#mainly because i want more shit to send to my fiancé and say us | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

basicjetsetter · 3 years

Text

The Fall of Deus

♡ Pairing: Mob!Peter Parker x BlackFemale!Reader

♧ Setting: The Terrace Room in The Plaza Hotel, New York

♤ Warnings: Heavy Suspense, Language, Adult Themes, Violence, Gambling, Drinking

♢ Word Count: 6.5k

☆ A/N: No joke, this took me about two years to conceptualize. Two freaking years. But I can 100% say it was worth it to write every word. This is by far one of my most creative works and I love that I get to finally share it with you all. Please hit like if you enjoy it, leave me a lil’ comment and a reblog if you love it. Happy reading!

You couldn’t help but notice and admire how pretty the sky appeared when it was tinged in the auroral haze of an autumn morning and backdropped by the twinkling glass panes of New York’s notorious skyscrapers. Though autumn’s end isn’t for a couple of weeks, the lukewarm season allowed Manhattan a preview of winter’s frigid air. The city's constant roar hummed down to a distant lullaby as you walked up the steps and in through the doors of the Metropolitan Detention Center.

It’s an impressively modern building, one you’ve become intimately familiar with in the past couple of years. Everything inside screams order, from the plain white, bleach-scented linoleum floors to the rows upon rows of caged boxes containing a range of one-time offenders, serial criminals, and constant jailbirds. The first time you ever entered the establishment, it struck you just how much the atmosphere felt devoid and depraved, almost as if hope and happiness got stopped, frisked, and turned away at the door. You never liked staying more than necessary.

None of the four guards stationed along the main lobby walls paid you any attention as you marched up to the reception desk. Their inattention didn’t spawn out of contempt but out of fear. They knew who you were here for.

The receptionist, on the other hand, wouldn’t care if the Queen of England herself hop-scotched through the front entrance, bowed, and bestowed him the coveted Royal Crown on a jewel-encrusted platter.

He certainly never took an interest in your frequent visits. The first time you set foot into this building, a bright-eyed attorney anxious to speak with her first client, the oaf of a man merely grunted at your carefully constructed introductions and waved you off like a pesky fly. On a typical day, your exchange of words consisted of him curtly asking you to state your business while he half-listened to your response and stabbed at his keyboard with blunt fingers. Detaching his gaze from the monitor might have required exhaustion of his half-assed energy.

Today wasn’t unlike any other day. Phillips told you your client's location, even though you both knew the area by heart. Third floor. Cell Block E. Number 7. Always Number 7. Lucky Number 7.

Most of your ordinary clients got shipped to this facility and locked up with the rest of the inmates until you picked up their case. Unlike this particular client you planned on springing today, those other men lacked the say-so to determine their cell. None of them came close to his status. They didn’t have the power nor the money to hire a personal attorney, and none of their crimes could ever match those of the calculated, cunning man who controlled all New York's avenues and boulevards.

In the streets, he’s known as Deus. Depending on how close you are in his circle, he's either Parker or Pete. The name in the system is Peter Benjamin Parker. Your fiancé.

| Last Evening |

“Stop fidgeting with your collar, Peter.”

“This fucking bowtie keeps… shit… it keeps choking me.” He growled out his frustration. “I’m going to fire that damn stylist.”

You threw him an exasperated glare as he ripped off the accessory. “Maybe if you hadn’t told him to pick any old bowtie, you wouldn’t be whining so much.”

“Remind me again why you're forcing me to wear this, anyway?” He paused for effect, placing his hand under his chin like Rodin’s The Thinker, and then snapped his fingers in dramatic realization. “Oh, right! Because Stark is a pretentious asshole, who thinks tuxedos are mandatory at all events thrown in his honor.”

Peter may hate the idea of wearing a formal tuxedo for the whole night, but you were going to enjoy every last minute of him in that attire, mainly because he resembles a model who stepped right off the page of a GQ cover. The low-lighting in this limousine certainly did its best to heighten your mood, highlighting the sharp angles of Peter’s clenched jaw. You’d have to remember to send Pepper a Thank You basket for planning the event as Black Tie.

“Can you at least pretend to get along with Tony tonight?” To see if his jaw could tighten any further, you coyly add, “He is the new Governor of New York, after all.”

Mission accomplished. Peter leaned his head back against the headrest and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands, the light that glinted off of his platinum Rolex creating a scattered array of lights against the black leather seats. You pried your eyes off the extension of his neck as he spoke. “Great,” he huffed. “That’s exactly what I need right now. A gloating Stark who’s now legally duty-bound to hound my ass. One more thing to think about.”

As the limo pulled up to a slow halt in front of the Plaza Hotel, you grabbed one of Peter’s hands and held it until his eyes met yours. You gave him a reassuring smile and said, “Everything’s going to be alright, baby.”

The driver opened the door before Peter could speak and held out his gloved hand for you. You’ve been to the Plaza Hotel on many occasions, mostly business, and yet the sight of the château-styled building at night, with its myriad of lit windows and its luxurious lobby never ceased to leave you breathless. The view effectually took your gaze away from Peter’s tux, but not for long. The moment he stepped out of the limo, bathed in the golden light of the building, you felt transfixed all over again.

Peter discreetly tipped the driver and then turned to face you, clearly not as impressed with the Plaza Hotel as you were. He placed his warm hands on the swells of your hips and pulled you in front of him. His eyes appraised you, from your stiletto heels to your tight-fitted, off the shoulder evening dress, traveling up to your chunky Senegalese twists elegantly laid over your shoulder. He let out a low whistle and said, “If looks could kill…”

You straightened his collar and opened up the top button of his gingham dress shirt for both your sakes, then swiftly leaned in and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. “You’re not too shabby yourself, Mr. Parker.”

He wolfishly grinned as you quickly detached yourself from his borderline caressing hold. You knew he’d want more than a short kiss, but you couldn’t afford to get sidetracked tonight.

“Behave,” you chided.

“And if I don’t, future Mrs. Parker?” he prodded, a huskiness in his tone that sent a delicious shiver through you. His steps slowly brought him closer and closer to where you stood, and you weren’t sure if you’d have the will power to move away again. One proper kiss wouldn’t hurt…

A disembodied voice groaned in your ear. “Book a room!”

Peter chuckled unabashedly. “Sorry, Ned.” Though he tried to appear unaffected, Peter made an effort to clear his throat and tugged at his collar. “You ready on your end?”

“Yeah. Mic’s clear. Computer’s up and running. I’m all set. Can’t say the same for you two.”

You glance accusingly at Peter, who waggled his eyebrows at you. “We’re ready. Sorry about that. You know how Peter gets when I wear twists.”

Ned verbally shuddered. “Don’t remind me. I still refuse to sit on my couch, by the way, even after washing it four times! You owe me a new couch, dude. For my trauma.”

Peter half-heartedly grinned at the ground and said, “Dude, if we pull this off, I’ll buy you a whole new furniture set.” The one half of his grin faded away, replaced with a grim line of determination and sobriety. “Where’s he at?”

A few clicks rang through your ear-piece, then Ned replied, “Not far. About twenty minutes away, on Queens Boulevard in Elmhurst. Might be a while before he reaches the Plaza, though. There’s a jam on the bridge.”

“Cool, thanks. Keep us updated.” Peter didn’t want you to catch his expression, but you didn’t need to directly see it to realize he’s in business mode, cold and calculated, little to no warmth or playfulness left in his brown eyes.

Copying your move, he took your hand and held it until you both stared at each other. Briefly, with your eyes locked in place, he searched for any sliver of doubt, giving you one last option to ditch and save face while he executes the plan solo. You did not doubt that he and Ned could somehow pull it off without so much as a hiccup. Odds always work in Peter’s favor. For the past three years that you’ve known him, he’s never lost a gamble. Tonight, though, the gamble must include you, a new piece to his complicated game—a variable. If anything were to head south, the last thing Peter would want is to implicate you.

You understood the risks: the potential loss of your career, your squeaky clean record, and possibly your life. You wouldn’t be here, with him of all people, if you didn’t trust the plan. So you didn’t sway, letting your eyes confirm where you stood on the matter. I’m sticking with you. This exchange passed in absolute silence, ending with a small nod and a lingering kiss to your palm.

It’s always surprising to see Peter without a trace of humor or good-nature in his eyes. It took you a while to acclimate to his night and day demeanor and even longer to trust which emotions were real and which served a purpose. As he slides a cocky smile back onto his face, one that graces every part of his features, and holds out his arm for you, you knew. He’s in his element.

The game’s begun.

♢ ♤ ♡ ♧

Not even five seconds into the Terrace Room and your jaw hit the floor. Pepper sure knows how to out-do herself.

The room displayed the same historic French charm as the outside façade, but much more grand, decorated with multiple crystalline chandeliers, large stone semicircular archways, and classical art adorning the ceilings. Somehow, Pepper’s touch of cream-colored table cloths, bouquets of immaculate white peonies, golden napkins, and floating candle holders added the perfect ambiance for Tony’s celebration.

True to his fashion.

The Man of the Hour is currently giving his speech at the head table as the Maître D’ checks your reservation and prompts a server to escort you and Peter to your table. It’s located not too far away from Tony's, near a stone wall and a divider separating the other tables. You weren’t entirely familiar with the three people who were already seated, but they graciously offered quiet nods of welcome. Peter grabbed your chair for you and smoothly pushed you in before taking his seat next to you while you strained to catch the last bits of Tony’s speech.

“… and I can truly say that without you, my amazing colleagues, friends, and organizers present tonight, this win would not have been possible. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. And um, yeah. Thank you, all.” Tony lifted his champagne flute into the air with a flourish and a winning grin. Peter rolled his eyes. “Here’s to an awesome four years as New York’s new Governor.”

Everyone stood up to give him a round of applause, Peter’s claps more grudging than encouraging, but you were glad he put in some effort. When he looked your way, you flashed him a loving smile and mouthed Thank you. He rolled his eyes again, playfully this time, and quirked his mouth up in an amused grin.

Live music picked up as soon as Tony took his seat, soft jazz that blended well with the onslaught of muffled chatter and clinks of silverware against glass plates. Servers incrementally brought out the main course of roasted beef filet dressed in tomato tarragon sauce and a side of arugula salad. Peter stifled a chuckle as he heard your stomach growl when a server placed the plate of food in front of you.

As another server leaned in to pour you a glass of wine, you held out a hand and gave him a polite smile. “No, thank you. May I just have some water, please?”

The young man nodded, but Peter piped up before he could head off. “Got anything stronger back there? Bacardi? Whiskey? Rum?”

“We have Vodka, sir,” the server stuttered out.

“Excellent. I’ll take a whole bottle of that,” Peter grinned and pressed a couple of $100 bills into the man’s palm. Peter’s effect on people never got tiring to witness. He and the server appear to be around the same age, somewhere near the 25-year mark, yet Peter's vibe reduced the server to stutters. You’d say the tux assisted with his air of importance, but you’ve seen Peter have that same effect on businessmen while wearing a shirt that read “I lost an electron. Are you positive?” and plaid pajama bottoms.

The server vigorously nodded. “Right away, sir.”

“Don’t drink too much,” you cautioned in a tone low enough for only Peter’s ears. “You know how you get, and I don’t want Tony to have an excuse to place cuffs on you.”

Peter scoffed and mumbled around a bite of salad, “If I looked at him wrong, Tony would cuff me.”

“Now that’s a little presumptuous, ain’t it, Petey?”

You jumped up from your seat and wrapped Tony up in a hug he warmly returned. “Congratulations! I’m so proud of you, Governor Stark.”

Tony waved a hand, yet a big smile remained plastered on his face. “Ah, come on. It was bound to happen. Policy is the new name of the game, but I’ll sure miss that courtroom. You missy, on the other hand, deserve all the praise in the world. Best and youngest attorney in the whole state. Mentored by yours truly.” He trailed off, glancing in Peter’s general direction. “Though I question why you waste your talents on the likes of him.”

Now sitting ramrod straight in his chair, Peter slanted his eyes toward yours as you silently pleaded with him to be cordial. Once he brought his eyes back to Tony, he jerked up his chin in recognition. “Stark.”

Tony nodded at Peter. “Baby-faced Criminal.”

“Hey, now!” Pepper swooped in, pulling Tony back a little so she could see you better. “Just look at you! Always a beauty in everything you wear,” she gushed, then put on a stern face for Tony and Peter. “No roughhousing, tonight, boys. I mean it.”

“I was just making a valid critique on my star pupil's decision to become the Personal Attorney to a well-known arms dealer, is all,” Tony defended. He threw up his hands and drew up an innocent expression that might have worked had it not looked so derisive.

Pepper, pursing her lips, nodded sagely. “Right. Okay. So you were being an ass?”

“Pep!” Tony protested incredulously. Peter didn’t even try to hide his triumphant smirk.

You rolled your eyes in defeat. Oil and water can never mix, no matter how hard you try. No, Tony did not take the news of you becoming Peter’s PA well, and he’s made sure to rake you over the coals bout it every time the chance arises. You’ve been Peter’s attorney coming up on two years, and there’s not a sign from either of them that the grudge will ever be let go, not even for your sake, though they do try when threatened.

“I want you two to say something nice to each other and then let the rest of the night go on in peace. Go ahead,” Pepper ordered, indicating for Tony to go first.

Tony took in an excessive amount of air, then puffed it out. “Alright, Parker. Um… I like how you ostensibly don’t know the rules to a Black Tie Event.” He ended with a gesture to Peter’s lack of a bowtie. The poor thing lies in a mangled heap on the floor of the limousine.

Peter ticked up his eyebrow. “I like how the stick up your ass seems to reach new heights every time we speak, Stark.”

Pepper sighed and grabbed Tony’s arm. “Not exactly what I had in mind, but I’ll take what I can get. Come on, you. There are many more guests to greet.” She tugged him along, throwing you an apologetic smile over her slim shoulder as they walked away.

Almost out of earshot, you could hear Tony say, “He calls himself Deus, for Christ's sake!”

They left you two in heated silence. Peter refused to meet your glare, instead choosing to chug down the freshly set out champagne flute filled with Vodka. He immediately flushed as he poured himself another glass full.

“Peter—” you started.

“Don’t say it. I tried, alright?” He slumped against the back of his seat, then shot you a surly frown. “You didn’t even mention our engagement to him. Again.”

You looked down at your untouched food, suddenly not hungry.

Peter’s eyes narrowed. “Were you ever going to tell him?”

An anchor of guilt plummeted to the pit of your stomach, chasing away the desire to eat anything for the next few hours. Your answer came out sounding whittled and nearly swallowed by the music. “Pepper knows.”

“And that tells me all I need to know,” said Peter, pushing away from the table and taking the bottle of Vodka with him.

You tried to stamp down the rise of startled panic by clearing your throat and evenly asking, “Where are you going?” A high octave managed to slip in on the last word.

“To socialize. Play some cards. Place a few bets. Criminal stuff. You want in?” He didn’t wait for you to answer, moving further and further away as a wave of hot anger replaced your shame. “Oh, my bad. Sorry. I forgot you probably don’t want your mentor seeing you ruin your perfect image with, what was it? The likes of me?”

He swaggered off, not a mere hint of his hurt evident in his show of arrogance.

You gingerly sat back in your seat, careful to ignore the inquiring stares from those who caught most of the argument. Your nails came close to puncturing your palms, and if your jaw clamped any tighter, it would snap. An annoying, persistent inner voice chimed out, He’s right, you know. It was probably Ned.

You understood Peter enough to know that Tony not being clued in on your engagement wounded him. He told everyone in his life about you—told Aunt May the second you finally agreed to go on that first date with him, nearly shouted to all the rooftops in Queens “SHE SAID YES!” when he proposed three months ago. Yet here you are, dragging your heels on telling Tony, one of the most influential people in your life, that you’re marrying the love of your life. He wouldn’t understand. Or, rather, he would, and he’d abhor your decision.

You’re not sure you could ever explain to Tony how Peter is your favorite star in the night sky. A big, glowing ball of light you spend hours upon hours admiring and appreciating. One that just burns brighter than all the rest.

Your engagement ring sparkled at you, winking as you moved it side to side and marveled at the simple yet elegant details of the inlaid sapphires and diamonds. Peter told you he picked it out a week before the proposal, but you knew he carried it around in his pocket for months, biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity. When he asked, you couldn’t say yes fast enough. At that moment, Tony and his aversion to Peter never crossed your mind, but it’s lingered ever since.

Guilt returned as a salve for your anger.

“Trouble in paradise?” asked a woman sitting at your table, a slight accent in her voice. She appears to be young, almost too young to be at this function. The glimmer in her eye and the hitch in her smile denoted a wise person. Goddess braids sat on top of her head like a crown, and she’s wearing a simple black dress with pearl studs that nicely accentuates her dark brown skin.

You uncurled your hands and blew out a held-in breath, kindly smiling back. “Something like that.”

She held out a hand. “Shuri Udaku.”

That name came with an inkling of recognition, but you couldn’t quite place it. You shook hands with the young woman, giving her your name. When you momentarily looked at your clasped hands, your eyes dropped down to catch the jewelry on her wrist. They weren’t pearls like her earrings. They were onyx and emblazoned with ivory symbols on each bead: Kimoyo beads, a technological revolution currently sweeping the nation, manufactured only by one woman. The realization hit you hard. “Hold on a second. The Shuri Udaku? Founder of Vibranium Tech, Shuri Udaku?”

“The one and only,” she answered, her smile growing wider.

This confirmation launched you into a field of questions and acknowledgments. It turns out she knows of your work as New York’s youngest attorney, but you know a bit more about her line of work because Peter always voiced his interest in her growing business. On the surface, Vibranium Tech is like any other technology company, issuing out new and improved ways of communication and medical treatment. In the underground, there’s been rumors of her interest in creating weapons—technological weapons unlike any the arms dealing business has seen before.

You didn’t want to bring up that facet of knowledge just yet. The normal conversation worked wonders on you, loosening your tense muscles and clamped jaw, all of them singing sweet relief once your body naturally released the tension.

“So, did I hear Tony correctly when he said your partner is the Deus?”

You winced and found yourself searching the room for a glimpse of your fiancé. He’s commandeered a table in the back of the venue, showing off his black and gold deck of playing cards to a group of interested guests itching to play a hand.

“Yeah, that would be him.”

“That’s so badass,” Shuri mused, leaning in conspiratorially. “Is he like the mob bosses in TV shows and movies? Like does he have henchmen? Bad-temper? High-speed car chases with the police?”

You genuinely laughed. “Not exactly. Henchmen, kind of. Bad temper is rare. And he’d never shut up about having a high-speed car chase with the police. No, he’s a little more lowkey than all that.”

Long ago, back when you were innocent to the life Peter led, you assumed that that’s precisely what it entailed—an exhilarating life of high stakes, exorbitant amounts of money, strong-armed goons, and reckless shoot-outs. That might be the case for a few bosses, but not Peter. He’s too strategic, and the ins-and-outs of his trade are too complicated to pin on just one person.

“Well, I, um…” she stopped, considered her words. You unconsciously drew in closer. “I may have a business offer for him.”

You kept your smile on, but it felt more commercial-like than friendly. “What type of offer?”

Shuri gulped down a generous amount of her red wine, then darted her eyes side to side before speaking lowly. “Would he be interested in high powered weapons?”

You raised your eyebrows but kept up your cool front. “Depends. In exchange for what?”

“Protection.”

A voice in your ear announced, “He’s here.”

You ignored it, focusing on Shuri. “From who?”

Shuri peeked around again to make sure no one paid any attention to your private conversation, but her examination stopped at the entrance. “From him.”

You cautiously slid your eyes to the main entrance, heart hammering a thunderous rhythm in your chest.

Brock Rumlow. Peter's rival and leader of a group named the Scorpions. A peddler/enforcer for the East Coast's largest mob: Hydra. Of course he’d try to pressure Shuri for the weapons.

He didn’t come dressed according to the occasion, opting for his usual tight-fitted black Tee and gray tactical pants. The visible half of his tattoo, a scorpion’s tail curling out from the cuff of his shirt, stood out against his tan skin. Two other men stood behind him, wearing almost identical clothes to Rumlow and sporting the same scorpion tattoo on their right bicep, not exactly hiding that they carried concealed weapons. All the voices in the room hollowed out to stiff silence, and even the band took its cue to halt. Your eyes found Tony in time to see his jaw tick for the briefest moment, and then he slid right back into a restrained version of his good cheer.

