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#trying some angling stuff. i think it came out alright! the seats were kind of a pain bc i dont normally do backgrounds
irritated-empath · 2 months
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this old man is an asshole.
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kk43mi · 9 months
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needy┊kabukimono
PAIRING ┊ kabukimono x f!reader(dom-ish) GENRE ┊smut WC ┊ 1.2k+ WARNINGS ┊ obsessive behavior , somnophilia , clinginess , pussy eating , fingering , blowjob , good boy , lowercase intended!!! SYNOPSIS ┊ the first time you gave a blowjob to kabuki, he became obsessed with the feeling and pleasure. always asking for more and more, at the wrong time and place, outside at the woods? he wanted it. other people were around? he wanted it. you were busy with work? he wanted it. A/N ┊ written by kam , hope you guys enjoy ! been thinking about this for a long while, time to let it out. a little drabble btw!
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the first time you gave a blowjob to kabuki was when he asked about it, he heard about people talking about getting into the act of intimacy and that made him all flustered.
he got all shy and fidgeting with his fingers asking if he could do it too. "n-niwa was talking about doing stuff like...I dont know...like the thing...its embarrassing.."
of course you had to help your poor baby out, guiding him to the bedroom and taking his clothes off for him. he gets all shy saying "do i have to be naked...?" he asks so innocently.
"yes, now relax you wanna do this right?" you would reassure him and he would nod.
moaning and shuddering out of pleasure when your tongue starts kitten licking his tip, making him seeing stars already, hips bucking upwards as his back arch in an impossible angle.
the way his tip was inside your mouth had him whining and whimpering. "a-ah! so-so good..! mgh..mmgnh-!!"
and thats when he lost it as his whole cock was inside your mouth, touching the deep parts of your throat. which makes you gag a couple times, but he holds onto your head for leverage, gripping a handful of your hair, trying to withstand the pleasure.
hes so cute trying to hide his little whines and moans by biting his bottom lips, maybe a little blood trickling down mixed in with his drool.
he came on the spot,since this was his first time initiating in any kind of action, it wasn't surprising. but you swallowed it all, gulping down the white substance. hips shaking, and he let out the most pornographic moan ever.
"that-that felt so good y/n...one more..?" he asks so innocently and you let out a chuckle. "one wasn't enough?" he shakes his head as he pleas for another one.
and from there on, he always asked for you to pleasure him. even when you got back from work he would get up from his seat jumping up to you in thrill. giving you a tight hug and kissing your lips.
"y/n! youre back youre back! can we do it now? pleaseeee? ive been waiting all day..." he would pout.
"eh..but we did it yesterday already-and it was the first time...you got addicted..?" you would laugh it off but he wasnt having it. "noo pleaseeee, i havent released the whole day...need you.." he would say before rubbing himself on you.
"but im worn out...next when im free alright?" you try your best to convince, but all he did was pout and cry.
"dont you love me? cmon ill just do all the work this time!" he whines and you just sigh in defeat.
"alright fine...just only one time." he would nod before dragging you to the bedroom, already taking yours and his clothes off.
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"n-ngh-! ah-fuck.." you moaned out as he ate your pussy out as if he hasn't eaten in years. slurping and licking your folds, sucking on your clit. "so good~ you taste so good..." he would mutter out.
he was always so hungry for your pussy, always chowing down on it as if there was no tomorrow. eating your pussy out as he rubbed his cock against the mattress to get some friction. even if you were begging him to slow down and trying to get away sometimes, he would just pull you back in by the thighs and eat you out.
if you were tired he would just do everything just so he could cum. bottoming out as he inserted his cock inside. makes him whine in pleasure, he couldnt help but move on the spot! thrusting himself at a fast pace while he kissed you with both elbows resting on both sides of your head.
you would whine, telling him to please slow down but he just couldnt! your pussy felt too good, squeezing so tight and good around his cock, you can basically feel him twitching, knowing he was close.
"gonna cum...! cum..cum cum cum!" he said as his thrusts gets sloppier and faster. "ah-wait not inside!" you screamed out but he kept going till he would reach his high. "kabuki!"
he would finally pull out, cumming on your stomach, and even on your face. then you squirting on his cock and stomach as both of the individuals could be heard trying to catch up their breath. but you can feel him sliding his cock on your folds.
"one more..p-please.." he would stuttered before pushing back in which had you arching. already sensitive from the orgasm you had. a long night soon awaited you.
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you loved kabuki, but sometimes he would just annoy you by crying and whining when he didn't get what he wanted. even if you both were shopping for food at the markets, he would get needy, holding onto your arm and already grinding on your thigh.
"'m needy....please..now." you would sigh telling him nows not the time. but he then starts whining, crying which brought attention from other shoppers and it had you embarrassed until you dragged his arm, bringing him to a empty secluded place, behind some strangers house...sure there were other people too but less than the markets.
"god you irritate me so much..." you would say before taking his pants off, then flipping him to the wall, to where his ass stuck out. prodding two fingers around the rim of his ass. he would whimper at the feeling scratching onto the walls of the white concrete.
then finally inserting it inside of him, he would let out a slutty moan, almost loud enough for people to come. thrusting your fingers in and out of him, curling them at the ends, poking at his good spot.
"mmnggh-! nghh ahh~!" kabuki would let out with no shame, not even caring if people heard him, he just felt too good!
"quiet down, or else people will see." he nods and obeys obediently, biting his bottom lip to contain his moans from slipping out. "good boy." you praised him before stroking his cock. and his eyes rolled to the back of his head, moaning and saying incoherent sentences, drooling at the pleasure he was getting.
thrusting your fingers in and stroking his cock was already enough for him to cum on the spot, making a mess on the wall, coated with white sticky cum. leaving him breathing heavily.
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sometimes there would be days where youre too tired to even do anything, denying his requests of doing it so you can get some rest, sure it takes some convincing but then he would just pout and say "fine!" with a needy tone.
but little did you know, he would just wait until you passed out, just so he could take your clothes off and insert in his cock in your hole. thrusting in and out, skin slapping skin, just the feeling of your pussy pulsating around his cock. he always got off to the feeling of it and could cum immediately.
after that you would scold him for creating a mess when you were asleep, always feeling sticky and having to clean up.
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when you guys had your intimate moments, and this time you told him he could cum inside, he couldn't hold in his excitement. saying "r-really?! okay! ill cum inside..." the thought of cumming inside you always excited him.
there when he first came inside he was so addicted to the feeling. after that he just couldnt stop cumming inside you, your pussy felt too good for him to stop, he would go on and on till his cum was basically translucent.
you would have to be the one initiating in aftercare, always so tired whenever he came multiple times...what did he expect. you would clean yourself and him up, then relaxing in a calming silence of cuddling and telling endearments to which kabuki would command.
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requests open!
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twdbegins · 3 years
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Having Sex on a Run with Rick
Rick Grimes x Fem! Reader
Request: Hay, I recently became active on your blog; And I love it so much already!? Your work for Rick? 😤 It’s damn fine! We need more for him,,I was wondering if I could get something for Rick where Reader and him are on a run and Reader feels frisky? Lust comes over the two and they make out, getting each other off? Basically they’re having a quickie on a run? Because the adrenaline is pumping if you get my gist... @positive-squid​
Warnings: Smut. Profanity. Sexual content.
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Rick could tell that something was off with you.
You weren’t acting badly or mean or anything. 
But you seemed...antsy.
At first, he assumed that you were getting a little stir crazy.
Things in Alexandria had been good for a while, and mostly everyone had been sticking around trying to improve camp.
Even though Alexandria was extensive, he could understand how someone could still feel a bit caged in.
So he suggested that you accompany him on a run.
The two of you were close friends, so he didn’t see any issue with it.
He almost felt bad at how excited you got over it.
Rick figured that the group could always use more resources, so he didn’t feel as if this run was just for killing time.
You were bubbly as you slid into the passenger seat, positively stoked to be getting out for a bit.
Rick knew of a few places that needed to be scouted, so at least the two of you could get a day’s work out of this run.
It started as business as usual.
The two of you chatted as you scrounged for food or whatever else you could possibly use.
“Does Carl still need a pair of bigger boots? I think I just found a pair.”
“Sure, thanks. Do you think that Daryl would use this hairbrush?”
“Very funny.”
It was a pretty textbook run. The two of you chatted while you looked for things, throwing anything and everything even semi-useful into your backpacks.
Not to mention...it was brutally hot.
While it was a bit difficult to really ever truly know what day it was...
It was always unmistakable when summer had come back around.
The days were blistering hot and even the evenings were sticky and warm.
Sweat dripped down your back as you navigated the abandoned building that was somehow trapping more heat that you would’ve anticipated.
You had glanced over at Rick at one point to check on him, when you saw that he was having the same problem.
Sweat beaded around his forehead, some of it sliding down his face and neck.
He glistened in the daylight, his hard work being proven through his perspiration.
You couldn’t take your eyes off of him. 
It was the strangest feeling to be so drawn into him.
Sure, you had always found him attractive. It was hard to deny.
But you hadn’t really ever had a chance to just...look at him.
You eyed over his hands and arms as they moved stuff around.
His muscles flexed and relaxed in the most captivating way.
The veins in his hands and forearms were prevalent from both the heat and all the strenuous movement. 
His dark curls were damp with sweat, yet he still looked so clean.
Your sights diverted to his hips, watching the way his legs moved in such a calculated way.
All kinds of dirty thoughts plagued your mind.
The thought of his hands around your throat.
His fingers in your mouth,
His cock buried somewhere deep inside of you.
He looked perfect.
A little too perfect.
It didn’t take him long to catch your stare, a confused smile as a quirked brow appearing on his features.
“Something wrong?”
You snapped out of your trance, embarrassed that he had just caught you staring. 
“Nope!” You had squeaked, “All good here.”
He brushed it off, thinking you were tired from the day’s work.
It wasn’t until you were loading up the vehicle with all of your found resources that he noticed it again.
He noticed the way your eyes followed his every move.
The way you were listening extra closely when he spoke.
Something was on your mind, but he just didn’t expect that he was on your mind.
The two of you climbed into the truck, him in the driver’s seat and you in the passenger’s seat. 
But he didn’t start the truck.
Instead he looked over at you, catching your bashful gaze.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Rick asked, this time a little more determined to figure it out.
You refused to admit to him that you had been pining over him for the last hour and a half.
Deny, deny, deny.
“Oh, I’m fine. I’m just tired.”
Rick wasn’t buying it.
He wasn’t buying that at all.
“You know, if something is bothering you, you can tell me. I don’t want you to be unhappy if it’s something I can fix.”
Oh, it was definitely something he could fix alright.
But still, there was no way that you were telling him that.
“I really am fine, Rick. Honestly.”
He still wasn’t convinced, but he didn’t want to push you.
He started the truck, thinking that he’d get through to you sooner or later.
The ride was quiet, both of you too caught up in your own thoughts to say much of anything. 
You had tried to push your dirty thoughts aside, trying your hardest to control your feelings towards him.
But the way he looked in the late afternoon sun filtering in through the windows, mixed with the way he kept throwing side glances at you...you couldn’t.
“Pull over.”
“What?”
“Pull over, please.”
Rick obliged, worried that something was wrong.
He barely even managed to get the truck in park before you crawled over the center console into his lap.
He didn’t even have time to be stunned, because your lips crashed into his before he could speak.
It surprised you, but Rick didn’t really question it.
He kissed back with the same energy, fiery and passionately desperate.
His hand came to the back of your neck, keeping you close and allowing your lips to hover over his when you pulled back for air.
He could feel the heat pooling between your legs through his pants, and he knew it wasn’t from the summer heat.
“I never knew you felt so strongly about me.” Rick had chuckled, already breathless from the heavy kissing.
He groaned when you dragged your clothed cunt over his thigh while you worked on getting his pants unbuckled.
He caught you in another kiss while you stroked his cock to an erection, his spine shuddering at the feeling of you touching him like this.
You praised yourself for deciding to wear shorts, getting them off with your free hand and with ease.
You knew you had limited space, since you weren’t too keen on doing this outside of the truck.
Not that you minded being in close quarters with Rick.
This was going to be a quick fuck. 
You knew that this was the scratch the itch and the address the tension that had been building for a while.
Rick didn’t seem to mind that.
His fingers dragged through your folds, collecting your arousal as he rubbed the pads of his fingers on your clit.
You moaned at the feeling, the waves of pleasure already beginning and he hadn’t even gotten inside of you yet.
“You were really happy to be with me, huh?” Rick teased, spitting into his hand and lubricating himself just to be sure he didn’t hurt you.
Before you could respond, your hips were lifted by his hands and he slammed you down onto his cock to the point where your hip bones touched his. 
A synchronized moan fell from your and Rick’s mouths, both of your head lulling back in ecstasy.
Rick wasn’t even moving yet and he was already stretching and filling you perfectly.
