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#them being dead is like their home lives are a weight off their shoulders in a way since they don’t actively have to be in it now
downbadf0rficppl · 3 months
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you're on your own kid
Bucky Barnes x Reader
Summary: You had a rough childhood, what with an absent father and a piece of shit mother. When a family dinner goes wrong, how do you stop your brain from spiraling? How do you convince yourself you're not alone? A certain blue-eyed, metal-armed avenger, of course.
Word Count: 3.3K
Warnings: Eating Disorders/Weight Related Talk, Blood, Injury, Kinda Self Harm, Child Abuse [PLEASE DO NOT READ IF THESE TOPICS MAKE YOU UNCOMFORTABLE!!!]
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You squirmed in your seat, fidgeting with your sleeves. It was awkward being at home after so long. You hadn't been home for four years almost - and it had probably been even longer since you'd sat at this table. Your mother sat across the table from you - her gaze heavy on your head. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, your brother had joked.
He was sitting next to you, his knee gently brushing against yours. A placating movement. He was trying to keep the peace - enjoying the first meal that you had had as a family in a long while. You don't know what it was that made you seek them out. Maybe if you had waited a week, you would have thought about the facts, rather than the feelings. Maybe if you had waited a week, you wouldn't be sitting here with the weight of the world on your shoulders.
You sat in silence, playing with the food on your plate. Your mother was of the almond variety, weighing out plates before passing them around the table. You didn't have much to talk about. Things hadn't ended well the last time the two of you spoke.
Your brother chimed in with the odd question - 'How's your gardening coming along, mom?' or 'How's the new job, sis? What's it like working for the Avengers?'. You'd humour him until your mother's disapproving stares became too much and then you'd shut up. He'd give you a sad sort of pitying smile, before returning to his food.
Dinner was long - even it was less than the traditional three courses. Your brother packed up some extra food, and took it home - he only lived about a half mile away so it made sense for him to go home. You made to go with him but your mother insisted you stay with her. "I made up your room, just the way you like it."
You doubted it. But you smiled anyway and hugged your brother tightly. He whispered that 'you would be fine' and 'it's only one night' and maybe for a second you believed him. As soon as he left, you headed to bed, claiming that 'The trip was long, ma, I'm super tired.'
The look on her face screamed that she didn't believe you. But she waved you good night and headed to the kitchen to find her favourite bottle of scotch.
You opened the door to your childhood bedroom to find it almost the same. The pink walls and bedcovers were suffocating, the blinds drawn shut to create this overwhelming feeling of being trapped. You were. Trapped.
You took your jumper off, laid it over your vanity chair, and jumped onto the bed. It was comfortable, but lying there staring at the ceiling brought back all the horrible memories you tried to suppress. Diet pills and weighing scales, small plates and vomiting, screaming and crying, sirens and hospital bills. Tears streamed down your face as curled up onto your side.
It was almost midnight when you heard your mother walk up the stairs. You knew she was drunk - her steps were loud and out of sync, and the bottle in her hand frequently tapped the banister as she tried to stabilise herself on it. You half expected her to keep walking, cross the landing, and fall dead asleep on her bed.
Instead, your door creaked open and you came face to face with her. Her glassy eyes were rimmed with red - she'd been crying too. Her eyes raked over you and suddenly you wished you'd never come back at all.
"Such a shame," she whispered, "You could have been so much more."
"Ma?"
"You were always... the best. The prettiest. The skinniest. You could have been incredible. Instead, you are... nobody."
Her words cut deep but you tried to ignore them. You were somebody. You worked for the Avengers, you were a top-level agent for SHIELD. You helped save the world.
"I tried my best. To help you. But you were ungrateful," Your mother stalked closer, her sadness giving way to anger, "conceited, convinced that you could be anything more than what I made you. But you were wrong. I created you. Without me, THERE IS NO YOU." She launched the bottle at your head and it shattered at the wall behind you.
She kept screaming, but you tuned her out, slipping off the bed and grabbing your jumper and keys. You ran past her, shoving her hard as she tried to grab you and ran out to your car. She watched you go screaming abuse after you, telling you to 'never step foot inside her house again.' You weren't planning to.
You drove like a madman back to upstate - traffic was pretty light considering the ungodly hour. You parked haphazardly - Tony would probably murder you for it in the morning but you couldn't find it within yourself to care. You trudged upstairs, footfalls far too heavy for someone is literally a superspy, but this was your home. You weren't running from anyone in here.
You were so stuck in your own head that you didn't realise that Bucky was sitting in the living room, watching as you walked into the kitchen. He'd heard your footsteps and he was worried. You never walked that heavily.
"Everything ok, doll?"
You looked up at him, not registering a word he said. He stood up and walked over to you, fingers reaching up to stroke your face.
"You good?" He whispered, his forehead almost touching yours.
You pulled away from his touch, even though your body was screaming for you to collapse into his open arms. "Yeah, Buck, fine. See you in the morning for training." You stepped past him, heading for the stairs.
"Yeah, doll. See you in the morning."
The morning came around far quicker than you'd hoped. You had barely slept, tossing and turning all night, your mother's words ringing through your head.
Eventually, you realised it was a futile effort. You might as well get up and be productive. You found yourself in the gym just as the sun came up, face to face with a heavy bag. You clenched your wrapped fists before shaking the sleep out of your system.
Your hits were precise, measured, calculated. If there was one thing no one could fault you for, it was your skills. You were an impeccable agent. If only your mum could see that. You took your rage out on the heavy bag, pouring every ounce of resent in your body into your punches. Sweat beaded on your forehead, the exertion making your breaths heavier and your knuckles sting. You kept punching, time slipping away from you.
You heard the door to the gym open, and someone was talking. Their voice was muted, almost as if your head was underwater. Between the punches and your tiredness, nothing registered in your foggy mind. From the distance you could hear footsteps, getting louder almost as if they were walking towards you.
You nearly jumped out of your skin when a hand brushed against your shoulder. You spun around ready to cuss out whichever stupid rookie decided to bother you so early in the morning. You were surprised to see familiar eyes boring into yours.
"I called your name, you know," Bucky said, his hands moving to rest on your waist, "twice. I even dropped my bag next to yours to get your attention."
"Sorry, I was thinking."
"I can tell," Bucky's thumbs drew circles on your waist, absentmindedly, "Where's that pretty mind been at lately?"
"What do you want, Barnes?"
"I'm worried. About you. You haven't been yourself lately. What's going on?"
"Nothing." You sighed, removing yourself from his grasp, "Missions, reports, meetings. It's tiring."
"Maybe you take a holiday? Try and relax a bit?" You could hear the genuine concern in his voice but you still rolled your eyes.
"Maybe you mind your own fucking business, Barnes? Don't you have other shit to be doing apart from hovering over me?" You grabbed your stuff, refusing to make eye contact with him, and walked out.
"I'm still seeing you for training right?" You hear him call after you, but you keep walking. You let out a shaky breath as soon as you got into the elevator.
He didn't see you for training. Or after.
You'd skipped training in favour of going on a run with Steve and then you had to file a few mission reports. You'd holed yourself up in your office, manila files piling up on the corner of your desk your fingers brushing over the keys with seasoned speed. Bucky had wanted to stop by but given your odd behaviour in the morning, he'd decided against it.
You were glad. You hated that Bucky could see right through you, even when you tried your best to hide it. Especially because you were irrevocably in love with him.
You'd been in love with him ever since you'd started working at the compound. Bucky was one of the few people to notice you and your efficiency. You became one of his preferred mission partners, a fact of which you were very proud. You quickly became one of his favourite people, period, and Bucky even went so far as to blow off Steve to spend time with you.
It hurt you to keep him at arm's length but you knew it was for the best. You remembered what your father told you the night before he left. You're on your own kid. You always have been.
You were given a mission assignment in the evening, with strict instructions of 'wheels up at 0600.' The early pickup time wasn't strange and you were itching to get out of the compound. You packed your bag up, leaving it by the door, and headed to bed.
Another restless night of sleep was the last thing you needed, but you were up and at the hangar waiting for Captain Rogers by 0600. He smiled when he saw you and handed you a coffee. You smiled. Your first real smile since you visited your parents.
"Good luck out there." A voice calls from behind you. You freeze. Bucky jogs towards you both, his eyes betraying his tiredness. Steve's face breaks into a grin at the sight of his old friend. Steve throws his arms around Bucky.
"Don't do anything stupid until I get back," Steve says, his joking tone making Bucky laugh.
"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you."
You want to smile at the sight of the two of them together but you held yourself back. You walked towards the quinjet, ready to get this show on the road when you hear Bucky clearing his voice behind you.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Onto the quinjet?"
"Not without a hug, you're not." You sigh but trudge down the steps to give him a half-arsed side hug. He pulls you in tight, and whispers into your hair, "When you get back, we're gonna talk. Okay?"
You don't respond, brushing him off and climbing into the jet. Steve follows you in, dropping his bag next to yours, before turning back to wave at Bucky.
"Don't worry, Buck, I'll take good care of your girl."
His girl. That sounded nice. You shook the thought away before elbowing Steve in the sight. Jokingly of course, but he still doubled over for effect. Bucky burst into laughter.
That was the last thing you saw as the door went up.
The mission was hard. Not terrible - no one died, which was a win in your book - but it wasn't fun. Multiple shootouts, car chases, and three hours of hiding in a dumpster later, you were ready to nap for a week. But, alas, Fury had set a debrief at 8 the next morning, which meant that you had - you checked the clock on your microwave - 6 hours at best.
You dropped your bag on the sofa and headed into the bathroom. You unzipped your utility vest, dropping it on the floor. You needed to disinfect it - god knows what had stained that vest. You pulled up your compression shirt, wincing as the flecks of red came into view. You quickly stripped it off, dropping it in the washing basket, before whipping back around. You caught your own reflection in the mirror and tilted your head, taking in your reflection of your body. Your mother's words played back in your head. Maybe your mother had a point.
You quickly shook your head, dispelling those horrible thoughts from your mind. But still, you continued to stare at your body, scrutinising every feature. I mean, sure you weren't as skinny as you used to be, but that's because you had muscle now, right? And the hamburger you had for lunch was a treat - you know for completing the mission? The super important mission that you were on because you are important and you are somebody and you have value and you are someone without your mum. Don't you? And it's ok that you can't see your ribs because actually you have abs now and that's way more attractive. Right? And.. and... and....
SMASH.
Broken glass was shattered all around you, fragments piercing your skin. Your mirror now had a fist-shaped hole in the middle, from where your sadness had quickly bled into anger.
You cradled your bloodied fist in your hand, sinking to the ground as sobs racked through your body. Glass dug into your knees as they hit the floor and you curled your hands into your chest. Hurtful 'what ifs' swirled through your head, stealing your breath and making it almost impossible to breathe.
Pounding on your door broke you out of your thoughts. You tried to regain your bearings. It was 2 am. You were in your apartment, the apartment that was miles away from the compound, that you lived in alone. Who the hell would be at your door right now?
You were silent, breath bated as you waited for the stranger to go away. They banged on the door again.
"Doll, I swear to god, if you don't let me in, I'm going to break your fucking door down."
You knew that voice anywhere. The knowledge that you weren't alone, that he was here for you, that Bucky wouldn't make you suffer alone brought new tears to your eyes. Fresh sobs burst from your chest as you tried to move. Glass shards were stabbing into your legs, and one of your hands was bleeding profusely. Bucky, your safety net, was so close and yet so far.
"Doll? Doll, I can hear you. Doll, please, please let me in." You could hear the panic in his voice as he struggled with his conscience. You tried to move but the pain was excruciating. A pained scream erupted from your lips.
A loud bang came from your front door, followed by heavy and fast footsteps.
"Where are you, doll? Come on, just come and talk to me." He said, sweeping through your living room. You whimpered from the bathroom, his enhanced hearing focussing on even the smallest of sounds.
He quickly found his way into the bathroom, his eyes raking over your hunched figure, before flitting to the broken mirror and the shards of glass on the ground.
"Oh doll," he whispered, bending down to scoop you up from the floor. He cradled you gently as he carried you from the bathroom into your bedroom. "What happened, doll? Talk to me."
You looked up at him, trying to figure out where to start. You blanked. You couldn't find a good place to start the story that would cause you the least pain. Your mouth opened and closed a few times with no sound coming out. Bucky rested his hand against yours, trying to reassure you to take your time, but the sound of your wince drew his attention to your hands.
"Doll, your hands." He grabbed your hands gently, peering at your knuckles. They were mauled, glass sticking out of torn-up skin, "What did you do?" He stood up, walking into your kitchen to grab the first aid kit he knew was under the sink. Watching him walk around like he owned the place made some small part of your heart happy - it was almost as if your dreams, your darkest-held fantasies, were coming true.
Bucky kneeled in front of you, placing the first aid kit beside him. He brushed all the glass shards off your legs - luckily none of them had been embedded into your skin. He cleaned any small scratches before turning to your knuckles. The sight of your knuckles made him wince and you started to pull them away. Bucky leveled you with a look that said, let me take care of you. You let him. He sterilised a pair of tweezers and got to work pulling the shards of glass out of your knuckles. You sat in silence for a while, Bucky diligently working on your knuckles, and you watching the swiftness with which he worked.
"Why did you punch the mirror, doll?" Bucky asked after a while.
"I was angry," you whispered, your voice deathly quiet. Now that the rage was gone, all you had left was embarrassment.
"And why were you angry?" Bucky coaxed, his eyes pleading for some answers. He pulled out the last shard of glass before swiping an alcohol wipe over your knuckles and bandaging them up. He packed up all the items back into the first aid box and went to put it away and wash his hands.
You were still sat on the bed contemplating your answer when he got back. He knelt in front of you again, before he rested his hands on your face, "Why were you angry doll?"
"I didn't like it." You whispered, pulling your body away from him.
"What didn't you like?" Bucky's eyes stared into yours and you suddenly felt extremely self-conscious. You tried to remove yourself from his all-seeing, mind-reading gaze, but he didn't let you. He pulled you into his lap, and you hid your face in his neck. His beard tickled your forehead as you nestled into him, trying to seek out the comfort you so desperately needed but didn't know how to ask for.
"Me." You said, your head turned away from him as you stared at your hands.
"What?"
"I didn't like me." Your voice started to shake as you tried to find the right words to tell him the truth, the whole honest godforsaken truth, but you couldn't.
Bucky seemed to read your mind, "It's ok, take your time. We don't have to talk about this today. We can come back to it later, when you're feeling up for it, okay?" You nodded, burrowing further into him, "You wanna sleep?"
You nodded again, and Bucky shifted, wrapping his arms around you so he could gently place you down on the bed. He removed his arms from underneath you and tucked you into bed, gently kissing your forehead as you turned to leave. You whined.
"Pleasedon'tgoBuck-" You mumbled, sleep quickly pulling you under. He smiled, perching himself on the end of the bed.
"You sure you want me to say, sweetheart? Not sure you'll ever get rid of me if I stay?"
"I promise. Never want you to go." You said, clinging to his arm and pulling him back into bed.
You slipped into an easy slumber as Bucky shuffled around in your room. Maybe you didn't have to be on your own anymore.
fin.
buy me a coffee
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pers1st · 1 month
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JUST A SPARK... PROLOGUE - leah williamson
it's never quite as it seems
warnings: death, grief, this is pretty angst tbh
master list / next chapter
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It rained again. Ever since you had moved to England, the weather seemed to taunt you for leaving the country you actually considered to be your home. Your nonna, your mamma, and even your Dad stayed behind in Italy, and just like that, every dream of what England should’ve been was crushed between your tight fists. It rained. Every single day that you had lived in England, it rained. Today was the tiniest bit better than what yesterday’s clouds had provided. Instead of furious down-pouring that almost silenced your every thought and made the pitches impossible to train on, the water was splashing from the sky rhythmically, staining your windows as it peacefully dropped.
You were sitting on your couch, a mug of tea in your hand that you found oddly comically typically English, watching as the weather let you down once again. You missed Italy then, more than you usually did. Dreams of your summers spent in Tuscany, sitting on the terrace with your friends, sipping on a pearly white wine as the birds breezed past you cascaded in your mind as you stared out of the large, rain-stained window of your living room. Reaching for your phone, you huffed, realizing the closest you could come to being back home was a phone call. Although it wouldn’t be enough, it would certainly have to do.
The first sign that something was wrong was the way the ringing of your phone wouldn’t stop for far too long. There was very little time difference from England to Italy, and if it was an hour earlier, you would have believed your parents would’ve laid down for their daily nap, but it was almost six in the evening and there was no way they weren’t awake right now. When the call was finally picked up, the second sign hit you like a truck. Instead of your mamma’s sweet voice, you could hear a total mess unfolding, a sob ringing through the line, a dish being thrown to the floor.
“Mamma? Mamma, cosa non va?” (What’s wrong?), you asked, panic striking your tone as you sat up, gently disposing the mug of tea to the very edge 0f your couch table. 
“Mamma?”, you repeated as any clue of what was going on was still withheld from you.
“Morto. É morto” (Dead. He’s dead), your mother cried, and at once, the oddly comically typically empty English mug fell to the floor, shattering into a thousand pieces.
The flight back to Italy was painfully silent. You didn’t allow yourself to listen to music, too scared to listen to anything just in case you forgot your father’s voice. Your train of thoughts was absolute nonsense, to put it into harsher words, but it didn’t matter to you.
After speaking to both Emma Hayes and other officials of the club, most of whom you had never met, you had voiced the will of your mother to be buried in Italy rather than in London, where he had been born, and had taken the next flight out to your home country, ignoring the protests of men who had never truly known your father, claiming they wanted to come with you. You knew, however, that your father wished for more. The legacy he held at Chelsea wasn’t unknown, but you knew that none of the men in suits had ever mattered to him, and that none of them would have known him truly. It was quite ironic- the fact that you were defaming the very club that had raised not only you but your father as well, and that he had only left behind once you had been old enough to live on your own, and watched as your family moved back into the country you so desperately longed for.