“Hey, hey! This is still a party, people,” Tony called out, addressing the guests. “Eat, talk, have a good time.” He signaled to the band to pick up the music, then crossed the room to chat with Rumlow. You’ve never seen him so keyed up.

You touched Shuri’s hand comfortingly, not taking your eyes off Rumlow. “I’ll see what I can do.”

She deflated gratefully. “Thank you.”

You nodded, already out of your seat and rushing to the back of the room, stopping short once you arrived at Peter’s table. He’s thoroughly invested in this round of poker, glancing back and forth from his cards to the nervous twitches of the five men and one woman at the table. You recognized four of them: Judge Nicholas Fury, Lieutenant Steve Rogers, Manhattan’s Chief of Police Sam Wilson, and District Attorney Natasha Romanoff. Sweat is perspiring on Steve’s forehead, Sam’s leg can’t stop bouncing up and down, and even Natasha, a woman known for keeping her cool while in the line of fire, is chewing on her lower lip. Fury's not fazed. He just seems tapped out.

From what you can estimate, about six hundred dollars lies in the middle of the table.

Sam and Steve speak at the same time. “I’m out.”

The other men followed suit, muttering their defeat. Fury dropped his cards down on the table facedown.

Peter wickedly grinned, zeroing in on Natasha. “Got any last words?”

Natasha squinted her eyes at his taunt. “Kiss my ass, Parker.” She put her cards down face up, showing her hand, and quirked up an eyebrow that dared him to top that: three Queens and a pair of twos. Full House.

Peter laid down his hand. Four 3’s and an ace. Four of a Kind.

A chorus of fucks circled the group as Peter cleared the table of the crumpled bills. Two new bottles of opened Vodka sit on the table as well, along with seven shot-glasses. Steve’s glass remains untouched, but the others look like they’ve drained two shots each.

“Bucky’s gonna kill me for losing so much money,” Steve muttered, twirling around his wedding band.

Sam sadly shook his head. “Dammit, man. I thought we had him this time, too.” He eyed Peter with suspicion. “What you got, kid? X-Ray vision?”

Peter ran a hand through his hair, causing a few curls to escape its sleek style. “Nah, jus’ luck.”

“Yeah, well, here’s to hoping your luck runs out,” said Fury, raising his shot glass and slamming it back.

You inched closer to Peter’s side. He reeked of alcohol, and his eyes are glazed over. You wonder how he’s even capable of sitting up, let alone playing people out of their money.

“Peter,” you whispered, putting your hand on his shoulder. His muscles tensed, but he didn’t shake you off. “Rumlow’s here.”

The remaining people at the table began to disperse in a collective gripe of loss. Peter didn’t say anything, only jerked his head in acknowledgment.

Your hand itched to slap him back into reality. “Peter, baby, listen. I’m sorry. I’m so, so, so sorry. I should have told Tony about our engagement.” Desperation sapped into your words. “It was stupid and childish not to, and as soon as I get the chance, I’ll tell him. But for the love of God, this is not the time to—”

“Well, well, well! Look who we got here! Deus, in the flesh!” boomed a disturbingly baritone voice. Rumlow, shadowed by his two men, plopped down in one of the empty chairs, sitting right across from Peter. He glanced at Peter first, then languorously landed his gaze on you. “And who’s this pretty lady you got here?”

“My fiancée,” answered Peter monotonously. He said it as if the words synonymously meant: just some chick. A dull kind of ache slashed through your chest as you dropped your hand back down to your side and took two steps away from him.

Rumlow pretended to miss the interaction, appearing to be in deep thought, and then clapped his hands once. “Oh! The attorney. I don’t believe I ever formally introduced myself.” He offered his large hand to you, grinning with his whole teeth on display. “Name’s Brock Rumlow.”

You reluctantly let him take your outstretched hand. His skin is blazing hot, to the point where your hand nearly felt suffocated. He brought it to his lips for a small kiss that twisted your stomach in knots. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Rumlow.”

Rumlow winked. “Pleasure’s all mine, sweetheart. And call me Brock.”

“Fuck do you want, Rumlow?” Peter bit out, picking the cards up off the table and shuffling them.

“Ooh,” tsked Rumlow. He made sure to lay another grin on you just to irk Peter. “Come on, Parker. Can’t a guy just enjoy some company once in a while? It’s not like I’m doing anything wrong.” He watched Peter’s movements, the cards haphazardly sliding back and forth from one hand to the next. “Playing cards, huh? You up for a quick game?”

You butt in with a pressed laugh. “Actually, we were just leaving.” Drunk Peter is overly confident. If Rumlow found that out, you knew he’d take Peter for everything he’s worth.

“So soon?” Rumlow glanced down at his watch. “It’s not even ten yet. What’s the rush?”

Peter cut you off. “No rush. I’m staying. You play Draw Poker?”

“ ‘Course I play Draw Poker, but that seems too simple for you, Parker. Don’t you wanna make it hard for me? A little Texas Hold ’em?”

“Draw Poker,” said Peter, splitting the deck against the table and flexing the cards enough to have them rapidly collapse into place. “Take it or leave it.”

A dark, mischievous smile brewed on Rumlow’s face as he watched Peter fumble with the deck and, at some point, entirely losing his grip. You discreetly watched him size up his opponent, dismayed to find that he likes the assessment. Hair is stubbornly falling into Peter’s eyes, eyes that anyone a mile away could point out are bleary and bloodshot. The flush from earlier deepened on his neck and flashed scarlet across his face—an easy target for a skilled player.

“Deal me in.”

The first game played out exactly as you feared it would. Rumlow and Peter agreed on a $100 ante to get the ball rolling, both pulling out a single bill from their pocket and placing it in the middle of the table, then they settled for a pot-limit. Though Peter’s shuffling skills lacked his usual finesse, he expertly dealt each of them a hand of five cards.

You leaned against the back wall with your arms crossed over your chest and watched the game unfold. Rumlow processes his hands at the speed of a bullet, snapping his eyes to his cards once he’s drawn, and immediately discards the ones he doesn’t like when it’s his turn. Other than the minutest crinkle in the corner of his left eye, you couldn’t tell when he felt confident or when he bluffed. He gave nothing away, not even an involuntary scratch to his five o’clock shadow. He was so in the zone he began to partake in the Vodka bottle close to his side of the table, swigging straight from the mouth.

On the other hand, Peter moved as if a millisecond was the equivalent length of ten years, scanning his cards more than several times with pursed lips, looking up at Rumlow, scanning his cards again, once, twice, three times, then reluctantly discarding some. He frequently shoves a hand through his hair to keep it out of his eyesight, but the same unruly strands find their way back to impede his vision. He scratches the shell of his ear when he’s about to draw, and Rumlow’s picked up the tell.

Rumlow never even had to do more than call. The confident drunk in Peter always raised.

The pot increased to about $1400 before Peter folded his hand.

As Rumlow collected his winnings, he suggestively lifted his eyebrows at Peter. “Care for round 2?”

Confident drunk Peter never backs down, even when he’s the dumbass who can’t remember that he’s brought fists to a gunfight.

You step back up to the table and put a restrictive hand on Peter’s wrist to keep him from picking up the cards. “Enough, Peter. You’re done. Let’s go home.”

“No, I’m not done,” he said, snatching his arm away from your touch. “Go talk to Tony or somethin’. I’ve got this.”

Rumlow caught your bewildered stare and shrugged his broad shoulders, a gesture that didn’t match his cocky smile. He has Peter right where he wants him, and there’s nothing you can do to stop him because Peter is a willing participant running on alcohol and no critical judgment.

You should have left right then and there, but your feet stayed rooted to the floor. You couldn’t leave Peter like this. Sighing, you pulled up a chair to the table and sat beside Peter.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go easy on him,” said Rumlow, putting on a smile too sardonic to be comforting. Too artificial to be genuine.

His lie didn’t surprise you. The hole Peter dug himself did.

The second round went similarly to the first. Flash decisions from Rumlow and molasses-like contemplation from Peter. This time, though, the ante came up to $200. As far as you knew, Peter is only carrying about $2500 in his pockets.

By the time the fourth round started, Peter’s Rolex lies on the table. The ante is up to $1000. Somehow the pot-limit became no-limit.

By the fifth round, Peter made paperless bets. Ante is $10,000. Rumlow knew Peter’s pockets went deep, and he’d keep at it until he struck gold.

Nothing you said stopped him. Peter hadn’t won a single hand. He’s desperate for at least one good hand; he’s got something to prove.

Rumlow kept drinking with each win.

By the seventh round, a crowd is around the table, watching in horrified interest as Peter raises the bet to one million dollars. The most significant amount you’ve ever seen him bet. So far, he’s held this hand for three draws.

Peter’s hair lost all semblance of its previous style, hanging over his forehead in disarray. He’s hunched over in his chair, his jacket’s off, and he’s rolled up his dress shirt’s sleeves to his elbows. His group’s signature tattoo stands out stark against his inner wrist: a roughly sketched spider.

Rumlow, eyes now as bloodshot as Peter’s and face just as flushed under his tan skin, asks, “Think you got something, Parker?”

“Do you?” Peter countered.

“I just might.” Rumlow ran a finger against his bottom lip, then smiled at his hand. “Why don’t you say we make this last Showdown a little more interesting, eh?”

A terrible queasiness wrapped around your gut.

Peter listened intently, his silence Rumlow’s indication to continue.

“$10 million. And the best trading routes. Including foreign connections. I want everything you got.”

You turned to Peter, placing your hand on top of his until he finally looked at you. Your eyes begged him to listen to you for once tonight. “Please don’t do this.”

His reply sounded tortured. “But I can. I have to.”

“Is winning really worth losing everything?” you asked, your voice cracking.

Rumlow chuckled ominously. “Oh, that’s not everything, sweetheart. We both know what’s left.” He gave you a meaningful stare.

Your eyes widened in disgust.

Peter snapped his gaze to Rumlow. “She’s got nothing to do with this.”

“No, but I want her. Imagine having New York’s best attorney in my arsenal. How many charges has she saved your sorry ass from, Parker? Five? All felonies, right? You lucky son of a bitch.” Rumlow’s smile is sinister. “Not that lucky tonight, huh?”

Peter spoke through gritted teeth. “Back off, Rumlow.”

“To have Deus wrapped around her finger, she must be pretty damn good. Is she, Parker?” goaded Rumlow, ignoring Peter’s warning. “Is she any good?”

Instinct controlled your hands as they seized Peter’s cards before he launched himself over the table and landed an ear-splitting blow to Rumlow’s jaw. Rumlow must’ve known the punch was coming. Still, he hadn’t expected the impact to be that forceful because his eyes blinked in astonishment. The two men behind Rumlow didn’t react fast enough, missing Peter as he stood above Rumlow, grabbed the handgun hidden in the waist of his pants and pressed the muzzle deep into Rumlow’s temple, finger on the trigger.

Rumlow shifted his eyes up to Peter. “Did I hit a nerve?”

Peter’s voice is lethally calm. “Say one more goddamn word about her and you’re dead.”

“Put that gun down, Parker!”

Tony. Shit.

Peter squared his jaw, never taking his eyes off of Rumlow. About six off-duty policemen and the venue’s guards have their weapons trained on Peter.

“I said put the gun down! Now!” Tony had pushed his way through the crowd, Sam and Steve right behind him. You didn’t notice until now how quiet the room became, everyone holding in a collective breath.

“Put it down, son,” Steve gently ordered. He spied Rumlow’s men, their hands tightened on their guns, and shook his head. “Don’t even think about it.”

Peter didn’t move a muscle. His chest rapidly rises and falls with each breath.

Sam, holding a pair of cuffs in his hand, tried getting through to him. “It’s over. Drop the gun, kid.”

A slow grin spread across Rumlow’s face.

“Peter,” you spoke softly.

His red-rimmed eyes met yours.

“Everything’s gonna be alright. Just put the gun down, okay? Please.”

Two heartbeats passed before his grip on the gun slackened, and he begrudgingly lowered his arm.

Steve and Sam seized on the opportunity. Steve disarmed Peter while Sam restrained Peter’s arms behind his back and tightened the cuffs around his wrists.

Rumlow massaged his injured jaw. “Guess that means I win, Parker.”

Sam yanked Peter back before he could charge at Rumlow. When Peter looked your way, he saw you still held his cards. “I’m still in play.”

“Wait,” you protested. Sam began to guide Peter up to the entrance. “Peter, I can’t—”

He nodded his head furiously, talking over his shoulder as Sam lead him away. “Yes, you can. You know you can, baby. Play the hand.”

You stared helplessly at Peter’s retreating form. It was all on you.

Rumlow watched, unperturbed; his cards still held tight in the hand that wasn’t nursing his jaw.

Slowly, you lowered yourself down into Peter’s chair, sitting directly across from Rumlow’s smirking face. Tony stared at you incredulously. It’s the first time you’ve ever seen him rendered speechless. The room’s chatter never recovered, either. All eyes stay glued towards the standoff.

The game is in your hands. Exactly as planned.

#peter parker #peter parker fanfiction #mob!peter parker #peter parker au #mob!au #marvel fanfic #peter parker x black!reader #peter parker x reader #black female reader #the fall of deus #peter parker x black reader #black reader

128 notes · View notes

backtothestart02 · 4 years

Text

Hazy - 8/? | westallen fanfiction

A/N: And the drama continues...

Commissioned by @andie1223

...

Chapter 8 -

While Linda embarked on her apparent genius mission to free Barry from the hospital walls – or at the very least keeping him from confessing any sort of atrocity that could end him in serious trouble if he was wrong – Barry took some time to dwell on his situation, the lighter aspect of it at least, mainly Linda.

He was grateful for how giving she was being in this particular matter. It was different in this timeline because she didn’t have feelings for him. He didn’t feel like he was betraying her by actively pursuing Iris at the same time he was “with” her. She wanted Scott, which amused him to no end but also made him unspeakably happy because that meant the editor would never have a chance with Iris. Not even one date. He was sure Scott was bitter about that.

Linda was so easy. And in the best way. She wasn’t complicated. She didn’t overthink. She accepted people as they were. And she loved herself shamelessly, yet not in a way that was selfish. She was fun and pretty and everything you could ask for in a girlfriend. But, and this was always it for him, she wasn’t Iris.

Things had never been so complicated with Iris. Not even in his original timeline. Barry felt like he was in a soap opera that wouldn’t end. At every turn there was more drama, some that was sparked by him and some that wasn’t. He didn’t know how to make it stop, and he was growing weary of trying. It exhausted him.

All he knew was that he wanted Iris any way he could get her. If that meant pursuing an affair, so be it. If he was stuck in this timeline indefinitely, he wasn’t going to live the rest of his ordinary Flash-less life without her as his romantic partner. It just wasn’t happening.

Convincing her to divorce Eddie was a huge hurtle that would take a long time to overcome, but as long as he could capture her for stolen moments, that would be enough for now.

Iris was extremely loyal though. He knew now the fantasy that had unraveled before him while he stood in her doorway would never have been a reality. Not yet at least. Her restraint was too high, and she was too far in denial to believe she could have feelings for someone that wasn’t her husband.

It had been hard enough to convince her she had feelings for him when Eddie was just her boyfriend, but now as her husband… He had ultimate control. Barry wondered how far that went.

“Knock, knock,” a deep voice sounded as the being belonging to the voice walked in and shut the door behind him.

Barry felt chilled to the bone as he locked eyes with the blonde, blue-eyed detective at the center of his thoughts. He couldn’t even summon the courage to say his name. He just stared, waiting for whatever horror Eddie would bring down on him.

Eddie’s eyes traced over Barry’s injured figure before meeting his eyes again.

“You look like shit.”

Barry swallowed. Eddie’s eyes narrowed.

“I know what you’re thinking. That it was me who did this to you. That I was in such a rage over seeing you and Iris together at the gala that I beat the crap out of you until you wound up in the hospital.”

Eddie took a seat on the far side of the room.

“Well?” Barry finally mustered. “Didn’t you?”

“I’ve thought about it a time or two, I’ll give you that. Beating you up until you’re near paralyzed, teaching you a lesson to never come near Iris again.”

“Nothing happened.”

“I know that too. Iris told me. At first I thought she’d called you to take her since I wasn’t…available.”

“You’re a shit husband, Eddie.”

Eddie’s hands clenched at his sides.

“Iris is devoted to you, and yet still you treat her as if she’s cheating. All she wants is to openly be friends with me again. Is that so much to ask?”

“Do you regret kissing her at our wedding reception?”

Barry hesitated. “That feels like a lifetime ago, Eddie.”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

Barry debated between lying to his face to save his relationship with Iris and saying the God’s honest truth just so he could breathe again. The truth was he didn’t remember kissing Iris at the reception, because he hadn’t been in this timeline for that. The memory for it hadn’t even surfaced for him. Not yet at least, which gave him a small ray of hope. Maybe there was still time to get back to where he belonged.

“I shouldn’t have waited so long,” he said at last. That was a truth he could always say wholeheartedly.

“Why you little-” He rose up from his seat and strode across the room.

“What I mean is…before she met you,” he was quick to say, not wanting to get pummeled some more. “I’ve been in love with her since I met her. I had plenty of time to tell her, and I didn’t. I should’ve told her before.”

Eddie’s brows furrowed, apparently not knowing how to take that.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t, because she’s my wife now, not yours.”

Yeah, I know. Not my fiancée either, he thought glumly. But his eyes were wide open, not daring to look away from the madman unraveling before him.

“She was never anything but my best friend,” Barry said.

“And now she’s not even that,” Eddie said. “Got it?”

Barry’s brows narrowed.

“You’re not just hurting me by keeping us apart. You’re hurting her too.”

“She’ll get over it.”

“After a year? Come on, Eddie. We’ve known each other since we were 10!”

“This is not why I came down here.”

Barry shook his head in disbelief.

“Then why did you?”

Eddie wrapped his hand around one of the metal bars on the bed.

“To make sure you don’t blame this incident on me. I’m not losing my job over you. I’m not losing Iris over a false confession.”

“Who else could’ve done it?” Barry spat. “You punched me, Eddie. Multiple times. I blacked out. When I came to I was in the hospital.”

“That’s not because of me. I didn’t even know you blacked out. When I left you, you were still groaning on the floor. I figured you’d get up after a few minutes and go home. Besides, I had to deal with Iris.”

“And how exactly did you ‘deal with’ Iris, Eddie?” Barry’s brows narrowed. He had to fight from digging his nails into the bedsheet.

“I don’t like what you’re implying.”

“Then set me straight. Tell me you didn’t hit her.”

Eddie’s eyes widened in horror. He took a step back.

“I would never.”

“The Eddie I thought I knew wouldn’t throw more than one punch, and yet you threw several.”

“Barry, I swear to God, I didn’t come back later and beat the living daylights out of you. Iris snuck down after we’d gone to bed to see if you were gone, and when she found you barely breathing, I was the one who called 9-1-1. If I wanted you dead, I would’ve buried the evidence, not left you…half-alive just outside our loft.”

Barry hated it, but he found himself believing Eddie.

“So, who did it then?”

Before Eddie could answer, the doctor strode in, Linda quick at his heels, trying to flirt but failing to thwart the doctor from his mission.

“Barry! You’re up!” The doctor smiled proudly. “You should keep a watch on your girlfriend here. She’s trying to sweep me off my feet!”

Linda laughed nervously.

“I’m sure she was just being nice.” Barry sent her a look.

“Wait. Girlfriend?” Eddie looked between Barry and Linda. “I thought-”

“Are you ready to tell me what you remember, if anything?” The doctor interrupted.

Before Barry could answer, Iris and Joe barged through the door.

“Eddie!” said a scandalized Iris.

“Barry!” said a relieved Joe, who then glared at his daughter. “I told you he couldn’t always be sleeping, Iris.”

Iris swallowed hard.

“Barry?” The doctor asked again.

“Uh…yes, I’m ready.”

“Great. Go ahead then.” He pulled out his no pad and clicked his pen so he could write. “For the record.”

Barry looked around the room at all the expectant faces.

“If you guys wouldn’t mind?”

For a moment, none of them moved, and then with one big sweep from Joe they started to exit the room.

“Linda,” Barry called out to her. She turned around. “Can you stay?”

Joe seemed somewhat wounded by his preference, but Iris tugged her dad with her.

