#it’s like paper dolls but high tech
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#colored sketch#fat trans fashion#sometimes your friend is struggling with fashion ideas so you sketch a little lad to help out!#it’s like paper dolls but high tech#the shoes are a little iffy but it’s fine#teleport warning draws
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— 𝓓octor's 𝓸rders. ♡ ft. 𝓩ayne from love and deepspace
SYPNOSIS. Curiousity kills the cat. But, there's someone who's just too irresistible to not explore. You dive head first, but ended up getting played by your own trap. Your curious paws dabbled into restricted areas. Ah, so this is what happens to the cat. Doctor Zayne didn't have any time for this. But... He went overtime.
WORD COUNT. 1.1k words
PAIRINGS. Zayne x Reader
WARNINGS. semi-public sex, office, creampie, fingering(f receiving), handjob, kissing, spitting, semi-clothed, p in v sex, no protection (wrap it before you tap it pls), binding of hands (using hands) lmk if there more!
OTHER NOTES. hi :) eenjooyyy
''Are you done? You've been plaguing me like a virus.'' Zayne complains, setting his cardboard clipboard atop the paperwork scattered across his desk. He takes off his stethoscope and places it somewhere far from the mess. ''No.'' You reply shortly, pulling out the chair from the front side of his table. You heard him sigh, making you want to bug him further.
''You're awfully hyper today. You should go bother someone else.'' He said, pressing the power button to turn on his high-tech computer. A digital screen appeared before his eyes, reports flooding his vision. His left hand massaged his temples, finding a way to ease the sudden twinge of pain.
''I'm not hyper. I'm just... Curious.'' He didn't pay you any more attention, his hands scanning the papers stacked on the right side of his desk. ''About what?'' His eyes didn't meet yours, instead, kept busy with the written words on paper. ''What really happened to Angelo's district? I won't believe anything the news says unless it's from you.''
''What does Angelo have to do with you?'' He muttered with a hint of hesitation. He grabbed a pen from a cup, signing away on the mountain of papers. ''He was a good guy, you know.'' ''Is that why his district got terminated?'' You sat up and finally poked the answer out of him. Your eyebrow raised from his quick response, and you didn't seem to understand it.
''Maybe it was his team's fault.'' He frowned, a quiet reply to you. You can't read Zayne. No matter how long you've been friends for, you'll never truly know what's going on in his head. Your eyes catch his stethoscope, an old sticker you lent him before was still stuck onto it, and you smile. You reached over to grab it, but his hands caught yours.
''What are you doing? I told you to go bother someone else, right? Our appointment was over 46 minutes ago.'' He finally locked eyes with you, his brows still furrowed. You swat his hand away, getting your hands on his stethoscope. Your hands made work to tuck your hair behind your ears and put on the two earpieces.
You stride closer to the busy Doctor, the stethoscope in your hand. ''Say... If you were asked how many hearts you listened to, how many would you say?'' You turn his chair to face you, and your hands cage him in his seat. Your free hand finds the rhythm of his heart on his chest, eager to listen to the music playing in his body.
''About a thousand now.'' He says under his breath, letting you do your experiment on his body. ''I'm not a practice doll.'' A piece of hair falls in front of your eye, but Zayne takes it and tucks it behind your ear. His hand rested on your cheek, and a heartbeat played in your ears as his fingers rubbed shapes on your skin.
''Do you hear it?'' He asked, and you nodded, the calm serenade of his heart made yours sync up to his. ''Of course, I do.'' The hand on your cheek pulled one earpiece out, and he leaned into your ear. ''Do you hear how much it's yearning for you?'' Your hands shook on his chest, but his hand trapped yours, keeping it steady. ''Behave, Doctor.'' He whispers, placing a kiss on the bottom of your ear.
You crawl into his lap, longing to be closer to him, as if your hearts were magnetized to each other. You bury your face into the crook of his neck, your hands still remaining on his chest, raising up and down, matching the tempo of your rigid breathing.
His hand let go of yours, traveling under your shirt, finding your heart like you found his. Your warm skin contrasted to his cold temperature, a small flinch from the small contact. He laid his palm onto your chest, feeling your heart through his hand. ''Are you nervous?'' He asked, and you frowned. ''Stop asking me stupid questions.'' You reply, and he chuckles.
His other hand swiftly unbuttoned your shirt, and while you tried to take off the stethoscope, he stopped you. ''Keep it on.''
Luckily, you didn't wear anything troublesome today. He took off your pants and your shirt, keeping your undergarments on. ''Still inspecting me?'' You mock him, but his hands travel across your body, teasing you back. ''I have to make sure all patients are healthy.'' You cringe at his words, but you smile at his attempt at flirting.
His hand tugged on your panties, setting it aside to gain access to your wet cunt. You nestled your head deeper in the crook of his neck, the air getting warmer by the second.
You let out a whimper when his cold hands massaged your needy clit, rubbing circles on it while you tremble for him. Your hearts are practically touching each other now, your chest against his. ''Zayne...'' Your hand paws at the zipper of his slacks, pulling down his boxers to let his cock spring free. You spit on your hand, putting work into pleasuring him too.
He lets out a small groan, he can feel your clit twitch, while he holds you tighter to his chest, making you feel his heart race for you. He slides two fingers inside you with ease, immediately getting coated with your arousal. You moan at the curl of his fingers, withering by the second.
''Zayne!'' You try to keep your voice down, while his hand continues its assault on your pussy. ''Fucking beautiful.'' Your hole tightens from the crisp sound of Zayne cursing in your ear. His hot breath tickled your ear, inching you closer to cumming on his fingers. Your hands were still on his cock, making sure you two cum together. ''Cum for me.'' He said.
You close your eyes in anticipation, your orgasm creeping closer and closer until you let go. You let out heavy breaths, your body tired from the pleasure waving your body. His hands grabbed your waist, slamming you on his desk. He took the stethoscope from your ears and put it on himself. He rubs his cock on your cunt, teasing your entrance.
''Can I?'' He asks, and you moan in desperation, taking it as consent. He pushes himself in, feeling the tightness and the wet coat of your arousal around his cock. He takes both of your arms and places them above your head, locking them both as makeshift handcuffs. His free hand places the stethoscope on your chest, listening to the fast beat of your heart.
You were a moaning mess, not caring enough to notice the stethoscope on your chest. ''Zayne.. I'm close!'' You warn him, and he whispered in your ear, ''Cum for me, pretty girl. Let me hear you scream for me.'' You whimper loudly, a new wave of overstimulation washing over your senses as you cum on his cock, soon following you.
''Come visit me more often. You know where to find me.'' He says.
:D ‧₊˚ ⋅ fusaes 2024 do not copy
#ㅤ ૮꒰ྀི∩´ ᵕ `∩꒱ྀི ⟢ 𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐃﹒ㅤ#@fusaes#love and deepspace#love and deepcpace x listener#loveanddeepspace#love and deepspace zayne#zayne#zayne love and deepspace#lads zayne#zayne smut#love and deepspace x reader#love & deepspace#love & deepsace x reader#zayne x reader#Zayne love & deepspace
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Throwing in some headcanons for the season 1 Archive gang
(As always, these are just silly goofy fun, not meant to invalidate anyone's characterization of the archive folks, we're in season 3 so if any of these contradict with canon, it's probably bc of that or memory failing us/personal preference sooooo, lesgo)
cw: alcohol (very lightly mentioned) and spiders
Jon:
-Jon tends to wander when drunk, it's a good idea to keep an eye on him. He's gotten lost in campus during his college days but always comes back unharmed (somehow).
-He thought his grandmother made up grass allergies to keep him from getting into dangerous places as a kid but his family has a genetic grass allergy, nothing fatal but recently cut grass does make him v itchy when it touches bare skin.
-He uses pen grips, i think he's developing arthritis so he owns some comfortable rubber ones. There are a few bite marks on em, but if you confront him he will gaslight you
-Jon's bones also crack very easily, when he gets up you can hear it. It gets worse throughout the seasons
-Jon uses transparent nail polish. He started doing it to avoid nail biting but started the habit of chipping it off. In college he wore colored nail polish but he ditched bc he doesn't consider it v professional on himself.
-He's a responsible sunscreen user, he applies it whenever he needs to be outside but he uses a regular drugstore one since i don't think he believes in skincare being a thing. IN THE SAME VEIN: he doesn't think that body wash works, he only believes in soap.
-He had a bowlcut as a kid.
-He gets shorter by 1 inch per season.
-Jon, even though very good with tech, prefers to do things on paper because he likes the feeling. He prefers pencils over pens, but uses pens because they are more professional
-Jon would love smash burgers, i'm not giving more context.
Sasha:
-Sash started training a couple years ago to improve her posture (she tended to go shrimp while doing deskwork) and now she could crush a lemon with a single hand. She and Tim go to the gym sometimes and she can lift way more than him
-To counteract the smash burger hc above, she would love Shake Shack.
-She's scored pretty high on IQ tests every time she has to take them but she doesn't believe in their validity.
-She used to go spelunking on internet forums a lot.
-I think she would have enjoyed well planned ARGs and things that involved solving mysteries before it became her full-time job to deal with horrors.
-Sasha owns comfy shoes she wears in the office. Wearing heels during a whole workday isn't worth it and she knows this.
-Shes a bit of a stationary fan, she would have all of the really nice highlighters and notebooks
-She chews her lips pretty often, especially when she wears nice chap sticks
-She likes furbies.
Tim:
-He hates furbies and dolls, truth be told it is more fear than hatred.
-He's been on commercials as a kid at least once. Somewhere on youtube there's a bubblegum commercial with a preteen Tim on it and Jon found it while looking for background info about nearly everyone in the archives in season 2.
-Tim has a small collection of fucked up Rubik cubes. He has a knack for solving them, the more alien-looking, the better. He finds solving puzzles stimulating but also gets fed up with them easily. Having something to do with his hands helps him think.
-He's an excellent draftsman, took an art course pre college and he indulges in it every now and then. He has no issues with people looking through his sketchbooks and all of the building facade sketches he has there. He's the kinda guy to sketch random people he sees in public and all of the archives gang has been drawn by him before
-He would love cockatiels, but he doesn't own any animals. He birdwatches quite a bit and has books/a special sketchbook just for birds/landscapes. He also purple columbine flowers, even though he is really bad with plants. He's foraged before but he ended up in emergency care bc he fucked with something he shouldn't have XD
-Tim got his tongue pierced some time ago, it suits him well.
-Will absolutely WRECK you in karaoke and then act like he isn't that good after (he was a theater kid)
-He's the most seasoned traveler among everyone in the archives. Tim's ideal vacay would be going around the world
-He would have enjoyed streaming games as a hobby (am i bringing up Mike LeBeau? probably. In a different world we would have Tim playing The Sims 2 with all of the mods on Twitch). He's also had pink hair before!!
Martin:
-He's a bit of a polyglot to me (so far The Eye makes you understand other languages but it doesn't give you proficency over them! That's all his own talent)
-Mart's worked at a blu-ray rental before the Institute. He came out of that job decently well-versed in 80's-90's movies. He's the opposite of a film snob and probably loves The Princess Bride and other bangers
-Martin's the kind of person that would cut an apple for you but he'd eat a tangerine with the rind on without hesitating. After you have a fight with him he brings you cut fruits and crackers
-He also writes prose and has finished nanowrimo during company time.
-Martin wears graphic tees under shirts under sweaters at work, but for very nerdy and obscure things
-Martin does the little dinosaur hand things often when he is walking, heh
-He's kept house spiders in glass jars with little holes and fed them bugs. Many of those spiders gave birth inside those jars. He's moved places a couple times as a kid so he's probably responsible of scaring a landlord or two by greeting them with a roomful of spider jars (and it was deserved).
-Martin owns tea pets!! He shares a cuppa with them every now n then
#mox post#sam post#hehe#THE SILLY LITTLE MAGNUS GANGUS#CAN YOU TELL WHO OUR FAVS ARE LMFAAAOOO#the magnus archives#the magnus archives hcs#timothy stoker#martin blackwood#jonathan sims#sasha james#THE SILLIES
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TMAGP1
oh man this music is fucking wild!! was that a big deep laugh? :D this is the happiest i have felt in months
it's literally like 'dun dun DUN' this is awesome
Audio sounds like it's coming from inside da computer. That's fun.
NO SUCH THING AS BONES (i knew big milk wasn't to be trusted)
fuck me everyone is so british. I forgot that listening to this podcast means being subjected to a thousand different accents that all sound like they come from Narnia.
Ugggh six in the morning goodbye party? This workplace is already worse than the Institute.
Colin's already fucking desperate to escape <3 there's always one. Good luck buddy.
There's too many voices to keep track of! I'm already getting Alice and Gwen confused.
They're going to the pub?? Didn't they just say it was six in the morning? Aren't they at work?
YOOO I WAS RIGHT WE ARE IN DA COMPUTER. Haha it turn itself on like a tape recorder. 💅 girlboss behaviour.
Oh I wonder why they can't do their paperwork online?? Probably not because of spooky reasons.
Wow a personal computer! High tech. Freddie lives inside. :D
Woah wait wtf?? Freddie is spyware??
Yeah Sam what about GDPR? Shut up and read this private email that an ancient computer program no one understands somehow found and stole for us.
Um?? Do they have a big alphabetised folder of Fucked Shit The Entities Do???
So many numbers are happening so quickly. Good luck transcribers/wiki editors.
Oh hang on 'All night every night', they work nights!! That's why the party was first thing in the morning and they all went to the pub afterward!! I'm so good at listening to podcasts.
MARTI N VOICE MATRIN VIOCE WMATIN VOICE!!! HE LIVE IN DA COMPUTER!!
Started about a year ago 👀
Haha gotta listen while he reads the email. This is normal :)
LOL they just ignore it and get coffee. Big mood, that's exactly what I would do if I was at work and my computer was fucking around.
NORRIS CHESTER AND AUGUSTUS
That's not their names :)
Also the stupidest fucking names ever. Alice rules.
Martin voice 🥰🥺😭🥰🥺😭🥰😭🥺 Martin my beloved. I hope he's okay inside da computer. Wonder if Colin smashing it with a hammer would crack him outta there??
Oh no my love for Martin made me forget that the horrors are back.
Hmm his voice is getting less computer and more Martin? Good thing??
Ugh why do we always have to start with Stranger statements? I hate the Stranger. Also Sam was wrong this is definitely dolls comma human skin not dolls comma watching.
Girl there is something in your garden gtfo of there.
Hurray we survived our first horror!! H definitely didn't.
Gwen is right this isn't zombies. Also three pages of subclassification for zombies? The archives couldn't even figure out how to put their dates in the right order.
Love how few fucks Alice gives. This job doesn't matter!! Welcome to the team!!
Ooooh Gwen's is trouble...
Oh shit she's gunning for the boss's job! Second girlboss moment of the episode!
Lol get pranked Sam. Alice set you the fuck up.
Sounds like a webcam is watching them?
Colin is my favourite character so far.
Sounds like Lena's deliberately hiring people who do a shit job (and Gwen's mad about it). Wonder what Lena's up to.
Tragic backstory time already? (Nope, false alarm)
Who needs sleep when you can have creepy monotomous data entry?
JON VOICE JON VOIEC JON CVOICE !!! 🥰🥺😭🥺🥰😭🥰😭😭 (i missed him)
Magnus Institute ruins you say???
'Anyone know what the deal is with the Magnus Institute?' Nope, never heard of it.
Oh I'm loving the new format of statements. Really scratches that 'found footage' itch.
For some unknown reason, I've been feeling really paranoid ever since escaping this evil eye building (that reminds me of an old asylum) full of strange shit that I couldn't take photos of.
CLEARLY WHAT USED TO BE A MASSIVE LIBRARY OR ARCHIVE IN THE BASEMENT
All the paper is gone? Graham Folger has been here.
Oh the removed image and then hearing the comments about it is so good!! Jonny's done it again lol. This is why I love found footage as a horror device.
Hmmm sounds like we're at the pub now. And we got that dial up noise? What are we listening from right now?
YO SAM AND ALICE EXES
It's good to establish right from the beginning that one of our protagonists is a noodle-armed weakling. The fandom would have done that work on our own I'm sure, but having canon backup is always gratifying.
Uh oh Colin's losing his mind.
Ominous music time!!!
THE MAGNUS PROTOCOL IS A PODCAST MOTHERFUCKERS.
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Institutions for Failed Persons part 1
Your life has just been fuck up after fuck up. You had so much potential. You were labeled ‘gifted’ in school.
Then the mental illness began to creep in. All the traumas, some that you considered ‘minor’ began eat at you
Despite things getting worse and worse in your diseased brain you made it through college, but just barely. Equipped with a ‘useless’ degree you found yourself working entry level job after entry level job, most never lasting more than a year.
The student debt just grew, but you were always poor enough they were never collected on it. Then more and more debts started adding up due to expensive fuck ups and legal troubles. The institutions you were now in debt to weren’t going to be so patient in collecting now.
Worsening mental health led to even more destructive coping mechanisms. Relationships became like your jobs, never lasting more than a year. No one wants to stay with someone as fucked up as you.
You began to change from shitty job to shitty job like you change your clothes.
Finally one day you realized you were going to be homeless. Even the small number of people who cared about you left as your toxicity became unbearable.
A year ago when you first heard about laws allowing for “Institutes for Failed Persons” you shuddered at the thought.
It was the epitome of late stage capitalism. Allowing institutions to take custody of people, letting those struggling most to sign away their rights as a human being, in exchange for all their debts, legal troubles, food, medicine and housing being taken care of was terrible.
Yet there you stood, at the precipice of one of these institutions, ready to sign away any rights you had left.
You had thought about giving yourself to a drone conversion center. As cool and high tech as they were, you were worried about completely losing your personality.
Age regression clinics were right out. You hated being a kid at the best of times. Even if it was better than your experience as a kid, or maybe even reparative, the idea was off the table.
That left you with the Institute for Human Animals.
Unless those rumors about witches in the woods with their dolls were true, which how could they be, becoming a human pet was the only appealing option available.
The lobby of the facility looked far nicer than expected, and the cheery receptionist greeted you with care.
“Our facility has multiple units of care. If you sign up you’ll be on our acclimation ward. There are certain procedures we find that make the process of becoming a good pet easier.” The receptionist kindly explained while going over the reams of papers you had to fill out.
“Then you’ll proceed to one of our training wards. Once we determine what pet you’re most suited to be, you will be placed with other pets like yourself. If needed, we can transfer you to a specialist facility for more exotic pets at this stage.”
The existence of exotic human pets never even occurred to you. The sheer scope of how large and complex these facilities had become in such a short time was dawning on you.
“There are different stages of training, but eventually you’ll move up to our adoption ward.”
You began to question what they meant by adoption. Would you be someone’s lap dog or house cat for the rest of your life? Was that your ultimate fate?
“Not everyone becomes a house pet, some go to farms, some to human animal zoos, some will be used for research.”
“We actually have our own research division here, so you wouldn’t even need to leave the premises should that be your path.” Your mind continued to try to come to grips with how far reaching this all was. Could you end up as a literal lab rat?
“There is also the acute care unit. At any point should you become disobedient or reject this program, you will be sent there until you are deemed fit to continue.” The receptionist's cheery demeanor became abruptly serious.
“You don’t want to end up on that ward.”
“Once you give me your paperwork, and sign the final form, there is no going back. Even if you escape, you will be arrested and brought back here. If things are bad enough, you’ll end up on an acute research ward. There, your health and wellbeing are not a concern.”
“Even if you are on the acute ward your health and safety are paramount. Our goal is to make healthy, obedient, and happy animals. The acute researchers don't care about any of that, you would just be a subject. Some experiments even require the subjects to be sacrificed at the end”
“As long as you're compliant with the program you’ll stay off the acute unit. Our research unit will treat you as well as any of our other pets, our acute researchers won’t. Is this all understood?” You hesitate for a moment. The final document to sign is given to you.
Your hand hovers above the form. The finality of this decision is not lost on you. The receptionist places a hand on your leg.
“If you have any questions now is the time to ask. If you want to leave and think about this you are free to do so.” You freeze up, and disassociate.
Finally, the one thing you care about comes to mind.
“You won’t detransition me here will you. I’ll still get my hormones right?”
“Of course, our transgender pets are some of our most in demand pets. That is something we will never take from you.”
You weren’t expecting it, but you had just found a safe haven to protect you from all the fucked up laws that have been being passed left and right. Without a word you sign the paper.
“Wonderful, I think you made the right decision. Congratulations on no longer being a person!”
A nurse arrived and escorted you to your room. They reassured you that everything will be ok, and you can finally leave behind all those terrible things that tormented you outside.
Your room was sterile and minimal. Just a bed and bathroom.
“We’re going to give you some meds and you’ll spend most of your first week here asleep. That’s step one. You only need to worry about three things: food, sleep, and obedience.”
She laid you down, took a syringe out of her scrubs, and injected you.
“Good night sweet pet.”
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Flash Was Killed Because It Was Objectively Dangerous
I get it, I get the Flash nostalgia and the fondness for old Flash games. I was big on Neopets before they decided to ruin the art and make all the pets samey paper dolls to play dressup with (completely ruining the point of the far more expensive "redraw" colors like Mutant and Faerie and Desert). I have fond memories of Newgrounds games and I even managed to take a class for a semester in high school where I could learn flash.
But I also remember how terrible it was. And you should too.
Leaving aside all of the issues involving performance and inaccessibility (such as being easily broken by bog-standard browser actions like the back button, and its ability to modify web code AND OS code in real time likely broke a lot of accessibility tech too), Flash was legitimately one of the most dangerous web technologies for the end user. An end-user is you, or more specifically back then, child-you.
According to Wikipedia and its sources, Flash Player has over a thousand vulnerabilities known and listed and over 800 of these lead to arbitrary code execution.
What is arbitrary code execution? That's when someone can just run any commands they want on a machine or program that didn't intend it. A fun way to see this is in this infamous Pokemon tool-assisted speedrun where they manage to get an SNES to show the host's twitch chat in real time. It's not so fun though when it's someone stealing all the files on your computer, grabbing your credentials so they could clean out your Neopets account (yes, really, it was a pretty common concern at the time), and other nefarious works. Also, there was a time where it allowed people to spy on you with your webcam and microphone.
Oh and on top of all of this, Flash had its own "flash cookies", which could not be cleared by ordinary means and thus could be used to track users indefinitely, at least until Adobe slapped a bandaid over it by introducing yet another screen an ordinary person wouldn't know to use. (I assume this is how the infamous neopets "cookie grabbers" worked, so they could get into your account. This is mainly what I remember about using Flash back in the early 2000s lol) So it not only was a "stranger taking over your machine" concern, but a bog-standard privacy concern too, arguably a precursor to our current panopticon internet landscape, where greedy websites would track you because they could and maybe get some money out of it, facilitated by this technology.
When Apple decided to block it, it wasn't out of greed; Steve Jobs cited its abysmal performance and security record, among other issues such as an inherent lack of touchscreen support, and Apple cited specific vulnerability use-cases when blocking specific versions before they nuked it entirely. When Mozilla, who makes Firefox, decided to block it, it's not like they would've gotten money out of doing so, or by offering an alternative; they did so because it is fucking dangerous.
Your ire and nostalgia is misplaced. Flash was not killed by our current shitty web practices that ruin unique spaces and fun games. Flash was killed because both Macromedia (its original developers) and Adobe were incapable of making it safe, if that was even possible, and it was killed after third-parties, in an unprecedented gesture, collectively threw their hands up and said enough.
Well, that and HTML5 being developed and becoming more widespread, being able to do everything Flash can do without being a pox on technology. One could argue that you should bemoan the lack of Flash-to-HTML5 conversion efforts, but that requires asking a lot of effort of people who would have to do that shit for free...and if they have to run Flash to do so, opening themselves up to some of the nastiest exploits on the internet.
Nostalgia is a fucking liar. The games themselves I think are worth having nostalgia over (look, I still find myself pining for that one bullet hell Neopets made and Hannah and the Pirate Caves), but Flash itself deserves none of that, and absolutely deserved to be put in the fucking ground. You're blaming the wrong causes. It was terrible.
(specifics and sources found via its wikipedia page, which has a lot more than is mentioned here. and also my own opinions and experiences back then. lol)
#flash#nostalgia really is a liar#don't trust it#technology#yet another instance of my unfettered autism#adobe flash#macromedia flash#the old web#I was there gandalf three thousand years ago lmao#personal context: I am now a software QA that tests web apps#and when I was a child I was absolutely a neopets addict and am on Subeta TO THIS DAY#I learned HTML and CSS when I was 12#largely to spruce up my Neopets profile#I have been on the internet A While now#(I understand how ironic it is given that my tumblr layout is kind of shit; I will fix it soon)
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My Adata HD330 2TB External Hard Disk Drive Review (with my Paper Dolls) - Part 2 [May 11, 2022]
Hello! This is Part 2 of my new item review, the Adata HD330 External Hard Disk Drive (with my paper dolls).😁
In this part, I'm going to show ya my comparison between my recent external hard drive (on the left) & my old broken one (on the right) is my Western Digital My Passport Essential 500GB.
But before that: I would like to apologize for the long delay. My parents are busying extending our house to make more space 🏠🔨, plus the voting election in my country 🇵🇭🗳️, and of course... Umm... I felt emotional & depressed. The latter was the concern of my 160GB (3.5 inch) hard disk drive's life that was on the line 😟 because I made a dumb decision when I disassemble it & see what's the problem via following instructions without my knowledge about the hard disk drive. That 160GB HDD contains my artworks 🎨🖌️, photos 🖼️ & other files 📁 that are my precious memories from 2016 & beyond, and I can't retrieve them anymore. So, I REALLY NEED to find a good professional disk recovery store to save my files, but it'll be very expensive to pay & I don't have enough money. I guess, I DO REALLY NEED a job to earn my profits. *sigh* Without my precious files, there will be no... ME. And my life will be a downward spiral of depression.😔
Anyway, back to my topic... If you haven't seen my previous part, then please [CLICK ME!].
So, without further ado, let's get started:
1st & 2nd Image(s) ↑:
• [1st Image] As I said in my intro, you're looking at my two external hard disk drives. Despite the design & look, my Adata HD330 is taller than my old WD (short for Western Digital).
• [2nd Image] Another thing was the HD330 had shock & drop proof with built-in silicon case around the plastic shell case & also the interior 2.5 inch HDD, though I still need to buy a rugged hard case for extra protection. Whereas my old WD My Password Essential has nothing but four rubber pads on the back.
Little story 📖: My former BF actually purchased this Western Digital external HDD at the local tech store for me as a token of our friendship, and I was very surprised back then when I was in my high school days. *Sigh* 😌 Memories, I would never forget that moment.
3rd to 6th Image(s) ↑:
• Here are their side to side comparison, sandwich style.
• [5th Image (left)] On my old WD external hard drive, you may notice that there's a tiny hole on the left side. That's the light indicator when plugging the Micro-B USB port through the computer via cable.
• [6th Image (right)] And speaking of ports, both Adata HD330 & (old) WD My Passport Essential are sporting USB Micro-B 3.0 port. Well, actually 3.2 gen 1 port for the Adata HD330, meaning it's far superior port than the old 3.0 variant. (Well, I think) It'll be awesome if the HD330 will be sporting the USB type C cable for a modern look & less hassle plugging than the irreversible USB Micro-B. (Just suggesting)
7th & 8th Image(s) ↑:
• [7th Image] Finally, their USB Micro-B 3.0 cables. On the left is from Adata HD330 & on the right is from WD My Passport Essential, which shows up aging from rust on the USB type-A male, but the male Micro-B was surprisingly quite intact & shine.
• [8th Image] On top of that, the old USB Micro-B cable 3.0 is longer than Adata's short-length cable. Also, that cable strap remains wrapped around, to this day.
9th & 10th Image(s) ↑ [without flash for no. 10th]:
• My paper dolls said that these two external HDs are both blue! 💙Well yeah, of course not because I love blue, duh.😊 One is brand new & the other was very old, due to the signing age of fading WD logo on the front, scratch surface, etc. Not to mention not very functional, and hoping it will revive my old one (hoping my old files remain intact without a single corrupt), anytime soon. As soon as I want the 160GB hard drive will be an attempt to save it first (if possible).🤞😟
Overall:
• Well, nothing new. But, I would say it was a pretty good short comparison between my two existing portable/external HD (not High Definition) or HDD. 🙂👍
• Right now, I have nothing to transfer my files for my next & final part. 😟 So, I'm not sure if I could finish this topic this month (May) or not. But, here's hoping that I will find the way while my 160GB HD is putting in rest mode.
Well, that’s all for now. If you want to see my previous topic from March, as well as my current topic from April, then I’ll provide some links down below.↓😉
My Oria 120 in 1 Screwdriver Set Review:
• Part 1 [Mar 15, 2022]
• Part 2 (Final) [Mar 19, 2022]
My Adata HD330 (2TB) External HDD Review:
• Part 1 [Apr 12, 2022]
Tagged: @bryan360, @lordromulus90, @carmenramcat, @gibsonfreak49, @leapant, @alexander1301
#My Photos#My Photo#MyPhotos#MyPhoto#Photos#Photo#Chowder#Panini#Chowder Panini#Paper Dolls#Adata#Adata HD330#Western Digital#Western Digital My Passport Essential#Memory#Device#Hard Disk#Hard Disk Drive#HDD#External#External Hard Disk#External Hard Disk Drive#External HDD#Photography
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You’re safe, sweetheart
Bad Batch x Reader • They/Them Reader • SFW/smol angst • Utility!Reader
Requested by: @labonesy
Late. Fuck. I’m late and I’m going to get my ass handed to me. Y/N sighs quickly gathered their things shoving most of it in a duffle bag, zipping it up and running out of their apartment on Coruscant.
You’d think working for the republic you’d get something bigger than a shoebox but, nothing is ever perfect.
“Hey! I was coming to get you! Tech is impatient”
“FUCK OFF. HOW DO YOU KNOW WHERE I LIVE?!” Y/N yells out of stress and annoyance as Crosshair laughs a bit grabbing them by the collar bringing his lips to their ear.
“May I remind you of that one night at 79’s?” Crosshair smirks watching them melt to the delivery of his words before getting shoved off.
