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erin-bo-berin · 4 years

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Cupid

MASTERLIST

This was requested by @sundippedprincess I’m pretty sure! Oh man, don’t we all love some daddy Spencer? I couldn’t resist writing this cute little fluff piece. Hope it’s a good start to all of you guys’ Mondays. Happy reading!

Spencer Reid/Reader

Rating: G (fluff)

Word Count: 4,773

For as long as you could remember, you wanted to be a teacher.

Apparently, after coming home from your first day in kindergarten, you had announced to your parents that you wanted to be a kindergarten teacher. Twenty years later, you were living your dream.

Your kindergarten kids were your whole life. You always loved seeing them, watching them grow and learn. You typically dreaded summer vacation because you missed your kids and teaching so much, despite the few months of break.

This was only your second year of teaching, but you were enjoying it just as much as your first. It was tough saying goodbye to the first group of students, but it made it worth it when you saw them in the school halls and some still ran up to greet you.

School had just let out for another day and you already missed the bright young minds of your students. You were cleaning up your classroom before working on some grading when you heard a small voice coming from your doorway.

“Miss Y/L/N?”

You turned and saw a little girl with light brown curls and a turquoise blue backpack standing in your doorway, looking hesitant. She was one of your best behaved students, Ayla Reid.

“Ayla! Did you forget something?”

She shook her head, her ponytail bouncing with the movement.

“My daddy is late and they told me at the office to come stay with you instead of waiting outside by myself. Is that okay?”

She was the sweetest little girl. She was a bright little girl as well, having no trouble with soaking up new knowledge like her brain was a tiny sponge. She was always kind and helpful when it came to other classmates, but she never hesitated to speak her mind. All in all, she was an outgoing, bubbly little girl with a heart of gold.

“Of course, sweetie. Come on in.”

You took the chair to her desk off the top of it, setting it back on the floor so she could sit in her usual place.

You peeked over your shoulder as you headed to your arts and crafts station to see her settling in to her normal desk. You grabbed some paper and crayons and walked back to her with them in hand.

“Would you like to color while you wait?”

She nodded, smiling big.

“I love to color!”

You laughed, knowing that all too well. It was one of her favorite activities when doing schoolwork.

“Is your daddy always late when picking you up?” you asked, sitting back down behind your desk.

“Yeah. Sometimes it’s just a few minutes, but he’s never been this late,” she answered.

She’d already opened the box of crayons and was starting to draw before you’d even asked your question.

You glanced at the clock in your room to see it was nearing 3:15. School let out at 2:30–Ayla’s father was nearly an hour late.

“This doesn’t happen all the time,” she said, “‘Cause sometimes my mommy picks me up.”

You understood that. Plenty of your students had parents who worked full time and was occasionally late to pick them up.

She said nothing else as she was busy with her picture, so you started sorting through the turned in work for the week so far. You would have to log in grades and update the grades later on so it was just easier to get through this first step now.

“My daddy works a lot,” Ayla said out of the blue.

You looked up, smiling, seeing her still hard at work with her crayons.

“What does he do?” you asked, interested.

“He’s a pwofiler. I’m not quite sure what that means but he works in the FBI. That’s like the police but more important.”

You chuckled. She wasn’t one to miss much. When you’d said she was incredibly smart, you hadn’t been exaggerating.

“That sounds like a very interesting job. I’m sure you’re incredibly proud of him, Ayla,” you said.

“Mhm,” she nodded big, looking up from her picture, “He’s very smart too. He’s got a robotic memory!”

You raised a brow, not quite sure what she meant, but laughed anyway.

“Is that so? That’s impressive.”

“He a docta. But not like the ones you go to when you’re sick.”

She went back to the picture and you watched her for a moment, amused. There was so much energy and spunk in this little girl. You wouldn’t doubt for one minute that her parents had their hands full with her.

“Can I show you my picture?” she asked.

“Of course, let me see.”

You stood up, walking over to her desk, crouching to her level.

On it, there were several stick figures.

“Oh that’s beautiful,” you grinned, “Are these your friends?”

“No, these my aunties and uncles at the BAU. That’s where my daddy works.”

“I see,” you said, listening intently.

“This my daddy,” she pointed to the tallest of the group.

“This is auntie Emily, auntie JJ, auntie Penelope and auntie Tara.”

She smiled proudly as pointed at the obvious female stick figures.

“And what about these three?” you asked, motioning to a group of men.

“That is uncle Luke, uncle Dave and uncle Matt. The two on that side are uncle Hotch and uncle Derek. They don’t work with my daddy anymore but they still my uncles.”

“Wow, you’ve got a lot of extended family, don’t you?”

“Yes,” she beamed.

“Ayla, honey, I’m so sorry.”

You stood up from where you were crouching next to Ayla to see a quite tall man walking into your classroom, a tan, leather satchel slung over his body.

“Daddy!” Ayla squealed, jumping out of her seat, running towards him.

She collided into his legs, hugging him and he picked her up with a big smile on his face, kissing her cheek.

You took the moment to get a better look at him, now that he was closer.

He was undeniably attractive, but didn’t seem to be the type that flaunted his looks either. His light brown hair was as curly as his daughter’s and looked to be in a bit of disarray, part of it falling over his forehead while other curls fell in numerous directions.

He was outfitted in a work suit, a tie and sweater underneath his suit jacket. He pulled it off very well.

His eyes gleamed as he looked at his daughter and she kissed his stubbled cheek. You didn’t fail to notice his sharp jawline or his easy, bright smile either.

“I’m sorry I’m so late,” he apologized, whether to Ayla or you, you weren’t entirely sure.

“It’s okay daddy. I like Miss Y/L/N. She’s pretty like a princess.”

You sucked in a breath in surprise, touched by her words. You couldn’t help when your eyes immediately teared up. It was such a sweet and sincere thing for Ayla to say and knowing kids were brutally honest, you knew she meant every word of it.

You cleared your throat, composing yourself when you noticed Ayla’s father watching you, eyes squinting in concentration.

He probably thinks you’re a blubbering fool, you thought.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Reid,” you extended your hand.

“It’s docta Reid,” Ayla corrected you, emphatically.

“Excuse me, I’m sorry. Dr. Reid.”

He chuckled, setting Ayla back down and telling her to get her things together.

“It’s no big deal,” he said, shaking your hand.

You tried not to focus on the fact his hand was so large in yours as you quickly pulled back, silencing any further thoughts.

“I told Miss Y/L/N how you’re a pwofiler and have a robotic memory!” Ayla exclaimed, as she cleaned up her desk, putting her picture in her backpack.

“Uh, it’s actually eidetic,” he said, flushing a bit.

“I couldn’t remember what it was called so I just went with robotic,” Ayla shrugged.

You both chuckled at her response, before turning back to each other.

“I was wondering how smart you must be to have a robotic memory,” you smiled.

“Well she was kinda close,” he grinned, running a hand through his hair, “Eidetic is just another term for photographic memory.”

“Oh wow,” you said, surprised, “That’s impressive. No wonder you have such a brilliant daughter.”

He smiled appreciatively and said his thanks before speaking again.

“I don’t remember seeing you at the Kindergarten registration a few months ago.”

“Oh, unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend as I was sick. My teacher’s assistant Mrs. Lamb stepped in for me. Apparently she was a big hit though because she got all the kids to believe she was from Old MacDonald's Farm!”

You cringed inwardly at your spiel. You were used to talking to five year olds and other teachers, definitely not attractive dads, let alone men in general.

You chided yourself again. He was probably married anyway and you had little business drooling over a student’s father.

His smile was on full display though as he laughed at your statement.

“Come on Ayla, we need to get going. I have to head back to work for a little while but you can hang out with auntie Penelope okay?”

“Okay!” she grinned, putting on her backpack and taking his hand.

They were just leaving when something made you stop them.

“Um, Dr. Reid?”

He paused, turning back to you.

“Yes?”

“If you ever find yourself running late to pick Ayla up, I’d be happy to let her stay in my classroom until you get here.”

You’re not sure why you offered. Well for one, you really did like Ayla, she was such a sweet girl. But you tried to convince yourself that it was just a nice gesture to hopefully make things a bit easier on him. You knew sometimes your parents struggled with finding someone to pick up their child from school on time.

It wasn’t because you hoped to see him again. Definitely not.

“Oh you don’t have to. I can try to get away earlier when possible,” he protested.

“No, it’s okay,” you reassured, “I’d love the company. Besides, she’s such a joy to have.”

He seemed to take a moment to think it over before nodding.

“I just may take you up on that.”

•

“Daddy, what does pwofiling mean?”

Spencer had just lifted Ayla into the car and placed her into her booster seat, where she was currently buckling the seatbelt to it.

“Well,” he paused, intrigued at what could have brought on her sudden question, “It’s just studying a person’s behavior. For example, I can recognize how you behave guiltily when you eat the last cookie in the cookie jar.”

Ayla grinned big, not in the least bit ashamed.

“But you do that with bad guys right?”

“That’s correct, baby,” he smiled, kissing her forehead.

He closed the back door and walked around to the driver’s side door, sliding in. He had just gotten his own seatbelt clicked into place when she spoke again.

“Daddy, I pwofiled you.”

“Did you now?” he chuckled, amused at his little girl’s comment.

“Yes,” she nodded, “You like Miss Y/L/N.”

“Well of course I do, she’s your teacher and she’s very nice.”

“No, I mean you like like her,” she emphasized.

“What makes you say that?” he asked.

“Because you’re smiling all goofy,” she said like it was the most obvious thing in the world, “You only smile like that when you talk about things you know about.”

He felt himself flush a little bit. It was true, he hadn’t stopped smiling since they’d left Ayla’s classroom. There was something refreshing about her teacher and he would have to be blind to not admit she was indeed as Ayla had said, very pretty.

“Are you going to ask her to be your girlfriend?” Ayla asked as he drove out of the school parking lot.

He chuckled at her brazenness.

“Honey, I don’t even know her. Besides, I’m too busy to date.”

“I’m busy too but I have a boyfriend.”

“You do?” Spencer asked, trying his best to hide his surprise.

“Of course, daddy,” she rolled her eyes, exasperated, like she was a teenager already, “I’m busy and don’t always get to see Michael but he my boyfriend.”

Spencer smiled to himself. Michael LaMontagne was his best friend JJ’s and her husband Will’s youngest son. He was a little over two years older than Ayla, but she always proclaimed that Michael was her boyfriend. The two got along extremely well and it was incredibly adorable.

He decided not to comment any further on it though because he knew she wouldn’t give up on it easily.

“Baby, you know what days daddy picks you up, right?”

“Yup. Mondays and Fridays.”

“Good. Since I never know when I might be running late, will you ask Miss Y/L/N if you could stay with her until I get there?

“Okay daddy.”

She turned to the window, watching the passing landscape, her previous conversation apparently finished.

He’d be lying to himself if he said he wasn’t looking forward to seeing Ayla’s teacher again.

•

Ayla rushed out of the elevator when the doors opened on the floor the BAU was located on.

“There’s my favorite girl!”

Penelope has been waiting for them, excited to spend time with her goddaughter. As she was her only goddaughter, Ayla definitely got a bit spoiled.

“Auntie Penelope!” Ayla squealed, running into Garcia’s arms.

“How was your day at school, pumpkin?” she asked.

“Good,” Ayla beamed.

“Must’ve been, your daddy is 15 minutes late getting back,” Garcia said, eyebrow raised in amusement.

“Uh, traffic,” Spencer said.

“No,” Ayla shook her head, looking up at Spencer, “You were busy smiling at Miss Y/L/N.”

“Miss Y/L/N?” Garcia questioned, her interest piqued.

“She’s my teacher,” Ayla explained, “And she’s really pretty, auntie Penelope. Like a princess!”

“Like a princess, huh?”

Garcia was now eyeing Spencer hardcore with a knowing grin. Spencer knew she would be all over this with a million questions before long.

“Sweetie, why don’t you go hang out with auntie Penelope now while daddy finishes up his work?”

“Alright. Come on auntie Penelope! I wanna show you the picture I drew!”

Ayla grabbed her hand, practically dragging Garcia towards her lair.

Garcia looked over her shoulder pointing a finger at him.

“Don’t think you’ve escaped my questions! We’re talking about this later!”

Spencer knew good and well they would be.

“So, a pretty kindergarten teacher, huh?”

Spencer startled, seeing Luke standing in the doorway of the BAU, his back against the glass door, holding it open. In his hand was a plastic cup of coffee that he was drinking. He’d obviously been here longer than Spencer had realized and had heard everything.

“Don’t you start too,” he grumbled.

“Hey, I’m just curious!” Luke protested, following Spencer in as he walked into the unit, “How pretty is she?”

“Very,” Spencer mumbled to himself.

Getting her out of his head would be the best thing to do, although maybe not the easiest.

•

It was the third time that you were keeping Ayla in your classroom after school until Dr. Reid could pick her up.

You found yourself counting down the hours every Monday and Friday, waiting to see his bright and smiling face.

You couldn’t believe you were looking forward to a maybe five minute encounter out of your entire day, but here you were.

“Miss Y/L/N?” you heard Ayla call from her desk.

“Yes?”

You looked up from the learning packets you were stapling together for the new week.

“Is it okay if I feed Freddy?”

Freddy was the class pet, a neon tetra fish. He was a simple fish, one that was easy for new fish owners, from what you’d researched before getting him.

He was small, but feisty. His coloring really took you by surprise when you first got him. With colors of bright red and green, red towards the end of his body and a lime green towards his front with a turquoise blue duochrome look to him, he always looked festive and bright.

He had an automatic fish feeder, but every once in a while you let one of your students throw a small amount in for him as an extra treat.

“Of course,” you smiled, getting up to help her.

You walked over to the fish tank and grabbed the fish food, opening it for her.

“Now, just get a tiny little pinch, okay?”

She nodded and did what she was told, her face serious as she concentrated on what she was doing.

Stepping up on the stool you left in front of the tank—for the small kids purposes—she sprinkled the food into the water. Freddy immediately devoured it.

“I think he liked it,” she smiled, watching him through the glass.

“I think he did too,” you agreed.

“Well, what do we have here?”

You turned, seeing Dr. Reid walk in, a smile on his face.

Your stomach fluttered, seeing him again for the first time in days.

“I fed Freddy, daddy!” Ayla grinned big, running to give him a hug.

“Did you now? That’s a very big girl task! I’m proud of you! High five!”

He was crouched in front of her, hugging her but then he pulled out of her embrace and held up his hand, which she high fived.

“It’s time to get your things kiddo, we’re having your favorite for dinner tonight,” he said.

“Chicken nuggets with sweet potato fries?”

“You guessed it! Now go,” he shooed her towards her desk.

You smiled, watching them. He stood back up, facing you with a small smile.

“I hope she wasn’t any trouble.”

“Not at all. She’s an angel. She’s probably one of my best behaved students,” you said.

“Now that’s surprising,” he chuckled.

“Miss Y/L/N,” Ayla called, coming back over with her backpack on her back, “You should come to dinner tomorrow night.”

“I-” you began, in attempt to politely turn her down, when Dr. Reid spoke before you.

“Bunny, you’re going to be at your mom’s tomorrow night,” he said.

Ayla’s reply was simple and to the point.

“I know.”

You felt your eyes widen and your face heat when you realized her insinuation. Dr. Reid looked just as flustered and thrown as you felt.

“Ayla, honey, you know daddy has to work tomorrow. Remember I told you I had to work late?” Spencer stammered, trying to say the entirety of the few sentences.

At that point, you just wished for a hole to open up in your classroom floor and swallow you. If it wasn’t awkward enough that one of your students had basically just asked you out for her own father, then it was definitely the fact that he was trying to backpedal on the “invite” and most likely because he had no interest in you, not that you could blame him.

“Daddy, you told me it’s wrong to tell a lie,” Ayla gave him a look.

You were sure at this point Dr. Reid had turned scarlet from his face all the way down his neck. You felt bad for him, but still felt the awkwardness of the situation.

“You said that when I was at mommy’s house last week. You said this week you wouldn’t have to work late.”

Somehow, this behavior from Ayla didn’t surprise you in the slightest. When she was set on something, she was determined to accomplish it.

He looked up at you, clearly uncomfortable but you spoke before he could, trying to salvage the situation.

“Don’t worry,” you chuckled, “Kids will be kids. Believe me, I know. I have 28 of them for 8 hours, 5 days a week.”

His smile eased a bit and you felt yourself relax a tiny amount.

“I hope you have a good weekend Ayla and I’ll see you Monday,” you said.

You couldn’t help but notice her pouty expression as Dr. Reid took her hand and left your classroom.

You almost had to breathe a sigh of relief after living through that awkward moment.

You had just sat down behind your desk and resumed stapling papers together when you heard your name being called.

“Miss Y/L/N?”

You glanced up, seeing Dr. Reid in the doorway sans Ayla.

“Yes? Did Ayla forget something?”

You stood, ready to head towards her desk to check for a missing folder or a favorite toy.

“Actually, no, I did.”

You gave him a confused look before he began to explain.

“I was- uh I was actually wondering if maybe you’d like to get coffee sometime? With me? Or maybe ice cream or something considering it’s still pretty hot? Hot outside I mean.”

Your stomach quite literally did a flip flop at his cute, nervous, rambling.

Here was a grown man, who worked in the FBI, had a child and could probably rival a Bachelor contestant, yet he managed to adorably stumble over his words as he asked you out.

“Well, I practically live off coffee because of my job,” you said.

“So do I,” he grinned, a small, new found connection between the two of you, discovered.

“But ice cream sounds nice,” you smiled, “Whenever you’re free that is.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow sounds fine,” you concluded, “Hold on.”

You turned to grab a sticky note from your desk, jotting something down quickly.

“My number,” you smiled, handing it to him, “Just let me know what time.”

“It’s a date.”

“It’s a date,” you confirmed.

“Oh and for future reference, I’m Spencer.”

“Y/N,” you grinned.

With a smile on his own face, he walked back out of your classroom, presumably to an awaiting Ayla.

You had to hold back your laughter when you heard her next statement all the way from the hallway, clear as day.

“I think I know now why uncle Morgan used to say you got no game.”

•

It was roughly 2 pm the next afternoon as you stood outside the ice cream parlor that was near the elementary school.

You fidgeted in place nervously, wondering if he was going to show.

His actual asking you on a date was so sudden and abrupt, you’d hardly had time to wrap your head around it.

With one glance down at your outfit, you tried hard not to criticize yourself. You’d changed about six times before finally deciding on a simple, cute, sleeveless sundress in an aqua turquoise color. It would be cool, cute, casual and not trying too hard.

“You look nice and cool.”

You turned to see Spencer approaching you and you smiled, relieved that he actually showed up and it wasn’t just a dream.

“Hot enough for you?” you chuckled.

“Too hot,” he agreed, “Shall we?”

He motioned after him and you walked into the wonderful chilly air of the ice cream parlor. He even held the door open for you; this man was already amazing.

There was only polite small talk while you both ordered; mint chocolate chip in a cone for him, vanilla in a cup with numerous toppings for you.

“Vanilla?” he raised an eyebrow at your choice.

“Only if I’m in the mood for a lot of toppings,” you elaborated.

You’d ordered your ice cream with Oreo pieces, rainbow sprinkles and chopped nuts.

When you both retrieved your orders from the counter, he peeked over at yours.

“There any ice cream under there?” he teased.

“Hush,” you chuckled.

You found a shaded table outside to sit at. Despite the heat, a small breeze occasionally cooled the temperature, making it a bit more bearable.

“So, Y/N.”

“That’s my name,” you smiled.

It was amazing how up until this point, you’d been so nervous for this date, but sitting in front of him, you were much more comfortable.

He took another lick from his cone, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Why teaching?”

You raised a brow, figuring you’d get in a question of your own too.

“Why the FBI?” you inquired.

He chuckled, appreciating your challenge.

“I’ll answer your question if you answer mine,” he said.

“Well—as the story goes, my parents claim—I came home from my first day of Kindergarten claiming I was going to be a teacher, specifically a kindergarten teacher. I don’t remember this at all,” you laughed, “But apparently it was kismet.”

He watched you intently as you talked, eating his ice cream silently as he hung on to your every word. It was surprising at how nice it made you feel to know he was interested in knowing about you.

“I joined the FBI when I was 22.”

“Wow, that’s really young and impressive,” you said, eyes wide.

“Well to preface this, I was somewhat of a childhood prodigy. I graduated high school at 12 and managed to earn three PhDs by 20, plus two BAs.”

You stared at him open mouthed, your spoon halfway to your mouth, the ice cream on it melting and dripping back into the cup.

He looked embarrassed and a bit uncomfortable. Something told you that while he was proud of his achievements, he wasn’t one that really enjoyed bragging about them.

“That explains the title of Doctor and the robotic memory.”

That seemed to break the spell and his face broke into a grin as he laughed easily at his daughter’s antics.

“That child, I swear. She’s something else.”

“She really is,” you agreed.

There was a lull in conversation and you decided to ask him about what you were wondering from the previous afternoon.

“So...you and your wife are separated or divorced I assume?”

“Oh me and Ayla’s mom have never been together actually.”

“Oh,” you said, surprised.

It wasn’t uncommon for you to deal with divorced, separated or even single parents of your students, but to actually know the circumstances like this was unusual for you.

He nodded.

“I wasn’t in a place for a relationship and neither was her mother, so all we ever had was a physical relationship and Ayla was the result of that. We remained friends and co-parent now. She’s got a lovely fiancé now though that’s great with Ayla. But as messed up and impractical as that relationship was, I wouldn’t change it for anything though because it gave me Ayla and I’ve never regretted her for a moment,” Spencer said.

“She clearly adores you,” you smiled, “You’re a great father too.”

“Thank you,” he smiled shyly, “I try my best. But what about you, anyone special?”

He winced the moment the question left his mouth.

“Well if there was, I wouldn’t be here now would I?”

You could help but tease him, flashing him a joking expression.

“Point taken,” he laughed inwardly, “It didn’t dawn on me how obvious the question was until I said it. I’m sorry, I’m not really good at this dating thing. It’s been a long time since I’ve done it, actually.”

He looked pained, like a teenager on his first date, but you found it extremely endearing.

“Well I think you’re doing just fine,” you reassured him, “Also, no.”

His brow crinkled in confusion.

“No, what?”

“No, there’s no one special in my life. Unless you count 28 five year olds,” you snickered.

Sometime during the conversation, you’d both finished your ice cream. You tossed your trash and returned to the table.

“I’ve got a few hours before I have to pick up Ayla. Would you like to take a walk?” Spencer asked.

“Sure,” you agreed.

The two of you walked side by side, chatting it up about a variety of different things until his tinkering chuckle made you glance up at him, curious to what he found so funny.

“What is it?”

“It just struck me funny,” he said, pausing to look down at you.

You stopped with him, waiting for him to continue.

“Who would’ve thought my five year old daughter could be such an adorable yet successful pint sized Cupid?”

You had to agree as your face broke into your hundredth smile of that afternoon. She had been persistent and it seemed like her persistency had paid off.

He was right though, you’d never in a million years imagined one of your pupils playing matchmaker for you.

But you were glad Ayla had.

How thankful you were to have her in your class.

“She was right, you know,” Spencer said, more serious now.

“About what?”

“You are as pretty as a princess.”

As you two resumed your walking, the smile now permanently plastered on your face, you could’ve sworn you felt his hand brush yours ever so slightly.

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chloelucia13 · 3 years

Text

Chapter 14: Suzie, Do you Copy?

Pairing: none for the moment (currently Jonathan Byers x (kinda) Platonic!Henderson!reader)

Prompt: You always thought Hawkins was the most boring town of all, stuck in a vacuum void of excitement and entertainment. Well, it seems that way until the world decided to flip upside down, literally.

Chapter Summary: Dustin’s return to Hawkins had overjoyed you, but other than that, there was no change to the normal routine of your summer. At least, that’s what you thought.

Warnings: Mostly fluff, spoilers (obvi), language, mentions of violence, injuries, pretty chill tbh

Word Count: 2764

A/N: AHHHH, I’m back finally! I’m so sorry I took so long to update this story! Hopefully I’ll be able to get back onto this series and update it regularly like I used to, but I can’t make any promises. For the time being, I hope you enjoy and make sure to keep an eye out for any updates! As always, my taglist and ask box is open!

Tags: @just-my-fandom, @nightbu-g

You couldn’t recall a time you had woken up earlier than nine a.m. in the past month.

In all honesty, you had considered just sleeping in until the very last minute scramble to get dressed, rush out the door, and get back before Dustin got home.

Unfortunately that plan could not be executed as your mother woke you up, knowing you well enough that she could predict your plans.

And that was why you were at the mall at 10 a.m., your gaze focused on the floor as you made the trek over to Scoops Ahoy. Surprisingly, there was a small line in the shop, considering it wasn’t even lunchtime yet.

As you finally stood at the counter and lifted your head, Steve visibly relaxed, his “customer service” persona fading. “Oh thank god, it’s just you,” he sighed, leaning against the counter.

“Just little ol’ me,” you hummed, absentmindedly rubbing at your eye. “God, has the day already gone to shit for you, Steve?”

“Well, he’s already struck out twice if that’s any indication,” Robin piped up, peeking through the window that peered into the back area.

“Twice? Didn’t you guys open just an hour ago?”

“Don’t rub it in,” Steve huffed, a frown sinking onto his features.

“Fine, fine.”

You and Steve had grown close in the past six months, sharing a special bond that you honestly needed. Though you couldn’t decide if the bond grew from him literally saving your life, or from your significant others (well, for Steve at least) dating each other rather than you two. Both, probably.

“Are you here to order something or just to bully me?” he spoke finally, pulling his ice cream scooper from his makeshift-holster.

“Right, right. Just a pint of cookie dough and a pint of strawberry,” you instructed, pulling a ten out of your pocket.

He nodded and began scooping the two pints of ice cream. “Who’s the cookie dough for?”

“Dustin.”

He looked up at you, his brows furrowed in confusion. “He’s coming back today?”

“Yeah!”

He sealed the lid of the cookie dough pint. “No one tells me anything!”

You rolled your eyes. “Steve, I told you this two days ago.”

You heard Robin let out a laugh in the back room and Steve pressed his lips into a line. “Do you want ice cream or not?!”

You laughed. “Come on, you know you’d never deprive your two favorite people of ice cream.”

He rolled his eyes and finished up the second pint, sliding both of them over to you as you handed him the $10 bill. “Do you work today?”

“Unfortunately. I’m just hoping I’ll be home before dark tonight because they’ve been fucking keeping me for hours after closing.”

“Doesn’t the pool close at like five?”

“Yup,” you huffed, popping the ‘p.’ “And, to top it all off, I’m stuck with Heather and Billy today.”

The two of you cringed simultaneously. “Can’t say I’d rather be you.”

“Thanks for the support.” You took the change from Steve and stuffed it into your pocket before cradling both pints of ice cream in your arms. “Well, I gotta drop these off at home and then sit in the sun for a few miserable hours. I’ll call you when I get home.”

***

Your soul nearly left your body when a chorus of screams erupted in the kitchen as soon as you stepped in the front door. They fell silent a moment later, though, and a voice echoed out, “Oh, it’s just you.”

With a hand clutched over your chest, you rolled your eyes. “Sorry to disappoint you guys with my presence, but can we avoid killing me the next time you see me?” you huffed, still struggling to take in a proper breath.

We thought you were Dustin,” Lucas explained, a party blower between his teeth.

“Yeah, I figured.” You brushed past the group and put the ice cream in the freezer. “Can someone make sure that Dustin gets his ice cream? I won’t be able to see him until later tonight.”

“I can,” Will spoke up, raising his hand in the air.

“Finally, someone I can count on.” You grabbed the drawstring bag that held all of your items and slung it over your shoulder. “How’s Jonathan enjoying his job at the newspaper?”

There was a small silence. “You haven’t talked to him about it?” Mike spoke up, and Max swatted his arm.

You shook your head, the healing scratch on your eye beginning to burn slightly. “No, not yet. We’ve, uh... We’ve both been too busy. We haven’t talked in a couple of weeks.” More like a month.

There was another silence before Will spoke. “He likes it. He has the dark room all to himself,” he explained, his voice gentle and hesitant.

“Good. That’s good. Tell him I said hi, or something.” You cleared your throat before turning to the group and giving them a smile. “I gotta head to work. You guys have fun, okay?”

***

God, you felt like vomiting.

Everything seemed to be going wrong today, like you forgetting to bring your sunscreen and sunglasses, Billy and Heather’s constant pestering and gossiping, Billy ignoring his job so he could flirt with Mrs. Wheeler, Mrs. Wheeler completely ignoring you so she could flirt with Billy, the dozens of kids that had coined multiple nicknames for you and your scar, and the 101 degree temperature that was unrelenting.

Luckily, though, the day was close to coming to an end. Most of the crowd had thinned, excluding a couple of kids who spent the whole day there anyways and adults who insisted on lingering until they absolutely had to leave.