“Yes, of course,” Linda said, coming over to his side and taking a seat to hold his hand. “I’m nothing if not a supportive girlfriend.”

The last thing Barry saw out of the corner of his eye was Iris watching with curiosity as he lifted Linda’s hand to his lips and kissed the back of it.

…

Once everyone else was gone and the door shut, the doctor looked at Barry expectantly.

“Well, son, what do you remember, if anything?”

“I remember…”

Linda squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back, but he didn’t catch her gaze and completely missed her intention.

“Doctor,” she interrupted. “How important is it for Barry to remember something?”

“Well, very if you’d like the attacker caught and charges brought against him.”

Barry sent her a look, which she ignored.

“And how often does that happen even with the right information?”

“Linda.”

“What, Barry? I’m a reporter. Let me do my job.”

The doctor was clearly amused.

“I take back what I said earlier, Barry. This one is clearly a keeper.”

Barry smiled despite himself. Linda beamed.

“The truth of the matter is, dear, I have to put something down to send over and add to the police report or the police themselves will come in and ask.”

“Do they really make that a top priority though?” Linda interjected again.

“Linda!”

The doctor waited for the mini-squabble to subside before continuing.

“Your girlfriend is right, Barry. The chances of this being at the top of the list are slim. In fact, the only way it would make it to the top I’d say is if you were accusing one of their own.”

Linda’s eyes widened, and she shot that gaze right at Barry.

“Are you?” the doctor asked.

“No,” Barry said instinctively. “I thought…no.” He shook his head.

“What did you think, son?”

“Tell him, Barry,” Linda urged.

“I was jumped,” he said. “I remember that.” The doctor started taking notes.

“Do you know by who?”

Barry shook his head, and Linda held in a silent sigh of relief. He could feel that through the loosening of her grip on him.

“They sounded like someone I know, but I…I just can’t place it now. I’m sorry.”

“So you’re saying you didn’t see who it was, you only heard them?”

Barry nodded. “Yes.”

“What else do you remember? Anything? Where were you at the time? Outside the West-Thawne residence, correct?”

Barry tensed, and Linda smoothed her hand over his, so he’d relax.

“Yes,” he made himself say.

“And why were you there?”

“To drop Iris off.”

“That’s Mrs. West-Thawne?”

Barry told himself to breathe silently.

“Yes.”

“The two of you are close?”

“We grew up together.” He paused, then decided to expound upon recent details. “We bumped into each other at a gala, and I didn’t want her walking home alone, so I offered to escort her and she agreed.”

“Sounds like you’re a good guy to have around, Barry. If not for your presence, the attacker might’ve gone after Iris.”

The idea of Eddie treating Iris the way he’d treated him made Barry feel sick to his stomach.

“I’m very glad she’s okay.”

“Does her husband like you?”

“Excuse me,” Linda butt in. “How is that relevant?”

“Just a question,” the doctor explained innocently, then turned to Barry.

“We tolerate each other,” Barry said. “He’s very…possessive of his wife.”

The doctor eyed him carefully.

“You say the voice was familiar to you, but you can’t pinpoint exactly who it was.”

Barry nodded, avoiding eye contact now.

“That’s right.”

“Anything else?” Linda was quick to ask. “I think we’ve established Barry does and does not know, and he does not know who attacked him.”

The doctor’s lips thinned in a humorless smile.

“You are quite right, dear. And persistent.”

Linda smiled proudly right back at him.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“As you should.”

With the tension in the room rising, Barry was eager to dissipate it. The last thing he needed was a full-out brawl between Linda and his doctor.

“Of course it is up to you in the end if you want to file any charges,” he said, looking at Barry.

Barry forced an acknowledging smile.

“I just know I would…in case it happens again.”

Barry’s eyes widened, and Linda’s jaw dropped.

“Are you threatening him?!” Linda asked, outraged. She stood up.

The doctor held up his hands defensively.

“Not in the slightest. Sometimes attackers come back to-”

“Finish the job?”

They all turned to see Iris in the doorway.

“Iris.” Barry frowned. “What are you-”

“Mrs. West-Thawne, your friend here requested your absence during his-”

“Interrogation?”

He sighed. “I was hardly interrogatin-”

“Yeah, more like threatened,” Linda muttered.

Iris’ eyes went wide. “What?!”

The doctor waited a few beats then said, “I’ve overstayed my welcome.” He looked at Barry. “I’ll be in tomorrow morning to check in on you. Hopefully we can get you in some protective wear and home soon. The nurses will probably stop by every couple hours.”

“That sounds good. Thank you, doctor.”

The doctor nodded his appreciation, then exited the room, not so much as chancing a glance at the two women on either side of Barry who were glaring at him.

“You have a terrible doctor.” Iris continued to glare.

“You’re telling me,” Linda practically growled.

“He’s just doing his job,” Barry offered pathetically.

“Thank you for being here for him,” Iris told Linda. “I really appreciate it.”

“Well, someone had to be,” Linda practically barked, and Barry felt the tension go through the roof.

“What’s that supposed to me-” Iris started, but Barry cut her off.

“Iris, could you get Joe for me? I’d like to see him now that I’ve finished talking with the doctor.”

Iris bristled. “Well, yes, of course. But…about that-”

“Please?” He cut her off again. This time there was a hint of snark in his voice.

With Linda in his corner, he felt more secure.

Iris swallowed.

“Yes. Yes, of course. I’ll go get him.”

She turned to leave, then stopped at the door.

“I’ll come visit you tomorrow, Barry.”

If Eddie lets you, he almost said aloud, but he kept his mouth shut.

“No need,” Linda spoke up for him. “The doctor said he should be getting out tomorrow. He’ll probably need all the rest he can get.”

“R-Right. Well… I’ll get my dad.”

She turned away, and Barry heard the hitch. She was near tears if not already crying. He glared at Linda after Iris left.

“What?” she demanded. “She deserved it.”

“She did not deserve to cry.”

“It means she’s feeling guilty, and she should. If she’s determined to visit you other than to find out what you told the doctor, I’ll be surprised. Just…relax. Your number one priority doesn’t always have to be Iris. Especially with the way she’s been treating you recently.”

“It’s Eddie that’s the problem, not-”

“And yet you protected him.”

“I protected Iris.”

“Wait a minute, you don’t think he’s hurting her, do you?”

“I don’t know. He told me he didn’t come back later to beat me up, and Iris doesn’t have a scratch on her, but-”

“You have a bad feeling.”

He shrugged helplessly.

“Are your feelings usually right?”

Barry looked down before meeting her gaze again.

“Lately they’ve been all over the place.”

Relief colored her face.

“Then let’s hope this is one of those times where you’re wrong.”

She squeezed his hand.

“I’m sure the only thing escalating in that household is their voices. Let me go get you some water. I’ll hand it to Joe when he’s on his way in.”

Barry nodded hesitantly.

“Okay. Thanks, Linda.”

“What are fake girlfriends for?” She chuckled, and he felt his mood lighten.

It didn’t last. The door closed, and he was plunged into his dark thoughts again.

Eddie wouldn’t hurt Iris… Would he?

...

*will be posted on AO3 and FFnet when beta’d.

#westallen #fanfiction #westallen fanfiction #backtothestart02 fanfiction #hazy #chapter 8 #dark hints

39 notes · View notes

msjr0119 · 4 years

Text

We Belong

Part 14

Evangeline Bruley returns to Cordonia to take over her families Duchy. She was betrothed to the now King, however he is engaged to Duchess Riley but still has lingering feelings towards his first love. What will happen during her time back in Cordonia?

Book: The Royal Romance

Please do not read if you are under 18, if you do you are consenting that you are over this age. Also do not continue to read if any of the below warnings affect you.

Warnings: Swearing, references about sex, slight smut, mental health, depression, mention of death penalty, mention of past murder, mention of attempted murder, mention of adultery (past/present), mention of alcoholism.

Tag list- if you want to be removed just let me know 😊

@pedudley @kacie-0156 @loveellamae @annekebbphotography @ladyangel70 @kingliam2019 @bascmve01 @drakewalker04 @texaskitten30 @kimmiedoo5 @walker7519 @lodberg @cmestrella @hopefulmoonobject @axwalker @rafasgirl23415 @yukinagato2012 @cordonianroyalty @custaroonie @seriouslybadchoices @rainbowsinthestorm @princess-geek @jared2612 @desireepow-1986 @twinkle-320 @queenjilian @princessleac1

******

Everyone arrived back in Cordonia a couple of days after Drake and Evie had become engaged, and Bastien had received the call from Glen.

That night Drake felt like he was in a dream, the girl he had loved for years had agreed to become his wife.

Entering the room, Drake had arranged for the staff to place rose petals on to the bed, along with other extra surprises such as; a fruit basket, chocolate, champagne.

Evie’s eyes widened, her heart sunk knowing how much time and effort he had put into this proposal. Grateful that he had forgiven her- she wouldn’t have forgiven herself if he had ghosted her after she ran away.

“I’m so lucky to have you.” She whispered, but loud enough for him to hear her.

“I’m the lucky one..” Drake couldn’t help but look at her adorably. His Evie. His world.

“We’re both lucky. Decades of friendship, now we have decades of being husband and wife.”

“I can’t wait to call you my wife.” Picking her up, he held her against the wall as he began kissing her passionately. “I hope you’re not tired.. because I want my fiancée all to myself tonight..” lifting her skirt up, he ran his fingers along her thigh- sending shivers down her spine.

“I’m all yours. Forever and always, I love you. I think we should do a toast.” Forcing her way past him, she walked over to the table where the champagne was cooling. Drake looked down towards his throbbing cock- is she serious right now?

Shaking the bottle of champagne, she quickly stripped down to her underwear. Once she opened the fizz, it sprayed in every direction as she attempted to pour it onto herself.

“So Duke Walker to be... have you ever licked champagne off of a beautiful duchesses body?”

That night in the hotel room, ran through Drakes mind on a loop- it was one of the happiest days of his life. The most hottest rendezvous he had with her, as of yet. However, today it would be erased from his memory for a short time- today was the day he finally faced his mother.

****

Walking into the hospital, Drake and Savannah were both hesitant- neither wanted to see their mother. They had put up with her shit ever since they were children, they tried to get her help which she refused. Now they were adults, both starting their new journeys with their other halves she was down the priority list in their eyes.

“I’m not seeing her!” Drake snapped. “She is having the death penalty, and thinks that this little attention seeking will make us all feel sorry for her- give her another chance.”

“Drake...”

“Don’t Drake me, Evie.” Regretting talking time her this way, he apologised immediately. He was just frustrated with the whole situation.

“I’ll go in instead, when and if you both want to go and visit her you can.” Liam suggested to his friend. “I’ll go with you Liam, I chose her fate.”

“No! I don’t want you seeing her, Evie.”

“Drake, it’s fine. She’s not going to hurt me infront of Liam is she?” Possibly? We don’t know what she’s capable of- Drake muttered to himself.

“Come on Drake, we’ll get a coffee.” Savannah pleaded with her brother. Eventually he agreed willingly to them, deep down he disagreed.

“If she upsets you, or tries to hurt you run out of the room.” Evie nodded. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Drake kissed her on the lips, not caring what anyone thought.

****

“Mrs Walker.”

‘That will be you soon’, Liam whispered in her ear.

‘I’ll be the better Mrs Walker, your Majesty.’ Winking at him, they both laughed hoping that she didn’t hear them.

“Evangeline. Your Majesty. Where are my children? I need them.”

“Why did you go on a hunger strike Bianca?” Liam asked in an authoritative tone of voice. He was a busy man- he didn’t have time to pussy-foot around the woman who clearly wasn’t sane.

The guards entered the cell, Bianca was rocking back and forth in the corner- dampness was dripping onto her, she was oblivious to this. Vacant.

“Mrs Walker?” Glen attempted to gain her assistance, he even banged on the wall- but she was still continuing to ignore them. “Your food is here. You need to eat at some point!”

“You have it. I’m not hungry.” Shaking his head, he placed the food in front of her forcefully. Causing her to jump, she noticed him scowl towards her. “Eat it, before you kill yourself.”

Bianca nit picked at the food, not raising it to her mouth- instead was just flicking it around the plate. She was languishing in a cell and was unsure as to how much more she could deal with. Deep down she knew she deserved every punishment that she was given. But would never admit it, until she was desperate. Knowing her life was a ticking time bomb- she would pull out any trick to secure her life. Glen walked away, knowing he couldn’t force feed her. It had been two days since she had eaten anything. With Bianca having already suffered a terrible breakdown when Jackson died- she was close to doing it again. Standing up she punched her knuckles to bloody pulps against the cell door and threw her dinner against the wall. Anguished that no-one was giving her a chance- she believed that she was a victim due to her mental illness. Now that Toby had died, she could and would blame him for everything. It was her word against his. Bianca took a stand when another guard brought her something to eat later on that day, she refused to eat again. As she told him that she wouldn’t eat anything until someone listened to her and helped her, it was clear from her eyes that she was serious, even though this could put her in serious peril. That serious peril, occurred the day after- when Glen found her unconscious on the floor. Immediately requesting medical assistance, he knew he had to break the news to Bastien. He wondered where he was located as he was due back in Cordonia the previous day.

“Bastien. Where have you been? You need to return to Cordonia now!”

“I feel empty without my children... I need them. I don’t want to die. I need their forgiveness. Everyone’s forgiveness.”

“Maybe you should have thought about that before? You’ve caused too much hurt for everyone! You could have killed Evie!” Evie placed her hand on to Liam’s arm, her eyes pleaded with him to calm down- she was grateful for him defending her. But he didn’t need to waste another single breath on her.

“I’m sorry Evie...” pausing she noticed the jewellery shining on her left hand. “Are you wearing Pats ring?”

“Yes, myself and Drake are engaged. We love each other, and you are not going to hurt us anymore.”

“Bianca, I will try and get your ‘children’ to say goodbye to you. Your sentencing is scheduled for next week. I’ll see you prior to that.”

“Liam, please. I need them. They need me.”

“They’ve done well without you. Savannah has Bertrand and Bartie. Drake has Evie. Goodbye Bianca.” Liam held his hand out towards Evie, encouraging her to leave with him.

“Evie, stay with me.”

“It’s fine Liam, I won’t be long..” Kissing her on the cheek, she noticed that Liam had left the door open slightly ajar. Mainly to have access to barge in for any emergency.

“What?”

“Convince Liam to release me and drop the sentencing. I’ll do whatever I need to do. I’ll support you all. You’re going to be family. Please. I’ll stop drinking. I’ll get help.”

“It’s not Liam that you have to convince. It’s myself. As well as the council. I was ready to help you, then you maliciously informed me about my miscarriage. You show no remorse for anything that you have done or continue to keep doing. My parents took in your children for months. How do you repay them? By killing them. How do you repay the royal family for taking over my parents roles? Attempting to kill them all.”

“I am so sorry. I don’t deserve anything, please reconsider my life. If it was Drake with your parents what would you want him to do?”

“Don’t bring my parents in to this. They were good people! I was already saving your life, it was the council that wasn’t. I wanted to help you because you are the mother of the man that I love. You took my parents away from me, as well our chance of being parents. I’ve got nothing more to say to you Bianca.” Reaching out to her, she held onto Evie’s hand with a tight grip. Bianca needed to tell someone. Anyone. The thing that had made her go crazy in the cold damp cell.

“Evie... I saw Jackson. At the wedding.”

“So you was drunk? The only person who can help you, is yourself. You have a week to prove that. You need help if you are seeing your deceased husband.”

“I wasn’t drunk! I heard his voice. He was there! I swear!”

“Evie. Wait. Please.” Exiting the room, she had doubts about what to do.

“Evie?” Wiping the tears away, she turned to face Drake- pulling him flush to her.

“Did she hurt you?”

“No. She just doesn’t want to die. I think you should make amends with her before the sentencing. Stay with Savannah, I’ll get Liam to take me home. I need to pack for London, for Toby’s funeral. I’ll see you at home?”

“Home. It’s still so surreal. I won’t be long. I don’t have much to say to her.”

*****

Arriving in the uk, Evie headed to the hotel to quickly change for Toby’s funeral. There was a mix of emotions running through her mind; relief that he couldn’t hurt her anymore, nerves about seeing the ghosts of her past including Elise, empathy for his family who she was once close to- the family who she believed at the time was going to be her family. After a quick shower, she quickly rung Drake up to let him know that she was safe and had arrived. He explained that he was missing her and couldn’t wait for her to return.

Calling for a taxi, she arrived at the church- seeing people gathering outside, her legs didn’t want to move forward after seeing that woman who screwed her ex fiance behind her back.

“Evangeline. So you’ve returned. I never thought I’d see your sad little pathetic face again...”

“Shut the fuck up before I do it for you! I’m surprised you’re here and not laid on your back somewhere...”

“Just admit it Evie. He preferred blondes. He preferred women who gave him attention and saw to all his sexual needs....”

“We had sex! We was engaged for fuck sake! You know nothing about my relationship with Toby - probably because everything he told you was complete utter bullshit!”

“Or maybe you was just a fuck?” Elise smirked, Evie knew people were around them but she didn’t care. Raising her fist, she was about to aim straight for the blondes nose- hoping that a plastic surgeon wouldn’t be able to reconstruct it. A hand grabbed her before she could inflict any pain- turning around she was shocked as to why he was here.

“Don’t do it. Whoever she is, isn’t worth it. You’re better than that Evie...”

“Hello handsome. Thank you for rescuing me from this mad woman. My names Elise. And yours is?”

“My names Liam.” Elise stepped forward towards Liam, Evie stood inbetween them before she could do anything more.

“Don’t even think about touching him!”

“So you know him?”

“He’s my fiancé, so leave him alone.” Liam looked at her confused as Elise perked her eyebrows up. Fixing his expression, he placed his arm around her waist knowing she was doing this for a reason.

“You know Liam, Evie can’t keep her fiancés on a leash... if you get bored you know where to find me... I’m known for giving the best blowjobs around here...” Nearly physically vomiting, he wondered what the hell Toby saw in this woman. Especially when he was lucky enough to have someone like Evie in his life.

“What the fuck?” The words slipped out, as he was still shell shocked with the introduction with Elise.

“Don’t swear your Majesty. It doesn’t suit you...”

“Are you going to explain what all that was about?”

“Are you going to explain why you are here?”

“Toby was my childhood friend, my meetings got cancelled. I am here on behalf of everyone. Besides I thought you’d need some extra support and company. Now your turn, explain.”

“She’s the slut that ruined my engagement. She was screwing him behind my back. She just gets under my skin...” before she could continue Elise returned with a few other woman that were her and Evie’s mutual friends. Once upon a time.

“This is him. Isn’t he gorgeous? Like a Greek god. This is Evie’s potential second failed engagement. I mean they haven’t even kissed yet...” Elise sniggered along with the other women whilst ‘swooning’ over him.

“We aren’t into the whole PDA. I like to keep my sex life private with my fiancée.” Empathising the word fiancée he had hoped that that would be the end of it.

“We don’t care. Do we girls? Just kiss.” Elise was peer pressuring them as she wasn’t convinced that their relationship was sincere. Narrowing her eyes towards Evie’s direction, she pointed towards the watch on her wrist. Tick tock.

“Oh I will be kissing him and doing a whole lot more when we return to the hotel. Isn’t that right darling?” Evie placed her hand across Liam’s chest, looking up towards his with a fake seductive expression.

“Just kiss. What’s the issue?” Evie turned towards Liam, cupping his cheek. Just pretend that you are movie star Evie. It’s fake. That woman isn’t digging her claws into someone else’s man. Kissing Liam slowly to begin with, his hands roamed her body as the kiss deepened. Opening her mouth, he slipped his tongue in- both tongues battling against each other. Breaking the kiss, Evie noticed that Liam enjoyed that kiss far too much than he should have.

“Did you enjoy your live porn? I mean this is what I do to my fiancé...”. Pointing to his obvious erection, the women all gasped- all now swooning even more over the handsome stranger. Elise grit her teeth together, before dragging her ‘minions’ away.

“What the fuck Liam?”

“You came on to me... I can’t help it. I’m a man.”

“Riley is going to chop your dick off your Majesty. I’m telling Drake why we kissed. To save that slut from ruining anymore relationships. No need to thank me. No matter how hard you resist, Elise always get what she wants. It’s up to you if you tell your wife.”