“NO” Y/N snaps quickly collecting themselves and power walking beside Crosshair on their way to the hanger of the republic base.
Crosshair quickly noticed how ahead he got after reaching a point, making him turn back to find them waiting at the side walk.
“Come on doll face. What happened to your eagerness?”
“Uhm. Shut up”
Y/N frowns wishing they had to deal with this by themselves but the odds weren’t in their favor.
“Doll?” He walks back to them, seeing the blank staring toward the ground as he swiftly removes their duffle and slung it over his shoulder before taking their hand into his. “I’ve gotcha, come on”
He’s only going to be this nice without any of his brothers around, I’m going to mentally drown with all of them Y/N sighs walking hand in hand with Crosshair as he felt them squeeze tighter reaching the middle of the road, slowly relaxing when they reached the other side. He took a mental note of that and didn’t want to let go until they got to the hanger.
“You’re late”
“Can it four eyes” Crosshair snaps suddenly while releasing Y/N’s hand carrying their stuff aboard.
“Hm. Well then. Are you ready?”
“As I’ll ever be” Y/N sighs coming aboard the ship as Tech does one more check before following in suit.
“You have the rundown of the mission?”
“We’re going after someone who is high-risk, they want us to capture them to bring back to Courscant. Should be a pretty easy job”
“Your definition of easy isn’t the same to us regulars” Y/N states receiving an eye roll from Wrecker followed by a laugh.
“We’ll be safe, okay? You’ll be safe” Hunter reassures gently tapping the tip of their nose on his way to the bunks. Y/N couldn’t help but blush to that.
Once it came around time for the rotations, Echo shifted awake to find Y/N fully awake in Tech’s bunk alone having their small reading light shine what seems to be a textbook and their notepad.
“Cyare”
Y/N didn’t hear him. Echo didn’t have his legs on and didn’t want to get up just to tap on them. So the closet option. They flinch to the pillow hitting the wall harshly, ultimately making Echo regret said decision to get their attention.
“What?”
“Shouldn’t you be sleeping?”
“Yeah?”
“Then why aren’t you?” Echo props himself up with his scomp, getting too used to the metal digging a bit into the side of his head. “What are you even doing?”
“Studying to renew my piloting license” Y/N frowns moving the textbook only to lift another. “And brushing up on how to repair difficult injuries in the field”
“Cyare, why are you taking care of this now? Well. I know the answer to that generally speaking but…yknow”
“Tech won’t let me fly, so my license is just a piece of paper that’ll need to be renewed with a written test. Or if the GAR wants to really throw me in the ringer, an actual flight test. Then with the repairs, Wrecker and Crosshair are the most stubborn when letting regulars take care of them or medical droids so if I re-learn a few things? I’ll be able to take care of it myself and since I have granted access to most supplies, more importantly the medical supplies, I can carry what I most likely need to take care of everybody…” Saying out loud never makes it easier. Y/N carefully collects everything of theirs then jumped off the bunk, setting the stuff on their bag. “Can I join you?”
Echo instantly moves over in his bunk pulling the blanket open for Y/N to slot themselves perfectly in the open spot. He gently covers them letting them get comfortable before pulling Y/N into his embrace. Being held by Echo always made them feel better.
When Tech came to snuggle with Y/N in his bunk and have Echo take the next shift, is when he noticed them on the other side of Echo with his back facing the others.
“You took my cuddles”
“Shh. Shut up”
“It’s your tu—-“
“Shhh” Echo shushed Tech seeing as Y/N finally fell asleep. “Have Crosshair go”
Tech sighs before suddenly kicking the sniper’s bed to wake him up. Crosshair flinched harshly grabbing the nearest thing as a weapon, in this case one of Echo’s legs, before seeing his annoyed smartass of a brother looking down on him.
“What”
“You’re next”
“I thought it was Echo”
“Y/N fell asleep in his arms”
“Bastard” Crosshair groans setting the leg down as Tech climbed to his bunk while the sniper got up stretching his back and glaring at the back of Echo’s head. “Ass”
The mission came and took a turn for the worse, Y/N didn’t expect to be chasing the intel through the streets of Pantora. Crosshair did his best to follow their lead from the roof tops with Hunter and Wrecker hurrying their way to the scene.
“Tech hurry up and get the ship to their location to cut them off”
“I’m on it.” Tech states over the comma working as fast as he could with Echo helping get everything warmed up.
“Y/N, they’re heading into traffic. You have to be careful. Some speeders can’t tell how low they’ll go”
“I-Uh. Okay” They frown hurrying themselves to avoid entering such an environment, it was unavoidable.
Everything turned for the worse and Y/N didn’t expect to be less into traffic, let alone get knocked out by a couple of speeders. And yes. A fleet of speeders going through the transport district at full speed and few went over the limit. It was just grazing for the most part, then the two that actually crashed into them.
You’re a fucking idiot
They’re the fastest out of all of us on foot. They’re trained for these scenarios. I didn’t calculate this outcome
Being fucking unconscious in a tub of bacta? Yeah maybe you should’ve given they’re not like us. They can’t handle certain injuries like we can.
But not even we can, Wrecker is proof of that.
Can we not argue while they’re recovering? Let’s go back to Courscant and help with the interrogation. They’ll most likely be awake when we return to Kamino.
But their partner had other plans.
Y/N woke up three days after the batch had left for Courscant, alone in a bath of bacta that made their skin crawl when trying to get out. Their legs felt like jelly trying to walk out of the medbay already exposed wearing shorts and a tank top. With the obvious spots bandaged and unhealed “leaving uncovered to let it air out” type wounds. How did they make it to the private barracks on Kamino without a single soul finding them? Or even bothering looking at the missing patient in the medbay? The medical clearance our utility player holds with their medical license. Making their face well-known and left not suspicious to many…
Plus the empty hallways leading to the private barracks was a bonus. Given the injuries.
After patching up their open wounds with heavy bandages and slowly getting their jumpsuit on with their boots, Y/N made their way to one of the private hangers for the flight test mentioned earlier to Echo. Their anxiety caused them to wake up early because they couldn’t miss it. They just had to keep standing and awake long enough.
Little did they know that the batch was flying in that night and going to check up on them.
“They’re most likely still sleeping. Bacta works differently on—“
“Humans. We understand that. No need to repeat it every time Y/N gets themselves in a bath”
“This is only the second time Crosshair, and we weren’t there for the first” Echo reminds the sniper as the only other time, Y/N was a trainee and got in the middle of a fight between Jedi and droids during a mission with the 501st.
“I don’t think we’ll be keeping them company boys” Hunter alerts the four behind him with the obvious scene of no Y/N and bacta foot prints around the tub. “Hm…”
“What?” Wrecker knows that look on his face, Hunter took a second to himself before getting a sense of where they’re at.
Y/N sat on the bench waiting for another pilot to return with the shuttle for the license renewal as they kept holding their shoulder taking deep breaths. They didn’t say anything when Hunter decided to sit beside them with the rest of the crew waiting inside the facility.
“You really think you can hide away from me, love?”
They shook their head squeezing their left shoulder with their right hand as they struggled to take the next breath.
“You can always renew this later, and Tech promised to let you co-pilot instead of Echo to keep you from getting rusty”
Y/N groans.
“Hey, we’ll try to get him to let you be main. It’ll take some convincing but he keeps saying it’s his ship” Hunter laughs, relaxing his body when Y/N rest their head on his shoulder trying to contain the tears that fell. “You really have to stop over-working yourself during your recovery. Stubborn just like the rest of us. But we need you just as much as you need us. So let’s go back to the medbay okay?”
Y/N nods and moves back to sitting up for Hunter to stand. Before he got far, they reached for his hand and made him stop.
“I can carry you if you want” Hunter smiles, Y/N shakes their head holding their hand out for him. “Okay love” he carefully took their hand helping them to their feet and held their hand the entire way back to the medbay.
The batch never left their side the rest of the time they were in the medbay. Tech kept checking everything the medical droid checked and Y/N liked watching him work even if he shouldn’t double check the droid’s work or it’ll trigger the medical personnel.
Once Y/N got moved to a bed and no longer having the stay in the bacta, just needs a few more days observation. Some batchers went back to their quarters and took shifts. Tech staying most of the time and sitting beside their bed working on something during the time or watching them carefully.
Y/N shifted in their sleep, triggering Tech as he watches them move away from their pillow. Him thinking it was causing discomfort and decided to get a new pillow for them. But as he was trying to be subtle in switching them, he felt Y/N’s hand push his chest a bit.
“Sorry I didn’t mean to wake you. You looked uncomfortable and I was trying to fix what I thought the problem was.”
“…ok” They moved their hand under his chest plate causing his face to heat up.
“Y/N I—-“ Tech stopped when they removed his chest plate with a click and shifted a bit to the side in the small medical bed. “Oh…OH”
“Silly” Y/N rolls their eyes sitting up slowly and waiting for him to remove the rest of his armor as he did a moment after they removed the chest piece.
Tech, finally down to his blacks maneuvered himself to lay beside Y/N on the bed back hitting the bed. Watching as they get comfortable laying on his chest moving the blanket to cover both of the.
“I’ll stay till morning, okay?”
“Mhm” Y/N instantly going back to sleep as they were now comfortable being in his embrace.
In fact they both were super comfortable that it took Crosshair waking them both later than Tech had expected, so that he could get up and out before the medical personnel came to do Y/N’s discharge check.
When it took time to head out with Y/N to bring them back to Courscant, Wrecker did one last thing with the medic before they left Kamino.
“Close your eyes!”
“Okay?”
“Don’t you trust me???” Wrecker gave them the puppy dog eyes as Y/N glares for just a second before smiling and finally closing their eyes. “Yes!” He gently took their hands to guide them where he wants them to be.
It didn’t take long for Y/N to realize that they’re outside. But then it really hit them. Literally.
“Okay! Open!” Wrecker smiles as he’s been planning for a rainy day on Kamino because all he wants to see is…
Y/N light up after a rough week, enjoying the rain falling on their cheeks. Soaking their hair instantly. They love the rain and love spending this time even more with Wrecker.
“How’d you know it was going to rain?”
“It always rains on Kamino!”
“Wrecker…”
“Fine fine. Tech helped me out…” Wrecker playfully pouts as Y/N brought themselves closer, close enough for him to rest his hands on their waist. “Still though…perfect right?”
“Every moment with you is perfect, big guy” Y/N smiles standing on their tippy toes, eventually getting picked up as he finished the connect pressing his lips against theirs.
Just a small moment with their brute…
Now back to the street, Y/N held the strap of their duffle tightly. Hating moments without their boys. But they’ve got to enjoy every moment despite if they’re good or bad. They’re always going to be around.
Especially.
“Milady”
Y/N looks up to Crosshair joining them on the corner about to head home.
“Milord” Y/N smiles at the sniper.
“Love”
Y/N turns to Hunter also joining them.
“Lover” They continue to smile for their sergeant.
“Cyare”
“Meshla”
Y/N looks behind them smiling at Echo and Tech. “Boys”
“Little one”
Y/N couldn’t help the small laugh to escape their lips smiling even more to Wrecker.
“Big guy”
Keeping them safe. Always
#aboardthehavocmarauder#the bad batch#bad batch#crosshair bad batch#tech bad batch#echo bad batch#wrecker bad batch#hunter bad batch#I’m sorry this took so long#shit happened and I feel really bad#the tag also isn’t working and I hate it when it does that 🙃#i hope you like it#the bad batch x reader#bad batch x reader
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All of You
Pairing: Shinsou Hitoshi x f!reader
Word Count: 4.2k
Warnings: cheating, extramarital affair, mentions of drug use.
Notes: All characters are aged up. Silicon Valley!AU
Chapter 8: Never Be Alone Again
You’re in a daze throughout the rest of lunch. You notice the way Shinsou continues to ask questions, the way he doesn’t even look at his phone while talking to you. He asks a few questions, in between bites, and you answer. He asks about your usual day to day, even offers to join you in a cycling class- even though he doesn’t know how to ride a bike. You reassure him that it’s stationary bikes and he doesn’t need to balance on it like a real bike. He tells you how funny it is, having two dads and neither taught him how to ride a bike. You laugh, and ask him if that was tough.
“Not really, I was a little older, so by the time I was adopted by my Father- the times were a little more accepting.” He waves it off.
“So, were you an orphan before or…?” You pry, ready for him to either shut you out or answer. Although- he doesn’t see a reason not to answer you, to open up.
“They were addicts. They,” His eyes shift. “-tried to take care of me. But more than half the time they were high on meth.” He takes another bite, leans back and sighs.
“For a long time I swore off the stuff. Figured weed and coke were fine because at least it wasn’t meth.” He smiles slightly, like he’s making a joke and visibly shivers. Weed, you could understand. You’ve dabbled in weed in college, like any other person. Coke always seemed like a slippery slope, but it was in abundance here. You avoided it when you could, but for some reason just never took to it. Maybe it was the underlying fear of becoming an example for some “don’t do drugs” campaign they ran in schools.
“And do you still do… coke?” You heard him joke about it- the whole plane to Italy deal. But you were curious if it was still a habit. Shinsou’s smile disappears and you’ve worried you’ve overstepped. He’s worried his former habit is a deal breaker for you.
“I swore off the stuff ever since the whole thing with Denki.” He’ll have to tell you more about it someday. But not today. The curious look on your face makes him mentally promise to tell you more about the skeletons in his closet, but he does need to go back to work.
“Anyway doll,” He smiles again, and he wishes he can tell you to wipe that guilty look off your face, but he knows that won’t do it. You’re an empathetic person, he just knows.
“I’d love to spend more time with you, but I am COO.” Every time Shinsou flashes that cool smile at you- you’re reminded of what a suave character he really is. No wonder every business and tech magazine wants a piece of him. You try to tell the waiter to split the bill, but wordlessly Shinsou just hands the younger man his metallic card and ignores your protests. It’s the right thing to do- for a date, right? For the man to pay for the meal. But he’s in this long game- if you’re really planning on leaving your husband and not violating the infidelity clause- he assumes there is one- on your prenup, he needs to make sure there isn’t a paper trail. Your husband is a lawyer after all, and even though you probably are blinded by years of affection and emotional bonding- he hasn’t forgotten that fact.
You both leave the small restaurant, he holds the door open for you like the gentleman he is.
“Where did you park?” His eyes are already searching for your black luxury vehicle in the sea of brightly colored sports vehicles with the odd Honda or Nissan in the mix.
“Just around the corner,” You don’t get the chance to finish, there’s hardly anyone around and he just needs something to get through his day. Until he sees your next. Before you know it- you’re pressed up against a wall, and before you have any time to object, Shinsou’s hand is pressed against your eyes- blocking your vision. You feel lips on yours and you could feel your muscles relax, his breathing also noticeably slows. He pulls away quicker than you’d like, but he withdraws his hand and you can see a little satisfied smirk on his face.
“Same time tomorrow?” He questions, a brow quirked.
“Same time.” You affirm, tilting your chin down, looking at him through your lashes. He could kiss you again, but even the one out in public like this was risky. You never knew who was nearby with a phone camera and knowledge of who he was, and after he tried so hard to keep you out of the spotlight.
…
When Shinsou returns to his office, Izuku is waiting for him. He stands as soon as Shinsou enters and he gives the other man a curious look.
“Out a little late for lunch?” It’s not meant as a question, but Izuku’s nervous tone makes it sound like one.
“Nothing out of the norm.” Shinsou tries to smile, but it doesn’t come through all the way.
“You know,” The purple haired man starts again as he settles into his chair, maintaining eye contact with Izuku. “Why don’t you spend more lunches with Ochako?” At the mention of the brunette’s name, Izuku noticeably blushes, raising some staples papers together.
“A performance report. I emailed it but I wanted to go over some of the numbers, th-there’s a bit of concern for the next product launch.” The attempt to change the subject is cute, but to be honest, he started it when he made the unwelcomed comment about his lunch date with you. To be even more honest, Shinsou is sitting where Midoriya should be.
“A bit of concern?” Shinsou raises a brow as he extends a hand, his mind struggling to switch from you to work. Izuku jumps to hand over the papers.
“Just a couple of bugs we can’t quite iron out. If we solve one issue- it creates another.” Midoriya and Mirio actually started this company- in the younger man’s apartment his junior year of college. Shinsou was brought on a little after and was able to help with some of the code. As the company grew and developed, Izuku was actually offered to be COO, he had more of an eye for it. But he liked being on the ground floor, he liked being in the midst of the action and enjoyed being a manager. So did Ochako- although she is paid rather handsomely for being lead assistant.
“Is Shouto aware?” Shinsou questions and he diverts his attention to log into his work computer.
“Y-Yes, he just wanted to run it by you on how this may delay things. He-” Izuku gulps. “-Sent you an email.” Indeed he did. It’s sitting in Shinsou’s inbox. Shouto, like Tenya, came from money. His father owned a media conglomerate and admittedly, helped with the funding of Brainianics when it was first trying to find investors. He was a business prodigy- the whole works. A whiz at tennis and vacationed in Switzerland during Christmas. The only stain on the Todoroki family being the eldest son, Touya in all of his tattooed and pierced glory publicly declared that he would not be taking over the family business and instead joining some Anonymous-esque organization and skipping from one country to another hacking major corporations and selling the data to the highest bidder. Good thing old Daddy had one last shining son in Shouto.
“Alright, I’ll email him back.” Shinsou says, scanning over the boring-as-sandpaper email from Shouto. The man was a genius but holding any kind of conversation with him was like watching paint dry. He didn't understand how or why Midoriya liked him so much. Midoriya nods, before pausing at the doorway, mouth opening and closing like a fish.
“Was there something else?” Shinsou pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to recall the amount of weed he had on his person. A couple of grams? Izuku’s brows furrowed, debating whether or not to bring it up.
“Lunch..” He starts, carefully. If Izuku was anything- he was observant. He knew of Shinsou’s crush on you, and he certainly noticed the ring that was on your finger. “-Was with that woman?” The question lingers in the air for a moment, Shinsou knows what he means. He understands the message behind it. The freckled man finally turns, his face deadly serious. He’s expecting an answer. Shinsou sucks in breath- averting his eyes merely for a moment.
“Yes.” He answers. Izuku’s gaze drops to the floor, before meeting Shinsou’s dark eyes.
“She’s-”
“Married. I know.” He doesn’t mean for his tone to sound harsh- but it’s a fact he actively tries to forget. Izuku isn’t affected by the tone, he usually never is. Instead he chews on the inside of his cheek before saying his piece.
“You’re playing with fire.” Is all he says, staring at the purple haired man. Shinsou sighs, returning his attention to his email.
“I know.”
…
When you return home you feel like you’re floating on a cloud, after parking, you practically throw your keys into the decorative dish by the door and head to the kitchen to make yourself a glass of water.
“Sweetie?” You shout, after last night you wanted to make sure Albert wasn’t in the house. Your phone rings and you look at it, squinting slightly as you open the cabinet to all the glasses.
Anna: Hey girl! 🤗 Missed you today, you okay?
Oh Anna. I’m better than okay. You think, but take a moment to shoot a text back.
You: Yeah, just been a while. Had lots of fun though! Let’s do it again soon! 😁
You set your phone on the counter with a soft ka-thunk and swiftly move to use the ice machine, the loud clinks rattling in the emptiness of the kitchen. So here you are. A cheater coming back home from a meet-up with her lover. Is Shinsou your lover? Did lovers have to fuck to be lovers? Your brows crinkle at the thought as the cool water rushes past your lips. You’re not concentrating, and too much spills past and you feel the iciness of the water on your shirt.
“Fuck!” You murmur, setting the glass down and walking over to the guest bath, fingers switching on the light and inspecting the damage. It’s not too noticeable- besides it’s just water. It’ll dry. You blink a few times at yourself, wondering if you look as different as you feel. When a woman breaks her vows does a giant red “A” appear on her forehead? Invisible to everyone except her husband? You never read Scarlet Letter, and only know about it thanks to the Emma Stone movie “Easy A” that you caught in theatres by pure accident. “Pocket of Sunshine” was stuck in your head for weeks afterward. Anther ding and you absentmindedly reach for your phone again, smiling as you read the newest text.
Shinsou: Thinkin of you.
…
It is the same time and same place as yesterday, you of course make it first as you don’t have a day job to hold you back, but it’s the fact that Shinsou could cancel on you, but doesn’t. He makes it happen, Albert used to do that.
“Hard day?” You ask, noticing the way that Shinsou’s eyes look a little more sunken than normal. He didn’t text you the rest of the day yesterday, and that was fine. For now- he didn’t want to overwhelm you. These lunches and the few pictures he sent across Instagram messengers were enough.
“Some coding it’s completely working. We have a few deliverables…” He sighs the word as he looks at the menu, knowing full well he was just going to order the same thing as yesterday. Shinsou tends to be a creature of habit, and as he takes you in, he can think of a few new habits he’d love to make.
“The systems aren’t talking to each other, quite the way we’d like.” He drawls out. You’re wearing a waffle knit shirt, it’s fabric stretching over your breasts and his fingers twitch with the urge to reach out to feel them. And your pants are hugging your hips just right, they’re older jeans, Seven for All Mankind he guesses. They’re bootleg, and holes at the knees. You’re going for a casual look, and by the way your hair seems freshly washed, he surmises that after your cycling class this morning. He smiles inwardly remembering the little get-up you posted, but he was sure you posted the boomerang of you in a matching two piece- your work out pants pulled just below your belly button revealing even a matching colored crystal piercing- shimmying in front of your floor length mirror. Another man- who wasn’t Shinsou, would have probably viewed that story and thought to themselves, “Wow, Albert is a lucky man!” Whereas Shinsou viewed that and thought about how lucky he was.
“Ah, technology can be such a finicky thing, huh?” You say, lashes fluttering in a way that makes Shinsou’s heart flutter as well.
“It can,” And he chuckles, splitting apart his chopsticks, setting them aside for later.
“Why did you move out here to this… tech hell hole?” Shinsou asks, smoothing over his pants. You quirk a small smile, eyes flickering to the street outside the window before returning to meet his own.
“Isn’t it the dream?” You say, and Shinsou looks somewhat curious. You pull your plastic cup of water and take a sip.
“My Mom was never super reliable, so I was pretty much on my own for a long time. I just needed to get out- so I thought why not here?” You didn’t need to tell him that. One one hand- he already knew this story. He found it on one of your Instagram posts about a holiday you spent there, an old picture of you and your mother beside the Christmas tree. She was holding you close, like you were going to run away at any second. On the other hand, he understood your plight. As much as he loved his Dads, he couldn’t help the feeling that he wanted to make a name for himself. Some sort of late-stage revenge on his parents who never rose to anything.
“They call it the “golden coast” for a reason, huh?” You add, pausing only to give the waiter your order and once Shinsou gives his and the waiter walks away you lean forward.
“And how did you end up out here?” You ask, eyes wide with curiosity. Shinsou- both by nature and because of his job, was a very secretive man. He didn’t open himself up. The last time he did, every single thing was thrown back into his face. But the ways your eyes are glittering… the corners of your mouth just slightly turned, like you’re preparing to flash him a smile. He takes a leap, he decides to tell you.
“I… never really did well at school.” Out of habit, he averts his gaze to the table, inspecting it.
“See, Izuku and I went to the same college, a lot of us did. I was there on scholarship- after my Dads adopted me they really worked hard to make sure I got into a good school-” He backtracks.
“My Father is a teacher- my Dad used to be, but he had a side business owning a studio and that sorta took off and he made more money doing that-” As he rambles you realize this is the most he’s probably spoken in one sitting. Even his speech the other night was shorter than this. He seemed alive, like this, and you couldn’t help but to be captivated. The way his arms started to move along with his words, the way his hair even swayed with him.
“So anyway- we were in a lot of the same classes, but Izuku was in the honor track. I didn’t make it because, well, I didn’t have consecutive years of grades they wanted.” He shrugged at this. Due to the stress at home and the adoption his junior year, his grades slipped. Not by much- but enough that he was no longer on the honor roll. As much as his Father tried to help, personal tutoring and a lot of gracious patience, the damage was done.
By senior year, he had applied to 2 dream schools and 3 safety schools, only one acceptance out of the five. He didn’t make it into the “select” honor classes because of his struggled in high school- and that was okay. As he would pass by the reception for these honors students, he decided that he was just as good as them. When he met Izuku in one of his classes he was delighted, not only did he actually contribute to his part in their group project but he was nice. Humble, kind, the type to take the shirt off his back if another person needed it. He liked Izuku. “Oh- I gotta get going,” He said, getting up from his spot in the library. Shinsou would have liked to say he was shocked to see such urgency from Izuku, but the other man always seemed to be late somewhere. “The Honors course- we’re having this mixer tonight-” And Shinsou realized the chasm between them. Even though they had been getting equivalent marks on their practice tests, homework, and on the same level when it came to their coding. Izuku was going to be one step ahead of him at all times.
After that- Shinsou kept an emotional distance. Mainly observing and taking notes. Izuku, Tenya, and the others. All networking and getting the best professors and first pick in their course selections. It wasn’t fair! Shinsou was just as good as them- it wasn’t his fault he was a victim of his circumstance, although that was the only reason he even got a scholarship to begin with.
“But we worked together on a lot of stuff, I respected him. He’s actually the one who started the firm. Realistically anyway.” He remembers receiving a text from Izuku their junior year. They had remained relatively in the same classes, he said he was stumped on something and just knew that Shinsou would be able to help. He arrived, a bored look on his face when Izuku opened the door, stomach flipping when he walked in and saw a few others. They were all surrounded by cans of assorted energy drinks and half empty bags of chips.
“He needed some help with the code, and I did. My brain-” He pressed his pointer finger against his temple, smiling. “Was the missing piece.” You blink.
“So you finalized their code?” You ask, smiling at the waiter as he sets your plates down.
“Yup,” Shinsou says, a little smugly. “And of course with any start up we came here to find investors and get our headquarters situated.” He shrugs, eyeing your hand as you bring some food to your mouth. It seems so long ago that he came here as a twenty-something. He wonders how different it would have been if he had met you before then.
“What college did you go to again?” He questions, even though he already knows the answer. You went to college in southern California, only moving up when you got your first job. Whenever he can’t sleep he goes through your instagram photos, looking at the different outfits you wore, one of his favorites was a little dress and strappy heel number you wore for New Years’ a few years back. Albert wasn’t in the photo with you- much to his delight, he found he enjoyed your photos much better that way, and he loved the way the golden dress hugged your body. Your arms bare, and showing just a slight amount of side-boob.
“Ah, UC-San Diego.” You answer and Shinsou nods as if he didn’t have that burned into his brain. He thought it was funny, you and his younger sister in the same university system.
“That’s right- you told me when you came to my office.” He wonders how open you’d be to the idea of fucking in his office. An intrusive thought, but once it’s there he welcomes it.
“Speaking of your office-” Ah- you were faster than he would have thought.
“You can come up anytime- just let Ochako know to let me know that it’s you.” He interrupts. You pause for a second, before chuckling and finishing another bite of fried rice.
“Well-” You smile up at him and he can feel his heart swelling. He was sure you could ask him for his bank information and he would give it to you as long as you flashed him that smile of yours. Did you even realize how charming it was? “Thanks for the invite,” You quirk a brow at the strangeness of the invitation so out of the blue. “But don’t you have to get back soon?” Although you liked this time with Shinsou- and you really, really, liked this time. Lunches like these weren’t going to last forever. You wanted to explore more of what this could be, and now before your pre-nup was over it was risky. If you were to be found out, not only would it be embarrassing but you would lose everything that you had suffered through.
Shinsou blinks at you, eyes scanning the room before returning and meeting yours. Weren’t you two having fun? Was he boring you?
“Uh…” He checks his watch and despite his displeasure, you’re right. He did need to get back to the office. You’re already reaching for your wallet when he reaches out and grabs your forearm. His grip is tight, and it catches you by surprise. “Sorry.” He mutters, retracting his hand and quickly setting his card on the table and waving down the waiter.
“You don’t have to pay for anything when it’s you and me.” He says, pausing and there’s something in his face you can’t quite read. It’s soft, softer than anything you’ve ever seen before. It makes you want to take him into your arms and stroke his hair- something tells you that’s something he’d love to do. You set your hands to your side, smiling at him.
“Thank you.” You say and Shinsou pays.
He repeats the kiss on the side of the building, this time he takes a little longer to withdraw- wanting to go in for seconds but he knows better than to kiss you out in public like this. You don’t want him to leave, and the way his hand sits on your waist, another arm bracing against the wall is making your nipples pebble. He pats your hips, pulling back.
“We should mix it up.” You say, not being able to help the way you wiggle slightly. Feeling like a school girl talking to her jock boyfriend at the lockers. He quirks a thin, purple brow; waiting for you to explain.
“I mean,” You tuck a lock of hair behind your hair, quickly looking around to make sure nobody is watching the two of you huddled into the alleyway like this. “I can…” You want to be outside of this city, somewhere where Shinsou wouldn’t be easily recognized. “Always take a business trip.” It’s a proposal of sorts. You can always “travel” for some conference. Even take a girls’ trip, it’s not like Albert has ever remembered who your friends’ names were. As long as you kept it low-profile, took a few strategic pictures here and there, he would have no idea who you were actually there with. Who you shared your hotel bed with.
Shinsou, on the other hand, is sure he’s suffering a stroke of some kind. You’re already creating ways to spend time with him? Somewhere where the two of you can do whatever you want? Like a real couple. It sounds pathetic, he’s sure. Having to scurry and sneak around, kiss and whatever else in the safety of a hotel room miles away from home. But he doesn’t care. All he cares about is you. Advancing your relationship. He smiles so widely it hurts, it’s splitting his entire face apart, and you realize he looks almost manic.
“I’d love that.” He says, and can’t decide if he should kiss you again. He settles for pressing his forehead to yours, breathing in your scent and enjoying the feel of your waffle knit shirt under the pads of his fingertips. He loves you, he loves you, he loves you.
“Call me later if you can. I want to hear your voice later.” He whispers, and you nod.
“I’ll walk you to your car,” He says, pulling away and adjusting his suit. You oblige and the entire time you walk his hand is on your back. You’re already trying to think of any conferences, and where to go. San Diego is always nice, you think while fidgeting with your wedding ring. It’s burning, you realize. And it doesn’t stop until you take it off later that night.