Being back, now, felt like a slap to the face. Your mamma was still inconsolable, although your nonna tried her best to pick the broken pieces from the floor and hold them together just to take another weight off your shoulders. No twenty-three year old should watch as their father was buried, but life was not fair and you had no way to deal with it other than to just deal with it. Silent tears crept down your cheeks as you listened to Father Marcus tell anecdotes of your father’s life, and of his career, and you wondered whether he would’ve liked to be buried nearer to his own home. Italy had always been your mamma’s, but after witnessing the agonizing love between your parents for a time that felt far too short now, you figured that he would want to be wherever she was. The cemetery was only a five-minute walk from your parents’ casa, but it was a three hour flight from your flat. 
Still, the walk felt painfully long as you followed most of your parents’ friends to your childhood home, and rain began to softly splatter from the sky as you trotted among the crowd. For the first time in a long time, you didn’t fight it, rather grateful that anyone was unable to tell whether your cheeks were wet with the rain or stained by your tears. You wondered whether this was your Dad telling you to get your act together. It certainly seemed like something he would do, and the thought put the faintest of smiles on your lips. Afraid to seem like a mad woman to the rest of the grieving crowd, you slipped past Father Marcus, away from the procession, as you fiddled your phone out of the pocket of your coat, watching as rain wet the screen.
Another smile crept up on your face at the multiple messages you had received over just the past few hours you had neglected your phone. 
Most of your Chelsea teammates were sending you their wishes, along with Emma, but what interested you most was a missed call from an unknown number. An unknown English number.
Silently, you glanced towards the front of the procession, seeing they had almost reached their destination as you found your mamma at the very front, weeping in your nonna’s arms. You should be there, right now, with her, but you simply couldn’t. 
Instead, you reached to call the number back. The other line picked up surprisingly fast.
“Hello, Y/N. I was hoping you would call me back. I hope it’s an okay time for you”, a woman on the other line spoke. Furrowing your eyebrows, you nodded, forgetting that whoever it was couldn’t see your movements.
“Oh, sí. Yes, it’s a perfect time, actually?”
“Really? Because I was informed by your club that you were… back in Italy. For…”, the woman trailed away, and you exhaled shakily.
“No, no, it’s okay. I just saw your call, so…”, you tapped your foot against the wet pavement rhythmically, eager to know who you were speaking to.
“Well, it’s Sarina Wiegman here, I’m sorry. I should’ve started with that. Anyways, I was wondering whether you would be interested to join the Lionesses for the Arnold Clark Cup, this year. I know of  your circumstances right now, so I don’t need an answer right away.”
You let out a shaky exhale at her words. You had always thought about playing for England, as you had joined both their youth teams as well as Italy’s, while you had still played in the country. They had offered you a place in their senior team far earlier than England had, and although you couldn’t have been sure whether England would ever offer, you had always held out for something. For what, you didn’t know. Although now, it suddenly seemed to make sense. 
Your father had played for England, had even captained his country for a short while, and although you had always dreamed of playing for Italy when you were younger, infatuated with their men’s team’s success, much to your father’s dismay, you had not agreed yet. The reason only came to you now. And suddenly, it was so painfully clear.
“Yes, yes. I would really like that”, you smiled to yourself, glancing up at the cloudy sky to clear your teary vision. It didn’t help in the slightest.
“Great! The call-up will be published tomorrow, we’ll send you all the details in an email. I look forward to seeing you in camp!”, your manager cheered, and although it tasted bitter-sweetly in your mouth, you voiced your excitement as well before hanging up the call. 
You would play for your father’s country, if all went to plan. You would finally step into his footsteps. You would continue his legacy, whether you really wanted to or not.
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thewulf · 4 months
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Always & Forever Pt. 2 || JJ Maybank
Summary: Request - i absolutely loved the one with jj and routledge!reader after jb and Sarah are presumed dead (its absolutely brilliant) and was wondering if you could do a continuation of it where reader has conflicted feelings after they return and jj comforts her and tells her that it's okay
A/N - Ugh, I just love a good JJ comfort. Thank you for the request!
Pairing: JJ Maybank x Y/N
Word Count: 3.1k+
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“It’s nice to see you out of that Chateau.” Kiara rubbed your shoulders before sitting down on the bench outside next to you. The three of you had met up outside the high school after running out of class. All of you receiving the text from your apparently not so dead brother John B. Kiara texted you where to meet them. The text was simple. They’re alive and okay. In the Bahamas. Living and breathing. With a picture to prove it.
Your eyes welled up with tears as you looked at the simple text and picture. They were alive. The son of a bitch did it. You nodded looking up to your almost sister. The one you ran to when you needed advice. She wrapped you up in a swift hug seeing you on the verge of yet another breakdown. Giving you a tight squeeze, you were ever thankful for the friendship you had with her. Thankful your brother brought such incredible people into your life. You had a different set of friends, ones a few years younger. Your age. John B made you when you were younger so that you could be your own person too. In the end you preferred his friends, but you still liked your school friends. They were the ones that knew you better than yourself somehow. The ones helping you limp along through the pain.
“He’s okay. They’re alright.” She gave you another soft squeeze before letting you go. She sat down at the table next to you across from Pope.
You nodded not being sure about it all, “I just… I can’t believe it.” You felt a tear drop down your cheek as you read the message over and over again, “I thought they were dead.”
“Hey, look at me mins.” JJ stepped forward. Using the pad of his fingertips he brushed away the tears you had tried so hard to hold back but failed at miserably in doing so.
He truly couldn’t fathom how you felt. He spent the better part of four days nursing you back to health and walking you through it. You hadn’t fully accepted his death, but you were beginning to. And now this? You were thrilled but felt so…guilty? Guilty for not believing. For letting yourself wither away for no reason.
“They’re alright Y/N. They’re alright.” He gave your arms a light touch before sitting down next to you. Pope and Kiara lost in a conversation of their own.
“Thank God for that.” You mumbled before leaning into him, “How the hell are we going to get them home? The Bahamas?” Sighing you tried your best to come up with a solution but falling miserably short.
“That’s not your job to figure out. They’ll be back soon. Don’t you worry. We just got to keep you out of trouble until then.” His smile brought one out in you too. He was so confident it would be alright that it made it hard not to believe him. JJ may have been messy, but he never let you down, never lied to you. So, why would he start now?
“I’ll choose to believe you Maybank.” You leaned into him feeling the weight of the world come crashing down once more. What a strangely emotional day. You should be happier than anything. And you were. But it felt off. Felt strange. Like somebody dead was coming back to life. He was never dead though. But you grieved him. He felt dead. And you couldn’t have felt more uneasy about it all.
He grinned, wrapping his free arm around you, and pulling you close, “When have I ever let you down mins?”
You shook your head quickly, “You haven’t.”
He leaned over, whispering in your ear, “I promise, that’ll never change.”
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JJ was screaming at the three of you, “Go, go, go, go, go, go!”
How in the hell did you always end up in these situations? The damn truck broke down and you were running for your life, literally.
When Kie screamed, “Guys, I think he has a gun!” You kicked it up a notch. Oh, how your body wasn’t quite ready for this, not in the slightest. JJ ran behind you, clearly not running as fast as he normally would. He had to make sure you were alright.
“Keep your heads down!” JJ shouted as he tailed you. JJ was ready to pull you in a different direction need be. He knew Kie and Pope could fend for themselves. He wasn’t so sure you were doing alright though. You were running considerably slower than you normally would.
“Fucking hell.” You cursed more to yourself than anybody else. You knew you were holding them back.
“You alright there Routledge?” JJ called out from behind you hearing you mumbling something from in front of him.
When you put your thumbs up out to side of you he knew you were fine. Winded for sure but fine. You’d never back down from a challenge. Never get caught. No that wasn’t a possibility for you.
“Down the alleyway!” Pope shouted before darting down a side. JJ caught you before throwing you forward with his momentum when you were caught off guard in a daze.
“Thought you said you were alright?” He asked, barely out of breath as you stumbled forward. If it weren’t for JJ you’d surely have been caught by now after stumbling over your very own feet.
You nodded, “Sorry, just getting a little tired.” It wasn’t a lie, no. It just wasn’t the full truth. You felt better, you looked better. But you weren’t completely better. You still got tired quicker than normal. Your body still recovering from the trauma it went through.
Before he could respond though you ran right into the back of Pope who stopped so suddenly not even JJ could react.
“What the hell Pope!” You pushed him after you bounced right off his back.
“Y/N.” The voice of your older brother snapped you out of your fit of irritation at your friend. It couldn’t be. No, it couldn’t be John B? You peered around your much taller and broader friend to spot not only John B but Sarah as well sitting on a bike and cart.
“Holy shit.” You gasped it utter shock. This was the last thing you expected.
“Come on! We gotta go!” Sarah pulled you onto the cart right onto her lap. She held you close.
You couldn’t believe it. John B and Sarah. Just fine. In fucking Charleston of all places? Who would’ve thought?
“You’re alive.” You stated more than asked as you looked up to Sarah. You’d grown close to her in the few short months she’s been around.
“Yeah. We’re alive.” She smiled down at you ignoring the antics of the pogues around you.
“And you’re okay? He’s okay?” John B was laughing at the commotion, high on life as he reconnected with the group.
“As okay as we can be kiddo.” She gave you a quick hug but left her arm wrapped around you as she cheered once the group pushed the man who had been chasing them on the ground. Off to the boat they went. Off home they went. It all felt so surreal. Like the last week of your life didn’t exist. Oh, how the universe was playing with your emotions.
Once you were on the boat you sat there smiling, listening in on the conversation between everybody. A sick feeling took over your stomach as you looked over smiling at John B for the first time in a week. He was alive. He was okay. He wasn’t dead. He didn’t get lost at sea. He was sitting five feet away from you. Your older brother was okay.
“Y/N?” He asked. Almost like he knew you were stuck in your head.
“Yeah?” You asked. He knocked you right out of your thoughts. It was a voice you really never thought you’d get to hear again. It was the weirdest feeling. You felt euphoric that you’d found them again. Guilty for thinking they were dead. Scared as hell to go home. Uneasy about the future. It was almost too much to try and comprehend. Afterall, they accused John B of killing the Sherriff, you still had to deal with that mess.
“You didn’t answer the question.” He smiled patting your knee and sitting down next to you.
A light blush crept to your face. You were doing that a lot more often than you usually did. Zoning out of the conversation completely, “Sorry, I didn’t hear it.”
“You ready to get home?” Your older brother with the curly hair and honey brown eyes asked you.
A quick nod came from you without hesitation, “Yeah, more than ready.” You might’ve been unsure of your future but you sure as hell wanted to sleep in your bed. Especially if your older brother was sleeping in the room next to yours.
“Hey kid.” John B nudged your side, “You alright? You look like hell.” He smiled with a sadness you rarely saw from him. He was always tough on you. Only going soft when he needed. But when he saw your state he couldn’t help but to feel a little guilty. When he put himself in your shoes his heart broke at the realization of how alone you must’ve felt. You’d broken down without him.
“I’m okay now.” You turned to him giving him a shallow smile, “I thought you died JB. I kind of fell apart.” You whispered and turned away from him knowing that you’d fall apart if you looked at your older brother for much longer.
“I’m so sorry bug. I felt like I didn��t have an option at the time. And we got lucky. We really did. We probably should’ve died out there. I can’t even begin to apologize. You know how much you mean to me.” He spoke to you and only you. Everybody had given the brother and sister duo the space they needed.
You looked over to him with tears in your eyes, “I know. I’m so sorry JB. I can’t believe it’s come to this.” You felt defeated. How in the hell were you guys going to unfuck this mess up? Somebody was dead. It wasn’t your guys’ fault no. But it was being pinned on your brother. He couldn’t get locked up. Not for something he’d never dream of doing.
“Hey, we’ll figure it out. We always do buggie.” He smiled trying to provide you some sort of comfort. He too had a plethora of nicknames for his younger sister. You in face hated bugs and eight-year-old John Booker Routledge thought it’d be funny to give his six-year-old sister the nickname bug. And of course, it stuck. Because why wouldn’t it? You’d secretly grown fond of the nickname over time
“I always have a solution and I don’t know the answer to this one.” You let a few tears fall. There was simply no solution. You had to let it all play out. Hide John B for as long as you could. It was going to be a task, but you guys could do it.
He rubbed your back trying his best to soothe you. You were wound up tighter than he’d ever seen. You’d clearly been through hell and back, “This isn’t all on you Y/N. We’ll figure it out as the pogues, yeah? Relax for me for a little while.”
“I’ll try.” You spoke leaning back into the seat of the boat. Giving your eyes a close trying your best to enjoy the ride back.
He hesitated. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t quite sure what to do, “I’ll leave you to it.” He spoke before getting up and finding Sarah who happened to be talking to JJ. JJ who was watching you with nothing but concern in his eyes. John B wasn’t dumb. He knew better. He saw the way his best friend was watching you. Something was very wrong, and John B didn’t have a clue what had happened.
“You should go talk to her.” John B spoke to JJ once he made his way back to Sarah, “She’s being quiet. Not like her usual self.” He frowned seeing his younger sister so out of whack. He needed you as much as you needed him. Your happy go lucky attitude got him through so much more than he’d ever admitted to you.
“Yeah sure.” JJ was quick to agree.
Sitting down next to you he gave you a moment before speaking up, “You alright there, honey?” He asked knowing that’d get a ruse out of you.
You leaned your head forward again before turning back to him, “Back to honey?”
He smirked, “Don’t wanna make you uncomfortable.”
You retuned the smile. It felt like the first genuine smile in weeks, “Aren’t you so considerate J.”
Giving you a wink, he took one of your hands in his, not really caring that your older brother was watching with an eagle eye from across the small boat, “Only for you.”
Flashing him a soft smile you didn’t hide the sigh that escaped your lips. Feeling comfortable with your lifelong friend you leaned your head onto his shoulder. Your eyes fluttered shut hearing the soft lull of the engine cutting through the water below you. It was peacefully quiet as everybody found a spot and found their solace. It was always one of your favorite parts of a road trip with the crew. There was always a comfortable silence shared amongst the group. Absolute peace with the best people you knew.
JJ leaned his head on yours. He let you relish in the silence for a moment before asking you a question he really needed to know the answer to, “Are you okay mins?”
You nodded your head subtly in his shoulder, “Yeah, I’m okay.”
“You’re awfully quiet.” He whispered back to you. His arm made its way around your torso and sat on your side securing you tightly into his side.
“And you’re being awfully chatty.” You grinned into his chest knowing he’d find mock offense to your comeback.
You were right. He pinched your side, lightly and let out a “Hey!”
Lifting your head from his soft embrace you looked him in the eyes for the first time in a while. He was so pretty. The most handsome boy you knew. And you always made sure to tell him that whenever you could.
You spotted the concern dotting his eyes as he studied your face. He knew something wasn’t right. John B knew something wasn’t right. You knew something wasn’t right. You just couldn’t place it. You were so fucking happy he was home. God, it was the absolute best scenario that could’ve played out. Why’d you feel so off? So weird? Like you were in a dream or something.
“I’m okay J. I just… I just feel weird.” You admitted to the boy who wanted nothing but answers from you. When he broke out that sad stare you couldn’t help but to spill your feelings to your concerned best friend.
His head cocked to the side as he processed what you said, “What do you mean?” He pressed, needing to know. He looked you over for any signs of injury. You weren’t shot were you? He didn’t remember the guy firing a shot but who knows, a lot was going on.
You noticed his eyes looking for anything wrong, “I’m fine JJ.” You frowned not sure how to get spit out what you meant.
“Okay.” He waited for you to go on.
You turned away before continuing, “I should be so happy they’re back. They’re alive. I just feel off. I don’t know J.”
“You’re in shock.” He said so quickly you weren’t sure if you heard him right.
You shook your head off like he was crazy, “No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.” He rolled his eyes knowing you’d never take his word for it. You were as stubborn as your older brother.
“JJ I’m not in shock. I get what happened. I understand it…”
He interrupted you quickly, grabbing at your hand to shut you up, “You can understand it all. Still doesn’t mean you aren’t in shock mins. Two life altering events happened in your life within a week. It’s alright if you feel weird. If you feel off. It’s perfectly fine, alright?”
JJ wasn’t often one for such kind of comfort, but he knew how to when he needed to. You needed it right now. A little bit lost in a great big world.
You hummed, “If you say so.”
He smiled before gently placing your head back down on your head, “Remember what I said earlier? When have I ever let you down?”
He was right of course. JJ was always right. He had never let you down, “I love you JJ Maybank, you know that right?” You whispered once more, careful to make sure that nobody else heard. You had said it a thousand times to the blonde-haired boy before, but it meant something different this time. You loved him, you really did. And he knew it. He knew you were admitting far more than you ever dared too before.
A smile couldn’t be stopped from forming on his face as he realized the weight of your words, “I love you too. Love, love you mins.” He whispered into your ear careful to keep the moment between you and him only. JB and the crew would figure it out soon enough. He wanted to relish in the intimate moment between the girl he’d adored from afar for so long. His best friend. The girl he couldn’t stand to be around at first to the girl he couldn’t wait to see. His girl. You. Y/N. Little Routledge.
“Love, love huh?” You laughed in his chest feeling nothing but the purest form of joy rippling throughout your body.
“I love the hell out of you Y/N. John B’s going to murder me when he finds out but damn hearing you say that was everything. You’re it mins. You’re my girl. I can promise you that.” He wanted to kiss you more than anything. Especially when you looked up at him while he was cradling you in his chest shielded from your older brothers eyes. God, he wanted to kiss you so bad.
But for your sake. And his sake he decided to wait until it was just the two of you. He could wait. Instead, he brushed the hair away from your face and settled for squeezing you into him once more, “Guess what J?” You asked once he was done settling you in for the ride back.
“What’s that?”