Suddenly, Rick was taking charge, which only added to your arousal.
He gave you a second to adjust to his size, letting you wriggle in his lap until you found an angle that was comfortable.
His hand tapped the side of your leg, prompting you to start moving.
You rotated between bouncing on his lap and rolling your hips, making sure that the satisfaction went both ways.
It was intoxicatingly perfect.
The way he felt stretching you and hitting every bundle of nerves possible.
The hot kisses and the heavy touches were everything you had ever dreamed of with Rick.
Your bounces were met by his thrusts, hitting your g-spot in the most flawless way.
You knew it wasn’t going to take long to get off. 
This had been building up for far too long for your climax to be drawn out.
“Fuck, you’re perfect. Feel so good.” He babbled, cheeks flushed and pupils blown.
His head was reeling, and he wasn’t sure that he was totally comprehending what was happening right now.
All he knew is that he didn’t want this to be the first and only time.
His cock throbbed inside of you, his own release begging to be spilled out into you.
You felt the twitch, and that in and of itself is what caused your orgasm to break out all over you.
You came with a squeaky moan, your entire body tensing up around him as your head fell to his shoulder and your hands gripped the back of the seat.
He thrusted a couple more times before he came as well, his release spurting into you and milking his cock white as he groaned out your name.
Your bodies went limp, chests heaving with heavy breaths and post-coital sighs.
His hand rubbed up and down your back slowly, his cum leaking out of you and onto his bare thighs.
A few minutes of silence passed before you raised your head.
Your dilated eyes met his, and what you saw was pure lust and content.
Most importantly, you could see the anticipation through his eyes, all the way to his soul.
You weren’t sure why, but something in your gut told you that this wouldn’t be the last time that you fucked Rick Grimes.
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oh-for-fic-sake · 3 years
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Their Alright... For A Boomer
Masterlist
Summary: Being a girl with a larger chest always got you attention, maybe having your nipples pierced to try and fell more confident handt been the best idea, but how can you regret it when your latest client; the sexy Mr Cavill  was ogling them but could this end up being more then just that one time you were eyed by a hot celebrity?
Warnings: Suggestive, No Smut, Fluffy? Cute and funny, Swearing
A/N: this was a request from @fanficlover91​ i hope you like this hun, i tried to keep it hot but sweet and respectful? Which was a struggle but i hope i got the vibe you wanted. And as always i hope you all enjoy.
Taglist: In Reblogs.
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You blushed as you looked down the lense at your model. He smirked sweeping his eyes over you non to subtly. You could feel the blues penetrating you with a hot stare. The was the distinctive fast clicks on you camera snapping a burst of shots managing to capture his smirking face and eyes sweeping over your form appreciatively.
You stood tall and smiled pulling away double checking the shoots. You bit your lip. Fucking hell this was both the best and worst job you had. Henry Cavill was the most enticing male you'd ever had the pleasure to photograph. He didn't even have a good side, every side was good! There wasn't an unflattering angle on the man!
"And that's a wrap? I think we have everything we need Mr Cavill" you said professionally making to move away from him and begin to swap sd cards and label them before packing away. Henry gawfed and rose quickly panicked almost.
"I- err no! Wait I was... Well hoping that I could have some more done?" he said chaseing you across the small studio you could hear his agent Leah scoff from the side lines. You frowned and looked to her nervously. The woman had been watching and tutting, scoffing and clicking her tongue through the whole session. It actually made you nervous, wasn't she pleased with the shoot? You were worried, being freelance this was your first time doing a celebrity shoot for a magazine but the usual photographer was in hospital having a stroke a few days prior and you were the only free photographer in the agency that was close enough to take the job. Sure you wasn't well known but still it was a little disheartening to have someone seemingly unimpressed with your work.
But it was when you eyed her you saw she wasn't giving you the evil eye. Her frown was directed at henry, a scolding look you'd give a misbehaving child. You frowned a little puzzled, but shook it off in favour of looking to Henry. Your actual client.
"More? I... I? Thought the piece only needed a few to choose from? They were very ah... How do I put it? Thorough? With the brief" you explained hoping Leah would step in and clarify just what was going on. Because you didn't have a clue.
"I yes but- I'd love to top up my portfolio? You know? I err yeah have a few changes going on and... I mean a few greys and such... Just want to update it a tad... I'll pay obviously- I'd pay anything for more time please?" he pleaded watching you closely eyes wide and bright full of hope.
"I... Err" you shifted swapping your camera from one hand to the other and craned your head around the man trying to spy his agent. But you had no hope of peeking around this gargantuan man. Just like with the camera he demanded your full attention.
"And for Instagram and stuff! There's only so much I can do in a selfie... I'd even recommend you- advertise your work!" he quickly added sounding desperate now. It would help you out if you did have a few shots of him for in your own catalogue. It shouldn't matter but having a celeb under your belt was actually a good thing. It meant you'd acted professionally and been good to work with.
"I suppose so, I do have a few extra sd's here... Tell you what I'll do another shoot for you as long as I can pick a few to put in my portfolio? Then we both update our files?" you nodded to him speaking slowly. He grinned and relaxed nodding quickly pleased with himself for wrangling more shots. You'd never know he was just glad to has more time with you.
"Oh yes absolutly! That's fine here should we get started now or?" he asked biting his lip trying not to stare at you for too long. But it was hard you were fucking stunning!
"Oh yeah sure iv got time, let me just sort these out and set up, need to switch, you've tired my poor camera" you said with a grin trying to ignore the man as he beamed at you looking excited nodding enthusiastically. You backed up and spun around trying not to blush as you felt henry gazing openly at you.
"Right well if the magazine ones are done I will be off then" Leah called packing up her bag with a small chuckle to herself. You froze and spun quickly seeing her seemingly abandoning you with Henry.
"Wha- oh you don't have to you can stay-" you tried to reason unsure why, I mean who wouldn't want to be alone with this huge glorious man? Maybe you just didn't trust yourself with him? He had been 'making love' to the camera all afternoon. Smouldering bedroom eyes that was making it hard to focus. You had been getting hot under the collar all day as you kidded yourself he was eyeing you, not the camera or would be readers.
It didn't help that you had caught him oogling your breasts earlier. But you wasn't mad, it was your own fault. It was the Hight of summer and you had on a string vest with a thin bra, that you could clearly see your nipple bars through. You didn't feel uncomfortable or anything, you didn't blame Henry for looking. You cant exactly ignore your tits.. The were pretty large for your frame. You were curvy but they were as one ex put it 'exceptional'. And besides he had looked not touched and he hadn't been a creep about it. In fact he had done a double take and then blushed when he realised he had been caught looking. But as you said you get that with big boobs, you'd had it your entire life, it was actually one of the reasons you'd got them pierced. It helped with your confidence and you convince yourself that they were looking at the bars. Not you per say.  
"Okay aunt Leah I will see you in a few days." henry interrupted you quickly smiling practically ushering the woman out the door. He moved fast ever picking the womans phone and juice bottle to help her leave quicker.
"Yes, behave Henry I'll see you soon" she said with a giggle before calling a thank you and goodbye over her shoulder at you. You swallowed nervously and gave a quick bye as the door clicked behind her and you were left alone with Henry. The man groaned stretching as he spun around a huge grin on his face, making your knees tremble a little. Fuck.
Henry came over and watched you closely as you scribbled the name and date along with the publication name on the sd case label. You tried not to notice as he hovered biting his lip then took off the blazer and threw it on the table beside you drawing your attention as he did grunting a little. The v neck letting the smallest amount of soft looking chest fuzz that had been teasing you all day. He grinned slyly as he caught you eyeing him and crossed his arms over his chest flexing for your benefit. You gasped and quickly looked back to the camera in your hands inserting a new scarf into the new fully charges camera.
"Soo how do you like this kind of work?" henry said casually trying not to seem like a creeper but god damnit he couldn't stop eyeing you. If he had known how sexy you'd be he would have demanded to be doing a bloody swim wear shoot!
"You mean people?" you stuttered trying not to look him in the eye. Not that it helped because the rest of him was just as fucking sexy! You quivered all over desperately trying to remember how to breath, yet didn't want to draw in too deep a breath and make your tits bounce for him and look like a slut. There was a very fine line for a big busted girl, to much wobble will make you look like your trying to get attention.
"I mean celebrities, magazines we were told you mainly do private shoots for events and model portfolios" he offered leaning forward as he leant back on the desk next to you hooking one ankle behind the other. The way he stood placed his crotch in your line of sight as you looked down and worked on setting up the camera. You flushed. Oh god he looked er... Bigger then you'd thought earlier, not that you were looking but... Well you couldn't help notice the package! The man was a fucking serial man spreader! And that thing was huge! With the muscles he was packing he could probably bench press you with his crotch!
"Oh well its different... And you sir popped my celebrity cherry" you froze on the spot as you said that, it had meant to be an ice breaker, a joke but instead had sounded fucking creepy!. You snapped up to him making to apologize as your face flamed mortified but he had thrown his head back laughing. The deep rumble sent chilled down your spine.
"Well I'm honoured to have popped your cherry~" he teased placing a hand over his heart with a cheeky grin making you blush and nod then turned to him with the new camera all set up.
"Soo where do we start?" you said moving on quickly looking up at him trying to forget the whole cherry comment.
"Where ever you want me, i will let you take the reigns command me as you will" he chuckled standing tall once more and looked about the room casually to the various small set ups, different furniture, seats sofas and mini tables dotting the space.
"I... Okay then you said Instagram? How about we start with some facials-FACE SHOTS! Face. Shots. Not facials fuck. Shit" you quickly tried repairing the damage whist cursing yourself wanting nothing more then to be swallowed up by the floor.
"No, no love facials sounded perfect~" he said winking before gliding past you making you stutter and almost choke on your breath. Oh good lord this was a bad idea. You followed as he sat down on a sturdy sofa and looked head on at you and bit his lip once again watching you with a sultry look.
And that was the beginning. You followed him about taking various snaps whislt having small talk. He seemed to be very flirtatious as he spoke, dropping lines and compliments as he made eyes at you. You flushed each time clamming up at his suggestive comments. And rightly or wrongly you flirted back trying to seem cool and suave. But inside you were fangirling unable to belive you were here with this incredibly gorgeous man teasing one another. On a few occasions he even growled as you scampered about him, crouching and taking shots from blow getting some delicious angles that dampened your knickers. Then in between all this he managed to get little tied bits. You'd told him you were on agency freelance and were trying to get into the social media platform as it seemed easier in this day and age rather then to be in fashion photography. You wanted to be commercial not private but no one would really take a chance anymore.
Then you suggested a few shots on the sofa laying back trying to think of something different for your portfolio, maybe a body length shot. He was quick to agree and dived onto the sofa saying he had an idea you swallowed nodding not fully trusting the look in his eyes. But that was forgotten as he relaxed stretching out over the sofa legs crossed and resting on the arm of his hands behind his head and a devilish smirk looking down the lenght of his body. You knelt at his feet trying to get a flattering image of him looking down but cursed as the camera wasn't playing ball. The lense was focusing, this was why you used the other one first, the camera had a few issues and was temperamental.
"What's wrong?" he asked frowning a little at you as you growled pulling the camera away fro your face and began trying to manually focus the lense.
"Oh its.. It wont focus.. It does this sometime, really need to throw it out but.. She was my first I'm sentimental" you said feeling silly as you battled with the camera.
"We all are with our firsts... How about you come closer instead, I really want to see this shot, never done one at this angle.. Out of all my shoots your the first to suggest this~" you froze and looked to him but he just smiled impishly at you. Slowly you rounded the sofa and leant over him positioning the camera at his stomach as he looked right into the lense giving you a definite bedroom eyes, half lidded and burning. Both dreamy and amazingly sexy. It was as if he could see you beyond the lense, as if it wasn't even there!
"You can come closer love, I wont bite, not if you don't want me to~" his voice was low and teasing, luring you in like a siren. You trembled and moved along him but he tutted and moved a hand to your hip and pressed, coaxing you onto the sofa and sat you on him making you straddle him. You gasped squeazing your camera tighter as he moved you easily, warm palms holding you both delicatly and firmly. You could see in his eyes he was weary unsure if he had gone to far but you squeezed him between your thighs and relaxed making him grin up at you getting the message you didn't mind at all. You aimed the lense at him once more and got the shots you wanted.
"Perfect! Mr Cavill" you said actually a little sad that this session was over. It had been nice playing this little cat and mouse game with him. But all good things come to an end.
"Ah now i have a policy love, when a womans on top they can call me henry, among other things~" he said smoothly laughing as you chuckled nervously fiddling with the camera in your hands and shifted over him a little.
"I will try to remember that for next time boomer~" you teased managing to overcome your nerves as you pulled away the camera with a giggle winking at him as he stuttered. For a second you thought you'd gone too far but a quirk to his lips made you relax once more.