#bnha shinsou#shinsou hitoshi#shinsou hitoshi x reader#shinsou is the other man#shinsou x reader#shinsou x y/n#shinsou is 420 friendly#sillicon valleyau
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Unlikely Trio
Summary: Reader ends up on an Elevator with Bucky and Sam.
Warnings: none really. Maybe a little violence. Not sure what I was going for with this. Was inspired by an Asian ad.
Something inside you was dying for some excitement, anything to break up this mundane routine you had fallen into. The bell dinged as the elevator stopped prematurely a few floors before the lobby. Calm classical sounding music played softly throughout the gold decorated elevator. The doors slides open and two large men stepped in. Both of them were dressed pretty casually yet they looked as if they were headed somewhere important. They seemed familiar, you weren’t quite sure where you had seen them before. They definitely weren’t movie stars. You needed a better look but didn’t want to be caught staring.
One quick glance wouldn’t hurt, study as much as you could within a few seconds. Your eyes lit up and something snapped in your brain. They were the Avengers. Well what was left. You remembered something about Sam Wilson aka the Falcon taking over as Captain America and his partner was Bucky more well known as The winter soldier. Sam nods at you and smiles awkwardly. You bit your lip turning to look down at the floor before a crazy thought pops into your head. You pull your hood up over your hair. Unsure of why this was essential to your idea. Timidly you turn towards Bucky, he looks you up and down while Sam’s face contorts displaying his confusion in his eyebrows.
“Can I join you guys?”
“Sure. Just follow my lead.” Bucky replied facing back towards the doors.
“Wait. No! Absolutely not!” Sam looks at Bucky like a parent silently scolding a child.
“What?” Bucky asks with a shrug his tone indicating that he doesn’t see what the big deal is.
“C’mon man. She’s a civilian.”
“I have pepper spray and a knife.” You hold out the knife as the pepper spray dangles from a keychain that’s wrapped around your wrist.
“See Sam, she has a knife.” Bucky holds his gloved hands out as if he’s showing off the knife in a showcase.
Sam quickly becomes more annoyed, not sure why Bucky is humoring this clearly insane young woman. He looks her over before shaking his head and trying to ignore his idiot partner. Through gritted teeth Sam tries to speak so that only Bucky hears him.
“Dude, we’re after Zemo right now. It’s not the time to play adopt a civilian.” Bucky pretended to ignore everything Sam said.
You hold the knife and various ways that you had seen on Tv, Bucky only encourages you more. He pulls out his own knife and begins to twirl it around. You watch in awe as he flips it up with his right hand before catching it in his left.
A gruff sigh of disapproval leaves Sam’s mouth as you and Bucky compare knives. He tries to teach the same twirling technique he just showed you. You drop the knife a few times, each time Bucky caught it mid air just before it hit the ground. The elevator slows and the number lights up. This is where the guys are getting off. Sam shoots Bucky one last warning glare before moving to exit the lift.
“It was nice to meet you...”
“Y/N.” You say extending your hand to Sam. He shakes it politely and then turns to leave.
You feel little pang of sadness strike your heart as you watch Bucky’s frame move through the doorway. Soon the doors will close and the most exciting moment in your life will be over. Bucky looks back and nods his head towards the hallway. The feeling of butterflies shoot through you. You struggle to contain the excitement that is surging through your veins.
“Stay behind me.” Bucky whispers pushing you gently behind him.
Sam walks a few feet a head. They’re closing in on the target. The hallway is long and with cheaply painted white walls. A few large windows cast a natural light on the eerily silent and empty hall. Its the middle of the day but suddenly the feeling of a dark and creepy abandoned building starts to creep up over skin. Pebbling it in goosebumps as the hair on the back of your neck starts to stand. You weren’t sure when Bucky had grabbed your hand, now that you were aware of it made you feel a little better. Your fingers lightly squeezed his hand feeling your own heart beat thump in your chest as the sound of blood rushed through your ears.
Bucky turned to side slightly glancing at you through his peripherals. He nodded and pulled you closer to his back. He used his other hand to put one finger over his lips. You understood the message and nodded. Swallowing quietly in anticipation about what was going to unravel here.
Sam paused outside of a door that read 201. He looked up signaling for Bucky to take the same position on the other side of the door. Sam made eye contact with you and his face flushed with anger. He cursed Bucky under his breath. Bucky seemed to be un-phased by anything going on with Sam.
Everyone grew quiet listening for life on the other side of the door. The news could be heard softly playing in the background. A mans voice muffled through the television murmured on about events going on in New York City. A clanking of dishes let Bucky know that Zemo was definitely home.
He nodded to Sam, letting go of your hand and slipping his gun from the back of his pants. Sam turned like he was about to kick the door in. You drastically yet silently shook your head no and both men paused to see what the problem was. Bucky was curious while Sam grew more and more impatient with whole charade.
Pulling yourself up on Tiptoes you whispered into Bucky’s ear. Bucky nodded agreeing that was a better idea. He waved the gun towards Sam indicating he wanted Sam to go back to his previous position. To everyone’s surprise Sam did and waited for his cue.
Bang. Bang.
The room behind the door fell silent and everyone seemed to hold their breath listening waiting for a response.
“Maintenance.” Bucky yelled through the door. There was a moment of silence everyone seemed to be holding their breath.
“I didn’t call for anything.” A mans voice echoed from the other side of the door. He was close enough to be heard but not close enough to touch the door. Sam considered he might be armed and waiting for them to kick the door down.
“We’re checking all the units. Some of the pipes burst.” Bucky called out again. They were met with another long silence before the door lock clicked and slid out of place. Zemo peeked out behind the chain lock of the door.
Bucky gave minimal effort in kicking the door in. The chain snapped as if it were made of paper, pieces exploded everywhere as the door slammed Zemo backwards into the wall. His nose and head were bleeding now. He still tried to run but Sam was on him quickly knocking him to the ground.
You watched from the busted door frame as Sam pinned the man down. Bucky slapped some high tech looking cuffs on the man and pulled him to his feet. As they passed by Zemo gave you a quizzical look. It wasn’t out of place. You were the one in a situation you should of never been in. Unsure of what to do you followed them as they moved Zemo down the stairs.
They went down past the lobby and headed towards the floor that led to the parking garage. The car was red and fast, leaving minimal space in the back seat. Bucky stood holding onto Zemo looking at you and then at the back seat. Sam rolled his eyes gesturing that the obvious answer was to ditch you. Bucky figured out his own plan and unlocked the car. clicking the trunk open. Zemo tried to resist but Bucky easily shoved him into the trunk.
Zemo’s complaints were muffled through the car yet the still echoed in the concrete garage. Bucky escorted you to the back seat while Sam gave him the death glare.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“Waiting to leave.” Bucky shrugged tossing Sam the keys before ducking into the drivers seat.
“Where do you live?” Sam asked being done with the whole situation he was eager to get rid of you, so he could go home and be alone.
“Oh, I live-”
“She’s coming with us.” Bucky intervened knowing that you lived in the building that they had just plucked Zemo from. Sam let out a big sigh pinching the bridge of his nose.
“You live on the upper floor of this apartment complex don’t you?” You said nothing and remained seated in the back.
“Fuck it!” Sam said throwing his hands in the air before he started the car and slid into reverse.
“She’s your responsibility.” Sam warned Bucky he was not going to be liable for anything that happened to you.
“She’s not a cat.”
“Well you sure are treating her like one.”
“It’s just us at the Avengers complex we could use another person there.”
“I kind of wish I was the only one there.” Sam and Bucky continued to fight like a married couple. You watched amused from the back having more fun than you thought you would going on this little adventure.
The drive was long as you went from one side of New York out to the more rural part of New York. At some point you had dozed off in the back seat. You woke to Bucky gently shaking you awake from the open door.
“We’re here doll.” You clumsily stepped out of the car, taking the hand that Bucky had offered you.
The place was more stunning than you could have ever imagined. Never in your life had you seen such a high tech and expensive place. The design of the whole building was unique with the large Avengers symbol in front and a huge helicopter pad to your right.
“We have to take Zemo somewhere. we will be back.” Bucky lead you into the building.
Bucky started to head back out. Thats when you realized you were standing in the middle of the Avenger’s living room. You sat down on the couch taking a deep breath in. How many times had they all sat here, laughing and talking. Did they watch movies or shows together? What is a show they would of all agreed on?
Silence filled the air and the place seemed unbelievably large. It would definitely be easy to get lost. You thought about how sad it might be for Bucky and Sam. Everyone they used to live with her was now gone. You heard the stories about Captain America, Ironman and Black widow. The thought of them all not being here now set a deepness in your heart.
You wondered where Wanda was, it would of made sense if she stayed here with them. Either way you wanted to take full advantage of being a guest here while it lasted. You decided to explore respectfully. Setting up simple rules for yourself. No searching any bedrooms and don’t touch anything in the labs, just look. That is if you could get in most places.
You had so many questions yet you didn’t want to bring up anything that would be a sensitive subject for Bucky or Sam.
#Bucky Barnes#sam wilson#Falcon and Winter soldier.#Sebastian Stan#anthony mackie#The Avengers#bucky barnes x reader#sam wilson x reader
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Avengers on the day your water breaks
This may be totally scientifically inaccurate but oh well here goes
Tony
You grunted as you stepped down the stairs, careful not to fall. You could barely see the steps over your belly so you were holding tightly to the railing as you took a step at a time. You were about to take the last step when you felt something loosen in your hooha. You looked down and your eyes widened to see a yellowish liquid on the last step. You had no idea what was about to happen next. This was your first child and you sure as hell knew the baby daddy was just as clueless as you.
Tony was in the kitchen, eating and working on some designs for his tech when he heard you call.
“Uhh, Tony?! Come here come here come HERE!” He scrambled off the chair, the sound of papers flying and the chair skidding on the floor, filling the room. He ran around the corner to the sound of your frantic voice and stopped when he saw you bracing your stomach.
“Please don’t tell me-”
“Tony my water broke! Oh my god, it’s time!” You gulped. Tony remained frozen in place, his mouth gaping and eyes wide as saucers. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING JUST STANDING THERE, GET ME TO THE HOSPITAL, GENIUS!!!” You shrieked. Finally, he snapped out of it, only to say something so incredibly stupid.
“C-crap, that was today?! C-C-Can we postpone it??” You froze in your tracks. You almost missed it, and you wish you did, but you heard it. Your head whipped to the side to give him the most murderous glare you’d given anyone.
With murder on your mind you quickly picked up a stray heel that was laying on the floor and threw it at him, making him flinch and lift up a leg to shield himself as it hit his side. “YOW! OKay okay I’m sorry! I’ll take you to the hospital!” He said, wrapping your arm around his shoulder to help carry you to the car. “Good aim by the way.” You growled at that.
“I was aiming for your neck.”
Steve
Steve had been preparing for this day for monthsss. He had drills, practicing what he’d do when your water broke and already had a list of the closest hospitals to take you to and had even prepared a plan in case you had to deliver the baby at home. You were pretty impressed at how ready he seemed.
Who knew that on the day it counted, all that would just fly out the window.
You were doing your morning stretches when you felt it break. You gasped as you felt the anxiety rise in your chest. Steve was out on his morning run, and the baby wasn’t due for another 2 weeks! You started to hyperventilate but had to calm yourself down and call Steve. This was all going to be fine.
“Hey honey, how are you feeling?”
“Steve, my water broke an I-’‘
“HHAH HHAH HHAH HHAH HHAH IM COH- IM COMING, HHAH HHAH” You winced as you heard lighting fast footsteps, frantic panting, and angry drivers honking their horns, telling Steve to get off the streets.
“St-Steve?” It was obvious that he had forgotten to hang up and was now running at top speed with his phone in his hand. “Steve you can calm down, I’m not in pain ye-”
“*BEEP BEEEEEP SKRRR! PRPHPRHORPHRPD*” You flinched harshly at the sound and your jaw dropped in shock.
“OH MY GOD DID YOU JUST GET RUN OVER?!” You shrieked. You didn’t get a response right away but you heard his footsteps thunder in the speaker again.
“THAT’S NOT IMPORTANT JUST HANG TIGHT I’LL BE THERE IN 2 MINUTES!”
---
Steve burst through the door, heading straight towards you. He picked you up bridal style and started to run out the door. Everything happened so fast you barely had any time to process it.
‘Wait Steve!!! What are you doing?!?”
“Taking you to the hospital!” He panted. He was already halfway down the street, making your anxiety skyrocket.
“WAIT YOU’RE GONNA RUN ME THERE?!”
“YES THERE’S NO TIME FOR ANYTHING ELSE.” You gasped and started to convulse in his arms to get him to stop.
“OH ABSOLUTELY NOT. WHAT THE HELL, STEVE! WE PLANNED TO TAKE THE CAR. EVERYONE TAKES THE CAR. YOU GOT RAN OVER FOR GOD’S SAKE! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK I’M GONNA LET YOU GET US BOTH RAMMED?!”
“Oh god you’re right!” He gasped, turning right back around and getting you settled in the car to be on your way to the hospital.
Bucky
You both had literally been so busy. You didn’t really have much time in the last few months of your pregnancy to talk about plans or anything. Of course, when you both first found out you were expecting, that was all you would talk about. But recently, you didn’t have time to check on him about those things. But you were kind of expecting Bucky to be ready and be doing the homework for this big change you both were about to experience. However as time flew by, you were so caught up in things that you had even forgotten you were 9 months pregnant. So feeling your water break caught the both of you by surprise.
You were silent for a few seconds, just staring at the liquid on the floor. The panic was slowly but surely rising at a gradual pace, feeling yourself getting more and more freaked out.
Bucky was on his phone in the living room, the football game playing on the tv as background noise. You called out to him from the kitchen. “Bucky??” No answer. “BUCKY!” That snapped him back to reality and he turned his head sideways a bit to yell back at you.
“Yeah?”
“Uhh, my water broke!” You squeaked. Bucky furrowed his eyebrows and shrugged lightly.
“That’s okay doll, you can just sweep it up. Was it glass?” Your face scrunched up in deep confusion and you turned in the general direction of the living room.
“What!?”
“Was your cup of water made of glass?” He asked. Your jaw dropped at how oblivious he was to the situation. That alone was enough to make the panic go through the roof.
“BUCKY I’M GIVING BIRTH!” You yelled, stomping your foot on the ground. Bucky’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he leaped off the couch and zoomed into the kitchen.
“Wait WHAT? NOW!?!” He cried, running his hands through his hair and panicking. He definitely was not helping. “Ok ok ok wait! uhhh wait! just uhhh... Can you just like, hold it in?”
“WHAT THE- BUCKY!”
“JUST UNTIL WE GET THERE! Maybe we can just like, stuff a towel in there, or like a tampon- I DONT KNOW JUST SOMETHING TO KEEP THE BABY FROM FALLING OUT UNTIL I CAN TAKE YOU TO THE-”
“DID YOU NOT READ ANY OF THE PREGNANCY AND BIRTHING BOOKS I TOLD YOU TO READ?!” You could not believe the words coming out of this man’s mouth right now.
“I thought they were baby books to read to the baby when it came!” He cried, shrugging helplessly. Your eyes grew wide and your nose flared furiously.
“I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU!!!”
“IM SORRY-”
Thor
You were more nervous than most people for your delivery. Any little kick, or discharge you felt, you immediately cried out for the hospital. “The baby’s coming!” stuff like that. Over the course of your pregnancy you have had many false alarms. You felt like the little boy who cried wolf and you felt bad for Thor because you would always set his nerves on fire and make him freak out when you’d say it’s happening, only for it to be a false alarm. But you couldn’t help it! You were just so nervous.
You wanted to be mad at him for not taking you seriously that day, but it was honestly your fault for all those false alarms. You could had yourself to blame.
But you’d never admit that.
---
You were digging in the pantry looking for something to munch on when you heard something splash on the floor. You cringed at the sound, still unaware of the fact that it was you. You looked around for the source of the sound and when you looked directly under you, your heart stopped. It was one of those moments where you panic so much, that you feel and act calm. So with the same stoic face, you speed waddled over to Thor, who was sitting on the couch watching a documentary. You sat next to him and looked at him with wide eyes, never once blinking.
“Thor? My water broke.” You said. Thor chuckled, keeping his eyes on the screen, not bothering to look at you.
“It’s fine, darling. Just another false alarm.” He hummed, patting your thigh. You shook your head as you grasped his bicep, hoping to get his attention.
‘No, not this time, Thor. You need to believe me.” You pleaded. Thor finally looked over at you with an amused smirk. “The baby’s coming.”
Thor scrunched his nose up and gave you an unsure smile. “Is he though??” He asked in a high pitched voice. You sighed exhasperatedly and shot up from the couch.
“YES! HE IS! LOOK!” You yelled, grabbing him and leading him to the pantry to show him the liquid on the floor. At the sight of it and the realization of the truth, his face paled and he began to panic as well.
“T-T-T-T-The BAby’s coming. The baby’s com-THE BABY’S COMING! ODIN’S BEARD, THE BABY’S COMING IT’S ACTUALLY HAPPENING!” He exclaimed, his voice booming through the apartment as he carried you bridal style and took you out to the car. “Uhh, where would you like to give birth, y/n? Asgard, or- or here on Midgard?”
“ARE YOU SERIOUS, THOR? ASGARD?! WHAT, DO YOU EXPECT ME TO GIVE BIRTH ON THE RAINBOW BRIDGE?! I- NO! HERE! I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE BIRTH HERE!”
“Right, of course.”
Loki
You were not expecting your water to break right now. But to be fair, nobody knows when to expect it.
You were having a casual conversation with Loki when it happened. *sigh*
“Loki, I really don’t see the point in having a statue of yourself built in the backyard. A bit narcissistic, don’t you think?” You asked, raising your eyebrows at him. Loki raised his chin up a bit with a smirk as he continued listing all the reasons why building a “small” 16 foot statue of himself in the center of your already perfect backyard was totally necessary and completely reasonable.
“Well darling, when you’re someone like me, it’s perfectly reasonable to have a statue built in your honor to appreciate your beauty and grace and to.. accentuate the divine-
*splat*
“-dear god, what was that.” Loki asked, horror masking his features as he stared at the thing that just fell out of your hooha. You looked down to see it too and you gasped, feeling nervousness form in the pit of your stomach. You were a week early. “Oh dear. Are you alright?” He asked again, still keeping his distance. “That was.... concerning...?” He continued to ask pointless questions while you sighed, annoyed, grabbing a paper towel and cleaning the spot on the floor.
“You’re not helping, Loki. This is your child too. Takes 2 to tango.” You reminded. Loki raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“Wait, that was our child? That thing you just wiped up?” He asked, looking horrified at the thought of that possibly being his kid. You dropped your shoulders as you turned to look at him with a dead-eyed look.
“Are you serious, Loki?” You asked, your eyes narrowed and lips turned in a disappointing frown. Loki raised his hands defensively and raised his eyebrows.
“Is it? I’ll be here either way, but, just asking.” He shrugged. You stared at him for a full 20 seconds before shaking your head and walking past him.
“I’ll drive myself to the hospital..”
Scott
You don’t know how Maggie managed to give birth smoothly with Scott there. You would say you felt bad for her but now you were going through the same exact thing. You would think since Scott already had a daughter, he’d be more experienced and ready for situations like these.
Nope.
You were fixing your hair at the bathroom sink when it happened. You gasped and immediately wobbled out to the kitchen to tell Scott.
“Scott! The baby’s coming!” You yelled as you ran into the kitchen. Scott turned around from the pantry with wide eyes and a cereal box in his hand.
“...what?” He sounded so out of it.
“The baby! She’s coming! My water broke!” You explained again, waiting for him to act fast and take you to the hospital like you deserved. Instead, you saw his eyes roll back as he fell backwards on the floor, fainting. Cocoa Puffs flying out of the box and into the air. You looked at his place on the ground in shock, your eyes wide and brows furrowed. “Scott?!”
Knocked out.
You scoffed. “Really Scott?! Really?! This moment is supposed to be about me! And you’re the one who faints? Scott!!” You push on his shoulder to wake him up. You couldn’t believe him right now. When you need him at his best, he just dips from life.
You groan in annoyance and grab a cup of cold water from the fridge and walk back to him. “Damn it Scott, WAKE UP!” You yell, throwing the water in his face. He immediately wakes up with a gasp and looks around in panic.
“What! What happened? What’d I miss?”
“My birth, Idiot! Or you will miss it if you don’t stop fainting!” You growled, helping him up.
“Oh god, I’m not ready. phewww.” He sighs, playing with his hands nervously.
“Oh, having second thoughts???” You ask sarcastically, raising your eyebrows at him. He stares at you for a moment, studying your features to see what he should say next that won’t get him a smack on the head.
“Are you being sarcastic? I feel like you’re being sarcastic.”
I’m gonna kill this man. “Just get me to the hospital, Scott.”
“What do you think of the name Ant-tony?”
“Scott... I know you’re not thinking of naming our child after your pet ant.”
#bucky x reader#steve x reader#tony x reader#loki x reader#peter x reader#thor x reader#scott x reader#bucky barnes#steve rogers#peter parker#peter parker x reader#tony stark#loki#thor#steve rogers x reader#marvel#mcu#avengers#avengers x reader
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nothing (except for your love)
a part two oneshot to Summer Camp
pairing: Niall/ofc
word count: 27,192
warnings: sexually explicit content; nsfw; 18+ only please
what holds me when I’m alone, what makes the tiger tame
what turns the sky from black to gold, what sends my tears up in flames.
~~
The last time she had been back in her hometown was nearly four years ago. It was the summer before she had started college, Cat spending her last four weeks as a camp counselor. It was the best fucking summer of her life. The summer she met Niall Horan.
She had to admit that it was slightly weird being back at her parents house, in her old bedroom. Walls haphazardly covered with posters of The Strokes and Evanescence, half-burnt candles still sitting on her nightstand and her faded yellow daisy comforter neatly tucked into her bed. It looked just as it did the day she left for college, and oddly enough, that made her feel somewhat comforting. Like it was welcoming her home with open arms. At least that's what Cat told herself. Reality of the matter was, the job that she had lined up after graduating college, the same one that she had studied her butt off for, didn’t pan out like she had hoped and left her jobless and up to her eyeballs in student loans and questioning everything she had worked so hard for up until that point.
Her parents, of course, were beyond ecstatic to have her back home, in her old neighborhood, in her old city. And Cat was happy to be back too, she missed being around her family; her mother, always the one to make sure she was eating well and not surviving off of pizza rolls and Poptarts, her dad, always there when she needed advice or just to lend an ear and her little sister, Katrina, always ready to gossip and bicker at the drop of a hat, like nothing had changed. She was happy to be home, but a part of her wondered if it was just a huge step back for her. That she could have just stayed where she was and made the best of her situation instead of, as she looked at it, crawled back to her parents for help.
The thought left a sour taste in her mouth.
But she figured that the only thing she could do at that point was to make the best of her current situation. She was back in the city she grew up in, back in her old room and following the next morning, hopefully back to work.
•
It was a Friday. Cat woke up bright and early, turning over in her squeaky-framed bed to tap away at the alarm going off on her phone. She grumbled, stretching under the sheets as she rubbed away at the sleep that had consumed her eyes. The rising sun had just started to peek through her curtains and she could already smell the aroma of coffee floating through the air, readily filling her nose. It was her dad. She picked up her phone to glance at the time, needing some convincing, before forcing herself up as she knew her interview was in just a couple short hours. Hopping in the shower, Cat put on the appropriate pressed black pant suit and a pair of beige heels and made sure her hair and makeup were done accordingly before she finally made her way out to the kitchen to grab a much needed cup of that coffee.
“Morning, Dad,” she greeted her father who had just finished packing up his lunch for the day.
He looked over at his daughter and gave her a smile. “Good morning, doll.” Cat opened the cabinet and took out a mug, helping herself to the pot of warm coffee. “Don’t you look all dressed up today,” her father then mentioned.
Spinning around to face him as she took a long sip of her hot beverage, Cat nodded her head. “I have that interview this morning, remember? For that company downtown, Stomon Tech? It’s at 9:30.”
“Oh right, right,” he stumbled, “you wasted no time, did ya?”
Cat pressed her lips in a tight line and raised her brows. “Not home for a vacation, Dad, I gotta have a job. I still have bills to pay.”
He nodded, grabbing his lunch pail and keys off of the counter. “Alright, kiddo, well, good luck and I will see you later. I think Mom is making cacciatore for dinner tonight.”
Smiling as her father stepped over to kiss her cheek, Cat rubbed his shoulder before he turned to walk towards the front door. “Have a good day at work, Dad.”
•
Her wide eyes scanned up the towering glass-paneled front of the 24-story building as she sucked in a steadying breath in an effort to appease the nerves that were creeping under her skin. Interviews always made her overly anxious. Would she say the right thing, what they wanted to hear? Were her credentials enough? Did she look and dress the part? Cat let out a tiny groan, annoyed with herself as she forced her feet to move, climbing up the front steps and into the building.
The Stomon Tech company took up two floors of the massive office building, floors 23 and 24 respectively, and the young woman followed behind a few others that were filing into one of the open elevators. She knew she had to go to the very top floor, as that was where the person she had conversed with instructed her to go, so she watched with bated breath as the numbered buttons slowly lit up one by one as they passed. It seemed like they had stopped at each floor, a good five minutes of people getting on and off, before she finally made it to where she was supposed to be.
The doors slid open with a ding and she was immediately met with a huge reception area; gorgeous marbled-tiled floors, partitioned walls made of beveled glass and ultra-contemporary light fixtures hanging from the ceiling, all topped off with a stunningly perfect blonde sitting behind a large curved desk that was straight ahead. There was a big sign above the girl’s head that read Stomon Tech Limited, seemingly carved out of a silvery metal. The place was very modern and shiny, very clean and Cat politely smiled as she walked up to the front desk. The blonde peered up at her, a timid grin on her dark painted lips. “Welcome to Stomon Tech, how can I help you?” she asked.
Cat cleared her throat and placed a hand on the chest-high counter in front of her. She squeezed hard around the edge, hoping it would tame the shaking in her fingers. “Hi, uh, my name is Catherine Williams and I have an interview at 9:30.”
Tapping at the keyboard of her computer, the receptionist read over her screen before she looked back up at Cat with a tight, but friendlier, smile. “If you want to find a seat right over there,” she instructed, pointing just over Cat’s shoulder to a small reception area, “someone will be with you shortly.”
“Thank you.”
Holding her folder of paperwork to her chest, Cat walked over and sat down in one of the chairs, planning to use the extra time to give everything she had brought with her one last check. She had her folder spread out across her knees, quietly scanning through the papers one by one, making sure nothing was amiss. A few minutes had gone by when she heard the ding of the elevator doors open next to her, and she glanced up just as a dark haired man in a suit hurriedly walked by. She paid him no mind and looked back down at her lap, her focus on the remaining paperwork she was going over. Cat bit at her lip as a few muddled whispers between the receptionist and the man floated through the air of the lobby, and she furrowed her brows to concentrate, mouthing the words as she read over the bottom page of her resume.
“Cat?”
Her lips stopped moving, her fingertip halting on the paper in front of her. How did that person know her nickname? And why did his voice sound so familiar? Slowly sliding her stare up, from the expensive black oxfords to the perfectly pressed grey suit to the crisp white button up that was left slightly open at the base of his neck, Cat’s breath stalled in her throat as her eyes finally met his. As blue as the salty ocean’s waves, cool and sticking to your skin, her heart nearly skipped a solid beat when he smirked, and then it hit her. Oh my God. “Niall?”
Narrowing her eyes, she moved her folder from her lap onto the chair as she stood up. Her mouth hanging open slightly as she dragged her stare across his features, his smile getting wider the closer she slowly shuffled over to him. His hair was dark, no longer that bleached out blond that she had remembered of him, and it was cut shorter, styled much better, delicately swept over to the side with little pieces hanging just across his forehead. It looked soft and inviting, pretty if she had to give it an adjective, and the corners of her mouth began to tug into a smile. He was older than her mind was letting her remember him, more refined and his body definitely more defined, at least what she could tell under his extremely well-fitted suit, and he had a thick dark stubble lining his jaw.
She pushed out a huff as she stepped closer to him and before she could say hello, even mutter a coherent word, he had wrapped his arms around her body and pulled her into a hug. Cat’s eyes fluttered as she buried her nose against his shoulder, inhaling slightly as her hands gently cradled his upper back. He smelled good. Really good. Nothing like the boy sweat and sunscreen that she remembered, but fresh and clean, like a soft floral mint with a subtle hint of cedar. She rolled her eyes at herself for dissecting the man’s cologne as Niall eased himself from the embrace. “Hi, Niall,” Cat finally greeted him, tucking some hair behind her ear.
“Shit,” Niall huffed, his blue eyes noticeably spanning down Cat’s frame. She looked older too, polished and put together in her fitted dark pantsuit. Her hair was longer than he had remembered, a natural wave adorning the strands and her skin looked softer too, well taken care of and Niall immediately found himself struggling with wanting his hands on her. She looked beautiful, more beautiful than when Niall had seen her last. And he thought that would have been hard to top. She was a hot, fiery little thing at 18 when he had first met her, but now–Niall licked across his lips as his gaze met hers again–now she was a woman, and she was absolutely drop-dead gorgeous. He stuffed his hands down into the front pockets of his trousers. “It’s been, what….four years?”
Cat nodded. “Yeah...it’s, um, it’s been awhile.”
“How are ya?” he asked her, his head tipping slightly as he kept his stare on hers, “I thought you lived in...Denver, was it? At least that’s where ya were going the last time we spoke.”
“Yeah, I was living there,” she told him, “that's where I went to college. And I stayed there after I graduated but the job I had...it wasn’t-...well, it just wasn’t working out. So I moved back here, back in with my parents.” Cat scraped her teeth across her bottom lip, wanting to scream at herself for telling him that last bit.
But he just smiled at her. “You’re parents live here?”
“Yup, over on the Eastside,” she said, Niall nodding as Cat went on, wrinkling her brows. “Do you...work here too? I’m here for an interview.”
Niall huffed out a chuckle and bowed his head as he rubbed over his chin with his fingers. “Uh, actually,” he started, looking back up at her, “its-...this is my company.”