“I love, love you too.” You grinned that beautiful smile he’d missed so badly in the last few weeks that’d ripped the life right from you. And that, that was worth everything and more to him. He couldn’t wait to spend a lifetime of drawing that beautiful smile from his ever more beautiful girl.
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Always & Forever || JJ Maybank
Summary: Request - Hii. Love your work. It's so good. I'm feeling a good hurt comfort fic with the obx cast. Could I get a JJ Maybank x reader (maybe john b's younger sister?) where she's lost everything after they assume John B and Sarah are lost at sea... Read Rest Here
A/N - Ohhh this was kinda hard to write. Being sad is a bitch. Please let somebody know if you're sad/getting sad. People love you! Always remember that <3
Pairing: JJ Maybank x Y/N
Word Count: 2.3+
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GIF by anakin-skywalker
TW: Talks of depression, being sad, not eating etc.
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You barely heard the soft knocks on your bedroom door. Currently, you were huddled underneath the comforter of your missing older brother just hoping and praying he was okay. They’d officially called it. Lost at sea. Presumed deceased. Dead. Just like your fucking father. How was this your life? Two years ago, you had the world with the two coolest guys on the earth. And now? Now you were alone. Utterly fucking alone. It’d only been three damn days, but they gave up. There was no funding for a poor pogue boy from the wrong part of the island. Sherriff Peterman just gave you a sad look when she broke the news to you a few days prior. Or it could’ve been yesterday. Time didn’t matter anymore. Nothing really mattered anymore. You were a sixteen-year-old girl alone as fuck in this cold ass world.
“Hey little Rout.” You heard JJ’s kinder than usual voice from the other side of the door, “You need to open this door or I’m going to have to pick the lock. Need to see if you’re okay. You haven’t been at school and Mrs. Smith is getting worries, she said she’s going to report you.” You heard the soft sigh of utter defeat as he waited for a moment for you to respond. To do anything. You didn’t have the energy to respond so instead you just laid there.
“Come on kid.” You rolled your eyes at the nickname he’d long since used on you, “You need to come out. Get some fresh air. You can’t stay in there forever.”
Nothing. You just couldn’t. Depression was a hell of a thing. You just couldn’t fathom getting up and unlocking that door. Your brain knew you should. But the actual thought of moving seemed like a foreign concept you weren’t ready for sure yet.
He didn’t give you much else of a choice as you heard the lock click. You knew it wouldn’t take him much effort to get it but alas, you just couldn’t care. It didn’t seem to matter. Nothing else mattered. John B was all you had left and now you sat here empty and void.
“Oh Y/N…” His voice trailed off as he spotted you withering away underneath a mass of blankets. A blank stare on your face. You couldn’t bear to meet his eyes feeling grossly ashamed you let it get this kind of bad.
“I just…” Your voice croaked out as it hadn’t been used in while, how long you hadn’t used it you really didn’t have a clue.
He shook his head kneeling down beside your bed, “It’s alright mins.” His head was close as he smiled at you with a smile that never reached his eyes. A smile he was putting on for you. He took his hand brushing your knotted hair away from your sunken face.
Mins. You wanted to laugh. It was the first good emotion you had felt in a while. Mins was your current nickname of quite the long line of ever evolving nicknames from the blonde-haired boy. First it was mini-Routledge, then it was mini-JB, then mini and now mins. He didn’t use it all too often anymore, only when he thought you needed it. And you needed it more than ever now. All his love and everything he could give to you.
JJ knew just how much John B meant to you. He was your best friend. The two of you did everything together, practically inseparable. Even when JB met JJ they still included you in on everything. You were his shadow. That didn’t change as you got older. You just had to play it off as something different.
“I’m tired JJ.” You sighed letting your eyes close in front of him. The effort to keep them open was beginning to become too much.
He frowned deeply. This wasn’t like you. You were usually so full of life. The one who wanted to go and do things. The one who called him lame when he didn’t want to try something new with you. You were the one that kept the group going. And now it felt like everything was falling apart. The pogues were without their people and they needed you back.
This was your way of shutting down and he knew it.
“When was the last time you ate honey?” He asked while trying to brush the knots out of the hair he could get to. You were never particular about your hair, but JJ knew how badly knots hurt to get out. He remembered that one time when the both of you were younger, you crying when your dad tried to brush out some gnarly knots after JJ and JB tried to teach you how to surf one afternoon. It broke his heart even as a twelve-year-old boy. He had that same protective love that JB had over you.
You sighed trying to remember, “Before we found out he was missing I guess.”
JJ’s eyes bugged. He knew he should’ve checked in on you sooner. Damn the pogues who told him to leave you alone. That you needed space. You clearly didn’t need space. You needed help.
“That was three days ago Y/N.” His blood felt like it was running cold. How could he let you lay here for three entire days? JB would fucking murder him if he found out. Some friend he was.
You hummed in acknowledgement, “I’ve had some water though. Haven’t been hungry.” You admitted to your concerned friend. Your voice finally started sounding more like your own after the hoarseness had worked its way out.
“Well, that’s a start mins.” He sighed brushing his overgrown golden hair away from his eyes, “Can you get up for me? Get you some soup downstairs or something?”
“JJ.” You whined not feeling up to the task, “I’m too tired. I don’t feel like it.”
He took you hand in his and wanted to cry from how cold it was. You weren’t right. No, you were suffering, and they just let you. He felt nothing more than a piece of shit seeing you so broken, “I’ll carry you. I just need you to eat something honey. John B would be sick with worry if he knew you were starving away.”
“Don’t talk about him.” You turned away from JJ feeling your own blood run cold at the mention of your missing older brothers name. You couldn’t fucking believe he chose to leave you. Fuck, you couldn’t believe he’d ever put Sarah in that position either. It all felt like a fever dream you had to wake up from. But you weren’t waking up which meant this was a sick and twisted reality that you didn’t want to participate in anymore.
“Y/N…”
You shook your head on your pillow, “Please JJ. Don’t talk about him. I can’t take it. Not yet.” You felt the tears that had long since dried up come flowing back in an instant. Why in the hell did he bring out these feelings in you so effortlessly? Leave it to your older brothers cute as hell best friend that was certainly off limits. JJ would never, ever feel that way for you anyway.
“Alright honey.” Honey. That was a new one. You’d heard him use it sparingly on girls in the past, but it certainly was never used for you. But he’d used it a few times in the last few sentences sending your overly tired mind reeling in another direction. He was just being kind, that was all. After all, your older brother did just fucking vanish into thin air, “Can you please get up for me? Please mins? I need you to eat something. Whatever you what. Please?” He added one last please to let you know how dire he felt.
You rolled back over to him exerting far too much effort in doing so, “I don’t think I can.” You sounded defeated as the tears started once more, “I’m so tired J.” You whispered trying to contain the sob that wanted to escape from your throat.
“Cause you need to eat honey.” He spoke with nothing but concern on his face, “Let me take you downstairs? You need to move. Need to be somewhere new. Need to get some calories in your body.” He said so matter of factly you weren’t sure if it was JJ in front of you. But then again, for as much as a mess the boy normally was he thrived in crises situations such as these. He always seemed to know exactly what to do.
“Yeah, that’s fine JJ.” You knew he’d win eventually so it might be best to just give it up.
He let out a subtle breath of sure-fire relief as he scooped you up into his arms. You were light. Far too fucking light. God, he was such an idiot. He knew you better than any of the other pogues. Of course, you needed help.
He set you down at the messy table filled with whatever shit JB had likely left there the week prior. You grew tired of always cleaning so you just started leaving it. Your eyes scanned the table full of junk. A sad smile formed seeing his homework scattered about with an unpaid parking ticket next to it all. He’d never get to finish that homework. Never would have to lie his way out of that ticket. Why him? Why your JB?
“What do you want to eat honey?” He asking running a hand up and down your arm. Attempting any form of comfort for you. He saw the sad look in your eyes as they scanned the table. He had to get your mind off of JB in any way he could.
“Why are you calling me that?” You asked instead of answering him. It was driving you nuts, and you had to know. In your right mind you’d never
“Honey?” He asked, a bit taken aback by your sudden brazenness. The you he knew would never have asked him that. Instead, you would’ve asked JB. Something you couldn’t do anymore.
You nodded in confirmation feeling your eyes droop and your mouth open to yawn. JJ cursed internally making the decision of canned soup for you knowing you needed to eat as soon as possible. Light and easy and calories. That’s exactly what you needed.
“I don’t know mins.” He admitted while heating up your food, “It just felt, feels right. I can stop saying it if you’d like.”
“I didn’t say that.” You spoke back in almost a whisper.
“Honey it is.” He grinned while putting your warm, not overly hot, soup in a bowl. He set it down in front of you waiting for you to eat.
“I still like mins too.” You added admitting to him just how much you did like the nickname. He’d stopped using it as much now that the two of you had gotten older. You’d forgotten just how much you’d liked the nickname. Probably because it was a nickname only you could have. A special one from the boy you surely loved but vehemently denied.
“Noted, now eat mins.” He grinned pointing to the bowl.
You nodded not really sure if your hands would agree with your brain. You were so utterly fucking exhausted. Turns out you did need to eat if you wanted to be able to function. Because it felt like a task you’d never be able to start. As much as you tried your arm just wouldn’t cooperate.
“Mins?” He asked seeing you not really making a move for it.
“I can’t JJ. It’s too much.” You hated to admit how disgustingly useless you felt. Yet here you were.
He nodded in understanding, “Here, let me.” He took the spoon from the bowl and held it front of your face. For the first time in three days, you relished in the taste of food. It did taste really good. And damn, you were a lot hungrier than you realized. Before you knew it the bowl was gone, and you were entirely full.
“Thank you J.” You let your eyes close once more feeling the outright exhaustion of the situation come down over you.
“Anytime mins.” Seeing your eyes close he noted your fatigue, “Why don’t we sit on the couch and watch a movie?” He suggested hoping you’d agree.
“That sounds nice J, I may need your help again.” You let out a frustrated sigh at the state of your condition. You did start feeling a bit better but the thought of walking or even crawling made you shudder.
He shot up from his seat to get you up. He picked you up like it was nothing, “I got you hon. I always do and always will. Remember that alright?” You nodded in his chest doing your best to fight off the sleep that wanted to take you.
“Thank you J.” You whispered into his chest. He set you down right next to him, letting your head fall into his side.
He wrapped an arm around your torso letting you know you were safe and secure. He wasn’t planning on going anywhere without you anymore. Running his hand through your hair he felt a shiver knowing you liked exactly what he was doing, “Always mins. Now, let yourself sleep. We’ll deal with all this shit when you wake up. Together.”
You nodded letting the darkness take over, “Promise?”
“Always and forever.” He gave your head a soft and gentle kiss before the soft snoozes overcame you. He decided he was going to watch you sleep, for however long that was. You were his everything too. He was only just beginning to realize that now. Always and forever. It had a nice ring to it. Forever with you was a life he would dream about. Maybe one day. Maybe after he sorted you through this mess. Maybe just maybe.
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celenawrites · 3 months
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₊˚ෆ soulmate au, wherein you get to see the world through your soulmate's eyes and experience what they're feeling at that moment
awful editing(no beta), a lot of pov shifts, loads of grammar mistakes, description of violence, smut below the cut. 
just an idea i have been marinating in my drafts this month. 
MDNI.
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the first time Simon Riley realizes he has a soulmate, he's 24 and well on his way to becoming a lieutenant. it's an early winter morning, filled with white fog and chilly breeze that seeps through the balaclava he wears while off duty. he's in the cold, congested room that has been assigned as his office and he's trying to catch up on the stack of paperwork that had accumulated while he was risking his lives on the front-line just to feel something.
the scene shifts with a few gradual blinks and he realizes he's not in his office anymore.
he's she's standing in the kitchen, brewing up a cup of tea while humming an old melody. he's awfully out of place here, and he almost thinks his mind is tricking him with a sudden daydream and then she pours out the tea into a green mug, and exits the kitchen - finally sitting down in what he assumes to be a living room.
she turns on the tv to watch some melodrama he doesn't know, as she carefully blows onto the mug to cool down the steaming liquid before carefully taking a sip. he feels the green tea trickle down his throat, warming him from inside. he can feel the cushion behind her back and the glasses that rest on the bridge of her nose. he can feel the tag on her shirt scratch the nape of his nick uncomfortably so.
the scene is serene and unfamiliar and he feels out of place - it is homely and clean and pure, not tainted with blood, violence and avarice. it is uncomfortable for him to watch her be good and domestic and kind, almost feels like he doesn’t deserve it after the life he’s led. and yet, with time, seeing the world through her eyes is warmly welcomed after a dud of a day doing what he's best known for - being a ghost.
and he almost feels sorry for her, whoever she is. he’s sorry for the man he is, for the soldier he is. he’s sorry that she gets a one-way front ticket to seeing him kill people without remorse. 
most of all, he’s sorry she had to end up with him. 
for you, seeing the world through your soulmate's eyes has been nothing short of a grim nightmare. every time you'd shift, you'd almost pray to God and cross your fingers to avoid seeing any of the gruesome scenes that he encountered almost on the daily. you cannot see his face, but you can feel how heavy the protective gear is against his body, how taut his shoulders are and you can feel the synthetic fabric of the gun strap dig into his shoulders and chest. you feel his hands touch the steel barrel of the weapon and your blood runs cold. it’s not long before he’s aiming the said gun at a man before shooting him dead without hesitating. the first time you witnessed him doing something this abhorrent, you ended up having a panic attack - still able to feel the weight of the gun in your hands, convinced that you’re the culprit who shot someone in cold blood. 
it’s not long before the scenes you witness through your soulmate’s eyes follow you even in your sleep. you’re taking melatonin, chamomile tea, antidepressants - anything to help you cope with the fact that having a soulmate like him means being haunted by gruesome visions for the rest of your life. it’s not long before your co-workers comment on your baggy eyes and frail health - even uniting together to urge you that taking a break would probably do you some good, but you turn them all down with a gentle shake of your head. 
and then, you meet Soap through him. scottish, demolition expert, part of the military. wild mohawk, likes to draw, always the victim of your soulmate’s dry jokes. Gaz - british, a sergeant, youngest of the lot, always willing to help, but has enough snark to keep up with Soap about the most ridiculous of things. and Price - captain of his team, with impressive mutton chops and loud sneezes. 
you see them relax around each other, see them drink tea, see Soap and Gaz banter and compete with each other at the training grounds - and this change of pace is far more welcomed than seeing people die on the battlefield. 
and then there’s him, a pariah. everyone he comes across calls him ‘Ghost’, which just sounds ridiculous. no one knows anything about him, but there are moments when you are where he is and you see Price’s eyes twinkle with something - but your lack of physical presence always hinders your curiosity about the subject. no one has really seen his face, and you fear that you’d never get to know the man who’s destined to compliment you in all aspects of life. 
there are moments though, when sharing vision and emotions with you, gets awfully overwhelming for him. it takes a lot to get a man of his stature to waver in his step, but you do that job perfectly. he sees you one day, in your bed with soft satin sheets failing to cover your body. he sees your hands trail down your body and his breath hitched when he feels you play with your cotton panties - before sliding them to the side and rubbing soft circles on your clit. he swears under his breath, trying to hold onto his sanity as it slowly slips away from him when you use your other hand to tease your nipples with skittish touches. it’s not long before Simon has locked himself up in the bathroom stall, using his hands to relieve the tension he has all because of you - matching his rhythm so that he comes at the same time as you. 
he wonders if your hands would feel softer. if you’d kiss him before begging him with those doe eyes to make you feel good. if you’d tell him that you love him. if you’d love him enough so that he can be anew  - without his past dragging him through the mud. 
if you’d lose yourself to him and let him piece you back together with the adoration he carries for you. you’re practically a stranger, and yet you’re the only person who can get to him. 
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divider by @/cafekitsune
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d0wnb4df0rf1cm3n · 11 months
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you're on your own kid.
Bucky Barnes x Reader
Summary: You had a rough childhood, what with an absent father and a piece of shit mother. When a family dinner goes wrong, how do you stop your brain from spiraling? How do you convince yourself you're not alone? A certain blue-eyed, metal-armed avenger, of course.
Word Count: 3.3K
Warnings: Eating Disorders/Weight Related Talk, Blood, Injury, Kinda Self Harm, Child Abuse [PLEASE DO NOT READ IF THESE TOPICS MAKE YOU UNCOMFORTABLE!!!]
Author's Note: I don't really know what this is. Sorry, I've been MIA for so long. Not my best work. Sorry.
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You squirmed in your seat, fidgeting with your sleeves. It was awkward being at home after so long. You hadn't been home for four years almost - and it had probably been even longer since you'd sat at this table. Your mother sat across the table from you - her gaze heavy on your head. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, your brother had joked.
He was sitting next to you, his knee gently brushing against yours. A placating movement. He was trying to keep the peace - enjoying the first meal that you had had as a family in a long while. You don't know what it was that made you seek them out. Maybe if you had waited a week, you would have thought about the facts, rather than the feelings. Maybe if you had waited a week, you wouldn't be sitting here with the weight of the world on your shoulders.
You sat in silence, playing with the food on your plate. Your mother was of the almond variety, weighing out plates before passing them around the table. You didn't have much to talk about. Things hadn't ended well the last time the two of you spoke.
Your brother chimed in with the odd question - 'How's your gardening coming along, mom?' or 'How's the new job, sis? What's it like working for the Avengers?'. You'd humour him until your mother's disapproving stares became too much and then you'd shut up. He'd give you a sad sort of pitying smile, before returning to his food.
Dinner was long - even it was less than the traditional three courses. Your brother packed up some extra food, and took it home - he only lived about a half mile away so it made sense for him to go home. You made to go with him but your mother insisted you stay with her. "I made up your room, just the way you like it."
You doubted it. But you smiled anyway and hugged your brother tightly. He whispered that 'you would be fine' and 'it's only one night' and maybe for a second you believed him. As soon as he left, you headed to bed, claiming that 'The trip was long, ma, I'm super tired.'