"That hurt, that was hurtful" he teased pouting not releasing you from his lap, instead holding you tighter, fingers digging into your sides making you gasp and bit your lip as he pulled you to his crotch and ground into you teasingly.
"I'm so sorry~" you uttered breathless trying to keep yourself together. But this man was something else, like a drug- the devil all fanged smiles and smooth words. God you were fucked, you knew this man could do anything to you and youd thank him for it~
"I doubt that" he cooed and slid his hand higher growing more and more confident. The last few hours of casual flirting had built up his appitite. There was no misconceptions, you wanted him as much as he wanted you.
"Oh yeah?" you said coyly tipping your head to him playing along willing for this to happen, whether it be a one of fuck or something longer. You didnt have any complaints~ this was your body and youd enjoy it with who ever you wanted to!
"Yeah prove it!" he hissed and moved quickly sitting up and swinging around planting his feet on the floor. You yelped as he moved surprizingly fast and managed to keep you in his lap now face to face with you eyes roaming your face settling on your lips.
"And how should i do that" you teased tilting your head skimming your lips with his as you spoke. He groaned and held you tighter making you whine breathlessly willing this to happen. You wanted him and you wont deny yourself the chance.
"Make and old mans day" he said plainly and leant back resting on the back of the sofa, you watched him closely and brought your hands to his shoulders prodding at the neck of the t shirt and drew your fingers down slowly feeling him shiver at the light skimming fingertips.
"Oh really Boomer? And how would i make and old mans day?" you teased once more making him grunt but he quickly caught himself as your fingers smoothed over the teasing curls that peeked over his top. You scratched over them lightly with your nails making him draw a needy breath and chuckled at him. He was sexy and cute~
"By accepting a job offer?" he said before smileing smugly as you paused and frowned. Had you missed something? Was he after a freebee?
"Job offer? Really another shoot?" you snorted suddenly not feeling sexy, more like he was trying to butter you up for some fuck for parts shoots or something. He sighed and began speaking before you could get yourself all twisted. But then again you could have taken his offer wrong.
"Manage my social media. I have many companies and brands reach out to me for endorsements. They want me caught wearing their brands. But I'm to busy most of the time I cant make it to the locations they want. It actually doesn't seem worth it most of the time, with cost of flights and time lost travelling to and from studios itd be easier if I had my own personal photographer that travelled with me its be easy, slip on the clothes and what not take a few snaps and then you touch them up and post them on my social media." he explained watching as it sunk in that he wasnt trying to pull a fast one. Well he was but not trying to fuck you over... Just fuck you... And keep you because you were fantastic and he wants nothing more then to have you around hime as much as possible. In the single dat he had spent working with you, you had enchanted him, not only were you sexy but you were good at your job and easy to work with but also funny and cute and he needed to get to know you.
"Of course its a very big venture and we'd have to have a few dinner and lunch dates to work out all the nitty gritty" he added after a few beats of silence trying to make it clear he was interested... Very interested~ it worked as you fluched and a playfull look donned your face your fingers began stoking his chest hair once more. He relaxed shuddering under the nails as they teased his curls.
"Is this a big ploy to get a date Boomer?" you purred his new nick name making him groan when you squeezed him between your thick thighs once more grinding on him and the considerable bulge below you that twitched.
"No... Maybe is it working?" he said quickly hissing at you shifted in his lap once more, his hands snapping to your hips trying to still you before he came undone in his boxers. You were a very dangerous woman and something told him you knew.
"Well it sounds like an offer I'd be very, very interested in taking further~" you clarified giggling when he swallowed dryly and eyed you surprized that his plan had seemed  to work.
"Good to hear~ so got anything planned after this?" he asked feeling a wave of confidence at the prospect of snagging a date with you. He hadn't meant to sound so eager but... He was eager and that was that.
"Yes" you said with a straight face and got up off of him spinning around heading to the table with your camera bags. You gave him a glance and giggled seeing him still sitting there gobsmacked legs wide open and his crotch that was now definitely bigger then it had been earlier.
"O-oh" he stuttered seemingly unsure how to proceed. You giggled as he fumbled over his words. Then decided to grant him some mercy and began speaking whilst popping out the sd card from the camera labeling it like the previous one.
"You see I had a very cheeky client today who asked for a shoot last mineut. But I wasn't to bothered he was very very sexy even if he was a boomer, but get this out of nowhere gave me a job offer? And we're having dinner- he promised pizza~" you giggled glancing at Henry as he slumped in the seat realising halfway through that you were talking about him. He smoothed his hands over his face and jumped up coming over to you shaking his head.
"You know I'm not actually a boomer?" he quipped folding his arms. You rolled your eyes at him as you packed your stuff away making sure to recheck everything.
"Have you seen your selfies? Your a boomer, boomer" you teased making him scoff but laugh at the name that has now stuck.
"Wait you've seen my selfies? What do you think?" he asked wanting feedback on the silly shots he took. You paused halfway through zipping up your bag and turned facing him fully giving him a thoughtful look then shrugged
"Their alright... For a boomer" you giggled when he preened for a second then his face dropped into a pout when you finished the comment.
"I repeat...That was hurtful" he said covering his heart with a kicked puppy look making you laugh and hoist your bags over your shoulder and make for the door with him hot on your heels.
"Its fine boomer a second date will make up for it I'm sure~" you sniggered at him playfully looking back at him as he followed you out of the door.
"A date for each time you call me boomer? Deal" he quipped walking along side you offering you his arm like a true gentleman unlike the teasing horny little shit he had been all day. Not that you minded either. Gentleman on the streets, freak in the sheets and all that jazz.
"God we may aswell marry now then boomer" he laughed nodding in agreement the banter from the day still in play as you both left the building.
"Seems so, I mean were at ten that's what the kids consider boyfriend girlfreind territory" he anounced with a sigh playing on the 'boomer' joke making you giggle and roll your eyes as he mentioned the tally. Then you frowned and quickly counted your 'boomers' and opened your mouth you correct him, arguing that ten was incorrect.
"I think its nine boomer- ah see what you did their sneaky boomer!" you cried pushing him playfully at his little trick. He roared with laughter and quickly tangled his fingers with yours dragging you back alongside him guiding you down the street towards a place he knew served pizza, he didn't remember but apparantly he promised pizza...
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spacexcowgirl · 3 years
Text
I Think He Knows - F.W.
Fred Weasley x Reader
Summary: Y/N gets drunk, and decides there's no better time to tell her boyfriend she loves him than the present.
Word Count: 3.9k
Warnings: Alcohol usage/intoxication!! There’s a make out scene. Also food. Otherwise mainly just fluff!
A/N: This is my first fic I’ve ever posted on here and the inspiration for it was born out of a drunken anon ask to @lumosandnoxwriting​ sooo here it is. I’ll probably end up writing another part about the next day and them recouping, but who knows. Totally open to any critiques/criticism/help anyone has to offer! Pictures are taken from Pinterest.
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The flashing lights were bright and the music far too loud, but you didn’t care. You had liquid courage flowing through your veins and it was making it increasingly easier to lose yourself on the dance floor. Typically, you weren’t much of a dancer, but several shots of some pink liquid you had forgotten the name of had you abandoning all traces of your usual self. You swayed your hips to the rhythm of a song you didn’t know, giggling every time you made eye contact with Alicia or Angelina.
As the song playing came to an end, you gripped your best friends’ forearms and dragged them from the dance floor before another could start. You briefly heard their groans of protests but couldn’t find it in yourself to care.
“I want another drink!” You shouted over the music, pulling them towards the bar.
“We don’t need another.” Alicia pointed out, but she was now following you on her own accord, which told you she wouldn’t be protesting too much.
At the bar, you ordered another round of shots for the three of you—asking specifically for ‘whatever the pink one is called.’ The three of you clinked the small glasses together before raising them to your lips and throwing your heads back, allowing the liquid to leave a burning trail down your throat. 
“I’m going to call him.” You announced brightly, slamming your glass down on the bar.
“Y/N, we talked about this!” Angelina whined. “Tonight is supposed to be girl’s night. Plus, Fred’s out with his friends. You should give him his space.”
“Oh please, you act like that boy wouldn’t drop everything to rush over here and be with her.” Alicia rolled her eyes lightly, a knowing smile lighting up her face.
Her words caused you to blush furiously, which you attempted to hide by sliding your cellphone out of your back pocket and bringing it to your face. The screen was too bright, but as you fumbled around with trying to turn it down, you came to realize just how drunk you really were. You quickly gave up on trying to turn down the brightness and instead opened up the call app, clicking at the button that read ‘Recents’ before tapping the name right at the top. You barely registered Angelina’s disappointed groan as you brought the phone to your ear.
“Hello?” 
“Freddie!” You called out, a sweet giggle leaving your lips. You were filled with the most wonderful elation at speaking to your boyfriend, sending a flutter of butterflies alive through your stomach.
“Oh, hello, Y/N.” The voice chuckled. “This isn’t—”
“Where are you?” You interrupted him, rocking slightly on your heels. Angelina was people watching those out on the dance floor, while Alicia had taken up flirting with some bloke next to her.
“We’re still at Lee’s flat.” There was a pause, then he continued. “Y/N, this is George you called. How drunk are you?”
“I don’t think I’m that drunk. Let me ask Angie.” You paused, putting the phone on speaker so your friend could answer for you. “Ang, how drunk am I?”
“Very.” Angelina answered over the music, earning a laugh from George on the other end of the line. “’s that George? Lemme talk to him.”
Angelina took the phone from your hand, ignoring your pout as she did so, and switched it off of speaker mode. At first, you had tried to listen in on the conversation she was having with George, but you quickly got distracted. You hoisted yourself up into one of the bar seats, kicking your legs back and forth as you gazed around. After a few minutes, you were pulled from your drunken thoughts when Angelina nudged you with your phone.
“He hung up?” You pouted as you looked at the black screen. “Are they coming here?”
“No, they’re staying at Lee’s.” Angelina shook her head. “But they said they’d meet us back at your flat when we leave here.”
“Well, let’s go!” You quickly went to jump down from the stool, only for Angelina to place her hands on your shoulders and hold you in place.
“Uh uh, we’re gonna let you sober up a bit first.” She shook her head. “Don’t want you doing something you’ll regret tomorrow.”
“Especially when we know you’ll blame us.” Alicia now joined in, evidently blowing off the guy she had been flirting with only moments before.
Perhaps if you were even a little less drunk, you would have been annoyed by their statements. But currently, you were in a state of almost childlike happiness and wonder. You couldn’t help but let your mind wander to thoughts of your boyfriend, causing a cheesy grin to rise to your face. The past 6 months together had been some of the best of your life, and you often found yourself wondering why you two hadn’t gotten together sooner. You had always been friends during your Hogwarts years, but neither of you ever attempted to take that next step in your relationship until years after graduation. Now, you couldn’t be more thankful with the change.
“I’m going to tell him I love him.” You declared, saying the words out loud as more of a way to convince yourself than to inform them.
“What?” Alicia sputtered, shooting a worried glance to Angelina. “You mean, tonight?”
“I don’t see why not.” You shrugged. “I mean, I do love him. Why shouldn’t I tell him?”
“Y/N/N, don’t you think maybe you should wait until you’re sober?” Angelina looked at you hesitantly. “I mean, that’s kind of a big step.”
“You guys don’t get it,” You sighed, crossing your arms over your chest like a child being scolded. In your drunken mind, you knew that they would never understand the ins and outs of your relationship with Fred. The two of you had never put pressure on things that others deemed ‘the big stuff.’ Everything always had just come so naturally between you two, and you were convinced this should be no different. A small voice in the back of your head told you that the sober version of you would disagree, but you pushed it away. Your decision was made.
“This is like, exactly what we mean by you doing something you’ll regret and blaming us.” Alicia sighed. “So, you better not be mad at us tomorrow.”
“I won’t be, promise.” You affirmed. 
How could this possibly go wrong?
About an hour later, Angelina and Alicia had enough of the club environment and had decided you were sober enough that they could safely walk you back to your flat. The three of you gathered your things and your excitement bubbled inside of you at the prospect of finally getting to see Fred. You nearly skipped out of the club, Alicia and Angelina trailing close behind you, and into the cool night air. Almost immediately, your eyes were drawn to two heads of red hair, backs to you, talking at the edge of the sidewalk. Although they were nearly identical, there was something about one of their postures and energy, and you just knew that it was Fred. Before Angelina or Alicia could stop you, you were running and jumping on your boyfriend’s back, nearly sending him tumbling over.
“Freddie!” You squealed, attaching your arms firmly around his middle as your feet replanted on the ground. He swiveled in your hold, a bout of laughter leaving his lips, as he took in your presence.
“’s good to see you too, love.” He slurred, bending down at a slightly awkward angle to pepper your face with kisses. You giggled at the tickling feeling his lips left behind.