Cat’s stare went big, her tongue stumbling over her words. She totally just made a fool out of herself. “Oh...oh God,” she mumbled, Niall highly amused as he peered at her with those dreamy hooded blue eyes of his. Bedroom eyes as Cat liked to remember them, and he knew it. She cleared her throat. “Um, wow, uh...are you interviewing me?” Her brows pulled in as she pointed at herself.
He chuckled again, waving a hand in front of himself. “No, no, that would be Elena in HR. Probably would be a bit unfair if I were to interview ya. I’d be a little too biased.”
Cat breathed out a smile and lowered her stare. Her gaze dotted across the silver-speckled tile that rested below her feet. “Yeah, I guess that would be a conflict of interest.”
Bellowing out a hearty laugh, the reminiscent sound bounced off the glass walls around them and caused Cat to glance up at him. In that moment, with the crinkles forming by his eyes and that soft dimple pressing into his left cheek, he looked exactly like he had four years prior. It made her smile. Niall yanked his hand from his pocket to check his watch. “Shit, um, I really hate to cut this short, Cat,” he began as he met her gaze again, “unfortunately, I’ve got an important meeting startin’ in just a couple minutes, but, um…”
Niall paused, licking over his lips as his brows pulled in. “We should meet up for drinks tonight.”
His offer caught her off guard, and she stuttered a little before being able to pull herself together. “Uh...yeah, yeah...sure.”
“Great,” Niall concluded, the edges of his mouth tugging up, “my secretary will get your number from your file and I’ll give ya a ring.” Cat nodded. “Good luck in there!”
“Thank you.”
Niall had already started to walk past the front desk and down the hallway, Cat having just made it back to the chair she had been sitting in. She reached down to pick up her folder when he stopped in his tracks. “Hey, kitty cat?”
The sound of his husky voice and that gritty accent, calling her that very thing that only he called her, that very thing she hadn’t heard in four years, caused her entire body to tense up and an instant warmth to pool in her belly. She slowly turned to face him and he cocked his head back, rolling his tongue in his mouth. “You look really fuckin’ good, by the way.”
Giving her a wink, no other words were shared between them as he stepped away and disappeared around the corner. Cat couldn’t help but smile. That was the Niall she remembered.
•
She received a call from Niall a few hours later, inviting her out that evening to a pretty popular bar downtown. Cat, who was already back at her house and into her sweatpants, agreed to meet him there around 9, as that was when Niall said he’d be through with work. She didn’t have much expectations for the night, and she wasn’t trying to encourage any expectations either, far be it to be honest, but she thought that for the sake of going out to a rather upscale place, that she would dress up a bit more than usual. She couldn’t even remember the last time she had dressed up, or even went out to a nice bar for that matter.
As Cat sat on the bus, the bright neon lights of the busy city nightlife zipping past the window, she glanced down at her lap. For a moment she was questioning what she was wearing; a short blue dress that was low and tight across her chest but flowy around her hips, one that she had bought a year or so back for a friend’s wedding, and a pair of strappy black heels. Maybe, she thought, she had dressed up too much, maybe it would give him the wrong impression. The impression that she wanted anything to do with him.
Sighing lightly under her breath, Cat turned her head and stared out of the smudged window next to her. It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about Niall all those years, it wasn’t that she hadn’t hoped that what they had had that summer could have been more than what it was at the time, or that they could have reconnected at some point, she had very much thought of all of that, many times over the course of her first year in college. But with four years passing since then, she was older, wiser, time had changed and so had she. Her biggest fear was that Niall hadn’t. And while that little piece of her hoped to cling onto that old Niall that set her world ablaze that one amazing summer, another part of her, a bigger part, hoped that he had also grown up and matured, that he had moved on from his womanizing ways.
Maybe that hope was too big of a stretch.
Cat arrived at the bar a little before their intended meet time and she wondered, as she stepped through the large baroque doors, how long she would be waiting there for him to show up. There was a hostess standing just off to the side behind a sleek black marble counter and she smiled as Cat bounced her stare around the incredibly posh looking space. “Welcome, do you have a reservation?”
Cat looked over at the hostess, smiling politely as she walked towards where she was standing. “No, no reservation...um, I’m actually meeting someone...I’m not sure if they are here yet…”
“Niall Horan?”
Wrinkling her brows slightly, Cat pulled her face in. “Yes, actually…” she chuckled.
The young woman smiled. “Right this way.”
Hugging the sweater she had brought with her to her chest, Cat followed the hostess through the swanky bar, weaving around high top tables and other equally as dressed up patrons before they came to a large booth tucked in the back corner. Her eyes met his the second the hostess stepped away, and Cat just stood there by the edge of the half-moon table, quiet and trying with all her might to stop the rattling in her chest. He was the only man that had ever made her feel that way with one single glance, even when she didn’t want it. Niall was slumped back in the booth, his suit jacket now off and folded next to him on the seat and his crisp white shirt unbuttoned even further, showing off that gorgeously dark smattering of chest hair and a simple gold chain, finished with a tiny round pendant hanging from it. Cat hadn’t noticed it before, but thought that it suited him well.
She swallowed hard as her eyes flowed down the length of his arms, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing his toned forearms and that very expensive watch that was strapped to his wrist. Cat looked back up at his face. He smirked at her, his brow rising just enough beneath those few strands of dark hair that laid across his forehead that it made the air catch like glue in her throat. All she could do was smile. “Hey,” she said, barely over a whisper.
“Hi,” Niall responded, nodding towards his left, instructing her to join him into the crescent shaped booth. She willingly obliged and slid herself in next to him. Not even meaning to, she pulled in a deep breath as their bodies moved closer, instinctually needing to smell him. She wasn’t disappointed. “You look incredible, Cat.”
Tucking her face down in a slightly sheepish smile, the girl combed some hair behind her ear and plunked her elbow onto the table, peering over at him. “You didn’t change,” she mentioned.
Niall peeked down with a chuckle, using his fingers to pluck at the semi-opened button up adorning his upper half. “What, ya sayin’ I don’t look nice?”
“I didn’t say that,” Cat said, biting at her lip.
Tapping his fingers on the nearly empty glass that was wrapped in his one hand, Niall raised his brows. “Would ya like a drink?”
“Yeah,” Cat replied with a slight inhale, sitting back in the booth, “beer’s fine.”
“Oh, ya like beer, huh?”
She shrugged. “I’m a simple girl, doesn’t take much to impress me.”
“Shit, coulda fooled me,” he scoffed with a short chuckle. Cat just stared at him, a tiny roll of her eyes caught by Niall and he smirked. “Beer it is then.”
Niall ordered them both a couple beers, and then a few more. Over the next hour and a half, they immersed themselves in light conversation, keeping the subjects superficial and easy flowing. They talked about what they had accomplished in school and work, where they had been living, a little friendly banter mixed in between until the effects of the alcohol had started to create a bit of tempestuous buzz in their heads. It wasn’t long before the vibe had shifted, their body language and their small talk becoming more relaxed and comfortable. Cat felt like maybe Niall had changed more than she had assumed, he was very polite and engaging, super sweet and had yet to make any crude remark.
Though the night was still young.
“I guess, I should thank you for the job, by the way,” Cat stated, taking a sip of her beer. Her eyes were locked on Niall’s over the rim of the frosted glass.
He was leaned back, his one arm slung behind Cat along the back edge of the booth and he casually smirked. “Why do ya say that?”
Cat rolled her eyes. “I know it was you, Niall. I hadn't even gotten back to my car yet, by the time they called me and offered me the job.”
Niall brought his pint to his mouth, tipping his head back as he took a long, quiet and very telling, sip. Licking the remnants off his lips, he set the glass back onto the wooden table, twirling it around in the wet ring of built up condensation. “That was all you, Cat, must’ve had a really good interview.”
“Right…”
He laughed. “Listen, you ain’t gettin’ nothin’ outta me.”
Cat bowed her head in a giggle, and swept her hair behind her ear as she looked over at him. “Fine,” she said softly, “but thank you, really. I’ve not had the easiest time, so...it does mean a lot to me.”
Niall’s blue eyes fanned over her face and he gave her a sincere smile, one that she knew all too well, and nodded. “Guess that means we’re gonna be hangin’ out a lot more now,” he joked as he pulled in a deep breath.
Cat rested back into the booth, folding her hands on top of her crossed legs. “Are we gonna be work buddies?” she asked him with a playful grin. Niall glanced down, noticing her dress had ridden up a tad on her thigh. She used her fingers to straighten the material, her stare never faltering off his face and he peeked back up at her.
The corner of his mouth tugged up slightly, and Cat felt the faintest of tickle at the back of her neck, as if someone was very delicately playing with the ends of her hair. It caused a shiver to splay across her skin. “I’m not talkin’ ‘bout work buddies,” Niall finally said, his voice low and heavy in his throat, inducing a familiar clamping of Cat’s thighs at the sound.
She inhaled sharp and lightly shook her head. “Mmm...I figured you weren’t.”
“So…”
Slipping her gaze from his, Cat glanced at the half drank pint that rested in front of her. She watched the tiny bubbles glide up the side of the glass. Her tummy was flipping in on itself, her heartbeat picking up as each second passed and she breathed out a sigh, hoping to create some calm within the obnoxious chaos going on inside her. “Look, Niall, I know what you’re hinting at and I just, um,..I want you to know that-...” Cat paused and scraped her teeth across her bottom lip as she slowly brought her eyes back to his. “I, um...I have a boyfriend.”
His brows furrowed, his hand reluctantly inching back from its close proximity to her shoulder. “You do?”
Cat nodded. “Yeah, he still lives back in Denver...but, yeah.”
Shifting himself to face her, Niall tipped his head as he lifted his arm from behind Cat and rubbed across his bearded chin. “Well, it can’t be that serious,” he mumbled.
“Why do you say that?” she asked him with wrinkled brows.
“ ‘cause he’s in Denver and you’re here,” he explained with a shrug.
“I-,” Cat paused and shook her head, her lips falling to a part, “its long distance…”
“It won’t work out.”
She was the one to turn her body to face him this time, her brows pulling in even more. Cat hooked her arms across her chest in slight annoyance. “You don’t know that,” she spit out to him.
Niall scoffed lightly, dropping his stare to his lap as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Well, I do know that if you were my girl,” he began, catching her stare. His eyes looked dark, seedy in the low lights of the bar. “I would not be able to go more than one fuckin’ day without ya.”
A heavy breath hilted in the back of her throat at his words, Cat staying quiet as Niall reached out and grabbed his pint from the table, taking a sip of his beer. Peering down, Cat slowly unfolded her arms from her chest and pressed her palms across her thighs. She chewed at a piece of dry skin from the edge of her lip before looking back up at Niall. “Maybe it won’t,” she admitted with a shrug of her shoulder, “but that’s where I’m at right now.”
Niall shook his head, pulling a breath in between clenched teeth as he set his beer back down on the table. “It won’t. Trust me.”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine, whatever. Enough about me. What about you?”
“What about me?”
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
Niall pushed out a snort. “No...I don’t.”
“And why not?” Cat asked him, shifting her eyes over his features. He was so handsome, it made her insides ache. His dark eyelashes, that perfect nose...his soft, pink lips. She wondered, for a single moment, what it would feel like to kiss him again. To have his mouth pressed to hers, swallowing his breath, tasting his tongue. Then she wondered what the hell was she thinking.
Noticing her stare on his mouth, Niall tucked his lips in and cocked his head back. Her eyes landed on his once more. “Just don’t do serious relationships, ya know?”
“That sounds about right,” Cat muttered under her breath. “Can I ask you something, Niall?”
He lifted a brow in amusement. “Sure, petal, isn’t that what we’re doin’ here?”
“Yes, smart ass,” she replied sharply. Niall pushed out a laugh, taking another long sip of his beer. “Whatever happened with you and Sarah? You know the girl from camp? I mean, I’m only asking ‘cause I never went back and I’m...kinda curious.”
Niall narrowed his eyes a bit and a smirk began to curl at the corner of his mouth. “Are ya askin’ me if I slept with her?”
She tilted her head. “In a less intrusive way, I guess...yeah.”
With his hooded eyes darting over hers, Niall stayed quiet for a minute, almost as if he was trying to read what Cat was thinking. If only he could ever get a clear read on that girl. The one person he was never able to, and that frustrated him. She pulled in a shaky breath, moving her gaze away from his as it became almost too intimidating for her. “Do ya really wanna know?” he then asked her.
She nodded and Niall straightened his body, leaning forward to rest his forearms across the edge of the table. His chin bumped at the peak of his shoulder as he looked back over at her. “I did end up fuckin’ her,” Niall went on, pausing to lick across his lips. “That next summer, actually.”
Cat bit at her lip, a tiny pang settling in the pit of her stomach and she reached out to grab her beer, throwing back a big gulp. She didn’t like the way his words were making her feel. “I thought, um...I thought you didn’t like her.”
“I didn’t,” Niall spit out, lifting his shoulder, “but...you weren't there.”
Shooting her stare back to his as she put her glass back down, she watched as a soft smile etched over his lips, nearly hidden behind the round of his shoulder. Cat cleared her throat. “I know,” she started, taking in a deep breath, “I really wanted to come back, I know I had told you the summer before I left that I would, but then I got this internship in Denver that I just couldn’t pass up, so I...just decided to stay–”
His mouth turned down at the corners and he faintly shook his head. “It’s okay, Cat. I understand,” Niall told her, slumping back into the booth again. “It was my last summer there, and I dunno, I guess I got bored. She was shit, anyway, so it doesn’t really matter.”
Cat’s eyes went big at his statement and she threw a hand to her mouth to stifle her laugh. Niall, on the other hand, freely belted out. The sound, still reminiscent of years before, made her laugh even harder. “I missed you that summer,” Niall then sighed out.
“That’s surprising,” Cat chuckled.
Niall wrinkled his brows. “Why’s that?”
“Because I’m sure you had a swarm of girls all over you,” she explained, gesticulating as she spoke, “like you always do. Like I’m sure you still do.”
He cocked his head back as his stare stayed on her. “Doesn’t mean I didn’t think about ya, Cat,” he said, lifting his shoulder in a shrug, “or that I didn’t miss ya.”
Cat darted her eyes over his as an awkward quiet had settled between them. She really didn’t know what to say to that declaration of honesty coming from him, so she just picked her pint up off the table and silently guzzled back the rest of her beer. “You want another?” Niall asked her, pointing to her empty glass as she wiped across her lips. She glanced at it before looking back over at him, a smirk forming on his mouth. “Or should we just go back to my place…”
Cat chuckled as she set her glass down. “Nice.”
“What?” he laughed.
“I’m not going home with you.”
Shifting his body closer, Niall inched his face in right up next to hers, her heart surging as she felt the heat of his breath on her jaw. She struggled with wanting to move away, with not wanting to move away, with letting her eyes flutter closed as the warmth of his entire body started to encapsulate every inch of her exposed skin as he ever-so-softly let the tip of his nose brush over her ear. “Are ya sure about that, love?”
It was the slickest, naughtiest, grittiest tone of whisper that she had ever heard and it took every part of her to not jump in his lap at that very second. But she knew she couldn’t. Cat forced herself to laugh at his attempt and Niall eased back, a cocky smirk still plastered across his face. “Niall, as hard as you’re gonna try,” she told him, raising her brows to assert herself, “I’m not going to sleep with you.”
Plopping back into the seat in a defeated huff, Niall rubbed his palm over the front of his face. “Fuck...well, that ruins all me plans,” he joked as they both laughed. “How ‘bout I just take you home then?” he went on, catching her stare going wide as she peered over at him. He pinched his eyes shut in a snort upon realizing what he had said. “No-...to your home. Jesus…”
Smiling at him, she softly giggled and nodded her head. “Yeah...that’d be nice, thanks.”
•
They had been sitting in his Audi, parked outside her house, chatting for a good five minutes. She glanced out of the passenger side window and glared slightly upon seeing the movement of a curtain in one of the living room windows. Clearing her throat, she shifted her attention back to Niall. “Thank you again for the ride,” she said to him, unbuckling her seatbelt. “Saved me from having to take the bus home at 11:30 at night.”
“Of course, anytime,” he said, tipping his head over to the side as he slid his eyes down her body. He had been checking her out all night, Niall never being one to be shy about the fact, he knew and she knew, but he couldn’t help himself when it came to Cat. Licking over his lips, his stare slowly drifted over the suppleness of her exposed cleavage, his mind wandering back to the vivid memory of how her skin had tasted on his tongue. He swallowed hard as he shot his eyes back up to hers. “Cat, can I kiss you?”
Cat’s fingers paused on the door handle, and she turned to look over at him. “Honestly, I’m surprised you're asking,” she chortled.
Niall leaned his head back on the headrest, his hooded eyes narrowing slightly as he smirked. “Well, ya do have a boyfriend…”
She pushed out a chuckle. “So, the only reason you're asking to kiss me, is because I have a boyfriend?”
He flicked his brow and she rolled her eyes, gathering her sweater and small bag as she opened the car door. “You’ve really not changed a bit,” she finished.
“So that’s a no?”
Stepping out of the car, Cat spun around and bent over, catching his stare. “That’s a goodnight, Niall.”
He smiled and nodded his head. “Guess, I’ll see ya at work on Monday, then.”
“Guess you will,” she said with a soft smile, “but no special treatment, okay?”
His mouth turned down as he lifted his head from the seat. “Can’t promise ya that,” he said, running the tip of his tongue across his lips. His eyes were darting heavily with hers, and Cat could have sworn she felt a drunken buzz quickly submerse her head. She felt dizzy every time he looked at her like that, with that intensity that only he knew how to do. She sucked in a shaky breath, attempting to settle herself.
“Behave yourself, Niall.”
Quirking a brow, he gave her a low, thigh-clenching chuckle as he slipped his car into drive. “Sweet dreams, kitty cat.”
Cat rolled her eyes, trying to bite away at the smile on her lips as she closed the passenger door and waved as he drove off. She watched the tail lights of his car disappear around the corner, before she let out a long, melodramatic sigh. Her mind was reeling with memories of him, how he talked to her, how he touched her, her body on fire even just being near him, but there was no way she was gonna let him in. Not again.
Making her way into her house, Cat quietly shut the front door and looked up to see her little sister in the living room, hanging over the back of the couch as she curiously peered out of the large window. “Trina, what are you doing?” Cat asked, placing her hands on her hips.
“Who was that?” Katrina questioned, hoping up off the couch and bounding over towards her older sister.
Cat pulled in a breath, knowing her little sister was always the inquisitive one. And relentless about it too. “Just an old friend,” she told her, “someone I used to know a few years back.”
Trina folded her arms over her chest. “He’s got a nice car.”
Rolling her eyes, Cat let out a laugh and reached out to teasingly ruffle Trina’s head. “Go to bed, child,” she muttered as she walked away.
“Hey!” the young girl huffed loudly in protest, smoothing her hair back down as she watched Cat sneak her way upstairs to her bedroom. “I’m not a child!”
•
Monday came a bit quicker than Cat had hoped, and while she was eager to get back to a steady job, she was also nervous about how her first day was going to go. It was always a bit difficult for her to make friends; she was reserved but head-strong, opinionated when it mattered and learned very fast to not take anyone’s bullshit. All of those qualities sometimes made her more of a loner than an approachable person. But she was willing to try her best to be more personable, hopefully make a few acquaintances as well.
One person she knew she’d have no trouble winning over was Niall. And that was a whole other ballgame.
By late morning, Cat had settled in nicely to her work environment. She had her own desk and computer, a little space of her own within the huge, monochromatic space of the office located on the 23rd floor. Her co-workers, at least the ones in the cubicles surrounding her, were all very nice and had already offered to take her out to lunch as a welcome. Cat happily accepted, choosing to leave the lunch she had brought with her in the break room refrigerator for another day.
Even though Cat knew Niall’s office was actually on the next floor up, she wasn’t really surprised to see him strutting around her floor a few times already that morning. He hadn’t come up to her yet, Cat supposed he was heeding her words about not showing her any special treatment, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t caught his eye a few times as she peered over and saw him propped up against a cubicle wall, flirting away with a few of the ladies throughout the office. He was very charismatic, and annoyingly sexy, using his charms and his wit to entice as many sweet giggles and subtle arm touches as he could get.
Maybe that was his plan, to flaunt himself in front of Cat, showing her just how desirable he was, how easily he could get any woman he wanted. As if she didn’t already know that, or expect it. Niall would be leaned down, whispering sweet nothings in their ears with high pitched giggles spilling from their mouths as his blue eyes stuck right on Cat. She’d shake her head in a chuckle and focus back on her work, but the gears were grinding hard in her head. She wondered, just out of pure curiosity, how many of the women in the office he actually had bedded. And how many of them had felt what she felt when with him. She sucked in a deep breath, mad at herself for even entertaining the thought, because what did it matter to her? It didn’t and it shouldn’t.
Later that afternoon, waist deep in a coding error she was attempting to fix, a notification popped up on Cat’s computer that she had received an email. It was from Niall. She peeked around the short walls of her cubicle, wary of prying eyes before opening it.
Cat,
Please come see me in my office.
Niall Horan
CEO
Stomon Tech Limited
Her heart thumped loud in her chest as she read over it a few more times, just that one single sentence causing a frenzy inside her and she figured since he was her boss, there was no getting out of it. Maybe that was another one of his plans.
She smiled at the thought–it was textbook Niall–as she stepped off the elevator and onto the 24th floor. The blonde at the desk nodded her through and she made her way down the hallway, following it straight to his unnecessarily large office. The walls were all constructed of the same thick glass as the rest of the office, his door as well and she could clearly see Niall sitting at his sleek jet black desk, jotting something down as she reached out and gently knocked.
His eyes raised from the papers before him to see Cat standing outside his office door. Niall pulled in a deep breath and stood up, promptly waving her in. “Hello, Cat,” he greeted her as she stepped through the door and closed it. Niall held his hand out to one of the chairs that were lined up in front of his desk and she walked over, smiling at him as she sat down.
“Hey, Niall.”
Her eyes stayed glued to him as he stepped around his desk and stood in front of her, casually slipping his hands into his pants pockets. Cat bit at her lip, realizing he was finally close enough for her to get a good whiff of his expensive cologne and she tried to hide the fact that it was nearly intoxicating. On top of that, he had on a perfectly fitted deep blue suit, that hugged his broad shoulders and slim waist like it was a second skin. And with his dark hair, soft and swept to the side and just a hint of a scruffy beard, he looked like a dream. She hated that she couldn’t get those irritating thoughts out of her mind.
She shakily cleared her throat and watched as he tipped his head slightly. “Just wanted to see how your first day’s been goin’,” he said, peering down at her. Niall couldn't take his eyes off of her. Off of the low cut blouse she was wearing, off the soft curl of her hair that was brushing at her shoulder, off the tiny bit of flesh showing at her thigh where her legs were crossed. She shifted slightly in her chair from the burning heat of his gaze, and it caused her skirt to ride up just a bit more. Niall’s breath caught in his throat. It was like she was tempting him, even if she didn’t know it.
“It’s been nice,” she told him, fully aware that his stare was sliding over her lap where her skirt had ridden up and then over her breasts before finally settling on her face. She smirked. Maybe she did like flirting with him. Just a little bit. “Went out to lunch with a few coworkers. But really all I was wondering about is when you were gonna come over and say hi to me.”
“Yeah?” he asked, raising a brow.
“I mean, you were talking to everyone else…”
Niall chuckled, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. His chin tipped down slightly as he kept his stare on hers. “Were you jealous?”
“No,” Cat responded, shaking her head. “I have no reason to be, I have a boyfriend, remember?”
“Ah, yes the boyfriend,” Niall said, licking across his lips as he reached up and ran a hand through the side of his hair, “I forgot about him.”
“I bet you did,” Cat scoffed.
“I wanna take ya out, Cat,” Niall then said, “on a date.”
She breathed out a smile. “I can’t do that, Niall.” His eyes were darting over hers, as if he was trying to lure her in, pull her into his little trap just as he had done before. That reckless, all-consuming arousing stare, the one that shook her to the core, that literally brought her to her knees. The one that she would fall asleep thinking about almost every night. And that was all she could think about. Him. How he had made her feel, how they felt together. How he had turned her world upside down that one unforgettable summer night, and she never thought she would ever see him again. And now all she was trying to do was fight it. Fight that feeling of wanting him. She had to fight it. She had to.
“And why can’t ya?”
Cat sucked in a sharp breath, tilting her head to her shoulder. “Well, let’s see, for one, the whole boyfriend thing and for two,” she paused, scraping her teeth over her bottom lip. Niall watched the tip of her tongue roll out across the pink-bitten skin of her lip and he swallowed hard. “...I don’t think that would look very good. I just started here and, well, ya know, favoritism and all.”
“But ya are me favorite,” Niall bluntly stated with a smirk, quirking up his brow.
Cat bowed her head in a bashful grin, bringing her fingers up to her lips. He really knew how to work her, that was for sure. “Okay, but I’m not trying to make enemies the first week I’m working here,” she explained, glancing back up at him, “if I went out with you, I don’t think the other ladies in the office would like me very much.”
Niall furrowed his brow slightly and crossed his ankles as he rested his bum on the edge of his desk. “How so?”
“Niall, I’ve been here barely one day and have already heard them gossiping in the break room,” she told him, raising her brows. “And they all very much want to fuck you.”
A loud laugh belted out past his lips, and he tipped his face down, hiding his pinched eyes behind his hand. “They’ve heard the rumors then,” he muttered between chuckles.
Cat’s brows twisted up. “What rumors are those?”
He brought his stare back to hers, slowly running his tongue over his lips. “You know first hand what those rumors are, kitty cat.”
She could hardly breathe with his eyes on her like that, with his words floating in her head and she gently cleared her throat. “Yeah...well...they don’t know that,” she squeaked out.
He narrowed his eyes. “You’ve not told ‘em?”
“Niall, I barely know these people,” she spit out, “why would I tell them that we slept together one time four years ago?”
Stepping towards her, Niall curled his hands around the arms of the chair and leaned down, his face sitting flush with hers. Cat kept her eyes fixed on his, her mouth falling to a faint part as his warm breath seeped over her lips. He was so close she could almost taste him on her tongue and her eyes fluttered just from the thought. A few strands of his dark hair had fallen over his eyes, and Cat’s lungs were struggling to find air as a delicious smirk slid over his mouth. “ ‘cause, baby, the way I fuck is life changin’.”
His comment made Cat gasp, before she realized his obvious intentions with the remark and she breathed out a soft giggle instead, rolling her eyes. “You’re insane,” she mumbled, Niall chuckling at her response. He leaned up and stepped away, clearing his throat as he shuffled back behind his desk. Cat watched him for a moment, never having been around someone as bluntly cocky and intriguing as Niall, and she bit at her lip as he picked up a portfolio and began flipping through some pages. “How many of those girls have you actually slept with anyway?” she asked.
Niall’s fingers stalled on the papers and he peered at her through the tops of his hooded eyes. “What, the girls who work for me?”
“Yeah…”
“None actually.” Her stare went wide at his answer, obviously surprised by it and he pinched an eye shut. “Don’t wanna mix business and pleasure and all that, you know…”
Cat tipped her face down in a laugh. “Right,” she said, glancing back up at him, “Niall, the forever chivalrous gentleman.”
Niall snorted out a laugh and dropped the portfolio back down on his desk. He glanced over her head before catching her stare again. “Reckon ya better get back to work now, Ms. Williams, or you’ll be havin’ lots of gossip to answer to in the break room the next time you’re there.”
Her brows wrinkled. “Huh?”
Faintly nodding towards the glass wall behind her, Cat turned around in the chair to see a few nosy busy-bodies with their full attention planted on the two of them. She was bound to be the talk of the office break room after that. Cat huffed out a laugh as she looked back over at Niall, giving him a grin. Niall watched as she stood up from her seat and smoothed down her skirt. “We’ll chat later,” he told her.
She nodded, biting off her smile as she began to step away. “Have a good rest of your day, Mr. Horan.”
He shot her a wink. “You too, Cat.”
•
The next two weeks were surprisingly calm. Cat had settled nicely into work, and with her colleagues, better than she was expecting, and her interactions with Niall seemed to be more on the friendly side than him trying to flirt his way into her pants. To be honest, that confused her a bit. But she was always left confused and thrown off balance when it came to Niall. She had a hard time denying how much she wanted him, how he made her feel just by looking at her, but also knew that it would be disastrous if it ever happened again. She had to remain logical at all times around him, because God knows, he was extremely tempting and she had to fight within herself to not lose all sense of control.
He had called her a couple times, again, just friendly conversation and light banter, but other than that, Cat really hadn’t seen too much of him at work. She was aware of a huge project deadline coming up, Niall telling her of the copious amounts of boring meetings he had been partaking in and even flying out to NYC for two days on business. She thought it was oddly sweet that he was keeping her in the loop, so to speak, of his schedule and his life, and they would often find themselves texting each other well into the night, just to say goodnight.
Cat thought it was lovely that she could have real, thoughtful and intellectual conversations with him, because up until that point, even during the summer they had met, it had only been focused on one thing: sex. Not that she minded much. A man like him wanting a woman like her, it was flattering and it made her feel good, she definitely wasn’t going to deny that. She was just happy that her and Niall had moved into a more comfortable level in their growing friendship. Cat was happy to have him as her friend.
It was an early Saturday afternoon, Cat was at home with her family, her mother and sister in the kitchen unpacking groceries that they had just picked up for the evening. Cat was in her bedroom finishing her laundry, and had just put away some of her folded t-shirts when her cell phone rang. Bumping the dresser drawer closed with her hip, she shuffled her bare feet over to her nightstand to grab her phone, checking the name that was highlighted across the screen. Niall.
She breathed out a smile and answered, tucking the phone between her shoulder and her cheek as she walked over to her closet and pulled out a few hangers. “Hey, you,” she greeted him as she made her way back towards her bed to hang up some of her dresses and pantsuits.
“Hey, kitty cat, what ya doin’?”
She giggled. “Just some laundry,” she told him, “what are you doing?”
“Uh, layin’ in me bed,” he told her, Cat noticing a softness in his voice. “Naked. Thinkin’ ‘bout you.”