The look on her face screamed that she didn't believe you. But she waved you good night and headed to the kitchen to find her favourite bottle of scotch.
You opened the door to your childhood bedroom to find it almost the same. The pink walls and bedcovers were suffocating, the blinds drawn shut to create this overwhelming feeling of being trapped. You were. Trapped.
You took your jumper off, laid it over your vanity chair, and jumped onto the bed. It was comfortable, but lying there staring at the ceiling brought back all the horrible memories you tried to suppress. Diet pills and weighing scales, small plates and vomiting, screaming and crying, sirens and hospital bills. Tears streamed down your face as curled up onto your side.
It was almost midnight when you heard your mother walk up the stairs. You knew she was drunk - her steps were loud and out of sync, and the bottle in her hand frequently tapped the banister as she tried to stabilise herself on it. You half expected her to keep walking, cross the landing, and fall dead asleep on her bed.
Instead, your door creaked open and you came face to face with her. Her glassy eyes were rimmed with red - she'd been crying too. Her eyes raked over you and suddenly you wished you'd never come back at all.
"Such a shame," she whispered, "You could have been so much more."
"Ma?"
"You were always... the best. The prettiest. The skinniest. You could have been incredible. Instead, you are... nobody."
Her words cut deep but you tried to ignore them. You were somebody. You worked for the Avengers, you were a top-level agent for SHIELD. You helped save the world.
"I tried my best. To help you. But you were ungrateful," Your mother stalked closer, her sadness giving way to anger, "conceited, convinced that you could be anything more than what I made you. But you were wrong. I created you. Without me, THERE IS NO YOU." She launched the bottle at your head and it shattered at the wall behind you.
She kept screaming, but you tuned her out, slipping off the bed and grabbing your jumper and keys. You ran past her, shoving her hard as she tried to grab you and ran out to your car. She watched you go screaming abuse after you, telling you to 'never step foot inside her house again.' You weren't planning to.
You drove like a madman back to upstate - traffic was pretty light considering the ungodly hour. You parked haphazardly - Tony would probably murder you for it in the morning but you couldn't find it within yourself to care. You trudged upstairs, footfalls far too heavy for someone is literally a superspy, but this was your home. You weren't running from anyone in here.
You were so stuck in your own head that you didn't realise that Bucky was sitting in the living room, watching as you walked into the kitchen. He'd heard your footsteps and he was worried. You never walked that heavily.
"Everything ok, doll?"
You looked up at him, not registering a word he said. He stood up and walked over to you, fingers reaching up to stroke your face.
"You good?" He whispered, his forehead almost touching yours.
You pulled away from his touch, even though your body was screaming for you to collapse into his open arms. "Yeah, Buck, fine. See you in the morning for training." You stepped past him, heading for the stairs.
"Yeah, doll. See you in the morning."
The morning came around far quicker than you'd hoped. You had barely slept, tossing and turning all night, your mother's words ringing through your head.
Eventually, you realised it was a futile effort. You might as well get up and be productive. You found yourself in the gym just as the sun came up, face to face with a heavy bag. You clenched your wrapped fists before shaking the sleep out of your system.
Your hits were precise, measured, calculated. If there was one thing no one could fault you for, it was your skills. You were an impeccable agent. If only your mum could see that. You took your rage out on the heavy bag, pouring every ounce of resent in your body into your punches. Sweat beaded on your forehead, the exertion making your breaths heavier and your knuckles sting. You kept punching, time slipping away from you.
You heard the door to the gym open, and someone was talking. Their voice was muted, almost as if your head was underwater. Between the punches and your tiredness, nothing registered in your foggy mind. From the distance you could hear footsteps, getting louder almost as if they were walking towards you.
You nearly jumped out of your skin when a hand brushed against your shoulder. You spun around ready to cuss out whichever stupid rookie decided to bother you so early in the morning. You were surprised to see familiar eyes boring into yours.
"I called your name, you know," Bucky said, his hands moving to rest on your waist, "twice. I even dropped my bag next to yours to get your attention."
"Sorry, I was thinking."
"I can tell," Bucky's thumbs drew circles on your waist, absentmindedly, "Where's that pretty mind been at lately?"
"What do you want, Barnes?"
"I'm worried. About you. You haven't been yourself lately. What's going on?"
"Nothing." You sighed, removing yourself from his grasp, "Missions, reports, meetings. It's tiring."
"Maybe you take a holiday? Try and relax a bit?" You could hear the genuine concern in his voice but you still rolled your eyes.
"Maybe you mind your own fucking business, Barnes? Don't you have other shit to be doing apart from hovering over me?" You grabbed your stuff, refusing to make eye contact with him, and walked out.
"I'm still seeing you for training right?" You hear him call after you, but you keep walking. You let out a shaky breath as soon as you got into the elevator.
He didn't see you for training. Or after.
You'd skipped training in favour of going on a run with Steve and then you had to file a few mission reports. You'd holed yourself up in your office, manila files piling up on the corner of your desk your fingers brushing over the keys with seasoned speed. Bucky had wanted to stop by but given your odd behaviour in the morning, he'd decided against it.
You were glad. You hated that Bucky could see right through you, even when you tried your best to hide it. Especially because you were irrevocably in love with him.
You'd been in love with him ever since you'd started working at the compound. Bucky was one of the few people to notice you and your efficiency. You became one of his preferred mission partners, a fact of which you were very proud. You quickly became one of his favourite people, period, and Bucky even went so far as to blow off Steve to spend time with you.
It hurt you to keep him at arm's length but you knew it was for the best. You remembered what your father told you the night before he left. You're on your own kid. You always have been.
You were given a mission assignment in the evening, with strict instructions of 'wheels up at 0600.' The early pickup time wasn't strange and you were itching to get out of the compound. You packed your bag up, leaving it by the door, and headed to bed.
Another restless night of sleep was the last thing you needed, but you were up and at the hangar waiting for Captain Rogers by 0600. He smiled when he saw you and handed you a coffee. You smiled. Your first real smile since you visited your parents.
"Good luck out there." A voice calls from behind you. You freeze. Bucky jogs towards you both, his eyes betraying his tiredness. Steve's face breaks into a grin at the sight of his old friend. Steve throws his arms around Bucky.
"Don't do anything stupid until I get back," Steve says, his joking tone making Bucky laugh.
"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you."
You want to smile at the sight of the two of them together but you held yourself back. You walked towards the quinjet, ready to get this show on the road when you hear Bucky clearing his voice behind you.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Onto the quinjet?"
"Not without a hug, you're not." You sigh but trudge down the steps to give him a half-arsed side hug. He pulls you in tight, and whispers into your hair, "When you get back, we're gonna talk. Okay?"
You don't respond, brushing him off and climbing into the jet. Steve follows you in, dropping his bag next to yours, before turning back to wave at Bucky.
"Don't worry, Buck, I'll take good care of your girl."
His girl. That sounded nice. You shook the thought away before elbowing Steve in the sight. Jokingly of course, but he still doubled over for effect. Bucky burst into laughter.
That was the last thing you saw as the door went up.
The mission was hard. Not terrible - no one died, which was a win in your book - but it wasn't fun. Multiple shootouts, car chases, and three hours of hiding in a dumpster later, you were ready to nap for a week. But, alas, Fury had set a debrief at 8 the next morning, which meant that you had - you checked the clock on your microwave - 6 hours at best.
You dropped your bag on the sofa and headed into the bathroom. You unzipped your utility vest, dropping it on the floor. You needed to disinfect it - god knows what had stained that vest. You pulled up your compression shirt, wincing as the flecks of red came into view. You quickly stripped it off, dropping it in the washing basket, before whipping back around. You caught your own reflection in the mirror and tilted your head, taking in your reflection of your body. Your mother's words played back in your head. Maybe your mother had a point.
You quickly shook your head, dispelling those horrible thoughts from your mind. But still, you continued to stare at your body, scrutinising every feature. I mean, sure you weren't as skinny as you used to be, but that's because you had muscle now, right? And the hamburger you had for lunch was a treat - you know for completing the mission? The super important mission that you were on because you are important and you are somebody and you have value and you are someone without your mum. Don't you? And it's ok that you can't see your ribs because actually you have abs now and that's way more attractive. Right? And.. and... and....
SMASH.
Broken glass was shattered all around you, fragments piercing your skin. Your mirror now had a fist-shaped hole in the middle, from where your sadness had quickly bled into anger.
You cradled your bloodied fist in your hand, sinking to the ground as sobs racked through your body. Glass dug into your knees as they hit the floor and you curled your hands into your chest. Hurtful 'what ifs' swirled through your head, stealing your breath and making it almost impossible to breathe.
Pounding on your door broke you out of your thoughts. You tried to regain your bearings. It was 2 am. You were in your apartment, the apartment that was miles away from the compound, that you lived in alone. Who the hell would be at your door right now?
You were silent, breath bated as you waited for the stranger to go away. They banged on the door again.
"Doll, I swear to god, if you don't let me in, I'm going to break your fucking door down."
You knew that voice anywhere. The knowledge that you weren't alone, that he was here for you, that Bucky wouldn't make you suffer alone brought new tears to your eyes. Fresh sobs burst from your chest as you tried to move. Glass shards were stabbing into your legs, and one of your hands was bleeding profusely. Bucky, your safety net, was so close and yet so far.
"Doll? Doll, I can hear you. Doll, please, please let me in." You could hear the panic in his voice as he struggled with his conscience. You tried to move but the pain was excruciating. A pained scream erupted from your lips.
A loud bang came from your front door, followed by heavy and fast footsteps.
"Where are you, doll? Come on, just come and talk to me." He said, sweeping through your living room. You whimpered from the bathroom, his enhanced hearing focussing on even the smallest of sounds.
He quickly found his way into the bathroom, his eyes raking over your hunched figure, before flitting to the broken mirror and the shards of glass on the ground.
"Oh doll," he whispered, bending down to scoop you up from the floor. He cradled you gently as he carried you from the bathroom into your bedroom. "What happened, doll? Talk to me."
You looked up at him, trying to figure out where to start. You blanked. You couldn't find a good place to start the story that would cause you the least pain. Your mouth opened and closed a few times with no sound coming out. Bucky rested his hand against yours, trying to reassure you to take your time, but the sound of your wince drew his attention to your hands.
"Doll, your hands." He grabbed your hands gently, peering at your knuckles. They were mauled, glass sticking out of torn-up skin, "What did you do?" He stood up, walking into your kitchen to grab the first aid kit he knew was under the sink. Watching him walk around like he owned the place made some small part of your heart happy - it was almost as if your dreams, your darkest-held fantasies, were coming true.
Bucky kneeled in front of you, placing the first aid kit beside him. He brushed all the glass shards off your legs - luckily none of them had been embedded into your skin. He cleaned any small scratches before turning to your knuckles. The sight of your knuckles made him wince and you started to pull them away. Bucky leveled you with a look that said, let me take care of you. You let him. He sterilised a pair of tweezers and got to work pulling the shards of glass out of your knuckles. You sat in silence for a while, Bucky diligently working on your knuckles, and you watching the swiftness with which he worked.
"Why did you punch the mirror, doll?" Bucky asked after a while.
"I was angry," you whispered, your voice deathly quiet. Now that the rage was gone, all you had left was embarrassment.
"And why were you angry?" Bucky coaxed, his eyes pleading for some answers. He pulled out the last shard of glass before swiping an alcohol wipe over your knuckles and bandaging them up. He packed up all the items back into the first aid box and went to put it away and wash his hands.
You were still sat on the bed contemplating your answer when he got back. He knelt in front of you again, before he rested his hands on your face, "Why were you angry doll?"
"I didn't like it." You whispered, pulling your body away from him.
"What didn't you like?" Bucky's eyes stared into yours and you suddenly felt extremely self-conscious. You tried to remove yourself from his all-seeing, mind-reading gaze, but he didn't let you. He pulled you into his lap, and you hid your face in his neck. His beard tickled your forehead as you nestled into him, trying to seek out the comfort you so desperately needed but didn't know how to ask for.
"Me." You said, your head turned away from him as you stared at your hands.
"What?"
"I didn't like me." Your voice started to shake as you tried to find the right words to tell him the truth, the whole honest godforsaken truth, but you couldn't.
Bucky seemed to read your mind, "It's ok, take your time. We don't have to talk about this today. We can come back to it later, when you're feeling up for it, okay?" You nodded, burrowing further into him, "You wanna sleep?"
You nodded again, and Bucky shifted, wrapping his arms around you so he could gently place you down on the bed. He removed his arms from underneath you and tucked you into bed, gently kissing your forehead as you turned to leave. You whined.
"Pleasedon'tgoBuck-" You mumbled, sleep quickly pulling you under. He smiled, perching himself on the end of the bed.
"You sure you want me to say, sweetheart? Not sure you'll ever get rid of me if I stay?"
"I promise. Never want you to go." You said, clinging to his arm and pulling him back into bed.
You slipped into an easy slumber as Bucky shuffled around in your room. Maybe you didn't have to be on your own anymore.
fin.
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lvlyghost · 5 months
Text
In the Midst of War: IV
PAIRINGS: Simon 'Ghost' Riley x F!Shadow!Reader
SUMMARY: Home is no longer where it used to be. Left with no one else you wonder who your friends and foes are.
WORD COUNT: 2.3k
TW: poorly written action lol. Fluff, hurt with so much comfort 🤭. Suggestive but no smut yet🌝. Mind the english!🐸 lmk if i missed any.
A/N: okay so this was supposed to be longer but decided to split the last part for chapter v 🐣 it'll be worth it i promise. next part is coming up sooner! as you know i do a lot of double shifts at work and December is the busiest season for me at work lol, just bear with me💖 comments, likes and reblogs are highly appreciated 🩵
Masterlist✨
"𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒅."
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It's a cold night by the time you get to the safe house in a secluded street somewhere outside Kaindorf. Ghost grunts standing next to you, one of his arms draped over your shoulders to help him keep steady or at least as much as you can help with someone his size. The mission —your first mission since Las Almas— had been successful until it wasn't. You type the code and wait until the door opens with a mechanic sound revealing a not so bad interior. The whole place is silent when you walk in, mirroring the dead of the night. No sound of cars outside not even the sound of the wind to accompany you.
"How are you doing Ghost?" You turn your face to him, he's already staring down at you, noticing the struggle that comes with trying to hold part of his weight. This is not how things should've played out. Yet there he was. A nasty bullet wound on his left shoulder and another to his leg; the latter being just a graze but still hurt like hell.
"Never been better." He growls. And you know he's trying to act nonchalantly. That's just who he is. Who you've come to know. But his injury, especially the one on his shoulder is no joke. You had tried to stop the bleeding right before digging for the bullet. The amount of pain he must've been in was as bad as yours a few weeks ago "How did we miss them?" He mutters under his breath, no doubt recalling the events.
"I don't know. But we'll find out." You lead him to the nearest couch in the corner of the living room and turning on the lamp next to him. Ghost sits down struggling to find a position where he feels comfortable enough. "Alright..." swallowing down you look him in the eyes. "I need to check your wounds again and clean them up properly, okay?"Ghost closes his eyes for a second before nodding, he's too lightheaded to do anything else or maybe it was the morphine you gave him before, he doesn't know anymore.
Trotting back to the truck you unload the duffel bags where all your weapons and medical supplies lie. Closing the door shut and locking it before returning to where the Lieutenant rests. The lamp is turned off again so you can only make the outline of everything. You stop in your tracks dropping one of the bags and shuffle nervously.
"Umm, Ghost?" He hums in acknowledgment. "I can't see anything, do you mind turning...-"
"No." His response comes fast. "I'm not wearing the bloody mask."
So he had taken it off the moment you walked out.
"Then how am I supposed to look at your wounds?" Rolling your eyes you start approaching.
He growls something unintelligible and then adds:
"Fine just don't bloody look up or...-"
"Don't worry, I've no interest in looking at your face."
But the truth was that you wanted nothing more than to see him. The real him. You had dreamed about his face. What would he look like? The small parts of Ghost that you had taken a glimpse of were not enough to make you any less curious. For all you knew was that he most likely was blond. His eyelashes are so light that you wonder if his hair is the same shade. He has soft pink lips and a strong jaw. All of him was huge. Massive. You would never say it out loud but you felt drawn to him.
"Afraid you might like what you see?"
You snort, walking towards him and kneeling in front of the couch he's sitting on. His eyes follow every move you make, never looking up in the process. You slowly peel off the bandages you had previously wrapped around his right leg.
"Does it hurt?" You ask, taking the disinfectant out as you begin to clean up his wound again.
"Not that one." For a moment you almost forget that you're not supposed to look up, but you do. You were trying to take a quick glance to his shoulder, instead laying eyes on his face.
"Shit." You bow your head down as quickly, apologizing profusely to Ghost and expecting some sort of angry reaction from him but he remains in complete silent. "I- I didn't even really see anything, forgive me Sir."
"Fucking hell." He growled. "It doesn't matter. Just don't do it again."
It was true. You barely even saw the entirety of his face. Just pale skin, light brows and a crooked nose from being broken too many times.
"Okay." You swallow hard, hands slightly shaking when your skin makes contact with his much colder one.
Ghost shifts in his seat seemingly uncomfortable with something you can't put a finger on. "Think it's time to stitch that one up." You gesture to where his shoulder should be not daring to look again. Fumbling with the needle and thread waiting for his permission. There's no verbal answer to your previous statement, only a low hum that's enough for you to stand up and silently sit on the armrest next to him, his face is turned the other way hiding himself from you. "You know you can just put it back on?"
"Where's the fun in that?"
"Yeah, right." brows lifting in surprise. "Want me to get you something for the pain?"
"Get it done, kid."
Breathing deeply you oblige.
Ghost's whole body tenses with the first sting of the needle piercing through his skin. Your eyes are fixated on your work but every now and then they travel to the back of his head. Blond hair. So you were right; and you can't fight back the grin that appears on your lips. You're marveled by something so simple as that; if only he'd let you come closer...