“Thought we were meeting you guys back at her flat?” Angelina questioned as she approached the three of you.
“That was the plan, but Freddie here has had one too many glasses of firewhisky and decided he couldn’t wait that long.” George rolled his eyes. “Said he’d go with or without me to find you guys, so we’ve just been waiting out here.”
“Great, so they’re both drunk off their asses.” Alicia feigned annoyance, but the small smile on her face as she gazed at her two friends public displays of affection showed that she wasn’t truly bothered.
“Alright, love birds, it’s bloody freezing out.” George clapped a hand down on Fred’s shoulder, pulling the older twin’s attention away from you for the first time. “Let’s get going, yeah?”
Fred nodded and held out his hand for you to take, which you happily accepted. The two of you lead the others, swinging your hands between you as you walked down the sidewalk. The entire time, you whispered and giggled back and forth, finding anything and everything to be the funniest thing you ever heard.
“Your hand is so tiny.” Fred giggled, halting your swinging motion to bring your interlaced fingers up and examine them. 
“Is not.” You pouted. You attempted to pull your hand from his, but his grip on you was firm. He used your conjoined hands to pull you closer to him, causing you to stumble slightly, which of course resulted in both of you giggling even more. Fred placed a kiss on each of your knuckles before letting both of your hands fall comfortably between you again.
“It is, but it’s cute.” He looked down at you dreamily, as if you were the most perfect thing he had ever laid his eyes on. In an instant, all of his drunk giddiness seemed to fade and he became uncharacteristically serious. “How did I get so lucky?”
“Hm.” You pretended to ponder the question, bringing your free hand up to tap your chin. “Dunno. I still think you must have me under some spell or potion.”
“Oh, right, how could I forget?” He grinned. “That reminds me, I’ve gotta make another batch of love potion before this one wears off and you leave me.”
“Wouldn’t want that, would we?” You teased back, knocking your shoulder into his.
“Never.” And you could tell, he was serious.
Up ahead you could see the familiar outline of your building. You hadn’t realized just how tired your feet were from walking in your heels, and you longed for nothing more than to slip them off and lie in Fred’s arms for the rest of the night. Nerves began to bubble in your stomach the closer you got, because you knew that meant you were just another step closer to finally telling him. While you hadn’t faltered in your decision, as you began to sober up slightly, you couldn’t help but be anxious for how he would respond. 
“Do we need to help you two get in?” George questioned once you finally were outside your building.
“We’ll be okay.” Fred shook his head. You cuddled into his side for warmth, causing him to raise your entangled hands and wrap his arm around your shoulder. He pressed a kiss to the side of your head, causing a dopey smile to rise onto your face.
“You’re sure?” Angelina looked between the two of you with raised brows. In response, you simply nodded. “Okay, well, call me tomorrow, alright?”
Both Alicia and Angelina sent you one last glance, one that you knew communicated how they didn’t encourage what you had told them earlier, before they all nodded and offered goodbyes, carrying on their way. Fred untangled your hands and removed his arm from your shoulder to open the door, dramatically bowing forward and extending an arm to allow you to enter first.
“After you, m’lady.”
You giggled loudly at his antics, skipping into the building and beginning towards the stairs. Fred  was hot on your heels, causing you to quicken your pace and run ahead of him, his laughter ringing out behind you as he tried to catch up to you.  Just as you turned on the first landing to continue up the steps, Fred’s hands caught your waist and began ticking your sides, causing your laughter to increase. You did your best to wriggle out of his grasp, which was much easier to do in his drunken state, and continued up the steps. Once on your floor, you quickly turned the corner and found the way to your flat, fumbling with your keys to get in before Fred caught up.
Unfortunately for you, you couldn’t seem to find the right key let alone slide it in to unlock the door, so Fred was able to catch up as you fumbled. You forgot your efforts and instead turned around and blocked the door, a drunken smirk on your face as you gazed up at your boyfriend.
“Sorry, you’re not allowed in.” You teased, crossing your arms over your chest.
“You’re really going to leave your sweet, loving boyfriend out in the hall, after he went out of his way to safely walk you back from the club?” 
“Mhm.” You nodded. “That is, unless you can tell me the password.”
Fred pretended to think for a moment, before he swooped his head down and pressed your lips together in a kiss. It was clumsy, both of your mouths seeming just a bit off center, but it was clear that neither of you cared. You tangled your arms around his neck, pulling him as close as possible, as he pressed your back against the door. He pulled back first, leaving you in lovesick bliss.
“Did you kiss the fat lady like that every time you forgot the password?” You teased once you were able to find your voice.
“Only sometimes.” Fred teased back.
You rolled your eyes playfully before unwinding your hands from behind his head and finally, successfully unlocking your front door. You pulled Fred into the flat by his collar, dragging him all the way to your living room before dropping down onto the couch and shuffling to let him cuddle up behind you. 
For a few moments, you both laid tangled in each other’s arms, listening to nothing but his heartbeat. The sound was rhythmic, and you knew if you didn’t speak up soon you’d fall asleep any minute. But, you weren’t ready to fall asleep yet. You wanted to stay up, to talk to him, to tell him exactly what was on your mind. So, you shifted awkwardly and held yourself up on your forearms to gaze at him.
“‘m hungry.” You declared, your bottom lip jutting out into a pout as you put on your best puppy dog eyes.
“’s too late to order something.” Fred sighed. “Lemme go look at what you have in your fridge.”
You sat up to let him get up, resisting the urge to sigh at his absence. From the kitchen, you could hear the familiar clatter as he riffled through your pots and pans and opened and closed various cupboards. Somehow the sound was like the sweetest melody. It was like a soundtrack of pure bliss, a reminder that he was there, with you, and that you were happy. In the simplest terms.
You shifted to lay down on your back and stare up at your ceiling, breathing in what you could only describe as domestic bliss. You were so wrapped up in your thoughts that you didn’t even hear him re-enter the room, your focus only being drawn away when the couch shifted from his weight. He lifted your legs to rest in his lap, his hand lightly rubbing up and down your ankle at a soothing rhythm.
“Got a quesadilla cooking.” He declared, his eyes tracing up and down your figure as you moved to sit up and look at him.
“Couldn’t stay away from me long enough to watch it?” You teased lightly.
“Can you blame me?” Fred grinned at you, giving your ankle a light squeeze.
You giggled at the contact before sitting up further, swinging your legs around to straddle his waist. You let your arms rest around his neck, a dopey smile on your face as you fiddled with the short hairs there. Fred leaned forward and nuzzled his nose against yours, causing you both to giggle further. 
“You’re my favorite person in the world, you know that?” Fred breathed out, bringing your foreheads to rest together. 
His words caused the familiar butterflies to erupt in your stomach, your smile widening even further. Some part of you knew this would be the perfect moment to tell him exactly how you felt. To tell him that your days are just a bit darker when he’s not around, and how he can make you laugh even when you want nothing more than to cry. You wanted to tell him how whenever he was gone on business trips, you could only fall asleep if you were wearing one of the old t-shirts he had left at your flat, or how you always seem to find something that made you think of him no matter where you were. But, your drunken brain was far from articulate, and your nerves seemed to have a firm grasp on your tongue, so instead, you simply pressed your lips to his.
Fred kissed you back passionately, and it was clear that neither of you minded that both of your mouths held the aftertastes of different alcohols. His lip glided along your bottom lip as his hands found your hips, steadying your movements. When you knocked your teeth together in the drunken kiss, you both pulled back for a moment to giggle, before the passion resumed.
Things seemed to carry on like that for several minutes, wanting nothing more than to be close to one another in every way possible, to be tangled up in anyway that you could, but having to pause every little bit to let out drunken giggles at the situation. You were certain no one had ever gotten you the way Fred Weasley got you, that no one could make you feel so comfortable, and that you were irrevocably in love with him.
Your sweet moment together was brought to a halt by the sound of a loud screeching coming from the kitchen. It took a moment for your brain to recognize it as the sound of your smoke alarm, but once it did you both were to your feet and rushing into the kitchen. Fred cursed under his breath at the clouds of smoke rising from the skillet and quickly set to turn off the burner. You grabbed a drying towel from the counter and began to wave it by the alarm, attempting to cease the godawful beeping it was letting out. After a few minutes, the sound did cease and the smoke cleared, allowing you to breathe a sigh of relief.
“It’s burnt.” Fred pouted, lifting the skillet to show you the blackened quesadilla. 
You weren’t sure if it was the childlike expression on his face or the fact that you both had entirely forgotten about it in the first place, but you couldn’t help but erupt into a fit of laughter. Fred looked at you for a moment as if he were offended by your giggling, before turning his attention the burnt quesadilla, then back to you, and beginning to laugh as well. It was all so absurd and truthfully far from funny, but in that moment, nothing could make you laugh harder.
Fred slid the quesadilla in the garbage before placing the skillet in the sink, resigning to washing it later. In the meantime, you had grabbed the bag of shredded cheese and hoisted yourself up on the counter, swinging your legs as you scooped out a handful of the cheese and began to eat it.
Fred turned and smiled fondly at your actions, crossing the kitchen to settle himself between your legs. He opened his mouth and you wordlessly registered what he was requesting, leaning forward to drop some of the cheese into his mouth. Both of you continued to giggle lightly, feeling nothing but elation as you remained in each other’s presence. 
You raised your hand to offer Fred a bit more of the cheese, smiling warmly when he opened his mouth to accept some. The two of you weren’t as in sync as you might normally be, considering your varying levels of intoxication, and as you dropped some of the cheese onto his tongue you were too slow to remove your hand and he was too quick to bite down, causing him to nip your finger lightly.
You pulled your hand back hastily and Fred’s eyes widened as if he had just mortally wounded you. He swallowed the remaining cheese in his mouth before speaking up, taking your hand in his to examine it.
“Did I hurt you? Are you okay? Merlin, I am so sorry. Are you bleeding? You must be bleeding.”
You weren’t. 
His rambling and concern for you caused you to tilt your head back and let out a loud bout of laughter. 
“‘m fine, Freddie.” You assured, leaning forward to press your lips to his and squash his worries. 
Fred brought your hand to his mouth and pressed a soft kiss to the finger he had just bit, nodding to himself after as if to convince himself that now you were fine. Truly, it was just about the cutest thing you had ever seen.
You spent the next few moments polishing off the bag of shredded cheese, Fred abundantly more careful not to nip your fingers anymore. You chatted lightly, talking about every drunk thing that crossed your mind. Once the cheese was gone Fred poured the both of you a glass of water, sloshing it around slightly as he tried to balance them both in one hand and extend the other to you. You hopped down from the counter and accepted his hand, allowing him to guide you back to your bedroom. He spilled nearly half of each water on the way, mostly on himself, but neither of you could find it in you to care. 
Once inside, you threw yourself down into the center of your bed, extending your hands out in a grabbing motion as Fred set the glasses on your nightstand. Neither of you could be bothered to change into pajamas, so you settled by kicking off your shoes and doing your best to get comfortable in the dress you sported. 
Fred kicked off his shoes as well before crawling over to you and collapsing nearly entirely on you. He laid on his stomach and wound his arms around your waist, his head finding the crook of your neck and pressing a few soft kisses there. You wound your arms around his neck, your legs tangling together. Truthfully, it wasn’t exactly comfortable, but you had him close, and that was all that mattered.
You listened to the sound of his breathing as he slowly drifted off to sleep. Your mind was screaming at you to say the words that had been plaguing you almost all night, before it was too late. Now was your chance.
But, then, you noticed that Fred’s breathing had shallowed significantly and light snores had begun to leave his lips. You breathed out a sigh of disappointment from missing your opportunity, mentally cursing yourself and your nerves.
As if the sleeping boy in your arms could read your thoughts, his grip around you tightened, holding onto you as if his life depended on it. The small action brought a smile to your lips as your eyes fluttered shut.
Perhaps you could wait to tell him that you loved him until the morning. Besides, some part of you was aware that he already knew.
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blackcherrykiss · 3 years
Text
BLOOD BOUNDARIES - Enhypen OT7 Fanfic (ch.4)
[CH.1] [CH.2] [CH.3]  previous chapters
[CH.5] next chapter (NOW AVAILABLE!)
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genre: vampire au, romance, drama, mystery, thriller
note: written inspired by enhypen's storyline, given-taken lyrics & teasers. please keep in mind all members are apart of this fanfic and the main theme is mystery/drama!
...
"Y/N?" Jungwon blinks between wide stares.
You immediately move off of Jaeyun, pushing him aside in a race toward Jungwon, "I was just about to head to the dining hall... I just happened to stumble into Jaeyun..." You lie to upsell the situation. You were actually relieved to see Jungwon, feeling somewhat safer now that he was around
"Are you alright?" He tilted your head in every direction, scanning every angle of your profile up and down.