The shriek of a whistle startled you from your thoughts, your head slipping from your hand and making you lurch forward slightly. A group of muffled cackles sounded to your right, and you rolled your eyes. “Can I help you, or are you just here to make my life a living hell,” you grumbled, snapping your gaze over to Billy and Heather.

“Well, I was gonna ask if you wanted a water, but I guess not,” Heather huffed, stubbornly crossing her arms over your chest.

You gave her a doubtful glance. “Were you really?”

She laughed. “No. Now get up, It’s my turn on deck.”

With a huff you stepped down the ladder and tucked your book and raft under your arm. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Billy step closer. “Billy, if you push me in the pool you’re gonna wake up with no fucking mullet tomorrow.”

The pair just laughed behind you condescendingly, and you stomped away with a scowl etched on your face.

Ever since the... altercation that occurred months ago, Billy had kept his distance from you. It was a relief, knowing that he wouldn’t test your limits for the sake of his own health. But that didn’t stop him from sprinkling in some teasing every single time he spoke to you.

The hot concrete stung the soles of your feet, and you picked up your pace so you could get to the office before your feet blistered.

“Hey, no running!” You froze at the voice, your eyebrows knitting together in confusion. Slowly, you turned on your heel to face the source.

Jonathan stood behind the fence, his hands in his pockets and a shy smile on his face.

“Jonathan?” you whispered, tilting your head slightly as if you were a dog.

“Hey Y/N,” he hummed, awkwardly shifting from foot to foot.

A small smile settled on your face and you walked over to the fence, a silent sigh of relief leaving your lips when your feet settled on the grass that bordered the fence. “Hey! W-What are you doing here? I thought you got out the same time that I did?”

“I do, I just uh... I wanted to go on a walk.”

You nodded. “Oh, okay.”

“And I uh, I wanted to see you. Just see how you were doing, I mean.”

You let out a small chuckle, hooking your fingers through one of the chain links in the fence. “I’m doing good. I mean, as good as I can be sitting in the heat for five hours straight with no sunglasses. How have you been?”

“I-I’m good. Isn’t Dustin back in town?”

“He is, he just got back today. I haven’t seen him yet, though. How’s your job at the paper going?”

“It’s good, really good. I’m enjoying it a lot.”

“That’s good to hear.”

The two of you stood silently, avoiding each other’s gaze except for the spare glances you’d risk.

“I should get going,” Jonathan spoke finally, a hint of reluctance in his voice.

“Right, yeah,” you hummed, clearing your throat. “It was good to see you, Johnny.”

“You too.” His mouth opened as if he wanted to say more, but he decided against it, giving you an awkward wave before walking away.

You lingered there for a moment, an all-too-familiar ache in your chest as you watched him walk away from you.

***

After rinsing off, getting changed, and making a final check of the area, you were finally off for the night. You could feel your shoulders nearly weighing your entire body down and your eyelids were extremely close to falling shut at any moment. Silently, you made the trek through the parking lot and over to your car.

You hopped in the driver’s seat and fished your key out of your bag before putting it in the ignition and twisting.

And twisting again.

And one more time.

Shit.

You slammed your hands against the wheel and let out a groan, throwing your head back against the headrest. “Of course. Of fucking course,” you grumbled.

Then you began to weigh your options. The first idea that came to your mind was walking home, but you quickly decided against it as you were too exhausted and it was too far.

Your next idea was to walk over to The Hawkins Post and see if you could catch a ride with Jonathan. But you knew that wherever Jonathan was, Nancy would also be. For a moment, you contemplated swallowing your embarrassment and fear and just do it, but again, you decided against that option.

Then you thought about using the phone in the office to call Steve, but you had no idea if he was even home.

And after running through all of the ideas in your mind, you last ditch plan walked past your peripheral.

You shoved all of your disgust down and hopped out of your car, rushing to try and catch up.

“Billy!” you shouted, trying to stuff your keys back in your bag as you jogged over to him.

He stopped and turned to look at you, part-confusion and part-annoyance wrinkling his features. “What?” he huffed.

“Can you, um...” You shifted awkwardly, the reality of the moment catching up to you. “Would you mind giving me a ride home? My car won’t start.”

He rolled his eyes, fishing a pack of cigarettes out from his leather jacket. “Y’know, any other night I’d love to, but I’ve actually got plans tonight. Call a tow truck or something.”

“Billy, please.” Your shoulders slumped. “I don’t live that far from you.”

“Who said I was going home?”

Your jaw tightened and you pulled your bag higher up on your shoulder. “I’ll pay you $20. Just please.”

“Why don’t you ask your boyfriend to do it? I saw you talking to him earlier.”

“He’s not my boyfriend! Goddammit-” You cut yourself off, taking a deep breath and scrubbing a hand over your face. “$50.”

He stood there a moment, placing a cigarette between his teeth as he silently debated it. “Fine. But you’re paying me upfront.”

You bit your tongue and refrained from snapping at him, instead pulling your wallet from your bag and handing him a $50 bill. He snatched it from your fingers and shoved it in his back pocket before nodding his head over to his car and heading that way.

Though the anxiety from asking him was gone, it was replaced with the anxiety of being in a vehicle with a man who very clearly hated your guts. Your brain was nagging you to just walk home, but you pushed the annoying warnings away and got in the passenger seat.

Billy had exited the parking lot before you even had a chance to put on your seatbelt, the engine roaring as he tore down the empty streets. The ride was silent other than that annoying engine, his godawful music, and your heart racing so loudly and harshly that you felt as if you were about to have a heart attack.

Whether it was your panic or your swarming thoughts, you had zoned out for the first few minutes of the ride. When you finally came to, you realized that you were nowhere near your house. “Did you take a wrong turn?” you mumbled, brows furrowing confusedly.

He scoffed, pulling his lower lip between his teeth. “No, I have an errand to run,” he explained as if you were stupid, as if you were already aware of his plans.

Oh my god, he’s gonna kill me.

You gulped, gripping onto your drawstring bag. “What errand?”

“Well, I had already made plans with Karen before you decided to ask for my help, so you’re tagging along.”

Your jaw dropped and you turned in your seat to face him. “You’re making me sit in the car while you hook up with Mrs. Wheeler? You said you were gonna take me home!”

“I did, but I didn’t specify when.” He was grinning from ear to ear, and you had to move your hands under your thighs so you didn’t smack that look off of his face.

“You motherfucker. Literally.”

He rolled his eyes. “Shut up and get in the back seat. I don't want her seeing you.”

It was your turn to scoff. “Excuse me?”

“I said-”

His words were cut off by a large object hitting the windshield, making both of you jump and causing him to lose control of the vehicle. The car spun off of the road and collided into a tree on your side, making Billy’s head collide into his door and crushing your door into your body.

A slew of curses and grunts fell from your mouth as you worked your way out of the seat, feeling your ribs ache with each breath as you finally got out from between the door and the center console. You sat down on the center console and gripped onto the back of the seat for balance.

“Oh, no,” Billy grumbled from beside you, eyes wide as he took in the damage. The stereo still spat out a distorted and garbled sound that resembled the music that were playing earlier as Billy tried to restart the car, to no avail. “Piece of shit.”

You finally glanced over at him. “You’re bleeding,” you wheezed out, watching the blood drip down his forehead and into his eye.

He reached up and touched the wound, pulling away and glancing down at his fingers with disdain. “Shit.” He slammed his hand against the steering wheel before shoving his door open and crawling out. You followed behind him, collapsing to the ground beside his feet. You gripped onto his arm and heaved yourself up.

Billy left your side to attempt to pry the passenger door open, only for a spew of expletives to fall from his mouth. “Yeah, I’m good, thanks for asking,” you huffed, leaning against the car and clutching your right side as he stomped past you and over to the front of the car.

“Shut up,” he grumbled, leaning close to the windshield and gliding his finger along the spiderwebbed glass. “What the hell?”

A strange ooze clung to his finger, stretching between his hand and the windshield with a strong elasticity. “Fuck.”

A rustling in the shrubs near the building you stood by attracted both of your attention, your heart leaping to your throat.

“Who’s there!” Billy shouted, his body standing straight up.

“I don’t think it’s a who,” you grumbled, reaching for your pocket knife in your back pocket. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

As you opened your mouth to explain, Billy fell to the ground and was lugged away by a snaking vine. You screamed, but before you could move onto the car and off of the ground, a similar vine wrapped around your legs and dragged you through the dirt

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hurricanery · 3 years

Text

If You Went Away - pt. 1

A/N: This story is going to be multiple parts. Inspired by this prompt, this prompt & a couple other prompts requesting Amelink fighting & Scout kind of wrapped up in the middle of it. I’m getting a lot of requests for angst and I’m down with writing angst soooo here we go- I put my own twist on it for the purpose of making it multiple chapters and it kinda ended up more depressing than I intended yikesssss. But also, I promise it gets better/more positive. I made Scout a little older in this story (age 5).

_______

Listen here, listen close

You’re the one I love the most

And if you went away

I don’t know what I’d do

_______

(one year ago)

“You should go,” Amelia mumbles, as she lays in bed, facing Link.

Link raises his eyebrows, frowning slightly. “I don’t understand,” he speaks slowly. “What changed?”

Amelia furrows her brows, perplexed. “Well nothing changed, technically, I-”

“When I was first offered this job….before Scout was even born,” Link interrupts. “We decided, together, that there were more important things in our lives.”

“Yeah….” Amelia draws out her response. “And I agreed with you then, I guess. But,” she pauses, reaching over to give Link’s bicep a squeeze. “They offered it again. I….just feel like when an opportunity presents itself more than once….there’s more to consider. It has to mean something, right?”

Link just looks at her blankly. There’s a brief silence before Amelia speaks again.

“It’s the Seattle Mariners,” she smiles encouragingly, “It’s your dream job.”

Link nods in agreement. And Amelia tries to ignore what that does to her. Because, even though she’s being encouraging, she knows what underlying feelings are truly there. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, it’s her own guilt that’s causing her to feign encouragement right now. Her own guilt and fear that she’s trapped him here, in this relationship. In this city. In this job. That when she got pregnant in the first place, she’d rushed them into things and forced a relationship. Forced a lifestyle.

She quickly tries to shake her thoughts. Thinking of anything that will make her feel better about this. Anything that will feel like compromise. “It’s only temporary,” she decides. “It’s not like you’ll be gone forever.”

“Right,” Link agrees, reaching forward to tuck a stray piece of hair behind Amelia’s ear. “Temporary.”

_______

(6 months ago)

‘It’s not like you’ll be gone forever’

Amelia chuckles bitterly at the memory as she walks from her ER consult. It had been 6 months and Link was still away from them, completely consumed by his travel schedule as the Mariners’ team surgeon. He’d come home about once a month, on a weekend, and spend as much time with Amelia and Scout as he could. But, it never felt like enough. Both parents couldn’t ignore the way Scout’s face would fall each Sunday night. When the weekend would close in on them and the knowledge of Link’s early flight out the next day would settle in.

The weekends become less and less. Link’s time allotted to return home becomes more scarce as unforeseen injuries happen on the team. They both know the effect it’s having on Scout.

“Hey, Amelia!” Maggie’s voice interrupts her thoughts as she walks into the attending’s lounge. “I was just going to grab lunch, wanna join me?”

“I’m supposed to FaceTime with Link in a minute, actually…” She trails off as a text message comes in from Link, confirming the call they are about to have.

“Isn’t he coming home this weekend? For Scout’s birthday?”

“Yeah,” Amelia breathes, but she can’t help the worried feeling creeping into her chest. Something about Link’s text seems off. “Yeah, he’s supposed to be.”

Maggie frowns, clearly recognizing Amelia’s distress.

And Amelia forces a smile, sighing deeply. “Well, I’m going to go call him.”

_______

Her intuition was right.

She tries to suppress the anger and resent that threatens to take over as she stares at her phone screen, listening to the words coming out of Link’s mouth. She feels like she’s only gathering certain pieces.

Something about ‘emergency surgery’

And ‘missing his flight’

And ‘I’ll make it up to him I promise’

“We can’t keep doing this to him,” She interrupts Link in the middle of his detailed explanation.

“I know,” he sighs back, through the phone.

“It’s his birthday,” Amelia’s voice almost breaks on the word. “He’s been talking about you all week. What am I supposed to tell him?”

“That I’m sorry,” Link quickly responds. “And I love you guys. And I’ll be home as soon as I can.” He regrets his words the moment he sees Amelia’s face fall in disbelief. Clearly not the response she had wanted.

“Amelia,” He continues. “I did get some good news today.”

“What’s that?”

“I got the approval from my boss. To have Scout with me this summer. When school gets out he can come to all the away games….like we’d planned. What do you think?”

Amelia nods numbly. This was always a part of the plan. They’d promised Scout a summer full of away games when his school break came around. It was something for him to look forward to.

“And you too, obviously,” Link adds. “Whenever your work schedule allows, of course. Think about it! The three of us out here travelling, it’ll be perfect! Everything we’ve wanted!”

Silence falls between them and Amelia zones out momentarily, subconsciously picking at the loose fabric of the couch she’s sitting on in the attending’s lounge.

She doesn’t realize she’s said anything out loud until she feels the shakiness of her own voice.

“I think we should take a break.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I think we should….separate. For a while.”

“Amelia…” Link frowns, trying to understand. “We are basically separate right now, we….we never see each other. Aren’t we already kind of-”

“Exactly,” she interrupts.

“I still don’t understand.”

“I think what you just said sums it up perfectly. We basically already are.”

“Yeah, but. This is temporary...I’m coming back. I’m-”

“I mean something a little more permanent.”

Link doesn’t say a word.

“I mean I don’t think I’ll be joining you guys this summer.”

_______

(summer - present day)

The door hesitates open and she’s glass before him. Hard, stoic, refusing to meet his eyes. She’s staring at his feet. Or maybe at the doormat, which ironically reads ‘welcome’ in all capital letters.

Link almost wants to laugh as he reads the word, glancing down at the ‘welcome’ mat, feeling anything but welcome. He almost wants to laugh, but he doesn’t. And she’s clearly not in the mood to laugh either.

He can tell by the way that she’s not yet made eye contact that Amelia’s putting up a front. She’s glass. Detached and oh, so stoic.

She sniffs. And clears her throat. And Link reminds himself that glass is shatterable somewhere down the line.

“Hi Amelia,” he speaks. “It’s good to see you. How’ve you been?”

"Just fine. You?” Her voice sounds raspy as she answers him, like she hasn’t spoken properly in a while. Or maybe it’s been so long since he’s heard her voice, that Link doesn’t recognize it accurately. He quickly refutes that idea. Impossible.

"Good.”

The eye contact they manage to hold is scarce, and Amelia darts her eyes away once again, clamping down on her bottom lip with a row of white teeth.

“So I, uh, I’ve packed up all of his things…” her sentence dwindles as she waits for a nod, or something, from Link.

“It’s all in the living room. There’s not much to do…..should be a quick exchange.” She mumbles, shuffling behind the door a little, an effort to let Link inside.

He takes a deep breath before he steps over the threshold.

Amelia clears her throat as she leads the way into the house. She nods toward the pile of Scout’s luggage in the corner. “Everything’s there,” she states plainly. She then turns the corner briefly, yelling up the stairs. “Scout! Come downstairs, your Dad’s here!”

Link watches curiously as he follows Amelia through to the kitchen. She reaches out for a jar of peanut butter and a spoon that’s already been sitting out, like she’d been snacking on it just before Link arrived.

“Really, Amelia?” Link chuckles, offering a small smile. “Peanut butter out of the jar? Is that your dinner?”

“I haven’t grocery shopped in while,” she mutters, mouth full. And Link picks up on a hint of a smile.

Silence fills the space between them as Link starts to gather up some of Scout’s belongings.

“I would’ve stopped and gotten pizza or something for you guys,” he offers, finally.

Amelia just frowns, shrugging off the idea.

“He’s going to get hungry during the car ride Ames-” he stutters on the nickname, then immediately corrects himself. “Amelia.”

He ignores whatever emotion waves across her features as a result of the nickname use. He thinks it might be shock. But then she’s speaking at him, her tone somewhere between disbelief and defensiveness.

“Why are you accusing me of….” She trails off briefly, frustrated at the direction of her thoughts. “Scout ate dinner an hour ago...you thought I just...wasn’t going to feed him? Or-”

“Can we not do this? Right now? Please?” Link cuts her off.

“Do what? I’m just saying-” She stops talking abruptly by the look on Link’s face. Clearly not in the mood to spend his time arguing.

“I wasn’t trying to accuse you of anything,” he mutters calmly, hands raised in defense.

“Just pack up the car,” she whispers, suddenly entranced by the ingredients on the peanut butter packaging.

And Link does.

And Amelia busies herself with dishes as Link moves in and out of the house, loading luggage into his car.

_______

Link’s down to the last few items, heading to the front door, when Scout finally comes running down the stairs.

“Dad!” The 5-year-old yells excitedly.

He turns around just in time to witness his little man, having just jumped over the last few steps of the stairs, collapse against him, hugging himself to Link’s legs.

Link chuckles, setting down the stuff he was carrying. “Hey bud! I am so happy to see you! Look at you, you’re so big!”

Scout steps back, looking up at his Dad. “Mom said we get to go to baseball games all summer!”

“That’s true,” he ruffles Scout’s hair. “And…” He pauses for dramatic effect. “You get to meet the baseball players, too.”

Scout opens his mouth wide in excitement. There’s practically a sparkle in the kid’s eye and Link loves the sight of it. He has his mother’s eyes, and Link loves the sight of that, too.

“Want to help me finish loading up the car, bud?”

Scout nods enthusiastically, following his Dad outside.

The house is quiet now, and Amelia listens from the kitchen to the distant sounds of her son babbling excitedly outside. An aching feeling rises in her chest and she tries her best to suppress it. She pulls herself together and makes her way toward the front hallway. Link re-enters the house with Scout trailing behind him moments later.

“You all packed up?” Amelia tries to sound excited as she asks Scout, but her voice just sounds thin and strained.

“Yep!” Scout replies, his energy radiating in such a way that he can barely stand still in his position on the front porch.

“Okay, then. Guess it’s time to go,” Amelia mutters.

And with that Scout takes off, sprinting towards the car eagerly and yelling back at his Dad. “Dad, come on! Come on let’s go!”

“Wait Scout, get back here!” Link yells after him. “Come say goodbye to your Mom first.”

But Scout is already inside the car, climbing into the backseat and mumbling enthusiastically to himself.

“Scout did you hear me?!” Link is starting to sound a little exasperated.

Still no compliance from the young boy.

“Scout!”

“He heard you, he heard you!” Amelia interrupts, forcing a tight smile. Link looks back at her. “It’s fine, really. We already said goodbye.”

Link frowns. “Okay, but still-”

“Dad!” Scout suddenly yells from the car, interrupting them. “Can we get pizza on the way?!”

Amelia sucks in a breath. But then immediately tries to hide her pain, because this whole interaction just stings.

“Uhhhh,” Link draws out his reaction. “I’ll think about it, buddy. I know you already ate. So we’ll see-”

“Can you just go, please?” Amelia interrupts harshly, her head hanging low, in an attempt to hide her face.

Link frowns, taking in Amelia’s demeanor. Her neck is flushed and she’s clearly upset. And clearly trying to hide it.

“Amelia, I’m sorry,” he mumbles, reaching for her wrist.

He doesn't know why he does it. Muscle memory maybe. An attempt to comfort the woman that looks so breakable before him.

She recoils from his touch, snatching her wrist out of his grasp faster than he’d expect from someone seemingly so apathetic.

She finally looks at Link, and it practically kills him. The way her face twists when she’s trying not to cry.

“Please,” she rasps. “Please just go.”

And Link complies. Amelia wraps her trembling fingers around the door knob as Link goes to leave.

He steps out onto the porch, turning to face Amelia. He wants to say something. And by the look in Amelia’s stinging eyes, he needs to say something. He goes to open his mouth, not sure what’s going to come out, when Amelia swiftly shuts the door.

He stands there, frozen.

Long enough to hear the broken sob from the other side of the door.

Long enough to feel his heart sink, and for an ache to develop in the back of his throat.

But he turns around. He forces a smile on his face and walks toward the car, locking eyes with his bright-eyed son in the back seat. He walks away from Amelia.

_______

#amelink #amelink fanfic #amelinkfic #amelia shepherd #atticus lincoln #ALSO THE SONG FROM THIS TITLE IS FROM EARLY GREYS AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH AMELINK BUT I LOVE IT AND THOUGHT IT FIT #amelia x link #amelinkfanfiction #my writing #greys anatomy fanfic #grey's anatomy fanfic #grey's anatomy fic

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bittykimmy13 · 4 years

Text

Best Wishes (GT) ~ 1

This is G/t fanfiction of the Netflix movie The Half of It. Watch the movie if you haven't seen it. Enjoy.

I certainly enjoyed it so much that I immediately needed a G/t version of it :') This will probably be a shorter story, with short chapters. Just something cute and light after the slew of angst the past couple years haha (but yes of course there will be angst, who do you think I am?) Anyway, this takes place in a potential future of the print universe. YEP, a print story where the characters aren't under immediate threat of physical pain/death 24/7 <333

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mid-afternoon sun beat down on the lonely stretch of road. Autumn pedaled her bike on a separate print-sized path beside the tree line, bracing herself whenever human cars roared by. Luckily, those were few and far between at this time of day. Unless humans were headed for the southern exit of the town where their kind of homes were sparse, they didn’t have much reason to be there. Mostly, all that remained at this end was a tight cluster of print neighborhoods and woodland.

It would be easier if she paid for human transportation to and from her summer job, but she told herself every morning that she needed to save money and that it wasn’t her pride holding her back. If she wanted to sustain herself through the next school year, she’d need to tough out the commute on her own.

The rumble of an engine approached in the distance. She tensed, but didn’t stop pedaling. This engine in particular was familiar—one she had been dreading.

Sure enough, as the pick-up truck slowed beside her, the human boys inside shouted at her through the open windows.

“Think you’ll make it home by morning?”

“Aww, why’re you ignoring us, mouse? Think you’re too good?”

“Why don’t you come in here and sit on my lap? I’ll get you where you need to go!”

Autumn kept her eyes trained on the path in front of her. It wasn’t worth snapping back at them. One, they wouldn’t hear her over the sound of that old-world relic of a pick-up. Two, they were all easily over six feet tall. She didn’t even reach mid-calf for them. Let them have their fun from the road, as long as they didn’t get out to stop her on the path and tower over her.

Keep it together. You’ll be free of them again in a couple months.

Their laughter faded as the truck roared ahead, and she could finally breathe again. She swore they took the long way these days just to mess with her. Now that they were gone, her tense anticipation of their approach could be laid to rest until tomorrow. However, her moment of relaxation lasted roughly five minutes.

A rhythmic pounding came from behind her—the footsteps of a jogging human. She clenched her jaw and kept her eyes forward. Why couldn’t some humans get it through their thick skulls that this path wasn’t meant for their exercise? It was meant for prints like her to get home somewhat safely if they didn’t have a ride. Besides, who the hell wanted to be running in this heat? As the footsteps became more pronounced, she groaned and started to swerved her bike off the path to let the human pass her without potential murder.

“Hey!” The human’s steps slowed as his voice boomed after her. “Autumn Yang!”

She braked so hard she nearly fell off her bike. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw a human with wavy dark-blond hair coming after her on the path. She blanched in recognition. He’d gone to high school with her, like the other boys in the pick-up. Tucker West. Had they really deployed one of the guys to come after her on foot? Her hand tensed on the phone in her pocket as she wondered if she should call for help.

There was no time. She pedaled hard.

“Wait up!” His pounding footsteps kicked up to a jog again.

It was laughable how easily he caught up. In no time at all, his shadow had fallen over her, but she didn’t stop. She didn’t dare look back, knowing she’d lose her balance if she dared to peer up at his dizzying height. From the brief look she’d gotten, he was somehow taller now since graduation.

“Autumn, hey! I said wait up!”

The shadow darkened, and her bike came to an abrupt stop. The momentum launched her over the handles, making her come to a hard fall on the asphalt. She winced at the scrape on her forearm and sat up, scrambling to face Tucker West.

He was crouched low with one hand braced to the ground, while his other fingers still pinched the back tire of her bike. His dark eyes were wide, and his lips were parted dumbly as he assessed what he had done.

“Wow, I-I’m sorry,” he stammered, giving a laugh of disbelief. “Shit, I didn’t know you were gonna fall like that.”

“You expected me to fall a different way?” She picked herself up and dusted her shorts off. “What’s wrong with you? Besides not knowing how physics work.”

“No, really, I’m sorry. But you weren’t stopping, and I…” He shrugged lamely.

Praying that he couldn’t see how badly she trembled under his shadow, she stormed over to her bike and grabbed the handles. “Give it back, Tucker. Leave me alone. We’re not in fucking high school anymore—I dunno why you and your friends couldn’t mature past your glory days, but leave me out of it.”

He cocked his head. “My friends?”

“Oh, don’t play dumb. The assholes who’ve been screeching past me every day since I came home for the summer.”

“You mean Jason and them? They’re not my friends.” He kept his grip on the bike, seemingly unaware that she was trying to wrench it out of his fingers. “Look, I saw you were back in town, and I have a favor to ask. See, there’s this girl—”

“No, I will not help you seduce some girl by pretending to be your quirky print friend to prove you have a softer side. Beat it, or I’ll tell her you stalked me on my way home.”

Cheeks flushing, he shook his head. “That’s not it! Remember how you used to write people’s assignments for them?”

Of course she remembered. How could she not? The money she’d made from that had ensured she could eat comfortably while she was away for her freshman year of college. She stopped pulling on the bike and narrowed her eyes at him. She’d written a few papers for him back then, but that was the long and short of their interaction.

“Somehow, I doubt you need a philosophy analysis written for you in the middle of summer, two years out of high school,” she said.

Despite her flat tone, he looked at her excitedly, like she was a co-conspirator in a scheme she knew nothing about. “Well, you’re right about me needing your help with the girl. I mean, not the seducing her part, but uh… yeah, okay, kinda.”

“Either give me the point, or give me my bike.”

“You’re good at writing, okay? And I need help with that.” He pursed his lips and shrugged.

“Look, I’m not good with words, so I want to write her a letter. I tried already by myself, but it never sounds good, you know?”

She gave the bike another test tug, disappointed to find that his fingers’ grip hadn’t slackened in tandem with that wistful look on his face. She scoffed. “Write a letter? Like on paper? Who does that?”

He pouted. “I thought it would be romantic.”

“I mean, I guess. If she’s into that kind of stuff. Who is she, anyway?”

“Lacey. Lacey Ramirez.”

Autumn let go of the bike and staggered back a few steps, arms limp at her sides.

“You know her, don’t you?” Tucker said. “Didn’t you used to be friends with her?” He paused, taking in her slack-jawed expression and tense stance. “Oh. Do you guys have bad blood? Shit, I figured it would be easier for you to help since you know her.”

She shook her head. “N-no, we don’t have bad blood. But I’m not doing this. I’m not helping you write a stupid love letter to Lacey Ramirez. Just go talk to her. It’s not that hard.”

“You don’t get it! It’s hard. It’s, like, super hard.”

For all his insistence, he finally let go of the bike when Autumn lunged forward and jerked at the handles again. She gave one last look at his knelt form towering over her, feeling a spike of bitterness. Of course it wouldn’t be hard for him to win Lacey over. He was tall, handsome, and built. But most importantly, human. A perfect match for Lacey. She turned around and started walking her bike away.

“I’ll pay you,” he said. She walked a little faster, worried he’d give chase again. She was still within reach of his stupid long arms, but he didn’t make a grab. “However much you need. Set your price.”

Autumn hesitated, and his voice jumped.

“I’m in love with her,” he insisted. “Please. You have to help me. I’m sure you could use the money.”

She glared over her shoulder. “What makes you say that?”

He leaned back a little and planted his hands on his lap, perhaps to make it seem like he wasn’t trying to crowd her. “I dunno. You’re working, aren’t you? That means you need money.”

She did.

Hissing out a sigh, she pinched the bridge of her nose. “One letter.” He started to grin and straighten up in excitement, prompting her to hold up a finger. “One letter! And I name my price after I finish it. I’ll type up a draft and send it so you can write it out. What’s your number?”

“What? No, hey, I want to be there with you while you come up with it. We could help each other, can’t we?”

She rolled her eyes. “Where?”

“Library, tomorrow at noon?”

She frowned, shocked that he was so casually okay with being seen in public with a print. It wasn’t exactly outlandish these days, she just didn’t figure someone like him would be alright with it.

Maybe it was the surprise that made her nod. “Fine. But I work tomorrow, so let’s make it two.”

“So we have a deal!” His hand shot toward her, and she might have fallen on her ass if he hadn’t stopped a few safe inches away. He held his finger and thumb slightly parted—an invitation to a handshake that she would much rather not attend.

But, figuring it would get him out of her hair faster, she stiffly walked closer and placed her hand on his fingertip. She braced for pressure, but he was actually quite gentle when he pinched her hand and moved it down once. After getting tossed off her bike, she never would have expected that from him.