Cat rolled her eyes in a snort. “So...just a normal day then, huh?”
A deep laugh rumbled from his end of the line. “I was wonderin’ if maybe ya wanna go out with me tonight?” he then asked, pausing for a moment to clear his throat before he continued. “Just as friends. Been so busy with work lately, we haven’t hung out and I miss seein’ ya.”
Cat bit at her bottom lip, her cheeks running warm as she stepped back over to her closet to hook her clothes up on the rack. “I don’t know, Niall,” she hummed out, darting her stare around her room and realizing she had left her water bottle downstairs. “My mom has this whole family dinner thing planned for my Dad’s birthday tonight and it would be kinda rude for me to just bail.”
Bouncing down the stairs and into the kitchen where her mother and sister were still putting groceries away, she held the phone to her ear and snatched her water bottle off of the counter just as Katrina had opened the cupboard above her head. Trina shot her a look, and Cat stuck her tongue out at her. “Hmm...okay, well, maybe tomorrow then? Are ya free?”
“I should be,” Cat huffed out as she refilled her bottle, her eyes studying the clear stream of water filtering into the metal flask, “what did you wanna do, anyway?”
Niall had started to mumble something, when Cat’s mom looked over at her. “Who’s that?” she nosily asked.
“It's that guy with the really nice car, isn’t it?” Trina interjected.
Cat’s eyes went big at her little sister as Niall continued to talk into her ear, and she set the water bottle down and smushed her hand over the bottom of the phone. “Shh!” she snapped back, shifting her eyes from her sister to her mom. “Just...a friend.”
“Who?”
A distinguishable quiet had settled on the end of the line before the young woman heard a faint ‘Cat?’ in a low, husky voice. She held up her finger to her mom and put her attention back to Niall. “Yeah, I’m here, sorry my mom was saying something to me. Can you hold for, like, one second?”
“Yeah, sure.”
Blocking the end of her phone again with her palm, she playfully glared over at Trina before pushing out a sigh. “Just this guy, Niall. I met him a few years ago before I left for college and, weirdly enough, he's now my boss.”
Trina rounded her lips. “Oooh.”
“Your boss?” her mother repeated, opening the fridge to set a gallon of milk inside. “Well, Cat, you should invite him over for dinner tonight!”
“Mom, it’s Dad’s birthday,” she questioned, wrinkling her brow, “And I thought it was just ‘family’ anyway...”
The older woman waved off her daughter with a huff, turning to gather up the reusable shopping bags from the countertop. “Please, you know your father would love to meet your boss, Cat, birthday or not. And he's your friend. Invite him over.”
Cat’s heartbeat picked up in her chest, so much so that it was like a heavy bass drum in the back of her ears steadily getting louder as her palms started to sweat. It was obnoxious. She curled her fingers tighter around her phone as she silently shot her stare between her mom and her sister, who had a very smug grin plastered over her lips. “....alright,” she gingerly sighed out, bringing her phone back up to her ear. “Niall?”
“Yup?”
“Hey, so, um…” Cat paused, bowing her head down and anxiously scratching across the skin of her forehead, “weird question, I guess, but would you, maybe...like to come over to my house for dinner tonight?”
“With your family?”
“Yeah.”
Scraping her teeth over her bottom lip, two sets of curious eyes were glued to her, waiting in as much anticipation as Cat was for Niall’s answer. She heard a short chuckle bleed into her ear before Niall pulled in a deep breath. “Sure, I’d love to.”
•
Niall was standing on her front stoop, knocking at her door only a mere few hours later. Not really sure why she felt so nervous, her belly tying into knots as she had been getting ready and her heart thumping along with the ticking of the clock as it counted down to when he was supposed to arrive. But the second she opened the door, the second his stunning ocean blue eyes met hers, it all faded away. He looked gorgeous, as he always did; a fitted pressed dark pair of trousers topped with a silky patterned button up short sleeve shirt, it was undone slightly at the top, just enough to showcase that gold necklace that hung around his neck. Niall smiled at Cat as she invited him in.
His eyes danced over her body as he stepped through the door, seeing her in a pair of tight jeans and slightly fitted top, she hadn’t dressed sexy, it was her Dad’s birthday after all, but Niall thought she looked amazing. He liked seeing her in a more casual look, different then how he had seen her at work. He noticed right away that her hair, usually down and sitting just below her shoulders, was pulled back into a high ponytail and for a moment, he was transported back to summer camp. Back to that first time that he saw her. Standing amongst the other counselors, listening to the director spout out the camp rules and whatnot, but even then, Niall’s full attention was on Cat. She looked absolutely beautiful, just like every time he had laid eyes on her since.
Smiling back at him, her parents had made their way into the small foyer, eager to meet the mystery boss-friend with the super nice car. Cat introduced him, Niall having brought her father a bottle of extremely expensive Irish whiskey as a gift, and she stood off to the side as he engaged her parents in polite small talk. He was very impressive to watch–Cat finding herself sinking her teeth into her bottom lip as he freely chatted and laughed along with her parents. His charisma even snagged her old, rigid dad and his cheekiness made her mother blush a shade of pink Cat had rarely seen.
“And this is my sister, Katrina,” she said to Niall, pointing at her little sister who had just emerged from the living room as her parents made their way back into the kitchen to finish up dinner.
The young girl popped her gum in her mouth as she gave Niall an apathetic wave. “Everyone calls me Trina.”
“Nice to meet ya, Trina,” Niall greeted her with a nod.
Perching her hands on her hips, Trina narrowed her eyes as she looked over at Niall. Her stare slid down his frame and then back up before she tipped her chin in a smile. “You’re smokin’ hot.”
“Trina! Jesus,” Cat snipped, furrowing her brows as Niall chuckled. She grabbed around Niall’s bicep and he moved his attention to her. “I’m sorry, she’s just–”
“Spitting facts?” Trina raised her brows.
Cat glared at her sister and before she could respond with a growling rebuff, their mother called out from the kitchen. “Trina, behave yourself!” Rolling her eyes in a displeased huff, the teenager spun around on her socked heels and slumped back into the living room without another word.
Niall licked across his lips, fighting off his inevitable snickering as he looked over at Cat. “She’s cute,” he told her, quirking a brow.
“She’s fifteen,” Cat shot back.
“I can tell,” he snorted, “she’s still funny, though.”
“You’re only saying that because she said you were hot.”
“Uh, smokin’ hot,” Niall corrected, cocking his head to the side. “Would’ve rather you been the one sayin’ it though...”
Cat giggled. “Keep dreaming, Niall.”
“Ya just keep breakin’ me heart, Cat,” Niall mumbled out, dramatically slapping a hand to his chest. “Jesus…”
Her eyes pinched shut in a laugh before she reached out and grabbed Niall’s hand. “C’mon,” she said, pulling him after her, “I’ll show you around a bit.”
After leading him through the downstairs area, Cat took Niall upstairs and into her bedroom. She didn’t really think much of it when he was trailing behind her up the stairs, their hands still loosely entangled with the heat of his skin melting into hers. It felt natural to her, so much so that she had forgotten that she was even holding his hand that whole time until they stepped into her room. “So, this is it,” Cat said, her fingers slowly sliding from his as he brushed past her and further into her bedroom.
Niall stood near the side of her bed with his hands hooked on his hips, his stare floating across the small bedroom; from the posters still hung up on her walls to the shelves of academic trophies and awards she had acquired throughout school. Cat crossed her arms over her chest, gnawing on her lip as she kept her eyes glued to him. He had faced himself away from her, studying some old pictures of Cat and her friends from high school that were pinned up on her wall, and she let her gaze drag down the length of his frame. His shoulders were wide under the thin material of his shirt, his back broad, a lot broader than she had remembered, and his waist slim, but it was the deliciously supple curve of his ass that forced Cat to draw in a jittery breath. He had such a nice body, toned but soft in all the right places and her eyes fluttered as the memories of how he felt on top of her, pushing himself inside her, came rushing like an unstoppable flood back into her head.
Her eyelids were pressed closed, enjoying her dirty thoughts, when Niall had unknowingly turned around to get her attention. He smiled to himself upon seeing how pretty Cat looked with her head tipped to the side and her bottom lip sucked into her mouth. He cleared his throat and her eyes popped open, met with a cocky grin. She froze. “This looks familiar…” he said to her, his brows raising as he held up a grey snapback that had been slung over the front bedpost of her bed.
She smiled at him. “It should. You gave it to me.”
Niall flicked the hat in his hand as he peered down at it, the very tip of his tongue poking out between his lips. “I know, I remember,” he mumbled, wiggling the hat down on his head. Her stare went glassy, widening slightly as she peered over at him, struck with how much he looked like he used to once that hat was back on him and she struggled to find a solid breath. The corner of his mouth tugged into a smirk. “Bring back any memories?”
It did. But she wasn’t about to tell him that.
Dropping her hands at her sides, Cat slowly stepped around the end of her bed and came up flush to him. His hooded gaze was fixated on her, holding tight to every movement, as she leaned herself in close to him, so close that Niall could feel the tiny wisps of her hot breath against the front of his neck. It made his stomach twist. His mouth parted slightly as she rose to her tiptoes, his blue eyes darting wild over hers and there was a hint of a devilish smirk pulling at her lips as she inched closer and closer, her warm body practically on top of his.
And as quick as Cat had pressed flush to him, she just as quickly reached up and snatched the hat off of Niall’s head. She leaned past him slightly as she flung the hat back onto the bedpost where it belonged. “It’s still mine,” she claimed, raising her brow.
His stare hadn’t left hers, it couldn’t even if he had wanted it to and Niall turned his mouth down at her, fully impressed that he had fallen for that little game she had just played. She grinned at him, pleased with herself and it made Niall’s chest ache with how cute she looked. “It’s still yours,” he assured softly, giving her one single nod.
Cat tilted her face down, hiding the flush that had invaded her cheeks as Niall moved his eyes beside her. “So this is where you sleep?” he asked, pointing to the bed.
“Well, that sounds creepy,” she mentioned with a giggle.
Niall laughed. “Just tryin’ to get a feel for the place.”
“Oh, right,” she scoffed, plopping her bottom down on the side of the bed. “Yup, this is my bed. Same one since I was, like...twelve.”
Sitting himself down next to her, Niall carded his hand through his hair as he turned his head to catch her stare. “Should I be jealous?”
“Of what?” Cat asked, wrinkling her brows.
Niall peeked over his shoulder at her yellow daisy printed comforter. “All the people that have gotten to sleep with you in this very spot.”
Cat rolled her eyes before meeting his stare again. “Niall, we’ve had sex before so, no, you shouldn’t be jealous and to be honest, besides that, there’s nothing to be jealous of…”
His brows pulled in. “You tellin’ me you’ve never had sex in this bed?”
“That’s exactly what I’m telling you,” she huffed, glancing down at her lap. “I’ve never even had a boy in this room before.”
Niall clicked his tongue in his mouth. “So I’m your first…”
“Weird way of putting it,” Cat replied with a soft giggle, peering over at him, “but yes.”
Leaning in towards her, the air stifled in the back of Cat’s throat as she felt his hot, silky breath spill over the slope of her neck. It made her eyes flutter, and she fought back a whimper when the tip of his nose just barely brushed along her jaw. His large palm was resting at her lower back, ever so faintly and she swallowed hard and stayed still, not daring to move an inch as Niall hungrily licked across his lips. “We can add another first to the list if ya want…”
Slowly turning her head to look over at him, she caught his hooded stare. She struggled to find her words. “Are you, um…are you propositioning me, Mr. Horan?” Cat whispered, darting her eyes with his. Her chest was rising high with her quick, unruly breaths, her fingers curling into the thick blanket on both sides of her knees. Niall lifted his shoulder in a shrug, his brow quirking up. The darkness in his eyes was filling Cat’s belly with a fire that was proving hard to fight off, and she scraped her teeth across her bottom lip. “With my parents right downstairs?”
“Makes it even hotter,” he confidently said with a wink.
Cat let out a groan and playfully pushed him away with a nudge of her shoulder. “You’re filthy,” she told him, shaking her head as she stood up.
Niall belted out a laugh, looking up at her. “Mmm, well, we both know that’s how ya like it.”
With her eyes going big, her pouty lips fell to a part and Niall smirked proudly at her reaction. All she could do was let the dizziness fill her head, flustered every time he even so much as caught her stare as Niall reached out and gently grabbed her hand. Her knees wanted to crumble beneath her, her body wanting to let go as his thumb rubbed tiny circles over her skin. She slowly lifted her gaze back to his, her breaths stunted in her lungs, just as her father called them down to dinner.
Cat squeezed her eyes closed for a split second as Niall stood up right in front of her. His intoxicating scent filled her nose and she let her gaze drift up from his chest to his blue eyes. “Saved by the bell, huh, kitty cat?”
Pressing her lips in a line, she tipped her chin up, determined to not let him get the best of her. “It’s not like I was considering it.”
A smug smirk tugged at the edge of Niall’s lips and he lightly placed his hand to Cat’s waist, his fingertips pushing in slightly. “Oh, baby, you were definitely considerin’ it,” he whispered, his voice low and rough in his throat. A pulsing heat coursed through her entire body, from her head to her toes, itching over her skin and pooling between her thighs. Licking across his lips, Niall quirked his brow as he quietly stepped away, slowly letting his fingertips drag down the curve of her hip.
Watching as he sauntered out of her bedroom, Cat pushed out a heavy, choppy breath and reached up to rub across her dampened forehead. She didn’t even realize she had started to sweat, just from that short interaction and she swallowed hard before shaking her head and following him out of the room.
She hated that he could still, without question, cause that kind of reaction in her.
•
After an uneventful, yet really good dinner followed by some delicious homemade birthday cake, Cat and Niall found themselves sitting out on the steps of her small front stoop. The sun had long set, just the street lamps casting a yellow glow along the road and the porch light shining onto their backs. Niall had his arms resting on his bent knees, sipping on a bottle of beer that Cat’s father had graciously offered him. Peering over at him, her eyes trailed the long slope of his throat as he tipped his head back to take a gulp. She pulled in a deep breath, hugging her arms tighter around her middle.
“So,” she began, shifting her eyes back out into the dark of the street, “is owning a tech company something you always wanted to do?”
Niall had just finished another sip of his beer and he chuckled as he licked his lips. “No, not really,” he admitted. “I mean, I knew I was gonna own a company one day, my dad owned a company, and I don’t have a business degree for nothin’, but...tech wasn’t really somethin’ I was ever super into, ya know?” He shrugged. “It is what it is, I guess.”
Cat peeked over at him, resting her chin on the round of her shoulder. “So it was…easy for you.”
“An easy choice?” he repeated, catching her stare. “Yeah, I had the money, I had the resources.”
Cat chuckled under her breath, shaking her head as she drifted her eyes along the chain link fence that enclosed her tiny front yard. “What?” Niall asked.
“Nothing,” she replied, “just...crazy how shit always comes so easy for you. Wish I had a little bit of that.”
“Shit doesn’t always come easy for me,” Niall scoffed.
Rolling her stare over to him, Cat snorted. “Oh yeah? Like what?”
Niall licked over his lips. “You.”
“Me?” she huffed, wrinkling her brow, “you never had to try hard in that department, Niall.”
With his mouth falling to a part, Niall pushed out a low huff. “Are ya kiddin’ me? I’ve never had to work so hard for a second go in me life.”
Cat groaned and reached out, snatching the beer bottle from his hands and promptly taking a sip. “You deserve a challenge once in a while.”
Niall chuckled and leaned towards her, his eyes stuck on hers. “If you think for one second that I’m not up for it, baby, you’re bloody fuckin’ wrong…”
Her heart nearly skipped a solid beat as she pushed out a soft chuckle. “Charming.”
Niall threw his head back in a laugh before hoisting himself up. He turned around and stood in front of her at the bottom of the steps. Cat bit at her lip as she looked up at him, noticing a smirk pulling at his mouth as he leaned on the handrail. “I wanna take ya somewhere,” he then blurted out.
“Like...now?”
“No, this weekend,” Niall chuckled.
Cat dropped her gaze to the ground under his feet and swallowed hard. “ Where do you wanna take me?” she asked, glancing back up at him.
“I’m not tellin’ ya,” he said, raising his brows, “it’s part of the surprise. It won’t be for the whole weekend, just Saturday. It’s not too long of a drive.”
Narrowing her eyes at him, Cat took another sip of the beer and tucked her lips into her mouth. She stayed quiet, studying his features as he turned his face slightly and peered down at her through the corners of his eyes. Niall wasn’t sure what she was thinking, or what her answer was going to be, but he was hopeful. “What do’ya say?”
Pulling in a deep breath, Cat set the empty beer bottle down next to her. “Do I have a choice?”
“Baby, you always have a choice,” he replied, cocking his head back slightly.
Cat dipped her head down in a smile. “Okay, fine,” she said as she looked back at him, “but we're only going as friends. Nothing is gonna happen.”
“Of course,” he smirked, “would ya expect anythin’ less of me, kitty cat?”
Her brows raised. “Do you really want me to answer that?”
Niall pointed a finger at her. “No.” He watched as Cat’s head softly rolled back to her shoulders in a laugh, her eyes squeezing shut and he couldn’t help but smile as the pretty sound slipped past her lips. She was perfect. “Alright then,” Niall went on as Cat caught her breath, “I’m gonna head out, but, um...thanks for havin’ me over. It was lovely. I had fun spendin’ time with you.”
Cat chewed at her bottom lip as she darted her eyes over his, hugging her arms around her middle once again. “Yeah, it was...surprisingly nice. I really enjoyed it. Thanks for coming.”
Fishing his car keys out of his front pocket, a tiny breath hitched in Cat’s chest as Niall leaned down and pushed a tender kiss to her cheek. “Sweet dreams, petal,” he whispered, the warmth of his lips lingering on her skin. It was one of the sweetest, softest moments she had ever experienced. And it was coming from Niall.
Her eyes fluttered open when he stepped back, a smile on his face as he spun around and made his way to his car. Cat watched with a dreamy haze in her eyes, curiosity bounding to her fingertips and an ache befalling her chest as he hopped in his car and drove off. She sat on that top step of her stoop, head cupped in her hands and a million thoughts pouring through her mind for what seemed like ages.
What was she getting herself into? And more importantly...after all these years, why did she still want him so bad?
•
It was hard for Cat not to think about Niall over the following week, the nonstop, and frankly, obscene cataclysm he created inside her and how confused it made her feel. It was also hard for Cat to hide how excited she was for whatever Niall had planned for that weekend. She tried telling herself that it meant nothing, he was just doing what Niall did and did well; seduce and concur and that it would be no different this time around, but the thoughts of how much she wanted to be with him, wanted to feel him, wanted to kiss him and touch him and taste him again, how much she wanted to just be with him, kept creeping into the back of her mind.
Part of her, an incredibly hard to ignore part, didn’t care that Niall was a self-proclaimed womanizer, at least to her knowledge, and all she wanted was to have him. To let herself feel what she had always felt for him, without hesitation or worry, without a second thought. To let him care about her…love her. She knew without a doubt that Niall would treat her well, that he would be good to her, but there was always that inkling of what if. What if she let herself give into him again and he didn’t want anything more than that. What if she succumbed to those physical primal needs that itched across her skin every time he was near, and that indescribable longing in her heart she couldn’t hide from and it turned out that he didn’t feel that same way about her. What if she fell for him, really fell for him, and in the end...he didn’t want her anymore.
That was what Cat couldn’t shake from her mind. The fear of him not feeling for her the way she knew, deep down, she really felt for him.
Niall picked her up at her house around 3 that Saturday afternoon. Cat was beside herself; she was nervous, but excited, giddy like a teenager going out on her first date, and if anyone would have asked her why she was feeling all of those things, she really could not have given them a straight answer. Apart from the fact that it was mainly because of Niall. Being around him made her feel exuberant and alive, he made her feel sexy and alluring. He made her feel important and wanted. He made her feel 18 all over again, but more mature, more in control. And as hard as he tried, as much as he used his charms and his flirtatious ways on her, it was clear that she was the one in control this time. She was the one who was holding him like putty in her hand. And that simple fact made her feel more powerful than she had ever felt before.
He refused to discuss where they were headed as they drove, just telling her that it wasn’t very far away, but Cat was more than eager to find out what the big surprise was. She had worried for a moment while getting ready that she was overdressed, a light breezy yellow sundress and pair of low open-toed sandals, but Niall immediately complimented her outfit as he met her at her front door and that quickly reassured her. He was also dressed quite freely with a linen short sleeve button down and a pair of fitted twill trousers, Cat smiling as she looked him over, making sure to tell him that he looked nice as well.
The late afternoon sun was bright, strings of gold streaming in through the car windows and Cat peered over at Niall as he sat buckled in the driver's seat. Her eyes tenderly fawned down his profile, engrossed in the perfectly sharp slope of his nose and the tiny pout of his lips. His beard was grown in heavy, his dark brown hair styled softly and over to the side, and she couldn’t see his eyes underneath his sunglasses but she knew they were just as blue, just as gorgeous and dreamy as they had always been. The thought made her smile and without thinking, she reached over and gently ran her fingers through the side swept part of his hair, right over his ear.
Niall slowly glanced over at her, a faint smirk at the corner of his mouth and Cat stared at him as she retracted her hand and rested it back into her lap. “Sorry,” she muttered, flinging her face forward as she peered down at her hands, “couldn’t...help myself.”
A chuckle left Niall’s lips and she felt the faintest brush of his fingertips over her temple and then carding delicately through her hair. “It’s okay,” he told her.
Her eyes flew over to his. “So you’re really not going to tell me where we’re going?”
“Nope,” he said, shaking his head. Cat’s stare slipped down the length of his arm that was gripped onto the steering wheel. The sun’s rays glimmered across the silver metal of his watch and it made her eyes squint. “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I did that.”
“I’m much more surprised you didn’t blindfold me,” she chuckled.
Niall’s grip on the steering wheel tightened at her words and he shot his eyes over to her. “I can definitely do that if ya want,” he said, voice deep in his throat.
Cat smiled, biting at her lip as she turned her head to peer out of her window. “Maybe later…”
Fluttering his eyes under the guise of his sunglasses, Niall blew out a heavy breath and licked across his lips. He was trying so hard to control himself around Cat, to not be who she had this perception of him to be, and he folded his fingers into a fist on his thigh as he continued to drive. “Not much longer,” he said aloud.
•
The second they turned down the tree-lined dirt road, Cat knew exactly where they were. Her eyes went wide and she leaned forward, staring up through the windshield as they passed under the old wooden sign: Camp Sparrow. It had been years since she had been back, four years to be exact, and she breathed out a smile, glancing over at Niall. He quirked his brows at her as they slowly drove down the winding lane of dirt and rocks towards the front office of the camp. “I can’t believe you,” Cat whispered, mainly to herself but Niall heard her loud and clear and he dipped his chin down in a big smile, a pink hue blushing his cheeks.
Coming to a stop in the same exact place that Cat had watched Niall leave that very summer, the two of them climbed out of the car, Niall grabbing a cloth bag and blanket from the back seat. It was clear that the camp was no longer a functioning summer camp; the grass somewhat overgrown and the wooden buildings a bit worn down, but as Cat peered around the large area, from the numbered cabins to the old dock that jutted out into the lake from the tiny beach area, it felt like nothing had changed. Niall had planned for them to have a picnic, some light food and wine and they spent the following couple hours sprawled out on the woolen blanket in the grass, staring off into the dark muddled water watching as the sun slowly set behind the trees. It was beautiful and quiet, serene and the two of them talked and laughed and reminisced about their past summer together. Cat felt good, she felt happy and she peeked over at Niall, catching the cute lopsided smirk on his face and it made a warmth flutter in her tummy.
Niall was just happy to see Cat happy, it made his heart pound in his chest to hear her soft laugh and see her bright smile. He knew bringing her back to that place was exactly what they needed, what he needed to show her just how he felt about her. Taking one last sip of wine as the sun had just dipped below the treeline across the lake, Niall dusted off his palms as he stood up.
“C’mere,” he said, holding out his hand to her. Cat tipped her head back to look up at him, biting at her lip. Sliding her hand into his, Niall gently pulled her up to her feet and slowly began to lead them out towards the lake. Cat’s heart was lashing against her ribcage, heavy and fast as her fingers tightened around Niall’s. His skin was blistering hot, but felt soft pressed to her own, and she thought for a moment that she would be content to stay like that with him. But she also thought that everything that was happening, all that she was feeling was just some kind of fever dream, something that could never really be and she pulled in a jittery sigh just as their bare feet hit the cool white sand of the tiny man-made beach.
Niall’s fingers eased away from hers and he slipped his hands in the front pockets of his pants. Cat chewed lightly at her bottom lip, unsure as to why he had let her hand go and she crossed her arms over her chest. They stood there reveling in the peaceful silence, stares drowning in the little ripples of water that floated by from the tepid breeze before she cleared her throat. There was something on her mind that she had to get out. “Niall?” she said, her voice meek and nearly carried away by the soft lapping of the water on the shore.
“Yeah?” He had turned his face to look over at her, Cat’s gaze watching the silhouette of a bird coasting above the tree line.
She sucked back a sharp breath, peeking down at her painted toes as they curled into the cold sand. “Why did you bring me here?”
He remained quiet for a moment, her question hanging idle in the air as he gathered his thoughts. “I don’t know,” Niall shrugged, “I guess, I thought that maybe...bein’ here again, seein’ the lake and the cabins and shit, that it would, ya know...spark somethin’ in ya. Memories. About me. About...us.”
Cat hastily ran her tongue over her lips as she kicked her toes in the sand. “There never really was an us, Niall,” she stated, chuckling lightly, “I mean, we flirted for a few weeks, slept together once...then went back to our normal lives. If anything, I’d say it was just...a summer fling.”
Niall shifted his stare downwards, rolling his lips into his mouth as he nodded his head. “So I didn’t mean anythin’ to ya, then.”
Shooting her eyes over to him, she furrowed her brow. “No, I didn’t say that–”
“Because I know I made ya feel good,” he spit out, aggravation clear in his voice as he caught her stare, “didn’t I?”
Cat swallowed hard. She couldn’t lie to him, not about that. “Yeah,” she said softly.
“You liked the way I fucked ya.”
His words, so deliberate and suggestive in their intention as they floated off his tongue, made her chest feel heavy, like a ton of bricks smashing her down as her breaths stuck thick to the back of her throat. But she still couldn’t lie to him. “Yeah…”
Niall turned his broad shoulders as he faced her, his brow raised. “The guy you’re with now, does he fuck you like that?” He paused and licked across his lips, his chest swelling with his rapid breaths. “Does he fuck ya like he needs ya, like he can’t get enough of ya? Like he owns ya?”
Cat’s lips parted as she struggled to find the words, any words and she gingerly shook her head. Honesty was all she could muster as she darted her stare with his. “You’re the only person who’s ever fucked me like that,” she said, her tone subdued, “who’s ever made me...feel like that…”
“That’s what I thought,” Niall huffed out.
She rolled her eyes at his callous attitude and pushed out a heavy breath. “You really haven’t changed, have you, Niall?”
“Not much, kitty cat,” he lightly scoffed, “ ‘cept I’m richer now and I fuck even better.”
His joke, if that was what he was trying to intend, made Cat sigh out loud. “And it seems like you’re even more full of yourself,” she said.
Niall smirked at her. “You used to be into that.”
“Yeah, well...it worked,” she snapped, moving her gaze back out to the calmness of the water. “Four years ago.”
Niall’s eyes narrowed and he yanked his hands from his pockets, crossing his arms over his chest. Licking across his lips, his eyes studied over Cat; the light flutter of her eyelashes and tiny upturned pout of her mouth, watching as a slight breeze swept a few strands of her hair over her cheek. She reached up and tucked it behind her ear. She was so hauntingly beautiful, it made his chest ache to even look at her, but she consistently left Niall stumped. He didn’t know what to do or say around her, he didn’t know how to pursue her. How to make her want him as much as she had four years ago. As much as he wanted her. But he was determined to find out. “So tell me then, what works now?”
Cat slowly peered back over at him. “You, Niall,” she told him blankly, “just be you.”
“This is me–”
“No,” she choked out a laugh, shaking her head, “it's not. It's not the real you. Niall, you’re sweet and caring, and sensual and fun. But this? This is you when you’ve got one thing on your mind. When all you wanna do is sleep with somebody, when you’re on the chase.”
Cat watched his eyes narrow, listening as she went on. “And I’m not saying I don’t like when you talk dirty to me or...flirt so shamelessly and try so hard to get me into bed, I do, but the chase is over...you’ve already fucked me.”
He cocked his head back. “And what if I wanna fuck you again?”
“Maybe…” Cat paused and sucked in a shaky breath. His eyes fixated on hers, the intensity causing a ripple of heat to glide over her skin, tiny goosebumps shedding its path. “Maybe you just don’t need to try so hard this time.”
Niall tipped his head back to his shoulders in a low, frustrated groan, rubbing his palms down the front of his face. Perching his hands on his hips, a dumbfounded chuckle broke under his breath as he looked back over at her.
“What?” she questioned, wrinkling her brow.
“I don’t even fuckin’ know anymore,” he snorted, “you make me-...fuck, you make so confused, Cat. It completely fucks with me head, ya know? I feel so different when I’m around you, I always have. And I knew from the first time I saw ya, that first day at summer camp four years ago, that I had to have ya.”
He paused, licking across his lips. “But it’s like...I don’t even know how to act around ya,” he told her, scratching through his scruffy beard. “The things I’d normally say, what I’d normally do. I flirt with ya, I do everythin’ I can to get ya to want me but, ya just...ya don’t fall for any of me shit. I don’t know what else to do.”
Cat’s eyes pinched shut in a soft snicker, her head rolling to her shoulder. “I do fall for your shit, Niall,” she confessed, glancing back over at him. “I have...I am.”
His brows shot up. “You are?”
Biting at her lip, Cat tried to tame back her emerging smile. “I mean, as much as I’d like to say no, that none of your usual shit is working on me, I’m here...right now with you, Niall,” she said softly, “and...I could never lie to you about that.”
Niall gingerly nodded his head, “Okay,” he spoke up, a confidant smirk sliding over his lips, “so if that’s how ya feel, what would you say if I told you that I wanted to lay ya down right here...and fuck ya like you’ve never been fucked before...”