“You enjoyed it really, Duchess Evangeline.” Winking he was only joking. Even though he had cheated on Riley he did secretly enjoy it- but that kiss was closure even if it was fake. He realised that Evie wasn’t want he wanted anymore. Riley and his child was his world. As much as he loved Evie, he was grateful with how fate had occurred in his life.

“Your Majesty. Duchess Evangeline. Drake. Riley. Not so innocent are we Evie?” Elise spoke quietly standing in the shadows overhearing the conversation- her imagination began to roam wild.

*****

Evie was settling down in the hotel, hearing a knock at the door she assumed it would be Liam. He had offered to take her out for food after the wake but she politely declined, he continued attempting to persuade her but she ignored him. Forcing herself off the sofa, she placed the glass of wine on the table.

“Hello...”

“Hi...”

“Did you not receive my last text?”

“It must have slipped my mind...”

“Well as I said before I thought you’d need some extra support and company. You need me, no matter how much you deny it.” Pulling him through the threshold, she forced a kiss onto his lips.

“I do need you. I want more than a kiss, now that you’re here... we are alone...”

#choices trr #trr fan fic #drake x oc #drake x evie #liam x riley #trr we belong #liam x evie #tw swearing #tw slight smut #tw depression #tw sex mention #tw murder mention #tw adultery #tw mental health #tw alcoholism #long post

30 notes · View notes

lunaschild2016 · 4 years

Text

Belief - Part 3 (Edit)

Rating: M

Devi is Dauntless. Through blood sweat and tears she made a place for herself three years ago when she left her life in Amity behind. Not once in that three years has Eric Coulter even deigned to look her way. Not until that night. Now she has nothing but his attention. Eric/OC AU [Smut, Language, Romance]

Part 3

I decided that I'm not going to eat the food Eric pushed on me. After he left I felt furious at how presumptuous he had been and that pushed aside any pleasant feelings I had when I opened the bag to peek inside.

I'm angry at my reaction to him.

I'm still furious at Four for letting Rain go.

My head is killing me and I'm completely exhausted.

I'm just pissed and grumpy in general. I walk out of that room still clutching the bag tightly and fully intend to toss it in the trash then start back to work.

As soon as I get to the waiting room I see that most of it cleared out and that Kari is rushing towards me with wide eyes. They're darting between me, the bag, and then the cameras.

I grumble under my breath, already knowing what's coming. "What did he say to you?"

It's not Kari who answers her but Devon, the other aid on staff. "He said that if you didn't do what he said he would hold the two of us responsible. That he would be more than happy to arrange for an extended visit for one or both of us at the fence."

Kari is pale and shaking, confirming that everything Devon said is true. My fury explodes and I start muttering in a combination of English and Spanish. Mainly curse words.

I refuse to give in! I know there is no way he's going to get away with taking away the staff we need here at the clinic. I push past Devon and go to throw the bag in the trash but he stops me by pulling my arm back and scowling at me.

"Fine! If you're so dead set on seeing one of us being sent to the fence, at least I can see what the mighty Eric brought to you. Better yet, I'll just eat it myself and then I can say I was treated to something by the man that never does anything for anyone other than himself."

He goes to actually grab the bag but this makes me snap and I punch him the gut before clasping the bag, the one I was about to toss just seconds ago, close to my chest. "Culo! No one is touching this!"

He smirked through holding his stomach. "Told you." He said looking back at Kari.

"Told who what?" I snapped.

Kari shakes her head and raises her hands while still shooting glances at the camera. "Seriously though, could you just go eat, Devi? Go to the office and we can handle things while you are gone. You know you get all grouchy when you haven't eaten anyway."

I narrow my eyes but went ahead to the office. Kari isn't wrong and I can become a complete bitch when I haven't eaten. Today it is so much worse because I'm also hungover and tired as hell. I slam the office door and fling myself in the chair after tossing the bag on the desk. It doesn't take me long to give in to the temptation of the smells and the urgings of my growling stomach.

I tear into the bag then lunch eagerly.

It isn't just the sandwich, but also a bag of cheese crisps, a cake brownie, and then one of the whole dill pickles that are shipped in from Amity.

It’s all perfect food to fill me up and soak up the alcohol that I'm sure is still running through my system. For that reason, and that reason alone, I decided not to feel guilty about taking my time eating every bit of lunch. There is also paperwork and charts that needed to be completed or filed, so I took this time to get that all done since I was already in the office.

In between bites, I worked happily and with the occasional hum of pleasure.

I hate the fact that my mood started to improve as I went along. When I emerged from the office I felt loads better but wasn't about to comment on it. The first time Devon cast a knowing smirk at me I sent him a glare that shut him up very quickly and sent him hustling to get the areas that needed it cleaned up.

The rest of the day was spent catching up with normal things.

Members or dependents that needed to be seen for one thing or another, but couldn't during the week, they always come in during the weekend for appointments. That makes my morning packed with those visits on top of anyone that might come in that hasn’t been scheduled.

Things calm down eventually, but we still have to push people we didn't get to during the day to be seen tomorrow. Which means another of my days off will be spent in the clinic.

Shauna finally comes in to relieve me for the evening shift but I stay to help clean things up and go over the charts of the unlucky few that have an overnight stay with us ahead of them. She chatters the entire time.

What Tori said about Dauntless and gossip is completely true. The 'head bitch', although she herself would never be considered a bitch, in the gossip food chain is none other than my friend and co-worker. Her information is usually on point and reliable. She can usually call or predict something before it ever becomes official.

Part of that has to be because her fiancé and his brother are both working in Intel or work closely with leadership. Tonight she's going on about what had happened in the faction so far and the big story going on is about the brawl.

Turns out the former champ at Big Shots, Razor, did sort of throw the fight. He was wasted out of his mind and nowhere near the condition to handle the level of fights he was scheduled to face that night. The brawl happened when the refs, manager, and judges all made the decision that the wins were void and the fights would be scheduled for another night.

The people that won big were livid. The ones that were all for the rematches got pissed when the other group started calling them, and the champ, out for cheating in some way. Honestly, it sounded like even if he won there would have been an explosion of some kind. We’re all fighters after all, and it doesn't take much for us to want to get in on the action too.

In the middle of cleaning a room together, Shauna stops and looks over at me with a frown.

"Hey, you really should take off and get some sleep. You had a long night from what I heard and it isn't going to get better for you tomorrow."

I snapped up from making the bed and whip around to look at her. "What the hell does that mean?"

I already have dread running through me, and when she shrugs with a knowing smile, I know. I just know.

"Something I heard but I'm not supposed to talk about. I can tell you that tomorrow will probably be a long day for you."

If Tori and Shauna could be put side by side, at least the Tori from this morning and Shauna right now, their tones and smiles would be a complete imitation of the other.

"You can't say? Why?" I pop my hip out and my hand goes on it.

I might be tiny but I can be fierce if you piss me off enough and I'm right there at the edge with the only thing in my line of sight being Shauna. Friend or not it's tempting. I guess she recognizes this look enough and the smile drops.

"Look, I want to tell. I had every intention of telling you, actually. That's why he ordered me not too when he saw I was listening in to his conversation with Uri at lunch."

I don't even need to ask who gave that order. Her expression matches the one Kari had from earlier.

"Hijo de puta! Esto es un montón de mierda de caballo. Durante tres años, apenas sabe que existo, ¿pero ahora decide que merezco otra mirada?" I fume and stomp my foot in a huff.

I jerk around and finish making the bed.

"Sorry," Shauna says softly from the other side of the room. I wave that off and shake my head.

"Not your fault," I mutter with a sigh.

When the bed is made we make our way out of the room and she looks to me as I am gathering my things from the office.

"I don't think he didn't see you all those years, Devi." She calls to me softly as I was walking out of the room. "I don't know for sure, but sometimes I thought I caught him watching you. It's hard to know with Eric though."

I sigh wearily and smile back at her. "I'll see you in the morning. Thanks for the heads up."

I head home and grab something to eat after I take a much-needed bath. My roommate and friend Sadie apologized profusely for the night before.

It turns out they were there with me all along but when they tried to approach Eric when he was taking me from the pit, he turned his famous glare on them, warning them away. They hadn't dared to try and stop him after that. I would have told her off for not even trying, but it isn't worth my energy. I know all that would have done is get them on Eric's shit list.

By the time I finally crawl into bed I've gone into denial mode and coming up with anything that could be causing Eric's behavior besides what my body is telling me it might be.

This was all just an amusing distraction for him. Sadie told me what happened and how Four also tried to get me away from Eric. This is his way to get back at Four after he tried to keep me from Eric in the Pit. Eric knew it would be a button he could push on Four and had done that.

Come tomorrow he'll be bored of it and move on to some other much more willing victim.

He doesn't really have any interest in me and I refuse to let myself feel any kind of hurt about that realization.

Tomorrow I'll wake up, go to work, and then go out with my girls.

Maybe I'll even take Ash up on that offer to hang out. I could use a pick me up.

I go to sleep feeling more confident and with a smile on my face.

But there is the faint thought that if there is real interest, Eric is about to get another wound to that overinflated ego of his.

**********************************************************

The morning dawns once again, and way too soon for my liking.

Over my morning coffee, I send off a few texts to make plans for that night.

Sadie, Vera, and AJ are all willing. Even Lynn said she could be counted in for a few drinks and dancing. I also send one to Ash telling him where I would be for the night. If he wants to stop by, have a few drinks and maybe dance he's more than welcome too.

Ash is someone I see from time to time.

He works patrols and has a rotating schedule where he's out of the compound for two weeks before coming back for two.

We've never tried for anything serious between us for various reasons. Some of it’s because of our schedules and dedication to our jobs, but that isn't all of it. We are honestly more just friends with the occasional side of benefits. We don't always hook up when we hang out though.

It's just nice to have someone to cuddle or dance with, without them being a total creep. Just someone to have fun with, be myself, and not worry about either of us wanting more than we are capable of providing.

I don't expect him to be up to reply right away, neither of us expects the other to drop whatever we might be doing just because we call, but he does and he happily agrees to meet me for the night. It will be his last night to out before he goes back on rotation.

There is a pep in my step as I head out to work. I even stop by the combination deli and bakery to pick up some treats for me and the others.

I have to be careful how often I do this, but I've never been one to try and deny myself just because of what someone else thinks will be bad for me.

It's nice to be able to get things like muffins, cake or other baked goods again now that I don't have to worry about them being dosed with peace serum. It took a while for me to be able to eat anything even remotely close to bread once I got to Dauntless. They don't talk about what happens to the people that have been living on that mierda.

On the day of my choosing ceremony, my family made a big breakfast for me. I didn't give it a thought when I was eating my fill of sweetbreads right along with the fruit they had that morning. They were both normal things for our meals, and we had sweetbreads at least a few times a week. Mi Abuela loved to bake and garden. Those had been her pleasures, so there was always something for us to eat from that.

I've always wondered if they knew what would happen to me that first week of being in Dauntless.

I wondered if my family had known, as I loaded up on the bread, that once I left there I would suffer. Did they know I would go through something called withdrawal? Did they think it was only right that I go through hell for betraying them and leaving?

I don't want to believe that they would do that to someone they loved, but I have my doubts about their love because of that suffering. Someone had to know that living for so long on a drug-induced set of false feelings would throw me off so badly. Someone had to know that I would struggle with trying to deal with all of the feelings that I had never been allowed to deal with on my own before.

Initiation would have been hell on anyone but a girl with my physicality coming from Amity made it a certainty. Adding that I had the emotional stability of a pubescent teen and it just amplified that.

It took me almost an entire year before I would even touch something with bread in it at all.

Have I mentioned how much I love bread and sweets?

That by itself was enough to make me completely moody, especially when all around me the Dauntless cake was taunting me. I may have punched someone once when they seemed to take pleasure in teasing me while they slowly ate their cake across from me at dinner once.

Uriah Pedrad still won't eat cake if I'm around.

Keri and Devon fall on the donuts and muffins once I make it into the office. This is where we gather every morning to be debriefed by the night staff on everything that happened during the night and the status of anyone staying.

It's another busy day for me. All the appointments or people that got turned away and told to come back yesterday are expected today. Some of the ones leftover from the mess the brawl created came back during the night, so thankfully most of that mess was taken care of by the night crew. There are a few walk-ins with cuts or broken bones but none of the crap that I was seeing yesterday morning.

Overall, while work does keep me busy, I'm still holding onto the good mood I woke up in. It's looking like I'm going to get out earlier than I expected, and since this is supposed to be my day off anyway, it just improves my mood even more.

So much so that I almost forget about yesterday completely.

I mean, I've only daydreamed about that kiss and Eric a few times today, so I think I'm doing pretty good.

The last appointment of my day is a young dependent. It's just a simple one, being seen for a persistent cough and congestion that turned out to be an ear infection.

We don’t have a doctor on staff from Erudite and while I am qualified for many things, there are some of them that are just beyond me.

Instead of sending a doctor over, we have a computer station that has a scanner along with other various places where we can put in any blood draws or other things of that nature. That allows us to send and receive information to staff over at the Erudite hospital. It’s fairly old and can take an absurdly long time, so it becomes fairly useless in true emergencies. For simple cases like this, it works fairly well. I send over a few cultures, a blood draw and a scan of her chest for the doctor to look at and diagnose.

With a shot of antibiotics and a script for a syrup to help with a cough, I send the little girl and her mom on their way. As I'm doing a clean up of the room they were in Kari comes rushing in with a harried look in her eyes.

"He's here." She says simply and with no need to elaborate who ‘he’ is.

I huff and close my eyes tightly, my good mood going right out of the window. "Any idea what he wants?"

I open my eyes and roll them when I see her horrified expression. Like it was horrifying to her that I even suggested she try and ask him what he wanted. So I shove past her and make my way out into the waiting room, but Eric isn't there.

Devon points the office and then the nerves hit. I was hoping he would stay out in the open here in the waiting room where I wouldn't have to be alone with him. Which is probably exactly why he went into that office.

I groan quietly at this realization before determination sets in and I grit my teeth and give myself a short internal pep talk. I push my shoulders back and walk into the office with as much of a calm and uncaring demeanor as I'm capable of pulling off right now.

Eric is sitting behind the desk and has a file in his hands with a few others laid out in front of him and with his feet propped up on the desk. He looks way too at home in the place I consider my domain, for my liking. That calm demeanor snapped straight out of the window. I slam the door and put a hand on my hip as I glare at him.

"Did something happen to the staples? One pop out of place or something?"

He looks up from the file in his hand and smirks. "Nope. They're still intact." He tilts his head and that infuriating smirk gets wider. "Sorry if that ruins your hope for getting my shirt off again. Although, if you ask nicely enough…."

I sputter and glare at the gall of the man. "Hate to burst your ego but that was the furthest thing from my mind."

Mentira! As soon as he said it, that’s all I wanted.

I walk closer and shove the feet he has propped up on the desk off then go to snatch the file in his hand away. He jerks it back and makes a tutting noise.

"Leaders have full and complete access to any and all data or files." The smirk is gone though his words are full of it.

"What do you want, Eric?" I snap at him.

"I looked at your personnel file," He states simply, putting the file down he was reading and I get a good look at it for the first time.

This one isn't my personnel file but the one I have full of my proposals and requests for the clinic from over the last few years. I frown at that and his statement trying to connect the two and my tangle of thoughts.

"Okay?"

"You haven't taken part of the yearly physical training and assessments yet. In fact, you didn't for last year either."

I sigh tiredly and rub the back of my neck. "Eric, I don't know if you’ve noticed or if you even care, but the clinic is running on a tight budget and limited staff. Most of the people qualified to do the things beyond basic aid are Erudite, and they are only here for eight hours of the day. Those hours are early ones that most of the people in Dauntless aren't even awake for half the time, not to mention they aren’t here on weekends. Patrol medics have to come from somewhere and the weekends that takes them from the small staff we have here. I guess it isn't surprising you don't know this considering any and all requests I’ve made are either rejected out of hand or just ignored. Perdóname if I don't make it into maldito training when I'm too busy stitching up or setting bones for everyone else who is able to."

Eric starts tapping his fingers on the table, his jaw clenched and looking around. He stands and grabs the file he was looking at before he turns his cold eyes on me. "Follow me."

I've probably pushed my luck just once too often with him while I was unloading my anger and frustration. In fact, I'm sure of it as he stomps to the door and rips it open, then stalks out. I can hear him barking something to Devon and Kari but not what. I scramble to grab my bag, just in case I need it, and follow after him. Both of the staff are looking at me with worried eyes but they make no moves to say anything or help.

They couldn't help even if they tried to be honest.

I follow after Eric but he stops at some point and waits for me to catch up to him. "You might be short on staff but I can't excuse missing the training. I especially can't excuse missing the assessment. Normally, you would need to do it with one of the qualified staff, and during their hours, but that isn't going to work, obviously." He pauses in speaking even as we are walking and glances over at me. "So, I’m going to take that on myself. We'll be starting with weapons at the firing range today. You won't need to change into workout clothes for now, but I will expect you to have some on you for when we next train."

My fists are clenched at my side as I walk beside him. There is a tiny part of me that's thrilled with this development while the majority of me is pissed at being dictated to like this.

I bite my lip and decide to pick my battles.

Eric’s right and the reason for the lapse in training doesn't really matter. Here in Dauntless, it is expected and the standard unspoken rule is you always make time for training.

We don't go right to the gun range.

First, we stop by his office where he deposits the file on top of his desk. I immediately know I'm never going to see it again and am thankful I have backups of all the information on my laptop.

His desk seems to be one big pile of paperwork. Organized piles, but still.

The desk has a towering stack of files in a tray with a label indicating they still need to be looked over and a matching stack of ones that have the label indicating they are complete. It would take counting each one to know which one has more as they seem to be at the same level.

I don't know what he intends to do with my file but I have a feeling it's just going to get shoved in with one of those enormous stacks and get lost.

I do feel a tinge of pity that he seems to be swamped with work.

I guess I never really wondered what it's like for any of the leaders. Tori never complains, and that isn't something Four is likely to do either. I just always looked at the power they hold along with the perks that come with holding that position, and never considered what needed to be done behind the scenes. Logically I know there is work, but I never considered they would be as buried under as it appears he is.

"Is that always like that?" I ask as I wave towards his desk. Eric unlocks a cabinet at the back of the room and starts pulling out things.

He glances at me and then to where I'm indicating and shrugs. There is a tiredness that etched itself onto his face for just a second before it's gone just as quickly to be replaced by a slight scowl. "It's usually worse."

I frown as my eyes wander over the file names, reading them quickly and seeing that some of the labels are things I would think would be taken care of someone else. "So why don't you have an assistant or something to help?"

"You aren't the only one that has to deal with budget cuts and short staff, Devi. We have the same issues up here. Everyone thinks it will be such a fucking cakewalk to work in leadership or as one of the assistants. Then they get a face full of reality and we find out they aren't cut out for it and have to find someone else or do without."

I should feel ashamed of my words to him earlier but leadership could at least explain that to their departments. Especially ones that are so vital to the faction.

"I didn't know," I start out saying then narrow my eyes at him when he snorts and is probably about to make some smart ass comment. "That could be solved by someone just telling us all this." I wave again but this time between the desk and him. Making it clear I'm meaning him specifically.

It turns out he had been pulling out his handguns. Now he started to slip those into holsters he had on his hip and thigh after checking them. "Would it have made any difference if we had? Knowing that we have little in the way of budget to work with and even less staff?"

I put my hand on my hip and frown while looking down slightly. "Of course. That would have been much better than thinking I've been ignored for the last three years."

I glance back up briefly but quickly look away and blush when I realize how hurt my tone sounded and I caught the flicker of something in his eyes as he caught it too. Eric came closer until he is standing right in front of me. He reaches out a hand and uses his fingers to gently grip my chin and raise my head until I'm looking him in the eyes once again.

"Devi, you were never ignored." He says softly while he runs his thumb over my lips lightly then drops his hand along the soft expression in his eyes and sighs. "Circumstances have had my hands tied until recently. We're working to make up for everything the previous leaders did to destroy the faction."

I nod when his eyebrow raises, seeming to ask if I understand, but can't find the words to reply. I don't trust my voice to speak because of the fluttering in my stomach. It seems good enough for him and he moves to the door, holding it open for me to pass through first before closing it behind him. He sets a brisk pace but not one I'm unable to keep up with. Soon we are entering into the gun range.

