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sushiwriterhere · 11 months

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it’s not rotten work (not if it’s you)

summary: Four times you, Jake, and Javy danced around the truth, and the one time you confronted it. rating: explicit (18+ mdni) pairing: Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x f!reader x Javy ‘Coyote’ Machado word count: 4.2k warnings: idiots pining, mmf PiV (unprotected), m/f oral (receiving/giving, face sitting), cockwarming, hangman being hangman, light angst, dacryphilia a bit, mention of violence (stabbing), no use of y/n. notes: companion fic to my 'a little bit of fun' drabble. thank you to sana and amelia (@laracrofted @theharddeck) for the inspiration! this one's definitely more heavy on the emotion, so please let me know what you think!! tagging: @sebsxphia @sometimesanalice @waklman @joaquinwhorres @gretagerwigsmuse @lewmagoo @genius2050 @seresinsweetie @teacupsandtopgun

one.

Neither Javy nor Jake really reacts when you’re the one to initiate conversation in your group chat.

Bad day. Someone pick me up?

Javy responds with a thumbs up and then a simple-Hangboy’s in the air. See you at 5.

Neither of you speak on the ride to their place; Jake’s usually the one to fill those silences. Javy just places his hand palm side up on the center console and wraps his fingers around yours when you place your hand in his. It’s the sort of companionable silence that stirs feelings you don’t really have the energy to identify.

An hour and a half later you’re settled in Javy’s lap, one of Jake’s old Navy shirts falling loosely around you, Javy’s cock inside you. It brings you a rare type of peace.

He’d made you shower and eat, guiding you through the motions with a tenderness somehow not at odds with his broad shoulders, the military uniform he’d removed when he climbed into the shower with you. You’d talked in low tones over a recipe of his grandmothers’, him coaxing you to tell him about your day. They already had a half-empty pint of your favorite Ben & Jerry’s in the freezer.

He’d undressed you from the waist down the same way he’d dressed you after your shower—gently, slowly, like you were something precious and fragile. You very pointedly did not cry. He took you apart on his tongue once, kneeling between your legs as you melted into the couch.

When he slid into you, your mind finally went quiet.

Javy’s got some game on in the background, the lull of the commentary giving you something to tune out as you drift. He’s solid and warm below you, inside you, a constant like the rate of acceleration due to gravity. Occasionally, he’ll shift or smooth his hand down your back or adjust the blanket that’s draped over you, but otherwise the two of you are still.

You’re not sure how long you’ve been napping til you hear keys in the door. You recognize Jake by footsteps alone, the way his keys jingle as they drop in the bowl by the door, the sound of him sliding his boots off til they land on the floor with a soft thump.

“Hey, thanks for getting her.” Javy nods against you, his chin bumping the top of your head where it’s buried in his chest, “She tell you what happened?”

Javy smooths your hair so his hand comes to rest over the ear not pressed into him, but you hear their conversation anyways, “Boss yelled at her in front of everyone for something that wasn’t actually a mistake. He didn’t apologize.”

The way Jake scoffs is muffled but your mind can picture his face, “I’m gonna give that asshole what’s coming to him one day. I keep telling her to quit. We’ll take care of her while she looks for another job. ”

Javy laughs gently, jostling you despite his best efforts, “And what? Get us dishonorably discharged in the process?”

It makes your chest clench when he says 'us' instead of 'you', as if Javy would be right there alongside him on your behalf. A pause, and Jake says something you don’t catch.

Javy’s response gets drowned out by the buzzer sound from the game, by the way his hand is still covering your ear. You only catch “never agree”.

Jake is apparently unsatisfied with Javy's answer because you can hear it in the way he leaves the room. You drift off again.

The next time you come to, it's because your dream had you squirming in Javy's lap, reminding you of how he still had you nestled on his cock. Then, there's a kiss being pressed to your forehead. You open your eyes to see Jake’s face in front of you, his hair dripping wet onto his shoulders.

"Hey baby," He murmurs before pressing your lips together.

It's heated, it's possessive, like he's trying to convey everything he feels he's unable to say through the way he licks into your mouth. Javy grabs the back of his neck so he can peck Jake, the kiss so chaste in comparison to the way Jake was just devouring you. It warms you beyond just the way Javy's body heat does.

They've been doing that more often, like they're discovering something beyond years of longing, beyond years of ribbing on each other to try and relieve what they didn't realize was sexual tension.

When you three finally make it to Javy’s bedroom, they take you apart the way they always do. But somehow, it’s infinitely more tender.

Javy fucks you first, rocking into you as you sprawl on his king size mattress. Jake’s there the entire time, kissing away your tears and petting over your stomach to press down on your lower abdomen.

Neither of them stops talking the entire time.

“So beautiful and smart, our girl—”

“I can feel Javy in you baby, you’re taking him so well—”

“God where would we be without you—”

You sob as you cum for the second time that evening, and Javy fucks you through it all. You’re so overwhelmed by the way their words wash over you like the sun on a summer day. The baritone of Javy’s voice murmuring “our girl” rattles around your mind til he finishes inside you.

Then it’s Jake’s turn. He’s just as, if not more, gentle than Javy.

Javy slips off the bed to go clean himself up. When he rejoins the two of you, Jake is already so close. He pulls out at the last minute, fisting his cock til he finishes on your stomach and chest, a punched out moan leaving him.

It’ll never cease to amaze you the way they manage to make you finish with such ease as Jake’s fingers find your clit and he plasters himself all over you so he can kiss you. It should be gross, the way his cum makes him slide a bit against you, but it grounds you instead. You can feel where the mix of you, Jake, and Javy is running down your thigh.

You’ve got Javy’s hand in a vice grip. They’re here, they’re real.

When it’s all said and done, Jake appears with a wet washcloth to wipe down your forehead, between your legs. Eventually, he carries you to the bathroom so you can pee and brush your teeth (“Javy got to carry you earlier while he was inside you, mind you, so it’s my turn.”).

Laying between them, you start to feel human again. You have half a mind to ask what they were bickering about earlier, but sleep is dragging you under before you can act on it.

two.

Jake's been irritating you all night. He begged you to come to the Hard Deck, claiming lonely since Javy was out of town for the weekend, some trip to DC neither of them wanted to discuss.

Distantly, you know this is how he shows affection. Like a teen boy, he’s poking and prodding at you. In between his turns at pool, he’s pulling you into his arms, grabbing at your waist, yanking on the ends of your hair. Something about Jake just requires he’s touching you at all times when you’re within his general proximity.

Natasha sets a beer down in front of you, before settling in across from you, “I don’t know how you put up with it.”

Your thing with Jake and Javy isn’t exactly a secret, but no one addresses it. It’s just sort of, there. The rest of the Dagger Squad seems to have just accepted the dynamic, brought you into the fold.

“Put up with him?” You nod at Jake, who’s trying to show Rooster some pool move that apparently requires one leg on the table. The tension between the two of them has eased considerably these days.

She laughs, “Either of them really, Hangman and Coyote. They feed off each other’s energy in the worst way sometimes, I think I’d go crazy.”

You’re silent, trying to figure out a way to respond. The three of you haven’t defined what this is, haven’t talked ‘feelings’, despite the amount of time you spend at their place, the way your days are filled with each other. You’re not sure how to explain that it just works somehow—on the outside it might seem like you lean into Javy more, but the reality is more complicated.

Jake and Javy are bonded by years in the Navy, nothing quite like constant near-death experiences to foster love. They do feed off each other, but in the way that they’re so familiar they’re almost one. Javy does steady you—but he also riles you up like no one else. Jake brings out the livelier side of you, but he’s also fiercely and openly protective of you.

You're stubborn and unmoving where Jake goes with the flow. You're snarky and sarcastic where Javy is calm, at ease. It just works.

Natasha just looks at you expectantly, and you shrug. Unsure of what to say.

You settle on, "They do drive me crazy, but I think I'm not totally gone yet."

Her laugh echoes above the background noise of the bar.

Back at the guys’ shared apartment, you fuck Jake slowly, keeping your lips pressed together. You whine into his mouth when he hitches your thigh up on his bicep, the position hitting something inside of you just right.

In that moment, he doesn't comment on the change of pace from your usual, more intense sex—he leans into it. He presses his lips to your forehead, then leans his against yours. His grip on your hip and thigh aren't as bruising as they usually are, they’re more grounding.

Jake always talks during sex, never shuts up. This time, he’s whispering more than anything else, and you can’t understand him. You want to ask but the way he’s fucking into you makes you lose all ability to speak.

When you finish, you keen and arch your back as Jake licks a stripe up the side of your neck. You shudder as he cums right after you. The two of you lay there for just a moment, taking deep breaths.

Jake presses his lips to your forehead one more time before pulling out and sitting up, "You wanna talk about it?"

Of course he noticed something was up–that's just who he is. A hurricane of a man, but still attentive to every little detail.

You consider him for a moment, his naked form, completely at ease with your eyes roaming over his body. You think of telling him about your conversation with Natasha, about the way it had made you think through the three of you. Instead, you shake your head and curl onto your side, and wait for him to get back into bed.

three.

Surprisingly, it’s Javy’s who’s been pushing you. Jake’s been hesitant to open his mouth on the subject, but you don’t miss the way he perks up slightly when you and Javy start getting into it again.

“I have a perfectly good apartment of my own, Javy!” It’s repetitive, like a swing dance, at this point. “I don’t get why you want me to move in.”

“Sweetheart, if you’d listen to me, you’d ‘get why’. You live in a bad area of town, and I’m laying awake every night worrying about whether to expect a phone call from the nearby hospital.”

Jake focuses intently on the crossword he’s pretending to do as you and Javy both stare at him expectantly. The last time he’d voiced his opinion, you’d threatened to call his mother and tell her he was trying to tell you what to do. Theoretically, he knows she’d be on his and Javy’s side, but he doesn’t feel like dealing with that.

(You haven’t threatened Javy in the same way, and he wonders if it’s because his mom is the only woman in this situation with a more stubborn disposition than you. Maybe it’s just because it’s Javy.)

"Well, maybe you should worry less." You snark. Javy doesn't respond and Jake can hear the way his eyebrow raises.

“Seventeen across, 'unconcerned',” Jake half mumbles to himself, half trying to break at least some of the tension.

“Perfunctory,” you snap at him from where you’re glaring at Javy, because of course you know.

"That's not an option, sweetheart." Javy's using the tone that says his decision is final, that he won't change his mind–it's one that you fucking hate.

Jake barely manages to stand up to intercept you when you turn around and head for the door, sans any of your possessions but your phone. He wraps his arms around you and refuses to release you despite the way you squirm indignantly in his hold.

He eases his grip just enough so he can lean down to whisper in your ear, "Baby, at least consider it?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Jake sees the way Javy just stares at the two of you. His expression is nearing anguish, and Jake gets it. The way you pull back every time they try to bring you closer feels like ripping barbs out of their skin. The emotional pain is so intense it rivals physical.

It’s not entirely about safety this time, not really.

"He's being a dick." You murmur, finally acquiescing and wrapping your arms around Jake's torso.

"We're not trying to control you babe, we want you here. He just maybe should've led with that. We want you to be safe." A little good cop, bad cop. Sorry, Javy.

To his surprise, you just say, "I know."

There's no fight left in any of you. Not since someone got stabbed outside your apartment building a month ago and the three of you, well, you and Javy, have been arguing non stop about it.

You just want it to stop—the tension every time you leave their apartment for work, the shared knowing that you won’t necessarily return. Jake clearly is getting sick of the arguing and you and Javy aren’t any less exhausted.

Turning around in Jake’s arms you look at Javy, “You—You’re right. I’m sorry.”

Javy’s in front of you in an instance, taking your face in his hands and kissing you fiercely, “I’m sorry, too. We care about you, we want you to be safe.”

There’s much left unsaid, but in that moment, all the words spoken are more than enough.

four.

When you wake up, you're alone in bed. You vaguely remember Jake getting up in the middle of the night and him and Javy talking in low tones as Jake got dressed. He kissed you goodbye and promised to come home safe. Javy had gotten back in bed.

The curtains let the gray of the morning light leak into the room, washing everything in a sort of hazy filter. There's clanking from the kitchen, but for just a moment, you let yourself lay there, absorbing the moment. The sheets still smell like that combination of Jake and Javy that lulls you to sleep every night.

For a second, you're overcome by a fear that one day you'll turn to your right and you won't be able to bury your nose into the pillow and smell Jake. He's only gone for the weekend, but it's that part of you that rears its head every time one of them leaves. Every deployment, every work trip they're not allowed to discuss, every morning they leave for training.

The bed dips next to you as Javy climbs in–you hadn't noticed him come back into the room. He smells like sweat just a bit, and you giggle sleepily when his fingers ghost up your ribs.

"Get out of the bed, Javy, you're sweaty," You groan, turning away from him as he drags you backward into his chest.

"Really," He laughs, "You didn't mind so much last night."

Despite your protests, you snuggle back into him, feeling the way his workout shirt slides against your bare skin. It's the sort of closeness that isn't just physical—it's about knowing your partners' boundaries, about knowing that they don't actually mind that you just came from the gym and then climbed right into bed. The sheets need to be changed anyways.

Javy kisses right below your ear and you hum happily. His lips ghost over your cheek but don't reach your lips.

"Go shower," You murmur as you turn around to kiss him.

He doesn't respond. He can't–not with the way you're flush against him, only wearing a pair of boxers where he’s only in a shirt. Not with the way you lick into his mouth lazily, humming when you taste the juice he drank. Not with the way your hands run down his stomach and grab clumsily at his hardening cock.

If you weren't awake before, you sure are now–especially with the way Javy's warm and calloused hands skim your nipples and lift your leg to hitch over his hip.

He rolls the two of you so his weight is pressing you into the mattress. There’s something so distinctly soothing about the position, the way he’s warm and heavy and everywhere on you. You move your hips in a steady rhythm against his.

When his hands find their way into the pair of boxers you stole from Jake, he finds you already soaking. You can feel the way he smiles smugly against your mouth. That just won’t do.

Shoving at his shoulder, he lets you turn the two of you over again. You kiss his neck, working your way down his body. Making a show of wrinkling your nose at his shirt, he yanks it off in one fluid, yet desperate, motion.

The instant you wrap your lips around him, his hands are in your hair.

“Fuck, sweetheart, you’re—”

He doesn’t get to finish his thought, not when you slide your mouth down the length of him, fighting your gag reflex at the way he nudges the back of your throat. There’s something so sensual about the way your nose almost brushes the curls at the base of him.

“Shit, shit, Jesus,” This is the way you like Javy best, all his boundaries down, just letting himself feel, “Your mouth is so fucking good, god, how do you—ugh, fuck!”

You’re pulling out every trick in the book. You fist the base of his cock in tight grip and let your spit ease the twist of your wrist. He shudders when you pull your mouth off him to lazily tongue at the sensitive spot at the underside of the head.

You know he’s getting close when his hips start thrusting, despite the way he usually holds himself back. The groan he lets out when he comes down your throat is guttural.

“You’re a menace,” He gasps out, and the glaze of his eyes is so familiar, so welcomed in the way that it makes your chest clench with pride and something else.

“You didn’t seem to mind just now,” Reflecting his words back at him before you make a show of swallowing deeply.

He drags you up his body while tugging off the boxers, “I mind because I wanted to fuck you.”

You giggle at the way he fakes his frustration, but you’re cut off when he lifts you up and over him til you land on his face. His strength never fails to stun you.

Javy settles you directly on his face. There’s still a part of you that feels overly exposed in the position but he wastes no time. He licks into you without reserve, burying his tongue in you and closing his eyes and humming in satisfaction.

Javy knows your body through and through—he knows what makes you gasp, what makes you moan, how he can drag this out or rush to the edge. This time, he’s savoring the moment, bordering on torture. His tongue is slow, purposeful, as it circles your clit and fucks into you slowly.

You can hear the way you’re whining as if you’re outside of your body. Your voice sounds foreign even as you beg Javy please, please, fuck right there, please don’t stop, please.

When you come you slam your hand on the headboard and moan something deep in your chest. Javy smooths his hands over your waist and ass as you come down, shaking slightly. He slides you off him and down the bed til the two of you are face to face again.

You think he might be murmuring something as he presses your lips together, again and again, but you can’t quite make it out.

plus one.

The Hard Deck seems so far away from here, where you and Javy are sitting on the beach behind it. Jake's only a few feet away, inside getting the three of you a round of beers. The noise of the crowd celebrating the end of another week is dim and distant.

You and Javy are sitting side by side, just barely touching. The heat radiating off him is unreal, as always. The two of you are talking about Jake and Javy's families, having drifted to the subject after recalling the way Jake's mom had squealed at the sight of you when she'd FaceTimed earlier in the day. His mom absolutely loves you.

He shrugs, “Momma and Amy knew about Jake and I before we did. I brought you up once and they figured it out.”

That surprises you. You knew Javy's mom and Jake's mom were perceptive, yet open, women, but you hadn't expected this—them seeing not just Jake and Javy for what they were, but the three of you, too.

You lean into him, snuggling close, "What did they say?"