“See ya tomorrow.” He let go and gave a small wave. His grin was wide and blinding as he stood up.

She couldn’t help but flinch, seeing him at his full height again. He didn’t linger, though. The pound of footsteps resumed, but this time they headed away from her. It wasn’t until he was a good distance away that she, for the second time, could breathe again.

As she mounted her bike and started pedaling, her mind swam in disbelief of what had just happened. Tucker West, former football star and high school has-been, had sought out her help with a handwritten love letter. And for Lacey Ramirez, of all people.

It wouldn’t be hard finding the words—just hard to share them. She hadn’t spoken much to Lacey since sophomore year of high school. It wasn’t that they had a falling out or bad blood. It was just that Autumn had quietly pulled away from that friendship when she came to the terrifying realization that she had fallen in love with Lacey.

#gt #gt writing #mywriting #giant #tiny #best wishes #autumn #tucker #size difference #romance #print universe

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writethehousedown · 4 years

Text

In My Head, We Belong (Crystal/Gigi) Chapter Six -- Zyan

a/n: i gotta admit, today’s prompt was sort of hard to turn out but i tried my best by using it as a metaphor! hope you like it :) thanks to frey for bullying my characters beta-ing this chapter!

Crystal wants to slap herself when she finds the type of flowers used in the flower crown Gigi gifted her.

I love you. That was the literal meaning of Red Chrysanthemums. I love you. It was straight to the point and it left no room for questions.

And what did Sunflowers mean? Friendship. Jesus, had Crystal indirectly and accidentally friendzoned Gigi? God, she feels so stupid.

She tries to not beat herself up too hard, remembering Sunflowers can also mean adoration, but Crystal has no control over what meaning Gigi decides to give Sunflowers.

Crystal soon realizes she’s worrying too much for, allegedly, not having a romantic interest in Gigi anymore.

She freaks out a little, because how could she not? Gigi (probably) just blatantly told her she likes her through the language of flowers, she friend zoned her without knowing it, and she’s worrying too much about Gigi thinking she did so intentionally. But did she? Does she really see Gigi as a mere friend? Doesn’t she feel anything more for her? Have her old feelings quietly resurfaced or, moreover, did she ever stop liking Gigi at all?

Crystal revisits the past two years in the blink of an eye, thinking about all the times her heart has fluttered at the sight of Gigi all glammed up during their night outs and she looked nothing short of a goddess, or when they walk home from a tiring shift and, even when she could use a shower, Crystal always finds her equally beautiful whenever she smiles.

She thinks of all the times her cheeks had hurt from laughing at a bad joke Gigi said, and excused herself by saying she’s just easy to make laugh. She thinks of all the nights she’s crashed at Gigi’s house and fell asleep contemplating her face.

Crystal thinks and thinks and thinks, and she finds not all of them are tinted with romance. Some are just really good memories she has of Gigi as a friend, and some are from when she was head over heels for her.

An oddly specific memory hits her when she looks out of the window and stares at the New York City’s lights, imagining they’re stars. Once, when she was staying at Gigi’s place, they snuck out into the rooftop with a bottle of wine, a blanket, and some pillows - just because they could. Naturally, they couldn’t do anything like star gazing, but they sure talked about everything and anything, even if it was pure nonsense.

Gigi sleepily snuggled against Crystal’s chest at some point. Crystal could just stroke her hair until Gigi fell asleep in her arms, and there was such a warm feeling in her chest as she watched Gigi sleep, she couldn’t put it into words; Gigi’s warmth lingered in Crystal’s body for days after.

That had been at the end of last summer.

For a moment, Crystal is dumbstruck. Does it mean she likes Gigi? Is it even possible to like someone without noticing it, and if it is, how had she gone so long without noticing it?

There’s too many questions for someone with an empty stomach, and Crystal thinks better when her stomach is full.

Though, that probably should be put up to debate the moment Crystal thinks it’s a good idea to ask Gigi over text if she wants to grab a coffee tomorrow at their usual place, with the intention of talking about the meaning of the flower crown — though she clearly leaves out that part.

Gigi reads it just when Crystal starts regretting such a poor life choice.

Lady G: sure! I have a meeting with a customer at four, is five thirty good for you?

Crystal breathes in deeply as she types a confirmation. Gigi replies with two heart emojis, and Crystal inhales sharply.

Crystal comes to the conclusion that she’s stupidly impulsive while she waits for Gigi at the café.

She’s been nervous about it for the entire day, staring at the clock and thinking it’s broken or something, when the time passes painfully slowly.

She’s not really sure why she’s doing this if her feelings for Gigi aren’t clear. Only two weeks ago she was crying because a douchebag ditched her, but there’s something in her that wants to believe it’s a good idea. Communication is always good, right?

“Crystal?” Gigi’s soft voice speaks, making Crystal jerk her head up. She feels her heart give a thud, but she attributes it to the nerves and not to how pretty Gigi looks in that white blouse paired up with a baby pink plaid skirt. “Hi, um, you weren’t waiting for me for too long, were you?” She inquires as she sits down, placing her purse on her lap.

Crystal shakes her head, and it isn’t really a lie; she’s just been there for ten minutes, mentally preparing herself for possibly her worst impulse yet.

“No, I’ve just arrived, it’s all good.” She gives her a smile, and Gigi smiles back.

They have no idea what to say, so they greatly appreciate it when one of the waitresses swings by to take their orders.

“It feels weird when you’re on the other side,” Gigi says once the waitress is gone and they just have to wait for their orders. “Sometimes I automatically put on my customer service smile when I approach people or vice versa, it’s weird.” They laugh shortly, and it’s a good way to kick off their conversation.

They talk about random stories, the shows they’re watching, remember past night outs or gatherings, stories about their time in college or High School, and soon Crystal forgets about what she initially wanted to talk with Gigi.

It helps calm down her nerves, though. So when she sees the opportunity of bringing up the flower crown when Gigi mentions her mom’s garden again, she takes it without hesitation.

“Oh, um, speaking about flowers, there’s something I wanted to talk with you about,” Crystal begins, and though she tries to hide it, she can see how Gigi becomes uncomfortable, her shoulders tense and the smile on her face becoming awkward. “I know what Red Chrysanthemums mean,” she says softly, and Gigi’s demeanor changes once again.

Her cheeks turn crimson red in the span of a second and she looks away, her hands twitch, so she hides them under the table.

It all confirms Crystal that Gigi didn’t gift her the crown out of pure coincidence. But she asks her either way.

“Gigi, I need to know if it was intentional, please,” Crystal begs her, trying to catch a glimpse of Gigi’s eyes.

She nods sheepishly, finally meeting Crystal’s scrutinizing gaze.

“Yes,” she manages to say. Crystal inhales sharply. “I… I was kinda hoping you’d never notice. It wasn’t how I wanted to tell you. Though, to be fair I wasn’t planning on telling you, like, ever,” Gigi confesses and Crystal’s heart stings a little.

What would’ve happened if she never bothered to find out the flower’s meaning?

“I’m— I know that you don’t feel the same, I understand it. I swear I’ll try to get over it if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Crystal knits her brows in a frown. Gigi’s words unexpectedly hit close to home for her.

“Y’know, when you started working at the restaurant, I rehearsed those same words in my head whenever I thought you knew,” Crystal comments, trying to sound as casual as possible, but her legs are bouncing and her palms are sweating. Gigi frowns, not understanding what Crystal means. It leaves Crystal surprised, to say the least.

“I had a crush on you when you started working at the restaurant, but I guess I kinda forced myself to stop it, ‘cause, y’know, when I tried to flirt with you, you’d brush me off by being just friendly,” she says and Gigi gasps, covering her mouth.

“Crystal, I swear to God I never knew. For real I thought you were being nice! Like, at that moment I just wanted to fit in and try to get used to the job. I never noticed you—” Gigi stops herself in the middle of the sentence to rubs her temples, and Crystal watches her in a stunned silence.

Wow. She really is bad at reading people’s feelings.

“How ironic, huh? When you don’t have feelings for me anymore, I get a crush on you,” She laughs awkwardly, but Crystal cocks a brow.

“I’ve never said I don’t have feelings for you,” Crystal says quietly, and Gigi shuts her mouth, looking completely dumbfounded. Crystal hesitates before continuing. “I mean, lately my feelings for you have been confusing, because I feel different around you now. But a good different.”

Crystal smiles warmly and Gigi softens up a little, fidgeting with her hands.

“So what now?” She inquires bashfully. Crystal shrugs.

“We go on a date?” Crystal offers doubtfully. Gigi giggles.

“Doesn’t this count? I think it does.”

Crystal nods with a laugh and she swears she’s never seen Gigi smile so wide.

#rpdr fanfiction #crystal methyd/gigi goode #crystal methyd #gigi goode #zyan #in my head we belong #slow burn #lesbian au #cisgirl au #waistress au #spring fling week 2020 #day 6: birth #submission

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nineteenseventeenbarnes · 4 years

Text

It Must Have Been the Wind

Characters: Peter Parker x OC Genre: mini-angst Word Count: 2306 Warning: abuse, mention of drugs

"Hey, Aunt May, the new apartment is nice," Peter says, his phone wedged between his ear and shoulder, a big cardboard box between his hands.

"Yeah, Mr. Stark said he'll come over later tonight and we'll have dinner together or something," Peter responds after listening to the voice over the phone talk. He drops the cardboard box on the study table and takes hold of his phone.

"Ok, Aunt May, love you too," he quickly mumbles before ending the call and plopping himself on the new sofa and going through his phone.

As Peter was about to get up to head out, a knock came through his door. Peter let out a small sigh before getting up and opening the door.

"Hello, dear," a lady in her 50s stood at the entrance holding a bowl filled with cookies. She pushed the bowl into his hands, "Welcome to the building."

"Aww, thank you, ma'am," Peter thanks, shyly scratching the back of his neck with one hand and accepting the bowl in his other hand. "My name's Peter Parker."

"And I'm Joanne Roth from downstairs; it's nice to meet you, Peter," Joanne responds, a warm smile on her face.

Before Peter could get another word out of his mouth, the pair could hear footsteps coming up the stairs that were right next to Peter's door.

"Hi, Y/N," Joanne greets the figure that appears. It was a girl Peter's age and although it was the middle of summer, she had a hoodie on.

"Hi, Ms. Roth," the girl greets back with a small smile, but her eyes never make eye contact with either of them. Peter watched at her curiously and his spidey senses told him something felt off about her.

"I better get going," Y/N mumbles, feeling Peter's intimidating gaze on her before rushing upstairs.

"Oh, sweet girl," Joanne whispers. "Always the timid one."

"Does she live alone?" Peter asks, listening to her open and closing her apartment door above them.

"No, I believe she lives with Fredrick, her boyfriend," Joanne answers. "She moved in roughly three years ago and he moved in last year or so? She hasn't been the same ever since."

"How so?" Peter questioned, curiosity eating him up.

"Oh, look at you, getting to know everyone," Joanne chuckles. "You'll get there soon enough!"

Peter chuckles nervously before thanking her again for the cookies and closing the door behind him. He puts the bowl on the counter and checks the time on his watch.

"5:48?" he groans. "I'm gonna be late."

Peter jogs over to his bathroom window, opening it and right before he jumped out, he swore he could hear muffled sobs coming from the window above his.

"Kid, you're 2 minutes late," Tony comments as he sees Peter swing in one of the windows.

"Sorry, Mr. Stark, there was this lady that came by and-"

"Whoa, hold up, you've been living in that apartment for 2 hours and there's already a lady?" Sam asks, pointing at Peter with a fork and squinting at him.

"No, no, it's not like that," Peter exclaims, waving his arms around.

"Alright, you two, save the bickering for after dinner," Nat adds before either could say anything more. She puts a tray of roast chicken on the table and everyone gathers.

It was roughly 9 PM before he left the tower. Tony had asked him to come to the tower for 'intern duties,' a.k.a training at 7 AM the next day, so by 11 PM, Peter was in bed and ready to go to sleep.

Just as his eyes closed, Peter hears the faint sound of glass shattering from the floor above him. His eyes shot open and he was about to dismiss the sound as an accident, but he could hear the muffled voice talking loudly and sobs following — damn spidey senses for picking the sound up.

Concern floods over him when he realizes the sound was coming from upstairs. He quickly hops out of bed, put his slippers on and leaves his apartment.

Peter stares at the door for a solid minute, wondering if he should knock or not. Did he overreact when he heard the sounds earlier?

Right before he decided to turn around and head back downstairs, a loud thump could be heard from behind the door. Peter didn't hesitate this time and knocked on the door.

The difference between being a door apart and a floor apart was that he could hear everything now. He didn't miss the deep voice that let out a string of profanities followed by footsteps that walked further into the unit. He heard the voice talking to someone else, telling them to see who was at the door.

Another minute and a half later, the door opens and in front of Peter stood Y/N with a jacket on and zipped up. It was like the hoodie she wore earlier; it covered most of her upper torso. The first thing he noticed was that she barely looked in his eyes.

"Uhhhh, hey, Y/N," Peter greets, trying to get a peek of the inside of her apartment.

"How do you know my name?" Y/N mumbles, slightly closing the door and only having her head sticking out.

"I heard Joanne mention you earlier today," Peter admits. Y/N slightly lifts her head and makes 2 seconds of eye contact before looking away again and nods at his explanation. "My name's Peter."

"Can I help you, Peter?"

"Um, yes," Peter stutters. "I, uh, just wanted to check on you, I heard some glass shattering and crying from up here."

Peter noticed how Y/N visibly stiffened a bit before looking into Peter's eyes again and an awkward smile made its way to her face.

"Thanks for caring, Peter, it's nice of you to come check up on me," she begins. "I was just about to go to bed, so I'm not too sure what those sounds were."

"I have to go back in," she quickly adds when a faint pair of footsteps could be heard walking towards the door.

"But I-"

"It's an old building, it must've been some pests in the building or something," she assures Peter. "Or it must have been the wind."

And with that, she bids him goodbye and closes the door, and Peter is once again where he was several minutes ago, staring at their door.

Peter lets out a big sigh before walking back downstairs.

It was almost midnight now, and Peter was lying on the cool concrete floor of his apartment. Man, it was summer, but he still couldn't figure out why she had been wearing clothes meant for cooler days.

He couldn't shake off the bad feeling he had, but sleep eventually took over him and he drifted off to sleep.

Peter got up at 6 AM the next day to get ready for training. At exactly 6:45, as he was ready to swing out the window, he picked up the sound of someone crying. It didn't take his sharp senses to hear it; he stuck his head out the bathroom window and looked up. He figured the placements for all the units should match, which means right above him was Y/N's bathroom.

"Hey, Y/N, don't forget to pick up some rock candy on your way back. I'll let Josh know," he heard a voice say.

"B-But Fred, we'll be blowing this week's rent and-"

"Shut it," the voice hissed, cutting her off, "We'll figure it out."

"Kid, what's up?" Tony asks Peter who he's noticed spacing out all day.

"Mr. Stark, if you knew something bad was happening, would you stop them?" Peter finally lets out after pondering for a few hours.

"I mean, we are superheroes, isn't that in our job description?" Tony responds, taking his sunglasses off.

"I mean, I guess," Peter mumbles. "But what if it was something Peter Parker knows, not what Spider-man knows?"

"Well, as a citizen, you gotta do the right thing without letting others know about your secret, right?"

Instead of swinging home, Peter decided to walk back. He wanted some time to think about what he could do for Y/N without intruding too much - and right as he turned around the corner, he could see Y/N into the apartment entrance with a bag of groceries.

"Hey," Peter calls out, tapping Y/N on the shoulder. Y/N, in a panic, drops everything she was holding and flinches away.

"Whoa, easy," Peter exclaims, putting both of his hands up to show her he wasn't trying to hurt her.

"Jesus," Y/N grunts when she realizes who it was. Peter could see tears form in her eyes as she bent down to pick the things she dropped up.

"I-I didn't mean to startle you," Peter stammers, bending down to help her pick her stuff up. He looked over to her hunched figure and noticed a small clear bag that had a crystal or two in it in the pocket of her sweater but decided not to say anything.

"It's ok, sorry for freaking out," Y/N responds.

"Let me help you with that," Peter offers, grabbing one of the messily packaged bags from her hand and they both start making their way upstairs.

"Hi Joanne," Peter greets as they both pass by the same woman from yesterday. She gives them both a tight smile before hurrying back into her unit.

"Thank you," Y/N says as they arrive outside her apartment unit, grabbing the bag Peter was holding.

"Anytime, Y/N," he responds and quickly adds before she could close the door behind her, "If you ever need to talk to someone, I'm here."

The next couple of days, Peter would get back to the apartment the same time every day to make sure he gets to walk upstairs with Y/N. On the third day, Peter panics when she wasn't outside the building at precisely 5:45, making her way upstairs.

As Peter headed up the stairs, a tall figure was walking down the stairs. Without any introductions, Peter could tell this person was probably Fredrick. Peter could finally put a face to his voice. There was just something about his aura that was unsettling.

The last few nights had been relatively quiet; there wasn't any glass shattering or crying, but the moment Peter walked his apartment that afternoon, he could hear the loud sobbing drifting through his open bathroom door.

His heart broke the moment he heard the sound - he had a talk with Steve about situations like this yesterday and was advised not to push or confront victims because they may get defensive or retreat into their shell.

With a big sigh, Peter sits by the window still for a bit, listening to the sobs. Deep inside, he hoped she knew that someone knew she was suffering.

The next day, at the same time, he gets excited when he sees Y/N in her usual not-so-summer getup walking back to the apartment. As he catches up to her, his eyes widen in shock as he sees the big plaster right across her forehead and some minor discoloration on her cheek.

"Y/N, what happened?" Peter asks, a hint of rage in his voice.

"Oh," Y/N awkwardly chuckled. "I wasn't paying attention when I opened the bathroom cabinet and it hit me in the face."

He knew what happened even if she didn't tell him the truth. The two awkwardly make their way upstairs and right before Y/N disappeared into her unit, Peter calls out her name.

"Yes?" she asks, glancing into his eyes and looking away after a bit.

"If you ever wanna just chill or something, you can always come over to mine."

"Thank you, Peter," she smiles, an actual genuine smile he reckons as it was different from all the other encounters they've had.

Later that evening, Peter could hear Fredrick leaving the unit. It was 7 PM, he did that every few nights and wouldn't be back until early the next morning.

When Peter was sure Fredrick had left, Peter sat by the window still, waiting for Y/N to prepare for bed, the usual routine she had. It wasn't hard to pick up stuff when you have heightened senses.

As he heard the taps upstairs running, he quickly got his phone out and took a deep breath.

"Here goes nothing," he mutters before leaving his phone on the still and pressing play. Lean on Me by Bill Withers start to play and he knows she can hear it.

Lean on me, when you're not strong And I'll be your friend I'll help you carry on For it won't be long 'Til I'm gonna need Somebody to lean on You just call on me brother, when you need a hand We all need somebody to lean on I just might have a problem that you'll understand We all need somebody to lean on

Just before midnight, as Peter was preparing for bed, a faint knock came through his door. Peter sits up in surprise; it takes him a second before he jogs over to the door and opens it.

Peter's eyes widen in shock as Y/N's figure stood outside his apartment door in short sleeves, very different from her usual attire, hands holding a box of pizza from Domino's. He could see the faint scars and bruises on her arms.

"Hey, Peter," she greets, a small smile on her face. "I wanted to take up your offer from earlier and was wondering if you're busy? Do you feel like a movie and pizza? I know it's late but-"

"Sounds perfect," Peter answers her and opens his door to let her in. He watches her figure settle on his sofa and thought, 'We can talk about the noise when you're ready, but 'til then I'll say, "It must have been the wind."'

#spiderman fanfic #peter parker fanfic #peter x oc #peter x reader #spiderman x reader #spiderman x oc #tom holland fanfic #avengers fanfic #marvel fanfic #fanfic

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sunmoonandeddie · 5 years

Note

Can you do a Bucky imagine where he and the reader were together until he broke up with her. So she left the avengers and started training kids with superpowers in secret. The avengers call her for some help and Somehow need a safe place to stay so she takes them to where she keeps the kids and her and Bucky get back together. Let me know if this is too much detail believe it or not I was trying to restrain myself.

pairing: bucky barnes x reader

word count: 3,215

summary: Two years after you and Bucky broke up, the team needs your help.

warnings: swearing

a/n: I wasn’t planning for this to be this long, but like. It got away from me. And now I just really want to write more. Also, I really hope this is what you were looking for since I changed it up just a little! Enjoy!

“Oh, sweetgirl,” you said softly, your heart hurting at the sight of Millie crying. She was only seven years old and her powershad manifested a few years earlier. She couldgenerate and manipulate fire and it was proving to be more difficult for her tolearn.

Granted,if you had managed to get her out of her abusive parent’s household before a fewmonths ago, perhaps it wouldn’t be as bad. Even though it technically wasn’t your fault—you had still been with theAvengers at that time—you still blamed yourself. Your kids were your life now, and you caredfor them as if they were your own.

“Why areyou crying?” You asked her, though you knew very well why. But one of your somewhat-parenting tacticswas making their mistakes not seem like a big deal. If you panicked, the child would panic. Simple as that.

Shesniffled as she tried to push you away. “MissY/N, I’m g-gonna hurt you, too,” she cried, and you wiped at her tears. Her lesson had been going great until she hadaccidentally shot a ball of fire towards the wall by your head.

“Now whyin the world would you think that?” Yourbrows furrowed as you looked down at her sweet face. “Don’t you think I’m strong enough to handleit?”

“B-But,you’re not fireproof, Ms. Y/N,” she whimpered.

Taking herhands in hers, you pressed your lips to her forehead. “Am I on fire, Millie?”

“Well… No…” She seemed so confused as she stared up at you with big brown eyes. Her cheeks were red from tears, but she wasquickly calming down.

“So doesthat mean you’re going to hurt me?” Intime with her, you shook your head. “No. You are never going to hurt me, okay, sweetgirl?” You kissed her forehead one moretime before shooing her off. “Why don’tyou go find Ava and the others? Huh?”

She ranoff giggling and you sighed, rubbing your hands against your leggings. As you walked out of the training room, youpulled the sleeves of your sweatshirt down over your hands. You’d have to find a way to fix the heatingsince calling an electrician out to your farm wasn’t the best idea. Not to mention you didn’t have the money. Using a few space heaters and bundling up wasworking for the time being, but that was hiking up the electricity bill.

“MissY/N! Miss Y/N!”

You turnedto see one of your boys, Chance, running down the hall towards you. “Woah, where’s the fire, kiddo?” You asked,your brows furrowing in confusion.

He waspanting as he stopped in front of you. “There’sa plane in the field!”

Your heartstopped as you stared at him. “There’s awhat?”

But youdidn’t wait to hear what he said. Youwere already running out the back door, your heart sinking in your chest as yousaw it.

Thequinjet with the giant fucking Avengers logo on it.

You randown the steps of the back porch, storming towards the field. You couldn’t have them here. Not now, not ever. You had left that part of your lifebehind. “If you’re trying to be inconspicuous,you’re not doing a very good job,” you shouted as you saw your former teammatescoming down the ramp.

“Good tosee you, too,” Natasha said with an eyeroll as she stopped in front of you.

You putyour hands on your hips, looking at her incredulously. “Are you serious? What are you guys doing here?”

“We need aplace to stay,” Steve sighed, looking even more weary than the last time you hadseen him. “Someplace safe.”

“How doyou know this place is even safe?”

“Because Iknow you.”

You huffedand leaned your head back, shutting your eyes tight. “How the hell did you even find me?”

“Tony,”Nat said, and you winced.

Tony fucking Stark. Of course. It was stupid of you to assume that he hadn’t tracked you when youleft. He had probably known where youand your little school was for the past two years.

You staredat your former friends for a long moment. Whenever you had left, you had cut ties with everyone. You knew that with the breakup, they weregoing to choose sides (whether you wanted them to or not) and it was justeasier to leave it all behind. Startfresh.

“Fine,”you said finally, giving in. Despiteleaving them, you still loved them. Alot. They had been your family. “We have a few empty rooms. But no interrupting lessons, you hear me?”

“Lessons?”Steve repeated, confusion written all over his features.

At thatmoment, Summer decided to walk out onto the back porch. She was the oldest of the nine students at seventeen,meaning that they had probably convinced her to go. “Miss Y/N? Who are they?”

Youglanced back at the two who were staring at the girl in surprise. “I’m sure Tony knows.” You began to head back to the porch. “Get that jet cloaked and then get your assesinside, I guess.”

It onlytook a few minutes for them to gather in the kitchen. You had called all your students into theliving room, knowing that you needed to explain what was going on. Some of them hadn’t seen an adult in yearsand even then, their experiences weren’t good.

“Summer, watchover them, and I’ll be back in a few minutes,” you said, and she nodded. She had become almost like a second teacherto all the others, helping you take care of all the kids. She had seen how you struggled on your ownand taken it upon herself to lighten the load.

Youhesitated before you rounded the corner into the kitchen. It had been over two years since you had lastseen any of them and you weren’t sure if you were ready. You hadn’t had any time to emotionallyprepare yourself and you knew you’d be paying for it later.

You neverwere any good at dealing with anxiety attacks.

Taking adeep breath, you walked into the kitchen and immediately froze. They were all there. Steve, Natasha, Tony, Thor, Wanda, Sam, Vision,Rhodey, Clint, and Him. Their heads allturned the second you entered the room, looking at you with a sort of awe. You hadn’t left with any goodbye and here youwere.

“Hi,” yousaid, the word coming out a little breathless.

“What isthis place, Y/N?” Wanda asked, her eyes wide.

Your nailsdug into the skin of your palms. “Thisis my school.”

“Your school?”Clint repeated, raising his eyebrows.

There wasa kind of smirk on Tony’s face as he leaned back against the fridge. “Y/N here runs a school for gifted children. Well, it’s more like half-orphanage,half-school.”

“You knewabout this place?” Bruce asked, frustration clear in his eyes. He was even starting to turn a little greenaround the edges.

“I wastracking her from the second she left the compound.”

You wereonly half listening to the people in front of you, too busy looking at anyone thatwasn’t Him. He was staring at youblatantly from his spot in the corner, his arms crossed over his chest. The usual black Kevlar adorned his body, andyou could see his favorite knife flipping between his fingers from the cornerof your eye.

“How longare you needing to stay?” You asked suddenly, turning to Steve since he waskind of the leader of the group.

He looked surprisedat your sudden outburst, the others going quiet. “Oh, uh… We don’t know.”

“Well, Ineed an answer. These kids don’t needyou messing up their schedules so much,” you snapped, getting more and more flustered.

He justwouldn’t stop staring at you.

“We’ll be outof your hair as soon as possible, Y/N,” he reassured you.

Younodded, before waving them towards the living room. “I’m going to introduce you to the kids. They don’t do well with strangers.” They followed you silently down the hall,filing into the living room where all your kids were. You started to point them out one by one. “This is Summer, Holly, Rowan, Josephina,Finn, Todd, Ava, Chance…” You smiled asyou felt a familiar weight against your leg, looking down. “And this little one is Millie.” You pointed out each Avenger to the kids then,picking up the little girl that had been clinging to you.

You stoodbetween them and the Avengers protectively, not wanting to let any of them getclose. It wasn’t that you didn’t trustthem, it was that you didn’t want any of the kids to bond with them only forthem to leave.

Youhad learned your own lesson with that.

“Bucky?”You called out as you entered your shared rooms. You were sweaty and disgusting from yourworkout with Natasha, but he had never minded. When you didn’t get a reply, you frowned. “Bucky?”

He cameout of your bathroom, and your heart immediately dropped in your stomach. There was something wrong. He never looked at you like that. Like he was about to do something horrible.

“James,”you whispered, your voice shaky as you took a step towards him. “What’s wrong?”

He steppedback, his hands fisted at his sides. “Wecan’t do this anymore.”

“What doyou mean?” You asked, tears already welling up in your eyes as panic rose inyour chest.

And thenyour boyfriend of four years said the words that broke you.

“We’redone.”

The fightthat ensued wasn’t even so much of a fight. It was more you yelling at Bucky and trying to get him to react to you,tell you what the hell had gone wrong, and him just staring at the ground witha dead look in his eyes.

“Would youjust tell me what the fuck happened?!” You had tears streaming down your cheeks, sobs wracking your body. You were staring up at the love of your lifeand he just looked at you like you were nothing. “What did I do wrong?”

Nothing.

Furyboiled in your veins and you shoved him harshly, though he didn’t evenmove. “Would you fucking talk to me?!” You shoved him again and again, gritting yourteeth. “Do you really have nothing tofucking say, Barnes?!”

He justlooked away, his jaw tensed. “There’snothing left to say.”

Soyou had grabbed as much of your stuff from the room you had shared with him andbrought it to an empty one. That night,when everyone else was asleep, you had slipped out of the compound with nothingbut a duffel bag.

“You have anice thing going here,” Natasha said as you closed the last bedroom door. You always checked on your kids before theywent to bed, and usually ended up telling bedtime stories to the younger ones. Sometimes even the older ones.