A breath stalled in Cat’s throat and her eyes fluttered as she peered over the ground at their feet. “Well,” she gently mewed, “I would say that I’d rather not like to have sand in my bits while you’re fucking me, so maybe we can find a hotel nearby instead?”
Niall took her words, as salaciously as they had left her lips, as a joke and he dropped his forehead into the cup of his hand in a rowdy laugh. Raising his eyes back to hers in a sigh, he noticed that she wasn’t laughing, or smiling along with him. Just...staring at him. His eyes narrowed as he settled himself and he swallowed hard. “You’re serious. You really want me to fuck ya, don’t ya...”
It came out more of a statement than a question in that gritty accent of his, dripping over Cat’s ears like warm honey, sticky and thick, begging to be licked. Her fingers curled into her palms, an unstoppable heat coursing through her body as she sank her teeth down into her bottom lip. She tried to smile at him, tried to conjure up the nerve to be flippant with the lewd words floating in her head, but she couldn’t even settle the uneven pounding of her heart. It was too much. He was too much. “Honestly, Niall,” she said, turning towards him, “there hasn’t been a day that’s gone by these last four years that I haven’t wanted you to fuck me again.”
Cat barely had time to react before Niall had stepped up flush to her, cradling her face in his big hands. The blistering heat from his palms seared into her soft skin and she lightly gasped as he slowly slid the pad of his thumb over her plump bottom lip. “You don’t know how long I’ve dreamt about hearin’ those words come out of this pretty little mouth.”
Her eyes fluttered and she swallowed hard, eager to play his game. “Should I say them again?” Cat teased.
Niall smirked and leaned in closer, his lips just ghosting over hers. His breath, hot and silky, spilled out over her lips and she eased her hands up, splaying them at his sides. His hooded eyes darted fast with hers, a recklessness fading into the dark and she struggled to properly inhale. He was too intoxicating, too overwhelming but she wanted him. She wanted him so bad she could feel it swirling in her lower belly and taste it tingling on her tongue. And that was all it took.
“I...want you...to fuck me…”
A seedy growl edged from Niall’s throat at Cat’s words and she felt his body tense up under the press of her palms. His chest was heaving, rising high against hers as his lips brushed at the corner of her mouth. “Can I kiss you now?”
Cat’s eyes fell closed at his sweetness and a hint of a smile tugged at her parted lips as she raised just a bit to her tiptoes. “Yes…please...”
Niall pushed his mouth to hers, kissing her deep and full, sweeping his tongue into her open mouth. Cat whined out as she kissed him back, harder and with more vigor than she knew she had in her. Niall brought that out in her, that greedy hunger, a hunger she needed to feed. To feel his lips on hers, to taste him on her tongue and swallow his warm breath, she didn’t even realize just how much she had missed him, missed feeling him, until it was happening. Her fingers twisted into the material of his shirt, yanking at it as she tugged his body even closer into her. His big hands held her face, his tongue curling over hers, and Cat felt as if she was going to float away if Niall hadn’t had her tethered so taut down against him.
The heat was indescribable, the fieriness surging between their flesh sending both into an unyielding desire that neither had thought possible. She wanted him even more than she had years before, and he wanted her more than he had ever wanted any other woman. Niall had this need inside of him, an almost feral desire that only she could tame. She was his weakness, and he lavished the power she had over him. With her hands coming up and wrapping around his strong forearms, Niall nipped at her bottom lip as they left hers, a desperate gasp of air shared between the two. His darkened eyes only met hers for a second before he had grabbed her hand in his and began leading her back into the grassy area.
Without a word spoken, they both hurriedly gathered their things and the remnants of their picnic and headed towards Niall’s parked car. Hopping in and closing the doors, Niall leaned his upper body almost all the way over into her seat, bringing Cat into a heated kiss once more, not being able to help himself. She ran her fingers up through his soft dark hair, twisting into the tiny ends as she urged his tongue into her mouth. Struggling to catch her breath as Niall kissed over her chin and down to her neck, Cat tipped her head back as he sucked along her throat. His thick fingers were tangled in the side of her hair, his tongue slinking over her exposed collarbone before she forced herself to inch away from him, his lips popping off her flushed skin.
She was drowning in the gaze of his heavy lidded eyes and it took all she had in her to fight off the temptation to straddle him in his seat and fuck him right then and there. Niall swallowed hard as he stared at her. “We have to wait,” she whispered, her eyes fluttering as she cupped her hand around the back of his neck and tugged him into another kiss. “Not here.”
Nodding his head as he reluctantly eased back, Niall wiped across his mouth with the back of his hand as he settled himself into the driver’s seat. He raked his fingers through his hair, a long drawn out breath huffing past his lips before he started up the car and took off. The ride back was torture, Niall’s big hand not leaving its claimed spot on her thigh, the pads of his fingers kneading into her silky skin as their eyes shot over to one another with each passing minute. He knew he needed her; needed to touch her, taste her, fuck her. Cat could barely hold herself together, her mind reeling with the thoughts of his touch and his kisses, her body aching to have him inside her and her stare stayed hooked on him as he drove, racing through the twists and turns of the back roads.
After about twenty minutes, Cat had noticed that they had passed a few different motels and was perplexed on why he hadn’t bothered to stop at any of them. “Niall, where are we going?”
“I’m not fuckin’ you in a motel,” he bluntly said, his eyes on the road.
Cat’s head toppled back to the seat rest and she ran her hand over his that was still clutched to her thigh. “You were gonna fuck me by the lake,” she reminded him, raising a brow.
Niall peeked over at her, a seriousness written over his face. “Cat, I’ve waited four years to be inside ya again, I’m not wastin’ it on some cheap ass motel.”
A shaky breath spilled past her lips as he flicked his eyes back to the road ahead, just the bluish beam of his headlights lighting their way. Biting at her bottom lip, Cat could feel herself aching for him, just the way he looked at her, the way he spoke to her, the way his touch felt on her skin, it was all more than she could take. She needed him inside her. Slowly tugging the bottom hem of her dress up her thighs, she spread her knees and with the guide of her fingers, eased Niall’s hand down between her legs.
The car jerked slightly as Niall glanced over to her and was instantly captivated by the seductiveness in her eyes. A rabid heat pulsed through his veins from the soft, playful look on her face. Using the press of her fingertips, Cat kept her stare on Niall as she pushed his hand harder against her. His heart was pounding in his chest as he took her lead, carefully inching the middle of her panties over to slide his fingers along her warm, wet slit. Cat’s eyes fluttered closed, her head tipping back in a shallow gasp as Niall played with her, the pads of his fingertips swirling deliciously over her swollen clit.
Her hips rolled gently against the seat as she held his hand right where she wanted him to be, coaxing him for more and more. It wasn’t long until he had two of his thick fingers pushing inside her and a barrage of whimpers and moans poured past her parted lips. Seeing Cat like that, rocking herself against his hand, completely at his mercy and falling apart just from his fingers inside her, was the sexiest thing Niall had ever witnessed. But there was no way he was going to let her finish. He was hard as rock in his pants, throbbing with his need for her, and he continued to work her, fingering her and teasing her clit until he knew she was right there, right about to spill over that blissful edge before he yanked his hand away.
Cat’s mouth dropped open in a shattered gasp, her body trembling from the loss of his touch as she cupped her hand between her legs. Her chest heaved as she strained to catch her breath and she peeled open her eyes to glare over at him, seeing a half smirk tugging at his lips. “I was so close,” she breathed out.
“I know,” he told her, licking over his lips, “but you’re not allowed to come yet.” He had done it on purpose, bringing her so close and then ripping it away like she was a bad girl being punished and she huffed out an annoyed groan, clamping her thighs together to ease the vibration of her core as she turned her attention out of the passenger window.
Niall chuckled at her reaction and adjusted himself in his pants as they continued their way back into the city.
•
They made it back to his place, the penthouse of the most luxurious condo building downtown, of course, in nearly record time. His mouth on hers as soon as the doors to the elevator slid closed behind them, her fingers cupped around the back of his neck as his hands slipped up under her dress. Cat gasped for air as his lips left hers when the elevator finally made it to his floor, opening right at his front door. She had soaked all the way through her panties by that point, and it took her a moment to gather herself as he shuffled off the elevator and over to his front door. Stepping up behind him, Cat raised to her tiptoes and slid her hands around his waist as her wet mouth attached to the side of his neck. Niall was fumbling with his keys, cursing lightly under his breath as he was more than desperate to get the girl inside his apartment.
“Fuck,” he groaned, attempting to turn the lock. Cat giggled against his neck, pleased with his reaction and her eyes watched his fingers shake as he continued to struggle. Burying her nose into the side of his throat, his skin was tepid and salty on her tongue and she hummed faintly as her small hand ran down the front of his body. Niall choked back a breath as he felt Cat palm him on the outside of his pants.
She smiled to herself, feeling just how swollen he was for her already as she wrapped her fingers around his length. Swallowing hard, Niall finally clicked the door open, but he froze, slowly turning his face to catch her stare. She was still feeling at him, his cock pulsing against the curve of her palm and he smirked. “You want it, don’t ya?”
Cat pushed the tip of her tongue to her teeth, the pads of her fingers roughly tracing down the length of him. “It’s still mine.”
“It’s still yours,” he breathed out.
Tugging Cat in front of him by her wrist, Niall cradled her face and pushed his mouth to hers in another deep kiss, leading them through the doorway and into his place. The front door eased closed and Niall had her slammed up against it, his hips rudding into hers as his tongue swept past her lips. Cat mewed against his mouth, her body vibrating with the yearning to feel him inside her and she tightened her arms around his shoulders, pressing herself harder into him. Breaking the kiss, Cat strained to catch her breath but kept her parted lips brushing at his. Niall had his hand up under her dress again, hooking her thigh at his hip as he groped roughly at her backside. “Not here,” she whispered, eyes pinching closed in a low gasp as his fingers desperately clawed at the soft, meaty flesh. A disjointed whimper spilled out of her mouth. “Your bedroom.”
Niall faintly chuckled and clasped his hands around her waist, easily hoisting her up. Cat threw her head back in a squeal and locked her heels around his bum. Her mouth was back on his a second later, eager to swallow his hot breath as he walked them to his bedroom. His strong arms were wrapped around her waist, his fingers digging into the thin material of her sundress at her lower back and pulling frantically at the fabric. Holding her hands around the sides of his face, Cat playfully nipped at his bottom lip and rolled her tongue into his mouth in a heated whine. The sound sent shivers down his spine.
As Niall entered the bedroom, the lights low with just the bright glow of the full moon cascading in from the large wall of windows, Cat barely had time to register her surroundings, her eyelids fluttering as Niall sauntered straight over to the end of the large bed and plopped her down onto the mattress. His eyes, now hauntingly dark, were on hers, his chest heaving under the lay of his linen shirt and Cat scraped her teeth across her bottom lip, drowning in the intoxicating heat of his stare. Only the rapid exhales of their breaths could be heard and after a few long, excruciating seconds of them just staring at one another, Cat slowly started to bring her knees up.
Niall’s lips parted in a low, short gasp as he watched her slip her sandals off her feet and let them drop, his fingers curling into fists at his sides in an attempt to wain the need to have his hands on her. He wanted to touch her so bad, so bad he could feel her searing into his skin, burning his flesh like an unheeded firestorm, reckless in its path. But he also wanted to wait. Watch. He wanted to savor the moment with her, savor being with her and as much as he wanted to feel her tightening around him, feel her skin melting into his as she came, he knew he had to wait. Cat, on the other hand, knew exactly what she was doing. Her chest rose high, a stuttering breath itching at the back of her throat as she rolled her head to the side. With her eyes remaining focused on his, she grabbed at the hem of her dress and carefully pooled it up around her lower tummy. Her fingers danced from her sides to the front of her hips, and she watched Niall bite furiously at his bottom lip as she stuck her thumbs into the hem of her cotton panties and started to wiggle them over her bum. She couldn’t help but giggle, the sound faint and teasing, as she slid her panties down her thighs.
Niall watched, bated breath and dark hooded eyes, as Cat let the wet, dainty fabric fall from her toe onto the ground at his feet. He swallowed hard as his stare moved from the small heap resting on the floor, back up to her face, a smirk sitting pretty on her lips. “Jesus Christ,” he breathed out, Cat raising a brow slightly at him as she spread her knees apart and slipped her hand down between her legs. Her fingertips hit her swollen clit and Cat pushed her head back in a clenched hiss, her eyelids fluttering closed. Her hips bared down into the mattress as her fingers swirled through her warm, slippery built-up wetness, her thighs shaking out of her control and her toes curling into the white duvet that laid beneath her. Whimpers flowed past her lips, as Cat played with herself right in front of Niall, teasing him, taunting him. She wanted him to want her more than he ever had. Niall strained to settle his breaths, his blue eyes swimming over her as she laid splayed out before him and it got to a point, when her two fingertips circled just right at that sensitive little nub nestled between her folds and caused a broken whine to edge from her throat that Niall couldn’t take it anymore. She was swollen, bright pink and dripping wet, just waiting for him, begging him to slide himself inside her, to fuck her and a deep grunt pushed from Niall’s chest as he leaned down and gently grabbed Cat’s hand.
The action startled her and she popped her eyes open, staring up at him. “You’re dirty little girl, teasin’ me like that,” he growled out to her, a gasp leaving her lips as Niall brought her used fingers up to his mouth. His eyes stayed on hers, darker than she had ever seen them, as he slowly slipped her coated fingers past his lips. His tongue curled around the ends, Niall sucking the taste of her off of them before he eased them from the heat of his mouth and very slowly pulled her body up to sit. Her head toppled back to her shoulders as she peered up at him, Niall slotting himself between her spread legs that hung off the end of the bed. Cat innocently tucked her bottom lip into her mouth, staying quiet as Niall bent over and began to undress her. She inhaled sharply when Niall’s face rested against the side of hers, Cat feeling as if her skin was going to melt away from the blistering heat of him hovering over her as his fingers fumbled with the back of her dress, easing down the zipper.
Niall could feel her trembling in anticipation, and he softly tipped his face down against the crook of her neck, pressing his mouth to her skin. “Niall…” she quietly mewed, as his tongue sucked across to her exposed shoulder. His eyes rolled back from the sound of his name spilling so sweetly past her lips as his big hands dragged across her lower back, curling around the thin material. Standing himself back up, Niall tugged her dress up over her head along with him.
“God, you’re fuckin’ beautiful,” he told her, his half-lidded eyes draping over her unclothed body. Cat pulled in a garbled breath, and she carefully reached behind her back to unhook her strapless bra, letting it fall onto the floor next to her dress. There was a single moment where
Niall just stood there in front of her, Cat completely naked with a parade of goosebumps floating over her skin as his stare slid from her face to her breasts to her center. It was erotic and intoxicating, overwhelmingly sensual and with the wild thumping of her heart in her chest and an ache settling deep between her thighs for him, Cat hurriedly reached out and began to undo the buttons of his pants. Her gaze, now easily matching the pitch black of his own, was glued to him, seeing the tiny flush of pink invading his cheeks and the strands of dark hair falling over his forehead and into his eyes as she yanked his pants down his legs. There was a fierceness in her motions, Niall could see it in her face, feel it in her touch and he went to unbutton his own shirt before Cat hastily swatted his hands away.
He chuckled at her eagerness, instead carding a hand up through his disheveled hair while she worked to undo each button one by one before easing the linen shirt off of his broad shoulders. Now just as naked as Cat, Niall hung his head down, watching as the girl ran her palms down the front of his body, her curious stare taking every single part of him in as her touch trailed after it. He was beautiful, stunning. The changes in his body since she had seen him last, nothing short of perfection. The soft, dark hair smattering across his toned chest, his tiny waist that was sculpted just enough that you could still sink your nails into. Her fingers gently scratched along the lines of his hips bones that led to the breathtaking landscape of his manhood; hard and thick and red-slick with his want for her. She slowly peeked back up at him, the very tip of her tongue running hungrily across her bottom lip and that was all it took for Niall to give up, clasping a hand around the back of her neck as he leaned over and hastily pushed his mouth to hers.
He crawled up onto the bed, his mouth devouring hers as he led them both further up the mattress. “I want ya so fuckin’ bad, baby,” he muttered against the delicious curl of her tongue. Cat had latched her hands up into the long strands of his hair, humming in agreement as Niall used his knee to spread her legs even more and nestle his body down between. Her head hit one of the many pillows that adorned his bed, his palm dragging from the back of her neck, over the curve of her breast to her waist and he gripped harshly at her warmed skin. A moan edged past her pouty lips as Niall eagerly rocked himself into her, his swollen cock rubbing along her slit as his lips kissed over her chin and attached to the side of her throat.
With her eyes falling closed, Cat wrapped her arms around Niall’s broad shoulders as he used his strength to lift her hip up slightly off the bed, the angle enough to let the tip of his pulsing length sit right at her opening. Pulling in a jumbled breath, she dug her nails into the smooth skin of his upper back, her body on fire, already vibrating underneath him as she waited for him to sink himself all the way inside her. Her mind was going frantic; the heat of him nearly suffocating as she buried her nose into the crook of his shoulder and he assaulted the flesh at the side of her throat with the hot-wet of his mouth. She knew it was what she wanted, it was everything that she wanted. Him. Being with him like that, just like that. And she couldn’t take it any longer–she fucking needed him. Her thighs clamped around his hips and she rolled her bottom up, encouraging him to enter her. She wanted to feel that burning stretch that she had missed so much, that she had dreamed about for so long. She wanted to feel him buried inside her once again.
A whimper burst freely past her parted lips as his fingers tangled into the side of her hair, Niall finally easing his hips towards her as he oh-so-slowly pushed his hardened length inside her warm, wet center. His body tensed as he entered her all the way, a low groan spilling out against Cat’s sticky skin as Niall began to move inside her. Her head fell back under the guide of his hand entangled in her hair, Niall rounding his back slightly as his mouth trailed down from her neck to her collarbones to her chest, his lips pinching around her supple breast. Cat’s fingers slipped up into the back of Niall’s thick brown hair, pulling at the ends as he thrust his hips harder against her and sucked across her clammy flesh, exploring all her soft, pretty parts. The feelings were building fast in her lower tummy, dancing around like a fiery flame waiting to explode and she whined as his teeth nibbled harshly the sensitive bud of her breast.
His lips popped off her nipple and he licked between the valley of her breasts as he leaned his upper body up. Cat’s fingers untangled from the strands of his hair as Niall rested back on his hunches, both his big hands curving down the length of her trembling body and grabbing tightly around her thighs as he continued to fuck into her. Easing her eyes open, Cat dreamily stared up at him as heated sparks quickly rushed through her entire body, shooting from the lingering taste of his breath on her tongue to the tips of her tightly curled toes. Tiny grunts were spitting past his parted lips as he fucked into her, sweat dripping along his dampened hairline and down his heaving chest. His stare was fixated between her spread legs, watching as he sunk himself into her over and over, her warmth devouring every impeccable inch of him. She felt so good around him like that, her center swollen and silky-wet, taking him so perfectly and Niall licked across his lips as he tipped his hips down and buried himself all the way inside her.
Cat cried out from the intense sensation, his thickness stretching her tight walls as her body started to shake under the press of his big hands. Niall shot his eyes up to her face, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth as he diligently watched her and she gulped back a heavy breath, unruly waves of her impending orgasm creeping up from her aching core and pouring hot over her dewy skin. Clawing her fingers into the duvet at her sides, Cat caught Niall’s stare once more, the look in his eyes sending her into a reckless fit, her body needing to him to fuck her, really fuck her. It seemed so new, so different, but harnessing that same wild heat and unrestrained passion she had felt before. But as Niall continued to push himself inside her, his fingertips bleeding into the meaty flesh at the front of her trembling thighs, Cat wanted more. She needed more.
Whining out in desperation, Cat pinched her eyes closed as she shook her head, rolling her hips harder into him. “Damn, baby,” Niall chuckled, seeing her lash out. She shuddered slightly, catching his stare again as she untangled her fingers from the soft fabric of his bed and slapped her hand down between her legs, frantically rubbing at her clit. Niall could tell her she was desperate to get off, he could feel her throbbing around him, the quivering of her body and rather than give her exactly what she so clearly wanted, instead he pulled himself nearly all the way out of her. Cat gasped from the loss of him, her brows folding in as she wildly darted her eyes with his.
Her fingers stayed swirling at her clit as her center throbbed, and Niall just watched her reaction in amusement as he rested the tip of his cock right at her entrance. He was being spiteful, menacing, purposely teasing her at that point and Cat was struggling to catch her breath, her chest heaving as she curiously stared up at him. Her lips pursed and she bucked her hips towards him, wanting him to give her more. Raising a brow, Niall obliged, slowly pushing himself inside her again and Cat moaned, her eyes rolling back at the satisfying feeling. “Niall...,” she whimpered out again, easing her stare back to his. Niall was already looking down at her, his massive hands now wrapped around the sides of her waist as he slowly, and very precisely, rocked his hips against her. His darkened eyes were stuck to hers, watching as her lips briefly parted and she choked back a breath.
“Fuck me like you did before.”
It came out as a soft whisper, humming sweetly through the thick air like a cyclone attempting to drown them and Niall licked over his lips, dragging his narrowed stare over her flushed face. “Oh, ya want it like that, huh?” he said to her, cocking his head back slightly. His hips were still thrusting against hers, the intensity nearly overwhelming Cat as she gingerly nodded her head.
“Please,” she begged under her breath, “just a little bit…”
Cat knew what she was asking for, Niall knew what she was asking for. And he had been waiting for that exact moment. Rolling his tongue in his mouth, a delicious smirk slid over his lips as he leaned himself down on top of her and placed his mouth right at her ear. Cat’s eyes fluttered shut as Niall squeezed bearishly at her waist and rolled his hips, burying himself all the way inside her, so far it almost hurt. Bringing a hand up, he curled his fingers tight into her hair by the side of her face and held her still. “Tell me how ya want me to fuck ya,” he whispered, his streamy breath sticking to the side of her neck.
Cat clawed down the slope of his back at his words, biting off a broken cry that had escaped her lips. He was heavy on top of her, their combined sweat pooling between their chests and she could barely breathe, but all she wanted was for him to fuck her, fuck her exactly like he had fucked her before. He was thrusting into her as he waited for her words, deep and steadily, but she wanted more. “Harder…” she gasped with a creaking swallow, “please…”
Niall cradled his palm around the side of her face, his thumb pressing firmly into her jaw. Sliding his stare over to look at her, he kept his mouth by her ear, just barely letting the tip of his tongue slip over her earlobe. “No, kitty cat,” he teased in that deep, filthy accent of his, “tell me exactly what ya want.”
Wrapping her hands around the back of his balmy neck, Cat brought Niall’s face flush to hers. Their gaze locked heavy, and she swallowed hard as Niall gripped her chin and brushed the tip of her nose with his own. “Tell me,” he mouthed.
Cat huffed out a low whine as she held his stare. “Fuck me,” she breathed out, “fuck me harder. Choke me, use me.” She paused, swallowing hard as she felt the cold metal of his necklace slapping against her throat. “Make me come. Make me yours.”
Niall raised a brow and gave her a faint nod. “Louder,” he demanded, thrusting roughly into her. She gasped against his parted mouth, the feverish, tempting action nearly knocking the air straight from her lungs. Slipping his fingers from the side of her face, Niall pried her hands from around the base of his neck and swung them up above her head, pinning both her wrists down into the pillow. Cat’s mouth dropped open as he ghosted his lips to hers again. She could taste him on her tongue, and she struggled to take in a decent breath under the press of his weight. Niall smirked, clamping harder to her wrists and she shivered from his dominant touch. “I wanna hear ya beg for it, baby…c’mon...”
Her eyes darted languidly with his as a fiery haziness started to invade her head. “Please,” she pleaded, her voice soft as a whisper. “Niall…please, fuck me, use me...make me yours.”
It was the last bit that was getting to Niall, that was making his heart pound uneven in his sweaty chest and his stomach tangle into knots. Hearing those words slide so richly, so intently off her tongue, it was like heaven and there was nothing else in the world that he wanted. He swallowed hard. “You wanna be mine?”
“Yes.”
“All mine? To do what I want with?”
Cat lifted her chin just enough to rest her lips to his, barely nodding. “Yes...yes, please,” she breathed out, “I’m all yours.”
Niall smirked, a devilish little smirk that sent an unparalleled rage of scorching heat pulsing over Cat’s skin before she felt his fingers drag up from their grip on her waist and tap right at her mouth. His darkened stare focused on hers as Cat anticipated his next move, gasping lightly as she felt his two fingers slip past her parted lips and push down her throat. She gagged around the stretch of his thick fingers, her eyes pinching closed before he pulled his hand away, smashing his mouth to hers. He kissed her hard, swallowing her warm spit and her rapacious whines as Cat wiggled beneath him, struggling to yank out of his strong grip. Niall chuckled at her attempt as he sucked at her tongue and held her down.
His hips went crazy; faster and harder, crashing into hers with so much force Cat swore she could see blinding lights flickering under her eyelids with each of his heavy grunts spilling down her throat. But all she could do was moan. She moaned and whimpered and took whatever it was that Niall wanted to give her. She was his. All his. And she was enjoying every single filthy little second of it.
Pulling back from the kiss, Niall leaned up slightly, Cat’s eyes easing open as she stared up at him and with his hand still holding her wrists tightly, pressing all his weight onto them, Niall reached down and grabbed under Cat’s knee, a jumbled breath filling her lungs as Niall hooked her leg onto the broad of his shoulder and sunk himself all the way inside her. The angle was unbelievable, filling her to the brim with all his perfect swollen thickness and a cry pierced past her pouty lips as she flung her head back into the pillow. He was fucking her so deep; his strokes long and slow, hitting that sweet little spot inside Cat every time his hips met hers. Niall just watched her as he moved on top of her, watched her body shake and coil up as her nipples grew harder with each thrust. He watched beads of sweat drip along her mottled flesh, his hooded stare following the trail of them down the curves of her breasts. He watched her eyes flutter closed as his public bone smacked against her clit, sensuous moans breaking out of her bared throat and Niall pushed out a groan, dropping her leg from his shoulder as he slapped a splayed hand to her lower tummy, slowly sliding his palm up the middle of her torso.
Cat’s mind was a fury, and she shook her head under the pitch black of her closed eyes just as she felt the heat of his touch cradle around her throat. She choked back a breath before his fingers tightened around the sides of her neck and he started to fuck into her just a bit faster, rolling his hips upwards as the tip of his cock hit right at her slippery upper wall. “Fuckin’ look at you,” she heard him grumble between panting breaths. “So fuckin’ gorgeous takin’ me like this.”
Cat strained to whine out under the press of his hand, her body convulsing as the unstoppable crest of her orgasm was begging to rip through her. Her center was hot and pulsating, her wetness spilling out of her with every pull of his cock and she began to tremble, her chest burning with the need for air as her body quickly, and unrelentlessly, started to give into her much needed release. It was fast, sneaking up on her with a velocity of a thousand lightning bolts charging through her wasted body all at once. Niall continued to fuck into her, not letting up, the sweet whines that cracked from her pinched throat, her beautiful writhing body urging him on and Cat popped her eyes open and caught his stare just as she hit her peak, her mouth hung idle with the silence held at the tip of her tongue. Her face was bleeding red, her eyes rolling back as Niall buried himself deep inside her and unclamped his hand from her throat.
She gasped, fully giving into her frantic orgasm as it finally over took her entire sweat-coated body. Slipping his other hand from her wrists, Niall hovered above her with both his palms pressed into the bed beside her head as he slowed his thrusts, languidly pushing inside her. Cat moaned out his name, the sound coming out soft from her dry throat and her sticky chest heaved as she struggled to find her breath. Peering up at him, she carefully brought her arms back down and wrapped her hands around his forearms that rested right next to her face. They stayed like that for a moment, all starry-eyed as they stared at one another, soaking up the feeling of Cat pulsing around him as he just barely moved his hips.
“Fuck yes,” she breathed out, turning her face to press a tiny kiss to the inside of his wrist. It was a sweet gesture and Niall fought the racing of his heart. “You’re so good.”
Huffing out a short chuckle at her words, Niall confidently smirked down at her and Cat couldn’t help but smile, a slight bashfulness taking over. He looked so pretty above her like that, ethereal, like a God with his brown hair sweeping into his eyes, his skin shiny and patchy red, covered in sweat. His gaze was dark and salacious, full of lust and an uncontrollable need for her. She had just had one of the best orgasms of her life, but she could already feel the heat starting to build again just from looking up at him. Niall reached over and gently brushed away some matted hair that was stuck to Cat’s forehead, a tender touch to her hot skin before he grabbed around her chin and leaned down, pushing his lips to hers. He kissed her, kissed her deep and with purpose and Cat snaked her arms around his shoulders, curling her fingers up into the back of his dampened hair.
Inching away slightly, Niall caught her stare again. “I’m not done with you yet,” he told her, a gasp leaving her mouth as Niall shoved an arm up under the arch of her back and yanked her up from the bed. Cat tightened her arms around his shoulders as Niall rested back on his knees and eased her wrecked little body into his lap. He was still buried inside her, the quick motions of him sliding her into his lap not letting him leave the warmth of her for even a second. Niall squeezed his forearm around her lower back, holding her taunt to him as he tangled his other hand into the back of her hair. Cat’s mouth was back on his, eager to kiss him. She sucked at his tongue, nipped at his lower lip and swallowed his hot, panting breaths as he thrust his hips into hers.
Cat felt the prickles of her next orgasm bubbling wild in her lower tummy, Niall moving faster and sloppier inside her with each minute that passed. She knew he was working himself to his own release, needing to feel that same nearly insurmountable high as Cat had just felt and she cupped her hands around his sweaty neck, whining against his tongue. She started to move with him, her hips rocking to meet his and Niall could feel this change in her, feel her center starting to clench up around him, swollen and warm and he dug his fingertips into the side of her waist, his grip tangling tighter into her hair as he gently tugged her head back. Cat let out a curdled cry as her head fell to her shoulders, her eyes pinching shut and her nails scratching helplessly at his scalp. Niall pushed his wet-hot mouth to her neck, slinking his tongue over the hollow of her throat as he bit hard at the soft skin. Cat sucked back a jilted breath at the feeling, her body starting to tremble and shake against him with each perfect meet of their hips. She was already close again, so fucking close, the fire igniting in her belly and swarming like a fuse throughout her and she rocked harder against him, her arms curling tighter around his shoulders.