He presses a kiss to your hair before answering, his words muffled with the way his lips move against your skin, "They said you had to be one hell of a woman to put up with us."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" You pull back from him, and shock paints his features.

He laughs, a bit uneasily, "Who else is saying that?"

"I'm not 'putting up with you', I love you, I love Jake, I love you both." You push yourself to standing, unexpectedly frustrated. The sweetness of the moment seems acidic now. It eats at you.

This was hard enough for you to accept. Hard enough to rationalize, to try and understand what it meant that marriage certificates were for two names, that it was 'partners' and 'couples', that the world generally worked in twos. That's enough to try and deal with–much less with those closest to you pointing out how difficult it must be for you.

Javy can't even savor the fact that you've just said you love him, that you love Jake–not when your lower lip is wobbling and your chest is starting to heave in that way when you cry.

"Hey, hey," Javy's voice is steadying, as he stands next to you and takes your hands, "Look at me. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry."

It didn't even register to you that you're crying, but you feel it now. The telltale itch in your nose, the way your throat feels tight, your eyes watering. You rip one of your hands from his to wipe at your face messily.

"Woah, woah, what's going on?" Jake materializes next to you, the three beer cans dropping in the sand, forgotten in the instant he saw you crying.

"Everyone keeps trying to tell me it must be hard for me to love you, and it's not." Jake's mouth only drops a bit when you say love, an admittedly muted reaction in comparison to what you'd been expecting.

"I mean–" Jake starts, but he stops when Javy shoots him a look over your head. It's not the time for jokes.

He tries again, "We fought with you for a month to try and get you to move in with us, it's not hard for us to love you at all either."

For some reason, that just makes you cry harder as they pull you into them, "I didn't fight with you, I fought with Javy."

At that, the two men can't resist bursting into laughter.

"I'm-I'm sorry, sweetheart," Javy says as his laughter dies down, "We're not laughing at you."

You wipe at your tears hastily and giggle just a bit, "It is kind of funny."

“You love us?” Jake’s smile is cheeky, as much as it can be when he feels like you’ve split his chest open with your bare hands and are now holding his fluttering heart in your palms.

Fighting the urge to run or lie, you simply nod, “Unfortunately.”

Old habits die hard.

Later that night, when you’re pressed up against Jake’s chest with Javy at your back, they chant the words to you like a sacred prayer. They say it while they take you apart with their fingers, their tongues.

Jake says it in the way he curls his fingers inside of you, searching for the spot that makes your back arch and your thighs try to squeeze together. Javy says it in the way he inches ever so slowly into you, in the way that he tilts your hips so he can fuck your just so.

You say it in the way you trust them to see you so vulnerable, tears streaming down your face in pleasure, eyes rolled back. You wouldn’t have it any other way.

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fiiiiin · 10 months

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Glen got a puppy……write those Hangster fics STAT

#hangster #jake seresin #jake ‘hangman’ seresin #tgm #top gun #bradley bradshaw #bradley ‘rooster’ bradshaw #sereshaw #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x jake seresin #glen powell

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talkfastromance4 · 11 months

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An Arrangement—Jake Seresin Series Masterlist

Synopsis: Jake has made a proposition for an arrangement with you to take care of you financially while in return, you be his companion to Navy Balls, Weddings, and the like. "Sugar Daddy"-esque tendencies but not a Sugar Daddy relationship.

Total words: 37,716

{1} “I wanna be that somebody for you”

{2} A Second Meeting

{3} Diamonds, Candleligts & a Question

{4} Choices

{5} The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

{6} Waiting and Staying

Blurbs/oneshots

Pretty When You Cry

Extra sweetened Sugar

That’s My Girl

Achilles Heel

I like when it rains

Lift me up

Wanna Hold You Close

Watermelon Sugar

Birthday Boudoir*

Soft & Sweet

Playlist

#jake seresin #jake ‘hangman’ seresin #jake seresin x reader #an arrangement series

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waklman · 11 months

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Fake it

Chapter Four: Waste My Time

synopsis: a pair of best friends, one apartment, and one fake dating ploy to get jake’s ex girlfriend back, will end well right? wrong.

pairing: jake seresin x female reader.

warnings: no use of y/n, mentions of drugs, talks of binge eating, one instance of masturbation, mentions of vomit, jake and reader are both 20. this blog is 18+.

word count: 7.7k

college au, fake dating trope, roomate trope

previous chapter | next chapter | fake it masterlist

If Jake had known prior to his shower—where he planned to attend to his morning problem—that his best friend would be on the forefront of his mind, he would've truly chopped his dick off with the kitchen knife you stowed in the bathroom cabinet.

You had been convinced it would come in handy, in case an intruder conveniently found either of you mid-shower. And maybe it was a good idea to leave it there after all, because he might actually make use of it.

Raking a hand through his wet hair, Jake tosses his head back, allowing the cold water to run down his face. But it doesn’t do much to get his mind off the issue at hand. There is no way he’s about to rub one out—not when your face is currently being screened behind his closed lids.

“This can’t be real,” he groans in disbelief, dragging a hand down his face, his heavy head dropping forward with it.

Warily, Jake opens his eyes to the water running down his toned stomach, practically guiding him to look at the veins lining his thighs, and the untimely hard on he’s sporting between them. And though, he's staring straight down at a very clear problem, he feels the weight of his other predicament wash down on him instead.

His ex-girlfriend was far gone by the time he reached you last night—yet Jake still went ahead and kissed you, for longer than he anticipated too. Simply because he just wanted to. And if he was being honest with himself, this hadn’t exactly been the first time he’s wanted to either.

But in his defense, it had been years since he sensed that bleary feeling in his chest, the one that gave him the uncontrollable urge to just lean in and kiss you—and who would’ve known it would spawn again?

Actually, Jake should’ve known.

Like clockwork, that urge flares up when his mind is mostly cluttered—when every part of him is riddled by heartbreak. And Jake knew you’d always be there whenever he was on the chopping block, and it’d be wrong if he went looking for affection from you everytime he was. Because that's weird. You were his best friend—not some fling he could swap spit with each time got out of a failed relationship.

So instead, he learned to wean himself off the compulsion by simply touching you.

Whether it was pinching the back of your sweater when the elevator rattled, holding onto some part of you to make sure you didn’t linger far, or coaxing you to sleep by gliding a hand along your spine.

Jake just needed to feel you.

Strangely, it was enough to tame that bizarre feeling that struck him once in a while. But despite his best efforts, he didn’t stick to his usual methods last night. Kendall's disparaging remarks must’ve really got to him. And there you were when it finally spilled over, standing there like your sixteen year old self did once before, waiting for him.

Making the choice to just let it go, Jake assures himself that he was just confused, again. All thanks to a girl in a skirt so short it could pass as a belt—and Jake pitifully notched onto that tiny belt of hers.

With that matter put to rest, he swallows thickly—returning back to his original point of concern. His frustration seems to have gone straight to his dick today. By no means, was waking up hard, unusual for him, but it’s particularly more difficult to ignore this morning.

Now, he’s left staring down at his, not exactly little, problem. But the longer Jake stares—the more the self-restraining thoughts trickle out his ears, joining the stream of water running down his body, and mazing through the patterns of the rubber bath mat underneath him.

“Fuck it,” he whispers to himself, roughly spitting into his palm.

This is so wrong—but this is so—the only time he’s doing this. The blond had only joked about wringing one out while you were still home, but now he’s seriously following through.

“Ah shit,” he hisses, rubbing the wad of saliva over his tip, brows pinched in concentration.

Bringing a rough palm down his aching length, Jake’s breathing labors as he starts to work himself in already desperate strokes. Maybe it’s because your strawberry body wash is sitting on the edge of the bathtub. The muscles rippled on his wet back contract from the movement. Maybe it’s because your pink toothbrush is sitting next to his by the sink.

Gritting his teeth, Jake puts more focus on getting this over with, coiling his calloused hand even tighter around himself. Maybe it’s because his ex is making it hard for him to understand anything.

With the repetitive graze over a sensitive vein, Jake’s eyes snap shut, breath hitching in his throat—concentrating on that sensation. Maybe Jake likes kissing you more than he thought he would.

The sound of low grunts and heavy panting permeates the bathroom, overpowering the echoing of water droplets panging against the shower floor and trickling down the drain. And just as he’s nearing his edge, overworking his forearm in quick motions—there’s an urgent knock at the door, followed by your muffled voice. “Jake? I really need to pee. I can’t hold it in…And you’ve been there for so long.”

The end of your plea comes off as a whine, forcing him to immediately rip his hand off.

Jake’s eyes flutter open to blink hastily, lungs burning as they expand, forcing himself to overcome his haze as quickly as possible. God, he hopes you didn't hear a single second of that.

“Shit, um. Sorry, Princess,” he rasps, clearing his throat immediately after.

“Doors unlocked, you can come in,” he establishes, hitting his flushed chest with a fisted hand to clear his throat again. It takes him a second, but he finally pulls himself together.

With a soft click of the doorknob, Jake assumes you’ve scuffled inside. A faint clattering by the toilet can be heard before you desperately yell out, “Cover your ears!”

“...Hurry! I’m—I might piss on myself,” you squeak, curling your toes against the tiles.

The warning directed towards the shower curtain is useless, because Jake's already cupping both hands over his burning ears. “They’re covered,” He spurts out a short laugh, turning his head, shouting the confirmation back at you.

The automatic response had been programmed into him from the countless times your bladder coincided with his showers—mostly during the trips your families took together.

Maintaining the nostalgic positioning of his hands, Jake recalls the one time you slipped off the porcelain toilet at his beach house and refused to let him jump out the shower to check on you. At one point during that incident, you had thrown a roll of toilet paper at his pruney fingers when you spotted them curling around the shower screen to pull it back.

Jake’s ear nearly fell off at the reprimanding he received from his mother, following that—when he decided to joke about massaging your sore butt during dinner.

With uncanny timing, Jake’s hands fall from the side of his head as your bold thumbs-up breaches past the shower curtain, coming into view in front of him, signaling that you’re done.

He prods the inside of his cheek with his tongue, staring at your tiny hand that’s lined directly in front of his lower region.

“Hey now. You sure you wanna be stickin’ a hand in here baby?” He taunts, with a teasing head tilt—even when you’re unable to see him.

Baby. Your hand. In the shower. Where he’s naked.

At that, you immediately withdraw the arm you stuck in there. Then, your small voice bleeds past the small crack of the curtain. “..I don’t want to know what you meant by that.”

“Step inside if you do, though,” he shamelessly offers, stretching his jaw to control his amusement, but the playful lilt in his voice gives it away.

“I..I am not doing that!”

Before Jake can add on to your fluster, you’re trotting off.

With your faded footsteps nearing the door, you make your exit back to your bedroom with a huff and a whispered complaint under your breath. Jake laughs at that, tipping his head back into the water as more memories come flooding in.

You really haven’t changed from the time you clumsily tumbled off the rim of his toilet seat.

Considering the fact that the only people you ever spoke to on campus were either frat affiliates, or freshmen who occasionally needed directions—you never really caught the chance to make friends with other girls at school. It wasn’t intentional, of course. You had just grown so attached to Jake, that you found it difficult to harbor that kind of friendship with anyone else.

However, that disconnect from girls your age didn’t mean you were that different from them. You had an idea of what any other girl would do if they were in your situation. It would only make sense that they’d do a healthy amount of snooping on Kendall’s social media—and all her friends’—and perhaps her parents’ too. For research purposes, obviously.

But, maybe that was not the best way to start off your day.

After an alarming amount of online stalking, you’re quickly swept up by a sudden frenzy. Because how was it physically possible for someone to shine through their pictures? She quite literally radiated in every single post you zoomed in and out of. And the flood of comments you scrolled through made sure to remind her too.

There was no point in denying that she won the genetic lottery either. And apparently you weren’t one of the lucky winners. Because, if you were, then maybe clothes wouldn’t sit on you like it was your enemy—either strangling or suffocating you. There was sadly no inbetween, really. But, it looked like she got along swimmingly with her clothes.

Was building an alliance with your own outfits, something you had to work on now?

At that revelation, you clumsily dart towards your closet, nearly tripping over the blanket still clung to your legs. And it must’ve taken a whole twenty minutes of you combing through overworn shorts and a thick stack of failed crochet hats, to successfully track down an old denim skirt you bought over a year ago.

Batting off unvoiced doubts, you squeeze your legs into the stiff material and hastily throw on the oversized sweater Jake bought you—praying it would hide the fact that the skirt was two sizes too small. The light layer of makeup you quickly apply next isn’t your best attempt, but it’s enough to make you look alive.

You realize that it seemed a touch ridiculous to be suddenly concerned about how you looked, but given that you were playing as Jake’s new girlfriend—the stress was very much warranted. His ex’s instagram was a testament that if she were to sport a potato sack, she’d still outshine you by miles—many miles actually, probably enough miles to wrap around the entire earth twice. It’s only natural that you would make an effort to appear somewhat decent in comparison.

Mentally running through your plans for today, you unintentionally wander into the kitchen and start an attack on a tub of icecream—without even realizing it. It’s only when you’re half way through the container—that Jake finally steps into the kitchen, hair slightly damp from his lack of towel drying, a pair of gray sweats sitting loose around his waist, and another variant of his black hoodies clung on his upper half.

“Oh, there you are.” He cranes his neck to see what you’re so focused on.

Jake feels a slight sense of disappointment creep in when you don’t give him a single sign of acknowledgment. Even with the lame attempt to louden his footsteps, you’re still quietly standing by the counter, back turned to him.

Coming to a halt behind you, he briefly gives the back of your head an unimpressed look, before casually resting a palm onto the table top in front of you.

The ends of his hoodie drawstrings start to dangle over the top of your head when you unconsciously lean back into him. Jake hums contently, steadying his feet so you could comfortably lay your weight onto his chest. The disappointment from before lifts, slightly.

“Thought you were gonna join me in there. You coulda’ scrubbed my back or something,” he playfully laments. All you do is wriggle against him, silently making yourself comfortable.

Out of nowhere, Jake feels the steady pace of his heartbeat begin to pick up, though, he’s not sure if it’s from the horrifying remembrance of being interrupted a little bit ago, or because it feels kind of nice to have you on him like this.

Again, with no answer from you, he looks down past his nose, eyes landing directly onto the silver spoon that’s sticking out your mouth. Jake only squints when he’s met with his own wacky reflection at the end of the utensil.

“Okay then,” he says to himself, tracing his gaze down the shiny metal. Reaching the end of the spoon, he catches the blank stare you’re giving that tub of ice cream under those curled lashes of yours. Jake bites the inside of his cheek at the observation.

He’s not even sure what to make of your sudden change in behavior. Not long ago, you were cutely pawing at the bathroom door, and now you’re all dolled up underneath him, raw dogging a container of ice cream.

Gently, he pinches the end of the cold handle between two fingers, slowly pulling it from your lips. All you can do is blink dumbly at the large hand that breaks your vision, letting him take it from you. Your eyes scrunch when the sunlight trickling through the kitchen bounces off the bowl of the spoon, momentarily blinding you.

“You gonna let me have a taste?” He genuinely asks, dipping his head down to whisper the question in your ear. He does it softly enough so it doesn’t startle you.

You blink a few more times before rushing to nod your head.

Permission granted, Jake dunks it back into the tub to get himself a generous scoop, pressing the spoonful of vanilla flat against his tongue, licking it clean above you. “You left some of your lipgloss on here,” he lamely shares, while eating off the sticky residue. It should gross him out, but it’s just you, so really, he couldn’t care less.

Setting the empty spoon down against the counter with a soft clatter, Jake hands end up on the front of your pants, again—for probably the third time this week. The soothing action is happening more frequently than it ever should, but you haven’t chewed him out on it—yet. And it’s not his fault he needs to wean himself off.

“What’s with the makeup? Thought you were just hittin’ up the grocery store today.”

All you do is give him a small shrug, he takes it as an answer for now.

There were times when Jake stumbled on his older sisters prancing around the house at random hours of the night, faces full of makeup. Out of curiosity, he’d asked them why they decided to start their enrollment in clown school—and he’d get the same response—an eye roll and annoyed exclamation of Girls just like doing their makeup randomly Jacob! You don’t get it!

And for someone who was considered ‘a green flag’ on paper for having two sisters, Jake didn’t reap the benefits at all. Unfortunately, he was largely unaware of the things a guy should know if he grew up around girls.

Discreetly pulling you in closer, he inhales through his nose. The taut muscles on his back relax once the scent of your strawberry body wash reaches him. “Why do you randomly do your makeup?”

You stare at the shine of the melting desert in front of you, mildly confused by his abrupt question.

Sure, Jake had pestered you with random questions about girls, given that you were one. But they always followed the lines of—Does this text mean she’s mad at me? or Why the fuck does she need me to pick out a nail color every two weeks? And get mad at me when I say blue? Never has he asked dumb questions in regards to you—but it’s not like he needed to anyway.

“Oh, um. I don’t know,” you bite your glossy lip, contemplatively. It takes you several seconds to come up with a better explanation than Oh, um. I don't know. Because that’s stupid, you sound stupid.