You hadjust spent the last ten minutes reassuring Summer that nothing would changewhen she turned eighteen. That you werestill going to be her family and she could stay with you however long she wanted. She had cried into your shoulder while youran your fingers through her hair, reminding her that it didn’t matter what hadhappened to her in the foster system. You weren’t going to kick her out.

It hurtyour heart, knowing that your kids were often treated so badly that they wouldthink you would abandon them.

“Yeah, Iguess so,” you said as you stared at the redhead. Out of everyone, you felt the worst aboutleaving her. She had been your bestfriend, an older sister to you.

“You meana lot to these kids.” Natasha bit herlip as she walked down the hall with you, looking at the pictures lining thewalls. Over the past two years, you hadtaken to hanging up portraits of your kids, everything from solo photos tofamily shots.

“They meana lot to me.”

“Why didyou leave, Y/N?”

You wincedas you stared down at the hardwood floors. “Natasha…”

“No,” shesaid, suddenly a lot more forceful. Hervoice cracked as she crossed her arms over her chest. “You left without saying anything and Ithought— I thought you—”

“I’msorry,” You whispered, tears coming to your eyes. “I just really needed to get out of there and—”

“Buckywouldn’t tell us what happened,” Nat interrupted, a hardness growing in hervoice. “But we knew it had to be bad.”

“If itmakes you feel better, he wouldn’t tell me either,” you said, trying to benonchalant. “Just said we were done andstared off into the distance while I tried to get him to just… tell me why.”

She shookher head, biting her lip. “He really isan idiot.”

“I reallyhave missed you,” you said after a long moment, and let out a laugh as shepulled you into a hug.

“I’vemissed you, too.” Nat ruffled your hairas she let you go. “I’m gonna head tobed. I’ll see you in the morning, okay,kiddo?” Before she got to the bedroomshe turned around and pointed at you. “Tonysaid he’s fixing your heating and everything else tomorrow. Said it’s the least he could do.”

“Goodnight,Natasha,” you said with an air of finality, and she nodded before turning awayfrom you once again. You watched herhead to the bedroom she was sharing with Wanda, biting your lip as you foughtback tears. You hadn’t realized just howmuch you missed your family until you had seen them in the flesh. Wiping your eyes, you headed to the kitchenfor a glass of water, but you froze when you saw who was standing there.

“Y/N.” Bucky was staring at you with those sea blueeyes that always seemed to entrance you. He was wearing those stupid grey sweats that made his ass look so good and he knew exactly what he was doing.

You noddedat him, pressing your lips into a tight line as you moved to the cabinet. You stood up on your tiptoes, struggling toreach a glass. It was tough living withso many young kids. They always took allthe cups on the bottom shelves and left the ones that you couldn’t reach.

“I got it.” You flinched as you felt him press up againstyour back, easily grabbing the glass and setting it down in front of you. His breath was hot on your shoulder and ashiver ran through your spine.

Quicklyducking away, you grabbed the glass and muttered a quick “thank you.”

Bucky’seyes were soft as he watched you move around the kitchen, his hand gripping theedge of the counter. “Are you really notgoing to talk to me?”

“Are you… Are you kidding me?” You bit out as you turned on your heel,staring at him with teary eyes. “You, ofall people, are going to get mad that I’m not talking to you?” You willed the tears away, though it wasn’tworking. “You have no right.”

“I know,” hesaid, taking a step towards you. “I knowI don’t. But, babygirl, I—”

“Don’t youfucking call me that,” you snapped,taking a step away. The floorboardunderneath you creaked and you winced, hoping that no one heard it. The only sound in the house other than you twowas the autumn wind rattling the windows.

He held uphis hands in surrender, though he didn’t get any further from you. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I really am.”

You bityour lip so harshly that you were sure it was going to bleed. “I don’t believe you.”

“Well,what can I do to make you believe me?”

You staredat him, confused. “What?”

He put hishands on his hips, his blue eyes piercing you. “What can I do to make you believe that I’m sorry?” He took a cautious step towards you, lookingat you as though you might run. “BecauseI will do anything, Y/N.”

“Why’d youleave me?” Your voice cracked and youwiped at your eyes desperately. Youhated that he was seeing you like that. Weak.

Bucky tooka shaky breath in, eyes going to the floor. “I got scared,” he said softly. “Ijust kept thinking about how you deserve someone who can give you a life. A marriage and a home with kids.” He rubbed at his own eyes. “And I just kept thinking about how I couldnever give you that.”

“I don’twant that,” you said, staring at him with wide e/c eyes. “I never wanted that. All I ever wanted was you.” You were growing more and more frustrated,angry with the fact that you had lost the love of your life because he wasoverthinking. “I didn’t want kids or ahouse. I just wanted you, and if you hadn’tever wanted to get married, then that was fine!”

“But, whatabout these kids?” He demanded, motioning to the hallway where all the bedroomswere.

It was alittle comical, since the two of you were speaking in whispers so as to notwake up the rest of the house.

“Bucky,this isn’t normal,” you replied with a bit of a scoff. “I opened up this school because I know whatit’s like to be one of those kids, remember? I know what it’s like to be thrown out of your home because you’redifferent and your parents don’t want to deal with you. To not be sure where I was going to sleep atnight or where my next meal was coming from.” God, you could rip out your hair in frustration right about now. “I didn’t open this school because I wasdying to become a mom. I never wantedthat normal life.”

Bucky tookslow steps towards you until he was standing right in front of you and you werepressed against the counter. “Tell me tostop and I will,” he murmured. His handgently moved to cradle your face, his thumb caressing your cheek.

His lipsmet yours and it was everything you had been missing for the past two years. Your fingers wound through his hair as heheld you close to him.

“I’m stillin love with you,” he gasped against your lips, forehead pressed againstyours. “Tell me you still love me. Tell me you still want this.”

“I do,” yousaid, tears streaming down your cheeks. “Ido. I love you so much, Bucky.” You pulled away, pointing a finger into hischest. The both of you were crying andjust looked like a mess in general. “Butyou’re not off the hook. What you didwas really shitty.”

“I know,”he said, but he was grinning down at you, his hands on your hips pulling youcloser.

“But I…” Your eyes flickered from his eyes to his lipsand back again. “I want this. I want you.”

“That’sall I needed to hear, babydoll,” he said, before crashing his lips againstyours once again.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes imagine #none-of-this-makes-any-sense

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coffee-obsessed-writer · 5 years

Text

When You Least Expect It: Part Five

Jensen x Musician!Reader; Nathan (OMC)

Also featured this chapter: Jared Padalecki, Gen Padalecki, Rob Benedict, Briana Buckmaster, Dee Harris, and mentions of Kim Rhodes, Mark Pellegrino, Jason Manns, Richard Speight, Jr.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

A/N: This is a slow burn fic that I have been working on for a while. Its a story I wrote for myself and just wanted to share with everyone. Yes, the “Dee” in the story is who you think, but there is no intended hate on her or their actual marriage. It is a work of fiction, that is all. Part five is from Y/N’s POV. There is also a playlist to go along with the series. Series Playlist: “When You Least Expect It” (Spotify). Two songs linked in this chapter, “Do I Move You” & “Up Cripple Creek” go back directly to this playlist.

A HUGE shout out to @closetspngirl for putting together Jensen’s & the reader’s gorgeous wardrobe for the NYE party. Also for not only being my beta, but helping me write the G-D thing. Your input, suggestions, and overall inspiration has been a game changer.

Chapter Summary: Reeling from a visit with her Ex while home for Christmas, Y/N goes back to Austin to get ready for the Padalecki’s New Year’s Eve party. That event turns everything upside for both Y/N and Jensen.

Chapter Warnings: Language, Talk of Break-Ups, Angst, Fluff,

WC: You don’t wanna know... Trust me.

*Banner created by me; pics & gifs found online

Y/N stood at the kitchen counter, her fingers gripping the butcher’s block so hard it was turning her knuckles white. She tried to regulate her breathing, which would help slow the relentless pounding of her heart being fueled by the adrenaline rush of seeing Nathan again after so many years.

“It’s really good to see you,” he started, the tenor of his voice instantly drowning her in memories. The quiver that lived beneath it wasn’t lost on her either. In fact, she relished that he was nervous. Y/N hoped he was scared as hell.

“What do you want, Nathan?” she asked, finally turning to face him.

“Just to talk. To—”

“Bullshit. If you wanted to talk, there are phones for that.”

“You would have taken my call?”

“Probably not,” she shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest.

“See. Figured the drop by was better.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jacket and began to slowly walk around the bungalow. “Wow, the place still looks exactly the same. It's crazy…” he trailed off and snorted a laugh when he gazed at the pictures along the walls. “I actually miss it.”

“What?”

“The bungalow. You. Our life.”

Y/N rolled her eyes and felt the urge to scream at him to go. Her fingers crawled up and once again clutched her charm. “I won’t ask again, Nathan. What do—”

“…I want… yeah, I’m getting there. This isn’t easy, okay?” He sighed dramatically, something he had always done and plopped down onto the couch.

“I couldn’t care less how hard, whatever it is you wanna say, is for you to say. You ran out of sympathy from me when I came home and found every single one of your belongings gone. Hell, even before that. Because of you and your debts that you left me with, I had to borrow ten grand off of Leo. I’m still paying that back!”

“I know, I’m sorry. I’m working now and I promise I’ll repay you. I was such a dick for leaving how I did. I was fucked up, babe. I was gambling and drinking and using—I was a mess.”

“I remember,” she sighed, exasperated and tired. She wanted him to go so she could melt back into the happy state she was in just after getting off the phone with Jensen. “So last chance to tell me why you’re here and bringing back those bad memories.”

“They weren’t all bad,” he said with that crooked smile. “We had some good ones.”

“Nathan… if you don’t get to the fucking point, I will call the police and remind them of the restraining order—”

“Ok, ok… I came to try and make amends. I’m twelve stepping my way back to a better life. It’s taken a while, but I’m finally in a good place. I need to apologize for all the terrible things I’ve done. Especially to you. I’ve hurt you—”

“You have,” she interrupted. “Honestly, I don’t know what hurt worse. When you left without a word or when you broke my nose.”

“Y/N—I…” he trailed off again and shrugged pathetically. “I was a horrible person then. I know it’s not an excuse. If I could go back in time and change everything, I would. We’d be married, have kids… we’d have a life together here.”

“Well, thank God you can’t. Look, Nathan, I’m glad you got yourself straight. I am. But my life right now is good, and I wouldn’t want to change a thing.”

“I heard. Got yourself a fancy new job,” he said with a smile, but Y/N knew him well enough that behind that smile was a fit of pure, seething jealousy. It was always there in him; lurking.

“Who spilled the beans?”

“Leo. I ran into him last week when I got back. I asked about you, and he said that you had moved to Austin temporarily for work.”

“Did he?” She reminded herself to thank him for that later. “Well, then you know I’m busy. I’m only home for a couple days—”

“He said a week.”

“Leo was wrong. I’m cutting the trip short. I have an event to go to on New Year’s that I need to get back for.”

“Oh,” he replied. There was a lot packed into that ‘oh’. “Y/N, I know I don’t deserve to ask you for anything. But for a long time, we loved each other. We’ve been together since we were kids. Me, you… Dave. We were a little family, especially after your mom left.”

The mention of her mother and brother turned her stomach.

“If you want to apologize, bringing up my mother and dick of a brother isn’t the way to go.”

“Dave isn’t a bad guy. I know he did some shitty things, but babe, he’s your brother. He loves you.”

Y/N finally moved from where she was frozen in place and slowly walked into the living room. “You still talk to him?”

Nathan nodded. “I do. He misses you, asks about you. A lot.”

“Good. I hope that shit for brains realizes now that I will never talk to him again.”

“I still don’t understand why.”

“You don’t understand... Nathan, you were here for the bullshit they put me through after dad died. That bitch swooped in and took my entire inheritance! If not for Leo buying the bungalow from her, I would have been homeless. Then, to find out later that my so-called loving brother, HELPED HER?!” Y/N was shaking now. The act of dredging up these memories was not exactly how she wanted to spend Christmas morning; especially not after it started so well.

“Babe…” Nathan consoled and rose from the couch to come closer to comfort her.

“STOP CALLING ME BABE!”

Nathan froze in place and swallowed hard. “Y/N, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean… I just came here to try and apologize. For everything I’ve done. I was supposed to be the one person you could trust, who protected you. I’m sorry that I failed you.”

Much to her own surprise, Y/N didn’t cry. She wanted too, but she wouldn’t in front of Nathan. There had been enough tears shed for him over the course of twenty years. Her phone began to buzz from deep within her robe’s pocket. She tried to ignore it, but just before it stopped ringing, she pulled it out and saw Jensen’s name flashing on the screen.

Without hesitation, she answered the call. “Hey,” she greeted and hoped there wasn’t any residual tension in her tone. “Miss me already?”

Nathan’s head picked up, his gaze intense and curious. But he saw the warning look Y/N passed him and forced himself to stay quiet.

“If I did?” Jensen asked playfully. “No, I was calling to tell you that as soon as we hung up, Jared called me to say Merry Christmas and all that. I asked him about the party and his exact words were ‘whatever makes you happy, doesn’t matter so’s long as you’re there’. So there’s your dress code.”

Despite her current mood, she laughed. “Well, that doesn’t help at all.”

“Yeah, I know…” he hesitated for a beat, “are you alright? You don’t sound as chipper as you did twenty minutes ago.”

“Um, yeah. I’m fine,” she lied and tried to put herself together. “Just getting ready for the day, you know.”

“Sure? If you wanna talk, or—I can find a quiet spot and—”

“No, Jay, it's fine. Really. I do gotta run though. Few things I need to wrap up,” she said and hoped he would take it as wrapping last minute gifts for the holiday.

“Ok.” She could tell instantly he didn’t believe her. “Well, you know where to find me if you change your mind. Talk soon?”

“Yeah, definitely. Enjoy your day and if you talk to Jared again, or Robbie, tell them I said Merry Christmas.”

“Will do, bye, Y/N.”

“Bye, Jay.”

She ended the call and kept the phone hovering near her mouth, almost as if she was trying to hide from Nathan.

“Who’s Jay?”

“Jensen. He’s my boss,” she answered then slipped the phone back into her robe.

“Jensen? Some name,” he sneered. “And he calls on Christmas morning? What a pretentious dick.”

“Fuck off, okay? You don’t know him.”

“I do though. He sounds like every rich, asshole Bennie that tears up our beach every summer. Comes down with his crap, his money and thinks he gets whatever he wants—”

“Nathan! You wanna apologize, make amends? Attacking my friend will not help accomplish that.”

“Your friend? I thought he was just your boss.” Realization dawned on him then, and she noticed his body stiffen. “You have a thing for him, don’t you?”

She didn’t expect that and stammered before she could find the words she wanted. “I—no, he’s been a good friend. It's business. That’s all. Besides, you put me through enough. I couldn’t deal with anyone else after you.”

Nathan cast his eyes to the floor. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I never intended for you to be hurt so badly. I never wanted for you to hate me.”

“Yeah, well. Your intentions don’t mean shit, Nathan. Look, I should hate you… but I don’t. God only knows why, but I don’t. You’re right, we did have some really great memories. Being friends since we were little kids and all the years we spent together as a couple; it’s not lost on me. Even though you left like a coward after you hit me—”

“I didn’t mean to hurt you… I needed the money and—” he stopped himself from going down that path. “It’s not an excuse. I should never have touched you, especially not at the club. Mama Mia nearly put me in the hospital that night.”

“You deserved it.”

He nodded and let her continue.

“Anyway, all that aside, I’m just in a place where I don’t want to be with anyone, Nathan.” Y/N paused and realized now she was not only lying to him, but to herself. “I appreciate your wanting to make amends. I’m glad the twelve-step thing is working for you, and that you’re here for your mom for Christmas.”

“But?”

“But, nothing. I am honestly glad for you and for your mom. She didn’t need to lose you.”

“What about us?” he asked hesitantly, bringing his bright blue eyes to meet hers. For the briefest moment, she could see what she used to see in them; kindness, compassion, and hope making him look more like the first boy she ever loved.

“Us?” Y/N laughed and sighed all in one breath. “Nathan there is no ‘us’. That ship sailed years ago. But I am glad that you’re getting your life back together.”

His phone pinged from down in his jeans pocket. “That’s probably my mom wondering when I’ll be back. She’s got breakfast waiting.”

“Then you should go.”

“Do you wanna come with? I’m sure she’d love to see you.”

“No, I promised Leo I would be there today.”

“When do you go back to… Austin is it?”

“Yes, Austin. In a few days. I have some work to do while I’m here…”

“So, in other words, you aren’t free on this trip to make any plans with me.”

Y/N nodded. “I’m sorry. Maybe another time.” She once again crossed her arms over her chest. It was a mannerism Nathan knew well; she was putting up her wall, and while he couldn’t blame her, he felt his hopes of any reconciliation being quickly dashed.

“Could I, maybe, call you from time to time?”

She exhaled slowly, expelling the breath through pursed lips. “Nathan…” pausing when she saw the seemingly honest, pleading look in his eyes. “Sure. But, if it becomes obsessive, or intrusive…”

He held up his hands in relent. “I promise, it won’t. I just…” he took a few tentative steps closer to her. As he approached, she took one step back and he stopped; afraid he was scaring her. “I just want to get to know you again. This you. I still love you, Y/N. I know you don’t love me, but at least give me the chance to prove to you that I’ve changed. That I can be the guy you used to love. Or at least the one you used to like.”

His phone pinged again.

“You should go, Nathan. Tell your mom I said Merry Christmas.”

Nathan nodded and went towards the door. “I’m not gonna ask you to wait, but maybe you don’t rule me out completely.”

“Rule you out of what?” she asked.

“Your future.” He lingered for a moment longer, then left and quietly closed the door behind him.

The daylight hours of New Year’s Eve was packed with errands, including trying to find something appropriate to wear to Jared and Gen’s New Year’s Eve party. Jensen didn’t exactly help with his recon efforts; having the perimeters of “whatever makes you happy” to go by wasn’t much to go on. Finding nothing while in New Jersey, she frantically searched for any shop that was open in downtown Austin on her way home from the airport.

Finally, in the very last shop, she found the perfect one. The moment she laid her eyes on the turquoise colored dress with a lace overlay from the neck to the hem, she fell in love. It was a little fancier than she’d normally go for, but attending this party in one of the most beautiful Country Clubs in Austin seemed like the occasion to do so.

Once all the accessories had been chosen, Y/N rushed back to her townhouse to shower and get ready. As the hot water cascaded down through her hair, she closed her eyes and thought about the last few days back home. She had finally gotten to a place where her life didn’t feel so suffocated, where she could have reconciled her past while looking towards the future. Now she was uncertain if she would be able to ever really move on from Nathan, or if she would always be scared because of the marks he’d left on her heart.

For the next few days, she went on an emotional journey that she knew had to be done, but not one she expected just then. Nathan had been such a big part of her life since she was a kid; he’d been there through some of the worst times to comfort her and support her. It was also true that he was the root cause for a lot of bad times, and though he was the one that made the bad choices, got wrapped up in things he shouldn’t have… wasn’t there a part of him that was still the same boy that held her through the night her mother left, then her brother and again when her father died?

Y/N turned off the shower and wiped away the steam on the mirror. As she watched her reflection in the glass, Jensen’s face floated into her mind’s eye. His beautiful green eyes, full, round lips, the way that he smiled at her made her breath hitch and her skin tingle in ways that felt extraordinary. Mostly, it was how he made her feel calm and in control; like she could accomplish anything she wanted. Yet, whenever she allowed herself moments to daydream about him, and what it would be like to be with him, fear set in and she would pull away.

“You’re a fucking mess,” she accused at her reflection. “Seriously, get your shit together (Y/L/N). You have a gorgeous, generous, amazing man about to pick you up for a fancy party. You got a new dress, new shoes and a wonderful night ahead. Don’t self-sabotage before you even get in the car.”

She gave herself an affirmative nod, tightened the towel around her chest and moved away from the mirror to get finish getting ready. Halfway out of the bathroom she paused and went back to the mirror.

“Also, don’t let Nathan and his bullshit ruin a good night. He’s not here, he won’t be here. It’s just you, Jensen and a hundred of his closest friends. If anything is going to freak you out, it should be that.”

Y/N hung her head dramatically and sighed. No matter how hard she tried not to think about Nathan, he was just there now, living somewhere in the recesses of her mind and slowly inching his way back to the forefront.

Two hours later, when Y/N heard the knock at the first door, she looked over at the stove clock and realized it could only be Jensen. Seven on the dot… Mr. Punctuality. Y/N took a deep, calming breath, nerves quickly igniting as to how things may change if she opened that door. She froze with her hand on the knob.

You should say you’re sick… jet lag? No, stupid, it’s only an hour time difference, jet lag wouldn’t--

He knocked again. Stopping the freight train of doubt that ran on a constant loop, she exhaled slowly and opened the front door.

“Hey!” Jensen greeted upon seeing her. “You ready to…” he trailed off as he noticed how she looked and took a moment to drink her all in. Jensen was dumbfounded, as his eyes glazed over her from how her hair was twisted up off her neck, to the color of the dress and how it hugged her just right, flowing out to a skirt that fell a few inches above her knees. She was wearing heels, and as he admired how her legs looked while wearing them, he realized he’d never seen her in anything but her old sandals.

“Wow… You--you look amazing,” he breathed. “I--that’s not even the right word. You--”

His gaze softened the longer he looked at her; and the more he looked, the more she was becoming affected by his stare.

“Ok, ok. Easy tiger. It’s just a dress,” she laughed but was barely holding it together as she noticed how good he looked, as well. Jensen showed up dressed in a black sport coat and slacks, beneath it, a nicely fitting shirt that complimented his strong and lean figure. The color of which, just happened to be a shade off of matching her dress perfectly.

“Hey, we match!” she smiled, lighting up her whole face. “People are going to think we did that on purpose.”

“Fuck ‘em,” he said, the corners of his mouth pointing down. “Besides, no one in that whole place will even notice me once you walk into the room.” He waggled his eyebrows and moved aside so she could walk out.

“You’re such a dork,” she teased and rolled her eyes. “Though, I gotta say,” she paused and spun back around for a minute to face him, “you do clean up pretty nice yourself, Hollywood.”

Heading towards the party venue, Y/N was quiet. She could feel Jensen continuing to steal glances in her direction. He had never been shy before about asking her something when it was on his mind, but now he hesitated. She finally caught his gaze and sighed.

“You want to ask me something, so ask,” she said, startling him with her accuracy.

“Alright… what happened on Christmas?”

Boy, he’s blunt, she thought. She furrowed her brow and tried to play it off like she didn’t know what he was talking about. “What do you mean?”

“C’mon Y/N. I talked to you and you were… you. Twenty minutes later I called back and you were completely different.” Jensen’s eyes flickered back and forth between her and the road. “Then, I don’t hear from you all week. Just seemed like maybe something was wrong.”

Y/N could just brush him off, she thought about it. She didn’t want to get into a big conversation about Nathan solely because it would lead back to their past and she didn’t want to go back to that headspace. She also didn’t think brushing him off was the best idea. Jensen was more than just a colleague now, he was her friend; a friend that she had come to care about very much.

She swallowed nervously, her tongue darting over her polished lips. “I had an unexpected visitor after I hung up with you. Just an old… someone, that I wasn’t expecting to see.”

“Oh,” he replied, his eyes now transfixed on the road ahead. “A recent, old, someone?” he asked, and thankfully she caught his meaning.

“Yes. Sort of. It’s been a few years.”

“Oh,” he said again, this time as more of a sigh of relief. “How did it go?”

“It went. He just wanted to catch up. He was in town visiting his mom and had run into Leo. I guess Leo told him about Austin, and he wanted to say congrats on the new gig.”

“Ah.” Jensen’s gaze drifted to catch her expression. Y/N appeared unaffected, but there was something in her eyes that told him that maybe wasn’t the whole truth. “Exes… huh?” he quipped and tried to get her to smile. “I got one, too.”

“An ex?”

“Yup.”

“Don’t we all?”

Jensen laughed. “I guess.”

“How recent is yours?”

“Last Spring. I got back from a con and came home to an empty house. She was just, gone.”

“Ouch,” Y/N winced, knowing the pain of that feeling. “Did you ever find out why?”

His reaction took her off guard. Jensen smirked, then it faded and his eyes seemed to drift a million miles away. She saw him force the lump in his throat down to a place where it wouldn’t stop him from choking on the words that he tried to say.

“She… uh,” he snorted a laugh, “she met someone else.”

“Oh,” she breathed, waited for a beat, then muttered. “She’s an idiot.”

Jensen’s lips formed a tiny little grin of satisfaction and gave Y/N the hint that he heard her after all.

“Well, I’m sorry your Christmas was ruined by an ex,” he said, turning the subject back to her.

“It wasn’t ruined,” she replied quietly and cast her gaze out of the passenger side window. Her hand went to her neck, to where the necklace had resided since she clasped it around there Christmas morning. “Got to open the best present I ever received while watching the sunrise over the ocean.” Turning her attention back to him, her features softened as she lifted the charm from her neck. “That’s what I’ll remember most from this Christmas.”

The Country Club was far larger than Y/N thought it would be. Even in the shadows of the evening, she could see how beautiful and expansive the grounds and golf courses were. It was lit up in soft whites and golds, and there was a buzz of activity in and around the entrance.

After the valet parked the car, Jensen linked his elbow with hers and escorted her inside. Her nerves were starting to show, barely, but they were there. She’d been to more than enough events like this for Leo’s business, and she’d played the boardwalk stage to a crow of a few hundred people. Somehow, this was more nerve-wracking, and Jensen could feel it radiating off her.

“Hey,” he whispered but kept his eyes focused ahead. “You know this is low-key, right?”

“You mean despite the fact that the party is in Wayne Manor? I swore that was Alfred who parked the car.”

Jensen laughed. “Yes, despite that. These are all just friends, wearing fancier than normal clothes.”

“Your friends. I know them through Skype or email.”

“They’re gonna love you. Alright? Robbie already does. He won’t shut the hell up about meeting you tonight.”

“Says you. I feel like I’m going on an audition and this is my call back for the role of Celebrity Assistant…”

“Hey,” Jensen interrupted and pulled her to a stop. “You know that’s not what you are, right? It’s important to me that you know that.” Using her own words against her made her relax a little. “You’re not my assistant. You work with me. And as for tonight, well darlin’, you are simply my date and easily the most stunning woman in the room.”

His features relaxed, the small bunches of wrinkles deepening around his eyes and the peek-a-boo dimples on the corners of his mouth showing themselves. “Relax, have a drink, dance a little and have a damn good time.”

“I thought we established that me dancing is hazardous to everyone’s health,” she joked, feeling her nerves dissipate a little.

“Hey, it's New Year’s Eve. If you can’t do something new and out of your comfort zone on a night like tonight… then you never will. Besides, I am way worse at dancing than you. I’m more than happy to prove it. After a drink or two, that is.”

Y/N exhaled as steadily as she could and straightened her shoulders back and tightened her linked arm around Jensen’s. She was going to make the most of the night and go in with her head held high; ready to push herself well beyond her limits.

They breached the entryway and stepped into the main room where the Padalecki’s were hosting a jam-packed New Year’s Eve party. Faces were floating by at a rapid pace, some she recognized, some she didn’t. Names were thrown at her, and she smiled at each one, shaking hands with those who offered and returning polite smiles to those she didn’t. It was overwhelming and yet exhilarating, especially when Jensen was introducing her as the Music Director for FBBC’s Hometown Music & Brew Fest. For the first time in her life, she was being looked upon as someone respected; someone who was spending their time trying to make a difference; not slinging drinks, not pushing papers or hustling pool just to make ends meet. What made it even more special, was having him be the one who helped her find this place in the world.

“Well it’s about time!” a woman’s voice squealed over the music piping in through the generously spaced out speakers. As you both spun around, you saw a beautiful, petite woman with long dark brown hair and eyes the color of dark chocolate. “I was starting to think you were going to be late, Jensen. You’re never late!”

“C’ mon Gen, you know better than that,” he laughed and released her arm to embrace Gen and leave a kiss on her cheek. “Where’s the big jerk you married?”

“Oh, mingling, you know him. I’m sure he’s got half the place in hysterics already,” she laughed. When she turned her attention to Y/N, her eyes grew wide and she clapped in excitement. “You must be Y/N! It’s so good to meet you in person! This one doesn’t shut up about you or the festival. I think he may have imploded if you didn’t come on to help.”

“I’m just glad I could contribute something,” Y/N replied. ‘It’s nice to meet you, Gen.”

“Have you met everyone else yet?” she asked excitedly, taking Y/N’s arm much the way Jensen did and led her away into one of the rooms that jettisoned off the ballroom. “I think they’re all hiding away in here.”