"I think it's my turn to cook something for you. All this time you've taken care of me."
"You don't have to. I was doing what I was told."
Blinking you tap his shoulder lightly to get his attention. Ghost merely turns so a small part of his side face shows, still not enough for you to see.
"I want to." Even if he says it was his job. Even if it didn't mean anything to him. All you needed was a way to thank him for what he had done. That was who you were. How you were taught to be. Grateful amongst adversity. "I'm a good cook I promise."
One last stitch. One more. And then you're done, and his body relaxes as you come to stand gathering the medical supplies while looking down the floor. Before you leave he reaches out, grabbing your wrist in a gentle yet firm grip. Eyes going wide.
"You can look now." His voice is low and when you turn he's put the balaclava back on. Big brown eyes staring with intensity. "Thanks for what you did back there."
You stutter when you speak, something about the way he holds you makes you forget how to form words.
"I had to. It was my job, although I failed..."
"You didn't fail." He growls. You motion at his wounds, embarrassed because you knew you could do better than that. "I'm here, aren't I?"
Your mouth hangs open, lips quivering when his words reach your ears. All this time you've tried to look calm. To appear strong when in reality everything has gone from bad to worse; it began with the loss of your former team and the people you held close and dear. People you thought would be there for you for eternity. And then all of the sudden there were none. Alone in a dirty side road to die, you guess that in the end there were no good people. Just soldiers following orders. But standing in front of a man who was always portrayed as the devil himself maybe... just maybe not all hope was lost. And not all people were bad. Much to your dismay, Ghost stands from his place on the old couch, rising in all his massive glory as he takes one firm step closer to you. Your hands threaten to let everything fall onto the floor, breath getting stuck in your throat. You're lucky. So, so goddamn lucky that he's your ally. Someone who, in these past weeks has become something you don't dare to name.
"At ease soldier." He commands in a hushed voice. And he's close. Too damn close you feel the heat radiate off of him. It makes your skin burn and hands sweat. "I'm just looking at you."
-
Ghost is terrifying when you look at him in full gear. The white skull mask a legend itself among all the military forces in the world. Hushed stories told during late nights back on base. You had never met him nor had the chance to work with him. All you knew was that. Never in a million years would you have thought you'd have to be his eyes from the distance; to be the one who guards him. Your finger caresses the trigger of your sniper rifle, ready to shoot at anyone who you deemed dangerous.
"Should've brought my own mattress." You huff, shifting your body to find a more comfortable position.
"You've been out for a few weeks. It can't be that bad." His deep voice talks right into your ear.
"My stomach was literally reattached, Lt."
A deep chuckle that doesn't last long enough can be heard.
"If you can't do it let me know. I can take you back to your room, yeah?"
"I'm having a hard time deciding if that's a good or bad thing, sir."
"The latter, Vesper."
Laughing you turn your head, maybe it's the paranoia of being back but you feel someone constantly watching you from behind.
"How's that a bad thing? Thought you liked me in my room."
You can practically hear him suck in a breath and then a muttered curse.
"Not when you're injured and nearly comatose." He grunts after a few seconds of silence.
Oh.
Oh.
"Well then's a good thing i'm here."
The mission was rather simple. Break in, gather some intel and get out. Nothing was supposed to go sideways but it did. It had started with the room where the intel was supposed to be.
"Vesper." You hear Ghost calling you. "There's civilians in here." His voice drops an octave.
"What?" A shiver runs down your spine. "They are not supposed to be there." All you hear is the sound of muffled voices. Cries for help. Ghost swearing under his breath. And then shots are fired.
Your heart races when the first couple of hostiles appear through your scope. Not being one to hesitate you aim to their heads and fire.
"Vesper sitrep." Ghost barks, his end way more chaotic than yours.
"Hostiles coming in groups. You need to get out of there asap."
"Bloody hell." It's all he says before another round of shots is fired. "Meet me at the evac point."
"I'm not leaving you behind!"
Shifting your scope to look through one of the windows you watch as a dark figure runs downstairs. Ghost is trying to make his way to the back exit when another group reaches the abandoned building. You effectively take out the first three men that jump out of the black van. Then another ominous creak of crunching leaves in the god forsaken roof of the house across, rolling on your back your turn at the exact moment a bullet is fired your way, and hitting the the ground where you previously laid prone.
Wide-eyed your face pales as recognition hits your features.
You know him. And he knows you too.
-
His big hand lifts slowly as if asking permission to touch you to which you give a small nod. Ghost is looking at a spot on your left cheek his thumb softly caressing the soft skin of your face. You don't know why but you find yourself leaning into his touch.
"How'd you get this?" An unknown look is all you give him. "There's a scratch, right 'ere." Careful not to hurt you or cause you any pain he keeps his motion.
"Must've been when we ran through the woods." You mumble. "I'm sure I didn't let any of them get me."
"Atta girl." A small pause settles when all you hear is the sound of the night outside. Crickets and the now casual passing of cars far in the distance, returning from work, oblivious to the dangers of the world. Some things they'd never heard of before, things they wouldn't witness in their lifetime. "Better me than you."
You melt at his words. Heart nearly beating out of your chest. It's like your body acts out of pure impulse. Hands —your hands— grab the sides of his neck pulling him down just enough that his forehead touches yours, and you rest there with ragged breathing fanning over his face. Closing your eyes you weigh in your options. Break the moment and tell him about the encounter with the man back in the roof, or let yourself feel him? Because truth be told this could only mean one thing. Ghost wanted to be near you in ways that were not professional at all. And hell you wanted that too from the moment you saw him. You just didn't know it.
If the things you heard were true he didn't let just anyone close to him. What was so special about you? You wanted to ask, but you feared that even if you moved, this thing would be broken and the moment would slip through your fingers.
In a quick movement you go from standing in the middle of the living room to sitting on the nearest table, you shriek as Ghost slots himself between your legs. Seemingly unfazed by what he just did you then see the corner of his eyes crinkle. He's smiling under the mask.
"You're hurt. You'll reopen the wound and..."
"I don't care, sweetheart. I've got you where I want you." A sheepish smile forms on your lips and your cheeks grow hot. "One word. Say it and I will stop."
You nod right before he lifted his mask and his lips crash down on you.
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Part 5
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TAGS:
@fictionallifestuff
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warmblanketwhump · 6 months
Text
hello hello! after an accidental hiatus, I'm back with an entry into the surrender an ask game that @save-the-villainous-cat and @epiclamer put together where we all swapped asks. thanks so much for doing this!!!
here's my ask: Hi! I’ve become obsessed with your Hero Gets Yanked By An Upstanding Citizen Into Their Window And Into Their Heart post and I was wondering if you could- maybe- on the off chance- if you have time- come back to it for another scene? I just love the duo’s dynamic so much, the lovable hero who is trying a little too hard at any given chance, and the citizen who is wholly unafraid to manhandle a superhero into their home and into their life. That’s the vibes I was getting from their short interaction anyway- I love them so much aaagugfyduhijigififiguftgb your writing makes me go insane” Submitted by @yourheartonfire
The hero checks once, twice behind their shoulders, then collapses on to the rickety fire escape. It's off the beaten path, away from anyone. Sure, there's a little prickle of guilt that it's a Saturday night, and there are probably dozens of crimes afoot that need their attention.
But the past few weeks have run them absolutely ragged. If they didn't know better, they'd think that someone was scheming against them deliberately. call after call, summons after summons, each one more dire than the last.
People count on them—people need them, and they like the feeling of being needed. But they're exhausting, aching, injured, absolutely spent. Their leg throbs with a recent injury that they haven't had time to treat, and they can't remember the last time they slept more than three hours at a time.
They lean their head back against the scarred brick of the apartment building, letting their eyes slip closed....
.....and when a wailing siren sounds in the distance, the hero tries not to whimper.
Get up. It's time to go.
And they do get up. Too quickly.
Their toe catches on the edge of the rickety fire escape, and before the hero can react, they're falling, tumbling, twisting, too exhausted and spent to do anything to stop the inevitable pull of gravity on their body.
The last thing they see is the extended metal overhanging of the fire escape before pain shot through their body, and darkness overtook them.
_________________
The hero hoped that when they awoke, they'd somehow find themselves in their own spase, yet comfortable bed, that the last two months had been just a nightmare.
Instead, they hear frustrated, disembodied grunts and feel someone pulling at them, tugging them over something hard and metal and painful for their aching body.
"Get...in...here..."
The hero wants to swat the hands away, but their limbs are dead weight at their sides, and their voice gets stuck in their throat when they try to cry out. So darkness falls again.
_________________
When the hero wakes a second time, they're aware of a throbbing in their bad leg and a pounding in their head, and an ache that's more painful than anything they've ever felt. They're in a dark room, save for a softly glowing salt lamp in the far corner, and they're aware of being tucked under a thick, soft blanket on some sort of couch or daybed.
It's comfortable, safe, warm—and wrong. They have no idea where they are or who they're with, nor how long they've been there, nor how many lives have been lost while they've been knocked unconscious.
They try to call out, but the "hey" comes out as more of a raspy whisper, and the blanket is far too heavy for them to toss from their broken body. In their efforts to move, something gets knocked over with a crash.
"Hey, hey, hey now, don't move. Shhhh." A figure darts into the room and the hero feels two hands against their shoulders, pressing them back into the bed.
"W--where..."
"You're....here. At my apartment. Figured I didn't want to leave you out on my fire escape all night." The shadowed figure flicks on another lamp and the hero winces, hand flying to touch their face—
Their bare face.
A strangled cry flees their throat. Not only have they failed their city, but someone's seen their face, seen how utterly, desperately ordinary they are beneath it all. This someone knows who they are and could ruin it all. Their eyes flicker up to see the stranger standing at the foot of their bed, holding their disguise tenderly in their hands.
"I'm so sorry....I didn't want to take it off, but you were bleeding from a pretty nasty forehead cut, and I didn't want to leave it too long." The stranger's hand lightly ghosts over their hairline, and the hero realizes there's some sort of thick bandage over where the throbbing is radiating from. "I won't tell a soul. Promise. If you have some sort of mind control....thing, you can even erase my memories, if you want, but you need like....a ton of medical attention first. I've done first aid and an outdoor wilderness survival class a couple times, but you probably need some kind of doctor, but I get if you don't want to do that with your identity and all that...."
"Won't....won't bother you" the hero slurs, trying to sit up again, before collapsing back down. Try as they might, they couldn't leave this cursed couch.
"Oh no, no, you're not bothering me at all. You just sorta...freaked me out, is all. And there was a TON of blood, and I couldn't just leave you there, so I just kinda—" the stranger motions with their hands "yanked you right in here, did some first aid, and here we are." The stranger adjust the blankets, tucking the hero in tighter. "You looked pretty banged up."
I supposed I did, the hero muses to themselves. "It's....been a rough few weeks. But I'm okay."
"You sure?" The stranger's brows furrow, and their hand gestures to their leg. "I'm no doctor, but that gash on your leg looks...pretty bad. Shouldn't someone be looking after that?"
Hero hears the subtext of the question. Shouldn't someone be looking after YOU?
The hero isn't quite sure what to say to that. How long has it been since someone tended their wounds, tucked them in, brought them in from the elements, and asked how they were?
"I'm....I'm alright." Hero's mortified to hear the smallest wobble in their voice.
"Hero, that's not what I asked." The stranger's voice is firm, yet gentle, their hand resting on their uninjured knee.
"Right." The hero sniffles, suddenly unable to speak.
The stranger seems to understand the thousand thoughts of the hero's mind that flood the silence, then gently pats their other uninjured leg. "Well, in that case, it's time we get started now that you're awake. I'll get the bandages, and we'll really get you cleaned up and take stock of how much healing you've got ahead of you. No promises, though—I told you, it's only a couple first-aid classes, so don't you judge my wound dressings."
Hero's suprised to hear their own thin, crackly laugh. "Wouldn't dare."
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suuuupernovaaa · 1 year
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meyp
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meyp [mɛjp̚] adj. weak
Anonymous Request: Lo'ak is in love with reader but she's a great warrior and he's too shy to even talk to her and he convinces himself that he's too weak for her, but one day after going on a hunt with a group which reader leads he ends up being wounded and Jake can't even shout at him because reader immediately takes Lo'ak to treat him and praise him that he's so strong and he did well, they have this talk where Lo'ak tells her how she sees himself which she denies and they end up confessing to each other.
Reminder: Everyone is aged up in my fics to be 19/20.
From our day of work, there is much to take back to our clan, enough for a small feast. I smile at N'mor, my dearest friend, and pat her on the back.
"A successful hunt. We should return. Will you gather everyone?"
Five or six young men have joined us on our hunt today, and they are nearby, all exhausted. I was told not to push them too hard, but I'm afraid I may have crossed the line. I feel it was worth it, though, for all we will be bringing back.
We load up the sled and three of the young men pull it back, with some effort, but we aren't too far now.
"Are you tired?" I ask N'mor, and she rolls her eyes at me.
"Do you care?"
I throw my head back and laugh. "Of course I do! What kind of leader would I be?"
She bumps her shoulder into mine. "I'm fine, Y/N. We're all a little tired, but we had a good hunt."
Looking to my right, I see Lo'ak coming up to walk alongside me. He's part of the reason that I pushed us so hard - you can't take it easy when you have the chief's son on the hunt with you.
"It was a good day, Lo'ak," I say, smiling at him. He is dirty and sweaty, just like me, but he smiles in return; a wide, handsome smile.
"You're a good leader," he replies, and I try to compose myself and keep from blushing.
--
Lo'ak had insisted on joining the hunt today, when he found out Y/N would be leading it. He had been trying to steal moments with her, here and there, but she was much in demand.
She was one of the fiercest warriors of their clan, and surely the best hunter of all the female Na'vi - and was thus busy, from sun up til sun down, nearly every day.
He knew this hunt might afford them a chance to speak, so he let those other three guys pull the heavy sled, and jogged up to walk with Y/N and her friend, N'mor.
He compliments her a little nervously, and when she smiles at him, he's nearly blinded by the sight of it; there's never been a more beautiful Na'vi than this woman before him, and his knees feel a little weak. In fact, Lo'ak always feels a little weak around Y/N - everything about her screams power and strength. It's intimidating.
"Watch out!" someone hollers, and Lo'ak turns just in time to feel the arrow sink into his arm. The pain is only beginning to register when he sees the sturmbeast charging his way, and more arrows fly.
--
Lo'ak begins to sink to the ground, so I kneel down, and hoist him over my shoulders.
"Come!" I say to N'mor. The men have thwarted the rough sturmbeast, and Lo'ak needs medical attention. The two of us run the distance back, and I try to go as fast as I can with Lo'ak as dead weight on my shoulders.
"Help!" I scream as we make it back to Home Tree, and many rush forward to help. On the verge of collapsing, Lo'ak is lifted off my shoulders. "This way," I say, and we take off, running for Tsahik's healing tent.
Lo'ak is beginning to moan just as we arrive, and the men lay him on Tsahik's floor, then run out - presumably to alert Taruk Makto.
"Lo'ak, can you hear me?" I ask, as Tsahik leans over him.
"Snap the arrow," she tells me, and Lo'ak's eyes fly open. I reach over, gripping the blood-drenched arrow, and snap the end off. Lo'ak groans, eyes wide, staring up at me, and Tsahik removes the arrow in one swift motion - which elicits another shout from Lo'ak - and gets to work.
"He will live," Tsahik reassures me, and I wonder if my face looks as panicked as I feel on the inside.
I am sweating, shaking from head to toe, and I can't seem to break gaze with Lo'ak. The tent feels small and crowded, even though it's just the three of us; I can tell from all the chatter that many have gathered outside to see what has happened to the son of Olo'eyektan.
I feel responsible. It was my hunt, I was in charge, and Lo'ak has been injured. I should have been paying attention.
"You're going to be okay, Lo'ak. Remain strong." The words come tumbling out of my mouth, and I can't seem to stop them. "You are the strongest man I know, Lo'ak Sully. I was honored you joined my hunt today, and I am so sorry you've been hurt. I'll never forgive myself. I admire you greatly. Your... your skill, your spirit, your strength. You will get through this."
Lo'ak closes his eyes for one moment as his grandmother pours something on his wound. I can't tell from his expression whether it's soothing or painful, until he lets out a hiss and opens his eyes again.
I reach down, taking his free hand into both of mine, holding it tight.
--
Though it doesn't take his grandmother all that long to clean and close the wound, it feels like eternity to Lo'ak.
His focus is split. The burning pain in his arm is very demanding, but Y/N is holding his hand in his, and telling him he's strong, and she admires him... and he can't deny, that definitely helps.
His grandmother gives him something to take for the pain, and he goes to deny it, but Y/N insists.
He'd probably do anything she asked for, so he throws it back.
"I must go talk to your parents. Do not use this arm until I tell you to," his grandmother says, gesturing to his injured arm, and he nods.
As she leaves, he tries to sit up, having difficulty with just one arm until Y/N reaches out, pulling him up right, and he sees the panic on her face and tears in her eyes.
"This wasn't your fault, Y/N. Something was wrong with that beast - and Rafi shot me. He's a moron."
Finally, a small smile paints her face, and Lo'ak revels in it. He would get shot all over again if it meant Y/N would smile at him, and speak kind words over him.
"I meant what I said, Lo'ak. I do admire you. And I'm sorry you got hurt today."
Lo'ak reaches out, brushing her hair from off her cheek, and tucking the braids behind her ear. She looks to his hand, a soft blush on her cheeks, and he realizes in this moment that though she is fierce and formidable, she is also delicate, beautiful and soft.
"I wish to court you, Y/N," he blurts out, and her eyes snap back to his, wider than he's ever see them.
"Lo'ak!" The tent flaps open up, and his parents appear, just at the perfect moment.
--
I excuse myself, allowing Lo'ak's parents to ensure he's okay, only stopping to apologize for allowing this on my watch and ensuring them it is my fault and no one else's. I don't want Rafi to get any heat for this, even if he is partially to blame. I'll speak to him about practicing with his bow later.