“It just…feels good to do it, like—a confidence booster of sorts,” you finally surmise, partially honest with him.

“Feels good, huh.” Jake repeats, trailing off as he absently runs his thumb around the rim of your metal button.

While you weren’t aware of his large hands flirting with the entryway of your skirt before, you’re pretty much noticing it now.

No matter how much you try to downplay the habit, it undeniably made you slightly nervous—okay, it actually made you very nervous. Because what if he accidentally pulled down your zipper—or worse—what if he saw the stupid day of the week underwear that you still wear.

You’re not sure if you could ever live that down if he does.

“I–um. Yeah, feels good,” you incoherently mumble, hands pathetically slick in sweat at your sides.

He hardly gets a chance to register the mental turmoil going on under him as his brows suddenly furrow. The subtle engravings on the button of your shorts feel different, unfamiliar even.

WIth that, he stills. And without so much of a warning, Jake drags one hand around to the small of your back, pressing his palm flat against the bunched up fabric of your sweater, dragging it upward to check what shorts you decided to wear. You stagger forward, forced to crash your sweaty hands down onto the counter as he pushes you off him.

This whole time, you were wearing a skirt.

And it’s not like Jake Seresin was opposed to the idea of girls wearing something too tight for comfort, but the dark washed band is curling into your flesh. Jake was opposed to that.

You gulp, the skin of your cheeks growing hot. Jake practically has you bent over, butt pointing up into the air. Warily, you attempt to continue the conversation as if he wasn’t checking out your skirt, in the worst way possible. “You could’ve, um, I dunno, just asked me what I’m weari–”

“This shit is digging into you, Princess,” he cuts you off firmly, flipping you around with that hand.

Jake silently watches you, waiting for an explanation once he has you facing him. It’s quiet as you dodge his eyes. Of course, he thinks it looks weird on you.

Eventually, you choose to look down at his front hoodie pocket like a scolded child. “I just…had too much to eat. Dairy makes me bloated,” you meekly supply, worming your hands into the empty pouch. Nervously, you begin to pick at the tiny tufts of cotton glued to the inner lining of his pocket.

Ignoring the new feeling stirring in his stomach, Jake intently dips his middle and pointer finger into the front of your skirt, trying to get an estimate on how tight it was. They’re already losing circulation between the pudge of your tummy and the band.

“What?” Jake scoffs incredulously, eyes rolling up and down your figure.

“You don’t eat too much. Don’t even try that with me,” he sternly cements, disapproving of your excuse. “This shit is just—not your size.”

Using the two fingers hooked into your skirt, he tugs you forward in demonstration, causing you to let out a startled yelp. Seeing how the movement easily sends you launching forward, Jake sighs and retracts that hand from your waistband, holding you still by the hip instead.

Moving to grab your face with his other hand, he forces you to look up at him—and your stomach bubbles, maybe because of the ice-cream.

“I’m not gonna tell you what and what not to wear outside, ’cause my mom would fucking kill me,” he clarifies. “But, really?” Jake’s voice drops to a softer tone, considering that you look somewhat embarrassed, and not in the way he liked.

You nod once in his hand, “I like it,” you manage to argue, cheeks squished by his fingers. If you like it, Jake can’t seem to hate it. But what Jake hates—is that he knows you’re about to head out, by yourself.

“Okay.” His eyes flick down to your new choice of apparel. “Let me come with you today, Fuck Bradley,” he proposes, dismissing his upcoming plans with the brunette this afternoon.

If you wanted to play dress up around him, that’s fine, but if you were going to walk around the supermarket aisles, without him trailing behind you, looking like this? He would rather go through his frat hazing twice over just so he could tag along. Your parents would kill him if he didn’t make up some excuse to watch over you.

Somewhat bothered by your bare thighs brushing against his knees, Jake drops both hands down to pull at the sides of your skirt, but the stubborn fabric doesn’t budge. Again, he yanks it to no avail. Jake blows air through his nose, because he just needs your upper thigh to be covered at least. That’s what your mom would want, for him to look after you and all.

“Jake,” you warn, bringing his attention back to your face. “We never end up buying what we need ‘cause you play around too much,” you put forth, glaring at him.

Jake gives your skirt one final jerk before giving up, weaving his fingers into the belt loops instead. However, under the weight of his hands, the band glides from your waist down to your hips. It covers more of your legs now.

“I’ll behave,” he confirms, looking down at you. The specks of seriousness in his eyes says he will. But his inability to leave you alone for more than five minutes says, he won’t.

“You never behave,” you tiredly argue, cracking your knuckles in his front pocket, accidentally pulling him closer by doing so.

Jake cocks his head. “So? That’s what makes us work. You do all the important crap,” he points out, forgoing his seriousness from a second ago. “While I keep things fun. Don’t start pretending you don’t like it.”

You look off to the side with a sigh.

“I actually don’t like it,” you start, matter of factly. “And you’re not coming,” you finally conclude, brushing off the sudden memory of him keeping things fun last night.

Rationally, you should be relieved that he remembers kissing you, it was clear in the way he wouldn’t stop teasing you about it during the entirety of the walk home. But all it does is fill you with unease.

“My girl’s playin’ hard to get. That’s fine, I can handle you,” he continues, a lazy smirk playing on his lips. Yeah, he’s definitely not getting the permission to accompany you if he’s being so coy, this early on in the day.

Rolling your eyes, you pivot your head to look at him again, only to realize that it’s a mistake to do so. Because you instinctively cower—when was he standing this close to you? And when did he slip his fingers through your skirt’s belt loops?

Jake’s eyes dart across your features, taking in your nervous falter. “What? You like when I call you that?” His grin only stretches wider.

You hate that you’re still not used to his new pet names.

“What? No—no, I don’t.” You hurriedly defend yourself.

You also hate that you can’t handle talking about said pet names without sputtering like an idiot.

The moment you fill your cheeks with air, Jake takes it as a sign to not test his luck with you. Keeping quiet, he intently watches you let out that breath while you start to digress.

“You can join me next time, ‘cause it’s rude if you cancel on Bradley, I’ll just…come over after I’m done.” Reminded that Bradley kind of smiled at you last night, you assume he wouldn’t mind if you invited yourself over. He’s oddly let you through the door before, anyway.

As you finish speaking, you gently nudge at Jake using the hands you still have resting in his pocket. The thick fabric, combined with his body heat, has been keeping your fingers so warm—that you almost forget the way the cold tub of vanilla felt between your hands from before.

Weirdly, Jake doesn’t say anything.

Instead, there’s something unfamiliar that flits in his eyes, the dumb grin he’s wearing quickly fades and all he does is stare at you, like he’s unsure about something. Jake Seresin, unsure of himself, in what world?

“Promise me you’ll actually be there. Need to hear you say it,” he gently demands—suddenly.

Jake trusts you to stick to your word, but there’s some part of him that needs to know that he’ll see you again during the day. And he wasn’t going to hang out in Bradley’s room all afternoon, and have it possibly stretch into the evening—if you’re not going to show up at some point.

You pause, lips parted, searching for any signs of his impending teasing. Because where did that come from? The last time he was this deliberate in what he said, he had asked you to be his girlfriend.

You wonder how your sixteen year old self would react—she’d probably put on some Coldplay song and grab a nearby pillow to cry into it, if she knew he didn’t mean it in the way you wanted him to. And for some reason, you feel a twinge of her hurt flicker through your chest, when you think about it.

Above you, Jake remains still, letting you curiously scan his face. A thick lump forms in your throat when you come to the realization that he’s being serious.

You swallow, giving him all your sincerity. “I promise.”

That unfamiliar look flashes in his eyes again when you assure him, and you instantly look down once you notice it. “Now can you, just—let me leave. We have no milk left and you can’t have your cereal dry,” you fumble, caught off guard by his sudden seriousness.

Jake clears his throat. “Okay, yeah. I can…do that,” he starts, slowly.

Letting his concern for your outfit drop, Jake moves off you so you can go. The weird tension in the air wrapping around you two, simply dilutes with that.

Jake feels more confused when he watches you fetch your keys. He’d only wanted confirmation that you were seeing him later, thinking it would calm his protectiveness over you. But, it didn’t do jack shit, really. You didn’t get dressed up for no reason, nor did you wear things like that when you did.

The realization that he should’ve tried to probe more, crosses his mind when he hears you go through the front door. In the midst of his silent brooding, Jake eventually decides not to fault himself for it—because when has he ever had to pry an explanation out of you? You always told him everything.

But as he comes to that conclusion, Jake fails to notice what you quickly pop in your mouth when you scurry out. Maybe it was because you couldn’t stop thinking of your younger self—but you reached for that reflective baggie you stole from last night’s snack table. It should do the trick to soothe that growing ache in your chest.

“Motherfuck–” Bradley bites his lip in focus, capping off his insult. “Takin’ off half my health. Get your ass back here,” he harshly narrates under his breath. Leaning closer to his computer screen, he expertly moves his fingers against the lit up keyboard in precision with his mouse.

Jake came over a few hours ago, and what started as a conversation between two friends—turned into Jake leaning back against Bradley’s headboard while the brunette busied himself with rounds of Fortnite.

“I’m telling you, she wore that shit on purpose.” Jake huffs, retelling his encounter with his ex. Truthfully, Bradley’s baffled that Jake was able to stretch out the topic for this long.

Hour five into the rant, you had tiredly strolled in the room after being let in the house by Bob. There was hardly any greeting before you immediately dove for the mattress. In a matter of seconds, you were curled around Jake’s leg like it was some life line, left cheek squished against his thigh and an arm thrown across his knee.

Neither of them said anything about your peculiar arrival, but it wasn’t like they caught the chance to, because you had already dozed off.

“Okay? The hell you want me to say to that.” Bradley grumbles, eyes still trained on his monitor. For the first time in his life, Bradley finds himself jealous of you. If he had to cuddle with Jake in his sleep to get a ticket out of this, then so be it.

Before Jake can say anything, Bradley is rapidly clicking his mouse and jerks it across his mouse pad in zig zags. “No, no. Fuck—Shit. Oh fuck you.”

The gruff shout at his computer causes you to stir a bit.

“You died?” Jake stupidly asks, cupping a hand over your ear, muffling the noise.

Slowly, Bradley swivels his chair to face him. “No. My character just got shot in the face.”

“Right.” Jake doesn’t care. “Anyway, you should’ve seen the skirt she was wearing,” he pauses to re-evaluate his next words. “Actually, don’t even start to imagine it.”

“Just know it was bad,” he says flatly, hoping Bradley gets the point.

Entirely unimpressed by his friend’s idiocracy, Bradley’s eyes dart between the skirt you're wearing and the idiot playing with the shell of your ear. Maybe if he aimed it correctly, he could chuck his wireless mouse at Jake’s thick forehead without it landing on you.

“Same skirt that your little girlfriend has on right now?” Bradley presses, lazily raising an eyebrow.

Jake’s eyes snaps to your outfit and he roughly grabs a blanket to cover you entirely.

“What is she, Goldilocks? Passing out on someone’s bed after going out on her own. Should’ve gone with her, dumbass,” Bradley insults.

Jake gives him an incredulous look.

“Bro, I fucking tried but you know how girls are.” If anyone should understand, it’s Bradley—the guy who had a hoard of sisters himself. He of all people, should know that talking to girls was like trying to communicate with a mob that was already angry at you. You say one thing wrong, and you’re getting chased by pitchforks and torches.

“Look at that. Another girlfriend who’s tryna’ escape you,” Bradley swipes a tongue over his growing smirk, amusing no one but himself.

“I’m glad you’re finding this funny. ‘Cause I don’t.”

“Thanks.” Bradley says offhandedly, in his usual uninterested tone.

“That wasn’t—okay,” Jake bites his tongue, not wanting to spark an argument that might wake you.

“Why are you so hung up on this chick anyway? What do you even like about her?” Bradley suddenly presses, trying to gain knowledge on why his friend is so infatuated.

In the years he’s known Jake, yeah, he’s been a serial dater, but he never went back to the same girl—over and over again. And he never employed you to help him do it either. Bradley never got the impression that Jake would do that in the first place.

“I like everything about her,” Jake finally punches in his answer, focusing on the way you’re clinging to his leg.

It’s a simple question, one he should know how to answer. But his attention drops to you when he racks his brain for a valid reason—as if you were going to wake up and give him the response he was looking for.

“She made me feel good. I don’t fucking know dude. I just liked her more than I liked anyone else.”

Bradley inwardly winces at that.

Jake slowly turns his head to his friend who’s leaning back into his chair, and dismissively shrugs. “Everyone said we were good together and I just thought so too.”

Despite his attention to the conversation, Jake has a far off look in his eye—his brain is wandering off somewhere.

Bradley shakes his head, in disagreement. Clearly, his strategy of getting Jake to catch you with someone else at the party failed, so maybe he has to switch gears. “Dude, just because some fucking randoms said so, doesn't mean—”

“...Gummybear.”

Both of them put the conversation on pause, snapping their necks in your direction. Another minute of quiet passes until you mumble the phrase again, paired with a groan this time.

Jake shifts around, no longer slouching against the headboard. The duo watches closely when you sleepily untangle yourself from him and sit up for yourself.

Scrubbing your eyes, you distribute a guilty look between Bradley and Jake through blurry vision because you feel your mouth slowly being filled with the pre-vomit drool.

You’re one second away from showing them both your lackluster breakfast and cannabis laced gummies you had the bright idea of eating.

Perhaps, it wasn’t the best course of action to have one—or two, but you thought they were supposed to make you feel calm—because isn’t that why people buy them? How were you supposed to know that having more than one would make you feel so sick?

“I don’t, um, feel too good.” Your throat bobs and you slap a hand over your mouth.

Jake lunges forward, shoving away the pillows blocking you from him. He visually pales when bend over against him, aggressively gagging into your palm, unable to swallow back the burning acid rising into your throat and spilling onto your tongue.

With you on the brink of vomiting in his lap, Jake keeps his eyes on you as he hurries Bradley to find something for you to dump your guts into.

“I said I can’t fucking find it!” Bradley’s already shot out his chair, rapidly throwing dirty laundry over his shoulder once he’s bent over in the spot where his trash bin should be.

From the way he launched himself out of his seat, the gaming chair is flung halfway across the room. And with the sound of your retching and Jake’s useless instructions, Bradley picks up the pace and hastily reaches into piles of junk in hopes that he’d unearth the tiny bucket.

“Aim on the damn floor if I don’t find this thing,” he grits, sweating as he continues to dig through his pigsty.

And aim at his floor, you did.

“I threw up all over his room.” You mumble into Jake’s hoodie, punishing yourself over the turn of events.

Since bringing you home, Jake’s been actively trying to get your mind off what happened. But all you’ve done is guiltily fixate on the fact that you barfed like a sick puppy, leaving a plop of mush right onto a Victoria Secret bra sitting in Bradley’s room.

What if the girl who owned it came looking for it—just to find a fat stain sunken into the cup? Bradley would probably have to tell her that his idiot friend hurled on it because she didn’t know her tolerance was incredulously low. And you’d probably won't stop thinking about it for the rest of your life.

“Who cares? You gave Bradshaw a reason to clean. Now turn around and tell me what you want,” Jake prompts you, looking ahead at the open snack pantry in front of him.

The high clearly kicked in while you were in the snack aisle, because why else would there be five party sized bags of chips staring back at him.

Jake narrows his eyes, straining to make out the flavor you bought. The dim lighting makes it nearly impossible to read the big lettering written across the shiny plastic. But then again, he hadn’t bothered to turn on the main lights, choosing to depend on the trim of fairy lights lined throughout the apartment. It was safe to assume that you preferred those, so he stuck to that.

Rather than complying, you wrap your arms tighter around Jake’s torso, shaking your head in refusal against his chest. “Don’t want anything.”

Redirecting his attention to the top of your head, he hugs you back with one arm. “C’mon sick puppy, take a look.”

The last time you writhed in guilt like this, you had swung Jake over the head with your neon pink hydro-flask at his beach house—when he was the one who purposely scared you. Though, he took it as a win, considering that you cradled his head all night, giving him an excuse to sleep in the same room as you. Back then, it came at a perfect time since his fling that summer recently ended in disaster.

“I’ll just throw up again if I eat anything,” you quietly whine, replaying the defeated sigh Bradley heaved when he stared at the pathetic beige goo sinking into the lace of the bra.

Using the arm he has around you, Jake gives you a squeeze. “No? Don’t even want some gummies?”

When he’s met with silence, Jake lowers his head to kiss the top of yours, but the gesture goes unnoticed by you. For a second, he thinks you managed to fall asleep standing up. “Done talkin’ to me Goldilocks?”

Jake’s voice pulls you out of your deep analysis of the way Bradley sighed in disappointment. But, with the reminder that you had also shamelessly napped in his bed—brought on by your desperation to sleep off the high, you fist the back of Jake’s hoodie in both hands and bite down on your lip to hold back a screech of embarrassment.

“Won’t you look at that, the little lady didn’t like my joke,” he lightly teases, glad that your useless talent of falling asleep anywhere didn’t spur into action.