The people in the gun range at the moment look at us curiously as we pass. A few of the guys I know from their frequent visits to the clinic, and they start to wave or smile at me. They stop immediately and turn away quickly after a glare from Eric.

He sets us up about as far away from everyone else as he can get while still being in the same room.

It's clear any and all focus is going to be put on me and he isn’t going to tolerate any kind of distractions or interference. I found out it’s entirely possible to be in a large room full of other people and activity and it still feels like I am completely alone with Eric.

This just ramped up my nerves that were already frazzled.

It's also obvious that my lack of training has clearly affected my aim. Something he's all too quick to point out, rather gleefully, and then insisted on physically correcting me while informing that my performance is so abysmal that he might as well start me out like he would a beginner.

That's about how the next two hours progress, with him acting as if I've never even held a gun. He has been pressed against me, or at least uncomfortably close, almost the entire time. Shoving me this way or that. Pressing his legs between mine to correct my stance or wrapping his entire top half around mine while he stands behind me.

He also won’t shut up!

He keeps assaulting me with question after question. When I said something about it, snapping out that I didn’t realize he had so many words in his vocabulary, he just grinned wickedly and said he’s just testing my ability to maintain my skill through distractions and then continued on.

He spent the next hour or so grilling me about anything from my life in Amity before I transferred all the way up to my life now, my friends and things I do with them.

"You said you were considered the perfect Amity. Why did you transfer if you were happy there?"

"You never wondered how you were able to kill chickens? I mean come on that had to be a red flag right there."

"How often did you find a wild horse beyond the fence?"

"Did you really spend that long out of the fence on those trips?"

"How did you get into healing if you worked with animals?"

"How can working with animals and their recovery be compared to a person?"

"Explain all this massage and herb therapy crap. I don't get why it is such a big deal or help."

“Are you actually friends with your roommate, because I remember her being in our initiation and never saw her talking to you?”

“How did Lynn end up in your circle of friends?”

“So, you aren’t all that close to Number Boy?”

“You dance? Where do you go?”

On and on the interrogation went, and all while he's physically distracting me as well.

Between the verbal and physical invasions going on, I quickly become exhausted. By the end of the two hours, I reach the end of my patience.

It's when the questions start to get slightly more personal and trying to pry into past relationships, that it snaps completely. I start responding in sarcasm and Spanish.

Eric just looks amused while his hands start to do things along my back and hips and I realize that I've only been speaking in Spanish for the last thirty minutes of that time and Eric understood every word, even if he only responded back in English.

"Alright, we're done here for the night." He says, stepping back abruptly after having just been brushing his fingers down my neck while his breath tickled my ear. "Let's go to the mess hall and get dinner."

I watch as he holsters the gun and let out a frustrated puff of air while calling him every kind of bastard I can in my mind. I can't decide if I want to turn around and slap him or push him against the wall and relieve all this frustration he’s built up in me.

The first one I dismiss, because even I am not loca enough to slap a leader, and definitely not this one.

There is still the second option.

I snort quietly and shake my head, dismissing that. I’ll just need to find another way to relieve this frustration because there is no way it’s happening with Eric.

My plans for the night flash in my mind suddenly. Hair from my ponytail came loose at some point during Eric’s pawing at me and has fallen in my face. I shove some of the hair back from my face and start to grin then look at Eric as he finally faces towards me after cleaning up our area.

I flash a smug smile at him as I shake my head then grab my bag up. “Thanks, but no thanks. I have plans for the night already.”

“Plans?” Up until my statement, he had been wearing his own smug smirk after stepping back and seeing how flushed I was. That smirk drops as soon as I shoot him down. His eyes move over me cooly but then he just gives me a slight shrug of his shoulders. “Cancel them then.”

His tone is so fucking flippant and as if he’s presuming this would be what is obviously going to happen.

I let out a scoffed laugh. “No. I don’t think so. I’m meeting up with my girls for drinks and dancing before Lynn goes back out on patrol rotation.”

“Your girls, huh?” He drawls slowly while narrowing his eyes and looking me over slowly before his eyes meet mine.

We spend the next few seconds in a stare-off and I think he might be waiting for me to back down and just go along with him.

Clearly, he has learned nothing about me.

Then he surprises me by shrugging casually and gives a small nod of acceptance. “Okay. Just remember what I said though and be prepared for me at any time, little one.”

I ignore the flush of warmth at his nickname for me and narrow my eyes.

He’s up to something. I know it. But whatever is going behind those blue eyes of his is a mystery. I just know there is an intensity to him that makes me want to lick my lips and return the action of looking him up and down like he just did me. It’s so strong that it makes me whip around instead and sashay my ass out of there as fast as possible.

“Will do, Sir!” I toss over my shoulder to him with a grin.

His chuckle after seemed to follow me for the entire walk to my apartment. It sounded like more than just a laugh or simple amusement.

It was dark, rich, and raspy. Like it held a promise of something to come.

Something that shouldn’t have my nipples going hard or my knees going weak. But it did and I think I knew then that I am well and truly fucked.

*****************************************************

“Damn! You are going all out tonight.” Lynn says as she looks me over and walks further into my bathroom where I’m still getting ready.

I’m already dressed, other than my chosen heels for the night, but I’m putting the final touches on my make up. I smile at her through the mirror and lean over the bathroom sink and counter to get closer to the mirror so I can swipe the mascara on in a way that it won’t clump the eyelashes together.

“Damn straight,” I finally reply to her then quickly finish with the other eye.

I put my makeup down and step back to take a look at myself in the floor-length mirror on the other wall, turning this way and that to get a better look.

I wouldn’t say that I don’t dress up when we go out, but I don’t usually go all out like I am tonight. Most of the time I’m wearing something a bit more relaxed. Like the other night, my dress was just a simple black dress; long-sleeved and with a slightly rounded neckline that went to just above my knees and had a tiny slit on the right side. It was just the right amount of casual and sexy. Something I threw on right after work and used my new shoes to add spice and color to the mix. I didn’t even do anything with my makeup or hair really other than fixing my ponytail and adding a bit of lip gloss.

Something about tonight seemed to call for a bit more….well, everything. Something a bit more...Dauntless...and daring.

I left my hair down tonight and let it fall into my natural waves, but added a little product to smooth the hair and make it slightly shiny. My lipstick is a wicked red color and I lined my eyes so that the chocolate brown looks a bit more sultry. I have the same shade of red on my finger and toenails that I used for my lipstick.

My shorts are a little shorter and my cleavage a little more revealed than I would normally display.

The outfit is almost all black in color. The top is a deep v-neck silk wrap top that I have to tape down to make sure the sides stay in place and I don’t end up flashing everyone since I’m not wearing a bra underneath. I have that tucked into the black silk shorts that provide me full coverage of the assets...my ass...but mold to it nicely.

To add some color, and to break up the black and highlight my waist, I added a wide belt made of silver metal that is thick enough to draw attention to the waist and what I consider my best feature, my butt.

The real feature of the outfit is my shoes.

As always they are high heels, four inches, but the style is a roman sandal with leather straps that go all the way up to the knees. I sit on the toilet to slip those on and secure all the little black leather straps.

Lynn has her arms crossed over her chest and is shaking her head at me with a knowing grin.

She knows this look. This is my going out to get mine, look. When I’m feeling sassy and sexy and want to let loose.

“Well, let's go then. Did you eat something?” She frowns at me worriedly while I pop my lipstick into my clutch purse that already has my keys, phone, and some protection (in case I get lucky) in it.

“Yes, mami. I had a grilled cheese when I got home.”

Lynn rolls her eyes but chuckles and shrugs. “Well, that’s better than nothing. We can just order some bar food when we get there.”

I sigh but admit that’s a good idea. I don’t do well with drinks if I haven’t had anything too substantial to eat.

Lynn has a reputation for being hard, and she definitely can be, but we both have the habit of being the ‘mothers’ for our group of friends. We’re the ones that usually make sure everyone doesn’t completely overdo it and that they make it home at the end of the night.

So, I would have normally heard something from her about what happened to me, but I guess since she knows I’m now dealing with Eric, she also figures I have enough torture ahead of me.

If she only knew.

Sadie was waiting for the two of us in our living room while our other two friends that said they could make it, Vera and AJ, already headed over to the club to get us a place.

Vera is currently dating the guy that manages the bar we are going to tonight and managed to sweet-talk him into setting aside one of the balcony areas that overlook the dance floor. Those spaces are usually reserved for officers and leaders in the extremely popular club, so it was a surprise when she messaged us earlier saying she managed to get us a spot.

This will be a treat, because normally we grab whatever spots are available on the lower level and pray there is enough seating. There never is.

We head out and talk as we go, catching up on what’s going on with each other along the way. Once we reach the club we spot the section Vera told us we would be at and can just faintly make her out waving at us from there.

I stick close to Lynn who seems to have this ability to make the crowds just kind of move for her with little to no effort, and in no time we’re across the already full dance floor and at the stairs. We quickly pass the guy that serves as a guard that makes sure no one gets up there that isn’t supposed to.

The upper level is amazing and has a very polished look to it while the lower levels seem to go with a raw kind of approach to decorations. There are already other groups gathered in their own little lounges that we pass on the way to where our group is set up at the far end.

I slide onto the seat of one of the sleek black couches and take in our set up. There is a huge lighted table in the shape of a cube that alternates colors sitting in the center of the L shaped sectional and a collection of four armchairs in dark red of the same material of the couch. On the table itself there are a few buckets filled with ice. Two of them have a bottle of a wine of some kind and the other two have juice. I reach forward and deposit my clutch onto the table and reach for a bottle, examining it and raising an eyebrow when I see that it’s a sparkling white wine from Amity. One that is very popular and is usually reserved for trade with any one of the factions that want it. Erudite is very fond of it and is known to be the one to buy it up after each production year.

I raise my eyebrow at the bottle while looking over at my friend in question. Vera just giggles then shrugs. The pulsing music of the club can still clearly be heard but it’s not so overwhelming up here that we can’t hear each other talking.

“Blaine said they’re for us, so I guess he just wants to make sure we have a good time. It’s one of your favorites right? That wine from Amity?”

I shrug with a smile and start to crack it open but Lynn glares at me and slaps my hand away. “Food for all of us first before we start downing this.” She grabs it from me and shoves it back into the ice bucket.

“Oh good idea!” Sadie coos and then eyes the bar, more specifically the bartender, on this level. “I’ll just go order us some snacks.” She is already up and waggling her fingers at us before I can even tell her what I want.

“Ash is here.” AJ says as she comes up from dancing on the floor with some guy she’s decided is going to be her date for the night. “I told him we’re up here.”

“Thanks.” I reply with a smile and look around.

The club is amazing and has always been my favorite here. That might be because it was the first club I ever went to in Dauntless.

I always loved dancing back in Amity.

They would have days filled with music out on the open fields. Nights where we all just got together and danced with the stars and moon shining down on us.

I would drink and dance my ass off. Then I would go off somewhere with Vicente. We would spend hours more just touching each other or later on as I got older, making love. It’s hard to not be bitter after I realized that all of that was drug-induced.

At the dances where all the young but of age were encouraged to attend, they served drinks laced with shit that I can’t even stomach the name of now. It wasn’t bad enough to be on peace serum all the time but they also gave us other things. I didn’t know that back then. It wasn’t until I got to Dauntless that I was informed about what I was exposed to and what it did to me.

It tainted all of those memories for me. Even the relationship with the man I had hoped to marry. It made me question how much of it was real and how much was the drugs.

After getting through initiation and becoming a member, I resisted going out. Still bitter and upset about so much of my previous life. Doing anything that was remotely similar to my old life was out of the question. I worked and went back to the apartment I shared with Sadie, refusing attempts to be friends or hang out with anyone.

I knew it was fear holding me back. Facing your fears in sims doesn’t make them go away, it just makes you super aware of them.

So I knew that I was afraid to get close to anyone but I was also afraid that I wasn’t able to get close to anyone or love them. Afraid that everything from my life in Amity, who I was, had been fake. Tori brought me out of that and said I wouldn’t know if I didn’t try. Was I Dauntless enough to do that? Of course, I couldn’t back down from her challenge.

So, one night I got dressed up and found myself standing in Club Onyx for the first time.

It’s a literal cave. Stalagmites and stalactites can be found everywhere. The ceiling is high enough up that at places it disappears into the dark. The walls are mostly the natural stone of the cave, but in other places it’s smoothed out to make way for different decorations, furniture or built-in rooms, like the restrooms.

I’m told there are little nooks and crannies all over the place that people like to go and explore. Tori once said there is some type of water in one of them, a grotto she called it. I haven’t explored the big cavern yet so I haven’t discovered if that’s true or not for myself.

The club is a cross between the primal aspect that defines Dauntless and the tech and polished aesthetics from Erudite. That means it has lights, sounds systems, and other little luxuries that make it easier to let go and enjoy.

I enjoyed myself so much that first time. I found my rhythm again and danced long into the morning hours with Tori. Since then, I love to come back here when I can.

Ash finds us just as Sadie comes back with a smirk and a drink. She informs us the food will be here shortly. I pour myself out a glass but at a look from Lynn, I also add some of the juice that was in another bucket being chilled.

I sip my drink and laugh along with the others as we talk over the music. The food is delivered by the bartender, who then joins Sadie. Now we all have partners to dance with. Even Lynn called in one of her girlfriends to be with her tonight.

I can never go right into dancing. I’m not sure why this is, but I always have to have at least a drink before I feel relaxed enough to let go. Tonight it seems to take more for me to be loose enough, and I draw it out by eating and talking with Ash or the others when they make their way back to us.

If he’s picking up on how I’m even more nervous than usual he doesn’t say. We just talk and catch up, comfortable enough with that and each other, that it isn’t awkward at all. Even when he brings up Eric.

“So I hear Eric is breathing down your neck.” Ash says with concern.

I almost choke on the mouthful of wine I had but managed to gulp it down and breathe again.

“Where did you hear that?”

“I had to go to the administration offices to get some paperwork settled for a new patrolman being assigned to my unit and heard some chatter about Eric being after you or something like that.”

Oh, he’s after me alright.

I wave my hand casually and dismiss that thought as well as Ash’s worry.

“I missed the last few assessments and he’s having to handle it. No big deal.” I down the last bit of my drink and plop the glass on the table then reach for his hand. “Let’s dance,” I say even as I start to stand, wobbling only a little, and tug him up with me.

He doesn’t protest and soon we’ve made our way to the dance floor. I enjoy myself, I do, but something about Ash’s hands feel off. I can’t help this uneasy feeling that surges up every once in a while.

Normally, I can lose myself in the music and have no qualms about Ash being close or touching me. Ash even notices and asks me if I’m feeling okay. I just tell him I’m fine but that I need another drink. So we go back up to the lounge and he gets a few drinks from the bar for us. Once I have that downed, I drag him back onto the dance floor.

It seems to work and I dance until my feet can’t stand it anymore. He almost has to carry me back up to the balcony and the couch, where I plop down laughing and into his waiting arms.

I’m drunk and headed to well past drunk, but I really don’t care at this point.

“Wanna get out of here?” Ash asks as he leans in close to my ear brushing some of the hair away from it with his fingertips.

I giggle a little and nod. “Yeah, I just wanna go freshen up first.”

“Okay.” Ash agrees and helps to push me up from my seat, chuckling a little as I groan when my feet throb a little.

He makes a comment about the dangers of wearing such high heels that I ignore after a playful glare over my shoulder at him.

“Be right back,” I say and then weave my way to the bathroom.

The one on the balcony is occupied with a few girls waiting outside for it. I decide to not wait and go down to one of the ones on the main floor that I found a while back that is usually empty. It has two stalls with a well-lit vanity area that I would think would make this a popular bathroom, but it’s well away from the dance area so maybe that’s why it isn’t packed like the others always are.

I take care of nature’s call first. Grateful that the toilets in places like this are nothing like the ones in the dorm or training room from when I first came to Dauntless. You need a shot just to prevent diseases from being near those.

I finish quickly and wash my hands then can’t resist using the vanity to check my lipstick and makeup. I’m so absorbed in finding my lipstick and reapplying it that I don’t notice the door opening, but I definitely hear it closing. And I definitely hear the lock being flipped.

The first, brief, thought I have is that someone’s decided to use this as a place to be intimate so for a few seconds I don’t get worried. It isn’t until the feeling I’ve had, but denied, all night surges through me with a vengeance. The one that felt like I was being watched. The one that had the hair on the back of my neck standing at attention and my senses buzzing. Only this is much worse and it finally gets my attention enough to turn to look out of the little vanity area that is in its own little nook.

Eric is standing there, leaning against one side of the archway, and the expression on his face makes my legs tremble slightly while I swallow heavily.

Eric Coulter isn’t an expressionless, emotionless robot but at times it certainly seems that way. But there are times when that mask breaks. I’ve always thought that the reputation he earned, even as far back as our initiation, didn’t come from the cold, calculating and the ruthless man he can be, but from these moments when whatever he is feeling is unrestrained and intense, overwhelming even.

The expression he is wearing now isn’t far off from one that I’ve seen before when he lost it on someone but I haven’t seen that since our initiation. His forehead is screwed up in wrinkles while his jaw is gritted and his lips turned into a scowl. He’s breathing hard, chest heaving, and his vein in his neck is pulsing as his fists clench and his muscles bunch up. That too is something I’ve seen before when he unleashed his body and showed just how lethal it can be.

I’ve seen all this before. I’ve just never been the one it’s all directed at.

“Just drinks with the girls, right?” He advances on me, all sinuous menace and the words are a hiss.

Despite the feeling that I just want to melt into the floor, I don’t let myself. He’s a beast. I’ve tamed larger and more powerful than him. I raise my chin and stand my ground.

“What business it of yours what I do with my free time? Yes, I’m having drinks with my girls and having fun. I never said there wouldn’t be others involved.”

Standing my ground means that I also didn’t move and he was on me in seconds. My butt hits the counter of the vanity as he brackets me in with his hands gripping it on the sides of my hips. He leans in so close that I can smell the aftershave he must have used before he got dressed for the night.

Dios ayúdame is the man dressed.

He’s wearing a black skin-tight, short-sleeved shirt with a v neck that clings to his skin so much that I can make out the muscles of his abdomen underneath it. It tapers in so that his waist is clearly defined by the belt showing since it’s tucked into black jeans that might as well be painted on him. They look to be barely containing the things he calls legs.

All of that is definitely drool-worthy but it’s not what has my mouth salivating and going dry at the same time. It’s his arms and those fucking veins that are pulsing. It’s the bunching of the muscles of his forearms up into his biceps. It’s the sound of his hands rubbing against the stone of the countertops as he grips them tighter.

It all made me want to lick my way up his arm, starting from his tattoos, until I reach his neck and then down the other until I reach….well….

If at all possible, his breathing goes even more ragged and his chest rumbles in a growl. “I’m not happy, at all, little Devi. You’re fucking drunk again.” He hisses and moves even closer making me gasp and flush. “And you let him touch you.

His powerful thigh shoves its way between mine, opening my legs. Much like he did at the firing range but this time he’s facing me and it brushes up against my bare thighs, pressing into the silk shorts I’m wearing.

I let out a moan and reach out to grab his shirt, pulling him even closer. He finally lets go of the counter and uses one of his large, rough hands to grip the back of my neck after moving until the curtain of my hair.

“What am I going to do with you, Devi?” He growls out the question.

And it is a question.

Said in a tone that lets me know he’s at a loss for what to do, maybe even at the end of whatever control he is trying to keep right now. That and the drinks make me much braver than I would ever normally feel. It has me feeling smug even, knowing that I’m the one doing this to him. That I have the unshakable mountain of arrogance and confidence feeling unsettled, unsure.

“Take me home with you, Eric,” I demand forcefully.

As the words come out I feel a brief moment of astonishment. But yes. This is what I want. I wanted it all day when I’ve relived the kiss. I wanted it last night when I touched myself thinking of him and what could have happened in that exam room. I wanted him even more as he touched and teased me at the gun range.

Dammit, I want him and I will get what I want!

The grip on the back of my neck tightens even more and the rumble in his chest deepens before he shoves away from me. He steps back, his eyes a little wild, and runs a hand through his hair.

I bite my lip and start to step forward, to press the advantage I feel I have but stop as soon as I see the change in him. He was looking down for a second, just one second, but that was all it took.