My head is spinning as I make my way back home. I think of grabbing N'mor to talk to her about what just happened, but I'm not sure what I would say... or that I need to talk it through.
I have always liked Lo'ak. I've admired his free spirit, his stubbornness, and his strength. On more than one occasion, I've thought that he would make a fine mate. I just never considered it would be a possibility for him to be my mate.
Having never been one to over-analyze of over-complicate things, I want to say yes to Lo'ak's proposal, but we've been interrupted. I bite my lip, considering how I might pry him away from his family.
"Y/N!" I hear Lo'ak hollering, and turn to see him exiting the healing tent. Many eyes are on us, as Tsahik works at the center of Home Tree. I see his parents exit the tent behind us, watching with confused eyes as he runs up to me, holding his bad arm. "You didn't answer me," he says when he arrives, standing in front of me, panting.
"I didn't get a chance to," I reply with a smile. "You should be resting."
"Later. What do you say?"
His persistence makes me laugh, and it makes me feel so loved and desired, it's nearly overwhelming.
"Of course, Lo'ak. I would be honored. I... watching you today, worrying for you, I've never felt like that for anyone. I care for you, very much."
--
Lo'ak's heart swells in his chest. He feels tired, and sore, and he wants to lay down and sleep for hours, but her words are invigorating.
He wants to shout that he loves her, but he knows he needs to wait.
Instead, he leans down, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. When he pulls away, she steps forward, bringing her mouth up to his again, and putting a hand firmly on his cheek, holding him in place.
His lips curl up in a smile against hers.
He knows this woman will be his mate - he will make sure of it.
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comradekatara · 3 months
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sometimes i feel like the teen in charge of saving the world trope is too overused but i feel like it works so perfectly in atla. the way they utilize it for character/story purposes as well as to teach lessons to their young viewers is so great
yeah like it’s obviously a pretty necessary convention of the genre, that a children’s fantasy adventure narrative requires child protagonists that the primary audience can relate to and identity with. and usually they’re orphans and ontologically special in some way, so as to justify their role in these magical shenanigans, since it’s fundamentally unrealistic for a bunch of tweens to be saving the world. and there’s pretty much always an in-universe explanation as to why it has to be children specifically for all of these various works, either because children stumbled upon a magical teleportation device by chance and now they are tasked to complete The Prophecy (eg, narnia, amphibia, etc), or because they are in some way The Chosen One (eg, harry potter, atla), or because the stakes are so high that they need to risk their safety to go on this quest (eg, a wrinkle in time, also atla).
i think revolutionary girl utena and neon genesis evangelion both do an excellent job of deconstructing this trope from within their respective genres (the works themselves functioning as deconstructions of their assumed narrative functions). like, the reason these kids are the ones tasked with shouldering these unique burdens is actually because they are being exploited by the adults in power. the fact that they are orphans (especially in the case of the eva pilots, but also in utena’s case) makes them especially viable to these modes of exploitation (spoilers: they need to have a dead mom so that they can be piloted, utena needs to be an orphan so that she can idealize the illusory promise of family and something eternal).
so in the case of atla, it’s not as overtly deconstructing these tropes, but the stakes do feel sufficiently heavy and tragic (if you choose to read into the underlying implications). aang should be an old man, if not dead by now, but due to his temporal displacement, he is now forced to carry a weight that is unfathomable to anyone, let alone a child. as he says, “i’m just one kid.” katara is similarly forced to carry a burden due to being the sole remnant of the systematic extermination of her people. sokka, like aang and katara, is also alone in his own way, and must grow up too fast to compensate for the devastation his people have suffered. zuko was disfigured and banished by his abusive father at the age of 13 specifically to emphasize the extent and depth of his cruelty. azula was raised as a weapon by the same man, and her friends taught themselves to be weapons from a young age for similar reasons. suki is a kid who sees other kids her age travel the world and attempt to save it, and is inspired by their courage to leave home and help out in any way she can, only to end up in a maximum security prison. toph isn’t directly affected by the war, but she nonetheless chooses to join the avatar because of her status as a child being denied autonomy by her family. yue is barely sixteen, and thus deemed old enough to marry, and is essentially sold off against her will. jet and his freedom fighters are so young, and yet have no choice but to fight because their families and homes have been destroyed.
the point atla is making is that in war, children are forced to grow up too quickly and become the kinds of people who must make ruthless, impossible decisions. we see katara and toph fight like sisters over meaningless, trivial bullshit, and then episodes later risk their lives to fight the fire nation. we see sokka awkwardly try to woo the girls he has crushes on, only for him to lose them in horrific ways. aang and sokka fight over whether killing is necessarily wrong, sokka already too jaded to understand aang’s point of view. killing is second nature to him by now. he’s barely sixteen. aang is twelve. as a kid, seeing kids your age or older fight evil is awesome. as an adult, seeing children forced to sacrifice everything to resist against the imperialist forces that have destroyed their lives is devastating.
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carnivorousyandeere · 20 days
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Safely Home
You almost couldn’t believe it.
You’d scored not one, not two, but three dates with the handsome, charming, polite, well-off Doctor Kim Dae-hyun. He was just so perfect that it rattled your nerves a little.
CW: date interrupted by supervillain attack, kidnapping, spiked drink, drugging, repeated trauma, near-death situations, ptsd, hypervigilance, survivor’s guilt, implications of suicidal ideation?
Your third date started off like the first two, full of good food and more charming anecdotes from Dae-hyun. But the air felt thick, and your drink tasted just a little more bitter than it should’ve. You frowned, swirling the glass thoughtfully. Dae-hyun reaches across the table, holding your hand, and his mouth opens to speak—
Boom.
Glass shards rain across the table, stinging your skin. Dae-Hyun grabs your hand. You run.
Voices ring out, screams and explosions fill the air. A villain attack. Not exactly uncommon where you live, but not an everyday occurrence either. You’ve only ever experienced one villain attack before. Your ears ring as Dae-hyun pulls you through the back door of the restaurant, out into an alleyway, through another alleyway, to a surprisingly empty parking garage.
Dae-hyun stills, looking around, breath short from running, and laughs. Exuberant, exhilarated, triumphant. Distantly, you wonder why— nobody should laugh at a time like this, right? But maybe it’s disbelief and relief of surviving when you shouldn’t have. That thrill of realizing how truly and deeply alive you are. He seems to notice how quiet, how still you are, his laughter fading into a softer sigh as he grasps your hands tighter and pulls you closer.
Your eyes and throat sting as you struggle to breathe. You feel you ought to be crying, shuddering— but your eyes are dry. All you feel is tired. So horribly, awfully tired. Dae-hyun tucks your head into his shoulder with another soft sigh, wrapping his arms around you and gently swaying back and forth.
“You’re okay. You’re safe now.”
The soft amusement in his voice clashes violently with your understanding of the world. Nowhere is safe. He should know that as well as you. A moment of hatred crawls like bile up the back of your throat. You stifle it down, trying to rationalize— he’s only being kind, trying to comfort you, it doesn’t matter that what he’s saying is untrue—
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
His words puff against the shell of your ear. Disgust crawls down your spine at the humid warmth, the utter amusement still filling his voice. It’s not right, it’s not true, and even as your mind struggles with the weight of what carnage you’ve just escaped, all you can think is that there must be something deeply wrong with the man whose embrace you’re now trying to wriggle out of.
“We almost died back there.” Your voice is distant, hollow. Maybe you are dead. A piece of you anyway, just like the first time you’d been caught in a villain attack. How many pieces of yourself did you have left? Did you deserve to call yourself dead when other people’s families had to hold real funerals? You were still breathing, what right did you have—?
Dae-hyun laughs again. The sound sends your train of thought careening to a crashing halt, mangled metal filling your mind’s eye and acrid smoke filling your nose just like it had at the restaurant this time and the time before that—
Dae-hyun wipes away a humored tear, pulling back to hold you by the shoulders and look at your face. “Yeobo, we were never in any danger! I paid them specifically not to injure either of us…” His tone darkens, thumb swiping over a cut on your cheek. “Though I suppose they failed, and I’ll have to take a cut from them…”
He rocks back on his heels, sucking air in through his teeth and whistling it out. “Still, it’s nothing some of my healing gel can’t soothe~”
A sob catches in your throat as the realization hits. Of course he could laugh so carelessly— he was the real villain. Your exhausted body slumps against him, limbs unnaturally heavy, and he holds you close once more.
“Aww, there’s no need for tears,” Dae-hyun croons, “you’ll be safe with me! I promise.”
“They’ll… somebody will come looking for me…”
Dae-hyun giggles harder, dragging you further into the parking garage, where a van is waiting. “Why would they? You and I died back there, after all~”
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stvharrngton · 1 year
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my girl
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a/n: requested by my bestie @sweetiestevie pls accept this as a christmas present 🥰 hope you enjoy <3
pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader
word count: 1.4k
warnings: dad!steve and mom!reader, lots of teeth rotting fluff, doting steve
summary: reader missed having steve’s undivided attention
taglist: @sweetiestevie @dukesmebby
Friday.
You only had to make it to Friday.
Late night confessions in the dead of night under the sheets, when you daren’t move a muscle in fear of waking the kids. Confessions that lead to Steve making you a promise, a promise to drop the kids off at Robin’s after school on Friday.
You had told him you missed him, missed having his undivided attention. You loved your kids, the life you’d made for yourselves, but you were still those same lovesick kids who fell for each other all those years ago.
It was hard sometimes, going through the motions, doing your best to pull it together to be a good Mom to your kids. When in reality, all you wanted to do was curl up in Steve’s lap and never leave.
So when you looked at him all guilty and sad, mouth downturned in a frown and told him that you missed him, Steve did what Steve did best. He wrapped you up in his arms, warm and tight, lips pressed to your temple as he spoke softly,
“We’ll spend some time together real soon, honey, I promise. I’ll take care of you.”
So when Friday finally rolled around, you both pressing big kisses all over your girls’ faces as you dropped them at Robin’s, you felt a weight lift off your shoulders. You urged Steve to step on the gas, wanting nothing more than to get home and have your husband all to yourself.
Steve clicked the door shut behind you both, his warm palms resting on your waist, “So, what’s on the agenda, Mrs. Harrington?”
A soft smile tugged at your lips, your shoulders shrugged in a slump, “Dunno,” you pondered, “jus’ wanna be with you, Steve.”
“Yeah? Does my girl need me to look after her?” He asked, one hand coming to cup your cheek, thumb rubbing over the skin softly.
You mustered a nod, shy and yearning. Big doe eyes blinking up at your husband, eyelashes fluttering innocently.
“How about,” he started, Steve’s voice soft and comforting, “I run you a nice warm bath, hm? Then we can both get in our pj’s and ear dinner on the couch with a movie?” Steve leant into you, his nose brushing along your own, “Like old times?”
“That sounds nice.” You whispered, eyes fluttering closed at the feeling of Steve being close to you.
“Alright then, c’mere, pretty girl.” Steve hushed with a smirk, scooping you up in his arms earning a squeal from you.
Steve carried you up the stairs bridal-style to your bathroom, setting you down on the counter, his lips capturing yours in a sweet kiss. Leaning down to turn the taps, adding your favourite bubble bath and salts, a mixture of vanilla and lavender filling the air.
You watched with a full heart as Steve hummed to himself, fingers skimming through the water to make sure the temperature was right for you. Your husband turned to you, wet finger poking you on the nose affectionately. “It’s all ready, babe. Want me to stay with you?”
“Will you?” You asked, fingers thumbing the hem of his t-shirt, “Please?”
You felt silly for asking. You knew Steve would do anything you asked, no matter how small or big. The man living to simply please you, to dote on you hand and foot.
“‘Course.” He simply responded, his voice calm and reassuring, “Lift your arms, honey.”
Obliging to Steve’s demand, you lifted your arms above your head as he lifted your shirt from your body, lips pressing soft kisses along your shoulder. Steve snapped the clasp of your bra single-handedly, letting the garment fall to the floor. You clutched at his broad shoulders as he helped you out of your jeans and underwear.
Steve clutched your hand tightly as you stepped into the warm bath, your body sinking into the hot water. All the tension seeping out from your body into the water. You sighed contently, head rolling back to rest against the edge of the tub.
Sitting on the lid of the toilet, Steve watched you with loving eyes. Gaze full of fond and yearning. He reached out to take your hand in his own, fingers lacing together, thumb grazing over your own.
You longed for moments like these with Steve, craved them actually, moments where the house was quiet and still. When the silence between you both was comfortable and safe, being able to just enjoy each other’s company in peace.
Steve brushed the hair back from your face, heart growing in size at the relaxed look painting your features. Steve loved nothing more than to look after you, to take care of his wife; his best friend. Forever the doting husband.
“Baby?” He asked softly, so as not to disturb you, “Can I wash your hair?”
You nodded gleefully, a grin plastered across your face at his proposal. Steve chuckled at you in response, leaning down to press his lips softly to your forehead.
“Alright, sweet girl, lean back f’me.”
You did as he asked, your eyes fluttering closed as you leaned back into Steve’s touch. A pretty little sigh leaving your lips as you felt the warm water cascade over your scalp.
Steve’s fingers massaged your crown, rubbing in your shampoo just perfectly. Your cheeks flushed a tinge of pink as a quiet groan escaped your throat at the feeling. You were in heaven. Total bliss washing over you.
A little whine left you as Steve removed his hands from you after rinsing, your husband chuckling to himself, finding it so endearing. He leant over you once more, his lips brushing against your forehead before they ghosted over your lips.
“I’m just gonna get you a towel, babe, I’ll only be a sec.” Steve spoke quietly, lips finally pressing to yours in a sweet kiss.
You chased his lips when he pulled away from you, bottom lip jutting out in a pout. Just loving how soft Steve was being on you, his lips tugged up in a permanent sweet smile, his eyes bright with affection.
When he returned, you hopped out the tub as he wrapped you up in a warm fluffy towel. You knew he’d ran downstairs to run it through the dryer for a minute or two and you would surely insist that a regular towel would have been fine, that he needn’t waste electricity. Steve would insist on it though, not one to forget about the smallest and simplest of gestures.
After you dried off you both got changed into your pyjamas, Steve pulling out the comfiest, coziest pair you owned. He pulled you down the stairs, his fingers locked with your own.
You got settled in on the couch as Steve flitted around the room, gathering the blankets for you and lighting all the candles that were scattered about your living room. He laid the blanket across your lap as he leant to pinch your chin in his thumb and finger.
“You wanna pick the movie if I go get dinner on?” He asked, voice warm as honey.
You nodded as he leant to press a quick kiss to your forehead, muttering a “Good girl,” in response.
Fingers skimmed along your movie collection, stopping every now and then to ponder over a particular film. Your pointer finger stopping on a movie usually reserved for your kids but you loved it still.
“Steve?” You called out.
“Yeah, honey?” You heard something boiling on the stove as Steve clanged about in the kitchen.
“Can we watch Bambi?”
“Bambi?”
“Yeah, Bambi.” You mumbled with a pout.
Steve poked his head around the threshold of the room, “Only if you let me wipe your tears this time.”
You giggled but nodded nonetheless, “Deal.”
Once you were snuggled up on the couch, with warm bowls in your laps, Steve’s thumb hovered over the play button on the remote. You furrowed your brows together, wondering what he was waiting for.
Turning your gaze to Steve, your features softened when you saw the look on his face. It was all soft, a little sappy, a dopey love-sick smile plastered on his face. He spoke before you could ask what he was staring at.
“I know things have been a little crazy lately,” he began, sincerity and earnest lacing his voice, “and I love our little family to death but you’ll always be my baby girl, you know what right?”
Remote dropped in his lap in favour of caressing your cheek, thumb grazing the skin softly. You nodded into his touch, lips turning to kiss his palm swiftly.
“You’re gonna make me cry before you even press play, Stevie.”
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ilguna · 11 months
Text
☼ comfort (Katniss Everdeen) ☼
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summary; when Greasy Sae's unable to take care of Katniss, you volunteer to step in for the day, expecting Katniss to ignore your presence.
warnings; swearing, death mention, murder mention, the usual.
wc; 3k
The moment you step foot into Victor’s Village, it feels like a wet blanket is thrown over your head. The weight of the air here is unbearable, and you stop walking a few steps in, trying to get used to the feeling before you even think about continuing any further.
You’re not entirely sure what you expected when you agreed to come here for Greasy Sae, but you weren’t expecting to see a barren neighborhood without a single trace of color. The grass is dead, it might as well be dirt. The concrete fountain is dry and cracked. And the houses are grey and black, if you didn’t know any better, you think you’d be walking into a funeral home.
All the times you were told about Victor’s Village, you couldn’t help but to picture a paradise, because that’s what they advertise it as. You win the Hunger Games, you get a nice neighborhood, with bright green grass and flowers lining the sidewalk in front of the houses. You’ve pictures white houses, or even the colorful ones that they show in the Capitol.
It should not look like this.
If any of the victors of Twelve are expected to make a speedy recovery, then that means they need to be in an environment that inspires that idea. A nice garden out front could act as an excuse to get out of the house, sit on the grass and read, have people over—anything.
You’re almost surprised that the volunteers that are rebuilding the district didn’t start here first, since it’s such a small project. It’d be so easy to spread seeds, plant flowers, and call someone to fix the fountain. You suppose that they’d rather focus on jobs, farms, and getting houses built and whatnot for families. If it were you that were in charge, you’d start with the reason why they’re able to work freely in the first place.
The truth is that none of you would be here if it weren’t for the sacrifices that Katniss, Peeta, and Haymitch made.
You let out a breath, rolling your shoulders slightly, before continuing around the fountain, off to the right. Katniss’ house is the first one, perfectly preserved from the war.
You go up the few steps onto the porch, adjusting the handle of the basket in the elbow of your arm. You recite the vague instructions that Sae gave you before she had to leave. She told you to knock on the front door to alert Katniss that you’re coming in, but not to expect her to answer. The door should be unlocked.