"Why wouldn't I be...?" You grab ahold of his ice-cold hands and pull them away from your face, "It's not like I got in some fistfight with him. I'm just really hungry right now so don't stop me unless you're coming with me." You whine, glancing back to where Jaeyun stood, seeing nothing but an empty space.
"My class isn't even over, I just went to go to the bathroom." He stretched a hand up to hook onto the nape of his neck, "Just go eat, I'll catch up to you later."
I
You're checking every other person who enters the dining hall, impatient to see Jungwon as you eat quietly. You only see your roommates enter the hall, approaching your table after picking up some food along the way.
"Y/N! Where did you eat this morning? We saw you go off to some boy. Do you have some secret relationship?" Your roommate Dahee gushes, interrupting your bird watching.
"No? I didn't even get to eat breakfast. I had some business with Jungwon." You say, hoping to clean up the painted picture she must've had. You turn to look at her, seeing your two other roommates in the distance; Hyesun and Nana.
"Oh, that was Jungwon?  We couldn't see his face from where we were." She tapped on the bottom of her chin to think, "Jungwon huh? You should be careful with him, he's getting really popular amongst the lower classman." She said as both Hyesun and Nana sat down with their steel trays that clung against the table.
"Yeah, I noticed that too... Wonder why." You tilted your head from side to side, trying to come up with any logical explanation. It's obvious Jungwon was visually attractive but if that was the reason, wouldn't he have been popular a long time ago?
"Probably because he's recently been seen with those guys." Nana side-eyed to her left, signalling all of you to turn your heads and focus on exactly who you were expecting; Jaeyun, Heeseung and Kim Sunoo.
Immediately you looked away from the table full of boys, trying to make zero eye contact with any of them. "But Jungwon has always been associated with them? Right?" You second guess yourself.
"Has he? I've only seen him hang around with them recently..." Nana looks at you with a funny remark.
"But Jungwon told me they're roommates, so I'm sure they were close from long ago." You chuckle in confusion.
"Wait what? Jungwon is roommates with Heeseung? But you can only be roommates with people in the same year as you." Nana pinches at the bottom of her lips, "That's very interesting," She scoffed in amusement as she pieced the puzzle pieces together for you. "I don't know what kind of person Jungwon is but he must be lying to you. Heeseung is a senior, Jungwon is a freshman."
You could only ask yourself how and why Jungwon was truly associated with those boys, was it that complicated that he needed to lie about it? Combing your fingers through the roots of your hair, you bury your head tightly into your arms in an attempt to shut your thoughts off.
Nana sighed in pity while wrapping her arm around you, "I never trusted those pretty boys and the people involved with them anyways. They've got some dirty secret, I just know it."
You think about what Nana had just said, trying to comprehend the scenario in your head full of mush. "I think I need to ask Jungwon about this... He's been keeping so many things from me, I'm gonna go look for him and sort things out. I'll explain what's going on later with you guys." You excuse yourself from the table, straightening out your skirt as you stood.
II
You strut across the dim corridors towards the hushed library at the very end of the passage. You usually found Jungwon in the library if he wasn't with friends, reading all alone at the same table between the shelves where he wasn't visible to the naked eye. You stand tall as you peer through the glass window and into the seemingly soulless library. Creeping through the wide-open doors, you squeeze yourself along the narrow shelves in search of Jungwon before you hear a quarrel.
"Not right now Sunghoon! I have a volleyball practice meet right now!" You recognize the voice that shouts in a whisper. You instantly duck your head down, peaking through the crevices of the thick wood bookshelves, letting your eyes adjust to see through the thin space.
"But I need it. I need you." You see Sunghoon tug Kyungeun closer. You began to blush a bit at the cheesy line. So this is the guy who gave her a hickey? Could this be her boyfriend?
Whatever you had walked into, it was dramatic and probably something you should have been listening to. Your thoughts continue to switch between whether or not to turn back around to leave the two "lovebirds" alone or stay until they left.
"Sunghoon, was yesterday not enough?" Kyungeun huffed, shaking off his grip. "I thought we agreed this can't be happening during school." Kyungeun controlled her volume.
"But I'm telling you that I'm impatient right now!" Sunghoon rubbed his forehead in annoyance as you reverse your steps back out of the entrance of the library. Trying your very best not a single step or trace of you was seen.
"Sunghoon I have a practice in a few minutes! What if you get caught?!" She repeated this time louder, making you feel awful for listening to their argument.
Running out the last few steps away from the door, you finally breathe normally, exhaling properly after sneaking out so quietly. Still amazed by the fact Kyungeun was seeing Sunghoon you look up to see Jaeyun leaned up against the wall right beside the window of the library. Before you gasp, you cover your mouth in terror. You blink in disbelief as you pull Jaeyun to a safer spot in the hallway, away from the crime scene so that Sunghoon and Kyungeun couldn't suspect what you both had heard.
"Spying on somebody?" Jaeyun smirks while sucking on the side of his lower lip.
"No? I was just looking for Jungwon! What are you doing here?!" You snap defensively out of the great startlement he had just caused you.
"Saw you leave the dining hall and followed you here." He admits casually, "It's funny how you keep running into this kind of stuff, isn't it?"
"Hm? Kyungeun and Sunghoon?" You question his choice of wording, "I just happened to bump into a couple arguing so I felt bad." You say a little unconfident about what you had just heard.
"Couple? Mmmm... Wouldn't call it that," He said in the midst of choking up on laughter, "You just don't get it, do you?"
"So they're just friends? Or are their feelings just mutual?" You don't even bother to look into Jaeyun's eyes when you say that, embarrassed at your second assumption. You were paranoid that Kyungeun and Sunghoon could've heard you both even from such a far distance.
"It'll all make sense once you connect the dots. Do you want to know our secret that bad?"
"Look, you accused me of spying but you're the one spying on me. Are you worried that I'll find out?" You spit, hiding how flustered you actually were. "Let's just get out of here before one of them exits the library." You cut him off before he can even begin a sentence. "Whatever you say, darling." He spins his head around, already making a move back to the route you both came. You follow him shortly, contemplating whether or not to ask Kyungeun about her relationship with Sunghoon.
Was it too personal to ask? Or perhaps Kyungeun wasn't telling you for a reason.
"You're still thinking about them?" Jaeyun interrupts your thoughts, breaking the silence created from deep concentration. His steps slowed down a bit, giving you time to catch up and walk beside him.
"Yes! I'm still thinking of them... I'm close with Kyungeun and she never mentioned she had something going on with Sunghoon, that's all."
"Secrets are secrets for a reason." He commented mysteriously as you both reached the entrance doors of the dining hall, the journey coming to a quick end.
"Hey, I'm going to continue to look for Jungwon, you should go." You insisted. "I really don't want people to see us together, don't take it personally..." You say in a mellow manner. Although Jaeyun had been cocky and nosy toward you, in a way you were drawn to his subtle company. You weren't going to keep up the rude act, you wanted a decent relationship with Jungwon's friends. Maybe if you befriended him, you could get more information.
...
You decide to check the courtyard for Jungwon, forgetting what exactly you needed to ask him along the way. You step out into the quiet outside, searching for Jungwon under the ash sky. The smell of an oncoming storm fills the passing breeze in the humid air as you scanned the surface-level of ground.
"Jungwon?" You whisper unsure of the black-haired boy who sits on the stairs peacefully admiring the soft forest in the distance.
Jungwon turns toward your direction, the blazer of his uniform off to the side while his charcoal bangs and collar sway in the gentle wind. You're relieved to see the familiar pair of cat eyes that could only belong to him glimmer like pearls under the reflections of the clouds.
"I've been looking all over for you..." You laugh at yourself while taking a seat on the step-up stair from his. "It seems you didn't eat at all today, you okay?" You adjust yourself and fix your eyes forward to where he was looking before.
"I'm just not hungry. Sorry I didn't go to you at lunch as I said I would." Jungwon leaned his broad shoulders back until they rested against the step you sat on.
"You always say you're not hungry." You stretch out your legs, tucking your cold hands under your thighs while the bright periwinkle sky slowly disappeared.
"The sky is pretty, isn't it?" Jungwon whispers while looking over his shoulder to look at you, the corners of lifting just a millimetre upwards.
"Really pretty." You reply looking at his face that lit up into a creamy lilac colour under the sky. His eyelids relaxed lazily along with the rest of his features. His delicate blush face bringing you a small bit of joy. "I-I think we should go inside before it rains." You suggest, jarring your fluttering heart from his sweet face.
"We still have a few minutes." Jungwon closed his eyes, sinking himself into a position comfortable enough to sleep in, "Why'd you come looking for me?"
You finally remembered what you were going to ask but you felt it would ruin the mood. You knew too well if you spoke of the roommate situation with Heeseung or what you had witnessed with Sunghoon, it would only take away from the calm moment Jungwon was living in. "It's not that important, I'll ask another day."
Jungwon changed the subject after a short pause, not questioning you any further, "Are you going home for the long weekend?" In your boarding school, you frequently got long weekends to go home and see your family although some kids would stay on campus and hang around.
"Oh, the one in 2 weeks? Yeah, I'm thinking of going home. I miss my family a bit... You?"
"That's great, you should really go home." You took his answer as a way of him trying to avoid talking about himself. "I'm kind of tired... Sorry if I'm dozing off." He admitted in a sad lazy tone with his eyelids pressed together.
"Need a pillow?" You say while moving down so you were now sitting on the same step as him.
Jungwon lazily winked an eye open, "Pillow?"
"Y-you can rest your head on my lap for a few minutes..." You removed your bag, not daring to look him in the eyes when you said that, "Not sure if it'll be any more comfortable..." You felt embarrassed offering the gesture, but you could tell he was down by the way he spoke. He was less energetic than usual so it was clear to you that something was upsetting him.
He let out a lazy chuckle without opening his mouth, sitting up straight to look at you.
Before you could even catch being face to face, you took his laughter as a rejection toward the offer, burning with embarrassment, "Nevermind... I think I'll go to my next class early, don't be late for yours.." You quickly slung back on your bag, ready to take off that moment.
"Don't go... Just stay..." Jungwon held onto the side of your bag, moving his hand until it pinched at your fingers.
You felt a certain sickness eat at the bottom of your stomach as you hesitated to sit back down, but it wasn't sick with awkwardness or embarrassment.
"I was just surprised you offered." Jungwon covered his face with the back of his hand shyly as you turned toward him.
"Well, I'm about to take my offer back." You sat back down slowly, shaking off the random feelings that were flying between the two of you.
Jungwon instantly scooted over to you, shifting all his stuff with him. He spent no time stalling as he laid his head onto your lap, his dark chocolate hair tickling your knees.
"You must be really tired." You mutter. Your eyes watching as strands of his hair dance across his forehead from the soft breeze. You were tempted to brush the hairs away but felt you would be overstepping the line you had as friends. Instead, you reached over to his scrunched up blazer and draped it over him as a blanket.
A few minutes passed as you started to feel a wave of tiredness wash over you. You starting to become tired enough to fall asleep as you existed in the ambient noises of the courtyard. It seemed he nice sounds of the olive trees brushing against one another or the dandelion coloured birds that flew between them were a lullaby. Time had just felt too easy on you at that given moment.
A cold droplet of the sky's tears hit the back of your hand, a clear indication of what was to come next. "Jungwon it's beginning to rain, we should head inside... You know how fast it takes for the rain to fall harder." You shook him a bit, knowing he most definitely could not be in the REM stage of sleep.
He groaned, still not batting an eye open until a droplet hit his upper cheek near the side of his temple. He began to sit up in a haze, the back of his head in shambles and his blazer half covering him. "Let's go?" He said stretching his arms up, still settled on the staircase while you stood on both feet.
The rain started to slowly intensify into a shower, the droplets still thin. "I'm not trying to get soaked here..." You sigh, lifting your bag above your head as a shield from the rain as Jungwon finally stood up properly, putting on his blazer instead of using it to cover his head. "What are you doing? Use your coat to protect yourself from the rain." You nagged like a mother as you could feel the rain hit your bare legs.
"No, it's too late. It will dry." He slid on his backpack as you patiently waited for him. "But if I'm going to get rained on, shouldn't you as well?" He said while trying to pull your bag off from its placement over your head. "HEY! No! Let's not do that?" You held tighter onto the bag, sprinting off toward doors.
"I was just joking!" He yelled from the distance as you took cover under the entrance roof. ... "Did you not know it was going to rain?" Your teacher poked her head from behind an unfamiliar student.
"I sort of did, I just stayed a little too long outdoors," You mentioned while you sat down at your respective seats.
"Well now that everyone is here, I'd like to announce we have a new student who just transferred here."
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Lena jumped and reached for the taser hidden under her desk as a red and blue blur came crashing through her balcony window, landing in the middle of her office in a pile of concrete and rucked up carpet.