The wild out of control Eric is gone. He is back to the cold and calculating one. Wearing a wide smirk and his head raises.

“Okay.” His tone is a strange combination that I can’t even describe. All I know is it sends both anticipation and worry through me.

Then he steps forward again and that heat I felt just yesterday envelops me making me feel nothing but raw hunger and need. He grabs my wrist and starts to lead me out. This time he barely takes into account my height as he sets the pace. It takes us no time to make it from the almost empty area the bathroom was into the overcrowded dance floor and bar set up.

Some rational thinking kicks in and I realize I need to let someone know what’s going on.

“I have to tell my friends…”

“They’ll figure it out.” He interrupts me with a smirk and looks over his shoulder a little.

I crane my neck and look to see that a few of my friends are on the dance floor and looking at us with wide eyes. Ash is one of them.

I send him an apologetic smile and then gasp when Eric jerks me back around. This time he pulls me completely against his side and wraps his arm around my waist. He all but picks me up and carries me the rest of the way out of Club Onyx.

I debate telling him I changed my mind but the drunken loss of inhibitions doesn’t allow me. My drunkenness is mortifyingly confirmed when I almost twist my ankle twice and finally my legs almost buckle while trying to keep up the pace he set.

Eric stops me from falling with a curse and whips me up into his arms, bridal style, without even really breaking stride. A strong moment of deja vu stops me from protesting as a faint and hazy memory emerges.

The memory a night when Eric caught me in his arms and held me close, refusing to let me down. Pleasure and warmth from the memory add the desire.

“You could have taken me home that night. I wouldn’t have minded then. Why didn't you?” I ask as we walk and he’s keeping his eyes on the dark and winding path out of the part where the Club is housed.

“I told you before. You were drunk and I don’t take advantage of drunk girls, no matter how fucking tempting they are.” At this last part, he turns his head towards me. I see his blue blazing with the same hunger I’m feeling.

I can’t speak for what I think is only for a few seconds. It turns out to be much longer because he had long ago looked away and now we’re in front of a door. He glances at me with a frown as he lowers me to my feet. As soon as they touch solid ground he pulls me tight to his side again. Once he has me tucked in like he wants me, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out keys. He almost kicks the door in before he ushers me through and I hear it slam behind as he does kick it closed.

He moves us so fast I barely notice anything about his apartment other than it is definitely an apartment. He rushes me through the living area and into a dark bedroom. He flicks on a light switch and finally releases his hold on me.

“Wait here.” He demands and then disappears back out of it. He’s back again before I have time to get my bearings or even move, holding something black in his hands. He moves past me into another dark room that is revealed to be a bathroom when he flicks on that light.

I frown and take a step when I hear what must be the faucet running and cabinets being opened and slammed shut. He comes back out with a scowl on his face.

“There are pills on the counter. Take those and drink the water. Get a shower and I left a shirt for you to put on to sleep in.”

My jaw drops a little and I shake my head in confusion. “What?”

He advances again and takes my clutch from me. He roots around in it, takes my keys and the phone, then pockets them both before tossing the whole thing to the side on a chair in the room.

He then jerks me against his body and crashes his mouth against mine. Our teeth gnash against each other as we both let loose the hunger we’re feeling. By the time he releases me from the kiss I’m panting and spinning.

Not all of it from the kiss either.

He steadies me and scowls as he holds me close. “It won’t be when your drunk or have even had anything to drink, Devi. I want you, but I won’t have you like this.”

I have to lay my head on his chest due to the spinning, dizziness and burning of tears in my eyes. “So why bring me here dammit.”

“Because the fucking thought of you out there like this is enough to drive me to want to hurt someone. I wouldn’t care if they were a friend of yours or not. I want you in with me in my bed, but I don’t trust myself enough to even allow that right now. This is my spare room. In here, I’ll know you’re safe from me and everything else.”

Something about that touches me and I sigh out his name. I let out a shuddering breath and his arms circle around me. The embrace is comforting and claiming all at the same time. It ends too soon though because he pulls back and lifts my chin once more to look at him. “I said you are different and if you can remember this in the morning, maybe you will see I’m proving that to you.”

He places a small gentle kiss to the tip of my nose and then gently pushes me towards the bathroom. I walk in and look at him over my shoulder as I grab the door to close it. The wild look is back. So is the chest heaving and clenched fists. I hesitate to close it but he shakes his head and backs away.

“Tomorrow, Devi. I’ll be here when you wake up tomorrow.” Then it seems like he melts into the darkness and I hear the door to the room click.

I close the bathroom door and lean against it.

The mirror in front of me shows the reflection of a girl I don’t even know right now. Who is this girl that’s feeling hunger like I have never felt before?

It’s almost like I’m the old me. The one from back in Amity that lived and loved with such wild and passion.

Was it always there and the serum just brought it, and only it, forth? Is that what Eric is to me now? Some kind of drug that brings out a side I thought I might have lost forever.

All the questions and events of the night have my mind spinning.

There isn’t an answer for me right now. The only way I can get one is to move forward and find out.

But, in the light of day will I remember this? In that harsh morning after light am I going to want to find out as much as I do now?

I take the pills, drink the water, step into the shower and then put on the shirt that smells so much like Eric it makes me feel like I wrapped in his arms again. I almost think that I won’t be able to sleep at all but it finds me sooner than I would have liked.

#fanfiction #divergent fanfiction #eric x oc #divergent au #smut #romance #humor #eric coulter #oc #jai courtney #diane guerrero

26 notes · View notes

carmineclock · 5 years

Text

> A few days before, on Christmas~

Trace 12:47 AM

> Grabs Fin sometime during the holidays and pulls him aside. "So, when do we wanna do it?"

Fin 12:51 AM

" Do you have the rings ?"

Trace 1:02 AM

"Yep." > Pull two boxes out of the pocket and hand Fin one.

Fin 1:04 AM

"Then we can do this today why not?. I got a fine whiskey saved up for something special we can drink that or do you want champagne?." >Open the box and well...cry a little bit "Its really going to happen hu?"

Trace 1:10 AM

> Grin. You're nervous too, alright. "You're not gonna back out, are you?"

Fin 1:13 AM

"Of course not. Today of all days i'm feeling sort of brave" >smile at your lovely shark and hug him "How are you feeling though. You are the one who knows her the best. Are you ready?"

Trace 1:27 AM

> Take a deep breath and then smile. "Yes. I think. I'm sure. Do we want to do it when everyone is getting together or later when we're alone?"

Fin 1:33 AM

"Just because i get a bit of stage frights lets do this alone for now. We can get down to celebrate with the rest later"

Trace 1:36 AM

"Alright." > You stand there and shift a little, nervous and excited, then give Fin a kiss. "I can't wait."

Fin 1:45 AM

"Wait shouldn't we change into something better?"

Trace 1:47 AM

> ... "Better than this?" > I mean. You got a few other suits in your wardrobe.

Fin 1:50 AM

"You can always do better. Let's get changed. Besides wouldn't you want to wear something olive?"

Trace 1:50 AM

"I suppose. Will you do me the honor of dressing me?"

Fin 1:52 AM

"Of course, lets fix your suit first then i will get changed. Let's do this quick before somebody sees us"

Trace 1:53 AM

"Okay." > Time to get fancy.

Fin 1:55 AM

>And fancy it is, of course that Fin has bought already shirts and coats that would fit a olive aesthetic in case they decided to be all gay with Nepeta. >Fix up your boyfriend first. "So what are we going to say ?"

Trace 1:59 AM

> You're very feeling fancy. And maybe a bit uncomfortable because these aren't your usual clothes that you're so used to. Or it's just the nerves. "That we got a gift for her?"

Fin 2:00 AM

"Sounds good. Do you think you cand o the talking? your knees look weak tonight" >laugh

Trace 2:02 AM

"I can definitely do the talking. Just not the standing maybe."

> Grin and kiss him. "Managed to do it with you too."

Fin 2:07 AM

"and you almost die." >Finish tying his tie good one nice color pap pap. "Alright let me change and we can go...oof. I wish i was more prepared i feel like crying everytime, good thing i dont wear make up" >Fan yourself to stop from crying again

Trace 2:19 AM

> Cackles and kiss his cheek. "Save the tears for when we ask her, she'll love it."

Fin 2:25 AM

"I can't ! i feel like you've opened a shower on my eyes god damn" >undress at the speed of light this needs to happen soon or you will continue to cry until you are dry as a raisin "Are we missing anything? we got the rings, we look awesome. Where should we do this ?"

Trace 2:27 AM

"Her room, inbetween all the cats? Or, on the roof like our moment?""

Fin 2:28 AM

"I mean roof wins dramatic points. but the room has something cute about it. i will let you decide" >change your clothes meanwhile

Trace 2:29 AM

"Dammit, Fin."

Fin 2:32 AM

"Dammit indeed... I mean i would pick the roof because i love dramatically awesome things. But how can we call her there without raising any suspicion of you know...something big happening?"

Trace 2:34 AM

"Does it really matter if we raise suspicion if the big moment is coming right after?"

Fin 2:36 AM

"I mean whats the point of doing it with a bang if the bang was suspected to happen ?. Maybe we can tell her to go first cuz we gonna have a drinking party, tell her its about celebrating maybe our ashen stuff? so its not only us 3?. Hmmmmmmmm or we could just go with that and hope shes tired enough not to care why. I'm sorry i tend to get all twisted about these things...i..i want it to be perfect"

Trace 2:37 AM

"Shhh." > Kiss him. "It'll be perfect, no matter if she expects something or not. I don't think she'll expect that to happen though."

Fin 2:40 AM

>fix your hair nervously "I'm really trying not to peek on the trails right now. Ok lets just go before i die"

Trace 2:43 AM

> Help him fix his hair a little. It's tempting to just ruffle and mess it up again, but the two of you are already nervous. "Your idea isn't bad though. We should invite Clover anyway."

Fin 2:58 AM

"Later , once we got her yes. I kinda want to have this moment for us only. Is that too selfish of me to ask ?"

Trace 3:06 AM

"Not at all. That's fine."

Fin 3:08 AM

>sigh ok everything is fine "shall we then?"

Trace 3:17 AM

"We shall." > Up you go. > On the way there you send Nepeta a message. 03: Hey, come join us on the roof 03: It's a wonderful night today.

Fin 3:18 AM

05: got some nice whiskey too lets party kitty

05: let that partitty out

>walk in circles while craddling the bottle

Trace 3:19 AM

03: Already on it

Fin 3:24 AM

>jump jump jump "Oh boy oh boy here we go its happening"

Trace 3:26 AM

> Cackle. "If you don't want her to suspect anything, you're doing a very bad job at it. Come sit down with me."

Fin 3:27 AM

"right right" >join your nerd

Nepeta 3:29 AM

:33 < theres titties and booze? im in!!! be right there! > Right now you are mainly suspecting something kinky. Its always something kinky with them, yes? > You are ready for that in either event and quickly make your way up to the roof. Kitties here! "Is this where the hot shark party is at?"

Fin 3:45 AM

(so 35nep?)

Trace 3:57 AM

"Hot sharks and a party. Can confirm!" > Wave her over to where the two of you are sitting. Actually, you move over a little so she can fit between you.

Fin 3:59 AM

>pat the space between the two of you and wave nepeta welcome with the bottle in hand. "We saved you a nice spot !"

Nepeta 4:05 AM

> Fuck yeah, shark party! You flop down between them, giving each of them a little smooch on the cheek. "So! What are we celebrating, sharksomes?"

Trace 4:08 AM

"Oh you know. Christmas. Being together and all."

Fin 4:10 AM

"Also my amazing ass of course that's always worth celebrating"

Nepeta 4:39 AM

"Oh, so it's the ass kind of party" > Yeah, totally a kink thing. Definitely.

Trace 4:40 AM

"It's always an ass kind of party. But we got another gift for you first."

Fin 4:45 AM

>sweat sweat sweat "y-yes! a good gift!"

Nepeta 4:51 AM

"Oh? Is it... a dick purrhaps?" > Eyebrow waggle.

Trace 4:52 AM

"Better." > Grin and try not to look too nervously.(edited)

Fin 4:55 AM

>Look at trace like now? or do you want to say something first, come on telepathy WORK "Oh much much better"

Nepeta 5:04 AM

"Two dicks!" > The most sparkly anime eyes. Could it be? Trace dick night?

Trace 5:08 AM

> Crack up. "No. Yes. I mean. But no." > Take her hand. And stare at it nervously. "We were gonna ask. Would you- Do you want to marry us?" > You pull the little box out of your pocket, waiting for Fin to do the same.

Fin 5:11 AM

>when Trace moves to grab her hand you do the same and start shaking, you almost drop your box "We feel like it's the logic step for us. We both love you to death and we want to be with you forever" >Oh no you are crying AGAIN "Would you take us as the trashiest most sexiest husbands in all Midnight City?"

Trace 5:12 AM

> The two of you show her a pair of matching rings, obviously meant to go together, and obviously meant for her.

December 30, 2018

Nepeta 2:25 AM

> Oh. You did NOT expect that, not at all. They are both already married after all, to each other! And you are a troll...do you even DO marriage? Well, it's not like you were raised on Alternia anyways, but still. Is it legal to marry two people? Does it matter if it's legal to marry two people, when nothing about your lives is anways? > There's a lot of thoughts running through your mind as you cover your mouth with your hands to muffle the shocked gasp. Are you crying? Oh god, you are totally crying. > You honestly never thought anyone would ask you that. Despite your obsession with romance, you never even dreamt of it. And yet... "Y-Yes! Oh my god, yes. Of course... You fuckers. I didn't expect... Fuck. Of course I want to." > You are crying, but you can't stop laughing either. Damn it, you really do love these assholes.

Trace 2:35 AM

> For a terrible second you have to wait out the shock and realization. Waiting for that answer, and then it finally comes.. Aw. Gosh, she's so adorable. You immediately pull her into a hug and kiss her very wet face with a wide toothy grin. "Your fuckers now."

Fin 4:31 AM

>you have been holding your breath for what I felt as an eternity until you hear that sweet yes and you finally let yourself take a deep breath "I swear you won't regret it . I will do my best to make you both so happy"

Nepeta 7:42 AM

> You reply to Trace's kiss with a very wet kiss of your own, but on the lips. That's what you do with your fiancé, right? Not like you really give a damn. "You were already my fuckers. Only difference is that now I'll be officially stuck with you." > Fin gets his very own wet smooch as well. "God damn it. I never thought...Shit. You guys are so gay."

Trace 2:38 AM

> The kiss just slightly catches you off-guard, but you can't say you mind. Not the first of these kisses you shared, and something tells you it won't be the last. "You already knew we are." > You laugh happily and release her to let her hug and kiss Fin too. This gives you the chance to realize your face got a little wet too and wipe away your own happy tears.

#logs

2 notes · View notes

dumpsterfirebooks · 7 years

Text

Rhyssa Idea

So I’m not entirely sure how I feel about how this came out, but here’s some crackship Rhyssa (Rhys/Vassa.) It’s different from my usual headcanon style but I wasn’t really sure how to write what was in my head. It’s under the cut because I know how insane I’ve made people’s dashes with my threads lately. It’s tagged ‘aco-rhyssa’ because there’s a fandom out there somewhere that has a ‘rhyssa’ tag.

Background:

Feyre still freaked out at the wedding. Rhys still takes her 1 week a month but when she gets back the first time Tamlin realizes that some shit should change mainly his attitude. Rhys asks for Feyre’s help while she’s there like he did before. Tamlin is still trying to break the bargain because it’s still weird for his fiancé to take off with another guy all the time. If it wasn’t for the dancing on Rhys he might handle it better but that image of Feyre grinding on Rhys never really leaves his mind. Since Feyre agreed to help him earlier they contact the queens much sooner. When Rhys finds out that the 6th queen is missing he has Azriel send out his spies to try and find her. Everything still plays out at Hybern with her sisters going in the cauldron, but the King sends his niece and nephew back to the Spring Court right away with them and Rhys takes her sisters still to keep them safe.

When Azriel finds Vassa on the continent bound to a lake he first sees her at night. On his return he informs Rhys that Vassa might not be an option she seems tied to the lake. Rhys sets out to see for himself after all maybe his magic can free her. It takes Rhys 2 days to get to the lake and when he arrives it’s just as the sun is coming up. He approaches her cautiously, but doesn’t get to her before the sun hits her and turns her into a firebird.

Stunned he hears her crying and her thoughts. She’s trapped. Not only is she stuck at this lake, but she’s stuck in this form everyday waiting to regain her body every night. Against every instinct he stays the rest of the day waiting for her to turn back. All the while he listens to her thoughts; her pain and desperation. She’s just like he was trapped by Amarantha under the mountain. No control over his body, no way out, not truly fighting back to protect the ones you love. He learns she has a younger sister, someone she wishes to keep from suffering the same fate she has resigned herself to.

When night finally comes he wants to step out from the darkness, wants to talk to her. He realizes though that she can’t help them get the other piece of the book. Before he winnows away he hears her crying in her human body. He leaves vowing to find a way to free her when everything is done with the King. He sends music into her mind like he did Feyre, it’s not much this small piece of comfort he tries to give her.

It’s not until Feyre’s sisters go into the cauldron that Rhys thinks about Vassa again. Azriel’s shadows give him updates on her condition, but when Elain mentions a crying bird he knows it’s her. He leaves Amren and Mor in charge as he goes back to the lake, and there she is. She’s beautiful in both forms, and terrifying. She’s still the raging girl he first saw all those months ago, but something is different. She doesn’t cry at night anymore, instead she paces around like she’s trying to find the exit in an invisible wall, humming a song. The song he sent to her he realizes.

At the same moment he realizes what it is she’s humming she stops and looks up through the trees directly to where he is. She blinks rapidly, possibly thinking she might be hallucinating him. Taking a deep breath he steps out from the woods meeting her gaze “Vassa” he says hesitantly. Shaking his head “Sorry I mean Queen Vassa, I’ve been looking for you.” He left out that he had found her before and put aside trying to help her for a while, but she didn’t need to know that. All that mattered was that he was here now. That is until she threw her shoe at him.

She had known he realized, that he had been here those month ago. She knew he had sent her that music and then left her. What was supposed to be a small gift of peace was torture, knowing someone had been so close yet never actually speaking to her. He deserved the shoe to the head even though it landed by his feet. Night didn’t bother her anymore though so it must have done some good. It was a song his mother used to hum to him when he was in the Illyrian camps as a child. Another thing he’d never tell her.

As they talked he didn’t know what happened, but he realized he had begun fall in love with this woman. Fitting that he’d love a woman who could only be herself at night. The irony of it all, not to mention the inner beast he kept hidden while she was forced to become hers every day. He stayed with her all night telling her what was happening in the world. As the sun began to rise in the horizon he braced himself for the change he knew was coming. The moment the light touched her she’d turn. Just as the first ray goes to touch her he envelops them in darkness. He doesn’t even think about it before he does it, but he is night dammit he’ll give her as much time as he can. It’s worth a shot at least.

Mother and Cauldron damn him both, but she doesn’t change. This could work he could keep her human with his power. He could bring her back to the Night Court so long as she was cloaked under his darkness. This could work he thought as he let hope creep in. Vassa seemed shocked more than anything that she hadn’t turned. Shocked and slightly terrified that she couldn’t see anything. She felt a hand reach out and grab hers though. Rhysand. She knew it had to be him creating this and holding the little pieces of her together. It had been she realized since that day months ago when she heard the music.

As his fingers laced in her she felt a pull. Not some feeling in her chest, but an actual physical tug. Before she could consider what it was, the darkness had disappeared and with it Rhysand. She was a bird once more as the sun touched her skin. Alone again and trapped at this forsaken lake.

Rhys appeared, having winnowed from the lake but Vassa was not with him. He hadn’t let her hand go he didn’t understand. She was human, she was covered in darkness he should have been able to winnow her. Dawning on him much too late he remembered Azriel’s words, “she’s bound to the lake by some creature.” The death god the Bone Carver had told Feyre about, his brother, someone the Carver feared enough to lock himself up in the prison. He didn’t look back to the lake, he didn’t have to the sun had fully risen and he could see Vassa flying above the trees unable to leave. He’d free her from that lake, from her curse somehow.