Detecting the spike of heat from your flushed face against his stomach, Jake refrains from making any more jokes and lifts you slightly, positioning the bottom of your feet over the surface of his own.

Once he drops you to stand on his sock-clad feet, Jake begins to carefully advance into the bathroom, unbothered by the pressure of your heels on his toes as he walks.

“If you want nothin’, we’re hanging out where we did this morning.”

In one swift movement, he both peels you off his front and moves you off his feet. Letting him guide you to sit at the edge of the tub, you attentively look on while he crouches in front of you, face perfectly leveled with yours—despite the raised height provided by the bathtub. Did he place you here because you fell off the toilet that one time?

“Why did you randomly take those? Mickey puts a shit-load in there,” he questions, referring to the gummy bears that eventually led you into buying a life time supply of Jake’s favorite chips, Smoked Barbeque.

If it wasn’t for the soft yellow string of lights you taped around the bathroom door frame, you would’ve missed the puzzled look he’s wearing. The light pinch of his brows and the concern tightening his jaw makes you feel guilty for the second time tonight.

Instinctively, his hands reach towards your waist, thumbs coming close to meeting at the center as his palms settle on your sides. A shiver runs down his spine when he comes to notice how you fit in his hands—but he pushes the new sensation aside.

“I’ve been doing a lot of random things today,” you broadcast, unsure of the rationale behind wearing makeup for a mundane outing—and unsure as to why you were compelled to level with a girl who could clearly look down at you from where she is.

“Yeah, you have, haven’t you?” Jake says softly, watching your eyes flick down towards his hoodie. It’s an exact replica of the one keeping warm from the night before—and the same one he gave you for the sole purpose of announcing that you were his.

“Oh. I forgot to give your sweater back to you last night. I’ll wash it and—”

“Keep it, we didn’t break up yet,” he cuts you off, the unfamiliar look from this morning passing through his eyes, again.

Oblivious to it, you simply nod at him, bringing your parted lips to a slow close.

Then, it goes quiet as you two take the time to recollect your thoughts.

After several minutes you both meet back in a silent agreement that you’re ready to continue the conversation. Jake nods his head at you, encouraging you to speak first.

“I ate it because this didn’t feel good,” you suddenly confess, lips bunching to the side of your mouth. Knowing what you meant, his attention drops to that skirt he caught you in this morning. An unsettling feeling swirls in his stomach, it looks even tighter on you now.

Jake liked to think he knew how to read you.

Whenever his ears picked up on your nervous laugh, he knew to stalk over to see which one of his nosey aunts were pressing you about having a boyfriend. Whenever you nervously dug the toe of your sneakers into the floor, he knew to start comparing shoe sizes with you as a distraction. But when he finds you in something you don’t usually wear, Jake doesn’t know what to do.

He wonders if you felt like you needed this stuff to feel pretty. And he also wonders why he’s so unaware of it until now, if you had.

“Think I threw up because it’s so tight. Maybe Mickey’s gummies aren’t so bad,” you attempt to joke with a light laugh, wanting to ease the tension off his face.

In front of you, Jake’s stare is still unwavering towards the engravings of that button. In a way, this is kind of disorienting for him, what you’re wearing is so familiar to him. Yet, seeing it on you is unfamiliar if anything. Because this isn’t you, it’s the girl he was just arguing with last night.

The only reason he even started this whole thing with you, besides Kendall’s unexplainable jealousy towards your friendship, was because you were different to her in every way. So, if you were going to change that about yourself, Jake didn’t like it—because it was unfamiliar to him. For his whole life, he kept tabs on little things about you that no one else bothered to learn. It doesn't sit right with him, that you’re keeping things from him now.

“I…don’t like this,” he delivers carefully, enunciating each word to you purposefully, leaving no doubt in your mind that he says it to be mean. And like always, what he really wants to say translates to you—I don’t like the way it makes you feel either.

“...Can we take it off then?” you insert with the same careful delivery.

He draws in a deep breath, and you mimic the action unknowingly.

Then, with a flick of his thumb, Jake unfastens the button of your skirt, dislodging it from the denim slit that kept it tightly wrapped around your waist. When you go to lift your butt, he pulls the tiny scrap of fabric down your legs. His eyes trail it, keeping his attention off your underwear. In his peripheral, he spots your half-full bottle of strawberry bottle wash.

With you moving to sit back down on the cold ledge, he’s briefly greeted with a pink cursive lettering. Tuesday.

Surprisingly, it’s not awkward to be sitting in nothing but the poorly constructed sweater he said looked good on you and a pair of your day of the week underwear. Maybe you were being dramatic, thinking that you would die if he saw it. Because this isn’t so different from the days you spent walking around in your bathing suits, in the lifetime full of summers you spent together.

“You never needed that,” he shrugs, relief settling in his chest now that it’s off of you.

“I never needed it,” you repeat back.

While your entire lives were filled with inside jokes and probably too much bickering—there were small lapses in time where that all drops. You’re not sure when it had even started, but for as long as you could remember, whenever either of you voiced something worthy of importance your counterpart naturally echoed it back. I was a dick. You were a dick. Jake, not right now. Okay, not right now. You never needed that. I never needed it. It was something your friendship naturally adopted.

And like all other friendships, you two also knew how to shimmy your way out of a vulnerable moment like that, without making things weird.

Jake leans into you a bit, suppressing a cheeky grin. “It says Tuesday, today is a Saturday,” he whispers.

Shoving him back with one hand, you break out into a smile. “You read my underwear!”

“It read itself to me,” he finally grins, prompting you to smack your palm over his eyes in embarrassment.

“Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” You chant between your laughter. “I’m never wearing these again.”

“No? Not even for me?” Jake starts to wrap his fingers around your wrist. It’s not too firm, but it’s enough to lower your hand from his eyes. Your laughter begins to die down at how gently he handles you.

Another silence settles in the bathroom again when he leisurely traces a path from your wrist up to your palm, entwining his fingers through yours. Then, he drops your connected hands between the small gap between you two.

But as quickly as he holds your hand, he lets go of it. And strangely, that tinge of your sixteen year old hurt sweeps through your heart when you lose that warmth against your palm.

Jake suddenly clears his throat. “I should uh, leave. You know, so you can shower.”

Pushing down the confusing swirl of emotion in your chest, you nod.

This time, Jake’s the one to walk out of the bathroom, leaving you alone with your best friend at the forefront of your mind.

note: im so sorry for taking forever to update! so please enjoy this accidentally long chapter as an apology! as always, reblogs & thoughts are greatly appreciated, thank you for reading! & gently ignore any spelling/grammar mistakes for now

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betanoiz · 1 year

Text

best of the best

#I’m getting through them…slowly….#I think I’m going to do coyote next but let me know if you have preferences anyoneeee #top gun #top gun maverick #tgm #jake seresin #jake ‘hangman’ seresin #natasha trace #natasha phoenix trace #bradley rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw #my art #hangman #Phoenix #rooster

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sweetlittlegingy · 1 year

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Mr. Lieutenant Sir

☑︎ Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Sweet Nothings Masterlist

☑︎ Pairing: Jake Seresin x Y/n Seresin (Mitchell)

☑︎ Word Count: 5.9 K

☑︎ Warnings: Infertility, IVF, Adoption, Dad!Jake, Teacher/Mom!Reader, Kindergarteners, bad foster parents, child neglect, flirty Javy, protective Jake

☑︎ A/n: Never believe that I'm actually on hiatus, I finished this two days ago. Suprise

☑︎ Library (Follow for updates! I no longer have a taglist.)

A giggle leaves your lips as a pair of arms wrap around your waist and pull you away from the pile of dishes soaking in the water. The record player quietly plays in the background, and the lack of noise from the living room is a clear indication that Javy either went home without saying goodbye or he’s fallen asleep on the couch. The latter most likely, given how he never leaves without a hug and goodbye.

“Javy fall asleep?”

You get a hum in response, though it’s muffled against your neck as Jake gently kisses along the curve of it. With a shrug of your shoulder, Jake lifts his face and allows you to turn around and face him. You lean against the countertop, while your hands wrap around Jake’s neck and run through the hair at the base.

“Remember when you told me that for share time, Gray couldn’t stop talking about a model airplane he had?”

Your head gently nods as you enjoy the close moment with your husband. Mrs. Adam had gone out and bought little model planes for both twins when she saw the shirts that Jake had picked out. It was the sweetest thing, and you were so thankful that she not only cared but supported you and Jake every time you showed up with something for the twins.

“Well, I talked to your dad last week and asked about the possibility of the class coming to the base for a field trip.” Your hands stop and a smile graces your face, eyebrow popping up in the way of saying ‘oh really.’ “I didn’t want to tell you until I got a yes, but Mav told me tonight that Cyclone gave him the go-ahead.”

“Really?!” Your smile slowly grows, and your mind is already spinning up a plan of how to make everything happen. “The kids would love that, all of them. Of course, I’ll need to send out permission slips and a Friday would probably work be–”

“Sweet Girl, slow down.” The words cut off your ramble. While Jake rubs at your arms in a comforting fashion. “We have time baby; we will work it all out.”

You nod, but your smile remains the same. Since you started teaching you had always thought that it would be fun to take the kids on a field trip to Top Gun. Though the opportunity had never arisen, especially during the first couple of years. You were a new teacher and still wary of your abilities in handling 20 5-year-olds off school grounds. Now, you were more than confident that you could handle it, especially with the parents you knew would be volunteering. Your excitement may have also stemmed from how much you knew that the twins would enjoy themselves.

...

“Eyes on me and clap three times, my little darlings!” Your voice echoes over the busy classroom, though at the request 20 little faces turn to you and clap or snap like you requested. “Very good! Now before you go home today, please give me your permission slips for our field trip this Friday. If you do not have them, come and talk to me.”

Your eyes scan through the classroom, each of your kids happily smiling while they take their permission slips from their go-home folder. Though your eyes eventually settle on Grayson and Madelaine. The pair of them sit quietly together, neither of them moving to take out a permission slip.

They had been oddly quiet all day, Gray was normally quiet though he always talked with you and Laine. While Laine was your little chatterbox in class who talked to everyone, though today neither of them said more than they were requested to. It had been eating away at you since you noticed it this morning and you had hoped that by this afternoon it would be better. Though as you look at them now, it only appears to have gotten worse.

The ringing of the bell pulls your attention back and has you focusing on the whole class again. A small line forms in front of you and your teaching aid Melissa, each of the kids waiting to hand you their signed slip. You give each of them a smile as they walk past and hand you their slip while following Melissa out to the pickup area. You count as they go past and as the last child in line goes out the door, your head pops up after only counting 18 heads.

Your eyes immediately find the twins, who are slowly putting their books away and looking as if going home was the last thing that they wanted to do.

You glance out to the hallway, checking to see if Melissa was going to come to tell you that Janice had actually shown up. Though the hallway is empty, clearly meaning she hadn’t arrived yet. Not worrying about the incompetent woman, you head over to the twins hoping to find out what has been eating away at them all day.

“Hello, my little munchkins.” Your voice gets their attention and Gray gives you a small smile, while Laine looks at you in defeat. You crouch down beside the desks, leaning over to fix the new glasses on Gray’s nose. “What’s going on? Why are my two favorite people so blue?”

You wait for the sassy comeback, though you don’t get one and a frown settles on your face. You rise from them and head back over to your desk, while they both silently watch you.

“I was saving this for a special day, and I think that today is that day.”

You rummage around the desk drawer until you find it. Usually, you would have Mrs. Adams give the children things that you had found for them, but last month you had found an antique children’s book that was in near-perfect condition and knew you had to buy it. The pair excelled in reading, and you knew that they would love to have a book of their own, instead of checking them out from the library.

You turn back around with the leather-bound book, only to find both Gray and Laine leaning over their desk trying to get a closer look. You give them both a smile, before placing the book down on Gray’s desk.

“I found this and knew how much you both enjoyed reading. I thought that it might be special for you, to have your own book that can take you on adventures and to different worlds anytime you want.”

The both of them smile happily, though as Madelaine opens it a small frown settles on her face. She looked toward Grayson who had yet to touch the book and now sported a small glare. Her eyes look towards you and your heartaches at the pain swimming in the baby blue.

“Can you keep it safe for us Ms. Cece?”

Your brow furrows in question, though before you can comment Gray speaks up.

“I got in trouble after my glasses got broken, I didn’t mean to run into things, but it just happened.” His voice is small, and you can barely hear him over the pounding in your head. You were positive that they were talking about Janice and her husband, but your mind was still reeling over the revelation.

“That’s why we don’t get to go see Mr. Jake and his plane.” Laine huffs as she says it and the way she crosses her arms would have made you giggle in any different situation. “They took everything as punishment, even our little model planes.”

It was like everything around you had turned off, and all you could think or see was the twins crying. The pair of them getting in trouble for things that aren’t their fault and how Janice and her husband shouldn’t have foster children at all. It didn’t matter whether they had the twins or any other children, you would be just as mad. They had no right to treat innocent children so harshly. It wasn’t just what you had found out today, it was the buildup of information you had learned over the last 4 months, and you had finally reached your breaking point.

Madelaine’s small sniffle pulls you from your thoughts and the sight before you almost break you completely. You were used to Laine comforting Gray; being the protector out of the two of them. Though now it’s Gray that holds onto Laine’s hands while resting their heads against one another. He doesn’t say anything, but just holds her and provides the safe space they’ve always had. The proximity of one another, their other half that made them whole.

Before you can think better of it, you lean forward to hold the pair. The sniffles subside momentarily as they both look up at you, before crawling into your lap. They both cling onto a shoulder as you whisper sweet nothings and rock them side to side.

“I’m going to fix it, okay?” Gray nods, while Laine clutches on tighter to you. “It’s gonna be okay.” You mutter the words and this time you’re not sure if you’re saying them for the twins or for yourself. The silver lining of your eyes breaks and a few stray tears fall, though you’re quick to wipe them away. You didn’t want either of them to see you cry, the both of them needed a solid, strong pillar to clutch onto in their storm-filled lives.

...

Jake hadn’t made it home yet, and you couldn’t seem to relax. You had been on the move since you had gotten home, tidying up the house, cooking dinner, and starting a batch of laundry, all to avoid the pending conversation that would no doubt be confrontational.

Janice had arrived just as you were taking the twins out, the three of you had stopped crying and knew that someone would be arriving soon. You had asked Janice if you could give her a call tonight, not wanting to have the conversation in front of the twins, and she bitterly told you that you could. Yet here you were, avoiding it. The last conversation you had with the woman ended with you in tears and you could only imagine how this one would go.

You glance at the clock and find that it’s just after 5, Jake would be home around 5:30 and you wanted to be off the phone by the time he arrived. Jake had been more than vocal about the langue lashing he wanted to give them, and you knew if he had the chance, he would jump on it faster than you could blink.

You settle against the kitchen counter, forgoing the idea of sitting, you were high-strung, and staying in one place wasn’t going to happen. You finger ghosts along your contact list until you find Janice’s name, and the small note of foster mom makes you sneer. The line rings quietly, but also as if it was a blaring alarm until there’s a click in the line, followed by a loud what.

“Hello Mrs. Williams, this is Y/n Seresin, the twin’s teacher.”

Your fingers drum against the counter as you wait for a reply, though the only thing she gives you is a hum. Your hand rakes through your hair as you push off the counter and start pacing.

“I was hoping to talk with you about the twins if that’s okay?” The words are barely passed your lips, before Janice cuts in.

“What did they do now?”

Her voice holds such disgust and animosity that it stuns you for a moment and causes you to take a few deep breaths.

“Nothing, they are wonderful in class. I was actually calling about our school field trip this coming Friday.”

“Oh, so they came to you whining about not going, is that it?”

Her voice echoes through that phone and stuns you momentarily. Though when you hear her yelling the twin’s names, you’re quick to cut in.

“No, they didn’t say anything.” Your tone comes out harsher than you intended, though it does get Janice to stop yelling at or for the twins. “I noticed that they lacked a permission slip and wanted to reach out.”

You fear that the line has gone dead momentarily because the only sound you can hear is your own breathing. You pull the phone from your face and glance at it, to see that it is still on the call.

“Well, this Friday we are going out of town and even if we were in town, I’m not going to come chaperone. Not to mention, you are asking for 15 dollars for shirts. What do they need shirts for?”

You hear the door close and you glace to your side to find a smiling Jake. Though his face falls as he takes in your flustered appearance. You hold a finger up to your lips to stop him from talking, you couldn’t multitask right now.

“I really do think that this would be a great learning opportunity for Madelaine and Grayson.” Jake settles against the counter next to you, as he listens understanding who is on the other line without you having to say. “I don’t think that they should miss out on the experience, ma’am.”

“Listen here, unless you’re going to fork up the 30 dollars and be legally liable for them, not only Friday but the whole weekend, you need to shut up and mind your own business.”

You’re startled at her harsh words and your hate for the twins living situation only grows the more you talk to the woman. Though before you can reply, the phone is taken from your hand by a very mad Jake. Your eyes widen in worry, though he gives you a small smile that is in no way reassuring.

