do you have any thoughts on writing with noodle or russel's pov/voices?

To my great shame, I have little lived experience to pull from or advice to offer, as I haven't really done it properly. Russ has small but significant appearances (I hope, at least) in Ampersands and Seething Coast, while Noodle has only ever really appeared in Seething Coast; in both instances, I do hope something of their perception of Stuart's unravelling is clear enough, and I hope their voices are somewhat distinct, but in neither case are they the perspective character. And indeed, I did and do have doubts about how well-formed either could possibly be in these limited roles, how unfair it is to make them satellites to Stu or Murdoc (I do have more to say on that, so I'll try to make sense of it below) and how it may be a failing on my part to exclude them entirely or include them errantly.

To say-- I'm probably not the best source of advice! But I'll try explain a bit of my approach, and also what I'd think would be important to consider when writing a character regardless of me being able to back it up, haha.

My approach to the band is a bit unromantic and unsentimental, and though I know it wins no favor to say it, I don't really steer into a found family dynamic within the band, or at least not one that is defined by healing and growth. I see the band as a band, and their interpersonal dynamics as distinct and complicated and often in flux, coming in and out of focus, at times as far inside you as grief can be while at other times seen at a distance. For these reasons, when focusing in so acutely on who Stuart is, was, could have been, I don't always view the Stuart who exists with Murdoc as overlapping with the Stuart he believes himself to be to Russ or Noodle, particularly the latter. If Murdoc represents a permission to be angry, to be bitter, to be hedonistic, to be private and vulgar, Noodle is a window to the very opposite vision of himself; in her seeming light and colour, he is elevated by newly self-imposed responsibility, but tethered by doubt, by guilt and by shame.

I think it is very interesting to explore their connections-- I just don't always see it as relevant to Murdoc and Stu as I write them, which feels very much like a private affair, a sharing of the rope behind closed doors, and not something Russel or Noodle are active participants in, supporters of, or even necessarily objectors to. Not enough to cement a pointed comment made in real action. And I think that's something important to consider when writing them, and something I've perhaps taken the coward's way out of: the loss experienced when turning them into satellites orbiting Stu and Murdoc the way Stu and Murdoc orbit each other. What reason is there to care? If I were giving advice (and again, I'm terribly unqualified to do so) I'd imagine it would be more helpful to consider them independently, what the situation at hand means to them, to their individual experience, to their experience within the band, and finally, what continued participation does to or for them. It does not have to be rational, necessarily; humanity is irrational. Love, if it exists and in whatever form it takes, is irrational. A desire for self, for identity, for stability, for legacy, for status and status quo, for escape, driven not toward but away from grief, from violence, from silence-- these things will not always be rational. I think a relationship is built best when you've finalized a foundation, at least enough so that it will stand on its own.

As for their voices, I feel again very unqualified. The two have appeared at rather solemn or unwell moments in my Stu timeline, meeting him with a compassion he intercepts as pity and then an unrosy eye he fears and rejects, and so neither have the room to show off a strong sense of humor, or speak significantly to experiences independent of Stu's crisis; it's my hope that bits of that come through in the descriptions surrounding, that there is a sense of emotionality, exhaustion, understanding that is not flattering in their behaviours, but that has only a small bearing (if any at all) on finding and writing a voice. I'm sorry, I wish I could be of more help! Broadly speaking, to me the difficult part is indeed finding the voice, and less so following through once you've made it something real and something grounded in yourself. Writing is largely improvising, and different authors create different fulcrum points for the characters to transition into an unfamiliar narrative, particularly when leaning more realistic or more esoteric than this crude, comedic and scattered canon. You can smack me if this is simplistic and dumb, but it may help to write a short introduction of the character to yourself, for private use, and then place a character you're more secure in writing (Murdoc or Stuart) alongside them. Contrast their voices, and consider not who is loudest, but who feels whole. I've found in my own approach that Murdoc and Stuart have the overriding and distinct voices in conversation, they are more entertaining to read and write, yet as people they feel more in need of support, more unwieldy, more self-centered. I don't know if this is an advantage to Russel and Noodle to feel less splintered, as I do also yearn to make them rounded and compelling characters with evident flaws, but it is (perhaps unfortunately) a cohesive and necessary narrative function. There's room for an untidy conversation here, certainly: I'd rather them be characters than brickwork, but I'd also rather every character serve narrative purpose than clutter the frame with separate stories. This is a feature of unique writing styles, I'd hope, and not a bug. There are successful narratives featuring three, four, five diverging storylines following separate characters; it just isn't the style of story I've written thus far, and so I can't say that I'm fit to advise on it.

I'm sorry again that I could not be more helpful! I've always been terrible at giving writing advice, and feel a bit like a poseur trying to do it when I've got so many limits and weaknesses. This is trite and eyeroll-worthy, but my best advice would be to write the sort of story that matters to you and to discover how the characters make that possible: why it matters that it is them and not any face with any name. Ah, sorry again! Good luck to you!

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