She released her death grip on the taser and breathed out in relief at the realisation that this was not another surprise visit from one of her brother’s minions but rather National City’s resident superhero dropping in. (Literally).
This wasn’t quite how she imagined their first meeting but then when did her life ever go as expected.
Supergirl lay in the rubble, unmoving. Apart from her apparent lack of consciousness, she looked unharmed. Had Lena not just witnessed her crash through her very expensive wall, she might have thought the hero was simply taking a mid-fight power nap.
She gingerly stepped across the ditch that Supergirl’s landing had created in her floor and crouched down to assess the Super.
“Supergirl?” She briefly contemplated poking her to see if she responded but decided against it just in case it was taken as another Luthor attack.
Supergirl gasped and shot upright, almost giving Lena a heart attack in the process. She looked around in confusion for a moment before her eyes landed on Lena who had a hand clutched to her chest and was trying desperately not to curse like a sailor in front of National City’s golden girl.
Supergirl cleared her throat, standing and brushing building dust off herself. “Sorry about…” she gestured vaguely to the gaping hole now in the side of Lena’s office, “that. I’ll just…” She nodded towards the balcony and awkwardly went over to it, needlessly opening the door which now had no glass and half the frame missing.
Lena watched her stand tall, heroically raising her fists to the sky as she pushed off the ground and jumped less than two feet into the air. She stumbled and smacked into the balcony railing with an “oof”, doubling over and almost falling over the other side.
“Supergirl?!” Lena’s eyes widened and she rushed towards her as Supergirl slid to the floor with a groan.
The hero flopped over onto her back and lay on the balcony. “I think… I think I’m just going to lie here for a bit if that’s okay.”
She reached up and tapped at her ear a few times before removing what was presumably a communications device with a sigh and throwing it across the balcony.
“Sorry. I’ll clear that up in a bit.” She rolled her head to the side and looked through the balcony windows to the mess that had been Lena’s office. “...And that.” She looked up at Lena with a sheepish smile. “I don’t suppose you have a phone I could borrow?”
———
A few minutes later, Supergirl was sitting on Lena’s thankfully still intact couch, staring down at the dial numbers on Lena’s phone.
“You don’t know the number do you.” Lena had to stop herself from laughing at the way Supergirl threw her hands up with a grumpy pout, adorable crinkle between her eyebrows.
“Who remembers phone numbers anymore?!” She sighed and flopped back into the couch cushions, handing Lena her phone back with a halfhearted smile in thanks.
Lena got up and crossed her office, carefully stepping across the gulf in the middle and sitting down at her desk. “Well if you can give me a name, I may be able to find a number?”
Kara bit her lip, considering. She muttered something under her breath about being murdered and moved across the room to sit in the chair that still had all four legs on the other side of Lena’s desk. “Alex Danvers.”
Lena nodded and got to work hacking a few National City servers.
Supergirl shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “You’re not um… this isn’t illegal, right?”
Lena glanced away from her screen to the hero for a moment and raised an eyebrow. “Do you really want me to answer that?”
———
It didn’t take long to find a number. Supergirl fidgeted in her seat the entire time and only stopped when Lena handed her phone back over and turned her screen around to show her the phone number of one Alex Danvers.
Supergirl lit up immediately and dialed the number.
Lena tried not to listen, she really did, but it was hard when Supergirl hadn’t even moved from the seat opposite her.
“Hey Alex, it’s K- …Supergirl.”
Lena bit her cheek to stop herself smiling and pulled up some work to pretend to do. She saw Supergirl grimace at whatever was being said out the corner of her eye.
“I know, I know. I’m fine - I just crashed into a building and solarflared. And my comms are broken. I may also need another phone. Can you get photos back from broken devices? Because I took a really cool picture of some birds earlier before I dropped my phone. …Those two things are totally unrelated.”
There was some faint complaining on the other end of the line and Lena discreetly pulled up the schematics for a prototype that could retrieve and restore data from practically any device.
“Um…” Supergirl not-so-subtly glanced towards Lena and angled herself slightly away. “Lena Luthor?”
Lena hoped this so-called solarflare affected all Supergirl’s powers or she would definitely have been able to hear the way Lena’s heart started thudding in her chest.
Supergirl’s crinkle returned and she loudly whispered down the phone in a way that made Lena understand why there were never any stories of Supergirl doing covert operations. “Alex! Will you stop it? She has been nothing but kind to me. If she wanted me dead, she would have tried it already - she knows I don’t have any of my powers right now.”
There was some more yelling on the phone.
“Well I think it would have been kinda hard to convince her I still had them after she saw me faceplant on her balcony.” There was silence for a moment and then Supergirl pouted at the sound of laughter. “Okay okay can you just come and get me now?”
———
It turned out that Alex could not in fact come and get Supergirl because whatever underground organisation she worked for (because it certainly wasn’t the def.B.I) were too busy chasing down the alien Supergirl had been fighting before she decided to visit Lena.
“I could get my driver to take you somewhere if you’d like?”
Supergirl shook her head. “Thanks but I wouldn’t be able to tell them the address. And Alex doesn’t like me wandering around without my powers.” She lifted her hand and almost poked herself in the eye before redirecting the movement to tuck a stand of hair behind her ear, a cute blush dusting her cheeks. “Would it be alright if I just stay here for a bit? I’ll be super quiet - you won’t even know I’m here.”
———
Despite all her abilities, super-quietness did not appear to be one of them.
Lena spent half an hour trying to continue working before she gave up, logging off her computer and turning to the Kryptonian currently hanging upside down on her couch and singing ABBA under her breath.
“I was just about to order some food. Would you like anything?”
Supergirl’s face lit up like an excited puppy and she fell off the couch in her eagerness to get up. She jumped to her feet, cape awkwardly twisted over her shoulder, and put her hands on her hips like nothing had happened. “Would I ever!”
Lena grinned and rounded her desk, picking up her phone to order. “What would you like?”
Apparently that was the wrong question to ask a Kryptonian because Lena spent the next half hour listening to Supergirl wax poetic about various fast foods before being coerced into ordering far too much food with absolutely no nutritional value and suffering through Jess’s alarmed and mildly concerned looks when said food arrived. She would certainly be recommending the company that soundproofed her office though if Jess still had no idea that there was a Super in there.
The coffee table was overflowing with Chinese takeout. Supergirl had skewered four potstickers on her chopsticks and ate them all in one go, cheeks puffing out like a chipmunk, before Lena even sat down. She made a pleased hum and smiled at Lena like this was perfectly normal before impaling another four.
Lena smoothed out her skirt and delicately picked up her own food, using proper chopstick etiquette.
“So. Lena Luthor, huh?”
Lena raised an eyebrow. “Supergirl, huh?”
The Super considered her for a moment. “Kara Zor-El.” When Lena just frowned she added, “my name. Kara Zor-El.” At her continued look of shock and confusion, Kara shrugged and went back to eating like it was no big deal. “If you’re stuck with me for a bit and kind enough to feed me I figure you should at least get to call me something other than ‘Supergirl’.”
Lena rested her container of noodles on her knee and studied Kara. “Why do you trust me?”
Kara frowned. “Why would I not?”
“Because I’m a Luthor?”
Kara looked at her and for a terrifying moment Lena felt more seen than ever before. “Yes. You are. Lena Luthor. And as far as I know, Lena Luthor has done nothing to make me distrust her.”
Before Lena could even begin to form a response to that, Kara had picked up a new food container to start on and was telling her about a puppy she had seen earlier that week.
———
“I don’t believe you.”
“It’s true!” Kara turned to fully face her on the couch, flinging noodles around in her chopsticks as she talked. “It took me ages to learn to get the temperature just right - that’s the hardest bit really. Same with laservision - it took a lot of burnt popcorn before I could cook stuff with it. I use that all the time now though.”
Lena bit her lip to stop herself laughing at the image of Supergirl using her superpowers to make popcorn.
“Anyway - I swear I really did make it snow for Christmas one year. The weather reporters were so confused.”
Lena had to duck her head to hide the laugh trying to escape her. Kara was grinning dopily at her when she looked back up.
She raised an eyebrow. “I still don’t believe you.”
Kara’s jaw dropped and she made an affronted noise, dramatically standing, placing her food back on the coffee table, and putting her hands on her hips. She inhaled deeply and looked towards the ceiling, letting out a stream of freeze breath that drifted down in a flurry of snowflakes.
Lena laughed and stood, holding out her palms to catch some snow and watching it melt in her palms. Kara grinned smugly at the look of delight on Lena’s face.
It was at that moment that Jess walked through the door.
“Miss Luthor, there’s an Ale-” She cut herself off at the sight of her boss laughing with Supergirl in an office with a hole in the side of it, half the floor torn up, and more food than she had seen Lena eat in the past week piled up on the coffee table.
Lena cleared her throat, lowering her arms and putting back on her professional mask as though there weren’t snowflakes in her hair. “Yes Jess?”
Jess opened and closed her mouth a few times, eyes darting around the room, before she straightened up and looked back to Lena. “Alex Danvers is here. She says you’re expecting her?”
Lena nodded. “Yes. Thank you Jess. Please send her in.”
Jess left the room without another word and (presumably) Alex Danvers walked in. Her eyebrows rose as she took in the scene before her, eyes landing on a sheepish looking Supergirl.
Alex sighed and turned to Lena. “We’ll have a clean up crew with you as soon as possible, Miss Luthor.”
Lena shook her head, trying to bite back a smile as she saw Kara trying to nudge her carpet back over the dent in her floor with the toe of her boot. “No need, Ms Danvers. I’ve been wanting to renovate this office since I moved to National City anyway.”
Alex nodded and tried to subtly pull at Supergirl’s cape to get her to stop. She smiled politely. “We’ll leave you to your work then.”
She opened the office door and looked expectantly to Kara.
But before she left, Kara wrapped her ridiculously muscular arms around Lena and gave her a squeeze. It was like being hugged by a rock in a blanket and it was the best feeling Lena had ever experienced. Kara pulled back with a grin and a thank you before turning to Alex to follow her out.
It was only thanks to years of Luthor training that Lena managed to keep her composure. She definitely succeeded. She was sure of it. Alex’s smirk was entirely unrelated.
And if a woman who looked remarkably like Supergirl with glasses and a ponytail and was coincidentally also called Kara walked into her (newly redecorated) office behind Clark Kent a week later, who could blame her for making a few Supergirl jokes to make that cute blush appear. And for giving her her personal phone number. For future interviews, of course.
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snelbz · 4 years
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What Happens in Vegas... {2}
An A Court of Thorns and Roses, Feyre x Rhysand, Modern AU, fanfiction.
Summary: For Feyre’s twenty-first birthday, her best friend took her to Las Vegas for a weekend of fun she could never forget. She’s going home with a lot more than memories.
@snelbz​ / @tacmc​ collab
What Happens In Vegas Masterlist
Fanfiction Masterlist
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I still had a massive headache, but it didn’t seem to be near as painful as anything my father was feeling. The afternoon, and well into the evening, had been pure chaos. After I had come clean about why reporters were constantly flooding the front lawn of my childhood home, I had gotten a talking-to that made me feel like I was fifteen and caught sneaking out of the house.
Again.
And after the scolding had come to an end, we were all just exhausted, and trying to wait it out. The police had shown up on multiple occasions, clearing the yard of people and cameras, but it didn’t stop them from coming back, or from reporters knocking on the front door, asking questions. The landline had rang so much that my father had unplugged it, which should have been done years ago, considering how far the modern world had come, but I could tell it caused him physical pain.
“Dad-.”
“You should go to bed,” he said, quietly, as he rubbed his temples from where he sat on the couch. “It’s nearly midnight.”
“I’m not tired,” I mumbled, although it was a complete lie. Yet, I couldn’t imagine going to sleep.
His cell rang, cutting off anything else that he would have said. At this time of night, a call on his cell couldn’t be a good thing.
“Hello?”
I heard the faintest of voices on the other line.
His eyes snapped up, pinning me to the spot where I sat. I felt my blood run cold.
“No, sir, I think we all completely understand under the circumstances.”
No.
No, no, no.
“Yes. Yes, sir, you as well.”
He slowly pulled the phone from his ear and ended the call. “That was Beron Vanserra. Your internship has been cancelled.”
My eyes fell shut as my head fell back and rested against the plush couch.
His voice wasn’t angry, and that made it all the more worse. He was disappointed. “He feels that, considering your current situation, it could bring the wrong kind of attention to his business.”
A banging on the door interrupted our conversation, but by this point a banging on the door was white noise. There’d been people banging on the front door all day.
It wasn’t just paparazzi out front, there were also tons and tons of fans. People were crying and screaming and holding signs. They ranged from proclamations of love for Rhys to depicting my death in graphic detail.
Apparently, later they were planning on burning me in effigy.
Which was fine, I wanted to die.
A voice came from the other side of the front door. “Ms. Archeron?”