You knock a few times, pausing briefly, and then reach for the handle to open the door.
Immediately, you’re hit with a smell.
You go back a step, turning your face to the open air behind you, trying to ease the pained look off of your face. It’s a mix of smells, the primary one being rotten food. You wonder if any of them bothered to help her clean what was left in here, or thought of doing it. Surely not Haymitch, because having his own struggles across the street. If Katniss has to be taken care of, then shouldn’t have either. The only person that would’ve been able to is Sae.
You shake your head, going inside of the house anyway, reminding yourself that you’ll get used to the smell as time goes on. You slip out of your boots to leave next to the door, watching as a few bits of snow fall off the bottom and land on the hardwood floor. 
You shut the front door, cutting off the breeze from chilling you any further. You take your time navigating your way to the living room, passing by a staircase and a hallway with several rooms. You catch a glimpse of the fireplace first, and find that it is lit, but the flames aren’t very high.
Katniss has herself positioned so that the back of her chair is to the corner of the room, making it impossible for anyone to sneak up on her, giving her full visibility of the room and the only entrance and exit. The fireplace is to the right, which is why she’s turned in that direction, trying to suck up all the warmth that emits from it.
When Sae was talking to you, she told you that the fire is a pain in the ass to get started, but sometimes Katniss has enough energy to do it herself before she comes to cook breakfast.
Even though the entire house is dark, curtains pulled shut to hide the winter light, Katniss manages to sense your presence. Her eyes snap up from the floor, lifting her head. In the next second, she’s on her feet.
You stop moving, “Sae couldn’t make it today, she had to make plans last minute for her granddaughter. She asked me to come instead.”
She doesn’t move from where she’s standing for a minute, eyeing you up and down, deciding if your story is real. She must figure that it’s not worth the fight, because she slowly sits back down in her chair, but doesn’t return back to her relaxed state from before.
“I’m (Y/n).” You tell her.
You know who Katniss is, for obvious reasons, but also because you both frequented the Hob. While she went to sell what she caught, you wandered around as an extra help to the busier stalls, catching thieves and making little to nothing in payment. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better than the alternative.
There’s also the fact that you went to the same school that she did, as well. The two of you weren’t in the same groups, of course. She either kept around Gale or to herself. You had your own friends, the few you could make.
Katniss doesn’t respond, Sae warned you about this, so you’re not all that concerned about it. You head into the kitchen, where the smell seems to worsen the further you go inside. There’s a part of you telling you to open the fridge, despite knowing full well that the smell is coming from there.
You set the basket onto the counter carefully, pulling the top cloth off, and folding it neatly. You then reach inside for the second cloth, thinner and smaller in size. It’s slightly damp from the steam coming off of the muffins, they weren’t able to cool properly before you left. It’s all you could do last minute after Sae told you that she liked baked goods. She was never specific about what type, though. 
You could always cook her, that’s what Sae does. Only, this is the first time being inside of Katniss’ house, the first time that you’re officially meeting her, too. Sae tried to tell you to make yourself at home, but it feels impossible when you don’t know where to start. 
It was better than showing up empty handed, because you came late. 
There’s three types of muffins inside of the basket, two of each, because you couldn’t guess which one Katniss would like better. You pull one of each variety out—a chocolate chip, a blueberry, and a banana nut. You manage to go through three cabinets before you finally find where the plates are.
When you go back to the living room, Katniss seems to have managed to get some of the tension out of her body. You watch her eyebrows twitch together slightly. You can’t imagine she’s thrilled with you being here instead of Sae. Sae’s familiar, she traded with her in the Hob all the time, and she’s the one that’s been taking care of Katniss.
“I made muffins.” You tell her, as if it’s not obvious. You set the plate on the coffee table, and then take a seat across from her on the couch. The heat from the fire begins to eat away at the goosebumps on your arms. “There’s two of each, I’m not sure which you’d like more.”
She doesn’t move, you lean back against the cushions, looking around the room, finding a thick layer of dust at the corner table. You press your lips together, because it’s similar to the state outside. It’s cold and depressing in here. You can’t imagine there’s much healing going on. 
Katniss reaches forward, taking the chocolate chip muffin. You make an effort to try not to watch her eat, because that has a tendency to put people off. You play with your fingers, wondering exactly how long it would take for you to clean this place from top to bottom, if it’d even make her feel better.
Of course, you’re not stupid enough to believe that it would magically clear her of all the feelings she has about her life. She’s been through a lot in the past three years, volunteering for the Hunger Games twice, killing people, losing Peeta, being the face of the rebellion, getting Peeta back, only to find out that he’s not really hers anymore. She lost several more of her friends, her sister, and her mom won’t come back here, either.
Sae tells you that Katniss hasn’t showered since she got here, that’s why she tries not to sit too close. There’s letters that you noticed, piled up on the dining room table. And Sae tells you that Katniss lets the Head Doctor call her the same time every week, trying to get a progress update on her, but she never answers the phone.
Cleaning her house wouldn’t fix any of her problems, or come close to doing it. You remember what it was like, though, being in that position. When you sat at home for two weeks, unable to pull yourself out of bed after your mom died, leaving you to take care of everything.
A small gesture can go a long way.
Katniss eats all three muffins, leaving the wrappers on the plate to make it easy to clean up.
“Are you still hungry?” You ask, watching her shake her head.
You take the plate, heading to the kitchen to throw the paper away. The sink is empty of dishes when you get to it. Sae told you everything should be caught up for the most part. All you’d have to do is come in and cook, and come back at dinner to do it all again. 
After setting the plate into the sink, already deciding that you’ll do it later, with the rest of the dishes you’ll end up with, you head back to the basket. You drop the cover cloth back inside, spreading it over the tops of the muffins. You press your lips together, this is the part where you’re supposed to leave.
You have to try, at the very least. You head over to the living room, Katniss doesn’t look up from where she stares, hands in her lap.
“Katniss?” You call, her eyes flicker to you in the doorway. “I know Sae normally leaves, but I wouldn’t mind sticking around. We could go for a walk, draw a bath, bake?”
She stares at you wordlessly, shaking her head.
“A book, game, puzzle?”
There’s no answer, she turns her body away from you, ending the conversation with that one move. You watch her for a few seconds, not entirely surprised by her behavior. This is exactly what you were expecting to receive, anyway. 
Unfortunately for her, you’ve still got more questions to ask.
“That’s fine. I do need to know what you’d like to have for dinner, though. I don’t want to cook you something that you don’t like.” You say, no response. “Anything you could possibly want, Katniss. From here, from the Capitol, maybe something from another district you tried on the tour?”
Silence.
You suck in a breath, thinking, “How about lamb stew?” You ask, gauging her reaction. It works, her eyes find your face again. “And I think I remember Haymitch mentioning cheese buns.”
Katniss narrows her eyes, face twisted. You can’t tell if this is a good expression or not. If she’s mad that you’ve somehow managed to figure out what her favorite meal is, or the fact that the cheese buns that you’re referring to are Peeta’s specialty.
“You can’t.” She finally says.
“Can’t what?” You challenge.
“Replicate either of those.” Her tone is matter-of-fact, “You’ve never been to the Capitol, and I doubt you’ve ever had the chance to buy one of Peeta’s cheese buns. It won’t turn out right. Why bother?”
You let out a laugh, “Is that right?”
She shrugs, “Am I wrong?”
“I guess we’ll find out tonight, won’t we?” You ask.
Honestly, there was a second while you were in the middle of making the stew where you had yourself convinced that you weren’t going to make it. You have the handwritten recipe for it, with all the instructions on how to cook on the back, but the further you got, the more complicated it would get.
You knew that the Capitol was outrageous with their ingredients. You just weren’t expecting for them to throw a little bit of everything they could possibly think of into the recipe. They had to have done it to make sure that the taste would be impossible to bring back into the districts by the victors. It truly is an evil thing to do.
And you admire them for it. 
It’s a good thing that you’ve never gotten a recipe wrong in your life, and now that the sanctions are gone between the districts and the Capitol, it means that all ingredients are fair game. It wasn’t easy by any means to track down the lamb and the specially dried plums, but you have your ways for a reason, and your own pantry full of brand new foods you’ve been dying to try.
You carefully ladle the stew into a bowl you brought from home. You think Ksatniss’ dishes are nice, they don’t have that same polished look. As for you, if there’s one habit that your parents successfully instilled on you, it’s a nice appearance for dinner, even if there’s nothing on the place. 
You slide a spoon into the bowl, before grabbing the plate that has Peeta’s cheese bun on it. You’re going to admit it now, you think you would’ve done his recipe better if you had more practice. He’s been a baker his whole life, he’s got an advantage on you there.
“Okay, Katniss.” You say, coming out of the kitchen, carrying her portion of the food. 
She seems more awake now than she did this morning, she’s been open to conversation, too. It’s something to report back to Sae, even if it’s not a lot.
“It smells good.” She murmurs, adjusting in her chair.
“Everything smells good when you’re hungry.” You set it down on the table. “You can’t say anything about the presentation, because I’ve never seen how they serve their stew.”
A smile hints at the corner of her lips, “Anything else?”
“You have to tell the truth.”
You go back into the kitchen, grabbing your bowl and plate, meeting her back in the living room. You find her picking apart the cheese bun first, placing a piece of it in her mouth.
“Sae tells me that she doesn’t cook you lunch, is that your preference, or is it because you wake up late?” You ask.
Katniss raises a shoulder before dropping it. “She doesn’t want to spend her entire day here, she’s got her granddaughter to watch.”
“That’s right.” You take a bite out of the cheese bun. You managed to get the softness of it down perfectly. Katniss wouldn’t tell you the other qualities of what Peeta’s is like, besides the look of it.
It may or may not have led to you cheating a little bit. You went and asked Haymitch what it’s like, but you might as well not have because he was drinking when you walked in the house. You thought Katniss’ house is bad—it’s a fucking nightmare in there. Your persistence won over, he told you that the cheese melts on top and it’s usually a little greasy.
“I didn’t see you in District Thirteen.” Katniss says, lifting the bowl to rest on her lap. “Were you with Greasy Sae in the kitchen?”
“Um, part of the time, yeah.” You move the hair out of your face. “They kept me in the hospital for a couple weeks because of the burns from the fire. When they finally cleared me, Sae vouched and they brought me to work with her.”
“Did you like it there?”
You let out a noise, “Did you? I mean, it was nice for a while, because of the meals and stuff, but not being able to go outside drove me up the wall. For a second, I thought we were going to be stuck down there forever.”
Katniss tilts her head, “That’s why I got out.”
She brings the spoon to her mouth, you watch as her face twists, and then she smiles. Her eyes meet yours, you know immediately that you’ve replicated the dish. That’s all you need to know.
“How do you do it?” She asks, taking another spoonful.
“I’m just that good.” You laugh, “And what about the cheese bun?”
She makes a face, “Close. It’s good, though.”
“I tried.” You pick off more bread, “Would you care if I came at lunch everyday to cook for you?”
She shakes her head, “Don’t you have something better to do?”
“I could probably think of a few things, but I would love to use you as a taster for the Capitol cookbook I got last month.” You sit back. “Only if you want me to, I don’t want to overstep.”
She smiles briefly, “I don’t mind, (Y/n).”
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setokaibapetty · 9 days
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5 + 1 Fic Friday Roundup: Surprise Relative
Some fics where a surpise blood relation pops up. Like, sometimes the guy who raised you was lying about being your dad, sometimes a Pit gives you a baby, etc.
Imprint (AO3) - "He screwed his eyes shut, held his breath, desperately wished that he was back in his safehouse, alone and blissfully unaware. But the weight in his hands remained, and when he opened his eyes, it was to the bean-shaped 'fuck you' the Lazarus Pit had kindly bestowed upon him, arms and legs folded up against his front beneath off-white muslin while tiny lips smacked softly.'
Red Blood, Blue Blood (AO3) - "Jason Todd was living a very ordinary life in Crime Alley before his mother gets sick. Then, suddenly, Jason and Catherine have to grapple with the secret everyone has known since Jason was born with black hair and blue eyes—Willis Todd wasn't his biological father. Bruce Wayne is, and not only is he the richest man in Gotham, he has three other children who may not be glad to have an interloper in their midst."
Going Off-Book (AO3) - "Dick winces. “Tim, meet Damian Wayne. Apparently, his mom told him who his dad was when he turned eighteen and the first thing he did after finding out was enroll in the nearest police academy. He served for a couple of years and just arranged a transfer here from Metropolis.” He directs a pleading gaze at Tim. “Like I said, Bruce had to go out of town for a while, but he asked me to show Damian the ropes. Tim, I’m sorry, but—"
when the dead tree flowers (AO3) - "It wasn't solely Jango Fett's DNA that went into making Domino Squad. Palpatine had other plans for them. Thankfully, so does their second genetic donor, and he has just as few qualms about murder as a Sith Lord."
Open Arms (AO3) - "The story starts when Quinlan get's a call from the hospital; an old girlfriend has given birth and named him the father, leaving the baby at the hospital. This triggers a series of events that bring Fox back into contact with his bio family, who he is not as distant from as he might like to think."
Bonus: welcome all your bastard actions home (AO3) - "Daenerys had arrived at Winterfell three days past, a great host of dragons and roses and suns and krakens, clearly expecting Jon -- the King in the North, as uneasy that title rests on his shoulders -- to bend the knee. Instead, he takes her to the crypts to speak of ancient history."
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angelofacidx · 25 days
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Pet pt 3
Read at your own risk, and read the tags
Compliance.
Compliance, fawning and disassociation so heavy that your head feels like it’s filled with thick cotton gets you by, helps you survive in this hell. You are surviving, no longer living. You trade pieces of your soul and dignity for small comforts.
Eating three meals a day without complaint leads to Simon asking your food preferences and even taking suggestions on what he might prepare for dinner that week. Gritting your teeth and baring Johnny pinning your beaten body to the couch with his dead weight so that he can cuddle you earns you the privilege of sleeping at the edge of their bed, right by their feet. Enduring the pair using you as a sex toy though you feel nauseous down to your bones guarantees you a daily bath.
“I ken, I ken. Just a little more fer me bonnie.” Johnny’s voice is laced with concern and pain, as if the situation at hand is ripping him open while only shallowly scraping you.
His left hand is rested on the arch of your foot while the right has a vice grip on your calf, moving your stiff muscles and nearly causing your vision to fade to black; your body trying to escape from the pain. The road to hell was paved with good intentions when Johnny took on being your doctor and physical therapist. He was right, without moving properly your muscles would atrophy and you’d have a worse situation to deal with. However this isn’t the Middle Ages, so pain killers would be nice, bastard.
Though you get better everyday, your broken ankles still leave you unable to use your legs properly. You can crawl with mild discomfort, hobble with excruciating pain if you’re picked up and given a shoulder to cling on for support. Regular walking and running is so from the horizon it discourages you from even toying with the idea again.
Johnny pats the outside of your calf with a pleased hum, lowering your leg slowly to the mess of pillows, propping up your legs and taking the pressure of gravity off them.
“Did so good today. Getting better everyday pretty girl.” He hums, placing a kiss to your clammy forehead, before lowering himself to rest his head on your lower belly.
Arms snake around your waist as he nuzzles the softness below your belly button, making himself a home there, and letting his eyes close in contentment. Before you can stop it, your hand cards its way through the tuft of hair atop his head, fingers dancing down towards the freshly shaved sides. This is disgusting. You’re disgusting. You should be strangling him until the blood vessels burst in his eyes, not petting him like a lap dog.
You can’t keep yourself from feeling bad for the man. Though the treatment he receives is much better than yours, he doesn’t seem to have much more freedom in or out of the house. Your leash was pulled taught while his had a little slack. Your mind wanders to what he was before this, before Simon. Was he like you? Terrified, missing friends and family, or was he a willing participant?
“Something wrong?” He asks in a soft tone, reserved for when the two of you are alone. You’re not sure what tipped him off, almost as if he was reading your thoughts.
“How uhm… How long have you been here. With Simon I mean.”
“Ach, been a long while.”
“…And how long exactly would that be.”
“Well, ah moved in when we were still serving together out of convenience. Then we retired a few years back.” He says, eyebrows knit together as he tries to do the mental math and recollect dates in his brain.
“Do you like it here? With him?” A bold ask, but something you’d been dying to know.
“Course. Ah love the big bastard.” A small smile tugs at the corner of his lips fondly.
“Do you love him or were you trained to? Do you love the pain? Never being alone?” You ask softly, hand moving to cup his chest, right over his heart.
His smile falters down, his eyes zoning out slightly and he seems to retreat to somewhere in his head you hadn’t seen yet.
“Well….” He starts, before being interrupted by Simon’s voice.
“Dinner, get washed up.”
After your meal, you’re carried up the stairs and to the master bathroom. Johnny tenderly strips your clothes while you’re sat on the counter, careful to not put any strain on your injuries. Just as you’re about to be hoisted into the tub, a hand stops him.
“Go get ready for bed, pup. I’m supervising bath time tonight.” Simon’s tone is so sickeningly neutral.
The shift in routine causes your heart to immediately hammer in your chest, especially when Johnny slinks away and closes the door, trapping you in here with the monster. Everything in you screams danger.
Unceremoniously you’re lifted off the counter and plopped into the tub, sloshing water out of the side and onto the floor as you hiss in pain, ankles making contact with the porcelain walls. Simon kneels beside the tub, lacing his fingers tightly into your hair, flush against the base of your skull.
“You dirty conspirin’ fuckin’ mutt,” He hisses before snapping your head backwards and under the water for a moment, saturating the locks.
You come up as quick as you were pulled down, coughing and doe eyed.
“What are you talking about?” You all but shout before remembering your place and lowering your tone.
“M’ not fuckin stupid. I know you’re tryna get in his head. Wriggle your way in there like a parasite.” His hands are extremely rough as he shampoos your scalp, no doubt ripping small chunks from the root that makes you hiss in pain.
“I don’t—.”