“Hello, ma’am. This is Lieutenant Commander Jake Seresin, I’ve heard that you have a few issues with the field trip my wife has planned.” You can’t hear exactly what Janice replies, though you know that it’s not what Jake deems acceptable to hear. You silently watch Jake, though his eyes don’t move toward you once. They remain in a harsh glare, facing the back wall of the kitchen. “Ma’am, I understand that you don’t want to pay the fe–”

Your eyes widen when you hear Janice’s voice echo through the phone. There weren’t main people that cut off Jake and the ridged body language, followed by the small click of his tongue is a clear sign of how little it happened. You would have laughed at how much she screwed up, but you can’t stop the way you grab onto Jake’s hand. Your fingers intertwine to get his attention, and your gaze silently pleads him not to go off on her. You didn’t know what the woman was capable of, and you were already afraid that this conversation would lead her to punish the twins.

“Ma’am, if you would’ve been so kind to not interrupt me, you would have known that I will pay for Grayson and Madelaine. I just need you to sign the paper so that they can go.”

Her voice lowers through the phone, and you catch a word every now and again, as you watch Jake toed boot tap away on your hardwood floors.

“They’re going to be in the safest setting that they have, probably ever been in. Not only will my wife and the other parents be watching them, but I will personally be watching them. So don’t tell me that your reluctance is because you are worried about them. I know what type of living situation you’re providing for them, and it sure as hell isn’t safe in any way, shape, or form.”

...

Jake couldn’t even lie and say that he hadn’t meant for his tone to come off harsh. No, he wanted Janice to realize just how pissed off he was. Pushing off the counter, he couldn’t help but pace, it had always helped him calm down growing up. The feeling of your hand loosening in his hold pulls his attention back to you. Taking a step closer to you, he barely listens to the squawking echoing in his ear and tightens his hold on you before lifting the back of your hand to place a gentle kiss on it. Your eyes watch him wearily before they soften, and your own lips meet the back of his hand.

“Look I don’t care what you think about my parenting.” The words pull Jake’s attention back to the conversation at hand. “I don’t care if the little shits go or not, even if it’s going to be a ‘great experience’. If you want to take them so damn bad, then do it. But I’m not paying for them, and you’ll have to figure out what to do with them for the weekend because we won’t be home.”

The harsh sigh that leaves Jake’s lips isn’t other than that; a smack in the face that the kid's wellbeing meant nothing to their foster parents, and that Jake didn’t know if he could fix it.

“Just sign the permission slip.”

He doesn’t know what else to say and doesn’t leave room for Janice to reply before he hangs up.

...

Jake settles the phone on the kitchen counter, before looking back up at you. Your hands are still intertwined while you cradle them in your lap. A sigh leaves the both of your lips, and a deep ache settles in your chest as Jake pulls you to him. Folding your form into his chest as he places a gentle kiss upon the crown of your head. How were you supposed to take the class on a field trip without the twins, it wasn’t fair.

“You think Mrs. Adams could keep a secret?” The words are whispered into your hair and cause you to pull back from Jake in question. “I mean we need to have a reliable witness for when we sign an agreement to take care of the kids for the weekend. I don’t know if it’s internally legal, but neither is Janice leaving the kids at the house alone.”

“Jacob Seresin, what in the world are you talking about?”

The cocky smirk you fell in love with settles on his lips and has you smiling in reaction, the ache in your chest easing slightly at the idea Jake is suggesting.

“The twins are going on the field trip and then staying with us.” A harsh sigh leaves his lips, and his smirk settles into a harsh line. “I won’t let her ruin this for them.”

Your heart blooms in love, once again left to wonder how you got such a loving and loyal man. Your hand slips from his and rises up to cup his cheek, as your thumb works across the frown.

“I love you.” Jake’s eyes fall on you at the comment, though no smiles are passed between the two of you. Your eyes say enough, together you would jump headfirst into the unknown. “I love you so damn much.”

...

“Javy, honey I love you.” Your eyes look to the pilot, who stands behind your husband while occasionally making flirty eyes with Ms. Reynolds. “But why are you here?”

Janice was supposed you come in today and sign the form stating that you and Jake would be legally in charge of the twins for the weekends, as well as be liable if something happened to them. Mrs. Adams had been easy to convince, going as far as to draft up the paperwork herself. It might not have been “law binding” but it sure did look like something a lawyer would draft up.

“Well Jake told me that he needed back up,” Your husband's eyes flash back over his shoulder and look at Javy in bewilderment. “this Janice lady scares him.”

The words cause you and Mrs. Adams to giggle, but it's Jake muttering that Javy only wanted to see Ms. Reynolds that has the pair of you cackling. The harsh knock against the door has all of your eyes fleeting to Mrs. Adams' office entry, the laughter in you quickly dies down as Janice and Ed Williams glare at the five of you. They each carry a small pack that resembles the totes you had bought the twins at the beginning of fall, though the dirt on them makes you question if they're the same ones.

“Well, aren't you all just peppy.” The pair of them drop the bags harshly, and the sneer that Janice gives you makes you shrink back slightly into Jake. You weren’t normally scared so easily, but the pair of them made you uneasy. Their eyes hadn’t left you, even when they addressed Mrs. Adams. Though as an arm wraps around your waist, your shoulders drop and relax further into Jake.

“Right, shall we get this finished up? Lunch will be over soon, and Melissa can only fill in so long.”

Mrs. Adams gives you a small smile that has you giggling. You loved Melissa dearly and she was one of the sweet people you had ever met, though the kids also knew how much of a pushover she was and often conned her into playing Heads Up, Seven Up.

“Yeah, we need to get on the road,” Ed answers Mrs. Adams gruffly as he steps forward to snatch the pen off the desk and sign without any other conversation. The topic of them getting on the road doesn’t go unnoticed, but you keep your questions to yourself for the time being.

Janice grabs the pen from Ed, and the smack of her gum has you glaring slightly. Her signature is messy and hardly legible.

“Which of you five are signing?” Janice flicks the pen out, scanning the room with it before flicking it into your open palm. You give her a small smile and thank you, though she only sneers in reply.

Your eyes flitter from Janice and Ed and back to Jake, who gives you a reassuring smile and a gentle squeeze. You move to sign the document, as Jake steps out from around you and you can hear him introduce himself. From the corner of your eye, you can see Jake’s hand clasping Ed’s in a handshake and the tight grasp Jake has on Ed is anything up-friendly.

Jake lets go only to slide in behind you and gently takes the pen, as a gentle hand settles on your back before signing. The both of you finish and the weight in your chest seems to lift as Mrs. Adams then signs as a witness and gives you a small wink and smile that makes your own grow.

It felt different, the document signed was so much more than just the twins getting to go to Top Gun. It felt as though something deeper had solidified and now you only had to wait for it to become reality.

Your attention is pulled back to the Williams as they move to leave without saying anything else, though you are quick to ask what time you could pick them up in the morning. Both stop in their tracks and a full laugh is released from each of them.

“I wouldn’t know Ms. CeCe.” Janice all but spits the name out as it were venom. “We’re leaving now, not our problem according to that little paper. Have fun with the little devils.”

You had heard the twins mention more than enough times that their foster parents weren't fond of them, though hearing them talk about the children with such hatred shocked you and angered you went in a way that was indescribable. You're stunned in silence momentarily and by the time you realize that you don't have booster seats for either of the kids, the Williams are long gone from the school.

The defeated side falls from your lips, as you're trying to figure out how you can get two booster seats before the end of the school day while still teaching. Jake's hand rests against the small of your back and the slight movement of it reels your mind back in.

“They didn't give us booster seats. I haven't even gotten anything set up yet for them to sleep on, I was going to do it tonight.” You don't direct the statement towards anyone in particular, but you know Jake will be the first one working to find a solution.

“Don't worry sweetheart, Javy and I will take care of it. We've still got a couple hours before we have to be back. We'll go get everything and drop off the booster seats, before heading back to base.”

The words are muttered against your temple before a gentle kiss is placed. You're quick to bring Jake’s hand resting on your waist up to your mouth, to place a gentle kiss of thanks on it. You glance at Mrs. Adams who gives you a smile before she announces to everyone that Melissa is undoubtedly being manipulated by the children. A round of laughs echoed through the room before you leaned up to give Jake a kiss, placing all the love and thank you that you couldn't say into it.

He gives you a small smile before clasping your cheeks and kissing you on the forehead, turning to drag an unhappy Javy away from a smiling Ms. Reynolds. Before they can get far Javy calls out to have you give Ms. Reynolds his phone number. Jake’s laugh echoes off the hallways before he calls out as well, telling you that he may be a little late getting home tonight.

...

You wave to Mrs. Paulson as she guides Allison across the street. Mrs. Paulson had been the one parent that you could always count on, and once again she came to your aid when she decided to help supervise the field trip. You had met her husband at a parent-teacher conference and had instantly fallen in love with the family. Not only was Allison a wonderful student, but her parents were always open to trying new ideas. She just gotten diagnosed with ADHD this last summer and the Paulson, Mrs. Adams, and you were working up the best plan to help Allison.

You glance across the street once more making sure that everyone has been picked, before turning around to find Gray and Laine lying in the front grass watching the sky. Today was warmer than usual and the 70-degree December weather was quite enjoyable. You see Gray point to the sky, causing you to look up to see what the pair have been intensely watching.

A smile forms on your lips as you see a jet fly overhead, one of the perks of being just off base. You had love planes growing up and were always on base when your father was home, seeing the pair of them just as in love with planes only warms your heart more. Your movement toward the twins has them looking at you as you settle on your back beside Grayson, so he now rests between you and Madelaine.

“I think they're doing drills,” You hum in reply to Gray, waiting for him to continue. “They’ve been running the same pattern since we laid down.”

“See, watch how the two side planes break off and the middle one breaks toward either one.” You glance at Madelaine, silently wondering when she had become interested in planes. “Maybe it’s Mr. Jake. He’s a good flyer, right Gray.”

“Right.”

They both sound so sure of themselves and you giggle at how serious they are. Jake was going to eat this up when you told him, just one more thing to add to the ever-growing ego. You lay with them for a bit, enjoying how they talk about each plane so animatedly. You glance at your watch and find that it's nearing 4:30; the three of you needed to get home to ready where the twins are sleeping.

Home.

The word jars you for a minute and you have to silently remind yourself that it wasn’t the twin’s home. The arrangement was only for the weekend, and they weren’t your children, no matter how much you wished that they were.

“Alright you two, we need to get going.” You rise onto your elbows and find the pair of them grinning at you. You had talked to them the morning after you called Janice and asked if they would be okay staying with you. You would never want to make either of them uncomfortable, and luckily they were more than excited at the idea of staying with you. More so when they realized it meant they would get to go on the field trip.

...

The car ride home was easy thanks to the pre-installed car seats, which you would have to thank Jake and Javy for. You had given Madelaine your phone when she had asked to pick the songs and unsurprisingly the five-year-old had put on one of your Spotify playlists that she continually requested during art time in class. Both you and Gray were happily surprised at her choice of 80’s hits.

The pair of them had sung the whole way home, putting on quite the show from what you could see in the review mirror. Their little voices filled that small car, flipping between words they knew, to just humming along to the tune.

You pull up to the house, the vacant parking space and dark house confirm that Jake was indeed going to be late tonight. Both of the kids are out of the car before you can even try to unbuckle them. Their eyes sparkle are they look at the white bungalow, bouncing on their toes at the sight of a front lawn and you can hear Gray whisper to Laine, asking if they were actually allowed to play on it.

The question hurts, such a simple request that had no doubt been denied before. Though before you can fall further down the rabbit hole, you grab the twin totes from the passenger seat. You were going to enjoy this weekend, make it the best experience for them both, and not think about everything else.

“Come on my darlings,” You glance at your watch and find that it's almost five. “We’ve got to cook dinner and get your beds situated for tonight, we’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

Both of them give you a massive smile and Gray is quick to latch onto your hand, while Laine walks up the red stone walkway. You knew that Gray got anxious when it came to new ideas and had expected him to be attached to you for most of the night.

Laine, on the other hand, would know the house like the back of her hand by the end of the weekend and most likely have Jake wrapped around her finger. More so than he already is.

To your complete surprise, upon entry into the guest bedroom, you found the white daybed completely set up with the bedding set you had picked up the other day. You and Jake had decided that for this weekend the twins could stay in one room together, you didn’t want to separate them and cause any unneeded stress. While you had thought you would be setting up the room tonight, Jake and Javy must have come by and done it after finding out that the twins would be staying tonight.

“Alright you two, what do you think?” You hadn’t realized just how worried you were about the twins liking what you had picked out for them. You had found a set of light and dark blue bed sheets that you thought would be appropriate. Then found each of them their own special blanket, Gray’s consisted of planes and the Navy emblem, while Lainie’s had turtles and other tropical fish.

You watch the both of them carefully as they walk into the room, taking in the plain white walls and the small book nook where you enjoyed reading. They move slowly through the room, fingers running over the dresser and then stopping at the bed. The totes fall from their hands, and they slowly pick up the blankets, examining the cotton as if they had never had a blanket to call their own.

You don’t move and the breath in your chest catches at the reality that is unfolding before you. How long had they gone unloved? How many nights did they cry wrapped in each other’s arms, the only form of protection they knew? Your eyes are misty, and you wipe at the awaiting tear before it can fall.

“Ms. CeCe, who are these for?” Laine asks with only the tiniest echo behind the words.

“They’re yours,” Your voice catches and causes both the twins to turn around. “I picked them out for you. Do you like them?”

A small hum comes from the pair as they clutch onto the blankets and watch you carefully. You give them a weak smile, though before you can let your emotions overwhelm all three of you the sound of the front door opening, and closing has you looking back out into the hall.

“Darlin’?”

The voice has Laine letting out a small squeal before she races past you, blanket in tow, and makes for the front door.

“Mr. Jake!”

Gray settles at your side, holding onto your hand as the both of you make your way out to the front hall. The sight of Madelaine clutching onto Jake as he holds her stops you in your track, and for a moment you forget that they aren’t yours and Jake’s children. How had they looked so much like Jake, with the perfect dirty blonde hair and the small award-winning smile.

Jake glances up at you and gives both you and Gray a smile before he runs a hand down the back of Laine’s hair. A quiet hello, little darlin’ just barely reaches your ears, though as Laine tightens her hold on Jake, you know you heard right.

“We saw you flying today, Mr. Jake.”

The small voice gains the attention of all three of you, and as you look down Gray only smiles back at you in hopes that you’ll confirm what he’s said. Though before you can say anything, Jake adjusts Laine onto his hip, and he walks to bend down in front of Grayson.

“Is that right, buddy?” A smile forms on Gray’s lip before he gives Jake a firm nod. “And how was I doing? Did I meet your standards?”

Gray nods once again, before Laine looks at him in question then turns back to Jake. “Gray says you’re the best.”

“That so?”

Gray’s hand tightens around yours before a hum and smile break across his face. “The best fighter pilot ever seen.”

You hear Jake’s breath catch before his free arm reaches out to grab Gray. A laugh breaks from Gray and any worry you had of him being uncomfortable around Jake, falls to silent ears. With one on each hip, Jake rises and looks at you, the both of you share knowing looks while the twins laugh.

Life had never felt this perfect. You and Jake had always felt whole like you weren’t missing a part of the puzzle, though an add-on would have been welcomed. But now, you both knew that the four of you were the complete puzzle. That without both Gray and Laine in your lives, a part of your puzzle would be incomplete for the first time.

#sweet nothings series #jake seresin #jake hangman seresin #top gun: maverick #top gun maverick #gingy writes #jake seresin x reader #jake seresin x you #top gun #jake hangman x reader #jake seresin fluff #Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin #tgm #tgm imagine #tgm fic

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gryffindormarveltwilight · 1 month

Text

All We Need - Part 7 - Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Reader

A/N: Sorry guys for the delay on this part. It is a bit shorter than usual and there will probably be 1 maybe 2 more parts to this series. I hope you enjoy it - as always feel free to send through requests or feedback.

A/N2: I have just reposted this it turns out some of the tags were not working so sorry to those who wanted to be tagged and weren't hopefully that is fixed now!!

MASTERLIST

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader

Warnings: angst, fluff, spoilers for the mission in the movie, naval inaccuracies, alot of Rooster x reader giving sibling vibes

Sitting in my cabin on the carrier my leg was bouncing up and down it was only two hours until the mission took place. I hadn’t spoken to Jake since last night when I left him speechless on the couch and I had my dad pick me up early before anyone was awake leaving Daisy with a kiss on the forehead. Flashbacks to my conversation with Jake running through my head when the cabin door cracks open to reveal Bradley with a sad look.

“You okay in here Thena?”

“Brad, come in, yeah i am fine”

“Want to try that again?”

“Who told you?”

“Hangman actually, said something about a disagreement last night then said he hasn’t seen you since.” I nod lowly.

“It wasn’t a disagreement I just told him why I picked you and not him.”

“Ah yes he also mentioned that. You do know you are not replaceable to anyone especially not Jake and Daisy.”