#aco-rhyssa #rhysand #vassa #aco-crackship

22 notes · View notes

distant-rose-archive-blog · 7 years

Note

I loved your fic rec posts and reviews for captain swan. I'm just wondering if you have a top writer list or something (like you automatically feel the need to read them if you see them post) and if you do, who is on it...

Hi! Thank you for the kind words. I do spend a lot of time and effort when I do get asked to rec things mainly because if I’m rec’ing someone or something, it’s because I love them and want to give them the praise and attention they deserve. With that being said, I’m always surprised how many notes my rec posts do get because I am virtually no one in this fandom. Literally a nobody. So when people ask for my opinion on things, I’m always flattered, surprised and very confused. Like now.

But anyway, I’m guessing that you’re asking who my favorite authors for Captain Swan are, and yes, I do have favorites. Please note that there are a wealth of amazing authors out there who put out brilliant fics and might deserve to be on this list, but those are the ten who come to mind. This is just the personal favorites of a fandom nobody. So without further ado, Rose’s favorite Captain Swan authors are as follows:

@welllpthisishappening | AO3 | Favorite Story: You Play Ball Like a Girl

She only has a few things posted right now, but so much coming in the works - all of it is just fantastic. She enjoys sending me on emotional rollercoasters and messing with my feels. As mentioned before, she’s one of my many true loves and writes epic sports fic that is both knowledgeable and realistic. (I will never get over her referring to Derek Jeter’s walkup in You Play Ball Like a Girl because that was the moment I realized she was my soulmate.) Regardless of whether it’s Captain Swan fanfiction, a story involving two idiots and a broken down amusement park or a huge epic fantasy romance involving time manipulation, I will fucking read her work and you should too.

@technicallysizzlingcloud | Favorite Story: Mawaige

Words cannot describe the quality of her work. The English language simply doesn’t have any word to truly convey the sheer amount of talent she has. The only way I can describe it is absolutely fantastic and that isn’t good enough. Honestly, the genre of her work varies, she doesn’t have a niche genre, but fuck me, she’s good at it all – pregnancy fic, angst, hurt and comfort, missing scenes, etc., etc. You name it and she can write a fucking masterpiece. There’s just so emotion that she conveys her fics and they also feel grounded in a way the show isn’t. A lot of her stories have become my personal headcanons. Her work is just a joy to read.

@unfolded73 | AO3 | Favorite Story: Scent

Do you know how hard it was for me to pick out a favorite story for her? Pretty fucking hard. Like it’s basically a multiway tie between Scent, What Comes Next, New Babies Smell Amazing, Sex Ed and Another New York City Serenade. It’s just wonderful to read her interpretation of Killian and Emma because even when there’s conflict and/or angst, they’re still so loving and understanding of one another. It just slays me. Also, her smut is fantastic and she does write a lot of it. (I am not complaining in the slightest.) Furthermore, I love the way she writes the relationship between Killian and Henry. There are authors who add him as a footnote to their CS fics and she incorporates him well.

@sambethe | AO3 | Favorite Story: Casual Fridays

There’s no other way to put this, so I’m just going to say it plainly but sambethe is without a doubt one of my favorite smut authors. Not that all of her work is smut, because it isn’t but she’s just so excellent at it that it needs to be said. Anyway, on top at being epic at writing sex scenes, she writes one of the best interpretations of Emma Swan I’ve ever seen. Her Emma is closed off and on-guard but not unfeeling. While this seems like such a minor thing, it’s a huge deal because I’ve read a lot of really cold and basically unfeeling Emma’s in my fanfiction days. Hers is perfect; Emma still has her walls, but they always, realistically, come crumbling down. So yeah, come to her for smut and realistically done Emma.

@peglegsjones | AO3 | Favorite Story: I belong to you, you belong to me

Hands down probably one of the best kid fic authors out there. I don’t even know why I try to make a niche in the genre, because she perfectly meets the quota. I try to stay away from fully realized child original characters because I’m a horrible cunt and I’m like “yeah, but my babies” but her children are delightful and I’m content to live with the idea that her universe lives beside mine in a Jimmy Neutron/Timmy Turner kinda way if that makes any sense at all. Might be dating myself there. Anyway, her universe is delightful and creative, and I always look forward to reading more about Ian. If you haven’t read her work and enjoy child fic, then I don’t know where you’ve been hiding and you need to rectify it immediately. (Also I’m pretty sure if Ian and Wes officially met, they would destroy the world and Harrison would have an aneurysm.)

@acrobat-elle | AO3 | Favorite Story: Breathless

This is another author who I struggled with finding a favorite story for because she has a lot of amazing work. Make a Wish, Possession and Touch could have easily been in that favorite story spot instead of Breathless. Elle’s a triple threat. Like a lot of people on this list, she writes ridiculously good smut, but she’s also fantastic at writing angst and fluff. There isn’t a single story in her archive that wouldn’t recommend and I’m eagerly waiting to see how Harbor in the Tempest is going to end. (No pressure or anything. Take your time.) I don’t know what else to say other than she’s fantastic and you should stop just taking my word for it and just got read her fics.

@lenfaz | AO3 | Favorite Story: Separate Lives

Without a doubt one of my favorite alternate reality writers with multiple great works. Separate Lives is a masterpiece without question, but Private Dancer, The Pirate Chef, Old Habits Die Hard and The Rembrandt Files definitely deserve honorable mentions because I also adore those stories. The worlds she creates for her stories are clever, creative and honestly, just to a joy to immerse yourself in. She knows how to carry a story, which as more than I can say for some published authors who will start a story than it putters out and dies. Her stories are incredible consistent and my brain thanks her for it. Anyway, I am forever in love with her work and I’m currently following Time upon Once and you should to.

@justanotherwannabeclassic | AO3 | Favorite Story: Roses in December

Another queen of fluff and angst that I love. If you haven’t read Roses in December or Bloom, then you need to get the fuck off my page and go read them. Legit. They’re some of my favorite stories and as I mentioned before (I think?) I’m super picky about child fic and stuff. She has a lot of wonderful domestic focused stories that are so sweet that your teeth will rot out. I also have a great fondness for Lobbying, which I read right after the American Election to feel better about the bullshit happening in my home country. She’s definitely someone whose writing you want to read after having a shit day.

@this-too-too-sullied-flesh | AO3 | Favorite Story: Theoretically

Another author who writes some pretty amazing and wonderfully dirty filth. (I feel like I’ve been too honest about how much smut I read and now everyone is going to think it’s all I read. It isn’t, I promise.) Once again, that’s not all she writes and she does some amazing fluff pieces but she has blown my mind and caused many an evil grin to spread across my face in public spaces and make the fiancé nervous. While Theoretically is definitely at the top of my list, I feel compelled to also point out The Next Wounded Soul, A Good Man is Hard to Find, Miles to Go Before I Sleep and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LOSER (I debated whether or not to put that in caplocks but the original title is in caps so why not.)

@killians-dimples | AO3 | Favorite Story: Put Me in Coach, I’m Ready to Play

Okay, if Laura made me fall in love with baseball!Killian, this chick with “put me in coach, I’m ready to play” made me want more of it. It’s literally one of my favorite stories of all time and is on my other rec list. With that being said, her brilliance goes beyond this one story and she has a very versatile selection of genres for you to read. I have a particular fondness for Sin Bin, and not just because it’s Jessica Jones inspired. Anyway, she got a super rude anon the other day about her writing taking the backseat and her “used to be so prolific and now [she’s] not,” which pissed me off because 1) she’s allowed to live her goddamn life and 2) she’s still in my top ten so that anon can rightly fuck off.

#captain swan #cs fic recs #cs author recs #my fic recs #fic recs #asks #answered #anon #this took me awhile #I apologize #ahhhhh #it's over #thank you god

9 notes · View notes

my-mystic-messenger · 7 years

Note

Ok so what if MC used to work for C&R International and Jumin before showing up into the RFA, and Jumin didn't recognize/realize it at first? How would he react when he finds out? I live for flustered Jumin, honestly.

So like…this blew way out of proportion? Like I really planned on keeping this a short and sweet scenario but when can I ever keep myself short, am I right? Anyway, I hope you enjoy this fic!

|| REQUEST ARE (ALWAYS) OPEN!! ||

Fandom: Mystic MessengerRating: General Warnings: A little cursing, but that’s allCategories: F/MRelationships: MC x JuminWord count: 3800

“You’reresigning”, Jumin asked her, hands folded on the table in front ofhim. Jaehee nodded. “Yes, I am. I think it is time for me to leave.I’ve gathered valuable experiences over the past two and a halfyears, but I think I’ve finally reached a point in my life where I’velearned enough. I want to start my own business. Nothing big, just alittle cafe.” Jumin eyes her, expression stoic and untelling as itusually is. Still, Jaehee likes to think that after spending so muchtime working by this strange mans side she finally understands him alittle bit and somehow that thought makes her proud. She knows thatyou are the only person that truly unravelled him, but at least she’dcracked him. “I see”, he eventually said, effectively stoppingJaehee’s train of thoughts. “I will have to make the announcementin the following meeting and find a replacement as soon as possible.”

Jaeheefelt like a heavy weight was lifted off her chest. This job had beenone of the most infuriating, frustrating and draining jobs she’d everdone and yet it would have pained her to know that Jumin didn’t giveher the blessing to leave the company and start a new chapter in herlife. In fact, she could have sworn that there was just the faintestof smirks curling around his lips and for one Jumin Han that was abig step into the right direction. “You mustn’t worry about that,Mr. Han. I took it upon myself to look through possible candidateswithin the company, as I see them to be most suitable. They alreadyknow how C&R International works and have experience. Accordingto the Chief of another, smaller department there is a ChiefAssistant he would highly recommend. Apparently she hasn’t missed aday of work for as long as she’s worked here until a couple of weeksago where she took less than a handful of sick days. And even thenshe handed in all the work she had to do.”

Juminlistened to what Jaehee said, thinking everything over. He wasn’tparticularly fond on hiring another female Chief Assistant. Eventhough his father had calmed down after everything that had happenedwith Glam and Sarah it wasn’t to say that he wouldn’t go after hisnext assistant. Not to mention that he was not very fond about theidea of having to explain to her – like he had to Jaehee – whyshe had to cut her hair, wear formal clothes at all times and fakeglasses as well. It was tiring and taking away time he could spendmore productively. Still, if Chief Assistant Kang believed that mansword and the girl was really that good at her job, he should probablygive it a try. At least he wouldn’t have to read through a thousandand one applications and resumes. “Alright. Tell him to send me herresume. I don’t need anything but that. If I like what I read I’lltell him as much so he can introduce her to me at the next meeting.Thank you for going through the trouble of finding a replacement foryourself. I would have found it bothersome.”

Jaeheenodded and retreated, leaving Jumin alone in his office. It was niceto have been praised and thanked for once, but she sincerely hopedthat she’d actually done the right thing. Frankly Jaehee had no ideawho that mystery Chief Assistant was. After she’d mentioned that shewas leaving C&R international to a couple of colleagues Chief Yiehad approached her. He’d started to talk about that amazing ChiefAssistant he had that absolutely deserved a promotion after she’dbasically doubled the revenue of her department. Jaehee was quitesure that the only reason Chief Yie had suggested the girl wasbecause he feared she’d otherwise get his position and he’d faceeither demotion or being fired. Of course she hadn’t mentioned asmuch. After all, it was a win-win situation for both him and her. Thesooner Mr. Han found a replacement the sooner she could focus onplanning her little café. Chief Yie kept his position, Mr. Han had areplacement and she was free.

Thenext day Mr. Han called all the Chiefs into a big meeting. He plannedto announce Jaehee official resignment as well as see for himselfwhether that girl he’d been recommended was any good. Jumin readthrough her resume and work performance and had to admit that he wasquite impressed. Apparently she’d started at C&R at the age ofsixteen as an intern. Even then, despite still attending school,she’d performed so good that she’d gotten hired by the time sheturned seventeen. She worked while attending university and got herfirst promotion after obtaining her degree. Over the next years she’dgone on to earn one promotion after the other until she’d become theChief Assistant of the fashion department. Her resume also statedthat while fashion wasn’t her primary goal nor passion she’d learnedquickly, adapted and never once complained about it. She hadn’t evenattempted to change the department despite being offered a differentposition due to loyalty to Chief Yie.

Apparentlythe only reason she was considering it now was because he’d told herto and Jumin admired such loyalty and obedience. She’d make a mightyfine Chief Assistant, maybe even as good if not better than AssistantKang. The only thing that Jumin found confusing was that he’d nevereven heard of that young woman. The resume was strictly work relatedso he neither had a name nor a picture – he rarely looked at the‘personal’ files when looking for candidates – but this one got himcurious. He’d been sure that he knew all his employees at least byname but looking at her file he was proven wrong. Despite herperformance being meticulous he could not say he’d ever even seenthat woman, which probably made her only the more desirable as apossibly assistant. Discrete, invisible and hard working were theperfect traits. When Assistant Kang had told him that she wasresigning he’d been worried but all of a sudden he found himselffeeling excited.

Everyonehad gathered in the conference room, quiet rumble filling the room.It died down the second Jumin entered the room, closely followed byAssistant Kang. Silence fell as he stepped to the front of the room,everyone including his father, looking at him with anticipation. Atfirst the meeting started like any other would. All the heads oftheir respective departments discussed increase or decrease inrevenue, possibly reasons and solutions. Nothing overly excitinghappened. Especially now that Jumin and Chairman Han had finallygotten out of the press and everything had returned to normal. Thatwas until Jumin announced that Jaehee was leaving C&RInternational. There was an audible gasp amongst the others, althoughJaehee knew better than to think she would be missed by any of them.She hadn’t had the time to form any meaningful bonds within the firmand frankly, she didn’t mind. It was their shock speaking. To thinkthat anyone would ever so much as consider leaving such a lucrativejob was beyond their comprehension.

Thatwas when Chief Yie decided to stand up, announcing that he would goand get his Assistant now. Jumin have him a short nod and the olderman practically shot off to go and get her. A mere minute laterfootsteps and quiet walking could be heard. No one could really makeout the most of what was being said, but it sounded a lot like thewoman was begging Yie not to do this while he was hissing at her notto be ridiculous. Jumin frowned, confused at what was going on untilYie stepped back into the room, hand wrapped around the woman’s wristhe was practically dragging along. Her long, brown hair was fallingopenly over her shoulders, fringe covering a lot of her face as shewas vehemently looking down. She was wearing trim clothing that wasboth formal as well as very appealing as it showed off her perfect,slender figure and just enough of her long legs to make itinteresting. Mainly because Jumin very much recognized both the bodyand the legs.

Yie let go of your wrist, instead gripping yourshoulders and pushing you in front of the entire room so everyonecould see. It felt embarrassing, being paraded and shown off likethat. Especially considering that your fiancé and soon to be husbandwas standing in front of you with your best friend by his side, andyou didn’t even have to look up to know that they were staring at youwith wide eyes and shock written all over their face. You swallowed,entire face heating up with shame as you stood in front of the entireboard room of C&R International – including your soon to befather in law – with your boss swooning over how great of a workeryou are and how you deserved the position. No one knew that you werethat mysterious fiancée Jumin Han apparently had. Nor did saidfiancé know hat you’s forked for his cooperation for even more yearsthan his very own Chief Assistant. You really couldn’t think of a wayto make this situation any more uncomfortable.

Your boss did,though. Yie had always been an idiot and poor worked. The only reasonthe fashion department hadn’t gone down years ago had been because ofyou. You didn’t even care about fashion that much, but it had been asteady job and paycheck and tuition was very expensive these days. Sowhen he suggested for you to present the logistics of that month tothe board room it wasn’t because he was proud of your hard work, butbecause he himself didn’t know shit about what was going on in hisown department. He knew that you did, though, so now he made it yourtime to shine. Just a couple of months ago you would have preened andhappily done so. You would have died to stand in front of the boardroom and present your hard work and yourself. Now though there reallywas no place you’d like to be less than this particular room in thatparticular situation. “Mr. Yie, Sir, I don’t think this is a goodidea”, you whispered desperately. “Don’t be silly, girl. Just doas you are told.” Strike.

You could practically feel the angercoming off of Jumin, even from the other end of the room. He wasfuming and you knew that if Yie continued to treat you the way heusually did he’d find himself without a job rather soon. “Sir, I’mbegging you, please don’t ask this of me.” The man snorted, glaringat you. “Don’t be ridiculous and do your job”, he hissed at youloudly. With that he stormed off to return to his seat, leaving youstanding alone in front of the presentation that had been opened upbehind you. You closed your eyes, taking a deep breath. If he wanteda presentation, he would get a presentation. Your straightened yourback, held your head high and proceeded to look into everyones eyesbefore locking with Jumin’s. You gave him a short smile before allemotion was replaced by perfect professionalism as you began thepresentation. You could feel Jumin’s eyes on you the entire time,filled with wonder and fascination about that new side of you he’dnever seen before.

You were quick, precise and well informed.Everything about you radiated energy and strength to the point whereeven the most disrespectful and misogynist of the men in the roomwere silenced. No one dared to interrupt you, dares to speak or somuch as breathe too loudly as your presence filled the room. Juminhad never found a woman more attractive in his life than he did youin that exact moment. He loved your innocent, gentle and caring sideto bits and pieces. It was that side that had drawn him in. That sidethat had gotten him through the darkest of moments. However, this newside, the strong almost dangerous one was bordering on arousing. Hecould feel his heart beat faster as he listened to your every wordwithout hearing anything at the same time. You were like a tiger andthe dangerous jungle had been claimed by you and you only.

“Thankyou for your attention. I would like to use this gracious opportunityto thank my boss, Mr. Yien, for recommending me. It will be myoutmost pleasure to accept the new job offer and finally get out ofthat pathetically taken care of department I am currently workingfor”, you spat, glaring daggers at Yien. Jumin gasped, surprised bysuch harsh words. Then his demeanour changed, melting into puresatisfaction as he leaned back in his chair, legs crossed, to watchyou tear your boss apart for disrespecting you the way he did. “I’vebeen working for the fashion department for many years now and neverhave I ever encountered a man that incompetent and lazy. He asked meto do the representation today as he himself has no idea what it isabout. I researched and composed it all by myself as I have beendoing for years. His workload is thrown off onto me and the otherassistants whom he disrespects and sexually harasses on a dailybasis.”

“Youlittle bitch, how dare you spread lies about me like that. Have herremoved”, he shouted at the security men, obviously aggravated. Youmerely smiled, folding your arms behind your back. His head wasbright red, sweat gathering on his forehead. When the men didn’t moveyour smirk grew, almost devilish, as he grew angrier and angrier. “Isaid have her removed! Why the fuck aren’t you taking her away.”Jumin snorted out a chuckle, covering his mouth to muffle the sound.“I think, Mr. Yien Sir, the reason for that would be that they donot dare to touch the company heir’s future wife”, you explained,calmly. You knew you had the upper hand and you were enjoying everylast moment. His face fell as realization dawned on him but Juminfelt no empathy at all. He’d been eager to chew him out himself, butwatching you do it yourself was much, much, much more satisfying.

“WhenI’d asked you politely, begged you in fact, not to do this you didn’tlisten. I tried to protect you, you see, as I felt sorry for yourpathetic being. Now, however, you’ve lost all my compassion. I didsome digging and found out that beside not working properly you alsoquite frequently seemed to use company money for private businessesas well as evade certain taxes, which is why you were satisfied bystaying in a smaller department, as no one ever digs deep into those.Well, I did. So, I hereby declare, for everyone to hear, that in thename of C&R International I am suing you for sexual harassment atthe workplace, heavy tax evasion as well as fraud. I’m not familiarwith the legal system, but I am quite sure that you are facing acouple of years of prison. Now please, gentlemen, would you do me thehonour and remove that scumbag from this meeting room? I would prefernot to have such useless people working for my husband-to-be.”

Thistime the security men didn’t hesitate. They walked over to Yien anddragged him out of the room, ignoring his cursing and screaming. Thesecond the door closed behind them you sighed, shoulders sagging. Youhadn’t planned on any of this and while you didn’t mind holdingpresentations those were usually prepared and practiced on your part.Improvisation had never really been your thing. The sound of a chairmoving was what ripped you out of your thought and you looked up tosee Jumin standing up. You swallowed, shyly looking at your fiancéwho once more had one of those unreadable expressions. “Wouldeveryone please leave the meeting room. I would like to talk to myfiancée in private, please. The meeting is over. Thank you for yourparticipation.” It didn’t take more than that for everyone to getup, gatherer there things and hurry out, leaving you alone withJaehee, Jumin and his father.