We ignored the voice since, once again, people had been screaming my name from the other side all day. However, this voice wasn’t screaming. It was calm, cool and collected.
“Ms. Archeron, Rhys sent me.”
I blinked and made my way to the door, fearing my mother would hear me hollering and wake up from her Xanax induced sleep.
“I’m calling the cops again,” I announced.
He quickly said, “Please, ma’am. I have him on the phone.” I paused. “Just crack open the door and I’ll hand you the phone.”
Yeah, right. “Why should I believe you?”
Murmuring from the other side of the door. “He said to ask you about his t-shirt.”
I blushed. I’d washed his vomit covered shirt before we left Vegas and it was still damp in my backpack by the door.
I shook my head, though I knew he couldn’t see me. “Not good enough.”
More murmuring. “He said he still didn’t want the… excuse me, miss… ‘fucking ring’ back.”
Yep. That sounded like my darling husband.
I crouched down and unlocked the mail slot in the door and flicked the door open.
A sleek black phone was handed through.
I sighed as I took it. “Hello?”
I was met with loud music and endless voices in the background of wherever Rhysand was. Unlike myself, it seems our marriage hadn’t thrown him off his typical routine.
“I hear you’ve gotten famous overnight,” a familiar voice purred. “You may want to lay low for a while until this all blows over. Trust me. So, I sent Kallias to come and get you.”
I blinked, not sure if I was hearing correctly. “Sorry, what?”
“Kallias, the guy on your front porch? He’s head of my security team. He came to bring you back to me. And we’ll, uh, figure something out when you get here.”
I laughed, not only because it was a ridiculous request, but because my life was a running, never ending, unimaginable, cosmic joke, and I was having an incredibly difficult time making sense of it.
“You want me...to be brought...to you?” I said, slowly, making sure I had it right. “I don’t know you, much less where you even are.”
“Look,” he began, with a sigh. “There’s divorce papers and shit to sign anyway. You may as well come here so we can get this all taken care of.”
As much as I really, really didn’t want to go, I wanted to get this fiasco away from my parents house and their poor front lawn. I also wasn’t looking forward to my mother waking up and having to tell her I’d lost my internship.
My five year plan went out the window. Hell, so did my ten year plan. It was pretty contingent on the five year plan and that was contingent on this internship. But I could see a new plan forming.
I’d worked at the same art supply store for years. Painting was my true passion, the thing I yearned for more time for. I never seemed to have it, and without this internship, my architectural dreams were over. I could pick up more shifts at the store, maybe come on full-time. Alis would love that.
She wouldn’t, however, love the horde of crazed fans I’d bring to her quaint, little shop.
He sighed, and even over the phone, I could feel his eyes roll. “What else are you going to do? Hide in your parents’ house?”
I stood up straight. “How do you know I’m at my parents’?”
“Because I’m watching the live stream on TMZ.”
Decision made. I had to get out of here for the sake of my parents.
I unlocked the door, even as my father said, “Feyre, don’t.”
I opened the door a hair, just enough for Kallias to see it was open and slip in. He did so and shut the door behind him quickly.
Rhysand remained quiet on the other side of the line as I looked at my father and said, “I’ll be back, but when everything calms down. You and mom don’t need this, and I need to take care of some stuff.”
Rhysand’s hum reminded me that he was, in fact, listening yet to our conversation.
“You can’t trust him,” my father snapped, begging me to see reason. “You don’t even know him! Look at all that’s happened. This is not what you need.”
I stared at him for a moment, suddenly becoming sad. I had no idea what I needed.
“I’ll be back,” I repeated, and Rhysand had become quiet, because he had lost interest or because he was so fascinated with my father and I’s vulnerability, I didn’t know.
“We can handle this here,” he said, trying to reason with me. “You’ll need your own lawyers and-.”
“It’s not like I have anything to lose, dad,” I breathed. Which, I didn’t. My poor husband was inheriting nearly fifty thousand in student loans. I’m sure he’d appreciate that.
A change in his face told me he knew he was fighting a losing battle.
“I’ll be alright, I promise,” I said, not caring if Rhys was still listening or not. I couldn’t really keep that promise because I had no idea what I was walking into.
He shook his head, but said “I think you’re doing the wrong thing. But call me if you need anything. If you want to come home, I’ll organize a flight for you right away.”
I nodded. “I will.”
“I’m serious,” he rested a hand on my shoulder and looked in my eyes, the eyes I’d inherited from my mother. “Call me and I’ll get you home.”
“Feyre?”
So apparently he had been listening. “Yeah?”
Rhys said, “Give the phone back to Kal.”
I did as I was told and the man watched me with eyes the color of fractured ice. I could hear Rhys rattling off instructions, Kallias dutifully nodding and saying yes, sir where appropriate. And then he hung up.
“Ms. Archeron, the car is waiting.”
I nodded and glanced back to my father.
“One call,” was all he said. Instead of replying, I threw my arms around him and held him tightly.
His arms came around me, but then he cleared his throat and stepped back.
Moment over. Got it.
I picked up my backpack and turned around to face Kallias and the front door. He was patiently waiting.
“Ready?”
No.
“Yes.”
He opened the door and we rushed out into the chaos.
I was surprised at how many people were still on the front lawn. People screamed at me from all different angles, some in encouragement and love and adoration, and some out of pure hatred. A girl a few years younger than myself called me a cunt and told me I didn’t deserve Rhysand’s love. The fact that she had my husband’s face on her shirt was the first sign that I shouldn’t take anything she said seriously, but in the moment, that was harder than it should have been.
Once I was in the car, the door shut behind me, I let loose a breath. Kallias was in the car a moment later, only to be followed by people banging on the car windows. I groaned, sinking lower into my seat.
I was over it.
I wanted it to be done.
And it had only just begun.
As the car moved, fans began running alongside it, and I wondered why anyone in their right mind would want to be famous.
Eventually, we began to move too fast, and we left everyone behind.
I had just nearly gotten comfortable in the backseat when I realized I wouldn’t be comfortable for long, because I was on my way to see Rhysand.
My loving husband.
—————
I was asleep before we were even in the air.
We’d boarded the most lavish private plane I’d ever seen, Kallias had offered me champagne — which I declined — and then I found myself a nice corner to sit in.
Next thing I knew, Kallias was tapping me on the shoulder. “Ms. Archeron, we’re here.”
The private jet had landed on a runway on the far end of the town at a small airport. I supposed not having to go through the chaos of a big airport was a perk in all this.
One of the very few perks, anyway.
After being led off the plane, I was brought to another car and driven through town. The nightlife was lively, people walking hand in hand down the streets of downtown, or in large groups.
I rolled down my window to hear the music as we passed by bars, and the hustle and bustle of excitement and conversation.
Nearly twenty minutes later, we were driving down a long, winding driveway, up to one of the biggest houses I had ever seen.. If I hadn’t been so exhausted and shell shocked, I would have loved to admire it. As it was, I was too busy taking in the crowd around me.
The doors were open and people were spilling out. There were two girls making out on the front steps and Kallias stepped around them as if they were ornamentation on the front lawn. I did my best not to stare.
There were people everywhere, milling about, talking, drinking, dancing, making out. You name it, it was happening in the house. For the first time in twenty-four hours, I wasn’t the person everyone was staring at.
Except for one person who had noticed me and he had a grin on his face.
Kallias headed towards him and as we approached I noticed how huge he was.
With a sigh, that nearly seemed annoyed, Kallias began, “Feyre, this is-.”
“Cassian,” the newcomer said, hand outstretched. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
My cheeks heated as he shook my hand, his hand nearly crushing my own.
“Um, nice to meet you,” I stammered.
“You too,” he said, his grin growing wider. “It’s nice to finally meet my best friend’s wife.” I opened my mouth to reply with a protest, but Cassian was turning to Kallias. “Don’t worry, Kal. I got it from here.”
Kallias looked at me, brow raised, and I gave him a curt nod before he disappeared to tend to whatever duties he had for the remainder of the night.
“Like parties?” Cassian asked, turning his back and starting to walk. I took it as a hint to follow.
“I-.” I’m not one for parties. Especially not parties like this, I was going to say, but thought better of it. “It’s pretty extravagant.”
“Almost as extravagant as a quick wedding in Vegas,” Cassian crooned, looking back at me over his shoulder.
If I thought I couldn’t have blushed any more, I would’ve been mistaken. My cheeks were burning.
“I always thought I would be his best man,” Cassian went on. “Shame. Although, I also thought he would’ve known his wife for more than three hours before he said his vows. So.”
We walked in silence for a few minutes, but that’s not to say it was quiet. It was anything but. Everywhere I looked, I saw someone else that I vaguely recognized and then it would dawn on me that I was staring at the model from a billboard back home or the actor from that new action movie Joey had wanted to see.
A leggy blonde wearing a poor excuse for a dress bumped into me and nearly knocked me over. Cassian stopped and frowned at her as her tall frame walked away. “Some people have no manners. Come on.”
He led me towards the back of the house, through the dance floor, around a game of beer pong being played with champagne flutes — didn’t seem very efficient to me, but no asked, so — until we stepped out onto a porch.
And there he was, leaning against the iron railing. The strong lines of his face were in profile. Holy shit, how could I have forgotten? There was no explaining the full effect of Rhys in real life. He fit in with the beautiful people just fine. He was one of them. I, on the other hand, belonged in the kitchen with the waitstaff.
Before we could take another step closer, a tall, sun-kissed blonde in a bikini with a silver belly chain came up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Rhysand didn’t look directly at her, but, instead, he took a sip from his glass bottle.
A feeling surged within me, and I hated that feeling. It nearly felt like jealousy, although I knew that was absurd, because I couldn’t possibly feel jealous.
Could I?
No. It wasn’t jealous. Definitely not jealousy.
Not jealous.
I shook the feeling off, although it lingered, as Cassian said, “Rhys! Look who I found!”
Rhysand’s eyes found Cassian’s, then mine.
“Um, can you take me to my room?” I asked Cassian, under my breath.
Cassian looked at me, lifting a brow. “You don’t want to party?”
“I’m tired, it’s been a long day,” I answered. Not necessarily a lie, not at all. “I prefer to just go to bed.”
“Feyre.”
The sound of my name on his lips had me turning to look at him.
He was looking at me, that bottle still in his hand, the other one was gripping the iron railing he leaned on, rather than where it had been seconds before, on bikini girl’s hip.
Not that I noticed.
“Hi,” I breathed.
Cassian snorted. “She doesn’t say much, does she?”
“She speaks,” he said, eyes not leaving mine. The tone in which he said it made it clear that he wished I wouldn’t ever again.
I had expected things to be awkward, tense even. But outright disdain was something I was not used to.
The slender blonde pressed her body — including her obviously fake boobs — against Rhys, eyeing me. The chain around her waist made a tinkling noise. I guess she decided that since I was his wife, I was about to steal him and ruin her night.
Like that would happen.
I took a second to look at Rhys, to really look at him. It should be illegal to make a black t-shirt and ripped jeans look that good. He caught my gaze and straightened. His black army-style boots were crossed at the ankles, easy as you please, because he belonged here. I didn’t.
He glanced at Cassian. “You mind finding her a room?”
Cassian snorted and crossed his arms. “Do I look like your fucking butler? You’ll show your own wife to a room. Don’t be an asshole.”
“She’s not my wife,” Rhys growled.
“Every social media site and news channel in Prythian would disagree with you there.” He turned and gave me a little wave. “Catch you later, Feyre.”
He walked away and Rhys disentangled him from the blonde. She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest, effectively pushing them up, but he paid her no attention. “Come on.”
He gestured toward the door and my eyes caught on something on the inside of his forearm that I hadn’t noticed that morning. In black ink, still red around the edges was one word:
Feyre .
“What?” His gaze followed mine and he said, “Ah, yeah, that. It’s whatever. Let’s go.”
“Hurry back, Rhysie,” the blonde cooed. I could have sworn I saw him roll his eyes, but he was off, heading for the door before I could be sure.
I pretended I hadn’t heard it, although the words replayed in my mind. I followed Rhysand inside, then through the crowd of people. I almost felt ridiculous, refusing to attend a party attended by the world’s elite. But, it wasn’t who I was, and I wasn’t going to pretend that I belonged there.
Hallways spread out in both directions up on the second floor. We went left, down to the end. He threw open a door and there my bag sat, waiting on a big king-size bed. Everything in the sumptuous room had been done in white: the bed, walls, and carpets. An antique white love seat sat in the corner. It was beautiful, pristine. Nothing like my small, cramped room back at the apartment I shared with Joey, where between the double bed and my desk, you had just enough room to get the cupboard door open, no more. This place went on and on, a sea of perfection.
“I’d better not touch anything,” I mumbled, hands tucked into my back pockets.
“What?”
“It’s lovely.”
Rhys looked around the room with nil interest. “Yeah.”