“Did you just call him Jake?” Rooster cringed slightly with a laugh.

“That is beside the point, you aren’t. I know we haven’t spoken much since we got recalled but Athena you have to see what we all see, you are Daisy’s mother and Hangman is so in love with you.”

“And you are in love with Phoenix.” Rooster laughed and looked down at his hands.

“Yes I am, how about we make a deal, we both make it through this we tell Hangman and Phoenix how we feel.”

I laugh slightly “you know what, deal.”

“We are going to make it through this aren’t we?” Bradley ask in a sad voice.

“I am going to try my hardest to make sure you do.”

“I love you Y/N, we will get through this.”

“After all we have a few angels looking out for us, I love you too Bradley.” Bradley pulls me into a tight hug and kisses the top of my head before turning towards the door.

“Bradley! When we are up there, Don’t think, Just do.” He nods and leaves my cabin. I fix up my uniform before grabbing my helmet and heading towards the flight deck, as I get there i can see everyone else next to their planes doing there checks, at the end i see Jake and Coyote getting there planes ready incase we need back up, Jake and I make eye contact, his eyes hold a sad look, I turn quickly to my plane starting to do the checks when i hear footsteps behind me. I turn to see Ice and Mav and Hondo standing there.

“Sirs, can I help you?” Ice doesn’t respond just give me a tight hug followed by mav and Hondo.

“Be safe and come home. We all love you.” Ice says and Mav nods before they turn around and head back to the control centre.

“You have some people looking for advice Athena.” Hondo steps aside and I see Payback, Fanboy, Bob, Phoenix, Rooster, Coyote and finally Jake right at the back.

“Daggers, some of you may know but after this we are permanently becoming a squad, therefore whatever happens up there today, we stick together and we have each others backs to make sure everyone comes home. And if by some miracle we pull this off, beers are on me.” They all cheer at the laugh statement and start hugging each other. Phoenix and Bib hug me before we hear the announcement that we are to be taking off in less than 5 mins and that kills that laughter before we all look at each other before heading back to our planes. I climb into my jet Hondo following me up.

“I don’t like that look Athena.”

“Its the only one I have Hondo.”

“Mav only says that when he is about to do something dumb.” I laugh and so does he.

“Look after them Hondo, for me.”

“Always,” i nod it was one of the things i lkked about Hondo, he was a realist and never tried to pull the whole everyone will make it back speech. “you know everyone compares you to Ice but you really do have the best of your Dad, Ice and Mav, so fly like that today okay.” I nod as i start to close the canopy up.

“Dagger Three Up and ready” i hear Phoenix say through coms.

“Dagger Spare Up and ready.” Jake comes through next followed by Payback and Rooster. I take a deep breath.

“Dagger One, up and ready.”

“Daggers ready on catapult awaiting command approval.” I hear control centre thorough the comms, then we hear Cyclone.

“Send them.” With that we are launched off the carrier and get into formation, after descending below radar level, i give the all clear to release the tomahawks looking up as they fly above us.

“Daggers into attack formation, enter point in Tminus 30secs, 2minute 30 second on the clock - entering now.” I press the timer on my dash as i hear the others confirm they have to as we enter the canyon. As we fly at pace I can hear in the comms that rooster is falling behind.

“Rooster you have to pick up the pace.” I yell into my comms

“Come on Dad talk to me.” As I am about to respond i bear Mav come through the comms.

“Come on kid, dont think just do.” Suddenly Rooster picks up the place as i fly under a bridge speaking into the comms to warn the others.

“You with me Phoenix?”

“Right behind you Athena.”

“Popping up in 10secs be ready on that laser Bob.”

“All system check, Laser is a go.” Bob responds.

“Popping in 3,,,2,,,,1” i suddenly feel the force on my body as we pop up and level out heading towards the target, as Bob confirms he has a lock to the target I drop my missiles and pull up on the joy stick, crushing weight of gravity as the G-Force gets stronger, i can hear the heavy breathing of Phoenix and Bob.

“Stay with me Phoenix, Rooster status.” I say through laboured breaths,

“Nearly there Athena. Fanboy have the laser ready.” I hear Bob yell that we had direct contact, simultaneously with Fanboy saying there is something wrong with the laser. He is going back and forth with Rooster until Rooster said he was dropping blind. I levelled out when i saw smoke in the air from the SAMs.

“Here they come guys, SMOKE IN THE AIR.!” I yell. With that chaos ensures everyone screaming at each other where the SAMs were coming from and what direction to break, i saw rooster with two SAMs behind him.

“Deploying counter-measures,,,SHIT I am out of flares.” I hear Roosters panicked voice through the comms.

“Rooster Evade Evade!” I yell back at him as i see he has come up behind me, without hesitation i pulled the throttle back soaring over the top of Roosters jet releasing the flares I had left before i felt an all too familiar jolt of a missile hitting the back of my jet and before i know it I am burning in plummeting towards the snow as I reach down below me and pull the ejection handle, quickly followed by the string to deploy my parachute before blacking out as i land in the snow.

Icemans POV

Everyone let out a sigh of relief when we heard through the radio the Rooster had hit the target. The mission had been successful. I hear Cyclone mutter under his breath now they just all had to get home. I looked at Maverick who look as nervous as i felt listening to our pilots yelling directions at each other in order to avoid the SAMs. I held my breath when I heard Rooster saying he was out of flares with two SAMs on his tail. I looked at Mav as we heard Athena yelling at him to evade, and i felt like i was about to pass out when Roosters voice came through the comms.

“ATHENA NO!!” Rooster screams

“D-dagger one is down” I hear Phoenix say her voice breaking slightly “I repeat dagger one is down”

I stumble backwards sitting down on the chair behind me looking at Maverick who has tears in his eyes, Hondo has his head in his hands and Cyclone and Warlock are speechless, before we can even really process one of the operates reports that there are bandits incoming, and Cyclone is telling them to come back to the carrier, like ringing in my eyes i can hear Rooster argue that they should go back for Athena and cyclone argues that they aren’t losing anyone else. A silent sob leaves my chest when i hear Jake through the comms

“Dagger Spare request permission to fly cover and search and rescue.” Hoarseness in his voice indicating that he too probably has tears streaming down his face like me and Mav who both are yet to say anything outloud.

Cyclone shakes his head at Jakes request. “Negative spare, daggers return to the carrier.”

“Sir, what about Athena.” Hondo says his voice slightly shaky.

“There is nothing we can do for her, not in goddamn F-18s” he shakes his head “I won’t lose anyone else today.” We all look down understanding his position.

“Rooster, don’t do it, she is gone.” We hear Phoenix over the radio.

“I am not loosing her, not today.”

“ROOSTER!!” We look at the screen to see Roosters jet going in another direction before hovering for a few seconds then disappeared on the screen much like Athena’s had done minutes before. Now Mav sat down next to me head in his hands.

“We certainly raised dumb stubborn kids.” I laugh slightly but can’t form a sentence, I pat Mav on the shoulder before walking out of the control room towards the flight deck.

When I get to the flight deck I can see Jake sitting against the landing gear head in his hand and I go and sit next to him.

“We lost them both.” Jake looks up shocked.

“What do you mean both?”

“Rooster went down as well, I think he went back for her and got shot down.” Jake let out a sob as I wrapped my arms around him.

Y/Ns POV

I jolt awake in the cold snow and unclip my parachute before I turn around and hear the sound of a helicopter approaching. At first I thought that it may have been search and rescue then I saw their guns point towards me, without hesitation I start to run and I dive behind a log, accepting that this may very well be the end of me and I start to think of my parents, my dysfunctional aunts and uncles and finally Jake and Daisy and I smile at the thought they will be my last thought until I hear an explosion and look up to see that the helicopter is spinning out of control and there is one of our jets hovering, then I see smoke in the air and the jet tail is hit, I let go of the breath I was holding when I see a parachute land a few hundred meters away from me in the woods. I start sprinting towards where I saw the parachute land, as I get closer I see Rooster wrapping up his chute.

“Rooster, are you okay?”

“Athena, I am fine.”

“Good” I say as I shove him back into the snow.

“What the hell Athena?”

“Me what the hell! You are meant to be back on the carrier by now Rooster what the hell were you thinking!”

“Mav taught us not to think, plus I made a promise to make sure you came home!”

“YOU WHAT! Who the hell made you promise that.” Rooster just raised his eyebrow at me “Jake of course, well news flash Rooster now we are both stuck!”

“They will send search and rescue.”

“No Rooster, they won’t, we have landed to far into enemy territory for them to risk it.”

“It is good to see you alive Athena.” “You too Rooster, you too.” I gave him a hug as I pull back I give him a look.

“I don’t like that look.”

“I think I have an idea, follow me.” After a walk we are perched on the top of a hill looking at the demolished airbase that our tomahawks took out earlier that day, I grab a mini telescope looking to see if there is any planes undamaged, “Bingo.”

“You have got to be shitting me Athena, a F-14”

“Hey Mav shot down 3 MIGs I one of those.”

“We don’t even know if that bag of ass can fly.”

“Only one way to find out.” I say as we start walking across the base towards the plane, Rooster pointing out people coming near us so we start to run to the plane. Once we get there I start explaining to Rooster what to do as I climb in the pilot seat, sighing with relief as it starts up and Rooster climbs into the back seat.

“Do you even know how to fly this thing Athena.” “Rooster I knew how to fly one of these before I knew how to drive a car.” He just nodded as we got onto the taxi way, I look over to see the runway is completely destroyed, I start putting the wings out when I hear a panicked voice from behind.

“Why are the wings coming out Thena?” I ignore him as I push down on the throttle the plane speeding up as I do. I can hear Rooster stressing behind me. We gain speed quickly and just before the end of the taxi way i pull up of the throttle the plane jolting up along with it the landing clipping the ruin of a building snapping off.

“Get us in touch with the ship Rooster.”

“Any clue how to do that Athena?”

“Uhhh circuit breaker 2 I think.”

“Thena there is over 300 switches back here”

“Figure it out Rooster it is in you blood.” I hear him mumble a complaint before his panicked voice breaks through again “tally two low Athena”

I tell Rooster to put down his visor and pull his mask up as the other planes pilot starts to make hand signals I barely recognise.

“What is your plan here Athena?”

“I don’t know yet, have you turned your beacon on?”

“Yeah I turned it on as soon as we were airborne.”

“I want you to punch out Rooster and then the ship will send search and rescue for you”

“And what about you huh? What are you going to do?”

“Rooster…”

“No Athena, if you think for one second that I am going to punch out and leave you to draw them away with a dog fight you are extremely wrong.”

“Rooster, you have to make it back.”

“Then do some of that pilot shit Athena, cause I am not leaving my sister to die up here.” I sigh heavily.

“Alright then, its a dogfight.”

Taglist:

@dory-98 @djs8891 @brooke-stinson @emma8895eb @a-court-of-roscoe-and-baby @itsdesiree86 @dempy @kmc1989

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cinebration · 10 months

Text

Finally watched Top Gun: Maverick. Is anyone interested in Cyclone x reader and/or Hangman x reader fics?

#Cyclone x Reader #Beau ‘Cyclone’ Simpson x Reader #Beau Simpson x Reader #Beau ‘Cyclone’ Simpson #Beau Simpson #Top Gun Cyclone #Hangman x Reader #Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x Reader #Jake Seresin x Reader #Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin #Jake Seresin #Top Gun Hangman #Top Gun Maverick #Top Gun: Maverick

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yeagrave · 1 month

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it’s been a year since my first sereshaw post, so I did a redraw :’)

[ click image for better quality ]

#I think I improved lol #it’s crazy that being obsessed with something can force me to improve lmaoo #also it’s not a year to the days but I wanted to post :))#*to the date #hangster #my art #sereshaw #jake ‘hangman’ seresin #bradley ‘rooster’ bradshaw #tgm #top gun #top gun maverick #hangaroo #art #illustration

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hangmansgbaby · 10 months

Note

Congratulations Birdie 🫶🏼🫶🏼🥹

Could I ask for fluff prompt 2 with Jake Seresin??

I just KNOW that boy can braid

Love you 🥰🫶🏼

Jake got to use to braiding his sisters’ hair that now he’ll do it whenever!

Just A Braid

Prompt : “Ssh. Stop fussing. I'm just braiding your hair.”

Summary: You’re hunched over your work computer, stressed about completing your projects when your boyfriend comes up and does the unexpected.

Pairing: Jake seresin x reader

Word count:<300

Masterlist | 300 Cele Masterlist

You had all of your work papers scattered across the kitchen table. When you you left work at 4pm, every assignment was done and you were ready for a perfect weekend with your boyfriend but fate was not on your side today. As soon as you got home, your supervisor was immediately blowing up your phone, stating all of your work was the last week was wrong and needed to be done by tonight. So you pulled out all of you folders and laptop and got to work.

When Jake got home he could tell you were stressed. Your heels were tossed aside by the door, laptop bag spilling out on the bench, blazer halfway on a hanger in the closet. Jake chuckles slightly, cleaning up the entryway before making his way to the kitchen.

“Hey darling, how was work?”

“Still doing it.” You groan, running your fingers through your messy hair.

Jake glances over from the fridge to see your hair spilling pver your face as you write something down. Closing the fridge, Jake makes his way to you, scooping some of your hair up and combing his fingers through it.

“What are you doing?” You ask when he gently tugs on the top half of your hair. When he doesn’t answer you just look back to work but its not long before he’s tugging on it again. “Ow, Jake what are you doing?”

“Ssh. Stop fussing. I'm just braiding your hair.” Jake chuckles, pulling strands towards the braid.

“Since when do you know how to braid?”

“I have 2 sisters you loved having their hair done. You pick up a thing or two.” Jake smiles. “Now look back to your work, darling. Let me focus.”

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playbucky · 1 year

Text

Navy Boy, Army Girl.

Three army medics have been stationed on the ship that Hangman and Rooster have been stationed on for the past month. Y/N and her team have been placed in the middle of the ocean as a half-way marker for any seriously injured soldiers. Characters – Reader (Ghost), OC Abi, OC Jenkins, Hangman, Rooster, Phoenix. Word Count – 7.1k (this is only part one.) A/N - I finally got it to work!!!

‘What’s with the heli?’ Rooster asked, moving into the spot next to Hangman as they watched it land. The force of the wind from the blades caused the few people that stood around cover their faces, before the doors were pulled open and three people jumped out. Heavy bags weighing their shoulders down. The first two ducked their heads, worried about the blades catching them but the third didn’t react. They overtook the other two and shook the admiral's hand. They had a short talk before the four of them marched over the deck. ‘Army medics.’ They both said almost disappointed, watching the group of four before they disappeared inside.

‘Have you saw them yet?’ Rooster asked, Hangman raised an eyebrow and shovelled his food into his mouth. ‘Who?’ He asked, Phoenix whacked his arm when she saw his munched food. ‘The medics?’ Rooster asked, Hangman swallowed as Rooster glanced at Phoenix who silently shook her head. ‘No, you?’ He replied. ‘Not but Sergeant Kimble had to go yesterday and said it was like three supermodels. The one that treated him was supposedly an angel.’ Rooster said, Hangman arched an eyebrow. ‘Seriously?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘An angel? That can’t be possible – they’re army.’ Hangman commented, Rooster smiled. ‘I can punch you, and we can go and see.’ Hangman suggested, Rooster thought about it but stopped. ‘Or we could just look now.’ Rooster said, jabbing his fork behind Hangman. He turned along with everyone else in the room and fell silent. A man and woman talked to each other, then lifted three trays. They started filling them up before a third walked in. She was having an in-depth conversation with whoever was on the other end of the phone call. Her eyebrows furrowed deeply but smiled at her colleagues when they asked her a question. ‘The one on the phone?’ Rooster asked, Hangman nodded. ‘She’s the boss.’ He said, ‘Sergeant said she was called Y/N or that’s what they were calling her.’ Rooster explained, Hangman turned back to him. A shrilling alarm went off, breaking through the minimal conversation that was happening. Everyone turned back to them and watched as Y/N and her crew apologised to Jim as they set their trays down and took off running. Y/N almost ran into someone but skilfully dodged them, apologising and keeping conversation on the sat phone.

‘Can I help you ladies?’ You called out, they definitely weren’t ladies, their wide shoulders blocked the doorway as they tried to look into the room. ‘No.’ The taller one with black hair said. ‘No ma’am.’ The blonde replied, you nodded as you pulled on the blue gloves. ‘Good, now move out the doorway.’ You told them, waving your hand hoping they moved quickly. Rooster and Hangman shared a looked before they walked away, following the narrow corridors until they reached the others, joining them on going to the small gym that was stationed aboard. ‘Any luck?’ Payback asked, they both shook their heads. ‘No.’ ‘The admiral has called a meeting at sixteen hundred hours.’ Payback said, the pair nodded.