His grunts grew more desperate as his lips travelled over her sticky skin, lapping up the beads of sweat that were painted across her naked body. He sucked along the span of her shoulder, his grown-in beard roughing her tender flesh as the scent of his body heat, thick and musty with arousal, seeped into her nose. He held her tighter as she attempted to rub herself against him, and it was so tight Cat almost couldn’t breathe and she brought her face down, moving her arms to hug around his neck. “Fuck...f-fuck,” Niall moaned out in his gruff voice, his thrusts becoming even rougher. Cat squeezed her eyes closed and buried her face down against his broad shoulder as Niall’s mouth hung open right at the slope of her neck. Curling his fingers into the thick of her hair, Cat whined out as her body started to shake, that familiar heat surging over her skin as the waves of her impending release teetered right at the brink, just teasing her to spill over. She struggled to breathe, struggled to swallow back the spitting cries that were being forced past her lips and just before he was able to coerce her begging body over that blissful edge once more, Niall stiffened inside her. His muscular frame tensed within her hold, his sticky body coiling up and gripping tight to her as he finally reached his well-deserved high.
A low growl of her name spilled from his mouth onto the side of her neck and Cat gasped as she felt him come inside her. She could feel the warm streams of his load filling her up, thick and slippery, something she had never experienced before and her eyes fluttered as she slowly started to roll against him, wanting him to completely empty himself inside her. There was something about it, something about feeling his sticky, hot cum inside her that turned her on even more. It was filthy, obscene. So fucking sexy. And she couldn’t get enough of him.
“Holy shit,” Niall barely groaned out, jerking his hips as he finished, “shit...fuck, baby…” His big hand was cupped at the back of her head and he held her quivering body against his, sweetly kissing along the span of her shoulder. He was being soft with her, but Cat wasn’t done. She whimpered at him, rolling her hips against his that had all but stopped moving at that point. Lifting her lips to his ear, Cat swallowed hard as she gripped her hands at his sweat-coated upper back. “Stay inside me,” she breathed out, “please…”
Her body wriggled against him, throbbing around his spent cock as tiny desperate whines purged from her throat. Niall knew she wasn’t done. He knew, without a doubt, she wanted more.
Lifting his mouth from the crook of her neck, Niall brought her face to his. Her eyes, half-lidded and glassy, locked on his and Niall drifted his stare over her delicate features, his hot mouth hovering at hers. Cat grinded against him. “You wanna come again, don’t ya?” he teased as the young woman faintly nodded.
Niall smiled and pressed his lips to hers. Before Cat could even properly kiss him back, he pulled away and had her tossed to the mattress on her stomach. It happened so quick that Cat barely had time to even process what was happening, the side of her face smashed into the bed as Niall fumbled around behind her, roughly grabbing at her hips with his wide palms and lifting her bottom up just a bit. Cat sharply inhaled, twisting her fingers into the blankets beneath her, preparing for what he was about to do to her. A broken cry left her lips, laced with soft desperation as her center ached with the need to feel him inside her, to have him make her come all over again. She could feel his warm load seeping from her opening, dripping down her slit and just as Cat went to turn her head to peer back at him, the unmistakable wet-hot of his mouth cupped around her heat.
A gasp shuddered past her parted lips, soaking into the white duvet as Niall slipped his tongue along her folds, eating hungrily at her. Her body shook as he curled his lips around her clit, sucking hard as his fingertips dug into the supple flesh of her bottom. He held her still and spread her open, licking and sucking and tasting at her, Cat rocking her bum back against him as she wordlessly pleaded for more. Her tummy sunk in, her eyes fluttering closed as she started to feel the wicked pangs of her release itching across her clammy skin once more. Niall hummed as he slurped over her swollen folds, sinking his tongue down inside her. Twisting her head forward to bury her face down into the duvet, Niall had just moved his mouth to suckle her clit before she felt the warmth of his mouth dissipate and the delicious stretch of his cock push inside her once again.
She cried out, fisting rough at the blankets as the weight of Niall’s sticky body consumed her. He was back on top of her, his hips slowly rolling into hers as he began to fuck into her. She almost couldn’t fixate on anything she was feeling; him, his thick body on top of her, how he felt so fucking good inside her, his hot breath panting out onto the back of her damp neck. It was all too much, overwhelming and out-of-this-world intense, and before she knew it, Niall had sucked a trail up the side of her throat. “This what ya remember, huh? This what ya want?” he asked her, his voice gravelly in her ear. “Me fuckin’ ya just like this?”
Cat moaned at his lewd words, the memories of being pinned down on that cold, hard desk as Niall roughly fucked into her from behind, gagging her with his thick fingers and making her come around him, instantly sent a wildfire soaring through her body. She writhed uncontrollably under him, gasping back needed breaths as he continued to move on top of her. God, she needed to come again so bad. His thrusts picked up, feeling the way she was reacting to him, and Niall reached up and wrapped her hair around his fist, easing her head up off the bed.
Cat’s mouth dropped open in shocked silence, her eyes fluttering as Niall slapped his hips against her bottom, fucking into her even rougher than before. He felt so fucking good and it made her squirm. “This is how ya want it, baby?” he growled out to her, sucking feverishly along her neck.
“Yes...God, yes…” she choked out.
“Like bein’ me dirty little girl, don’t ya? Takin’ my big cock so good…”
Another seedy moan edged from her throat and the sound made Niall smirk against her skin. “I wanna come,” Cat begged, barely a whisper between her heavy gasps, “please Niall...I wanna come so bad.”
Niall swallowed hard at the sweet, pleading sound of her voice, something about hearing her beg him, hearing her wanting him so bad, wanting him to make her come, it made him weak. He was so goddamn weak for her. “Fuck, kitty cat,” he moaned, settling his mouth back at her neck as he took a hand and shoved it under her tummy.
His hips slowed a bit, fucking into her with long, deep thrusts as his hand slipped down between her spread legs. Cat cried out as she felt the pads of his two fingers start to circle at her clit. Niall had eased her face back down, hovering over her as his puffy lips stayed resting at the corner of her open mouth. She breathed heavy as he continued to fuck her, slow and steady, the tip of his hardened length hitting perfectly inside her swollen center as his fingertips played with her sensitive little nub. Her mind was frazzled, wicked and drenched with the sensations that were quickly consuming her entire fucked-out body and it was when Niall softly brushed some strands of her hair away from the side of her face, tiny kisses being planted to the crease of her mouth, that she knew something was different. His big hand was cradling her head as he pushed inside her, his hot breath mixing with her own as they perfectly moved together and a smile started to tug at the corner of her lips.
His eyes were stuck to her as he rested his forehead at her temple. “You’re so beautiful,” he breathed out, “so fuckin’ beautiful. God, baby, I-...” he paused, swallowing hard as he gathered his breath. Cat faintly moaned as he buried himself deep inside her. She was right there, so close fucking close to coming she could taste it on the tip of her tongue, her center clenching hard around him. But all she wanted in that split second was to hear his voice. “I missed bein’ inside ya so much.”
Unfolding her fist from the white blanket, Cat reached behind her and curled her fingers into the back of his hair. “Couldn’t stop thinkin’ bout ya, ‘bout fuckin’ ya just like this,” Niall went on, “all I wanted...was to be with ya again, feel ya around me, sinkin’ into ya, baby.”
A low whimper poured from her lips and Cat rocked her body back into him, the last little thing she needed before she felt her body lose all control. She slowly writhed under him, under the heat of his thick, strong body, her toes curling and her shaken breaths stalled in her risen chest as he continued to fuck into her, riding her through her intoxicating, mind-numbing high. Broken moans bounced off his stark walls and filled their ears as Niall kept his stare on her, urging her through with the steady, skilled rocks of his hips. His fingers moved between her folds, the warm wetness of her orgasm slick as it spilled out around him and onto his hand. Cat called out his name, over and over, as she succumbed to him, to all that he was giving her, her desired release long and nearly paralyzing, the intense heat crawling over her wrecked body and biting at her flushed skin as she trembled uncontrollably against him. She had come hard, harder and more thoroughly than she had before and she didn’t even know that was possible. And with the mind-blowing sensation of her letting go around him again, it was only a fraction of a moment before Niall was hitting his own second release, much more soft and subdued that time. Cat couldn’t help but smile at the intimate feeling.
“Oh my God,” she finally mumbled, both having barely come down. Cat strained to find her full breaths as Niall eased his hips to a stop. “I-...I’ve never felt like that before. With anyone.”
Her eyes were still closed, Cat reeling in the over-heightened feelings of her powerful orgasm as Niall chuckled against her. He pressed his lips to the side of hers. “Good,” he said, slowly pulling his hand out from under her. The loss of his touch between her legs made Cat whine, and Niall smiled down at her. “I love makin’ ya feel like that.”
Niall stayed resting inside her for a few minutes, sweetly kissing along her jaw and shoulder as she continued to come down, her sticky body relishing in the cool air of his bedroom. Contented hums slipped past her lips, a blissful smile following as she finally was able to catch her breath. She had never felt so satisfied, so purely whole, before in her entire life, he had outdone himself and they were both blatantly aware of that fact. Niall, on the other hand, had never felt with anyone the way he was feeling with Cat in that very moment. He had never felt happy, so fulfilled, so...absolutely in love. Twisting her fingers into his damp hair, Cat lifted her face from the mattress just enough so she could fully kiss him. She needed to kiss him. She needed to taste his breath on her tongue and feel the beautiful heat of his mouth. Niall eagerly kissed her back, and it wasn’t long before he had slipped himself from her and turned her body over in his arms. Curling up in his bed, they tenderly kissed until their lips were sore and their naked bodies nearly listless. They stay snuggled together under the warm covers, a sated, simple quiet filling the room between the last few soft kisses until they both drifted off to sleep.
•
Sometime in the middle of the night, Cat awoke. Her eyes blinked open, struggling to adjust to the dark room and she wrinkled her brow, unsure as to where she was before everything came flooding back to her. Peeking over to her left, she caught a glimpse of Niall. He was laying on his back, perfectly still as he slept, his chest rising with the soft ebb and flow of his steady breaths. He looked so pretty, his dark brown hair all disheveled and swept across his forehead as his tiny eyelashes rested daintily on his cheeks. But there was nothing dainty about that man. Sweet in his own ways, soft in others, but he was rough and dirty, and eager and good, and as the thoughts of just a few hours prior started to swim around in her head, Cat suddenly felt the soreness that had settled between her legs. Niall had fucked her, really fucked her, fucked her better than she had ever had before and the girl chewed at her lip as her stare lazily dragged over him, the only thought left in her mind was what was going to happen between them now.
Deciding that she needed some water, her mouth unnaturally dry–she assumed from the endless moans and many frantic kisses shared–Cat very carefully untangled her naked body from his and out from under the covers. She sat at the edge of the bed for a moment, finally being able to take in the sight of the room she had been holed up in all night. Her stare didn’t know what to focus on first; the expansiveness of the space with its decadent art pieces adorning one of the walls, the large expanding floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the cityscape or the enormous bed that she had just been laying in. Cat twisted around, peeking back at Niall. He hadn’t moved a single muscle. And still looked just as cute, just as breathtakingly gorgeous as ever. She smiled down into the round of her shoulder and a slight chill broke out over her bare skin.
Scraping her teeth over her dry bottom lip, Cat eased up from the bed and peered around the floor, grabbing the first thing she saw to cover herself up with. It was Niall’s linen button up. She slid her arms into the shirt as she quietly stepped over to the window, just letting the thin material hang open down her body. It was a bit short, just barely covering her bum, but it did the trick for the time being and she tipped her head to the side as she flicked her wide, curious stare out across the city’s rooftops. It was beautiful, the bright flickering neon lights, the wiz of the cars zooming through the dark streets and Cat stood there, arms crossed over her front for a few more minutes, soaking up the beautiful scene in front of her before tip-toeing out of the bedroom.
She didn’t really remember how they had gotten back to his bedroom; her attention, and her mouth, stuck to Niall on the way in, but it wasn’t hard to find her way back out into the open floor plan of his two-story condo. If she had thought his bedroom was spacious, she didn’t even know what to do the second her bare feet hit the threshold of his main living space. Another enormous wall of windows overlooking the city, the space decorated just how she had imagined it would be, much like Niall’s office. Modern and sleek, incredibly expensive, with only a few punches of color amongst the dark tonal colors, it was unreal. There was no questioning that Niall was a wealthy man.
“Holy shit,” Cat breathed out to herself with a short giggle, tucking some unruly hair behind her ear. She stepped forward, making her way through the open living room and into the kitchen. There were a few lights on, just really soft dim lighting under the cabinets that she assumed accented the atmosphere of his home, so she was able to easily find her way to the fridge. Niall had a few glass bottles of water resting along the shelf in the door and Cat eagerly helped herself to one. Unscrewing the metal cap, Cat shuffled over to the long kitchen island, facing out towards his living room as she put the rim of the bottle to her lips and took a nice, slow sip. Her eyes fluttered closed as she tilted her head back, letting the cold refreshing liquid slip down her dry throat. She had never tasted water that good before.
The girl must have lost herself in the water for a moment, as it was only when she heard the faint clearing of a throat that she shot her eyes open, bringing her chin back down. It was Niall. Standing just at the threshold of the kitchen, in nothing but a tiny pair of white boxers. Licking her lips, Cat smiled at him, her stare noticeably dragging over the exquisitely intricate lines of his toned body. He was by far the most gorgeous man she had ever laid eyes on. And she was pretty sure he knew it too.
“Thirsty?” Niall commented.
Cat wrinkled her brows and flicked her gaze back up to his. “Huh?” He nodded towards the bottle of water in her hand as he stepped over to the kitchen counter, pulling out a stool to sit down. Cat peered down at the bottle that was gripped in her hand. “Oh...yeah,” she giggled in response.
Niall leaned in, resting his forearms on the edge of the counter. His tired, half lidded eyes stayed on hers, those hypnotizingly ocean blue eyes that Cat just couldn’t seem to get away from. As much as she knew she should. She quickly took another sip of water. Niall gaffed and tipped his head down, running his fingers through his mess of hair. “Cat, can I be honest?” he then blurted out.
Swallowing down the frigid water that was held in her mouth, Cat faintly nodded as she set the bottle down on the counter in front of her. His eyes darted heavy with hers and for a moment, Cat almost couldn’t breathe. She didn’t like that feeling. Not when she had an idea what was coming next. “I wanna be with you,” he said bluntly.
She dropped her stare, mainly because the intensity of his was eating at her skin, and tucked some fallen hair behind her ear. “I...can’t,” she muttered, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip as she annoyingly picked at the paper label of her bottled water.
“Why?”
“Because, I-…we shouldn’t,” she said.
Niall shook his head. “Listen, if it's this boyfriend of yours,” he started, Cat catching his stare again, “ya know it’s not real, it can’t be. And ya know I can fuck ya better, you know I can treat ya better. Better than anyone.”
Rolling her eyes, Cat huffed out a breath as she rubbed over her forehead. She knew it had gone on long enough, and she had no choice but to tell him. She couldn’t keep lying to him. It was tearing her up inside. “Look, Niall…” Cat paused, already frustrated and needing to collect her thoughts before continuing, “I’ve got to tell you something and I don’t want you to get mad at me.”
He narrowed his stare at her as he listened, not sure where the conversation was headed. “I, um…” Cat fiddled with a button on his shirt, tugging the airy material tighter around her chest, hoping it was covering her bare breasts. “I don’t really have a boyfriend.”
“What?” he scoffed.
Cat flicked her eyes up to his, she could see the confusion pulling at his face. His lips dropping open, his eyes scouring over hers, like he was desperately searching for answers. It nearly broke her heart. “I was-, fuck, I don’t even know now why I did it,” she started, plopping her elbows down to the countertop as she covered her face with her hands. “I guess, I said that hoping it would keep a distance between us. To...keep myself from...falling for you.”
Niall’s brows drew in further. He wasn’t even mad that she had lied, just more than confused at that point. He never knew what was going on inside that girl’s head, and it frustrated the hell out of him. “Cat, why would ya wanna do that?”
“Are you kidding me?” she shot back, scrunching her face in. “You told me yourself that you don’t do serious girlfriends. You’ve slept with half the city, Niall. I know you. I know how you are and I know that I was to ever get involved with you, really involved... it wouldn’t end well for me.”
Niall darted his stare over hers for a second as he stayed quiet before he pushed out a long sigh, Cat watching as he hung his head down. She sucked in a deep breath, instantly feeling horrible for all of the shit that had just spewed from her mouth. She hadn’t meant for it to come out like that, not in that way and definitely not after the night they had just had. But she also didn’t know how else she was supposed to get it across to him. He was stubborn, persistent and with guys like Niall, sometimes it was just easier to rip the bandaid off fast. It was better for both of them that way. No matter how she actually felt.
And as much as she needed to get all of that off her chest, she hated seeing him upset. It hurt her heart looking over at him, slouched over his countertop with his head hanging between his shoulders. He didn’t say a word, not a single word and Cat couldn’t take it anymore. Shuffling around the kitchen island, she stepped over to him and cradled her hand to the side of his face, her thumb rubbing over his bearded jaw. “I’m sorry, Niall,” she whispered, “I didn’t mean it like that, I–”
“That’s exactly how ya meant it,” he mumbled.
Cat let out a soft sigh. “No, it’s not. Not at all. I like you, okay?” she went on, “I really...I really do like you. What I feel for you is–...I can’t even explain it, and I don’t know how to make any sense of it. I never meant to lie to you, but I’m just-...I didn’t know what else to do. I’m trying to protect myself, okay? I have to.”
Niall flung his head up as he looked over at her, his body following his movements. His knees bumped hers and she herself slotted between his spread legs, facing each other. “Protect yourself from what?” he asked, brow furrowed. “How I feel about ya? How I make ya feel?”
Cat shook her head. “You’re gonna get tired of me, Niall.”
“No.”
“Yes, you are,” she told him, exasperation idle in her voice, “you’re gonna get tired of me. You’ll get tired of me and you won’t want me anymore and it will just-...I won’t be able to take it, okay? Not from you. It will break my heart.”
And there it was. The real reason why she was scared. Why she was so intent on holding him at a distance. Why she had lied to him in the first place. Her feelings for him were much deeper than she was letting on, much deeper than maybe she even wanted to admit. Niall huffed out a deep breath and reached up, cupping his hands around the sides of her face. Cat’s gaze met his, and she nearly wanted to burst out crying. She didn’t even know why. “Listen to me,” he began, his brows raised as he stared at her through the tops of his eyes, “I will never get tired of you. I couldn’t. Cat, you are all that I think about, all the bloody fuckin’ time. I can’t get ya out of me head. Shit, I don’t want to. You, love, you are what I want. You have always been what I wanted. I have loved ya since the first time ya looked at me and havin’ ya back in me life these past few weeks, it’s just made me realize that I am nothin’...nothin’ without you.”
His words slid over her ears, so sweet and so pure, it was hard to believe it was coming from Niall. But it was, and it made her heart soar. She was so intent on the thought of him breaking her heart, on not feeling the same way for her that she did for him, that she hadn’t even thought of the possibility that he, Niall Horan, had real, honest, true and undeniable feelings for her. She swallowed hard, resting her hands to his chest as he went on. “The reason why I haven’t had a serious girlfriend is not ‘cause I didn’t want one, not ‘cause I wanted to go out and fuck everyone, Cat...it’s ‘cause none of them were you.”
A heavy breath eased past Cat’s lips and she knew there was no way she could hold in the tears that had worked their way to the brims of her eyes. Her eyelids fluttered closed, her chin wobbling as a tear slid down her cheek. She softly giggled, her nerves getting the better of her and Niall gently wiped the tear away as he stood up and pushed his forehead to hers. “Baby, none of them were you.”
Dragging her hands across the span of his bare chest, Cat gingerly shook her head and just barely eased her chin up, bringing her mouth to his. She kissed him, kissed him soft and then deeper, wrapping her arms around his body as a few more tears slipped down her face. Niall might have shed a tear or two as well, not being one to shout that from the rooftops, but Cat felt the wetness on her skin as he buried his face against her neck when he pulled her into a tight hug.
“So, you’ll be mine then?” Niall spoke up once more after a few quiet moments, inching back slightly from her embrace.
Cat smiled up at him, reaching up to brush some hair from his eyes. They were too pretty to cover up. “Niall James, I was always yours. From the first time you kissed me. Besides…how on earth could I say no after that?”
He snorted. “I’m sure you’d find a way…”
She pinched her eyes closed in a faint laugh. “Not this time,” she whispered, urging him into another kiss. His tongue curled around hers, and Cat sweetly whined before just barely pulling back. “So...I heard you, like, love me or something...”
Niall cocked his head back, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Oh, ya did, did’ya?”
“Yeah,” she nodded, with a faint shrug.
He breathed out a soft smile, one that made her heart nearly explode. “Well, ya heard right. I fuckin’ love you, Cat.”
“I love you, too, Niall,” she replied, her eyes dancing over his, “I always have, even though I spent the last four years trying to fight it.”
With his brow raising, Niall licked across his lips. “Figured that. I always knew ya loved me,” he said.
“You’re just being cocky now,” Cat rolled her eyes, her fingernails raking down the slope of his back. “You didn’t know shit.”
Niall laughed. “Of course I did, petal. Just had to get you to admit it,” he said. Pulling himself away slightly, he slipped his gaze down her scantily covered frame. She was on full display, nothing being hidden by the material of his shirt at that point. A familiar heat began to crawl over Cat’s exposed skin, Niall’s wild blue eyes bleeding dark as the intensity of his stare grew with each passing second that he looked over her. She knew that look all too well. “And I also know…” he paused, slipping one of his hands inside the hem of his open shirt that adorned her body. She faintly gasped as he groped at her breast, rubbing his fingertips across her pert nipple. His playful touch burned at her sensitive flesh and he peered back up at her.
Niall thumbed at her bottom lip as he leaned in close. “...we got a lot more fuckin’ to do, kitty cat.”
Cat bit off the bashful smile that was etching across her lips, her cheeks punching a bright pink. Niall chuckled amusingly at her reaction and took her hand in his, kissing sweetly across her knuckles before leading the way back to his bedroom. And as Cat held his fingers within hers, watching the muscles in his back move as he walked in front of her and felt the soreness between her legs dissipate as that uncompromisable need for him took over, all she could think about was the fact that he was hers. All hers. Hers to kiss and touch, to play with and fuck. To laugh with, and cry with and cuddle and enjoy. Hers to make love to. Hers to love.
And it was so much better than a million hot and sticky nights spent at summer camp.
~~
Without your love, I’m jaded, going crazy, come save me,
Hearts beating, not breathing, I’m breathing...
#niall#niall horan#niall fic#niall fan fic#niall horan fanfic#niall smut#niall oneshot#oneshot#smut#nothing except for your love#part 2 summer camp#THIS IS IT GUYS!!!#its a loooong one so settle in and buckle up lol#i really really hope you enjoy it#please share and share some more!#let me know what you think#also the song is linked in the title so ...ya know give it a listen to get the feel for the fic if you want :)#did you like this better than the first part? haah#and as always thank you SO MUCH for reading :)
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Prezzies for 7-Volt
I was curious so I decided to rank 7-Volt’s preferences for prezzies for funsies. He’s got some similar tastes like 5-Volt and a LOT of similar ones like 9-Volt (mostly for the disliked ones).
↑↑↑: Shower Cap, Cashew, Hard Candy, Boiled Egg, Garlic, Ice Cream, Donut, Pudding, Pizza, Hunk of Meat, Birthday Cake, Afternoon Tea, Sushi, Marbled Meat, Laptop, Tuna, Mandrake Root, Gold Card, Golf Course, Tigronic Model
↑↑: Dandelion Seed, Soda-Can Tab, Plastic Bag, Scallion, Meat Dumpling, Cake Roll, Hamburger, Ramen, Japanese Curry, Sunglasses, Mushroom, High-Tech Shoes, Electric Fan, Mobile Phone, Minitruck, Cabin Cruiser, Helicopter, Large-Scale Crane, Jumbo Jet, Spaceship
↑: Ribbon, Light Bulb, Mystery Screw, Toilet Paper, Banana, Grapes, Smoothie, Floppy Disk, Octopus Sausage, Eye-Exam Stick, Headphones, Bat, Dumbbell, Digital Camera, Dual-Sport Bicycle, Deer Scare, Wedding Dress, Super-Fancy Toilet, Golden Toilet, Luxury Cruise Ship
OK: Empty Can, Cracker, Mystery Key, Toothbrush, Paper Wrestler, Rubber Ducky, Sock, Disguise Glasses, Bicycle Pump, Piggy Bank, Bowling Pin, Soccer Ball, Rugby Ball, Boxing Glove, Expensive Vase, Painting, Golden Egg, Red Gem, Desert Island, Giant Meteorite
Eh.: Strand of Hair, Spiderweb, Apple Core, Rubber Plug, Milk, Rose, Magnet, Faucet Handle, White Plate, Mustache Catalog, Cactus, Matryoshka Doll, Manhole Cover, Rafflesia, Electric Guitar, Alpenhorn, Haniwa Figure, Body-Builder Statue, Gaudy Crown, Company Building
Pretty much nearly all the food items are ranked highly due to there being a lot of restaurants and stands/food trucks around the fire station so he eats out everyday, sometimes several times a day. But he prefers 5-Volt’s home cooking the most (shrimp alfredo is the way to his heart). He’s no slouch himself, being the best cook for the other firemen. He does share his dislike for milk with 9-Volt because they’re both lactose intolerant. It doesn’t stop him from loving ice cream a lot, so he’d get the dairy-free kind instead.
Due to his hair being very curly and unruly (which he also passed onto 9-Volt), he really appreciates the shower cap and ribbon. He’d often tie his long hair back for work. The wedding dress being rated pretty high is due to it reminding him of his wedding day and how stunning 5-Volt looked in her wedding dress.
Some break room quotes-
"Where's the fire?" - Select
"Safety first!" - Select
"Watch yourself!" - Select
"Whoa-ho-ho! This is blazing hot!" - ↑↑↑ Prezzy
"Fascinating!" - ↑↑ Prezzy
"Well, I feel edified!" - ↑ Prezzy
"Aight." - OK Prezzy
"How vexing." - Eh Prezzy
"I'm still rockin' the high scores!" - Level up
#warioware#headcanon#yes i gave him a couple miriel quotes because sometimes he goes into 'scientist mode' so it was a little suiting#the antics he gets into from 'scientist mode' is for another day because holy moly how is he NOT dead lmao!
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-- Prologue --
1st & 2nd Image(s): ↑
Hello, December. This is it, it's the final month of 2023. And while I have a bunch of items that I would love to review, I want to tackle my recent order that was delivered on Nov 24th of that year. 🙂📦
My paper dolls ask "So, what's inside of that package?". Well, let's find out right now! 😁📦✂️ ↓
🎦 My Recorded video No. 1 ↑ 📲
IMPORTANT NOTE: My apologies for the awful background, despite my current smartphone (the Honor 8C) doesn't have noise cancelling / anti-background sound feature. 🚫🎶🏙️📲
My High Purity Copper Wire Replacement Audio for my QKZ AK6 Pro IEM review (w/ my paper dolls) - 1st Half [Recorded: Dec 8th, 2023]
DeviantART Version: [CLICK ME!]
(3rd & 4th Image(s): ↑)
Here it is! This is my last item review for 2023, the "High Purity Copper Wire Replacement Audio" [Model name: "HC001ABK"] for my existed QKZ AK6 Pro IEM Earphones by the folks of Popcorn Tech. 🙂🎧🎶 Mmmmm... I would like to call it "Audio Wire Replacement", for now on. 🙂 So, will it worked on my current IEM Earphones? Let's find out. 🤔
IMPORTANT NOTE: I know what you thinking, but... They're not actual selling ✌ "popcorn" ✌ foods ❌🍿, no. (as confused as I am) Rather, they're selling tech stuff, aside from audio items. See these for yourself:[Lazada - CLICK ME!], [Shopee - CLICK ME!].
BTW: If you haven't seen my review of QKZ AK6 Pro (from 2022), then I'll provide some links down below. ↓ 😉
My QKZ AK6 Pro IEM Earphones:
• Revealing parcel [Oct 1st, 2022]
• Part 1 (1st half) [Oct 8th, 2022]
• Part 2 (2nd half) [Oct 8th, 2022]
• Part 3 (Final) [Oct 26th, 2022]
So, without further ado, let's get started:
5th to 19th Image(s): ↑
• [5th & 6th Images] Alright so, let's have a comparison with my old one (from the original box), while I'm making an explanation why I bought this replacement. I have a ton of photos, so let's keep rolling.
• The reason why I need it as urgent was because of our new pet bunny 🥰🐰🤗 (yes, we do have a pet domestic rabbit gifted by our related family tree) chewing on my OG audio wire, while I was sleeping at midnight. Apparently, My IEM earphone was felt beside our pet rabbit's cage before it chewed. 🐰 (Reason? Because my parents bought a ton of item goods to sell for our small business, which ended up in our living room) And what you see now (followed by other snapshots) are the remaining pieces of my OG audio wire, and that's why I need a replacement for my current IEM. As I said before, owning an IEM had a huge advantage over ordinary/regular earphones was the ability to detach the earpiece from the old audio wire and in favor of the new one. As for our beloved pet rabbit, we've decided to move to the backyard, along with our beloved mixed breed canine (named "Buster") during the cleaning schedule. 😊🐶
BTW: While I can't show ya our actual pet rabbit, instead here's a video of our exact pet rabbit breed 🥰🐰🤗 → [CLICK ME!]. As for our mixed breed canine? Well, sadly, I have no information on what breed he/she is... Sorry. 🤔 Anyways, let's go back to my review.