She led Y/N in, with Jensen following closing behind. The room Gen lead them into was large enough to fit approximately twenty people comfortably, with a baby grand piano at the center. There were windows along the back wall that overlooked the deserted golf course, but the cream and deep beige draperies were pulled and hid the view from the party goers. In each corner, was a tall, potted decorative tree, with hanging white lights that cast an ambient glow over the room. Scattered throughout the room were overstuffed armchairs and a few leather love seats. A perfect place to sit and listen to someone play on the baby grand while enjoying the view of the grounds.

Y/N searched the handful of faces that were standing around the piano but none were too familiar. The moment Gen spoke, the man at the keys stopped playing. When he stood, Y/N smiled wide, instantly recognizing Robbie as he started walking over to them.

“Hey man!” Rob greeted Jensen excitedly. “Was getting worried about you! Thought you were gonna stand me up.”

“I could never do that to you, Rob. You know I love you too much,” Jensen teased, giving Rob a wink. “But, if I tell you Y/N is here to finally meet you, do you forgive me?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely,” he grinned and reached out for Y/N’s hand, bringing the back of it to his lips and giving it a barely-there-kiss. “It is a pleasure to finally see your face sans computer screen.”

“It really is,” she said, trying not to giggle at his overindulgent greeting.

Robbie kept her hand and began to move her away from Gen and Jensen. “Here, let me introduce you to the whole gang.”

Jensen just shook his head, his arms open wide and mouthing, “Really?”

Ignoring him, Robbie pulled Y/N around the room and one by one introduced her to people from both the show and the regular con circuit. Y/N’s head spun as she met Jason Manns, Kim Rhodes, Richard Speight, Jr., and Mark Pellegrino among others. It took nearly twenty minutes to make the rounds and by the time Rob had brought Y/N full circle, Gen and Jensen were no longer alone. Jared had just joined the small group, drink in hand and a smile that was more forced than genuine.

Jared leaned closer to Jensen’s ear just as you sidled up next to him. “Hey, I need to talk to you,” he whispered.

Jensen furrowed his brow and snapped his gaze up to catch Jared’s eye. They had a silent exchange, one that could only happen between two people who knew each other explicitly well. When Jensen turned back to Y/N, she waved him off before he could even speak.

“Go, I’m fine. I have Rob to keep me company,” she said, not without a little spunk.

“Hands above the waist, Rob. Remember you’re with a lady, not one of your women of the night,” he warned and gave Y/N’s shoulder a little squeeze before he was whisked off by his best friend.

“I should go check on everything in the kitchen. Will you be alright?” she asked Y/N.

“What am I, chopped liver?” Rob interjected.

Gen shook her head and gave Y/N an apologetic smile. “Welcome to our weird, little family. Please don’t judge us solely on our Robbie.” She patted Rob’s arm lovingly before turning and heading back out through the ballroom.

“She’s one hell of a lady. Throws a damn good party, too. Come on, let’s mingle.”

Jensen followed Jared down the long clubhouse corridor and down to the double doors that led into the game room. Once inside, Jared shut the door but didn’t bother with turning on the lights.

“What’s up?” Jensen asked. “I barely got in the door, didn’t even get a drink yet.”

“Here, have mine. You’re gonna need it.” Jared held out his glass of bourbon. “I tried to get a hold of you earlier--”

“Why?”

“Because man, Gen invited Dee. She’s coming, and she’s not coming alone.”

Jensen sighed heavily, his head rolled back on his neck and his mouth hung open. “Fuck. Really?”

“Mhm. I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I mean, I know they still talk and hang out, but, I didn’t think she was going to invite her.”

Jensen gulped down the rest of the bourbon from the glass, wincing at the burn as it hit his throat. He turned abruptly and headed through the game room to the small bar that was kept there. Rummaging through the bottles, he found a bottle of Jim Beam and refilled the glass.

“Is he here with her?”

Jared nodded. “I don’t know. I just know she’s coming.”

“Does Dee know I’m here?”

Jared shrugged. “Gen and I… we try not to talk about her with each other.”

Jensen considered this and shrugged, too. “I hate that what happened between me and her put you guys at odds.”

“It really didn’t, not until times like this.”

“You know what? It’s fine. Not like I’m here alone, right?”

“Right. About that… You’ll have to introduce me properly when we head back.”

“I will,” he said, and just knowing that Y/N was out there waiting for him, suddenly made the Dee situation seem somewhat tolerable.

“What was that?” Jared asked, looking at him curiously. “What did you just do with your face?”

Jensen scrunched his face in ignorance. “What… face?”

“That face! That face you make when you get all dreamy and shit.”

“Dreamy fa--” Jensen scoffed. He was getting flustered, so he drained his glass. “Shut up.”

“Ha!” Jared laughed and clapped Jensen’s shoulder. “So, you gonna be able to be cool with Dee?”

“As a cucumber,” he promised.

Jensen had disappeared with Jared, Gen had disappeared back into the crowd of people in the ballroom, and Rob had just disappeared. Somewhere in the middle of crossing the big room’s dance floor, Y/N had lost him and when she broke through the sea of people, she didn’t want to go back in. Meandering alone through the party, she felt suddenly out of place and all her earlier nerves settling back in for the long haul.

She wished Jensen would come back from wherever he disappeared too. But as the minutes ticked by, Y/N found herself back in the room with the baby grand. It was completely empty now that the music had stopped; for this, she was suddenly grateful. As she slowly walked along its side, she ever-so-lightly dragged her finger against the ebony lacquer of the lip then followed along the edge and down to the keys.

Y/N hadn’t seen or touched a piano of this caliber for a lot of years. Guitar had been her true love since she was five years old, the piano came later. When she was little, and her mother was still around, she would take her to the most luxurious of all Leo’s hotels up in the wealthy area of Spring Lake. These were the ones with professional piano players in the lobby and a bellhop that came when you rang. Y/N would sit for hours, watching that old man with the sandy blonde hair play the keys like a magician, and pulling some of the most glorious melodies she’d ever heard.

Her mother was a maid back then, cleaning and stealing from most of the rooms upstairs. Leo would find Y/N a lot of times left alone, sitting in the lobby and listening to the piano and felt sorry for her. On her seventh birthday, Leo bought her a small electronic keyboard to practice on. She took to it easily, and by the time she was ten, was recording tracks on the keyboard, they play along with them on guitar.

She exhaled softly as she slid onto the bench and smoothed out her skirt. Just as she hovered her fingers over the keys, and pressed the first few, she was no longer alone in the room.

“Found you! Took me damn long enough…”

Y/N’s head snapped up, to see a beautiful blonde woman, with long, wavy curls approaching her. Her big, dimpled smile lit up the room the second she entered, and Y/N couldn’t stop admiring her.

“I tried to wrangle Robbie before when he was parading you through the room, but that little man is too fast for me!” She sat down on the bench beside Y/N in an exasperated huff. “Woo! I’m beat and it isn’t even midnight yet! I’m Briana, by the way. Briana Buckmaster. You’re, Y/N, right? Working the music side of Brewfest? I’ve heard a lot about you from Robbie.”

“He’s one hell of a cheerleader,” Y/N said. Something was familiar about her, but she couldn’t put her finger on where. “Are you doing work for it as well? You just seem so familiar, but I can’t…” as she trailed off, it hit her why. “You have an album of covers out, right?”

Briana was taken aback, her sweet smile dimpling as it grew. “I do! You’ve heard it?”

“Hell yeah! Back in Jersey, I was a musical director for a burlesque group. Some of the girls were playing it for a routine. It was hot. Your voice is seriously magic.”

“Burlesque? How fucking cool are you? Did we just become best friends?” she roared with a throaty laugh and threw an arm around Y/N’s shoulders. “And here I was just coming over to ask you about Jensen. Had no idea I’d find a fan and a new friend in the mix!”

“You definitely have a fan in me, Briana.”

“Oh please, call me Bri, everyone does. This dress, gorgeous, by the way. And please tell me that Jensen matched you on purpose because I will both love him and tease him for eternity because of it!”

“No! It wasn’t on purpose. But I knew someone would think it was.”

“I guess you two are just on that wavelength, huh?” she wiggled her eyebrows and poked Y/N’s arm with her elbow. “I did see you guys when you walked in together.”

“Oh?”

“Mhm. So, you gotta tell me something,” she said and leaned in a little closer. “How good a kisser is he? Cause, I may be married, but I ain’t dead. And that boy is… mmm mmm!”

“I don’t--I haven’t… We’re not…” Y/N laughed nervously shook her head slightly, trying to shake the embarrassment off and form a complete sentence. “We’re just friends, we work together on the festival. That’s all.”

“Oh, I see,” Bri said and cleared her throat before turning back to Y/N. “You guys are in the denial stage! Ok, I get it.”

“What? No! It’s…” Y/N searched for the right word. Damn this woman is perceptive, she thought before finding the winner. “It’s complicated.” she sighed, surprising herself that she gave any kind of real answer.

Y/N was instantly comfortable with Briana. Her spirit and fiery personality felt familiar, and something she’d been lacking in her life since leaving New Jersey months before. She felt that she could say something like that to this virtual stranger because she felt like Bri wouldn’t be a stranger for much longer.

“Yeah well, complicated can work itself out,” she nudged her shoulder into Y/N playfully, then motioned down towards the keys. “You play?”

“I do,” she replied, relieved Bri moved the subject off of Jensen for the moment.

“What do you like to play?” she asked, but not in the way where one is curious. She asked because she looked like she was scheming.

“Just about anything really. Why?”

Bri slid out off the bench and walked around to stand in the curve of the piano. “You sing, too, right?”

“I do,” Y/N replied and started to play with the keys around middle C. Finding the melody of something soft but familiar. “Robbie tell you that?”

“Nope. Jensen did. Did he tell you that he sings as well?”

Y/N’s fingers froze and her breath caught in her chest. “No… he didn’t.”

Bri’s face light up as she leaned against the piano, letting her hands slide along the edges in each direction. “Oh, he does. And he sings, goooood.”

She forced her fingers to continue playing the song. As she played on, she didn’t realize the song that she’d been playing just then was the same one she had been strumming on the guitar the morning Jensen shared her sunrise.

‘Ooo-ooo-ooo honey, you’re the one that I want...’ Y/N sang silently along to the melody in her head.

“I know this one… I did a stint as Rizzo at the Citadel Theater,” Bri squealed excitedly. “This was a fun one to perform.”

“Pink lady here,” Y/N laughed, and quickly changed up the melody, not wanting that one to get wedged in her head again. After she played it that morning, it stuck with her for days after. But instead of it making her think of the play, now it just reminded her of sitting on the floor with Jensen and talking through the night.

“But I wanted to play Rizzo,” Y/N continued. “She’s clearly the most relatable.”

“We really are kindred spirits! So, new friend…” she brought her arms back to center, and rested her elbows on the piano, cradling her chin in her palms. “Play me something.”

Y/N thought for a moment and began to pick up a melody. Bri’s eyes lit up as she recognized the beginning notes to “Do I Move You.” They exchanged a knowing glance; Y/N knowing this had been one of Bri’s covers, and Bri realizing that Y/N chose it for that reason.

Starting it acapella, Bri sang the first line, “Do I move you?”

Y/N played, finding the groove of the song. It wasn’t hard for her, all she needed was a place to start and she could slide right into it.

“Are you willing? “Do I groove you? Is it thrilling? Do I soothe you? Tell the truth now… Do I move you? Are you loose now? The answer better be…” Bri drew out the last word, soft and sultry and looked to her accompaniment to finish the first verse with her.

“That pleases meeeee….” They sang together.

The song played on, just the two of them at the moment. The party noises were all but a second thought, as these two new friends found an easy rapport with each other through the music. With every few lines, Y/N increased the tempo of the melody, her fingers beginning to move across the keys with speed and accuracy. She was ensconced in playing and vibing with Bri, relishing in the rich grit and tenor of her voice. Both of them solely just going with the song and building it from an intimate conversation to an all-out war cry with the depth, and fullness of Bri’s bravado.

“When I touch ya? Do you quiver? From your head right down to your liver If you like it, let me know it Don’t be psychic or you’ll blow it The answer better be…. Great God Almighty, that pleases meeeee….”

Bri hit the last note in her full voice and a roar of applause ripped through the room. If Bri had seen the people funnel in, Y/N didn’t know; but she hadn’t. Getting so lost in playing freely, not worrying about anything more than feeling the song at that moment, she had no idea that the small music room had filled up with at least twenty different people. Among them, Jensen and Rob, whistling and clapping along with everyone else.

Jensen stood at the opposite end of the piano, holding Y/N’s gaze as the small crowd began rumblings of play more, something else, keep going… the way he watched her made her nervous, yet euphoric. Y/N could feel him beaming with pride, and while she didn’t play with him in mind, it made her feel good to know he got to see her play.

“Hot damn, girls!!” Rob shouted over the crowd. “I knew this was gonna be a good night! You’re amazing!” he ran over and planted a big kiss on Bri’s cheek, then Y/N’s. “I’ll be right back, don’t move!” He was excitable and bouncing all over the place, then finally disappeared back into the crowd.

Y/N took the chance to slide out from behind the piano. Bri grabbed her the minute she was upright and pulled her into a hug.

“That was fucking fantastic!” she squealed and gave Y/N a squeeze. “We have got to hang out and do that again sometime.”

“I am down for that anytime. Your voice… that rasp you have. I’d kill for that.”

“Don’t let her fool you Bri,” Jensen said, rejoining them. “This girl has got some soul when she sings.”

“Oh, I believe it,” she said, “I just can’t wait to hear it.”

“Another time, maybe? Come by my place here in Austin. We can sit around and gig all day if you like. I am happy to spend an afternoon like that.”

Jensen opened his mouth to say something, but Rob’s re-entrance into the room caused some commotion. The moment he walked in with two guitars in hand, the chatter grew again. Rob handed one of the guitars off to Jason and someone else had already slid behind the piano. Stopping at a handful of the guys, including Jensen, he whispered something quick in their ear and went back to stand near the piano.

“Be just a second,” he said as he placed a hand on each of Y/N’s shoulders as he slid around behind her through the people, giving her a gentle squeeze as he did.

The guitars started, piano joined in, and Y/N picked up the first few beats of The Band’s “Up On Cripple Creek”. Bri squeezed in close and tapped her arm.

“I love when they do this song,” she whispered. “Just wait, you’re gonna love it too.”

The moment Jensen’s voice filled the room, Y/N’s mouth fell open at the sound of it; completely in shock with what she was hearing. He sang the first verse, while his friends picked at the guitars and played along on the piano. Jensen kept up with them effortlessly, though his attention was fully on Y/N. From the first line, he locked eyes with her, keeping a grin at bay while he sang his verse. He had a soul and a tone to his voice that tickled the deepest part of her, arousing both the creative and the lustful sides of her. Y/N didn’t know what to expect when Bri told her Jensen could sing, but it certainly wasn’t that.

The song went on, but Jensen just continued to sing along with the chorus, letting each of the other guys take another verse. When it was over, the crowd once again strongly approved of the impromptu performance. Y/N subtly backed her way through the crowd and back out into the corridor to get some air, still reeling from how good Jensen could really since. She saw him shaking hands, making pleasantries and small talk as he made his way towards her.

When he broke through the barrier of people, his arms were outstretched low and he was smiling. “You’ve been holding out on me, Trix. You can play…”

Y/N snorted a laugh. “You can sing!”

Jensen shrugged, not just with his shoulders, but his entire face. “I guess we’ve both been holding out, huh?”

“Looks that way,” she loosely crossed her arms under her breasts and gave him a challenging look. “Feels like maybe we should rectify that.”

Jensen thought about it for a minute, then held out his hand for her to take. “Come on. Let’s get a drink.”

“Good God, yes please…” she sighed and took his hand without hesitation, happily following along beside him as he whisked her through the ballroom.

The next hour or so was spent drinking and eating with people coming and going from the table. Around the third whiskey sour, and multiple helpings of the barbeque pork potato cups, apple brie crostini and mini beef wellingtons, Y/N needed to stand and stretch, allowing the food to settle.

“You alright?” Jensen asked, standing up too, reaching for her elbow to hold her steady.

“Yeah, fine. Just head rush from the booze. Also, this dress wasn’t made for gorging oneself on whiskey and crostinis.”

“Lightweight,” he teased.

“Hey, I don’t live in a brewery, okay? It doesn’t take much to get me--”

“Drunk?”

“Unencumbered,” she corrected.

Jensen leaned closer. “Does this mean I could maybe convince you to dance with me now?” his voice was low and raspy as if it had been denied water for days.

“Let me venture to the ladies’ room first. It is getting close to midnight after all. Then when I get back, we’ll see…” she narrowed her eyes at him.

When he narrowed his eyes back at her, mimicking her expression, she felt her breath begin to get shaky. “Hurry back. Or I’ll tell them to play the Macarena.” Jensen began to do the dance, but subtly, just enough to tease her with.

“Don’t think for a second I wouldn’t whip out my phone and record you doing it,” she warned. “It would be a nice addition to my video collection.”

He stopped cold and stood still. “So, that’s a no, on the Macarena?”

Y/N patted his cheek lightly and let it linger against his stubble for a moment. “Good boy. I’ll be right back.”

She turned to go, and just before she was out of earshot, he called out. “Don’t take too long, or it will be the Chicken Dance!”

Y/N didn’t turn, she just shook her head and kept walking. She didn’t want him to see how much he made her smile.

Just after drying her hands in the ladies room, Y/N was about to leave and bumped into Bri as she was coming in.

“Oh, hello new friend!”

“Hi Bri, having fun?”

“Yes! I love being with this group. You and Jensen should come over to where Kim and I are sitting. She’s a fucking blast, I think you two would get along fantastically. Just give me a sec, I’ll walk back out with you.”

Bri was quick and within minutes she and Y/N were heading back out towards the ballroom. The music was still playing and people were still dancing and having a blast. The music room was still full of passersby, and a different mix of faces at the piano and playing the guitars and singing. Y/N scanned the area where she had left Jensen, but it was now vacant. She tried to search the rest of the room for him, but there was no sign of him.

“Oh shit,” Bri mumbled, then pulled on Y/N’s lace sleeve. “Looks like you might need to go save your boy, there.”

“What?” she asked, her head whipping around to where Bri was motioning. Just past the bar, she found Jensen, talking animatedly to a petite redhead in a shimmery dark green dress. She was also being over-animated in talking back to Jensen. “Who is that?” she asked, but deep down she already knew.

“That’s Dee. Jensen’s ex-girlfriend. I knew they broke up last year, didn’t realize they still talked.”

Y/N’s stomach dropped and she remembered their very quick conversation about her in the car. “I didn’t either.”

Bri and Y/N watched from a distance until Jensen laughed at something she said. It wasn’t a genuine laugh by any stretch. Glancing pensively at Bri, Y/N bit on her lower lip. She didn’t know if this was a case for her to interfere or simply let the man work out his own business. The longer she watched and saw his body language change to stiffen and defensive, she knew she couldn’t be complacent.

“Maybe I should…” she trailed off and looked to Bri for some kind of sign.

“You probably should.”

Y/N gave her a small, appreciative smile and nod before she began to approach Jensen and his ex. The closer she got, the more of their conversation she could hear, and when she finally was standing beside him, they’d already found an argumentative pit and had fallen in knee deep.

“Well, well. Good to see you still make bad decisions,” Jensen scoffed at Dee, his voice slightly louder and more accusatory as it needed to be.

“Just stop, Jensen,” Dee pleaded. “It’s enough, alright?”

“You knew I was gonna be here. You had to know that. He had to come with you, right?”

“We’re together, Jay. I’m not going to hide that.”

“I wish I could… hide it… from my face,” he muttered.

“Not like you’re here alone,” she retorted and motioned to Y/N.

Jensen finally saw her standing there, and moved closer to her, exchanging his scowl for a grin. “Hey, you’re back.”

“I am. So, whatcha say we go get some air? Uh, Hollywood? I think some fresh air will do you good.”

“I’m good, Y/N. I swear. I got a few things I wanna say--”

“Nope, no, not gonna happen. Say, Happy New Year and let’s go,” she encouraged and tried to pull him away.

“You know who that is, don’t you?” he asked, in what he thought was a whisper, but everyone could hear.

“Yes, I know who it is,” she replied and looked up at Dee with a wan smile in greeting. “Hi, it’s nice to unofficially meet you.”

“Hi,” Dee replied with an apologetic smile.

“Then you know she’s a bit--”

“Don’t,” you warned, cutting him off. “I don’t care who it is, it is not like you to talk to anyone like that.”

“But—"

“Doesn’t matter Jay, you don’t. You’re better than that,” she said, her eyes pleading with him to just follow her out.

“I’m sorry you have to deal with this,” Dee started. “I didn’t mean to upset anyone. He just can’t let this all go.” Her tone was genuine but her words were enough to make Y/N turn around and glare at her.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I just mean that--”

“Maybe, if you hadn’t treated him like a piece of shit, he wouldn’t be this way. Maybe, if you had the balls to have had a conversation with the man instead of just walking out, he wouldn’t want to call you a bitch. So, if I were you, lady, I’d scoop up the boy toy over there and move along.”

Dee’s mouth was agape, but then it seemed as if she may fire back some offhand comment or quip. Instead, she turned, linked her elbow with her man’s and walked off to the other side of the room.

She could feel Jensen’s lips by her ear before she actually heard his words. “You’re my hero,” he rasped.

The feeling of his hand on her shoulder only fueled the adrenaline that was coursing through her. The incident didn’t sober her up, but it definitely put a mild damper on the good feeling she had before.

Y/N went up to the bar and asked for two shots of bourbon.

“You wanna talk about what just happened there?” she asked Jensen and watched as he leaned both elbows on the bar, and rubbed his hands over his stubbled cheeks.

Jensen shook his head and finally looked her in the eye. “Nope. Not right now.”

The bartender lined up the shots, and Y/N passed one to him. Without a word they touched glasses and threw them back down their throats. Once the burn wore off, Jensen’s smile returned.

“One more?” he asked.

“You may have to carry me out of here if we do,” she chuckled.

“That would be my pleasure.” Jensen motioned for one more round.

From the corner of her eye, Y/N could see Dee and her companion off on the other side of the room, but continuing to look over in their direction. She didn’t want to spend the rest of the night exchanging accusing glances from across the room.

“Hey, you wanna take a walk? Get out of here for a minute?” she asked Jensen, just as the bartender refilled the shots.

“More than anything,” he said and tossed it back, Y/N doing the same.

Y/N was the one to take his hand this time and led him away from the ballroom.

It was mere minutes to midnight by the time Y/N had pulled Jensen away from the party. He was clearly more than a little buzzed when they stumbled into the elaborate game room and Y/N quietly closed the door behind them, so as not to draw attention to their departure.

She found the light switches on the wall, and turned on a few, illuminating the four corners of the club’s game room. The soft glow of the neon-lighted beer signs gave the space a warm, rich burst of color. In the middle, was a large pool table, made of dark mahogany wood and blue felt. The pockets were made of netted silk twine and gold inlaid etchings around the bumpers. On the far side of the room was a string of videos games with lifeless screens, and foosball table half draped with a soft leather cover.

More pool tables followed that, along with a collection of high top tables and chairs, a small bar that was fully stocked and four dart boards along the wall. One of which was open with all the darts still stuck in the corkboard target.

“Wanna play?” he asked, unbuttoning his jacket and shrugging it off before laying it on the pool table. He walked over to the board and removed the darts before she could answer.

“I gotta tell you, I am no good at darts. So, you best steer clear when it’s my throw,” she warned.

“I can teach you.” His smirk wasn’t even trying to be subtle as he approached her, four darts with red tails in his outstretched hand. “I’ve played a time or two.”

“Oh, I imagine you have. Something tells me you’ve done everything a time or two.”

Jensen stood next to her, leaning against the one pool table where the billiard lamp’s soft lights lit up the midnight blue felt. He rolled his neck to the side where she was and leaned down close enough that she could smell the hint of bourbon on his breath. Normally it wouldn’t be enticing, but on Jensen and in her own partially inebriated state, she let her mind wonder how it would taste off his tongue.

“Not everything,” he rasped, then gave her a wink.

Three minutes to midnight…

Pushing off the mahogany, he took a proper throwing stance and explained how to plant her legs. Y/N chuckled as he swayed a little before launching the dart at the board, striking the edge of it instead of the middle.

“That’s just a warm-up,” he scoffed, waving it off. “Let’s try that again.” He glanced over his shoulder to see her expression before launching a second dart.

Normally this is when she would look away. The more time they spent together, the more she found herself avoiding making eye contact in situations like this. She knew that one day she wouldn’t be able to look away, and unless she’d been reading the signals wrong for the entire span of their partnership, it would end up turning into something else. As much as she may want that, she didn’t know if she was ready for it.

“Ok Trix, your turn,” he said and took her hand, pulling Y/N off the edge of the table and positioning her to face the dart board. He made sure she was holding the dart correctly. “Pinch it here between these two fingers…” he configured her pointer finger and thumb on the dart. Gliding his hands down the length of her arm, she could feel him on her skin through the lace of her sleeve. When he paused at her elbow to bend it back at the right angle, his other hand gingerly touched the outside of her left leg. “Move your leg back, just a little,” he instructed, and as she did, he left his hand there, and despite the fabric of her dress between them, the heat of his hand felt warm and inviting.

Hyper aware of all the sensations her body was experiencing, she could feel herself simply melt back into him. The day’s earlier concerns weren’t gone but being wrapped up in the night as it had gone so far, Y/N pushed it all away to enjoy these quiet, close moments with Jensen. She needed it, and she suspected he did, too.

“Now, pull back your arm,” he continued, “almost like a slingshot. Okay? Then eye up on the board where you wanna aim for.”

She did as he said, closing one eye and targeted the bullseye. “Okay,” she said, biting down on her bottom lip in concentration.

One minute to midnight

The partygoers out in the rest of the clubhouse began to get louder with their anticipation of the stroke of midnight building. Y/N tried to block them out and launched the dart at the board. It wasn’t lost on her that Jensen’s hand was still hovering over her leg, and the other was now resting against her back where the dress she chose was bare of fabric.

The dart hit just off center, and she jumped up, arms raised in the air in triumph.

“Yes!” Jensen cheered and clapped as she danced around victoriously. “See that!”

“Well, the things you can do with a good teacher,” she shrugged.

From beyond the game room doors, they could hear everyone start counting down.

20...

19...

“It’s not too late to go join them,” she said and motioned towards the door.

17…

16…

“Here’s good,” he replied, the smile fading from his lips. He took a few steps towards her, and when he reached out for her hand, she gave it willingly.

14…

13…

12…

“Here’s very good,” she breathed.

Their eyes were locked, as the countdown continued from the other room. Y/N felt what he wanted from her, and despite any of the worries she had, she wanted him; denying that any longer would just be self-inflicted torture. But still… it could hurt.

10…

9…

8..

They were counting it down together. As the numbers dwindled down towards one, Jensen cupped her cheek and let his fingers slide down her jawline and onto her neck. Ever-so-lightly, she could feel his fingertips brush against her hairline at the nape of her neck, sending waves of electricity to course down every vein.

5…

4..

“Happy New Year, Y/N,” he rasped.

“Happy New Year, Jensen.” Her voice was shaking in anticipation of…

2..

His mouth drifted the last couple inches to hers. By the time the rest of the party goers were hootin’ and hollerin’, shooting off poppers and kissing everyone around them, his lips touched against hers for the first time.

Everything faded; the party sounds, the soft hum of the circulating air in the game room, the fireworks going off in random places throughout the city… all either of them could sense was the other. Jensen’s fingers began to press into her neck, encouraging her closer, as her lips opened to accept more of him. A soft moan escaped her, as he walked her back up against the pool table. More than just a New Year’s tradition, this was months in the making and neither of them wanted to pull away.

Jensen’s lips were as soft and luscious as she dreamed they would be. She relished in how they formed against her own, how easily she moved along with them, and how well she fit when pressed against his body. His hand stayed gripped on her neck, while his other ran roughly down the length of her body; coming to rest just about where it had when they were throwing darts. Now, inch by inch he began to lift up the fabric of the skirt, bunching it in his hand until her flesh was exposed to the heat of his hand and the coolness of the air.

Lips parted, and the sensation of his tongue on hers was dangerous. Her head was fuzzy from the alcohol and his touch. Little gasps and moans came from both of them, as the kiss continued to deepen, finding more fuel the longer his hand pawed at her thigh.

His teeth grazed her lip and it was enough of a rush for her to break free of him and slowly roll back at the heat of his touch. Jensen didn’t waste a second and sunk his teeth into her neck while she wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders, dragging her nails against his skin. He nipped at her and trailed his tongue lightly up towards her ear, then peppering wet, lingering kisses back down towards her collarbone. Waves of goosebumps rippled beneath the lace of her dress and brought on a flush of heat between her legs.

Y/N mewed deeply, which pulled a soft growl from deep within his chest. His fingers continued to creep up her leg as the fabric now fell down around his hand, covering it. He reached the edging of the lingerie she wore beneath it, he brought his fingers to follow the hem around back to the swell of her ass, cupping it gently. Y/N felt him there and slowly raised her head back up, making him do the same.