‘Admiral?’ Rooster greeted him as they entered the meeting room. ‘Why do we have medics on deck?’ He asked, Simpson rubbed his lips together. ‘We’ve always got them.’ He replied. ‘The specialists.’ Hangman added, flipping the toothpick around his mouth. ‘Our carrier is the closest to the field, any serious injuries will be brought here to be as stabilised then sent to a hospital.’ He informed them, Rooster and Hangman shared a look. Then the knock at the door broke it, the team turned and watched as you and your medics, stepped into the room. ‘Admiral.’ You greeted him, your eyes bounced over the group. ‘Army Medic Y/N Y/L/N this is Lieutenant Seresin, Lieutenant Bradshaw, Lieutenant Trace and Lieutenant Floyd.’ ‘Nice to meet you, these are Doctors Abigail Smith and Henry Jenkins.’ You introduced your small team. ‘We know how territorial you guys get when another branch is on your ground, you won’t have to worry about us.’ You told the group, the blonde that chewed on the toothpick turned to tanned skinned officer next to him. ‘Trust us we won’t be seeing much of each other, and we’ll be stuck in bay.’ You told them, their intense stares didn’t up. ‘So, you aren’t going to be playing nurse?’ Toothpick said, you gaze snapped to him as you watched him roll the wooden pick along his bottom lip. ‘Hangman.’ Low voice warned him, you arched an eyebrow. ‘As much as I’d love to wear that skimpy outfit just for you Hangman, our patients come to us when it’s life or death.’ You told him, you could see his eyes glisten with mischief. ‘I’m sure they’d love meeting an Angel when they're on their death beds, dainty hands and pretty smiles as they get their bodies rubbed.’ He added, you watched as the team silently groan and shake their heads. ‘Keep making the jokes and I’ll leave you to rot, I’m sure the sharks would enjoy a Texan boy for dinner.’ You commented, his team held back their laughter as you kept a straight face. ‘Admiral.’ You said, giving him a polite nod that he returned whilst fighting a smile, before you turned and followed Abi and Jenkins out.

‘Fuck.’ You cursed, the soldiers blood arched into the air and caught your apron and uniform. ‘Lieutenant?’ You called out, the blonde stopped at the door. ‘Yes?’ He asked, you hand your hand stuck in the man’s leg, the shrapnel had gone further in than expected. ‘You able to handle blood?’ You asked, he took in the blood that was across your chest. ‘Yes.’ He replied, you nodded and turned your head, rubbing your chin across your shoulder. ‘Good, get in and hold this together.’ You told him, his eyes widened. ‘I shouldn’t I don’t have any training.’ He said, you scrunched your face up. ‘Do you want this man to die?’ You asked, his gaze dropped down to the unconscious man. ‘Pinch it.’ You commended as you gestured to the large hole on the soldiers leg. ‘Shouldn’t your team be doing this?’ He asked but listened and stuck his fingers in, only then did he notice how ashy the man’s leg had become. ‘My team are dealing with another two.’ You told him before you both fell into silence. Jake watched as you moved your fingers about the man’s body with ease, finding the source of the continuous flow of blood before you grabbed a needle and thread. Jake’s eyes widened as the man moaned and tried to wriggle but you ignored him, you pulled the needle taunt and cut the thread. ‘You can let go.’ You said, Jake listened and removed his fingers from the man’s leg, his shin and lower half of his thigh already looked pinker as the blood managed to flow into it. ‘Wash up.’ You said but didn’t lift your head as you worked on stitching the gash together. Jake listened and walked over the sink, the water automatically flowed and he watched the red tainted water swirl the hole before it disappeared. ‘Lieutenant, thank you.’ You told him, he nodded and left the large room.

‘What are you doing here?’ You asked when you spotted Hangman lingering in the door way. ‘I thought I’d give you food, I haven’t saw at the break room since your first day.’ Hangman said, you looked at the boxes of food. ‘Thank you, but Jimmy delivers stuff to us.’ You told him with a smile. ‘You seem to have everyone wrapped around your fingers.’ Hangman commented, you scoffed and shook your head. ‘I wish, Jimmys stressing about his with wife.’ You told him, he watched as you pulled the tight headband down over your head before you pushed it up, pushing the any stray hairs away from your face. ‘Is she okay?’ He asked, you nodded, ‘Eight months pregnant,’ you told him, he arched an eyebrow, ‘feet are swelling like a bitch but she’s refusing to take it easy. He wanted to be reassured that she’ll be okay.’ You finished and watched his brows drop together. ‘Will she?’ Hangman quizzed, you nodded. ‘Yeah, I mean realistically she should be laying back in bed but she’s running a house.’ You told him, pulling apart the muffin. ‘Is there anything else I can help you with? I need to file our reports.’ You told him, he shook his head. ‘No, well I’m sorry for the way I treated when you were introduced.’ He apologised. ‘It’s fine,’ you waved at him, ‘I’ve dealt with worse things than a man that has bad timing for flirting.’

‘Hope you’re not sleeping on the job.’ The familiar voice said, you didn’t bother to open your eyes as warmth spread next to you. ‘I’m taking a five-minute break since I just stopped operating.’ You told him. ‘Who needed it?’ He asked, you opened an eye as you stretched your legs out in front of you, your boot clad feet rested on the railings before you closed your eyes again. ‘Someone.’ You commented, his brows furrowed. ‘Didn’t hear any alarms.’ He said, copying your action as he stretched his legs out and rested them on the railing. The small gap still caused his legs to be bent. ‘Kept it quiet since it was night.’ You mumbled, finally opening your eyes and looking out to the broad expanse of sea. ‘Do you have an end date to when you’re leaving?’ Hangman asked. ‘You want to get rid of me?’ You asked, he was quick to shake his head. ‘No, I just mean -,’ ‘I know, I’m here for the foreseeable future or until I get a call saying I’m deployed.’ You informed him, watching as he pursed his lips out. ‘You’re a solider?’ He asked, you nodded. ‘Yeah, done three tours myself. Two of which have been with Jenkins and Abi in the other squad.’ You informed him, his eyes widened and looked at your profile.

‘Your leaving?’ He asked, Phoenix was stood beside him as Rooster slowly walked over. They took in your attire, the scrubs that you had been practically living in for the last three months were replaced. The variation of green covered your pants, the beige top and shirt was tucked into them neatly. The heavy vest was tight around your chest, the various equipment was stuffed in the pockets. The helmet that balanced on your head was strapped under your chin. Yet all their attention was drawn to the weapon that was slung over your chest. ‘Just forty-eight hours, and don’t worry you still have Abi and Jenkins to annoy.’ You told them, the familiar look of worry crossed their eyes. ‘You’re going into the field?’ Phoenix asked, you looked at her. ‘Back in,’ you corrected her, ‘I’ve always been field, this was a temp situation.’ You said, she frowned. ‘You’re coming back, right?’ Rooster asked, you smiled at him. ‘In forty-eight hours.’ You repeated, ‘Will you manage without me Rooster?’ You teased, he smiled but nodded. The pat on your shoulder pulled everyone’s attention to heli pilot, you gave him a nod and a thumbs up before you turned for the group. ‘I’ll see you two days.’ You shouted.

‘Hangman, Rooster we’ll need your help if you’re free.’ Jenkins called out, they were quick to stand up and follow him. They followed him out onto the deck, Abi was already there giving them a quick smile. The helicopter was landing, the large metal blades sliced through the air as the skilled driver carefully landed it. The pilot signalled to Abi and Jenkins, they made their way across the desk, Hangman and Rooster close behind them. When the door to the heli was opened all hell broke loose. The first thing they saw was the two black bags, zipped up and tagged. Then three guys, that we’re wearing the same uniform as you had when you left, climbed out. Arms in make shift casts, heads wrapped and bruises covering their faces. Then when Rooster and Hangman looked in their stomachs dropped, you looked at them through your eyelashes but continued to press down on the guys chest. His chest was on display, the deep purple covered his left side. ‘Appeared healthy when first examined, suspected to have a broken rib and arm.’ You took a second to catch your breath as they pulled you out, ‘Crashed four minutes ago, no pulse, I would say punctured lung yet both sides are good.’ You continued to tell them. ‘Is he responsive?’ Jenkins asked, you shook your head and continued on with compressions, knowing that the team wouldn’t enter the building until he was in. ‘You’re bleeding.’ Jenkins said, reaching up to tilt your chin up. You looked at him, the dried blood stained the side of your face and the collar of your shirt. ‘He’s dying.’ You commented, continuing with the compression. ‘Y/N.’ Jenkins warned as well. ‘No.’ You snapped. ‘He’s dead.’ He warned you, you shook your head. ‘No, he’s not dead till he inside on my table and cold.’ You said, he tilted his head to the side. ‘Cold and dead.’ You repeated, Jenkins sighed and nodded. ‘Now get me inside.’ You commanded. ‘Abi, check the others over.’ You told her as you motioned to them, Abi nodded and moved over to them.

‘Someone take over compressions.’ You commanded, Rooster stepped forward and interlocked his fingers before he pressed down on the man chest. You stepped away from the table, reaching up you unclipped your helmet and chucked it into the corner with your right hand. You then turned, stepping closer to a wall and pressed your left shoulder against it. ‘What the hell are you going?’ Hangman asked, you looked at him then to Jenkins who shook his head and focused back on his patient. You clenched your jaw, pushing down the pain that spread over your arm. ‘Let me pop it back in.’ Abi said, hands stretched out as she appeared behind you as you quickly moved. Rooster and Hangman watched on as the loud pop filled the room, you grunted and stood up tall. The pain was sharp but it quickly dulled down. ‘I’m fine.’ You said, wriggling your fingers to make sure you hadn’t caught any nerves. ‘Stop.’ You said, Rooster looked at you. ‘CT.’ You commanded, Jenkins was already spreading the gel with one hand and switched the machine on with the other. You watched the black and white image as he guided the wand around, the lighter object was resting against the large muscle. Jenkins moved the wand about and you inhaled deeply. ‘Shit.’ All the doctors said, Rooster and Hangman looked at the image, neither of them understanding it but they knew it was bad. ‘You need to leave.’ You told Rooster and Hangman. ‘We can help.’ They both said, you shook your head. ‘Thank you for helping but I’m about to cut into this mans chest and need all my concentration on him.’ You told them, as you wrapped the apron around to try and save your clothes, Abi quickly set the instruments out whilst you slipped gloves on. ‘How about we help with the others?’ Rooster suggested, the band of the glove snapped. ‘Look do what you want but leave.’ You almost snapped at them, you could feel the muscles down your back tensing up.

‘Staff Sergeant.’ The voice called, you lifted your head and made eye contact with the group that stood at the doorway. ‘What are you doing here?’ You asked. ‘I tried to -,’ Hangman stopped his sentence short when he saw the dried blood that coated your clothes, then to the fresh blood that was spread across the floor. ‘How is he?’ Griggs asked, you looked at him the to the others and sighed. ‘Heart was punctured,’ you started, ‘we managed to sew it together to hold it but when he’s back on land then it’s a long journey.’ You explained removing the stained shirt that you had been wearing for close to thirteen hours. ‘Will he be back?’ Adams asked, you slid your arms out and stood in front of them in your black sports bra. Hangman’s attention moved over you until it landed on the pale scar that ran over your right hip and wrapped around to your back. ‘No, as a result of the injury he’ll be discharged, honourably of course.’ You said. ‘Now please go and relax because I am going to shower the dirt, blood and grime off before I go and report.’ You told them, as you motioned to the blood coated shirt on the floor. ‘You need rest.’ Griggs said as he crossed his arms over his chest, the large tattooed forearm seemed to increase in size. ‘Rest can wait, their families need to be informed as quick as they can.’ You told them whilst you picked up the rough towel.

‘Sir.’ You stood taller, the sling your arm was in nipped at the back of your neck. ‘At ease.’ ‘What the hell happened? And why do we have five DOA, and only two bodies made it back?’ He asked, you rolled your neck. ‘We were ambushed.’ You informed him, he narrowed his eyes at you. ‘I read that.’ He stated, you nodded once. ‘We were travelling the route that was stated, we got five clicks away before the first of the convoy was taken out by a missile from Northwest.’ You started to explain, his face was stoic. ‘Third convoy was taken out by a missile but from the Southwest, the vehicle flipped and connected with our back panels and flipped us.’ You continued. ‘Five injured, Samson is lucky to be alive and heading back with you this morning.’ You pointed out. ‘Permission to speak freely?’ You asked, using your free arm and scratched your nose ‘Go ahead.’ He gave you permission. ‘They knew we were there.’ You told him, his brows furrowed together. ‘How?’ He asked, you shrugged your good shoulder. ‘No idea sir, I’ve been in this boat until you sent the heli.’ You reminded him, he nodded. ‘I hope you keep that idea to yourself.’ He warned you, you nodded. ‘I’m on a ship, sir. Unless my station has been changed?’ You asked him, he shook his head. ‘No, you’re still stationed here. Men are still out there.’ He said, you nodded your head once. ‘Understood sir.’ You said, he nodded back at you and turned around, he walked maybe two feet before he stopped. ‘Y/N?’ He asked as he turned back to you, you stood taller and raised an eyebrow. ‘Yes sir.’ You replied. ‘Talks of a medal of honour coming your way.’ He said, a smile plastered on his face. ‘And just like the other times I will be politely declining it.’ You reminded him, the smile dropped. ‘You can’t keep turning it down.’ He replied. ‘I’m not accepting it because this is what I signed on for this, sir, it’s in my contact to save the lives of the teams.’ You reminded him, he gave you a grunt before he nodded and walked away.

It had been a month since the last major incident, the only problem was the amount of men and women who were getting sea sick from the intense waves that had filled the ocean for the past three days. The waves had calmed enough that everyone could sit in the dining hall for the their dinner, you, Abi, Jenkins and the small group that seemed to follow Jake around were hunched over a plastic table. ‘Staff sergeant.’ You lifted your head along with Phoenix, Bob, Rooster and Hangman. Jenkins and Abi kept their heads down, they knew what was coming. The three of you did. The man stood tall in front of you, his looked over the small group that had gathered throughout the night as you were relaxing before whatever would happened tomorrow. ‘You can talk freely.’ You told him, he nodded. ‘You’re requested on site, transport leaves at O hundred hours.’ He said, you lifted your wrist and looked at the watch. Three hours. ‘Understood.’ You replied, he nodded before turning and walking away. ‘I need to go get ready.’ You said, downing the last of your water before pushing away from the table. ‘Cold and dead.’ Jenkins and Abi said, holding their curled fists up. ‘Cold and dead.’ You replied, knocking your own fists against theirs before you walked. ‘Why is she going on a stealth mission?’ Phoenix asked, Jenkins and Abi shook their heads. ‘Come on, we know that flying between they hours is sneaking in the enemy.’ She said, the group looked at the two medics. ‘Y/N has skills that benefit here and on land in combat.’ Jenkins told them. ‘You aren’t going with her?’ Bob questioned, they both shook their heads. ‘No, she has her own team.’

‘What’s happening?’ Rooster asked, Abi and Jenkins ignored him. ‘Abi.’ ‘Stay here and do not come and help us.’ She warned them. ‘It’s Y/N.’ Phoenix said, all heads snapped to her then they turned to Abi but she didn’t give them time to ask or for her to react before she was sprinting. ‘What happened?’ ‘Pulse is there but weak, left-hand side is believed to be third degree burns. Cold compress has been put on it, we incubated her and we are doing the breathing.’ He listed off, Abi and Jenkins nodded as they looked down at you. ‘What did she do?’ Abi asked, she looked up to the medic. ‘Protected a kid from a grenade.’ Your teammate told the group. ‘Oh, you stupid girl.’ Abi said, her gloved hand carefully brushing the top of your head. ‘Her breathing was shallow on the right.’ The medic continued to tell them, Jenkins brows furrowed. ‘Punctured lung.’ ‘Y/N?’ Someone called out, everyone’s heads snapped to the little girl that wriggled in the man’s arms. ‘Who’s she?’ Rooster asked. ‘The little girl, Sahar, she’s completely fine.’ The other medic said, Sahar’s eyes were wide as she looked at your unmoving body. ‘I’ll take her.’ Phoenix said and pushed away, walking it towards the little girl. ‘Are any of you injured?’ Abi asked, Jenkins and her directed their attention to the team that had been squeezed in the back of the heli. ‘Jenkins make sure Ghost gets better.’ The man at the front called, Hangman could make out that he was holding your helmet in his hand, Jenkins nodded before they pushed gurney.

You tried to open your eyes but they didn’t cooperate, they felt heavy, tied down. That was the least of your worries when the searing pain spread up your side. Across your stomach and down your leg, you tried to move away from the pain but you couldn’t do anything. You tried to speak but it only came out in grunts and moans as your body refused to work with you. ‘Jake.’ Jenkins called out, he lifted his head, ‘you need to hold her down she’s waking up.’ He said, Jakes eyes widened. ‘If she wakes up, she’ll worsen her injuries, talk to her, say anything that is on your mind but distract her.’ He said, Jake nodded and moved to the space above your head. ‘Hey.’ He breathed out, standing above you he could see all your injuries old and new. ‘My mum called.’ He said, his hands rested on your shoulders and kept you down as he watched Jenkins and Abi delicately pulled the singed clothes off your wounds. ‘She’s determined to set me up with the next-door neighbour, you know the one I showed you?’ Jake continued to talk to you, deep frown lines appeared between your eyebrows. ‘She’s nice, I’ll admit that but I think I’ll decline.’ He stated, Abi spared a glance up to see him resting his head against the side of yours, worry etched into his face, ‘She’s too preppy for me.’ he added, Abi looked away from him only to meet Jenkin’s gaze who nodded with a faint smile, agreeing with her statement that she didn’t have to speak.