Whenyou started to apologize Jumin instantly cut you off, shaking hishead. When your eyes met, he was smiling at you. Actually, grinningwould be the better word, bright and excited like a little schoolboy. You’d never quite seen him like that. “You were magnificent!The presentation was perfect and the way you took down Yien was…Idare say sexy”, he said, chuckling in a way that made the hairs inthe back of your neck stand up in the best way possible. “God, Icannot believe I never noticed you before. To think that I could havehad you all these years, that you were in my reach all this time.It’s infuriating. Only the more reason to be grateful that I got theopportunity to see you in your prime like this.” You blushed,smiling shyly. “I tried…to tell everyone. I really did, but Ididn’t know how to bring it up.”

Jumin walked around the tableand towards you, pulling you into a warm, tight hug. Hands resting onhis chest you melted against him, burying your face in his chest aswell. “Is that why you were so desperate to leave when you stayedat my place? Because you were worried about work?” You noddedagainst his chest, so relieved he wasn’t mad you felt like crying. “Iwanted to tell you but…I didn’t want you to think that I was withyou to ride some sort of coattail. When Yie mentioned a promotioninto Jaehee position I instantly said no, but he basically forced me.I wanted to work my way to the top by myself but now -”, you spokequietly before Jumin interrupted. “And now you’ve made it. Youdidn’t ride any coattails and yet coming next week you’ll be by newChief Assistant.” You looked up then, eyes wide and questioning.You couldn’t believe it. You’d been working towards that goal foryears and yet…it didn’t feel right at all.

“But…I’m the onewho encouraged Jaehee to quit. I would feel bad for taking herposition.” That is when Jaehee cleared her throat, getting both ofyour attention. “You have nothing to worry about, MC. When you toldme to quit you didn’t do so to get my position but with my bestinterest in mind. I know that for a fact. You told me to follow mydreams and thanks to you I am finally brave enough to do just that soyou should too. I didn’t enjoy working here for the most part but youseem to really like the job and we all know that you love Jumindearly. I think the two of you working together could work out betterthan any other assistant. He’ll listen to you and respect you whileyou’ll be able to support and help him. So please, MC accept myposition. I could have not wished for anyone better to take over forme”, she said, smiling happily at the both of you.

“You heardher. Please accept the offer, my love. That way we can be togetherevery second of the day and I’ll never have to worry about youanymore. You’ll be safe and provided if you stay by my side and evenwhen I have to go on business trips I can take you along withoutfeeling guilty”, he pleaded, cupping your face and caressing thetender skin with his thumbs. Your eyes locked and there wasn’t afiber in your body that was capable of denying this man anything. Letalone when he looked at you the way he did in that moment; like youwere his entire world. So you smiled and nodded, reaching out toreturn the tender kiss. “If it is alright with your father I’ll behappy to be your new Chief Assistant.” Of course Chairman Handidn’t mind at all. If anything he’d be delighted to get to know hisfuture daughter in law. Everyone’s problems seemed to besolved.

Jaehee resigned officially a couple of days later andopened up her new café. You and Yoosung helped out as much as youcould in your free time. You also talked Jumin into invested, not forprofit but to help a good friend. The rest of the RFA had been rathershocked at the announcement but it quickly died down. No one wasreally surprised that you and Jumin couldn’t be apart even for acouple of hours. Admittedly Zen was fuming for another week and evenshowed up at C&R International just to check on you. He found youand Jumin talking over coffee you’d gotten at Jahee’s, relaxed andbeaming at one another. He left without you even noticing, finallyrealizing that his worry was not necessary at all. Mr. Chairmanquickly learned to adore you. Not only did you make his son happy,but you were also a highly competent and good worker. A real profitfor the company.

Thehappiest, however, was Jumin. He’d never even considered asking youto be his assistant but now he couldn’t imagine anyone more perfect.He never had to fear his father making any advances. He never had tofear betrayal or having to replace you. He got to protect you whilesimultaneously allowing you to keep your job like you’d asked him to.You were a great worker and reduced his stress by not only cuttinghis workload in half, but making him relax and smile throughout theentire day. Really, he’d never been happier to go to work then whenhe did so with you right by his side. “Say, now that I am yourassistant, should I call you Mr. Han and Sir as well”, you’d askedone day, grinning cheekily. Jumin had chuckled in reply, husky andwarm in ways that caused butterflies in your stomach. “No, my love.You only have to call me that in the bedroom.” He’d winked at youbefore returning to his work, seemingly unaffected while your facefelt like it was burning up. Oh my, working with Jumin sure wouldturn out interesting…and you were looking forward to every singlepart of it.

#request #headcanon #ficlet #mystic messenger #mysme #mm #cheritz #otome #mc x jumin #jumin han #jumin #chairman han #jaehee kang #jaehee

233 notes · View notes

5hfanfiction · 7 years

Text

coming out (six) ⇾ camren

Authors Note: HI GUYS! I’m really sorry for being so shitty in keeping up with this book, a lot has been happening lately. My fiancée’s father died about two weeks after New Years and she’s been really torn about that because we are still arranging dates for our wedding and she was really excited for him to walk her down the aisle and be the first daughter of his to get married but everything happened so fast.

He had a seizure at dinner, ambulance and everything came, it was very sudden. Basically at the hospital they tell us that he has a basically inoperable brain tumor which none of us knew of. He’s been complaining about sharp pains and headaches for basically all of 2016 and we’ve all been urging him to go and have it checked out but he hates hospital more than anything and absolutely refused. The tumor was intact cancerous. He was placed in the hospital overnight for many nights and it basically got worse and worse each day. He had a series of seizures the night he died.

I’ve taken a break from writing to be there not only for my fiancée and her family, but for myself as well. Her dad was pretty much my dad in my eyes. If you haven’t already known, I’ve been in and out foster care systems for a big portion of my life because both parents had died due to drug addiction. I was in fact adopted later on in my life and I have the worlds best adoptive parents who are pretty much my own parents even if we don’t have the same blood but her father was there for me when my adoptive father wasn’t. He travels a lot and was gone for so much that i pretty much only had my adoptive mother to rely on as a parent figure until I met my fiancée and her dad. So when he died, it took a toll on me as well.

I focused mainly on reading and kind of chose to forget writing for a little while. This week my fiancée is in Canada going over funeral arrangements with her mother and other extended family and I’m home alone basically so I’ve found some spare time and decided to start this series up again considering it doesn’t have many chapters left since it is a short series. Its basically a one shot with many parts so I decided to give it a go again.

I’m really sorry though for being so M.I.A. I promise to update as much as I can, as I said before I’m ready to start some new fanfics and I can’t wait to share those with you.

I’m not usually one to share all my personal problems for fear of coming off attention seeking but you know what, fuck it. I kind of feel like you guys deserve an explanation. I’ve gotten many dms asking me to continue so here I am.

Also, TODAY IS MY 20TH BIRTHDAY! Its also the one year anniversary of me asking my fiancée to be my fiancée lmao. Hopefully we can get married for real though this fall when everything simmers down. But wow, I am no longer in my teens. I’m an adult dammit. Lmfao.

Anyways, enjoy this chapter and thank you for those of you who didn’t remove this story from your library.

Camila|

Watching Lauren walk away from her was almost harder than feeling herself walk away from Lauren. Her chest felt tight as her eyes sprang with tears. If only she’d let me explain…

Sighing softly to herself, she retreated back to find Lola as her attempt to slowly begin to mend things with her former band mate had failed miserably.

Coming to a stop in front of her girlfriend, Camila sighed. Her head throbbed the minute the girl had opened her mouth, “Why’d you chase after her?” Lola asked immediately.

“I just wanted to see how she was doing Lo-” she cut herself off. Lo was Lauren’s nickname. “Lola.”

The hazel eyed girl huffed as she pouted her lips slightly, “You don’t still have that stupid… Camren thing with her, right?” She asked. “I mean, I’m not really sure why that was even a thing. You’re way out of her league. She’s like a negative two hundred on the scale,” she scoffed.

Camila ground her teeth together as she looked down. Lola really knew how to piss someone off. “Lets go home,” she mumbled. She didn’t have time to deal with her shit.

Lauren|

Its been two days since she last ran into Camila. Its been two days since she was reminded of all that went wrong in her life. Seeing the successful singer made Lauren’s blood boil but heart throb all at once. She didn’t understand anything her body was telling her. All that was the least bit comprehendible was that Camila was bad news and Lauren stayed away from bad news no matter what.

She sighed softly to herself as she stood from her and Lucy’s bed. Lucy had gone off for coffee with an old friend Lauren didn’t know of until about a week ago but she didn’t question it. Lucy wasn’t obligated to share everything with her.

She has the day off and wasn’t really sure what to do with it. Normally she’d be spending it with Lucy but that was clearly out of the picture.

She stretched, hearing her back pop with several satisfying cracks before making her way up to her dresser to check her phone. She had the usual several too many text messages from friends but the unknown number caught her eye. She raised an eyebrow as she read the message. It was a simple “hey” to which she replied with a “Who is this” she grabbed her phone as she made her way into the kitchen, reading over the rest of her messages and replying to a few every now and then, being sure not to open the ones she didn’t want to reply to.

The moment she entered the kitchen, her phone vibrated in her hand. The unknown number. Her stomach dropped at the next words, “it’s Camila” she thought she may have misread as she blinked a few times. Seconds later, the bubble with three dots appeared indicating her former bandmate was typing.

C: dinah gave me this number

L: What the hell do you want Camila

Her blood boiled and heart pounded as Camila began typing. Didn’t she get the memo the last time they ran into each other? She wants nothing to do with her! She tapped her fingernails impatiently on the kitchen counter as she waited for the next message. Her anxiety was going through the roof. What was she writing? A college essay?

C: i dont want to fight with you lauren. I just want to explain. ive explained to everyone but you. please just give me the chance to tell you things my way and if it still isn’t enough, i’ll leave you alone forever. i promise.

Lauren reread the message over and over, her eyes burning from never blinking. This couldn’t be real. A small chuckle of annoyance fell from her lips as she began typing out her simple reply.

L: You can shove your explanation up your ass.

Her heart twitched as she hit send. She ignored the guilt from her sudden outburst of harshness and forced herself to prepare for anything Camila threw at her when the three dots in a bubble popped back up. What she read next shocked her. She expected old Camila. She expected Camila to be a bitch back at her. But she wasn’t.

C: okay. but if you happen to change your mind, i’ll be doing a little fundraiser for women’s right and lgbt rights in Miami Beach from 10am-6pm. ive invited the girls. mani, dinah and ally will be there. i heard you were with lucy, feel free to invite her as well. im really sorry for everything lo and i hope you can forgive me someday. have a good rest of the day.

Camila|

She willed the tears to go away as she hit send and threw her phone across the table. She never knew why even the thought of Lauren brought so much emotion into her. She could feel her ex bandmate’s eyes on her. It was silent for awhile before Dinah reached across from her to pick up the disregarded phone. Camila sat in silence as she read over the short conversation.

“She’ll come,” she finally said.

Camila looked up, a long sigh escaping her lips as she struggled to compose herself. “I doubt it,” she mumbled quietly.

Dinah shook her head, “She’ll come. Deep down, under all that hate and hurt, she still cares Mila. I promise,” the blonde haired girl sent her best friend a small smile.

Camila nodded, her face contorting into weird different expressions as she tried not to cry. She’s been doing that a lot lately and she wasn’t up for ruining her makeup the fourth time that week.

“So how are things with Lola?” Dinah asked.

Camila laughed, shaking her head. She didn’t even know what to say as she rolled her eyes over and over. She probably looked possessed. “I don’t even know why I’m dating her anymore Dinah,” she said truthfully.

“Just dump her,”

“I can’t,”

“Why not?”

“I don’t like hurting people,”

“You had a fine job doing that when you left the group,” silence fell upon them. Camila looked down at her lap, Dinah shaking her head. The blonde sighed softly, “I didn’t mean that Mi-”

“Its fine,” Camila said as she cut her off. “Lets just, lets just get ready for the fundraiser.”

***

Disappointment. That’s what Camila felt as she watched the last man pack up their belongings for the fundraiser. It was going on 8pm, it had gone a little over time with how many people had showed up, Camila was truly amazed. She loved every minute of it, meeting fans all while helping spread awareness on both women rights and LGBT rights but she couldn’t help the overall sadness as it came to an end. Lauren didn’t show up. She even had two guards waiting up front in case she did show up to escort her over. Nothing happened.

It was really hard for her to be happy in such an amazing environment when the one person she was hoping with everything in her to show up, didn’t show up.

Lauren|

“Babe you should go,” Lucy encouraged as she sat up slightly from the couch.

Lauren shook her head, walking over to her girlfriend a bowl of warm soup. “You’re not feeling well. I don’t have to go to the stupid fundraiser,” she mumbled.

Lucy gave Lauren a look as she accepted the soup, “First of all, you love fundraisers that tie down to those specific matters and you know it. Just last week you were saying how you wished it happened more often. Plus Fifth Harmony will basically be reuniting for the first time as a group in a while.”

Rolling her eyes, Lauren plopped down next to Lucy. Playing with the ring on her thumb she sighed loudly, “Why do you even care so much? You do know Camila invited me, right? You don’t really like her,” pausing she glanced at her girlfriend. “Besides, who’ll take care of you while I’m gone? The stupid thing is over anyways. She said it ended at 6 PM. Its like 7:45 now.”

“I don’t not like her. I just wasn’t fond of what she had done to the group,” Lucy shrugged. “And so? Weren’t you the one social media stalking her and saw she was spamming on Snapchat with videos just from like five minutes ago?” Lucy raised a knowing eyebrow at her girlfriend. “I can invite Kandee over if it’ll make you feel better about who’ll take care of me.” Kandee was Lucy’s longtime friend Lauren had recently learned about.

She sighed to herself as she thought over it, “What if it goes bad?” She mumbled quietly.

“She’s just asking you to hear her out, right? If you don’t like what she has to say, just leave,” Lucy reached over to rub her finger tips up and down her girlfriends arm, “It’ll all go good baby. I promise.”

***

This was a mistake. Lauren could feel it as she approached the empty area. I bet she’s gone. God I’m such an idiot. It was around 8 PM and the place was pretty much a ghost land. She saw a few people left but that was it. Her heart pounded in her chest as she stopped in front of the location Camila had texted her.

There stood a man who had his back turned toward her with “SECURITY” writing in big white letters on his black T-Shirt.

Clearing her throats softly, she proceeded to tap him on the shoulder. The man sighed before turning around. “Ma'am this even is over please-” the man paused himself before eyes widening. “I am so sorry Miss. Follow me this way,” Lauren felt confusion settle within her as she followed the man through the black curtains. Something in her told her not to, it could be a trap but she ignored it. She was always unnecessarily paranoid. “Miss Cabello!” The man shouted.

The ashy brown haired woman turned around, along with three other obviously familiar faces. A sense of nervousness washed over Lauren as the room went silent for a few seconds before an overly excited Ally ran straight toward her former bandmate along with Dinah and Normani. She felt overwhelmed with happiness as the three women bombarded her with questions and hugs. A couple years escaped her eyes. It felt so good to be in their presence again. But everything went just as fast as it came.

Suddenly they all realized the reasoning behind them all being there and a silent Camila. Pulling apart from each other, Normani spoke first. “We’ll give you guys some space.”

By then, the security guard had already left and the three ladies had found their way out. Lauren’s heart pounded as she took in Camila’s overall presence. The whole situation felt even more overwhelming as her former bandmate directed her toward a set of chairs to sit down. It was silent between them for quite some time, neither really knowing how to start off.

“I didn’t think you’d show,” Camila breathed out, deciding to speak first.

Lauren pursed her lips, looking down for a second then back up with a small head nod. “I wasn’t,” she answered honestly. “Lucy made me.”

She didn’t miss the small twinge of hurt in Camila’s features but tried her best to brush it all off. “You look nice,” Camila then said.

Lauren sighed, rolling her eyes. “Thank you but I didn’t exactly come to be complimented. I’m here for my explain so I can be on my way back to my perfectly unproblematic life,” she didn’t mean to come off so harsh. It kind of just happened and she did regret it when Camila paused and every feature in her face twisted into one of pain before looking down and clearing her throat.

“Okay,” she croaked. “Where do you want me to start?”

“The beginning. Why you left, why you feel I should pity you in anyway, etc.”

Camila clenched her jaw, “I don’t need your pity Lauren, that’s one,” sighing, she looked down as she attempted to collect her currently scattered thoughts.

“I left because I couldn’t do it anymore,” she started. “It was a decision I had already planned for months before the day I left. I left mainly because of you though,” she kept her eyes down as she felt herself relive those few earlier months. “You weren’t happy with me in the group. I could feel it, the fans could feel it, everyone could. It was like days that I wasn’t there, you shined the most. You seemed the happiest and most carefree. Obviously me being there was taking that away. My intentions weren’t to break the group as a whole, no. I was hoping if things played out well, you guys would continue as a foursome. I didn’t mean to fuck up everyone’s lives, I swear Lauren.”

“I couldn’t do it anymore. Not even just with you, I was taking away everyone else’s happiness. Normani wouldn’t, hell couldn’t even look at me off camera. Ally was always torn on who to side with, at one point she even hated me. I was breaking Dinah’s relationship with everyone in the group because I’d always make her feel obligated to be on my side. I was fucking it all up. I wasn’t happy anymore in it… you guys weren’t happy anymore with me in it. My solo music started to take off, everything was screaming at me to get out. So I did.”

“I didn’t mean for everything to go downhill so fast. I didn’t want you guys to find out the way you found out. But life has a fucked up way of playing out for you-”

“That doesn’t answer shit Camila. So basically you’re new skit is, you left the group for our happiness? My god you are full of so much shit,” Lauren laughed humorlessly as she stood up. “You left because you’re a selfish self absorbed idiotic fucking cunt who cared more about fame than the actual fucking gr-”

“I left because I was in love with you! Okay, I fucking left because I was in love with you Lauren!”

Everything went silent, Lauren stopped, Camila stopped, the girls who were eavesdropping behind the curtain even stopped. The atmosphere suddenly felt thick and heart to breathe in. Lauren sat back down and stared at Camila in disbelief.

Camila gulped harshly as the tears started to come, “I couldn’t take it anymore Lauren. I couldn’t. I couldn’t take knowing every fucking day you hated me, our friendship would never ever be the same. I could handle you not feeling the same, I could handle keeping it a secret forever. But I couldn’t handle knowing you hated me so fucking much. I couldn’t handle it. When you came out, and I was a complete bitch to you about it, it was like everything got worse. Your hate for me grew, everything was just a mess. Imagine… being head over heels in love with someone who hates you more than life itself but you have to work with them every fucking day. Imagine it.”

“I wasn’t fucking happy. I was sad, everyday, every night. My life was just sadness. And I hated that, because I loved what we did so fucking much. I loved making music with my best friends. I loved the fans. I loved everyone and everything. So basically feeling trapped and miserable was the worst thing ever for me. I’m sorry Lauren, I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry for not being there when you needed me as a friend, I’m sorry for putting a stupid solo career before our friendship, I’m sorry for putting anyone and everyone before you. My intentions were never to hurt you. You’ve always been one of my closest friends and to watch you grow such an intense amount of hate for me killed me. I wanted out, I needed out.”

She finished with a face full of tears and a shocked and frozen Lauren just staring back at her. Neither women knew what to say as the tension got thicker and thicker.

All Camila could think about was how she possibly fucked things up the most in this moment and there was no ever going back.

***

a/n: wow i actually cried writing this last part. damn. lol, im so sorry i did not edit. im really tired and im about to go out with friends for my birthday but i hope you enjoyed this over due chapter. i love you lots and thanks so much for reading.

to my tumblr readers, make sure to check out my wattpad @wthbello for faster updates and overall better reading format lmao. thanks so much for reading as well.

have an amazing night/day/afternoon, etc. wherever you are. make sure to always be kind to yourselves and always love yourselves because if you don’t, i can assure you no one else will. no one can love you better than you can love you. with that being said, i hope you enjoyed this chapter lmao.

ellianna (elli), xxxxxxxxxxxx

#UPDATE #series #non AU #AU #slash #camren #angst drama #romance fluff #submission #coming out

14 notes · View notes