• [7th to 19th Images] As I said before, here are the remaining of my OG audio wire from QKZ, completely snapped and chewed by our beloved pet rabbit. Nonetheless, the comparison between my old and new audio wire is completely identical (from the C Pin to the ear hooks, and even the Y-shaped splitter. Not to mention, the material used), almost. 🙂 Because there are notable things that I've found except the yellowish color of the QDC C Pin 🤔, like their controls. [12th & 13th Images] The OG had a single play/pause/call button, while the 'audio wire replacement' had included the volume buttons (alongside the aforementioned one) to prevent reaching our smartphone for adjusting our music sound 🚫✋🎶📲, which is good. 🙂👍 [19th Image] Another one was the missing logo from the new 'audio wire replacement'. Yeah, there's nothing special about it 🤷, since this 'audio wire replacement' had strong compatibility with other IEM brands, not just for QKZ models (like my AK6 Pro), as long as you're using the C Pin variant over other IEM audio pins. 🎶😉
Unfortunately, This is the end of '1st half'. But, fear not because I have the '2nd half', right here. → [CLICK ME!] 😉
Well, that's all for now.
Tagged: @lordromulus90, @bryan360, @carmenramcat, @leapant, @rafacaz4lisam2k4, @alexander1301, @paektu
#My Video#MyVideo#My Photos#My Photo#MyPhotos#MyPhoto#Video#Photos#Photo#Chowder#Panini#Chowder Panini#Paper Dolls#Audio Wire#Audio Wire Replacement#QKZ#QKZ AK6 Pro#IEM Earphones#In-Ear Monitor Earphones#In Ear Monitor Earphones#Earphones#Earphone#Earbuds#Earbud#Photography
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A story by heroes and villains
Logan Anker: Pupil
In learning you will teach, and in teaching you will learn.
Sweets had been gushing about 10b for two years when Logan finally caved and decided to put aside his opinion on under age heroes in training and take a look for himself.
He had to admit, he seemed to be very talented. Most people had two abilities at the most.
10b, however exhibited enhanced strength and speed, flight, several shields, projectile and close combat weaponry. And he had excellent control of all of those.
He nodded to Sweets, who called out to the young hero in training as he finished off his target practice sequence.
“Good Job 10.b.” The kid, because no one could fool Logan, this child was nowhere near finishing high school, looked around and lower himself to the ground, eying Logan curiously.
Or at least, that is what Logan gathered from his body language since the protective gear was hiding the hero in training’s face.
A child. Around Virgil’s age. He might’ve be been in Virgil’s class at some point. A boy who thinks he can face what is out there. He knows Thomas hasn’t told this potential hero about Him yet.
It was Logan’s job to make sure the hero was ready for that information, for the world.
The hero was looking him up and down. Logan had updated his disguise from his old villain getup to a more inconspicuous outfit. One he could be seen wearing in the normal world, though he had it shift colors between a friendlier grey and sometimes navy blue to the deep black he chose for the meetings in the basement. His shading and voice modulating technology had gotten even better and was now integrated in his tie and his glasses. Making for a seamless transition from entering the elevator as Logan to exiting as Brainstorm.
“10.b, this is Mr. BrainStorm. He’ll be assisting us with training and provide you with the tech you need to be the best hero you can be,” Sweets explained.
The shocked reaction was expected. 10b was on edge. Logan supposed he should make him more comfortable around him if they were to work together.
“I see my reputation still manages to precede me,” he stated as calmly as he could. Though he really whished it didn’t. It’d been well over a decade since he’d done anything that made the papers in a bad way. His creations and discoveries had gotten him more than a little credit. The new police chief was actually giving him the benefit of the doubt now, while the former chief had treated him like a criminal every chance he got.
At the end it got so bad that he’d had to hold his talisman clenched in his fist every time the man was in the same building, or even on tv.
Chief Davies was firm and called him out when she needed to. But she truly did have his back when he needed her to support his ideas.
Sometimes he wished he could publish his research under his own name. He wanted Virgil to see the good he put into the world and be proud of him. But that might lead to pesky questions. Ordinary professors didn’t work on the level he did. And he couldn’t draw any attention to himself. Lest He take notice.
On the subject of his son though. Thanks to Virgil he had connected with his students a lot better the past few years. And if he was right about this boy’s age, his experiences with Virgil might help him connect with the young hero too.
“Would it be more comforting if I told you that the initials of my moniker are no coincidence?”
A second’s silence and then an artificially deepened snicker. Success.
“I suspected you might find this funny. I came up with it when I was about your age and thought it was really clever of me. Though I didn’t actually use it until I was closer to twenty.”
Logan was glad his face was hidden, because if anyone could see the pain in his eyes now…
He’d been 19 to be exact. Freshman in college, close friends with Thomas. When Caleb…
And then Helena got the diagnosis… He’d wanted to help. Needed to help.
He didn’t even talk to her long enough to let her tell him her good news… Not until that last day. And then he’d gotten mad. He’d been hurt, angry with her and himself.
And that was the last conversation he’d ever had with his big sister…
“10.b” his new pupil introduced himself as he offered his hand.
Logan appreciated the young man’s restraint. Many would ask him all about his past given the chance. But 10b didn’t. He nodded his appreciation and accepted the offered hand. “BrainStorm.”
Training 10b was a rather interesting endeavor.
Driven was one word to describe him. That much was clear. Logan tried to make him understand that even he had limits. But so far, he struggled to find one.
10b just kept outdoing himself. He was almost tempted to let him go out. But…
“So? Am I ready yet?” Even through the voice modulation Logan could hear the hopeful tone in his voice. 10b was still far too eager for approval. And that was a dangerous thing to want as a hero.
So Logan just shook his head. “No.”
The most concerning example of his stubbornness and need to prove himself was when he kept training from noon to almost midnight with almost no breaks one late summer day.
Logan would be annoyed, he would’ve liked to spend some of the last day of summer with his son, but he was more worried.
“Go home. Your body can’t keep up with your stubbornness. I’m sure you have places to be tomorrow.”
The boy grunted. “I’m not done…” he insisted.
“I am.” Logan turned and left the campus, hoping that his absence would force the boy to quit for the night.
When he arrived home, he planned to check in on Virgil who should be fast asleep at this hour, before getting to bed himself.
But instead he was tackled by his sobbing son. It’d been half a decade since Virgil had hugged him as soon as he walked through the door. After that he had started to learn that his father was not truly comfortable with physical closeness and had made an effort to at least warn him when he needed a hug.
“You are back. I thought… You’re never out this late and… I thought something bad had happened.”
Virgil rambled as he sobbed into his shirt.
“It’s okay Virgil. I’m alright. I’m sorry, I forgot to let you know work was running late.” He hated keeping secrets from Virgil. But it had regretfully become a habit of his it seemed.
He still didn’t talk about Helena or Caleb, despite the fact that Virgil had asked about them a few times in the past already. He had a right to know. But whenever he tried to talk about them to him, his throat closed up and fear and shame overtook him.
And he couldn’t even think about telling him about his powers, his mistakes and therefore his redemption or his second job. So whenever he had to train 10b he said he had to work on a project.
He’d thought Virgil had been fine. Though he noticed that he’d gotten more quiet since he started high school. In light of recent events, that might not have been just normal teenage behavior.
He had figured, if his son was struggling, he would tell him… apparently not.
“It’s alright Virgil. I’m here. We’re both alright,” he muttered.
It took him about thirty minutes to calm Virgil down.
He brought him up to his bedroom and tucked him in.
“We’ll talk about this tomorrow when you get back from school alright? Try to sleep,” he instructed.
“Okay,” Virgil murmured as he pulled the blanket closer to himself.
Before leaving in the morning, Logan checked in on Virgil and found him curled up in his bed, sound asleep. He was about to leave when he noticed Virgil was holding something. Upon closer inspection he saw that it was the old stitch doll , wearing Virgil’s comfort blanket as a cape.
Had they been moved back to the bed at some point since the last time Logan saw them on Virgil’s desk? Or was this something he only did when he needed the extra comfort?
Logan didn’t think Virgil would tell him even if he asked. So he made a note to pay more attention to the doll’s location whenever he came up to the room. If nothing else it might be an indicator to Virgil’s mood. It would be something to consider later.
In class he had a hard time concentrating. He expected as much and apologized in advance.
He greeted each class by looking through his note cards, though after the first he didn’t need to, he found that the ritual was part of the appeal for his students.
“Good day everyone. I’m afraid I’ll be a bit off my ‘game’ today. Suffice it to say, the past night was a as you say ‘big oof’,” he held up the card and flashed it to his students.
A chuckle ran through the class and he smirked, feeling a little bit better after every time.
During lunch hour he called Picani. It’d been a while, but he needed some help and another session.
“He couldn’t breathe. He was terrified. He was… I’ve never felt so helpless,” he confessed quietly.
“Well, sounds like Virgil is certainly dealing with some things. I of course can’t be sure after just this one conversation but could you answer a few questions for me?”
Logan tugged at his hair. “Yes of course.”
Picani proceeded to list a few observable behaviors, things Logan had in fact noticed in Virgil. Small changes that just seemed logical developments from certain things he’d had since childhood. But, as it turned out…
“I would have to talk to Virgil in person to be sure. But from what you told me, he might have heightened levels of anxiety.”
Logan thought about that. That made a good amount of sense.
“Can you… I’m pretty sure he won’t want to talk about this. If he did, he would have done so already. But is there a list of some sort he could fill out? I’d like to be more certain before I bring up anxiety.”
Picani sent him a list and instructions on how to interpret them. He printed them out and was just reading through them when there was a knock on his door.
“Yes?” he called.
“Hi there Logie! How are classes going?” Patton asked as he walked in.
“Hello Patton. Classes are going satisfactory,” he informed him pleasantly.
“But…”
Logan chuckled. “Nothing gets past you does it?” Patton was a god sent. He was patient with Logan’s social ineptness and didn’t mind if he ranted about Virgil or whatever scientific article had his attention at the moment during most of their conversations. He didn’t ask about his past, he didn’t press if he didn’t want to talk about what upset him in the present. He was amazing.
Logan had fallen for Patton Bonair and hard. He felt like an idiot. Like a middle schooler unable to just tell his crush that he liked him.
But would Virgil be able to handle such a big change? Would he like Patton? Would Patton be able to handle forever having to take second place in Logan’s life?
Too many variables. Patton wouldn’t even be interested in him in the first place.
Things worked fine right now.
“Just teenage trouble. Nothing you can do about it I am afraid. How are you?” he asked. Patton nodded, accepting the change of subject.
Logan didn’t have any evening classes, and 10b had no training planned today, so he was home first and made a pot of chamomile as he waited for Virgil.
“Home!” Virgil’s voice came from the hallway followed by the sound of a closing door.
“Kitchen!” Logan replied as he poured two cups from the pot.
Virgil sat down and accepted the cup Logan handed him.
Once they both sat down Logan looked at Virgil, feeling hurt when he saw his son avoiding his eyes. When had that started? He had thought a lot about what Virgil might be going through and why he wasn’t aware until now.
He landed on the reason Virgil had given about not telling him about bullies.
“Virgil, I want you to know that you are not in trouble. I am not mad or upset with you in any way. Alright?” Virgil nodded, still not quite meeting his eyes.
Logan pressed on, speaking gently to ensure that he didn’t give Virgil the idea that he was frustrated or hurt.
“Last night… Was that the first time you went through something like that?”
What little progress Virgil had made in looking at him vanished in a second. His hands tightened around his mug. “No…” he admitted. Logan had feared as much, but still it stung to know his son had suffered on his own. Or maybe, hopefully, Janus had been there for him. Like he’d been there for the bullies.
“Sometimes I just think too much and I worry and then I freak out and… It always passes, but it’s…” His voice started shaking and Logan caught the glistening of tears in his eyes.
Logan recalled Virgil’s behavior of the night before, the thought’s he’d mentioned running through his head. Imagined being in his place.
“Frightening I’m sure.” His statement finally got Virgil to look at him. Tears still in his eyes, but more than that surprise.
“Virgil,” he began as he pushed the list and pen he’d laid ready towards him.
“I have a list for you, I’d like you to read over it and indicate next to each item how often you experience them on a monthly basis. It’s important to me that you are honest. I have a suspicion of what may be causing this, but I get that talking about it might be hard for you. Therefor I provided you with this as a way to boil it down to simple facts. Can you do this for me?” It was factual and to the point. He didn’t want to add to Virgil’s nerves by making the conversation even more emotionally charged.
Virgil nodded and accepted the paper and pen.
Logan let him fill out the list focusing on his tea. Once he heard the scribbling of the pen stop he looked up. Virgil seemed about to push the paper forward, but his whole body was tense.
His face was pulled in a frown and he was biting his lip.
Anxious about the results and his reaction?
“It’s alright Virgil,” Logan said gently. “I know I’m not always, good, at expressing my emotions, but I do love you. More than I expected to when I first agreed to take care of you. Nothing could prepare me for how much I love you and how proud I am to call you my son. Whatever you wrote down, won’t change that.”
It was a moment of unfiltered honesty and apparently that was what Virgil needed to hear.
He took a deep breath and then the paper was in front of Logan. He read it over and it became apparent rather quickly that Picani was right.
“I’m sorry you’ve been struggling with this on your own Virgil. Can I ask for how long?”
Logan dreaded the answer. But it was vital that he knew this.
“Um… start of last school year?” That wasn’t as long as Logan had feared.
“I didn’t notice it was bad until shortly after Christmas though. I was in the park and started freaking out. After that I was more aware of it I guess.” he explained.
Logan nodded, not showing his relief. When he went over external behaviors with Picani he’d come to fear that Virgil had been dealing with this for years. And perhaps he had. But he’d only known for the past eight months. Still, that was a long time to harbor such a secret from a loved one. Logan should know. Every day that he didn’t tell Virgil the whole truth about himself pressed like a heavy weight on his chest.
“Why did you feel like you couldn’t tell me this?” he asked worriedly.
Virgil squirmed in his seat. “I… I wanted to… but then I started freaking out about freaking you out and…” Logan was about to try and talk Virgil through a breathing exercise he’d researched but Virgil already centered himself with a deep breath and a slow sip from his tea to give himself time to calm down. “I just figured I could deal.”
That was understandable. Logan had certainly used similar reasoning in the past in order not to burden Thomas, or his sister… That had not ended well for him though. And he would not let Virgil suffer because of a misplaced need for independence.
He had tried to teach him to ask for help when he needed it when Remus was taken out of school. But it clearly hadn’t sunk in.
“Virgil, I think you might suffer from heightened levels of anxiety. That doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with you. I would like for you to talk to someone about it though. If only to help you figure out a way to handle these attacks and the thoughts that come with this better so it doesn’t have to interfere too much with your life. Does that sound agreeable?”
“A shrink?” Virgil asked nervously.
Logan was glad he had so much practice keeping his emotions in check. He had perhaps been a bit too vigilant in shielding Virgil from his problems. “I know there is a stigma against it…” He had to do this. If he wanted Virgil to trust him on this, to open up more to him in general. Then he had to open up first. “But my psychiatrist has helped me a great deal with your mother’s death. I hope he, or one of his colleagues help you with your anxiety.”
“You… you went to therapy?” Virgil’s shock was proof that he had probably done too well of a job of seeming put together and in control at all times. He did it to assure Virgil of a stable figure to rely on. But he had deprived him of someone able to truly understand emotional vulnerability it seemed. “Still do from time to time,” he nodded, recalling the appointment he had scheduled for the weekend, making a note to announce it as such when he left. Perhaps he should have normalized his visits to doctor Picani the same way he’d normalized his attraction to men.
Virgil seemed to seriously consider his request now that he knew his father had a history of going to therapy.
“Okay…” he finally said, much to Logan’s relief. “just… can this stay between you and me?” Logan wanted to question why Virgil felt the need to hide this from Janus. Thomas he could understand. Virgil’s honorary uncle was of the helpful sort and might fuss about Virgil just a bit too much. But surely having a friend at school who knew about the potential for attacks and the ways to treat them could be beneficial?
He held these questions back though. Mental health was like your sexuality in that regard. It had to be your own choice when you told who about what parts of yourself. Including the reason you aren’t ready to tell your best friend you are struggling with certain issues.
“If that makes you more comfortable.”
“Thanks,” Virgil smiled before leaving the table with his tea to make homework in his room. Picani planned in a two hour take in session for Virgil early October.
In the meantime Logan paid extra attention to Virgil’s behavior. Trying to stay vigilant without becoming overbearing. It was hard, but he felt like he managed not to overstep.
He checked in with Virgil every night and found that indeed, Stitch only occasionally ended up in the bed. Usually preceded by a very quiet evening.
So Logan made an effort to coax Virgil into talking to him more when he seemed to hide in his own head. Sometimes he was successful. Other times Virgil asked him to let him just be for the evening and Logan backed off.
Picani managed to soothe Logan’s worries about being a bad father. Normal behavior for this age and such. They did discuss the possibility that Virgil might need some more affirmation. While they deduced that Virgil expressed his love through acts of service and gift giving. He usually paired those with clear verbal statements of his feelings and intentions. Possibly because he himself struggled to ‘assume’ that any action was made with the intention of showing love or appreciation.
The month progressed and when Logan dropped Virgil off for his first session he was probably as nervous as Virgil. He wanted to blow of some steam, but he held firm in his decision to never use that part of his abilities again. So instead he went for a run. By the time he was freshened up it was time to pick Virgil up. Sure, his son was old enough to take the bus, but he remembered how much his own first meeting with Picani had affected him and how intense the man’s idea of a good first impression was.
So he wanted to make sure Virgil was comfortable afterwards.
To his relief Virgil had ended up liking Picani. A second appointment was made for the next week and Virgil actually opened up a bit more after that. He started showing his drawings again, he hadn’t been comfortable sharing his art in what felt like forever.
And Logan must say, though he was never very creative or in touch with art, he could see that Virgil had talent. He could discern the patterns in the pencil lines and could see which sketches were made absentmindedly and which had been drawn in moments of tension. Each and every one though, without fail, was something Logan couldn’t phantom creating himself. He told Virgil as much and it made his son happy.
The name Roman started coming up in conversations again. Apparently he was Virgil’s lab partner this year and if the way his son seemed to struggle not to smile when talking about him was any indication, the crush Logan had suspected in middle school had returned. Or maybe it never faded in the first place.
10b was still training hard to become a hero and still eager to try his skills out in the real world. Logan was starting to worry he might run out of logical reasons to deny him this soon.
“We are done today,” he decided one Saturday afternoon.
“What? No! Why!?” the boy demanded.
Logan sighed and crossed his arms in front of him, taking a resolute stance. “Because, if you are going to be a hero any time soon you’ll have to learn to balance out your hero duties and your own life. School, work, friends, family…” If he’d been better at that aspect things would have ended up differently.
“Sweets and Manifestor both already left to return to their lives. You and I should do the same.” He didn’t wait for a reply and left. Virgil would be returning home from his appointment soon and Logan wanted to be there for him should it have been a difficult session.
Once he got upstairs he received a message from the front desk.
‘There is a young man who claims to be your son waiting for you.’
Logan smiled as he read this. He was glad Virgil had chosen to seek out his presence rather than just taking the bus home.
When he approached the front desk though he could hear the sound of sharp intake of breath, stuttering gasps and high pitched attempts at vocalization.
He was transported back to that terrible night and set of in a sprint.
“Virgil!” he called out, hoping his son would register and identify his voice and calm down.
He rounded the corner and found Virgil doubled over, gesturing frantically with his hand.
He rushed over and grabbed it. “Virgil if you can hear me, squeeze my hand,” he instructed.
“Fine, fine,” he gasped with a squeeze. Then he said something but Logan could only make out the words “Cant” and “God”.
“Virgil, are you having an attack?” he asked worriedly.
Much to his relief Virgil shook his head before starting to take in slow, deep breaths.
Once he had control over his breathing he whipped at his eyes smearing his running make up even more.
When Virgil looked up he had the widest grin. “You are using the vocab cards.”
Logan cocked his head, confused about why that was so funny.
“Of course. They were a gift from you, why wouldn’t I use them at any opportunity?”
How did he even learn this information?
A muffled squeal answered that question. Logan didn’t even need to look up to know who this was. Patton. Patton met Virgil and talked to him and apparently made him laugh so hard he could barely breathe. Patton had been talking about him with his son.
Virgil luckily snapped him out of his mild gay panic.
“Yes, because you were complaining about not understanding some of the things your students were saying. I didn’t expect you to actually start yeeting your trash,” he chuckled.
Now, Logan was pretty sure Virgil was aware of the nuances of modern slang. He did take meticulous care of making the cards and the updates on every gifting opportunity on top of whatever ‘real’ present he’d gotten him.
Virgil might have just been joking, with little care for accuracy. Regardless Logan adjusted his glasses and looked his son in the eye before informing him that: “Yeet is for distance. For trash I need accuracy, therefore the term used is ‘cobi’.”
And just like that Virgil was doubled over again, though this time the laughter died out on it’s own much sooner.
He straightened himself and addressed Patton with a smile.
“Anyway, great meeting you Patton. It’s good to know dad has someone so nice looking out for him.”
And then, out of nowhere he turned back to him. “You should invite him over for dinner some time. He’s a lot of fun.”
Logan felt his face flush. What? When? Did Virgil just…“Well, you two talk about that, I’m going to wash my face.” Before Logan could collect himself enough his son was out of sight. In hindsight it was foolish to think that Virgil had given up his matchmaker tendencies.
He simply hadn’t had any targets until now. Logan had hoped that after he and Thomas had a fight about the later’s attempt at setting him up with Sweets of all people for some unknown reason, Virgil had come to understand that he simply was not interested in dating anyone. Apparently not. And Virgil had just basically asked Patton out for him.
He looked over to Patton, about to make excuses for his son but then froze. Patton was blushing and playing with his sweater sleeves.
“Patton are you alright?” he hoped Virgil hadn’t made him uncomfortable? What had been said before he arrived?
“Will you have dinner with me?!” Patton blurted out.
Logan blinked in shock. “As… Like…”
“A date! I’m asking you out on a date,” Patton clarified.
Patton wanted to go out with him? “That would be acceptable,” he nodded.
Patton’s face brightened. “Great! Pick you up next Saturday around six? I’ll call you with the details,” he suggested. Logan nodded. “Yes. I’ll see you on Monday.”
“Right! At work. Right here… Bye!” Patton giggled before walking off.
Logan meanwhile was trying not to lose his mind over this.
“Dad?”
Virgil had returned while Logan had stood here frozen for who knows how long.
“Dr. Bonnaire asked me on a date,” he breathed, still wrapping his head around that fact.
“I think you can call him by his first name if that’s the case.” Logan couldn’t see him right now but he was sure his son was finding this funny.
“I… I suppose…” He had a point. Not that he hadn’t been on a first name basis until now. But… Well he always called him by his last name whenever anyone else was around.
It was a habit he couldn’t quite explain.
“You did say yes right?” He must look really out of it. To be honest, Logan was starting to doubt if the last two minutes really happened.
“I… yes, I don’t know what came over me… I’ve never…” After over a decade of telling himself that he had no time… No business having a romantic relationship…
“Wait… you’ve never been on a date?” Virgil gasped incredulously.
“Not like this!” he clarified frantically as he gestured wildly. Last time…
“Last time, I was an arrogant college student who felt like he had to answer to no one but himself. Now, I am a single father, going out with a coworker. This is an adult outing. I can’t just…” How to even explain his dilemma?
“You really like this guy huh?” Virgil’s voice became soothing, sympathetic.
The flutter of butterflies and the flush of color on his face probably told Logan enough.
Logan sighs and nods with a blush. “He’s so patient and friendly and… I just never thought he could ever…”
“Now stop it right there,” Virgil snapped sternly. “Me turning out like a somewhat stable person, proofs you are awesome. And you just showed him all the reasons why he should date you while taking care of me. You’re welcome by the way. Patton is cool. He’s already met your kid and passed the test. The scariest bit is over.”
That finally caught Logan’s attention. He turned towards his son, who had washed off all make up from his face, and grabbed his shoulders to convey how serious he was.
“You’re really fine with me going out with him? With me possibly entering a romantic relationship?”
Virgil shrugged. “I mean, I’m not a fan of the change, but I want you to be happy. And if Patton is your pick… I wouldn’t have suggested he come over for dinner if I didn’t like him.”
Virgil was doing his best to sound casual about it, but Logan was filled with unmatched joy. He found that words alone were not sufficient to convey his feelings. So he hugged him tight. “I am fortunate to have you as a son,” he told him sincerely.
Virgil shoved him away, blushing awkwardly. Logan didn’t take it personally. It was his own fault that Virgil didn’t know how to react to him initiating physical contact.
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever Logie.” What? Had Patton… Oh god. Virgil was much too pleased with Logan’s flustered reaction.
“Let’s go home,” he suggested with a smirk before heading to the parking lot.
Things changed over the next week. He and Patton engaged in more flirty conversation and it had his stomach in knots and his heart racing. But he didn’t mind that too much. Logan was pretty sure Thomas caught on, but he was kind enough not to mention it.
And then Halloween came around. Virgil’s favorite holyday.
They always dressed up together to hand out candy and Logan wondered if next year there would be an extra costume to be put together.
Virgil had been adjusting store bought costumes and doing their make up with enthusiasm ever since he outgrew trick or treating. He’d gotten quite good. From the start of September he’d be designing, sowing and practicing. The past two years it was the only time Logan saw his eyes light up again like they used to all the time when he was little.
This year, Virgil came home beaming.
“And so then I said ‘but ruling sounds like a lot of work’ and everyone laughed!”
Virgil was glowing as he told the story of how Roman had pulled him into a little improvisation.
“You should bring this boy over some time,” Logan suggested. Virgil’s hand, which had been turning him into a zombie professor, froze near his throat.
“I… We’re not… I mean he doesn’t…. We aren’t that close,” Virgil stammered. Logan let it go. Virgil wasn’t ready yet.
Logan had other worries that weekend than Virgil maybe trying to catch the eye of his classmate.
He was checking his tie for the millionth time and Virgil was wordlessly handing him the things he’d forgotten. Keys, wallet, phone…
He was a mess. “You look great dad,” Virgil assured him as he smoothed out his jacket for him. “He’s going to be blown away.”
“What would I do without you?” Logan wondered.
“Still pine from a distance I’m guessing,” Virgil smirked and just then the bell rang.
Logan took a deep breath, checked his pockets one last time and opened the door.
God, Patton looked so good in formal wear. He always looked charming, but now…
“Hya Logie! Hey Virgil! Thanks for letting me steal your dad for the night.” Patton winked.
“Hey Pat,” Virgil greeted.
Logan looked back with worry. “Are you sure…” he started, suddenly not comfortable with leaving his son alone for the night.
“Yes!” Virgil groaned with a roll of his eyes. “Just have a nice time. Text when you arrive at the restaurant and when you leave. I don’t have school tomorrow so don’t hurry home. Pat, steal his phone if he checks it even once during dinner.” Virgil was practically pushing him out the door at this point.
“I will,” Patton winked.
“Good, you crazy kids have fun and don’t do anything you wouldn’t want me to do.”
Logan flushed. “Virgil!” he chastised.
“Love you too!” he shouted as he shut the door in their faces.
Logan felt something twist in his stomach. Was Virgil trying to make sure he didn’t chicken out? Or… No. Virgil wouldn’t go behind his back.
“Logan?” Patton pressed gently.
He took a deep breath and smiled at his date… His date. The smile that appeared at that thought was almost painful.
“Apologies. Father instincts,” he shrugged by ways of explanation.
Patton giggled and hooked their arms together. “Don’t worry Logan. You’ve raised a wonderful boy. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
“Yes, you are right. Let’s enjoy our evening.”
The restaurant was lovely, the food delicious, and the company perfect.
Patton didn’t need to steal his phone, though Logan was always aware of its presence in his pocket. They talked about much more personal things than he’d ever allowed for at work. He learned about Patton’s love for animals and his ongoing battle with the kitchen, though he was good at baking for some reason.
Patton learned about his fascination with everything space related. They discovered they both loved Sherlock.
Patton really loved his puns. Something Logan found both endearing and frustrating. But he was sure his rants about complicated subjects could be a bit annoying from time to time too. They had fun discussing a few philosophers together and before they knew it it was time to pay. Logan texted Virgil as they waited for the bill.
“I had a really great time tonight,” Patton told him on the ride home.
“As did I. I’m glad you asked me out,” Logan nodded.
“Me too.”
And then they parked in front of the house. Logan spotted slight movement at the curtain of the neighbors. Celine was a curious person but she could keep a secret. He was sure she would ask him all about Patton next time they crossed paths, but he also knew that unless he told her it was okay, her husband nor her son would hear about his new relationship from her.
The lights in his own home seemed to be off. Virgil was probably in his room.
He cleared his throat. “So I guess now it is my turn. Next Friday? There is an exhibit I wanted to visit and I would very much like for you to accompany me.”
Patton smiled. “It’s a date.”
Logan nodded and left the vehicle with a final ‘good night’.
He had wanted to kiss him. Very much so. But he didn’t feel they were ready for it just yet.
Maybe after a second successful date.
When he got to Virgil’s room he noticed that the light was still on, so to be safe he gave a gentle knock on the door. A pause. “Come in.”
When he opened the door he saw Virgil was sitting on his bed, his headphones around his neck and his hair a mess. He’d been listening to music.
“You should be asleep,” he pointed out. It was rather late. He should at least have been trying.
“I wanted to make sure I could tell you good night. How was it?”
Virgil tried to be casual, but Logan could hear how tense he was. Whether it was worry or excitement, he wasn’t sure. Either way, it told him Virgil had worried about his night going well and that meant a lot. But Logan was not going to risk keeping Virgil up even later by rambling about the date.
“I will brief you in the morning. Now you should get adequate rest. Sleep deprivation is detrimental to both your physical health and creativity.”
“Okay, night dad,” he muttered in surrender as he got up to get ready for bed.
“Night Virgil… I love you.” He’d gotten much better at saying the words over the last month and he could see Virgil appreciated the effort.
“Love you too dad,” he smiled gently. And with that Logan closed the door.
How did he end up this lucky?
@moonlightshow00 @naturallyunstablegamer @alias290 @meowthefluffy @frida0043 @angelic-cali @selenechris
5) Let them go.
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#sanders sides#ts sides#logan sanders#virgil sanders#patton sanders#roman sanders#logicality#mention of#prinxiety#hero au
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