‘What’s happening?’ Jake asked, his eyes wide as he looked at you on the gurney, the silver blanket wrapped tightly around you. ‘We don’t have enough skill or equipment here, the heli is loaded so she’s going to the hospital.’ Abi said, Jenkins gave him a nod as he walked over to edge were the ship, he greeted the crew. ‘Does she have anyone on land?’ Jake asked, Abi nodded. ‘She has her team.’ Abi said, Jake looked at her as she jutted her chin to the group that she came aboard with. ‘They’re family, you don’t need to worry about her.’ Abi stated, Jake pursed his lips and nodded. ‘I’m always going to worry.’ Jake mumbled, Abi gave him a small smile. ‘I’ll keep you up to date.’ She told him and stretched a hand out to squeeze his arm. ‘Thank you.’ He said before he stepped out the side and allowed Abi to push the gurney out.

‘Staff sergeant.’ The voice said, you lifted and looked at the door to see Jake in casual clothes, the black T-shirt was tight across his chest as the checkered shirt hung over his shoulders that he had paired with dark washed jeans. ‘Lieutenant.’ You greeted him with a smile, ‘What brings you onto land?’ You quizzed as he walked over. ‘I’m on leave. On it for a couple of weeks then I’m off again.’ He said, you arched an eyebrow. ‘That’s good.’ You replied, he nodded. ‘Yeah.’ ‘So why aren’t you meeting with you mum and declining that girl?’ You asked, his shoulders tensed up. ‘You heard that?’ He asked, you nodded. ‘Yeah, I heard and felt everything that day. Thank you.’ You thanked him, the corner of his lips quirked up before it dropped down. ‘Just doing my job.’ He replied, you gave him a nod. ‘Why do they call you Ghost?’ Jake asked. ‘It was either Ghost or Spartacus but Alex earned the latter.’ You told him, his brows furrowed together. ‘Let me guess the big burly dude?’ He asked, you shook your head and gave a him a wide smile. ‘No, she’s the one of the girls in my team. Managed to knock a door down the boys had been trying for five minutes plus she took down five men with a knife.’ You explained, he arched an eyebrow but nodded. ‘Makes sense.’ He nodded. ‘I got ghost because I’m an unseen force to the other side.’ You said, his brows furrowed in a silent question. ‘They don’t suspect a medic to have the training I do.’ You tried to move but the bandages that coated your left side nipped at the skin. ‘Let me help.’ Jake said, he walked to the right hand side and carefully slid a hand under your knee and the other just under your shoulder blade. He looked at you as you nodded and wrapped your good arm around his shoulders, he lifted you up before he adjusted the pillows behind you. You slowly let go of him as he slid his hands out, allowing you to sink into the cushions with a sigh. ‘Thank you.’ You sighed, your back finally comfortable as he dropped into the chair. ‘And what do you mean the girl is too preppy, she everything you look for.’ You asked, redirecting to the earlier conversation. ‘You don’t know what I look for?’ Jake replied, you arched an eyebrow. ‘We spent a year on that boat together, I think I know.’ You commented. ‘Tell me then.’ Jake challenged as he crossed his arms and leaned back into the chair. ‘You want someone that can ride a horse so you can go on those majestic horse rides down at the sea, the slaty air whipping through your hair, that you would’ve grown out by then.’ You joked, he arched an eyebrow. ‘You think I’d grow my hair long?’ He asked, reaching up to touch his neatly styled hair. ‘Yeah, maybe, I think you’d suit it slightly longer.’ You smiled at him, he arched an eyebrow. ‘Secondly I don’t want to do the horse riding along the sea, already did it.’ He admitted, your eyes widened. ‘You’ve did it? For who?’ You asked excitedly. ‘An ex girlfriend before I was deployed.’ He replied, amused but your excitement. ‘And she isn’t with you still?’ You quizzed, he shook his head. ‘No, I broke it off with her.’ He informed you, ‘Aw come on, that could’ve been you future wife.’ You said, he scoffed and shook his head. ‘Highly unlikely since she got married to Billy Baxton six months later.’ He informed you, you scrunched your face up. ‘Bet you broke loads boys hearts when you left?’ Jake commented, you scoffed and shook your head, the white bandages on your neck crinkled. ‘Still got your facts wrong about me Navy boy.’ You told him. ‘I do?’ He asked, eyes widened in surprise. ‘Yeah, the last time a boy tried to ask me out was after prom.’ You started. ‘But when he sneaked up on me in the dark, I reacted and sixty seconds later he had a broken nose and fractured wrist.’ You explained, his eyes widened as he leaned forward waiting to find out what happened. ‘He ran away crying for his mummy.’ You added, Jake burst out laughing as he tilted his head back. ‘Be quiet you’ll disturb Sandra.’ You warned him as you pointed to the curtains, he held up his hands. ‘Sorry.’ He apologised to the curtain. ‘It’s alright.’ Sandra replied, you widened your eyes at Jake before the curtain was pulled open. ‘I hope loudmouth didn’t wake you.’ You apologised, she shook her head. ‘No, you know I struggle to sleep.’ Sandra told you. ‘Yeah, but having a loudmouth navy boy might make it harder.’ You told her, she smiled and shook her head before she looked at him. ‘I’ll let him off since he’s so good looking.’ She commented, you smiled and turned to Jake whose cheeks were red but he smiled anyway. ‘Thank you, ma’am.’ He replied, his smile widened. ‘Don’t call me ma’am.’ She said, his brows furrowed. ‘Sorry.’ He replied, she dismissed it with a wave. ‘Am I hearing right that you were stationed on his ship for the last year?’ Sandra asked, you both nodded. ‘Yes, been a long one.’ You groaned, Jake rolled his eyes. ‘I didn’t know you were Navy.’ Sandra said, you held up an extended finger. ‘I’m not Sandra, I’m the better side. I’m with the army.’ You replied proudly, you could see Jake’s eyes narrowed at you. ‘Ahh it makes sense now.’ She said, your brows drew together. ‘What does?’ You both asked together. ‘The rivalry.’ She commented, waving her hand between the pair of you. ‘There isn’t any.’ You told her, she arched an eyebrow. ‘Pretty sure there is.’ Sandra said, you opened your mouth. ‘You did call me a lady the first time we meet.’ Jake commented, you rolled your eyes. ‘Second time,’ you pointed a finger at him, ‘and you flirted with me the first we meet. In front of our teams.’ ‘I had to mark my territory.’ Jake pointed out, you tilted your head to the side. ‘You coulda just whipped your privates out and peed everywhere.’ You informed him, his eyes lit up. ‘That would’ve got me in trouble.’ He pointed out. ‘Excuse me?’ A voice said, all three of you looked at the small nurse. ‘Hello beautiful.’ Jake greeted her, you closed your eyes and leaned your head back. ‘Not the nurse Seresin.’ You warned him, he held up his hands and smiled at you before he gave the nurse a wink, the apples of her cheeks quickly turned red as her attention focussed on you. ‘It’s time for your wounds to be cleaned and changed.’ She said, apologetically as she knew what it entailed. ‘Do you want your boyfriend to stay or would you like me to guide him to the waiting room?’ She asked. ‘He’s not my boyfriend and -,’ you trailed off, looking at him then to the nurse, ‘Only he helps wants to.’ You said, you didn’t want to force him. ‘I’ll stay.’ He replied, the nurse nodded. ‘Okay.’ ‘Nurse before you start could I possibly get help to the bathroom?’ Sandra asked, the nurse looked at her and smiled. ‘I’ll go get someone for you.’ The nurse said, Sandra nodded and the nurse left. ‘Thank you.’ Sandra said before she pulled the curtain over to give each other some privacy. ‘Go help Sandra sit up, just be careful of her right leg and chest.’ You told Jake, he listened as he nodded and stood up. ‘Knock knock.’ He said, pretending to chap the curtain. ‘You can come in Navy boy.’ Sandra said, you smiled as he looked over his shoulder before he stepped in. ‘The names Jake.’ He told her, Sandra nodded. ‘I know.’ She replied. ‘Thank you.’ Sandra said, sitting at the edge of the bed. Jake nodded and went to turn before she reached out and grabbed his hand. ‘She’s going to try and take the pain out on you.’ Sandra whispered, Jake arched an eyebrow. ‘She’ll act tough here, the wound cleaning is a bitch but she’ll close up when it starts to heal. The realisation that it won’t be normal kicks in soon.’ Sandra explained, before the curtain behind him was pulled open. ‘Nurse Franklin.’ Sandra greeted her, her eyes widened when she saw Jake. ‘Sandra, didn’t know you have a grandson.’ The nurse said as she looked at Jake. ‘I don’t, he’s a visitor for Y/N who’s been so helpful.’ Sandra replied, Nurse Franklins eyebrow rose. ‘Oh.’ She said, then looked to Sandra, ‘She has a visitor?’ ‘She hasn’t had any?’ Jake asked, they both shook their heads. ‘The team she came with, she hasn’t allowed them in.’ She said, Jake looked between the two women, ‘I’m surprised she let you in.’ ‘I know why she let him in.’ Sandra stated, nurse Franklin looked at the middle-aged woman before her eyes opened. ‘Really?’ The nurse asked, Sandra nodded. ‘Yes, both are too dumb to say anything.’ Sandra commented, the nurse pursed her lips. ‘Ah well.’ Nurse Franklin said, before she looked at Jake. ‘Treat her with respect, it’s nothing less than what she gives us.’ She warned him, Jake nodded and felt intimidated by their threats.

The whimper broke through the room, Jake’s head snapped up from the blood and puss stained bandaged to see your eyes scrunched shut, jaw clenched tightly as you squeezed his finger. ‘Y/N, look at me.’ He said. ‘Staff Sergeant look at me.’ He commanded, your eyes snapped open and landed on his green ones. ‘Deep breaths.’ He said. ‘I am.’ You gritted out. ‘You’re not.’ He retaliated. ‘Follow mine okay.’ He said, you nodded and he leaned forward. He rested his forehead against yours, bringing your joined hands to his chest and he inhaled. You followed suit before he exhaled, you tried to copy but the bandage was stuck and you forced down a yelp. The nurse glanced up to the pair of you, she smiled before she quickly pulled it free. ‘You’re almost there.’ Jake said, you lips twisted into a smile. ‘Sounds like I’m giving birth.’ You breathed out. ‘I think giving birth would be easier.’ He commented, both of you chuckled. ‘Maybe I’ll find out one day.’ You hissed, he smiled.

‘Mr Seresin?’ A voice called out, Make lifted his head and made eye contact with Jessica, the nurse who always seemed to be on shift. ‘Yes?’ He asked, she gave him a tight smile. ‘She’s doesn’t want to see you today.’ She said, Jakes smiled dropped and looked into through the window where the curtain wrapped around your cubicle. ‘Okay.’ He said, ‘can you pass these to her when she’s better?’ Jake asked, handing the small box of chocolates over to her. ‘I will.’ ‘Thank you.’ He replied and turned to walk away. ‘Jake?’ The familiar voice called out, he looked down the hall. ‘Sandra.’ He greeted her, your neighbour for the last eight days. ‘How are you?’ Jake asked her, she tilted her head to the side. ‘I’m okay.’ She replied, he nodded and the corner of his lips curled into a small smile. ‘Is Y/N okay?’ Jake asked, Sandra’s brows dipped. ‘She’s not letting you in?’ She asked, Jake nodded as she pursed her lips. ‘I could use some company.’ Sandra said, Jake looked at her. ‘I don’t want to intrude.’ He quickly said, she shook her head. ‘You’re not, I’m inviting.’ She told him, then twisted in her seat. ‘You can leave us, I think Jake’s capable of controlling a wheelchair.’ Sandra told the young porter, he nodded and walked away as Jake slipped behind the chair. He guided her back into the two man room, the curtains that surrounded your bed were drawn over, keeping you hidden from the world. ‘Y/N?’ Sandra called out, there was a short period of silence. ‘Yeah.’ You replied, your voice weak. ‘You’ll never guess who I found wandering the hallway.’ Sandra said, your side fell silent as Sandra slid into her bed with ease compared to the last time. ‘Santa?’ You asked. ‘I wish.’ Sandra commented, the silence filled the room. ‘That loudmouth Navy boy.’ Sandra said. ‘Jake?’ You asked. ‘Yup.’ She replied. ‘I told them I didn’t want to see him?’ You told her, not caring that Jake could hear everything. ‘Oh, he knows that but he’s here for me.’ Sandra commented. ‘That’s nice.’ You hummed. ‘Yeah, he got me those chocolates that you keep raving about.’ Sandra teased her, she must’ve noticed him handing them over to the nurses outside. ‘That’s nice.’ You hummed again, not humouring her conversation. ‘They are.’ Sandra replied, but whatever reaction she was looking for didn’t happen. Jake was about to tell her to leave it, then Sandra tilted her head to the side. ‘Dr said I’ll need to skin grafts to try and save my leg.’ She said, Jake looked at her with wide eyes then she counted down from three on her fingers before the curtains were yanked open. ‘You doctor doesn’t know shit then.’ You cursed, your brows were drawn together and focused on Sandra who was smiling wide. ‘You don’t need them, do you?’ You sighed, you hadn’t even spared a look at Jake.

‘No, but it’s nice to see you care about me.’ Sandra commented, you let out a sigh and dropped back into the bed which revealed the red scar down your neck. ‘You’re not being polite, you should say hi to my visitor.’ Sandra said, you inhaled deeply and lifted your head. ‘You weren’t nice to me there.’ ‘Manners make a person.’ She commented, you rolled your eyes and looked to Jake, his blue eyes already watching you. ‘Hi Navy boy.’ You greeted him. ‘Hi.’ He replied. ‘Happy?’ You asked Sandra, she smiled and nodded. ‘Now go over and talk to her.’ Sandra turned to Jake, his eyes widened as his gaze snapped over to her. ‘No, you want him as your guest you can keep him.’ You quickly replied, ignoring the way Jake’s face dropped. ‘You know pissing him off isn’t a good idea, he can pull rank.’ Sandra commented, you narrowed your eyes at her again before they moved to Jake. ‘He wouldn’t dare.’ You told him as you sent a glare at him. ‘I don’t even know why you’re here?’ You sighed and looked at your friend. ‘Because you’re my friend, and I wanted to visit you and -,’ He started. ‘And what?’ You cut him off, his lips pressed together as his jaw bounced. ‘Come on Jake, the massive rouse you just pulled and you can’t say it?’ You quizzed, his shoulders tensed up. ‘It was Sandra’s idea, I wanted to see my friend that has pushed everyone away from them before I’m deployed again.’ He said, his clenched hands at his sides relaxed when your face dropped. ‘What?’ You exhaled, Sandra’s head snapped to him as well. ‘I’ve been called back a week early.’ He sighed. ‘Oh.’ ‘Yeah.’ He said, playing with is fingers as he avoided looking at you. ‘We’ll thanks for letting me know, be safe and fly high.’ You told him. ‘Okay.’ ‘The nurses have your chocolates, make sure you give one to Sandra.’ He told you, you nodded and watched as he twisted and sent a smile to Sandra before he walked away. ‘You should’ve told him.’ Sandra announced when the door shut, your head flung back into the soft pillows that were slowly becoming uncomfortable. ‘Told him what?’ You asked her. ‘That you like him.’ She commented. ‘He knows I do.’ You replied, she groaned and turned on her side carefully of her leg. ‘By god, you’re just being stupid.’ She told you. ‘I’m not stupid, why would a walking Greek god what anything to do with a scarred-up vet?’ You asked her, careful how you turned your neck to look at her. ‘Because he loves you.’ She pointed out, you closed your eyes. ‘No, he doesn’t.’ You replied quickly, shaking your head, the bandages rubbed against your top. ‘He’s spent most his leave here with you, plus he came to tell you that he was leaving.’ Sandra pointed out, ‘also, why not let your team in who come every weekend but let him in?’ She asked, you picked at the small balled up bit of fabric. ‘Because I won’t see him again.’ You told her, she looked at you and shook her head. ‘Y/N.’ She warned. ‘No, he’s deployed on a boat god knows where training and flying. When I get out of here I’ll be discharged, then flung into the world trying to find a job.’ You told her what would most likely happen to you. ‘You could always become a doctor.’ Sandra pointed out, you scoffed. ‘No one would hire me with these scars.’ You told her as you gestured of the bandages, knowing what was under them. ‘The only scars that would be present are the ones on your neck and wrists, unless you plan on walking about naked.’ Sandra commented, you gave her a small chuckle. ‘Sandra please, me and Jake aren’t on that ship any more.’ You told her. ‘You could be.’ She replied, you shook your head. ‘In our dreams.’ You commented and ended the conversation, Sandra watched as you turned onto your side.

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