“Jensen…” she whispered; unsure herself whether it was a plea to stop or to keep going.

Jensen closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers, desperately wanting to kiss her again, but not here. He wanted to be home, his or hers, with no onlookers or distractions. He wanted more… he wanted all of her…

He was about to go in for more when the doors opened behind him, the sound of which made them jump apart like two teenagers getting caught in the dark. She had a moment--it couldn’t have been more than that, though it felt like an eternity--where a very clear voice screamed in her head to run. This was wrong, she was drunk, he was drunk, they were in a public place, and she had no business starting something up with him.

The flood of anxiety-riddled doubts crashed into her and physically caused her to step back from him. She didn’t have time to register the hurt and confusion on his face before Y/N was turning and bolting for the door. Little hot pinpricks of tears stung at the corners of her eyes and by the time she reached the door and saw that it was Bri standing there, she could barely see anything at all.

“What happened?” Bri asked, her brow furrowed in concern when she saw how upset Y/N was. She looked across the room to where Jensen stood, still staring in confusion.

“Nothing… I just… can you please take me home?” Y/N’s voice was small, and her entire demeanor was far different than it had been ten minutes earlier.

“Uh, I--” Bri paused and looked back to Jensen again, who just shrugged. He started walking towards them and Bri just held up her hand to tell him to stop. She gently shook her head, silently asking him to give Y/N space. He stopped but Briana could see he wanted to go to Y/N. “Sure, honey. Let me just get my stuff.”

Bri wrapped an arm around Y/N’s shoulders and left the game room, and left Jensen standing there alone in it. As she walked with her new friend down the corridor, Y/N was aware that running out like that wasn’t the best plan; but she needed to get out. What happened with Jensen wasn’t anything like she expected it to be. It was far more intense and meaningful than she thought it could be. The way he touched her, kissed her… It was a game changer.

“Leaving so soon?” Gen asked as they passed her near the coat check.

Y/N tried to reply, but she was still trying to process what almost happened.

“She’s not feeling good,” Bri covered easily. “And I think stud muffin in there has had one too many to try and drive home. Would you and Jared take care of him? I got this one.”

“Of course! I’ll let him know you got Y/N home,” Gen said with a sad smile. “Hope you feel better!”

“Thanks,” Y/N replied quietly. “It was an amazing party, thank you for inviting me.”

Once the pleasantries were passed, Bri quickly shuffled Y/N to the valet stand and handed him the ticket. While they were waiting for her car to come around, she put an arm around Y/N’s shoulder.

“So, did it just get a whole lot more complicated?” she asked.

Y/N rested her head on Bri’s shoulder and sighed. “That, is the understatement of the New Year, my new friend.”

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#jensen ackles x reader insert #jensen ackles x you #jensen ackles x y/n #jensen ackles x reader #Jensen Ackles rpf #spn rpf fics

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minhoinator-writes · 5 years

Text

Pairing: Kim Kibum/Choi Minho (side: Kim Jonghyun/Lee Taemin)

Rating: G

Word Count: 10,803

Links: AO3 // AFF

Summary: Five friends decide to escape their responsibilities for some fun in the sun...just for the weekend.

A/N: inspired by the View music video, and this particular moment

Tagging: @lockandminkey, @untangle-my-heart, @anna-watermelon, @minhosglasses

Friday

2:09 // we're going to Jeju...wanna come?

2:23 // will you kidnap me and take me anyway if I say no?

2:25 // first of all why would you say no? 2:25 // and secondly maybe I would

2:25 // ㅋㅋㅋ

2:26 // does that scare you?

2:26 // hmm 2:27 // I'd rather not say

2:32 // ㅋㅋ…..so?

2:32 // yeah, I'll be there 2:33 // when do we leave?

...

Saturday

A wave of humidity washed over Kibum as he followed the others out of the Jeju International Airport. Jinki had forged ahead, running to catch a taxi for them so they could drop off their meager luggage at the hotel before they went off in search of food. The wheels of Jonghyun’s suitcase rattled loudly in the lobby, but he didn’t seem to notice. His conversation with Taemin was too riveting, it seemed. Kibum smirked, then glanced behind him.

“Hey! What’s taking you so long?” Minho looked up at him from where he was tying his shoelaces, his eyes wide. “Come on, you can do that on the way!” He smiled and went back to tying his shoes, and Kibum rolled his eyes as he jogged to catch up with the others.

This impromptu vacation had been his idea, wholly and completely. He was so completely bored -- having been at the same job for over two years now, it had grown to be quite monotonous -- and he knew that his college buddies were probably feeling the same way.

It was quite by chance that they had come together, all those years ago. Kibum always thought it was kind of lucky that they all happened to meet in the theatre club -- Kibum, Minho, and Jinki wanted to act, Taemin wanted to be in the chorus, and Jonghyun wanted to compose his own plays. Unfortunately, for them, they were too late and the club was already at its full capacity. They, at Taemin’s suggestion, decided to drown their sorrows in pizza and beer, and by the end of the night, they were inseparable.

They still were, even now that they had left college. Sure, Kibum had returned to Daegu, Minho to Incheon, Jinki to Gwangmyeong, while Jonghyun and Taemin stayed in Seoul, but that didn’t mean they didn’t text or call each other as often as their schedules would allow.

The drudgery of everyday life had taken its toll on Kibum, though, which is why he decided to reach out, to see if any of the others wanted to escape for a little while. To remember what it was like to feel...to feel alive with the myriad of possibilities available to them.

He texted Jonghyun first, a strategic move. Jonghyun would be able to convince anyone to do anything, if he really, really wanted to. He skipped Taemin altogether since he knew that Jonghyun would take it upon himself to get Taemin to agree, and went straight to Jinki. It didn’t take much to get him on board -- the promise of all the cold beer and food he could want while laying on the beach was more than enough.

While he knew Minho would be easy to convince -- he missed everybody just as much as Kibum did -- he couldn’t help but hesitate. Kibum opened their messages, starting a text, only to backspace and try again. It took hours before he finally decided on we’re going to Jeju...wanna come? even though he wasn't quite sure why.

Well, that wasn't quite true...but, they were here now, all of them. Kibum stopped for a second in the automatic doorway, taking a deep breath of the warm, summer air. He smiled to himself, satisfied with the start of their weekend getaway.

“Kibum, come on!” Jinki called, taking Kibum out of his reverie. The door to a taxi was open, and Jonghyun was throwing his and Taemin’s luggage inside the trunk.

Minho, who had surpassed him now, looked back. His eyes were twinkling as he grinned. “Yeah, what’s taking you so long?” What a little shit. Kibum slowly returned his grin before Minho turned back around and picked up his pace, jogging to toss his backpack in the trunk before he slipped inside.

He stuffed his duffle bag beside Minho’s backpack and closed the trunk, squeezing into the backseat next to Minho. Jinki closed the door and hopped into the front. “Where are we going?” the taxi driver asked, and Kibum leaned into Minho as he reached into his back pocket for his phone, rattling off the address for the hotel.

Jonghyun stretched his legs out from where he was sitting on Taemin’s lap, resting his ankles across Kibum’s thighs. He closed his eyes and leaned back, his freshly-dyed -- as far as Kibum could tell -- platinum blond hair ruffling in the breeze of the open window. “Don’t you even think about it, Choi,” he said without looking up.

Minho’s hands froze over the rips in the knees of Jonghyun’s knees. “I wasn’t doing anything.”

“Mhm.”

Taemin and Kibum shared a look before Taemin reached out, slipping his hand beneath Minho’s, and tickling Jonghyun’s exposed skin. He pulled his hand back before Jonghyun sat up and Kibum pursed his lips to keep from laughing, looking out his window as Jonghyun started yelling at Minho, despite his protests.

The line of shops they were driving past came to an end, revealing the sea beyond. Blue, as far as the eye could see. The ocean melted into the distant horizon. Little puffy clouds were scattered like popcorn across the sky, casting their shadows on the calm sea and the beach and the roads. Kibum rolled down his window and leaned against the door. Behind him, Minho sighed.

“Thanks for doing this, Bummie,” he said, softly enough so only Kibum could hear him.

“Yeah, no problem.”

… … …

He was staring; he knew he was.

In his defense, it had been nearly six months since he had last seen Kibum and he was still so...so beautiful. Not that he was expecting him to change all that drastically in their time apart, but… His hair was longer now, the breeze toying with the many-colored strands. Minho worried his bottom lip as Kibum brushed it out of his eyes, his gaze not leaving the sea now that it was in view, and he looked away.

Jonghyun reached out, a smile in his eyes as he ruffled Minho’s hair. “So, when you’d do that?”

“Hm?” His eyes flicked up to Minho’s honey-blond hair and then back to meet his gaze, smiling fully now. Minho knew without having to check in the rearview mirror that his face was coloring. “A couple of weeks ago.”

“It’s a bold choice for you.” Taemin snorted, carding his fingers through his lavender hair. “What, it is!” Jonghyun said, smacking Taemin’s chest with a laugh. “I never thought he’d go this light!”

“I think it looks good,” Kibum said, still without looking away from the window.

Minho’s eyes widened, and he made the mistake of meeting Jonghyun’s knowing, slightly pitiful gaze. He lowered his eyes, smiling to himself. Of course, Jonghyun knew. “Thanks.” His hand found Minho’s thigh, and he patted it gently before he withdrew.

“I like how we all decided -- without telling each other -- that we’d dye our hair.”

“It just proves that we’re on the same wavelength, no matter how far away we are from each other,” Jinki said, turning around with a smile. “So, where do we want to eat?”

“I’ll look up some places,” Taemin said, reaching into Jonghyun’s pocket and pulling out his phone.

“What happened to yours?” he asked as Taemin typed in the pin, unlocking it.

“I forgot it at home, remember?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Minho started when Kibum grabbed his shoulder, pulling him close. He leaned into him, closing his eyes as Kibum’s breath tickled his ear. “Could they be any more obvious?” Minho bit back a smile, shaking his head when Kibum pulled away to look him in the eye. Kibum leaned back in. “Do you think they’ve told each other yet?”

He hummed in thought, turning his head to whisper in Kibum’s ear. “I mean, they live together, so…”

Kibum snorted softly. “That doesn’t mean anything, though.”

“I guess.”

“What are you two gossiping about?” Jonghyun asked, Minho looking his way with guiltily wide eyes.

Kibum’s hand slid off of Minho’s shoulder and down his arm, slowly pulling away at his elbow. “Nothing,” he said with a nonchalant shrug. “I was thinking we’d go to Hwaro Hyang, and I was just telling Minho what I read about it online.” Minho’s eyebrows shot up and he looked back at Kibum, whose eyes were twinkling as he avoided meeting his gaze.

He was always so quick on his feet -- it got them out of so much trouble during college. Kibum unlocked his phone, pulling up the restaurant website and passing it to Jonghyun. His eyes flicked to Minho’s -- he had been staring again -- and his cheeks dimpled with a small smile.

The rest of the ride to the hotel was fairly quiet. Jinki and the driver chatted about things to do while they were -- as if he’d be anywhere but their hotel or the beach -- while Taemin watched Jonghyun play a game on his phone, pointing at the screen when he thought he should make a move. Kibum went back to staring out the window, and Minho folded his hands in his lap, tapping his thumbs together as he stared blankly at the ocean.

“So, what’d you want to do today?” Kibum asked, leaning his head against the door and looking back at Minho. He blinked, refocusing, and searched Kibum’s expression. “We’ve got all day.”

“Just us two?”

Kibum shrugged, squinting when the sun shone in his eyes. “We can bring the others along if you want.”

Odds were that Jonghyun and Taemin would be lounging around today and would only want to leave the hotel once the bars were open. Jinki had been talking about napping ever since they met up at the Incheon airport this morning, so it would probably just be them this afternoon.

Not that Minho was complaining, of course.

“No, I’m good with that.” Kibum smiled, turning to look out the window again. “What’d you have in mind?”

… … …

“What floor?”

Kibum’s eyes followed Minho as he leaned across him to press the button of the elevator. Fifth floor. He tapped their room key against his palm, glancing over Minho’s shoulder at the others. “Are you sure you guys are fine with me having the single room?” Jinki asked, his hands wringing around the handle of his carry-on bag.

“You asked for it,” Kibum said, snorting.

Jinki sighed. “I know, but -- “

Jonghyun cleared his throat. “I mean, Taemin and I are roommates, so this isn’t new for us.”

“Yeah, and you know how hyper Kibum and I can get," Minho said as he slung his arm over Kibum's shoulder, pulling him snug against him. "We wouldn't want to bother an old man like you with our bullshit."

Jinki cocked his head with a glare, feigning exasperation. "Really? We're already starting with the old man jokes?"

Jonghyun covered his mouth to keep himself from laughing and turned to Taemin to hide his amusement when the elevator stopped. The door opened and a family of white tourists coming on. Americans, it sounded like, based on their accent. They huddled in the middle, and Minho moved him and Kibum to the wall, while Jonghyun, Taemin, and Jinki did the same on the opposite side. Jinki covered his mouth with his fist, his shoulders shaking in silent laughter.

"Should I tell them we're not laughing at them?" Kibum whispered to Minho when the mother kept giving them weird looks.

"It's up to you."

He couldn't decide by the time they reached the fifth floor, and Minho swept him away and into the hallway, the other three following them. Minho dropped his arm from Kibum’s shoulder, and Kibum let out an almost sigh, already missing the weight of his arm. “523...52 -- This way!” Jinki said, turning around and leading the four of them down the long, beige hallway.

Kibum glanced around at the prints hanging on the walls, unsurprised to find picture after picture of the ocean or waves. His gaze fell to the royal blue carpet, and he smirked, leaning toward Minho. “I wonder where they got their inspiration for the decor.”

Minho took a quick cursory glance around, his eyes lighting with amusement before he looked Kibum’s way. “It’s unclear.”

“Mm. Maybe...just maybe...it has something to do with the sea.”

He hummed thoughtfully, stopping in front of their door as Kibum fiddled with the key card. “It’s possible. Or perhaps the ocean.”

“I see where you’re coming from. But I think it’s more from the sea.”

“But this is Ocean Suites, so…” His voice trailed off with a sarcastic lilt, and Jonghyun scoffed as he unlocked his and Taemin’s door on the other side of the hallway, letting Taemin head inside first.

“Text us when you want to eat,” he said to no one in particular, the door closing behind him.

“All I’m saying is that the ocean is more likely as a source of inspiration than -- “ Jinki sighed, his door slamming shut and making them both jump. “See, I told you you wouldn’t want to share a room with us!” Minho called out, and they leaned toward the door, waiting for Jinki’s laugh. When it came, Kibum grinned and slid their card into the slot and pushed the door open.

A blast of cool air caressed him as he walked inside, Minho closing the door behind him. “Right or left?” he asked when Minho followed him into the main room.

“Bummie, they’re separate beds.”

“Yeah, but -- “ Minho tossed his backpack on the left bed, leaving the one closest to the window for Kibum. “Thanks, you’re a total sweetheart.”

Minho blinked sarcastically. “Aren’t I just?”

Kibum shoved him, and Minho went limp as he fell onto his bed. He smiled then, dazzling as ever, and Kibum’s heart fluttered like it always did. He swallowed thickly, crossing his arms over his stomach as he sat on his own bed, facing Minho’s. “So, how have you been? It’s been a while.”

He rolled over onto his side, propping his cheek up on his fist. “We talk literally every day.”

“Not in person. It’s different.”

“Yeah.” Minho watched him for a second, his stare wandering until he blinked and met Kibum’s eyes again. “I’ve been okay. You?”

“Just okay?” Minho nodded, shrugging with one shoulder. “I’ve been fine.”

“Just fine?” Minho asked, mimicking Kibum’s tone. Smiling, Kibum nodded. A silent better, now that I’m with you hung in the air, waiting to be spoken. But some things were better left unsaid.

Back in college, Minho had been his almost, and there were moments -- like this -- where Kibum thought he might be aware of that fact. He had considered it, telling Minho how he felt, but when Minho said that his dad wanted him to come back to Incheon and work under him as his assistant coach… Kibum knew better than to interfere, knew better than to try his luck on a “what if.”

“I’m here if you need to talk about it,” Minho said, bringing Kibum back to the present. He shook the cobwebs of his college memories out of his head with a small smile.

“Thanks. Maybe later.” Minho started to sit up. "Did you eat breakfast?"

He nodded. "I mean, I could eat again, if you're hungry."

“Let’s go, then!”

… … …

“So, then you two broke up?” Minho asked, passing Kibum the cup of peach ice cream they were sharing. He nodded and Minho grinned, reaching out to ruffle his hair. “Is that why you dyed this, then? Emotional distress?”

Kibum scoffed, moving away from Minho and shaking his head, trying to get his hair back to its original style. “No, I just did this because I wanted to.” When he moved back to stand beside him, Minho reached over and brushed Kibum's fringe off his forehead. He smiled to himself as he took another spoonful of ice cream then passed it back to Minho. “I knew you’d tease me about my hair.”

“I’m glad I didn’t disappoint you, then.”

A sigh, and then Kibum reached for the ice cream, his fingers covering Minho’s as he took another spoonful. “But really, she and I just weren’t compatible. We were really only dating because our parents set us up.”

“Yeah, same.”

“Oh right, you broke up with Seulgi too, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, but that was months ago.”

Seulgi was one of the female soccer players that practiced after his dad’s team did. She had been wearing an oversized Park Jisung ManU jersey, and Minho had stopped to chat with her until both his dad and her coach were yelling at them to move on. The next time they saw each other was at a sports bar in town, and she drank him under the table. Their conversation slurred as the night went on, but when they made it back to her apartment, she had sobered up enough to push Minho out of her space, as they had been leaning on each other to be able to walk.

“Please don’t get the wrong impression,” she said as she fumbled with her keys. “I like you, but I’m not interested in you.”

Minho had been about to blurt out that he wasn’t interested in her either, when the door swung open, to reveal another woman, whose wide eyes met Minho’s when Seulgi’s inhibitions lowered enough for her to coo “Jagi-ya” at her as she stumbled in the house. Minho blinked, the term of endearment settling into his alcohol-addled. He smiled, his brow furrowing as he pressed his finger to his lips and nodded, and staggered off the porch and away.

“So, my parents want me to ‘find a nice boy and make him date me’,” Seulgi said once she pulled him aside before her practice started. A tired smile lifted her features. “Which is, you know, great for me.”

“Of course. I’m sure Joohyun is thrilled.”

Seulgi snorted. “So, listen...I was thinking…” Minho’s eyebrows raised and he glanced her way, already guessing where this was going. “Since I’ve got a girlfriend, and you’re still hung up on that Kibum guy…And since you’re the only nice guy I’ve ever met, I thought we could help each other get our parents off our backs.”

“As long as Joohyun is okay with it, sure.”

“Really?”

“We can date for as long as you need to, I don’t mind.”

She let out a sigh as she pulled him into a quick, tight hug. “You’re the best!” she called out over her shoulder, blowing him a kiss before she joined her team. Minho rolled his eyes with a smile.

Kibum snapped his fingers in front of Minho’s face, bringing him out of his memories. “Thought I lost you for a second.”

“Aww, were you worried you’d have to go on without me?” Kibum scoffed, his face coloring as he took the ice cream out of Minho’s hands. Minho grinned. “Did you miss me?”

“Yes,” Kibum said in a droll monotone. “Every moment that passes without you is a waste. Every second that you’re not beside me, I yearn for you.”

He grabbed Kibum’s arm, stopping him in the middle of the street, his expression one of faux agony. “I long for you with every breath that we're apart,” Minho said, finishing the lines from the play they had auditioned for, all those years ago. Kibum’s face scrunched up as he laughed and pushed Minho away, and Minho broke character, laughing with him. “God, what was that play?”

“The writers were just trying to invoke emotion.”

“At what cost?”

“Our sanity?” Kibum’s eyes met Minho’s then, and they both broke into a fit of giggles. He leaned on Minho to keep his balance. Once he had regained most of his composure, Kibum tossed the empty cup into the nearest garbage can, his spoon clattering onto the pavement. He bent over to grab it, and Minho put his own spoon into the garbage.

They started walking again, their shoulders bumping together. “I’m glad we decided to do this,” Kibum eventually said, his voice quiet. “To come here, I mean.”

Minho nodded. He had been surprised to get that text from Kibum that early in the morning. He had just been crawling into bed after playing video games until he was struggling to keep his eyes open. Truth be told, he had been relieved that Kibum finally texted him. It was strange to go almost a whole day without them really texting much, and he had been unsettled all day...until that moment. He sunk into bed, making himself comfortable before texting him back.

“Yeah, I really missed...you guys.” He gulped, glancing over to see if Kibum had caught his almost slip-up. “Honestly, we should do this more often.”

“I’m the only one who lives so far away, though. You four can still see each other more often,” Kibum said with an overly dramatic sigh. He grinned when Minho shoved him.

“Daejoon is probably the halfway point between us.” Not that he had looked that up or anything. Or checked out the restaurants there. Of course not. “We could always head there for the weekend. Or, you know, whatever works for you.”

Kibum looked at him, searching his expression with a suspicious twinkle in his eye. Oh shit, did he catch onto him? Before Minho could think of an excuse or explanation, Kibum’s phone chimed and he pulled it out. “Ah, Jjong is awake.” He texted him back, watching his screen until another message popped up. “They’re ready to eat.”

Minho glanced up, looking across the street to see Hwaro Hyang. He tapped Kibum’s arm and pointed at it, and Kibum nodded.

“Okay,” he said, Minho following him as he started to cross the street. “They’ll meet us there. We’ll get a table for us.”

When they said they needed a table for five, the hostess led them out onto the patio, bringing a chair over from one of the tables. “Your server will be right with you!”

“Thanks!”

The others arrived within a few moments of the bottles of soju and beer being brought to the table, and it wasn’t long before they ordered their fill of barbeque. As day transposed to night, and the comfortable haze of alcohol settled around them, Minho couldn’t help but stare at Kibum. He was dancing to one of f(x)’s older songs, the choreography sloppier than it should have been. He and Taemin and the group of girls who were also on the patio with them were having a great time dancing offbeat to the music blaring through the speakers.

He had asked Minho to dance with him, his fingers teasing down his arms as he reached for his hands. As much as he would have liked to, he was far more content to just sit back and enjoy Kibum’s uninhibited excitement.

He knew he was smiling like a lovestruck fool, but he just couldn’t bring himself to care.

… … …

“I bet he’ll confess by the end of the weekend.” Jonghyun pulled his beer away from his lips, frowning at Jinki until he nodded across the patio to where Minho was. He smirked then. “₩20,000 if he does,” Jinki said, holding out his hand for a shake of agreement.

Jonghyun took it, shaking it once. “They might not tell us, though.”

“True. But, we should be able to tell, right? They’ve never been great at hiding their feelings.”

“Yeah, to everyone except each other.”

Jinki laughed and took a swig of his soju. “I guess sometimes feelings are just more obvious to the people not wrapped up in them.”

Slowly, Jonghyun brought his beer back up to his mouth, hesitating for a second before he took a drink. His attention shifted from Minho and back to Taemin, his heart fluttering a little when he smiled his way.

… … …

Minho’s buzz had all but worn off by the time he dragged Kibum back to their room. Kibum, however, had had a few more bottles of soju before they left when the restaurant was closing. He was clinging to Minho like his life depended on it as he dug around for the key card in Kibum’s pocket, fishing it out and unlocking the door. It swung shut behind them as Minho maneuvered Kibum into the room and dropped him on his bed. He started to bend down to take off Kibum’s shoes for him when Kibum grabbed his hand, fiddling with his fingers.

“Stay with me,” he said, his slurred words ending with a giggle as Minho wiggled his fingers out of his grip.

“I am.” He pulled off one of Kibum’s shoes, tossing it toward the door. “We’re in the same room, Bummie.”

“No no no no no...no,” he stumbled over the words, shaking his head as he tried to sit up.

“Just lie down.” Minho tossed the other one aside before he stood and helped Kibum find his pillow. He pulled the covers over him, and Kibum grabbed his wrist before he could move away. He released him almost as soon as he grabbed him, but Minho didn’t pull back his hand. Not when Kibum’s fingertips grazed over his palm, a rash of goosebumps blooming across his skin. He laced their fingers together, squeezing his hand before his grip loosened.

But he didn’t let go.

“Stay with me.”

Minho opened his mouth, trying to think of a response.

His thumb brushed over the back of Minho’s hand, and he looked up, the light from the lamp gleaming in his eyes. “Please?”

Minho sighed, squeezing Kibum’s hand before he let go, his heartbeat pounding in his ears as he stepped into the bathroom. Deep breath in; long exhale out. His gaze flickered up, meeting his own eyes in the mirror before he shook his head slightly and grabbed two of the cups, filling them with water. After some digging into the drawers, he found some ibuprofen for when Kibum woke up.

He brought the cups and the pills out into the main room, his shoulders relaxing when he saw that Kibum was fast asleep, his arm stretched out across him. Minho set the cups down, one on each side of the nightstand, and then the pills closer to Kibum’s side. He checked to make sure that Kibum’s blanket was covering him before he turned off the light between them and settled into his own bed.

...

Sunday

Bright sunlight pierced the room, searing Kibum’s eyes as he started to open them. Groaning, Kibum curled up, pulling the covers over his head as he sank further into bed. “I’m never drinking again,” he mumbled to himself, pulling the covers back a fraction so he could see Minho.

Still asleep. Of course.

Kibum smiled despite the pounding of his head, his pained gaze flicking to the water and bottle of pills set out on his side of the nightstand. Slowly, he sat up, his stomach churning at the slight movement. He grabbed the cup of water and took a couple of sips before he picked up the bottle of pills and slid out of bed.

He braced himself on Minho’s bed as he walked past, being careful not to jostle it too much -- even if he knew Minho could sleep through a monsoon. Minho shifted, hugging his pillow a little tighter, and Kibum swayed for a second when he stopped, staring blearily. He smacked his lips in his sleep, his soft snoring continuing as he rolled over onto his back. A light rapping on the door drew his attention away, and Kibum staggered toward it.

Jonghyun grinned at him as the door swung open. “Get any sleep?”

Kibum started to nod but thought better of it. “Yeah.”

“Tae and I are heading down to breakfast, want to join us?”

“In a minute, gotta shower first.”

He let the door close and heading inside the bathroom. After he took his pills and drank the water, he turned on the shower. As much as he wanted to take a quick shower, once he stepped into the warm stream, he wanted to live in it. He sat on the floor of the shower, hugging his knees and closing his eyes as the water massaged his aching head.

How long he sat there, Kibum wasn't sure -- he just knew it felt amazing.

Once he stood, he washed his hair and body quickly and reluctantly vacated the shower. The bathroom was filled with steam, a sort of makeshift sauna. He wiped the mirror clean where his face was and he blow-dried his hair once he was dressed.

The ibuprofen must have taken effect because he felt marginally better as he stepped outside his and Minho's hotel room and started for the breakfast downstairs. He nodded to Jonghyun and Taemin, who were sitting on the same side of one of the tables -- Jonghyun sipping his coffee while Taemin was stuffing his face with a plateful of American food.

That actually...surprisingly...sounded good. He made himself a waffle and loaded up his plate with scrambled eggs and sausage links. He drowned it in syrup before he made his way over to Jonghyun and Taemin.

"Is Minho awake yet?" Taemin asked around his mouthful of food.

Kibum scoffed, cutting off the first bite of his waffle. "I know better than to try to wake him up." He smiled as he chewed, then swallowed. "As...funny as he is when he's grumpy, I'd rather not have that directed at me."

"Right."

"Like he'd ever really be grumpy with you." Kibum frowned mid-bite and looked at Jonghyun, who just laughed. "Forget it."

Jinki stumbled into the room, waving sleepily at them as he passed. “So, what’s the plan for today?” he asked once he sat across from Kibum with his own breakfast

Everyone turned to look at Kibum expectantly. He chewed quickly, swallowing. “Why is this on me?”

“It was your idea to come here?” Taemin said.

“I don’t know. I guess we could go to the beach?”

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

They ate quietly, Jonghyun picking food off of Taemin’s plate while they whispered back and forth to each other. Kibum watched them for a moment, amused, before he looked up to see if Jinki was paying any attention to them. He wasn’t.

Once Kibum finished eating, he got up to make a plate to take back to the room for Minho. By the time he finished with the waffle, Minho shuffled into the lobby, carding his fingers through his honey-blond hair. He sat in Kibum’s vacated seat, glancing his way with a sleepy smile. Kibum returned the smile and finished fixing him his coffee. He sat in the empty seat, setting Minho’s food in front of him, his smile growing when Minho looked up at him with adorably wide eyes.

“Thanks, Bummie,” he mumbled, picking up his fork and starting to eat. His hair was sticking up on one side, the wrinkles from his pillowcase indented on his cheek. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“Not as bad as I was expecting.” Minho nodded, cutting off another bite. “Thanks for setting out that stuff for me.”

Minho smiled, his eyes darting to meet Kibum’s for a second before they fell back to his plate. “Yeah, no problem.” He ate a couple more bites before he asked, “So, what are we doing today?”