“I have a baby monitor in every room. Y’ really think I’d leave two stupid pups unsupervised?”
Before you can brace, you’re dunked under the water again, pulling fluid into your lungs. This time however, you’re not brought up as quickly. Your body’s natural reaction to cough only makes your situation worse, inhaling more water. You begin to panic, thrashing around with everything you have, beating on his arms and chest with your hands. Black spots form in your vision and your muscles start to betray you, becoming more and more useless before you’re wrenched out of the water by your hair.
Your lungs scream in pain as you violently cough water up, which turns into vomiting the clear liquid back into its basin. Your chest heaves as you regain vision and your balance, tears brimming your eyes as you look up to Simon. He looks all too pleased, simply grabbing the soap bar and moving on.
“I was just startin’ to become fond of you too.” He muses before pulling the black plug nestled at the bottom of the tub to let the water drain.
You’re wrapped in a towel and carried out of the bathroom, before he deposits you on the bed in front of Johnny, giving him the tedious task of brushing and styling your post bath hair, a task he is usually happy to do.
He gets to work, applying the usual products into your hair before running the brush through it. A large clump of your hair falls into his hand, causing his expression to fall. He’d hoped he was wrong in his assumption of what was happening to you in there.
By the end of it, Johnny brushes four clumps of your hair out before he’s done. You take your regular position at the foot of the bed, huddled up in a ball as the pair settle above you, your eyes grow heavy with exhaustion from your near drowning.
The real Johnny is in there somewhere and you know it. You just have to get him out.
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useramor · 1 year
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of firefighters and french toast rating: G | word count: 2k
the one where dr. salazar and eddie's will lawyer are best friends (disclaimer, patient/client confidentiality? nonexistent for story telling purposes. pls ignore <3)
Aline Salazar didn’t often spend much time thinking about her patients. She went to work, took care of people’s hearts, sent them back into the real world, and when she went back home she made sure to leave all of their life stories in the hospital. It wasn’t a weight she needed to carry.
If she let herself get dragged down into the heart problems of Los Angeles, she’d drown.
So she does a good job at separating it. She has her wife at home, her two girls, and a small black cat that likes to curl around her ankles when she walks through the front door. She has her life at work, her coworkers that drive her up the wall a little bit but who she’s secretly incredibly fond of, and the secret stash of Reese’s peanut butter cups that she keeps in her office.
But she has to admit: the men of the 118 tend to linger in her mind. 
The women, too. Hen’s well known. Badass paramedic who’s performed some tricky operations in the back of a moving ambulance. Aline’s heard the stories. 
She’s never been in her office, though. Hen’s heart seems to be relatively intact. 
Aline knocks on wood, just to be safe. The 118’s been through enough, they don’t need to send yet another member of their team to her. Keep them on the other side of the hospital doors; Aline’s starting to worry.
It’s Eddie that she thinks about most. Or, not most, but he’s crossed her mind more than once. Especially after Buckley got brought in after being struck by lightning, and one of the new doctors was complaining that Diaz was yelling at them as they wheeled him through the hospital doors. 
Aline didn’t snort, because that feels a little rude and dismissive, and she does her best to not be either of those things, but…
It’s Buckley and Diaz. She’s seen them on the news—hell, she’s pretty sure most of Los Angeles has. They’re not celebrities or famous, but really (unless you count hospital fame, because, seriously, how are these men not dead yet?), but Eddie got shot in front of Buck. The video of Buck throwing him over his shoulder has just under a million views.
Honestly, Aline doesn’t know how she didn’t recognize him when he came in for his panic attack.
It was probably the girlfriend that threw her off. To be fair, the girlfriend seemed to be throwing Eddie off, too. 
And, yeah, that’s the reason he’s stuck with her more than most. 
She shakes her head. The only reason they’re even on her mind is because Evan Buckley just left her office. Because the man got struck by lightning. 
Seriously, she can’t tell if God or the universe or whoever wants the 118 alive or dead. If it’s alive, they’ve sure got a twisted way of showing it. It’s getting to the point where, if Aline didn’t literally have access to their medical files, she’d probably assume they were supernatural at this point. 
Currently, she’s in her car, on her way to meet up with her best friend for Monthly Mandatory Monday. It’s something Melanie came up with when, during her time in med school, they went almost six months without seeing each other, despite living in the same city. Melanie, her best friend since high school, decided that was unacceptable. 
So now they clear out one Monday every month to get dinner and catch up. They usually see each other more often than that, considering life is finally in a place where it’s a little more settled, but the tradition stuck. 
Her phone pings with a text where it’s sitting in the cup holder. She checks it at a red light. 
Melanie:
Are you on your way 😁
Aline:
ETA 10 min
She gets a notification that Melanie liked the message, putting her phone away when the light turns green. 
It takes her closer to fifteen minutes to get to the restaurant—a little French bistro that’s definitely more suited for brunch, but Melanie’s always insisted that food should not exist within societally constructed time frames, and if she wants berries and french toast for dinner, then she will have them. 
Frankly, Aline’s always down for some well made, fluffy, cinnamon-y french toast. 
“You, Dr. Salazar, are late.”
“You, Ms. Green, didn’t have any actual clients today.”
Melanie shrugs. “Mondays are paperwork days. I did not realize there would be this much of it.”
“That’s because you didn’t pay attention in class. Pretty sure anyone who goes to law school knows there’s gonna be paperwork involved.”
Melanie, unsurprisingly, has nothing to say to that. 
“Anyway, how was your work day today?”
They’re briefly interrupted by a young girl coming by to take their orders. They don’t even need to look at the menu, both of them getting the same thing they get every time they come here. 
She comes back with their drinks quickly, telling them with a polite smile that their food will be out shortly.
“As you were saying?” Aline turns back to her friend as the waitress walks away. 
“Work? How are the hearts of the citizens of LA doing today?”
Aline chuckles, pouring water from the pitcher the waitress left into a mason jar. 
“You remember that firefighter that got struck by lightning? I treated him today.”
Melanie perks up. She’s got an odd fascination with the LAFD. 
“I feel like LA has some of the weirdest fire fighting accidents I’ve ever seen. I doubt Montana has this much excitement with their fire department. Just off the top of my head there’s been that weird blimp incident—didn’t realize blimps still existed, by the way—, two years ago all of the animals at the LA zoo were released onto the streets, we had a tsunami. Did you know the last time a tsunami hit the United States was in 1964? In Alaska.”
Aline smiles. “I did not know that.”
“Well, now you do.”
“Tell me about the firefighter. I saw some coverage of it on the news, he looked really familiar.”
“Pretty sure he’s been on television multiple times by now.”
Melanie takes a sip of her spiked lemonade, because her best friend has the alcoholic drink preferences of a high schooler. 
“Probably. What about that other guy you saw a while ago? The panic attack one, have you seen him since?”
Aline snorts. 
“No, but I’m pretty sure the lightning strike guy is his boyfriend.”
“Wait, didn’t he have a girlfriend?”
Aline nods. The waitress appears with their food, smiling kindly at them before leaving again. 
The first bite is perfect, as it always is. The homemade syrup from the berries mixing with the cinnamon-sugar of the french toast is heavenly. She didn’t even realize she was this hungry until the flavors hit her tongue. 
“God, this place is so good.”
“I know,” Melanie agrees. “Back to what you were saying?”
“Yeah, he had a girlfriend, but I’m pretty sure his panic attack was because of her? Probably some heavy repression and internalized sexuality issues. Not that I’m speculating about someone’s sexuality, but as a gay person who only realized her sexuality at thirty, I recognized some of his panic.”
“Classic. And he’s dating lightning strike guy?”
“I think? I mean, I’ve seen them at the hospital quite a few times. They always seem very friendly, I guess, for lack of a better term, and I heard through the grapevine that Eddie—panic attack guy—was yelling at the doctors when they brought the other guy in.”
Melanie lights up. “Man, why are Eddie’s so—I don’t know—weird? I have a client, his name’s Eddie, too. Did I ever tell you about him?”
Aline shakes her head no, sitting back in her chair knowing she’s about to get an earful of Melanie’s rambling. They’ve been this way since they met. Aline was shy and quiet, kept to herself. Didn’t know anybody at her new school after moving to LA with her family from Florida. 
Melanie saw her first day of Sophomore year. She was loud and bright and hilarious. All over the place and terrible student, but incredibly smart. They sat next to each other in biology. Aline helped her cheat on her exams, Melanie invited her to tag along to games and parties, and they’ve been sort of inseparable since. 
And one thing about Melanie that hasn’t changed is that she can talk for hours. Lucky for her, she has a best friend willing to listen. 
“Okay, so, this is a few years ago, okay? Setting the scene, it’s—huh. I don’t actually remember what month it was, but it was unusually cold and rainy. This is relevant. This guy came in, he had made an appointment over the phone, and I told him I’d have availability in about two weeks, but he said it was urgent, and that his schedule is unpredictable and asked if I could squeeze him in the next day.”
Aline’s eyebrows raise. 
“I know, right? Felt a little rude the way he was so snippy over the phone, but then he comes in and stiltedly spills his entire life story. This guy is, oddly enough, actually, also a firefighter and an army vet, and he’d recently experienced yet another trauma. Remember what I was saying about rain? He’s the guy that got trapped in that well years ago.”
“Oh wow.”
“I could tell it was serious, even though he brushed it off. You don’t go to a lawyer with an impending sense of doom and urgency if what you experienced isn’t serious. Whatever, I didn’t push.”
Aline snorts. She’s not sure there’s a world that exists where Melanie doesn’t push. 
“Shut up, asshole.” 
She throws her napkin across the table, and lands it firmly in the potted plant beside Aline.
“I didn’t say anything,” Aline says, raising her hands in surrender.
“Your laugh did. Whatever, I didn’t push. I didn’t. This was the cagiest man I’ve ever seen. I had to ask him what he was there to do about three times, because he was so shifty about it.”
“Well. What did he want?” “Okay, more backstory, this man is a widow with a son. He has extended family that he’s supposedly close to, but he wanted me to update his will. So that, in case of emergency—and, seeing as he’s a firefighter, those happen often—, his son would go to his best friend.”
Aline frowns. “Okay? Like a godfather? That’s not that out of the ordinary, is it?”
Melanie grins like Aline just fell for the set up hook, line, and sinker. 
“His best friend? Completely unaware. Eddie asked me not to contact him or anything. And when I said you know, he could refuse, this man looked me in the eye for the first time that entire conversation and said with more certainty than I have ever seen anyone possess he won’t. I swooned a little. I hope those two figured it out, honestly.” 
“That’s…wow. Yeah, I hope so, too. I’m just glad my Eddie seems to finally be dating Evan. The lightning strike guy. They’ve been through a lot together.”
Melanie pauses, lemonade halfway up to her lips. “Wait. Evan? As in Evan Buckley?”
Aline blinks in confusion. “Yes?”
“Holy shit, I think we’re talking about the same Eddie. Evan Buckley’s the guy in his will. Diaz? Firefighter with the 118?”
Aline throws her head back and laughs. “Yes.”
Melanie raises her glass and waits for Aline to do the same. “To the same idiot firefighters that happen to be paying for both of our bills.”
Aline snorts. “What you said.”
The rest of the dinner passes by too quickly, the way time between them always seems to. They talk about everything; Melanie shows her all the options for birthday gifts for Aline’s oldest daughter, Aline asks what TV she’s watching now because Melanie has the best taste in sitcoms, and it feels like minutes but it’s actually hours by the time they ask for their check and leave. 
“See you this weekend, right?” Aline asks.
Melanie scoffs. “As if I’d miss Maia’s birthday. I need to maintain my position as her favorite Tia.” 
Aline pulls her in for a hug when they reach the front of the restaurant. Melanie’s already called her uber, and Aline told her wife she’d be home in time for them to watch an episode of Extraordinary Attorney Woo. 
“Hey!” Melanie calls out as Aline’s walking away. “If you see Eddie anytime soon, tell him congrats on finally getting it together and telling Buckley.”
Aline laughs. “Will do, Mel.”
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fennelwrites · 8 months
Note
Part 2 of reader who can talk to Pokémon please!!!!!!!
(a/n: HI HELLO I'M NOT DEAD i say despite having said exactly that last time oops
but um. yeah idk i wanted to write again and i had the bug so i'm here now oopsie! idk if i'll ever have a consistent schedule again but i did finish something for the first time in a while so here you get Content
also. thank you all for your patience with me. i am sorry it has taken me literal years to get to requests but i promise you they are in progress and i have not given up on them, so i hope you haven't either!! i still love this little scrinkle scrunkle and i hope he hasn't faded from your consciousnesses yet
anyway enjoy the fic uwu)
You leaned against the smooth surface of the Mossy Rock, waiting for a familiar head of blond hair to appear. Around you, the Buneary gave you a wide berth, but you heard them gossipping about you from afar. You rolled your eyes and tried to ignore them, even as they snarked about Volo’s outfit.
Your visits to the Mossy Rock had almost become weekly occurrences at this point. At first, you thought he might not come back, but lo and behold, he’d arrived with his Pokemon in tow. Now, you spent most of your time here. You weren’t sure what it was, but there was something that drew you to the place. Drew you to Volo. Perhaps it was the fact that you’d felt understood for the first time in years, the first time you’d felt like that weight was lifted off of your shoulders.
You knew it was a little foolish, but you hoped Volo felt that way too. 
Sure enough, a few moments after you’d gotten yourself settled in the grass, the gentle, delicate chirps of a Togekiss heralded Volo’s arrival. He smiled at you as he approached, the angelic Pokemon flying low over his head. “I hope you weren’t waiting too long,” he greeted, sitting down next to you. “I wasn’t,” you replied, smiling softly. “How was the trip?”
As time passed, you talked about all sorts of things, from the weather in the Highlands to the Starly passing overhead. Volo had made a little home for himself just outside the Obsidian Fieldlands, far enough away from Jubilife Village that he wouldn’t be seen but close enough to take advantage of the region’s naturally fair weather. He’d given you the rough location so that you could come see him when you next had time off, an outing you eagerly looked forward to.
Ever so slowly, the sun made its way across the sky, and it painted the Heartwood in soft dusty pinks by the time you came to a natural pause in conversation. All around, you could hear gentle whispers and chirps of the forest Pokemon, going about their lives with their usual hustle and bustle. There were many of them, but you’d gotten used to tuning them out so they weren’t overwhelming.
Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Volo’s slate gray eyes locked onto you, and you turned. “Something the matter?”
Volo was silent for a moment before looking out to the forest. “You’re hearing them, aren’t you?”
You nodded. “Nothing special. Just…them going about their lives, you know?”
“Right…” Volo trailed off, finding something transfixing about the dirt.
You furrowed your brow, looking at Volo with concern. “Is everything okay?”
He didn’t respond right away; for a moment, you worried you’d overstepped some unspoken boundary. Then, finally, he spoke. “Did…my Pokemon ever say anything about me?”
This caught your attention as well as Togekiss’s; the avian Pokemon chirped once, looking at her Trainer with a concerned look that matched your own. You hummed, thinking about it. “Well… I always remember them being very grateful when you made them dinner.”
Volo laughed, the sound a little bitter as it left his lips. “That’s it?”
“I can’t remember right now, I’m sorry,” you replied, suddenly feeling quite sheepish. 
“No, no, it’s alright…” Volo sighed, looking back at you. “I was just curious to know…how they felt about me.”
There was something nervous in his eyes, something desperate. You recognized it from his expression at the temple, when he shouted questions into the silent heavens. This expression wasn’t nearly as intense, but it carried the same undercurrent; Volo wanted to be seen. Recognized.
No, more than that. Volo wanted, desperately, to have someone care about him.
You sat up, looking at Togekiss. “Well, let’s ask, then,” you said simply, drawing Volo’s attention. “Togekiss, how do you feel about Volo?”
Almost immediately, Togekiss launched into an animated spiel about her Trainer, almost too quickly for you to keep up. You were able to catch most things, though; she talked at length about how well Volo cared for her and her teammates, how passionate he was about everything he did, how he spoke, how he walked, everything. Volo gazed at her with wide eyes, darting back to you for interpretation every so often. You did your best to translate everything she said, trying to catch sentence fragments and missed words as much as you could.
Finally, Togekiss tired herself out, and you and she both let out an exhausted sigh. Volo simply stared between the two of you, not saying anything for a long while. Then, finally, he looked at Togekiss with wide, watery eyes.
“You…really think all that?”
Togekiss’s firm nod needed no translation; she nuzzled up against her Trainer with a soft coo. Volo held his Pokemon tightly, and you saw a few tears glistening in the early evening light. You watched the scene with a smile on your face, a warm feeling blossoming in your heart. To use your ability for good like that… It felt fulfilling. Inspiring. Like it was more of a blessing than a curse.
Volo turned back to you, his eyes still glistening with a few unshed tears. “Thank you… I’d been doubting how my Pokemon felt about me recently. I wasn’t sure they actually liked me, or if they wanted to be my allies…” He smiled at Togekiss again, who chirped happily. “Now I know, though.”
You nodded. “I’m happy to help. Besides, seeing you smile like that makes it worth it.”
Volo’s face flushed, and he glanced to the side. “Oh, surely you don’t think that…”
You shook your head. “I’m serious.” And you were; you hadn’t thought about it for a bit, but you’d only ever seen a real, genuine smile from Volo once or twice. Almost everything prior to the temple had been behind a mask, a façade designed to keep you guessing. But this…this was real.
You didn’t think you’d ever tire of it.
Volo gazed up at the sky, one of those rare genuine smiles gracing his lips. The sun had just about set, and the sky seemed to glow with soft purples and blues. “It’s getting late,” he mused. “I should be heading back… And they’ll probably be wondering where you are, too.” 
You nodded, going to stand up before offering a hand. He took it, his grasp firm and his smile one of renewed confidence. You smiled right back at him. “Same time tomorrow?”
Volo nodded firmly, and Togekiss chirped happily.
“Same time tomorrow.”
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