… … …

"Ooo, watermelon." Minho glanced in the direction that Kibum was pointing. There was a small kiosk on the edge of the beach selling fresh fruit, ice cream, cold beverages. "That sounds good."

"Hm, it does," Jinki said absently, lifting his sunglasses so he could see better. "There are some empty spots in the shade over there." If Minho had been looking, he would have seen the empty lounge chairs under the umbrellas, but he was still focused on the fruit kiosk.

The others were already making their way over to the shade, quickly so no one else could snatch the vacant spots up, but Minho hung back, digging his wallet out of the pocket in his swimming trunks. Kibum called out to him when he got in line, and Minho waved him on to join the others. He was too far away, but Minho could almost hear Kibum sucking his teeth at him. Smiling, he turned back around, ordering a large platter of cut fruit and a couple of water bottles.

He carried it all carefully over to where Kibum, Jinki, and Taemin were making themselves comfortable, setting it by Jinki’s feet. “Woah, Min, what’s this for?”

Minho shrugged, opening one of the water bottles and passing it to Kibum. “I just thought it would be nice.” He avoided meeting Kibum’s eyes until he passed the water bottle back to him, his expression soft. Minho grabbed the bottle and took a sip, almost coughing it back up when Jonghyun clapped his hand on Minho’s shoulder, crouching beside him.

“Hey, wanna go play volleyball?” He turned and found the group of guys Jonghyun was gesturing at. Jonghyun hooked his arm around Minho’s neck, grinning at him. “I know it’s been a while since we’ve played, but I think we still have it in us.” He patted Minho’s chest before he stood, looking back at the other guys. “Anyone else want to come?”

Kibum scoffed, shaking his head as he snatched the water bottle from Minho’s hand. “Please, you guys were the dynamic duo.”

“Will you guys watch us?”

“From here,” Jinki said, pushing his sunglasses up his nose.

Jonghyun tugged on the back of Minho's tank top before he started running back across the sand, and Minho pulled off his sandals and sunglasses, setting them by the chair that Kibum was sitting in. “Hey,” he pulled out his wallet and handed it to Kibum who readily took it. “You mind watching this for me?”

“Not at all. Have fun,” he said, his dimples appear when he grinned. Minho started to smile, his drive to go join Jonghyun and the others dwindling. Until Jonghyun called him, that is. He let go of his wallet and jogged out onto the white sand.

… … …

It had been several years since Kibum had had the...opportunity to watch Minho play volleyball.

It was always just a recreational thing, since he played for the basketball and football teams at university. But, he liked to keep active, and it meant that Kibum always had something to do on the weekends because that’s when his games were and he always asked Kibum to come to watch him play.

Volleyball was his and Jonghyun’s game -- they dominated. Jonghyun’s slight stature always threw off new opponents, but he was a threat to be reckoned with. No one had better hustle than him on the court -- not even Minho -- and he could almost always perfectly set Minho up for the attack, no matter where he was on the court. There was a precision and fluidity to their movements that were unrivaled by anyone who dared oppose them.

Kibum’s breath hitched as Jonghyun set the ball up for Minho to attack, both of the guys on the opposite team jumping to block, and Minho tipped it across the net where it fell, untouched, in the sand.

He could hear their celebratory hollering from where he sat across the beach.

“Looks like they’re having fun,” Jinki said, grabbing another strawberry from the platter Minho had bought.

Kibum and Taemin gave unsynchronized hums in response. They had both been paying close attention to the game, but once Minho and Jonghyun's tank tops came off in the middle of the first match, they were both riveted. Not that Jinki minded, of course -- he had brought one of his books to read.

“Do you…” Taemin started to ask, his voice trailing off when Jonghyun moved to serve the ball.

“Do I what?” Kibum asked once the volley started.

“Do you think they need water?”

Oh...probably. It was a hot day and they’d been playing for a while...it’d only make sense. “We’ll be right back,” Kibum said, tapping the arm of Jinki’s chair. He picked up his and Minho’s half-drunk water bottle and Taemin did the same, and they ran out to them, standing on the sidelines. The ball was still in play, the longest volley of the match so far, both teams taking whatever attack the other could make. One, two, three, then over the net again until Jonghyun got the first touch.

For a split second, Jonghyun and Minho made eye contact -- Kibum assumed -- and Minho raced for the ball, lobbing it over on the second touch. It landed in-bounds on the backline of the opposite side, the other two guys scrambling to hit it and missing it by a hair. Taemin clapped loudly and Kibum let out an obnoxious cheer, drawing their attention.

Jonghyun jogged over first, taking the offered water bottle out of Taemin’s hands and taking a couple of quick sips before he drank almost all of it. Minho soon joined him, breathing heavily as he took the water bottle from Kibum.

“I think this is the game point,” he said between drinks. He bent over, grabbing his tank top from where he discarded it and wiped the sweat off of his brow and out of his eyes.

“Getting tired?” Kibum asked, holding out his hand for Minho’s tank top. He nodded, and Jonghyun huffed a laugh. “Are you having fun, at least?”

“Yeah,” Minho said with a small smile, and Kibum lowered his gaze, which locked onto his exposed torso.

“Well,” Taemin cleared his throat, crinkling the empty bottle that Jonghyun passed back to him. “You guys are doing great.”

“Thanks!”

Minho grabbed Kibum’s arm, pulling his attention away from Minho’s abs. “I think I have enough money, could you buy a couple more waters for us?”

“Uh, sure thing.”

Thanks, you’re the best.”

“I really am, aren’t I.”

Minho snorted and pulled Jonghyun’s attention away from Taemin with a pat to his shoulder. “Come on, we’re almost done.” He turned, and Kibum’s gaze lingered until Minho got into his ready position, glancing back over at them at the sidelines. Kibum immediately looked away, clearing his throat and discarding Minho’s tank top by his feet. When he looked back, Minho wore a cocky sort of smirk until Jonghyun served the ball.

Kibum rolled his eyes, huffing, and trudged back across the beach to where Jinki was lounging. “Did they win?”

He picked up Minho’s wallet. “Not yet,” he said, jogging as he ran over to the back of the line at the kiosk.

He opened Minho’s wallet, checking to see how much money he had before it came time to pay. Enough for three more bottles, it looked like. He was about to close it when he spotted a time-worn movie ticket stub. Curious, Kibum pulled it out.

Huh…

It was for Thor, the first one. He checked the date, his smile growing. It was the first movie they had went to together. Just them. The other three had already seen it, but Minho was busy studying when they went to the theater and he had asked Kibum to tag along with him. Afterward, they still didn’t want to head back to the dorm, so they hit the night market, eating as many samples as they came across.

Funny that he kept this…

“Sir?”

Kibum looked up to find that he was the next in line. He stuffed the ticket stub back in and pulled out the won he needed. “Hi, yeah, sorry…Three waters, please.”

… … …

"Good game!" Jonghyun called out to Sungwoo and Minhyuk, their opponents. Minho waved to them before he slipped his tank top back on and followed Jonghyun back to where the others were lounging in the shade. "Well, that was certainly fun," Jonghyun said, grinning up at Minho.

Minho slung his arm over Jonghyun's shoulders, holding him close for a second before releasing him. "I definitely missed playing with you."

"Same." He looked back to where the others were -- Kibum sliding into his seat and looking across the sand at Minho, holding up one of the bottles. Minho quickened his pace slightly, and Jonghyun hurried to keep up with him. "It was fun to show off a little, too."

He glanced down at Jonghyun before looking back at Kibum. "Yeah, it was."

Once they were back with the others, Taemin crossed his legs beneath himself and Jonghyun sat in the space he cleared for him. Kibum tossed Minho the water bottle he was holding. He sank down, sitting on the end of Kibum's lounge chair, his gaze slipping over to Kibum as he took a drink.

"Oh, you guys are back!" Jinki said, putting down his book to grab one of the wedges of watermelon. Minho grabbed the fruit platter, setting it between him and Kibum so everyone could finish it off. There were only a couple pieces left, and when Jonghyun took the last of it, he picked up the platter to return it to the kiosk.

Minho stretched his arms over his head, glancing out over the beach. Another volleyball game had already started -- two couples, it looked like. Seagulls cawed overhead as they searched for any scraps of discarded food. The breeze was warm, blowing through his still-sweaty hair. He turned his head, focusing on the cerulean waves washing ashore and the people chasing after them as they returned to the ocean.

He started to smile when he turned around, his eyes falling on Kibum who cocked his head in silent question. “Those are nice sunglasses,” he said, hoping his smile didn’t give him away.

“...Thanks? I just got them a couple of weeks ago, actually. They’re real Ray-Bans.” Taemin ooo’ed, and Kibum’s smiled at him. Minho held out his hand for them, and Kibum slowly took them off, squinting at Minho as he handed them to him.

His vision darkened when he slipped them on, the glare from the sun immediately going away. “Oh, they’re nice…” he said, flashing Kibum a smile before he jumped to his feet and started to run.

“Hey!”

There was laughter in his voice, and Minho’s smile turned into a grin as he ran through the crowded beach and to the water. The sand grew wet beneath his feet, a cool relief from the warmth of the dry sand, and water splashed around his ankles as he ran into the sea. The water was lapping around his knees before he started to turn around, only to be surprised by a splash drenching him.

"Come on, give them back!" Kibum said with a laugh, kicking more water at him as he turned fully around.

Minho took another step back, his eyebrows raising. "Come get them, then," he taunted, chuckling when huffed. He stepped back again, and again until the ocean reached his mid-thigh. Kibum followed him, raising his chin when he stood before him. For a split second, Minho was worried that Kibum was pissed at him, but it was soon eradicated by the appearance of Kibum’s dimples as he tried not to smile.

He took the sunglasses off, squinting at the sunlight shimmering on the surface of the water, and slipped them gently back onto Kibum’s face. “Better?”

“Yup.” Kibum smiled then, and if he hadn’t been wearing sunglasses now, Minho would have had a warning from the twinkle in his eye. He pushed Minho into the water, his laughter becoming distorted and warbled as Minho submerged. Minho wiped his face clean once he resurfaced and ran after Kibum before he got too far away. “No no no -- “ he chanted as he ran away, and he let out a yelp when Minho grabbed him from behind, picking him up in his arms. “What are you doing?” he yelled when Minho started to twirl him, water splashing around them.

He meant to just toss him into the water, really, he did, but Kibum didn’t stop clinging to him, and Minho tumbled into the water with him. Minho pulled them out of the water almost immediately, Kibum sputtering a laugh as he took his hands off from around Minho’s neck. Before he could think better of it, Minho reached out, adjusting Kibum’s sunglasses so they sat straight on the bridge of his nose.

Sighing, he sat back, creating a little bit more distance between them. Neither stood, the small waves rolling past their chests. Kibum stared behind him with a smirk. Minho turned to find Jinki, Jonghyun, and Taemin splashing around in the water a little ways away. “We should all go skiing,” he eventually said, and Minho looked back at him.

“Right now?”

Kibum snorted. “Sometime after Christmas. Don’t you think it’d be fun?”

“Have you ever skied?”

“Just water skiing.” Minho frowned in question, and Kibum smacked his shoulder. “Remember, I told you about that! It was a thing my parents liked to do during the summer.”

“Right...I’ve never skied.”

“You’ll probably be a natural at it, don’t worry.”

The breeze picked up, Kibum’s wet hair blowing into his face and sticking to the lens of his sunglasses. He tried to shake it off, but it wouldn’t budge. So, Minho reached out and brushed it away, fixing his part while he was at it. He couldn’t tell if Kibum was watching him when he dropped his hand -- the lens was quite dark and he couldn’t see his eyes. Minho cleared his throat when Kibum’s lips parted and lowered his gaze to the water between them.

“We should probably head back to the room and shower before we go out tonight.”

Minho’s brow furrowed. “Go out?”

Kibum’s lips curled up in a smile, and his attention turned back to the others. “Yeah, to the bar. Jinki mentioned it when you guys were playing volleyball.”

“Yeah, okay.” Minho pushed himself up, water dripping off of his clothes as he reached out to help Kibum up. Their joined hands lingered a second longer necessary as they made their way out of the water.

… … …

Thunder rumbled overhead, the promise of rain perfuming the air as Kibum and the others hurried into the Bluebird. Minho closed the bright blue door behind them, and they ventured into the main room.

A haze enveloped the room, the scent of old cigarettes clinging to the rafters and the gaudy red chandeliers. Colored lights cut through the haze, shining on the dance floor and the karaoke stage. Tall tables and supporting poles were scattered about the room, patrons roaming between the dance floor, the karaoke stage, and the bar for more drinks. Jonghyun and Kibum both looked at the current singer, cringing at how off-key they were. Minho laughed and pulled them away and toward the bar.

They ordered their drinks, setting up at the counter when Jinki started asking the bartender questions about the whiskey he had ordered. As soon as the last note played, Jonghyun shot up from the bar, abandoning his drink, and hurried to take the mic.

Three drinks later, and Minho had grabbed Kibum's hand, leading him away from the bar. He let go of him and hooked his arm around one of the poles, twirling around a couple of times until Kibum laughed. Then he grinned, stepped away from it, and took Kibum’s hand, letting him take him to the nearest open spot on the dance floor.

Kibum tried not to read too much into it -- they were both a little tipsy and just having fun, after all. But, it was a little hard not to get his hopes up with the way Minho’s hands kept slipping around his waist and pulling him closer. He had always been a tad flirtatious, especially after a few drinks, but...Kibum lost his train of thought when he met Minho’s eyes.

The blue light they were bathed in shifted to purple as Minho’s gaze caressed him, and he opened his mouth, starting to say something, only to clear his throat and look away. A small smile toyed with the corner of his mouth and he nodded to the empty stage. “You wanna?”

Kibum followed him up on stage and scrolled through the song choices. “Oh, they have Boa!”

“Of course they do,” Minho said as he adjusted the mic stand.

“Do you know Dangerous?”

“Just the choreography.” Kibum frowned his way and Minho just laughed. “We got drunk one night and instead of studying you showed me a bunch of live stages and we learned it.” Kibum selected it with a chuckle, the loud techno music booming from the speakers as the song began.

He did his best to sing and do the choreography with Minho, who was giving it his absolute everything. But when Jonghyun ran up to the stage, holding his phone like he was recording them, he couldn’t help but break and laugh. Minho stepped in, singing along slightly off-beat until Kibum could sing again. When the last note played, Minho held up his hand for a high five.

He grinned, tapping the back of his hand against Minho’s palm before he put the mic back on the stand. Kibum braced himself on Minho’s shoulder as they took the steps back down to the dance floor, and he followed him back to the bar through the crowded bar getting separated when a group of guys stepped between them.

Kibum stumbled over someone’s discarded shoe, reaching out to a nearby table to brace himself but accidentally grabbing the arm of one of the nearby patrons. “Sorry,” he said, patting their arm before he let go and started to move away. Only, someone grabbed his arm and whipped him around.

The guy was a little taller than Kibum, and about the same size, bulk-wise. If it came to that, Kibum could probably hold his own against him, as much as he detested the thought. He shrugged the man’s hands off of his arms only for him to grab him again, squeezing a little tighter this time.

“Hey, it was an accident, I didn’t mean to grab you.”

“Me?” The guy shook Kibum. “You touched my fucking girlfriend!”

“And I said I’m sorry?” Kibum batted his hands away again, his brow furrowing. “Obviously, I didn’t mean anything by it, so if you could just fuck off now so we can all move on with our night, that’d be great.”

He grabbed the front of Kibum’s shirt, pulling him a little closer. “No one touches my girlfriend without my say so.”

“I think you mean without her ‘say so.’ It’s her body, dude, not yours.” He tried to push him away, but his fist tightened in Kibum’s shirt.

“Junho, just leave him be,” the guy’s girlfriend said, trying to step between them. “I’m fine, nothing happened.” Junho shoved her away, and she stumbled into the table, catching herself before she fell.

Oh, fuck, the guy was belligerently drunk. Kibum wrenched himself free of his hold and backed away, standing between him and his girlfriend. A pair of hands slipped around Kibum’s waist. He didn’t even have to look up to know that it was Minho turning and guiding him back to the bar. Junho staggered forward, yelling something that Kibum didn’t quite catch.

The crack then tinkling of glass was unmistakable, however, but Kibum didn’t feel the blow. Instead, Minho slumped against his back and Kibum turned, catching him before he fell to the floor. “Min?” His eyes opened slowly, and he stared at the floor beyond Kibum. “Minho?”

The bar bustled to life around them, but Kibum didn’t pay them any mind. He cupped Minho’s face in his free hand, looking into his eyes until Minho focused on him.

“Let’s get you out of here.”

… … …

All was quiet in the bathroom of the bar, except for the dripping of one of the sinks. Minho leaned against the wall and Kibum sat crouched before him, holding the bag of ice he got from the bartender where the bump on the back of his head was. Minho kept his eyes closed, the dim light of the bathroom still too bright for him right now, and focused on the steady, soothing strokes Kibum’s other hand made against his side.

“You’ve gotta keep talking to me, Min,” he said, his voice strained.

He had already thrown up. Twice. Kibum stayed beside him both times, rubbing his back and dabbing the sweat from his brow with a wet paper towel.

“Thanks, Bummie,” he whispered.

He scoffed. “What are you thanking me for? I’m the one who got you hurt…”

“For...making sure I’m okay.” He opened his eyes then, barely, and Kibum immediately met his gaze. “And don’t blame it on yourself. It’s not your fault. Better me than you.”

“Hey, no, that’s not true. You think I like seeing you like this?” Minho sniffed, the need to cry building up and making his headache worse. He closed his eyes again and Kibum sighed, his thumb brushing away the first of Minho's fallen tears. "How are you doing?"

Before he could answer, the bathroom door creaked open and Kibum retracted his hand as quiet footsteps approached. "You doing okay, Minho?" Taemin whispered -- Kibum must have told him to stay quiet.

"Yeah."

"The bartender made you another ice pack and found some tylenol."

"What about the guy?" Kibum asked.

"He got thrown out."

"Okay, thanks, Tae." The door opened and closed once more, and Kibum carded his fingers through Minho's hair, massaging the crown of his head lightly.

"Are you mad at me?" Minho asked with a heavy sigh.

"Of course not. Here." The pills rattled together as Kibum opened the bottle and he grabbed Minho's wrist, opening his palm. "Take these." Minho slightly opened his eyes again, sipping the offered water and taking the pills in his hand.

Kibum leaned forward, pressing Minho's head until his forehead rested on his shoulder. "Just a second," he said, his breath ghosting over the shell of Minho's ear. Something wet splatted off to his right, and the new ice pack was pressed against the back of his head. "Lean back now."

His thumb caressed Minho's cheekbone, and he opened his eyes. Kibum started to pull away but Minho grabbed his hand and rested their joined hands in his lap, lacing their fingers together. "This is probably a weird time to say this but, uh, I'm really glad we got to come here. To Jeju. Together. I’ve been, well, pretty lonely since we all left college, but..." Kibum squeezed his hand, and Minho looked up at him. "This trip has been nice."

"Except for this part," Kibum said with a soft laugh.

Minho smiled then huffed when the throbbing of his head increased for a second. "This part is still nice. Being with you is...is nice."

Kibum searched his expression, his eyes brightening slightly in the dim light. Then, he smirked, looking down at Minho's chest. "I don't think you realize what you're saying."

"Because of my head?" Kibum nodded, his gaze slipping back to meet Minho's. "You're right. Maybe that's why I'm finally saying it, but -- "

"Finally?"

Minho sighed and reached back to adjust his ice pack. "I've missed you. A lot. Ever since I dropped you off at the train station so you could go back to Daegu." A small smile bloomed on Kibum's face. "That's...that's when I knew. For sure."

"Knew what?"

Minho squinted at him then smiled when he saw Kibum’s smirk. “Do I really have to say it?”

He shrugged, squeezing Minho’s hand. “Not if you don’t want to.” Minho’s gaze dropped to Kibum’s lips, just for a second, and when he looked back up he found that Kibum was doing the same. His eyebrows raised in silent question when Kibum’s eyes met his once more. In answer, Kibum’s hands gently cupped Minho’s face, holding his head steady as he leaned in.

The kiss was softer than Minho had expected their first kiss to be.

Perhaps it was because of his probable concussion, but Kibum was being extraordinarily gentle with him. He wanted nothing but to melt into Kibum’s arms, to relish in this moment that he’d wished for. That he’d dreamed of for years. When Kibum started to pull away, Minho reached out with his free hand and grabbed his shirt, pulling him back. Kibum smiled against his lips, deepening this kiss as he leaned as much into Minho as their positions would allow.

He pulled back, leaving Minho a little breathless, but didn’t lean away. Their noses brushed together as Kibum rested his forehead against Minho’s, and there was a smile in his voice when he said, “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.”

The door opened again, and Kibum scooted away from Minho and looked toward whoever it was while Minho adjusted his ice pack again.

"You doing alright?" Jinki asked, his voice echoing slightly.

"Yeah, I think the tylenol is starting to kick in."

"Good. Just say the word and I'll get you a taxi back to the hotel."

Kibum looked back at him with a small smile. "We'll be back in a minute," Minho said and Kibum turned back to Jinki, nodding.

"Okay." Jinki slipped out of the doorway, letting the door creak shut behind him.

… … …

"Are they doing okay?" Jonghyun asked Jinki as he returned to his place beside him at the bar.

Jinki smiled, swirling his beer around in his glass. "Yeah. I think I walked in mid-confession."

"Oh?" Jonghyun sat up, his attention snapping to Jinki. "Are you sure?"

"I mean, they looked like they were about to kiss…Or just kissed..." Jinki shrugged, then, with a bright smile, held out his hand to Jonghyun. Sighing, Jonghyun dug into his pocket for his wallet, fishing out ₩20,000 and passing it over to Jinki. "It's about time, don't you think?"

"Yeah," he said, glancing over to where Taemin was singing karaoke. "It is." He finished the rest of his beer, pushing away from the bar. "I'll be right back,"

If Kibum and Minho could finally admit their feelings for each other, then so could he…

Taemin smiled at him as he approached the stage, and Jonghyun returned it, stuffing his hands in his pockets while he waited for him to finish singing. When he did, Jonghyun held his hand out and Taemin readily took it, hopping off the stage.

"Hey."

"Hey...can we talk?"

… … …

“Woah…”

Kibum stopped, steading Minho when he swayed once he was standing. “You good?”

“Head rush. I’m fine.” He huffed a laugh. “God, I hate headaches.”

“We can leave as soon as you need to, okay?”

Minho started to nod, but instead said, “Okay.”

He guided him out the door and into the noisy bar, returning him to his spot on the bar. Minho’s hand settled on his thigh as Kibum ordered him a glass of water. Jinki turned to them and Kibum swiveled around on his stool, finding Jonghyun lead Taemin away from the dance floor and out the front door. “Oh, is it finally happening?”

Minho hummed in question and Jinki asked, “What?”

“Nothing.” He swiveled back to face Minho, finding him squinting in the light. “Here.” He took his sunglasses out of his pocket and gingerly put them on Minho. “Better?”

“Much.”

By the time Minho finished sipping his water, Jinki had gotten a taxi for them to head back to the hotel. Jonghyun and Taemin were waiting for them by the curb, both drenched from the drizzle. Both were grinning, though, despite their shivering. Kibum thought about asking them what happened, but the cab arrived. They filed inside and Jinki gave the driver the address and they were off.

Minho leaned his head against the window, wincing when there was a pothole. Kibum touched his arm and Minho looked over. He patted his shoulder and Minho slowly scooted over, resting his head on Kibum’s shoulder with a sigh.

Someone cleared their throat, and Kibum looked over to find Jonghyun watching them. He glanced at Minho then back to him, his eyebrows raising. Kibum nodded and Jonghyun grinned, then Kibum glanced pointedly at Taemin before looking back at Jonghyun. His grin turned to a shy smile, and Taemin leaned closer to him, distracting Jonghyun from his and Kibum’s silent conversation by whispering in his ear.

Kibum looked away, giving them a bit of privacy.

“You still doing okay?” he whispered when the lights from the hotel came into view.

“Yeah.”

“We’re almost there.”

The elevator ride seemed longer than normal, and Kibum helped Minho maintain his balance as they reached their floor. “So I texted Chinri,” Jinki said as they walked down the corridor. “And she said that it’s okay if you sleep with a concussion.”

“Okay,” Kibum answered for him. “Did she give any special instructions?”

“Maybe wake him up every few hours? Make sure he’s still doing okay.” He pulled out his phone, scrolling through the texts between him and his wife. “If you want to, Min, you can head home with me and she can check you out for free after her shift tomorrow.”

“Yeah, that works.”

“Let us know if you need anything, okay?” Jonghyun said once they stopped at their doors. Kibum nodded and unlocked the door, letting Minho go in first.

“Do you want the light on?” Kibum asked once the door closed behind him.

“Uh, I guess.” Kibum flicked it on as Minho walked into the bathroom, wetting his toothbrush.

He brushed his teeth and Kibum went to the main room to change into his sleeping clothes. He turned down Minho’s bed before he crawled into his own. As much as he would like to sleep in the same bed, he wasn’t quite sure if Mino was ready for that. All doubts, however, were eradicated when Minho came back into the main room, glanced at his bed, and walked over to Kibum’s with a question in his expression.

Kibum scooted over, trying very hard not to smile as Minho slipped beneath the covers with him. He curled into him, his arm draping over his stomach as he settled into bed. “Sleepy?”

“No.” He sighed, his breath tickling Kibum’s neck. “Okay, yeah...but I don’t want to sleep. I’d much rather talk with you.”

Kibum stroked Minho’s back, pulling him a little closer and kissing his forehead. “Go ahead and sleep. I’ll wake you in a few hours, and we can talk then, okay?” His eyes fluttered closed when Minho kissed his neck. He could feel his smug smile against his skin, and he shifted away so he could look him in the eye. Kibum brushed his hair off of his forehead, his hand cupping Minho’s cheek. “As much as I want to, you need your rest, right?”

“Yeah. It’s just…” Minho sighed sadly. “We’re going home tomorrow. And who knows how long it’ll be before we see each other again.”

“Hey, it’s okay.” He brushed his thumb over the scar on Minho’s cheekbone, his expression softening when Minho leaned into his touch. “We’ll figure something out, alright? Don’t worry.” Kibum closed the distance between them, guiding Minho into a tender kiss that led to another and another. They both sighed when Kibum pulled away, and he leaned over Minho to grab his phone from where it was charging on the nightstand. Quickly, he set a series of alarms and he placed his phone on his side of the bed.

He leaned back over him, flicking off the light and covering them in darkness. “Get some sleep, Min. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

Minho wrapped his arm around him again and nuzzled into his neck. “I already can’t wait.”

...

Monday

7:48 // I already miss you how pathetic is that?

7:49 // I would say very but then I’d be calling myself pathetic so

7:49 // you miss yourself? Self-absorbed much? Just look in a fucking mirror and move on with your life

7:51 // ㅋㅋㅋ obviously I was talking about missing you ㅋㅋ

7:51 // oh I know...it’s just nice to hear is all :-)

7:53 // ㅋㅋ you’re cute

7:53 // I’m well aware but thank you for noticing

7:55 // hey I'm boarding now so I’ve gotta go 7:57 // are we still meeting in Daejoon on Friday?

7:57 // yup, I can’t wait

7:58 // me too <3

23 notes · View notes

fresh-outta-jams · 5 years

Text

Signed, Sealed, Delivered - Part 10

Namjoon x Reader Author: Admin Mo Summary: You’re in college by the time your soulmate tattoo finally shows up, an address. Sending a letter couldn’t hurt, right? Note: hehehehehe Warnings: Some swears, soulmate fluff, mentions of Exp*nsive G*rl... Word Count: 1.8k

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, Epilogue

“Okay, I have two things.”

Namjoon sat at attention, that curious, inquisitive, and slightly concerned look in his eyes. It was like he could feel the tension waiting behind your words. “Yeah?”

“Okay, first, tell Jungkook I’m gonna fight him.”

He laughed. “Can I ask why?”

“This boy...every time I try to play Superstar BTS his rap in No More Dream ruins my perfect streak.”

“Valid. What was the second thing?” Namjoon tilted his head to scratch the back of his neck, leaning further against his desk chair. He had gone into the studio extra early today. You admired his dedication.

“Well, I kind of, uh…” Your cheeks flushed red. Maybe bringing this up wasn’t going to be as easy as you thought it would be, but you pushed on nonetheless. “I was digging around on Twitter, you know, like I do, and I, uh...so one of my mutuals sent me a really old...song of yours...”

For a second, Namjoon didn’t really get what you were talking about, but then, eyes widening, He Did. “No, tell me you didn’t…” He covered his reddening cheeks with a large hand, hiding his face from you. “Baby, I am so, so sorry you had to hear that. It was a long time ago and I want you to know that I’m not like that at ALL anymore and--”

“Joonie, it’s okay.” You giggled at the look on his face. He was so worried about it, it was adorable. You swore you’d never seen his cheeks so red. “Sweetie, really, it’s fine. You were like eighteen. You don’t even want to know all of the cringy shit I did six years ago.”

“Okay…” He nodded, taking a few deep breaths. Something settled over him. You couldn’t tell quite what it was, but perhaps he had been thinking about something. “I was thinking about this the other day, and it made me really sad.”

“What?”

“I’m never going to get to take you to prom.”

“Aww, Joonie, that’s okay. Prom is overrated anyway.”

“Well, yeah, maybe, but it’s not just that. I’m never going to get to ask you to prom. I’m never going to get to see you in your prom dress or take you on an awkward first date and be so, so nervous to hold your hand.” He let out a long sigh. “I hate that we’re so far apart, jagiya, I just want to see you. I think it’s killing me inside. What is it you call it in the States? Soul…”

“Soul sickness. I know. I feel it too. And it hurts, but it won’t always, right? It’s gonna take a little while, but we’ll get there.” You tried to be reassuring, but you were in pain too. “And then you can awkwardly hold my hand.”

He smiled a little, almost hesitant. “You promise?”

“I promise.”

***

“Dear Namjoon,

I’m madly and entirely in love with you. I really don’t know what to do. My whole day revolves around seeing you, talking to you, even if it’s only for a little while. Someday, I’m going to be standing in front of you, and that boggles my mind. I’m 100% sure you give the best hugs ever, and I can’t wait to test out that hypothesis.

I’ve been watching all of your interviews, English and otherwise, and I can’t get over the way you hold yourself. You’re such a leader, so intelligent. You always know what to say. I’ve also been watching a lot of your concert videos and good lord, is it possible to be bias-wrecked by your bias?? Holy shit, Namjoon, your stage presence is something else entirely. My roommate is always worried my jaw is going to get stuck open.

I’m sorry my letters keep getting shorter. I have more homework this semester than I did last semester. It’s been keeping me pretty busy and I-”

Mid-sentence, your phone rang. Namjoon never called at this time, and yet, there he was, calling you. You picked up, a puzzled look on your face.

“Jagiya, can I talk to you about something important?” Namjoon paused and looked at his wrist, running the numbers in his head. “Wait, shouldn’t you be asleep?”

“I should be, but I’m not. Continue.” You took a long sip of coffee from your favorite travel mug.

“Are you sure? You look tired. It can wait until tomorrow if you-”

“Namjooooon, just say what you need to say.” You whined, silencing his protests.

“Alright. So. I just got out of a meeting, and I have some good news and I could not wait a single minute to tell you.” He waited for a reaction, but you tilted your head, urging him to continue. “I did some digging and some research and I talked to some people, and everything is going to work out the way I thought it would, and--” Namjoon cut off his ramble. “Sorry. Anyway. I...Well, you know how you said you didn’t know what you were doing this summer and you wanted to get a job to help with school?”

“Yes…”

“Well, I kind of...found you a job.”

“Elaborate.” You only kind of understood the point your boyfriend was trying to make.

“So, you know how when we go on tour, we have a ton of camera people doing all of the behind the scenes stuff? I figured, since you know how to use cameras and stuff, you can just...come with us.”

It still wasn’t connecting all the way just yet. “Wait, give that to me one more time. You want me to...”

He smiled softly, his voice getting gentler. “Baby...I want you to come on tour with me. I want you to get paid to spend every second for several months with me.”

“I’d get paid...to film you. And stay in hotels with you. And…”

“And travel the world with me. I mean, well, if you want to, of course. I just...I thought…”

“Well, yes, obviously my answer is yes.” You wiped at the happy tears trailing down your cheeks. “Oh my god, Namjoon, yes.”

“Good. Good, okay. Alright, awesome.” His heart was pounding hard, threatening to leap right out of his chest. “I’m gonna email you the paperwork tonight and then you can print it out and just mail it to me and I’ll handle the rest, alright?”

“Okay. Alright. Yes. Yeah. Oh my God.”

He chuckled, looking over your shocked state. “Breathe, baby, just breathe, alright?”

“I’m trying to.” You replied, sucking in a long breath and letting it out. “Holy shit, Namjoon, thank you so much.”

“No, thank you for saying yes. I think honestly I would have collapsed on the spot if you said no.”

“Why the fuck would I say no?” You laughed, snagging a tissue from your desk to wipe at your tears. “You are the love of my life, there’s no way I would turn an opportunity like that down.”

“Okay, good.” He smiled, dimples on full display. You swore your heart stopped then and there as you were left to bask in the glory that was your gorgeous boyfriend. His expression softened as he looked at you, and he let out a soft groan. “Ugh, I love you so fucking much. I just want the tour to be here now.”

“I love you too, Joon. And believe me, I’m already counting down the days.”

***

With Parts 1, 2, and 3 of his plan accomplished successfully, Namjoon decided it was time to move on to Phase 2, which would consist of several more parts. The first, and arguably the easiest of these, was to creep on your Twitter, which he usually did anyway.

This time, however, he would be snooping through your followers, not your posts, although he did stop to reread your ReTweet of a picture he had posted a few days before. Your response was something along the lines of ‘oh my GOD why is he so BeAuTiFuL?!?!’ Even after all of these months, he still wasn’t sure how you thought that, but it made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside nonetheless.

Refocusing on his plan, Namjoon clicked on your followers and scrolled through the list. It was short, as you had said, but that made it a lot easier to find who he was looking for. Luckily for him, you talked about your friends a lot, so it wasn’t too difficult to pick Lily and Grace from the list. He followed each of them, waited a few minutes, and then messaged them.

RM_fan_94: Hi, are you Lily and Grace? This is Namjoon, (Y/N)’s soulmate…

***

“Dear (Y/N),

As I’m writing this letter, I only have to wait four precious months before I finally get to see you. Four months. It seems so far away, but every single day, it gets closer. Before you know it, you’ll be in my arms. God, that makes me the happiest man in the world. I have a countdown on my phone to the exact minute I get to see you.

I’m seriously so excited. I’ll finally get to introduce you to the boys, I’ll get to take you to Europe, I’ll get to show you around Seoul, and if we have time, we can stop in Ilsan and you can meet my parents and my sister. They’ve been dying to finally meet you. My sister is seriously so excited. And you’ll get to meet my dog!!

So, I’ve been reading the books you sent me and I love them. God, why are you so good at everything? My treasured Petoskey stone is sitting on my night stand. I kiss it every night and every morning. That was embarrassing, forget I said that.

I hope your classes aren’t killing you too much. It sounds like they’re really weighing you down this semester, and that makes me sad. Just hang in there, alright? The end is near. I love you, and I believe in you. Fighting!

The boys are so excited to meet you, Jimin especially. I can’t wait for them to meet you. And you’ll finally get to see us in concert!! I’m arranging to get you tickets for one of the shows so you can just watch and not work and enjoy it at least once. It’ll probably be one of the US shows so you can actually understand what we’re saying.

Oh!! And when we’re on tour, in our downtime, I can teach you some Korean!! If you want, I mean. You don’t have to if you don’t want to. But that would be so cute. And we can match outfits and hold hands and go on dates in foreign countries...I’m getting too excited, jagi, sorry.

I love you so, so, so, so, so, so much and I seriously cannot wait to see you.

-Namjoon”

***

You waited in front of the printer in the school library anxiously waiting for the printer to spit out the very, very important documents you had to fill out and send to your boyfriend.

You read over it a little, holding them in your shaking hands before leaving the printing room and sitting down outside the tea shop. You clicked your pen a few more times, reading over the words carefully before you began filling them out.

Tagged: @iie-wakarimasen, @ffantasylandd, @jooniefluff, @chimchimsauce, @mrs-saeyoung-choi, @theprinceoftheundead, @angyexoxo, @copenhagenspirit, @lovelylittlekittn, @lilgaga98, @iminlovewjjk, @feed-my-geek-soul, @loveandwitch, @recoveringflowerchild, @demonic-meatball, @maddieisaacs, @scissorsandtonfas, @carirosesg, @backtonormalthings, @local-mochi, @faliwi, @spoopyela, @nanie5, @ingenu--e, @undiscovered1personality, @andalos, @calspixie, @filtermono, @huhuehuey, @mikey-girl12, @lilliaflurr, @hypophrenium, @sitkafay, @spiicyari, @andeerwilson, @btswerewolfaus, @oyasumi7, @mycurrentusernameisalreadytaken

#kpopwonderlandtag #armyofwriters #namjoon x reader #namjoon imagine #namjoon #rm #rm x reader #rm imagine #bts #bts imagine #fluff #soulmate au #signed sealed delivered

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minimickzy · 6 years

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In-between || part 5

The world was turning upside down, Derry Maine had a killer clown on the loose and it was you and your friend’s self-assigned job to kill it.

A crossover series of It and Stranger Things x reader

Characters: Reader, Eleven, Richie Tozier, Mike Wheeler, (the losers club, Will Byers, Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, Max Mayfield, mentioned)

Unedited

Word count: 1183

Warning: brief gore, pennywise

A/n: I’m going to be making a playlist so send in some songs, let me know if you want to be tagged

part 1 || part 2 || part 3 || part 4 || part 6

The two of you walked on in the black surroundings, sometimes odd noises would echo through sending shivers down your spine. Whatever the in-between was you sure as hell didn’t like it. It felt like it was crowded but there was nothing there.

You were giving up any hope you had at this point, it felt like you’d been walking for a hour. El suddenly stopped and held her hand up to tell you to follow her movements. She closed her eyes, what the fuck does she think she’s doing? Her eyes shot open again startling you she pointed over your shoulder. “Is that them?” You whipped your head around and gasped when you saw the rest of the losers.

They were all breathing heavily, their eyes wide with fear. Beverly was holding Bill. Wonder what I️ missed there? Their bikes were piled up behind them. “It saw us,” Eddie spoke shakily, “It saw us and it knows where we are!” You took a step forward but before you could take a second a firm hand on your shoulder stopped you. “Their not really here.” You looked back at her frowning before Bill's voice brought you back to focus on the group. “It always did... S-so let's go.” “go? go where?” Ben voice cracked. “Neibolt... thats where G-Georgie is.”

“After that?” Stan asked. “yeah it's summer, we’re supposed to be ou-” Richie started “If you say it's summer one more f-fucking time... (y/n) could be there.” The rest of the losers protested as he hopped on his bike and started to peddle away, all but Rich. “Fuck that house gives me the creeps.” Richie muttered before he too picked up his bike and started follow, the rest of them falling in line not long after.

“I️ know where they're going. They’re going to get themselves killed.” You muttered. “If I️ got you home could you get there? Could you stop them?” El asked, You nodded, “get me to the upside down and I️ can get there.” Eleven's face was dark and serious. She touched your forehead and you were back in bed at the Cabin. She stood up immediately “we have to go.”

You jumped up forgetting how weak you were and started to tip over. Lucky for you Mike was there to catch you and help you upright. “Thanks.” He still had his hands on you back and waist. “Y-yeah, no problem.” You heard the door slam open and looked away from Mike to see El already walking out the door. “shit.” you muttered and started after her.

The boys all followed you until El yelled back and told them she’d come and get them after, then it was just the two of you. She didn't talk much, not that you minded. She didn't seem to like you every much anyway. You started to recognize things from yesterday, when you had ran through the woods to Mike’s. You didn't know how she knew where to go but you thought it best not to ask either. You saw the lab and knew you were getting closer. Thank god your feet hurt like a son of a bitch.

You started to feel the same pull you did earlier at the sewers. She was walking away from it and you stopped. “It’s this way.” She turned at your words and frowned. “Trust me.” her body visually relaxed as she started to walk the way you said. Sure enough after a few minutes more there it was.

A multi-dimensional rip in time and space. Neither of you said a word or dared to move a muscle. “Go.” With only one word she managed to frighten the living shit out of you. You nodded and went to the hole. You put your arm through first and then pushed your body in right after. Once again you were covered with thick slime in the upside down.

“Damn it!” You yelled trying to wipe some of it off. El came through right after you. She didn't waste any time and looked at you expectantly, “Bring me to the house.” You didn't hesitate to follow her instructions. After walking for a few minutes you got a sinking feeling in your chest. It felt like something was wrong. Something bad was going to happen. You started to pick up your pace.

“We need to go faster.” Dull pain started to run through the course of your body. Your legs started running. You could feel El close on your heels. Soon you could see the house through the trees, the ringing in your ears had started again, still building much slower than before. You ran up the steps. You could feel the energy of the clown. But worse you could feel the fear of your friends.

You didn't know how, you didn't think you wanted to. You felt a pull again and ran towards it. It brought you to a room, there were sheets covering the furniture and two large stained glass windows. The only light in the room was a blue glow from a coffin centered between the widows. Well guess this is happening.

El stepped toward it and looked down. “Go. I’ll bring the others. Meet here tomorrow.” You frowned, “why?” “Because it's our fight too now.” “You don't hav-” Before you could finish she cut you off. “Friends don't lie. I will be back, tomorrow.” Before you could fight past the shock of her words she had ran out of the room. “Go!” she yelled and before you could stop yourself you lifted yourself into the coffin.

You found the edge of the coffin and pulled yourself through. This slime is fuckng gross. The sheets were gone, clowns taking there place. You heard Eddie's scream echo through the house. “Shit.” You ran to the door but on the other side you found a thick coating of black puss. The ringing in your ears started to rise again and without putting more thought into it you ran straight through it. When you reached the other side you looked back and it was gone.

You ran down the hall and down the steps, picking up a broken part of the banister on the way. You rounded the corner and saw Richie and Bill facing the clown, Eddie was holding his arm crying. “Holy shit.” Richie muttered as the clown started to stand up. “I was real enough for Georgie.” the clown smiled. You felt the pain and rage radiate from your heart. the clown started for Bill and Richie who grabbed onto each other from fear.

You stepped out in front of them and stabbed the clown with the banister. Dark thick blood started to rise from the hole. Eddie started to scream, the ringing was growing loud enough you could barely hear and the pain was almost unbearable. Everything happened so fast. Richie yelled your name and black started to surround your vision. The rest of the losers came and everyone was yelling. It was all a blur. The ringing over powered the yells and then everything went black.

taglist:

@thekidsofneibolt @mcheung0314 @dolphin-laugh @obscureinfinities @themaddesthattter @rosiexix @thatcrazyfangirlmaze @richletozler @ashlynstyles1 @georgies-boat @pinetree111 @omg-its-rachael @tiozerwheelr@rubi54 @aguirreagre @hey-margot @ms-melody-mikaelson @stranger-it2004@music-nerd-27 @jackyfrost01 @winkharem @miathefangirlwriter @littlxshit @personalokime @supergalaxykittens @the-rad-mad @tsunderequeenb@liyahisdabomb @ouhwale @stressedoutkylo @fandomlover03 @voguesbruise@marvelgirl2118 @xoxoalisonjane @giantpersonalitysmallcontainer @bubble-nubble @stanleyboii @roman-holiiday @holiravioli @supergleeflash @kerridelaney @lanaunknown21 @o-starshine @xoxoalisonjane @aramira-oakenshield-riddle @tvdstiles @flyingbluecar @youngkobrakidjackson @rosey515 @secretaccountoflevi @fandomlover03 @charmingtozier @solluxeun @jlsxv @bailey121302 @loveroflps59 @holywinchesterness @huntermichelle @notalxx @rubi54 @weeabootie @phoenixwwitch

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hufflepuffmarlenemckinnon · 6 years

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Dog meets Duckling

An Excerpt from my Novel-Length Fanfic The Dog and the Duckling

Summary: Sirius is assigned to mentor Marlene Mckinnon when she joins The Order of the Phoenix. His perceptions of Hufflepuff house are drastically changed, and so is his life.

Rated Teen mostly for language and innuendo.

A/N: So most everyone who follows me will have gathered that I headcanon Marlene as Duck animagus for a lot of the fic I write. I decided to put some of the backstory of that up on Tumblr in case anyone was curious. I’ll keep these blurbs listed in chronological order on my Fic Masterlist.

August, 1980

“I need new friends.”

Sirius mumbled empty insults under his breath. His closest friends had left him in the lurch. Sure, they had a valid reason, what with their 6 day old baby and all...He didn’t really think that they should have planned their family with more consideration for him. But he couldn’t help feel annoyed at the new duties to The Order of the Phoenix he would pick up due to James Potter’s absence for the next 8 weeks.

He felt a smile coming on as he imagined little Harry giving them at least a tiny bit of hell.

James Potter was probably changing a nappy at the very moment that Sirius attempted to keep his eyes open while reading over files on the newly enlisted witch he’s be mentoring. James’s task would be more brief but certainly had a more unpleasant odor. The little parlor room The Order of the Phoenix rented at The Leaky Caldron was perhaps a bit musty from old furniture and neglect, but that was the worst of it.

Sirius has persistent doubts that he’d be a suitable mentor. He didn’t really understand why Dumbledore chose him to take up this slack.

He went over the possible reasons in his head. Because pointless mental conjecture was one of the long list of things that Sirius Black enjoyed more than paperwork.

I suppose I was the next best thing?

He wasn’t. He knew this. The Potters were the sort of people that took naturally to leadership. They’d been head boy and girl during their 7th year at Hogwarts and they were both more patient and more responsible than most people in their early 20s. Sirius was a far cry from that description.

Two years out of Hogwarts, the goals he’d accomplished were less, “find a wife, buy a house, have a baby” and more “try not to be a gigantic twat to anyone today”.

He was fairly pleased with his progress in being less of a twat. He hadn’t been born to be a good or a kind person because certainly none of his family possessed those qualities. He didn’t even become aware that it was an option until he was 11 years old. His youthful attempts at catching up were often abject failures in real decency. He’d been a major twat a time or 50.

He really had gotten better. He didn’t feel like a decent person deep down, but it was certainly what he was aiming to be.

Sirius didn’t really do “responsible” though. He once bought new clothes because he was so rubbish at laundering spells, rather than practicing up on the aforementioned charms. It seemed reasonable to Sirius. He rode a flying motorbike and never found himself compelled to follow the rules in favor of having a good time.

He considered the possibility that Dumbledore was using this as some sort of mission to persuade him into behaving like more of a role model. The only flaw in that theory was that it assumed Dumbledore had reasons for all the things he did. Sometimes he just did things. No one knew why. Including Albus Dumbledore himself.

But reason or no reason, Sirius was stuck with the job and very soon he’d be face to face with his new mentee; Marlene McKinnon of Hufflepuff house, age 16. It was his his job to teach her how The Order works and let her follow him around, watching and learning,for the next month until she went back to Hogwarts.

She’d be entering 7th year. Sirius figured she must’ve gotten bored and restless during the summer or that perhaps her older sisters and brothers going off to fight in wars seemed exciting to someone that young. With four siblings in the order she’d be an obvious recruit after she finished 7th year.

He spotted the line on the file in front of him that stated Marlene wouldn’t even come of age until August 31st. Generally, The Order wasn’t wild about taking under-age witches and wizards or even of age ones who were still at Hogwarts.

There were exceptions. Sirius found a pondering what made Marlene McKinnon exceptional more interesting than her file as well.

7th years were particularly vulnerable to recruiting from the Death Eaters. Having a 7th year spying for the order and keeping tabs on who had taken the mark and who was likely to to do so was a fairly useful thing for The Order. It had been done before.

But a McKinnon would be ghastly choice for this task.

The McKinnons were a well known wizarding family. All fervent supporters of Muggle Born equality and every one of them (now that their youngest had signed on) was Order affiliated. Sirius didn’t know their exact percentage of Magical ancestry and thought that sort of tedious detail was better saved for people who were vile enough to care. His mother probably would have known.

The McKinnon parents were a black Londoner witch and an Irish wizard. Their five children had slight variations of skin tones in the middle area between their parents. But every one of them had the same hair. It was instantly recognizable, as it was large. Heaps of ringlets that seemed to grow out rather than down. It wouldn’t be hard to spot a McKinnon in a crowd from a broomstick at a distance. Not a great quality for a spy.

So when the girl showed up 20 minutes early with a smile as broad as Hagrid’s shoulders, he didn’t have to ask who she was. This was obviously Marlene McKinnon of Hufflepuff house. She had more freckles than her sister Grace, who’d been in Sirius’s year, but he contended that they looked related.

The beaming impish girl was tiny under all the golden-brown spiral curls. Sirius had encountered taller 2nd years. Her taste in muggle clothes might have made someone else look like a bit of a rebel. Marlene, on the other hand, looked like a human sunflower who inexplicably enjoys muggle bands with a penchant for profanity.

She’s actually quite pretty.

As soon as he’d had the thought he mentally backtracked and argued with himself over how she wasn’t really beautiful. She might have been more accurately described as cute. Sweet looking. Like a kneazle kitten. She had nothing of the icy untouchable beauty that his own family was known for. Sirius thought maybe that whole concept was overrated anyhow. His deranged cousin Bellatrix may have been one of the great beauties of her generation, but nearly everyone would agree that she was terrifying.

Marlene was anything but terrifying. The only thing Sirius found disconcerting about her was that she was looking at him like Godric Gryffindor come again.

Was she under the influence of a curse? Was she confusing him with someone important? Or just… confused in general?

Sirius was entirely oblivious to the fact that Marlene McKinnon had been looking at him like that for quite a while. She’d considered herself well over it by now, even. But as soon as she walked in she realized that the crush she’d acquired when she was in her 4th year and he in his 7th, was not entirely a thing of the past. Then-14-year-old Marlene had decided that Sirius Black was perhaps the most impressive young wizard she’d ever come into contact with when she heard he’d run away from home and subsequently been disowned for rejecting his family’s blood supremacist ideologies.

She was completely smitten when she found that along with his principles and willingness to stand up for them, he also possessed strikingly handsome good looks. His high contrast coloring and steel grey eyes in combination with his aristocratic bone structure made it hard for Marlene to focus on anything else, even from across the dining hall.

Her siblings who were still at school with her at the time, Grace in 7th year and Lucan in 6th, took notice of her besotted gawking. The sibling pair, who were always closest with each other, did not hesitate to tease their baby sister mercilessly.

Marlene had ended up saying yes to the first boy who expressed an interest in her in 5th year, just to prove to them that she was over her silly crush. She made a noble effort to overlook Reginald Cattermole’s uncanny resemblance to a ferret. Poor sod. Never stood a chance. She got increasingly bored of him during 6th year and gave him the boot officially some months back. And now she was back to square one. Sirius, naturally, hadn’t even been aware of any of this while it was going on.

He thought that no one looked at him like that. Though he liked to think he was quite pleasant to look at (Marlene would concur), in general he was looked upon with suspicion. And that was amongst his allies. There were plenty of witches and wizards who looked at him with complete contempt. But until that very moment Sirius didn’t think anyone had ever looked at him like Marlene McKinnon had from the moment she walked in the front door.

He was really enjoying it.

But why? It was weird. I should stop. She should stop.

“You’re Sirius Black.”

“I am. But I’m afraid you have this whole introductions thing backwards. I already know who I am. You’re meant to tell me who you are. But I’m fairly certain you’re Marlene McKinnon? Am I right?”

“Yes. That’d be me. Errrm… I meant to have introduced myself. Not just gape at you like an idiot, then tell you your own name. And I’m early. That’s...unfortunate. Uh… I’m pretty bad at this. I’m sorry?”

“It’s alright, Marlene. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. You’re bad at… what exactly?”

“So many things, really.” She laughed.

Sirius decided that the ability to laugh at herself would come in handy if she was always this strange around people. He actually kind of admired that quality. He was of the opinion that most people took themselves too seriously. It was tedious for him to spend time around people like that. He got the immediate impression that Marlene was anything but tedious.

“Well aren’t we all? I’ve never mentored anyone before and I’m sure I’ll be very disappointing. Truly, I’m sorry that you got stuck with me. You can send complaints to the Potters.”

He thought maybe a small dose of self deprecation would put this little tightly wound ball of nerves a bit more at ease. Looking at her posture was giving him a crick in his neck.

It was also Sirius’s earnest opinion that he would be a terrible mentor. He had no idea what he was even meant to do with her. He felt it was likely that he would forget to feed her or something, like he had done with that goldfish he’d won at that muggle fair.

“Oh no; not at all.” She blurted out as if it were all one word.

As Marlene continued to speak, her words tumbled out at an impressive pace without so much as a pause for breath.

“I was thrilled when I heard you were going to mentor me. I always thought you were so brave, walking away from your family like you did. That must have taken an enormous amount of courage. But I hadn’t seen you since you left school and you are exceptionally good looking and I got distracted and forgot that I was supposed to say my name when I meet a person.”

Sirius did his best not to let his face react in any way while Marlene cycled through approximately 50 facial expressions within the span of a minute.

Sirius wondered what planet was this girl had come from. Grace McKinnon had been fairly Hufflepuffy in his recollection, but she wasn’t the personification of a broom crash when she spoke. But just like a broom crash, Marlene was impossible to look away from. Sirius was transfixed. But he preferred to think that he wasn’t quite terrible enough to have to hold back a laugh at a broom crash.

He was at a loss of anything at all to say. Lucky for him that Marlene, whose embarrassed blush might have been visible from her far off home planet, felt compelled to fill the air with more of her rapid fire words.

“Oh sweet Merlin did I really say that? I’m so so sorry. I think I should probably go. Maybe I’ll tell Dumbledore I’m not cut out for The Order. Maybe I’ll move to Spain and start a new life…”

“That really won’t be necessary. Besides it would reflect pretty poorly on me if my first mentee ran away to Spain after meeting me once. So I must object. You’ll be great with The Order. Your heart is in it. It must be. You’ve still got a year of school left but here you are.”

“I thought maybe I could help. Everyone’s so scared. You-know-who is gaining ground. I’d rather be part of something that stops him than sit idle and be scared.”

“See, you do belong here. Please don’t run away to Spain. I’m sure your brothers and sisters would miss you terribly.”

“I suppose they might. A bit. Well, maybe not Gawain. But the rest. Do you know them?”

“I was in Grace’s year. We’ve never been close but she seems like a lovely person. You look a lot like her. You all look alike. Gawain too. What’s wrong with Gawain?”

Marlene did look like all the other McKinnons. But Sirius had never given more the conventional looking Grace a second glance and if he had glanced any more at Marlene it would have constituted a full on ogling.

He reminded himself that he shouldn’t look at her like that. She was someone he’d have to see every day for a month. Then possibly work with in the future. He didn’t dip into that pool. It was needlessly messy, when he was Sirius Black and was not lacking in options.

Marlene had just called him exceptionally good looking which, while true, was not something he expected people to announce at random. So by doing that she confused his brain into considering the ways which she was attractive, or would be, if the circumstances were different. Or that was the mental gymnastics he performed to excuse his giving her the once over, anyway.

“Gawain’s terribly embarrassed by me. I’m… pretty embarrassing. So I don’t really blame him. But we aren’t particularly close.”

“I have a thing or two to teach him about what it’s really like to have embarrassing relatives. Did you know that my first cousin tells people that she’s the Dark Lord’s mistress? You’re not embarrassing. I… look forward to working with you.”

All the impulses Sirius felt towards Marlene felt wrong and contrary to the image he attempted to portray to the world. He was supposed to be blazé about people’s opinions of him. Self confident and cool. He felt anything but cool when intentionally bringing up Bella’s terrible taste in men. Could Voldemort even really be called a man at this point? He looked… not entirely human. Sirius idly wondered if he had all the working bits. But he would not go as so far as to make any inquiries into the matter.

Marlene looked so anxious. Her nervous fingers played with the ripped hem of her too-big shirt. As endearing as her nervous fidgeting was, Sirius wanted to make her feel more at ease.

But why should he care if she’s awkward? Probably that was just her. Why was he making himself uncomfortable in efforts to make her less so? He didn’t do that. He especially didn’t do that for skinny 16 year old Hufflepuffs with huge hair and school girl crushes.

But he did. And he continued to, even as he thought about how he didn’t.

“So you think she’s not his mistress but she tells people that she is? That’s. Wow. I can’t think of many things more embarrassing than that. Actually being his mistress would be less pathetic, at least.”

Her sunny smile was back. Sirius felt a small sense of victory before she averted her gaze down to her yellow-stitched boots.

“I don’t know. I mean that’s my theory. But I don’t keep a sneekoscope in he-who-must-not-be-named’s bedroom.”

“Do you think he even has a bedroom? You know I’ve never before this moment thought of him being a person who does mundane things such as sleep or shag your cousin. But he must, right? He can’t possibly devote every moment of his life to terrorizing and murdering. Do you think he does his own shopping?”

“He probably has his minions do it or else a house elf, but now I really wish he did do it himself. I like the mental image it creates. He’d need breaks from reigning terror for a few hours on Thursday afternoon, because he needs to stock up on fresh produce. Can you picture the poor shopkeeper, totally gobsmacked?”

“You make jokes about He-who-must-not-be-laughed-at too. Gawain would be so scandalized.”

The pair were having quite a laugh at the expense of the most dangerous dark wizard alive. They were both sure that this was going to be fun. Sirius decided that he needed some fun in his life now that James and Lily were busy with their baby.

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