I wandered over to the windows. A luxurious pool sat below, well lit and surrounded by palm trees and perfect gardens.
“Listen, some people are going to come to talk to you about the divorce papers. They’ll be here at ten,” he said, hovering in the doorway. His fingers tapped out a beat on the doorframe. He kept casting longing looks down the hall, clearly impatient to be gone.
“Some people?”
“My lawyer and my manager,” he told his feet. “They’re rushing things, so… it’ll all be, ah, dealt with as fast as it can.”
“All right.” Rhys sucked in his cheeks and nodded. He had killer cheekbones. I’d seen men in fashion magazines that couldn’t have compared. But pretty or not, the frown never lifted. Not while I was around. It would have been nice to see him smile, just once. “You need anything?” he asked.
“No. Thank you for all this. For flying me down here and letting me stay. It’s very kind of you.”
“No worries.” He took a step back and started closing the door after him. “Night.”
He turned and opened the door, was halfway out, when I said, “Rhys, wait, shouldn’t we talk or something? About last night?”
He paused and said, “Seriously, Feyre? Why fucking bother?”
And then he was gone.
“I will,” I said, although it was far from true.
Again.
At least he hadn’t slammed the door this time, and I counted that as progress in our relationship. I sighed, letting out the breath I’d been holding. I was surprised to feel...disappointed. It’s not that I was expecting to hang out with him while I was here, but I didn’t expect to be sent to my room like a naughty child.
I made my way over to the window and looked out. A luxurious pool sat below, well lit and surrounded by palm trees and perfect gardens. Two people were in the water, making out. The woman’s head fell back and her breasts bobbed on the surface. Oh, no, my mistake. They were having sex. I could feel the heat creep up my neck and I almost turned away.
I would have, if I hadn’t noticed another couple heading for what I assumed was a pool house. The man was Rhys and the blonde hung off of him, tossing her hair over her shoulder and swaying her hips a little extra as she walked. She hurried ahead of him and stood in the doorway, before untying the strap of her top and letting it fall. She didn’t try to cover herself and he didn’t try to look away, just kept walking at the same pace until he’d reached her.
And when he did, he turned around and caught my eye.
I ducked around the wall and held my breath, feeling the blush creeping up my neck again. Not only had I caught them sneaking off to do the gods knew what, but he had caught me spying.
Except I wasn’t spying, I was just...appreciating the landscaping. Which is what I would tell him if he ever asked me about it.
If he ever spoke to me again, that is. I didn’t think that was too likely.
I looked around the room and was overwhelmed by the expense put into it. I’d be willing to bet this room alone cost as much as my apartment. I was scared to touch anything, to even sit on the white bedspread.
Who the hell has a white bedspread?
I dug through my backpack and plugged my phone in knowing it had died long ago and meandered into the bathroom. There was a large jacuzzi tub in the corner, a massive double vanity and a huge, walk-in shower. I whistled once and turned around making another lap around the room.
Rhys hadn’t asked if I wanted to stay and party, nor would I have likely taken him up on his offer, but I couldn’t stay cooped up in this room. Not after the last thirty-six hours of my life. Thankfully, I had been invited to the party downstairs, courtesy of Cassian.
No one paid me any attention as I crept downstairs. I slunk into the closest corner and settled in to watch the beautiful people at play. It was fascinating. Bodies writhed on an impromptu dance floor in the middle of the room. Someone lit up a cigar nearby, filling the air with a rich, spicy scent. Puffs of smoke billowed up toward the ceiling, a good twenty feet above. Diamonds glittered and teeth sparkled. You couldn’t get better people-watching if you tried. No sign of Cassian, sadly. At least he’d been somewhat nice.
“I don’t know you.”
I jumped slightly and turned, finding a man with blonde hair and a finely cut suit watching me while he sipped on a glass of amber liquid. I gave him an awkward smile and turned my gaze back to the room.
“You know, if you scoot half a foot to the left, you can hide behind that fake tree,” he said, gesturing to it and taking a sip of his drink. “Then you can disappear entirely. No one would see you.”
“Good to know,” I said, not turning back to him. I also didn’t deny that I was hiding. That was very clear.
He smiled at me and took a step forward, officially entering what I considered my personal space. No matter how nice his suit was, this guy creeped me out.
“I’m Tamlin.”
“Feyre.”
Another drink. “Nope, I definitely don’t know you.”
I shot him an incredulous look. “You know everyone here?” I gazed around the room. “There are a lot of people here. That’s impressive.”
“There are,” he agreed, tossing the rest of his drink back in one large swallow. “And I know them all. Everyone except you.”
“Rhys invited me.” I didn’t want to drop Rhysand’s name, but I was being backed into a corner, both figuratively and literally, as Tamlin closed in on me.
“Oh, really?” He purred. To anyone else, the tone may have been seductive. It gave me goosebumps, and not in a good way.
“He invited me to stay a few days, so,” I started looking for Cassian, Rhys, Kallias, anyone that could save me from this conversation.
Tamlin apparently couldn’t take the hint. “Well that was nice of him.”
“Yep.” I was being rude, but I didn’t care. I really wished I hadn’t left my phone upstairs. Even if it was dead, I could have pretended to take a phone call.
“Which room are you in?”
“The white one,” I said, looking for a way around him. “Speaking of, I’d better get back.”
“The white room? My, my, aren’t you special?”
I didn’t know what that meant and I didn’t want to know. “Aren’t I just? Excuse me.” I gave up on social niceties as I pushed past him.
He must not have been expecting it, or he was more fucked up than I thought, because he stumbled back a step. “Hold on now, wait a second.”
He reached for my arm, but an arm looped around my waist from behind me, pulling me out of Tamlin’s grasp. I looked up and found Rhys standing there. His face was hard. “We got a problem here, Tam?”
He shook his head, that cool smile coming back. “Not at all. Just getting to know Feyre.”
Those violet eyes narrowed. “Yeah, well, you don’t need to know Feyre.”
“Not like you to cockblock, man,” Tamlin replied, his blonde eyebrows lowering. “And didn’t I see you with the lovely Ianthe out on the balcony earlier? Why don’t you go find her, get her to do what she’s damn good at? Feyre and I were kind of busy here.”
“No, we weren’t,” I said, but neither of them heard me. But then I wondered why Rhys was back from his play time with Little Miss Belly Chain so soon? Surely, he couldn’t have been concerned for his wife’s safety.
“Heard you invited her to stay in my house,” Tamlin asked, ignoring me completely.
“I was under the impression Hybern rented this place for all of us while we worked on the album.”
“Album has taken so long that they were threatening to pull the contract, and I liked the place. So I bought it.”
The way he said it, I knew the dig about the album was directed at Rhys. He didn’t even flinch.
“Great. Let me know when the deal goes through and I’ll be sure to get my shit out. In the meantime, my guests are none of your concern.”
Tamlin looked at me again and I saw recognition light his green eyes. “This is her, isn’t it? This is the one you married, you stupid son of a bitch.”
Rhysand completely ignored him. “Come on.” He grabbed my hand and began dragging me toward the staircase.
With a laugh, Tamlin called after him, “Any one of us could have fucked her up against a wall at a party, but you decided to marry her?”
Bullshit they could have, especially not him.
Rhys’ fingers tightened around my hand.
“Look at her, Rhys. Jeans and fucking t-shirt at a party. She’s nothing but a groupie. Tell me this marriage didn’t come courtesy of vodka and coke.”
Rhysand’s iron tight grip on my wrist disappeared and before I could turn to tell Tamlin what I really thought, Rhys had rushed him grabbing him by the lapels. The smirk on Tamlin’s face wasn’t helping the whole situation. The room hushed, the bumping bass the only background noise.
“Did I hit a nerve?” He breathed.
Rhys didn’t look ready for back down, but neither did Tamlin. Rhysand was seething. “Go ahead, show me who the star of this show really is.”
He looked ready to do just that. He tensed and looked ready to swing-.
“Rhys!”
Surprised eyes turned to look at me. Even I was surprised to have spoken. Tamlin looked at me smugly, but when Rhys turned to look at me, I couldn’t read the expression in his eyes.
I breathed, “Please.” I didn’t know what I was trying to accomplish, avoiding a brawl, I guess.
He turned, grabbing my wrist and marched us up the stairs. I heard Tamlin laugh from behind us, but he didn’t say anything else. Neither did Rhys. An elegant woman with long dark hair took a step forward, her hand outstretched. Distress lined her lovely face. “You know he doesn’t mean it.”
Rhys snapped, “Stay out of it, Am,” and continued up the stairs.
As soon as his attention was off of her, the woman was glaring at me. Not only did she look like she disliked me, but she was looking at me as if I were to blame for Rhysand’s current attitude. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if I was.
I didn’t have too long to think about it, though, because Rhysand dragged me the rest of the way up the stairs, and down the hallways toward my room. I had a feeling he was pretty pissed that I had left my room to begin with. Perhaps he would trap me inside, find a way to make sure I didn’t leave. Tamlin’s groupie comment repeated inside of my mind, making me fully aware just how underdressed I was, how out of place I looked.
Rhysand was probably embarrassed of me.
Halfway down the hallway, I finally managed to jerk my wrist free of Rhysand’s grip, before I completely lost feeling in my arm.
“I know the way,” I said. “I can make it there myself.”
“Still wanna get some, huh? You should have said something, I’d be more than happy to oblige,” he said with a false smile. “And hey, you’re not even shit-faced tonight. Chances are you’d remember.”
I scoffed. “Ouch.”
“Something I said untrue?” he asked, eyes ablaze.
“You’re being a prick,” I snapped.
He froze and turned, eyes wide and, surprisingly, shocked. “Me? I’m being a prick? For fucks sake, you’re my wife!”
“No, I’m not. You said yourself, right before you went to go play in the pool house with your little friend.” Though they hadn’t stayed long, only five, maybe six minutes. I almost felt bad for Little Miss Belly Chain. I know I would’ve been disappointed in such a lackluster performance. That wasn’t service with a smile.
He shook his head, a dark laugh leaving him, but there was no humor to it. Clearly, he wasn’t my biggest fan right now. It’s okay, the feeling was mutual.
“You’re right, I’m sorry. Should I take you back to Tamlin?” He cracked his knuckles like he was preparing for a fight.
“No, thank you.”
“That was real nice, making fuck-me eyes at him, by the way. Out of everyone down there, you had to be flirting with Tam,” he sneered. “Classy, Feyre.”
“That’s honestly what you think was happening?”
“What with you and him getting all fucking cozy in the corner?”
“Seriously?”
“I know Tamlin and I know girls around Tamlin. That’s definitely what it looked like, baby.” He held his arms out wide, that tattoo with my name on it standing out, red and angry. “Prove me wrong.”
“I don’t even know how to make fuck-me eyes. And if I did, I definitely wouldn’t have been making them at that tool downstairs,” I snapped. No wonder so many marriages ended in divorce. Marriage sucked and husbands were the worst.
“Trust me, you absolutely do,” he breathed, and the tone of his voice had me looking up into his eyes. What I saw there unsettled me, especially considering what he’d just accused me of.
“It’s funny,” I started, crossing my arms. “My best friend begged me not to break the band up when I came out here, but I think you and Tamlin can handle that on your own. Your band issues might be even worse than your wife issues, and that’s saying something.” Slowly, I shook my head. “Thank you for offering me the opportunity to defend myself. I really appreciate it. But you know what, Rhys, I’m just not convinced your good opinion is worth it.”
He flinched.
I walked away before I said something worse. Forget anything amicable. The sooner we were divorced, the better.
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paper-n-ashes · 3 years
Text
sparks and embers - chapter 2
Characters: Poe Dameron x Original Female Character, Kylo Ren x Original Female Character
Story Tags: Explicit (18+), Canon Compliant/Divergent (Set after TLJ), First Person POV, Love Triangle, Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Porn with Plot, Hurt/Comfort, Kylo Ren hates Poe Dameron
Summary: Alexys is a doctor living a life of exclusivity on Raxus, hoping to survive through a peaceful existence, concealing herself from those she believes would use her, or kill her. When fate intervenes and instigates a perilous journey she’d been desperately trying to avoid, Alex finds herself caught in the middle of two sides in both war and love.
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Chapter 2 - Consciousness
Words: 3.4k
Chapter Tags/Warnings: mentions of blood and broken bones, medical procedures
Read on AO3
~
It was the light of morning that caused my eyes to flutter open, the hardness of the tiled floor beneath slowly recognised in an increasing ache pulsing through my body.
I was slow to move, measured actions helping to bring myself into a seated position, arms shakily holding me up at the sides. Memories of the previous evening flooded back in swift succession, along with the pain of immense fatigue that always followed the act of letting the Force do my healing for me.
Did it even work?
My hand gripped the hospital bed that his body remained slumped on and I pulled myself upwards, feet gliding along the ground under my legs until I could stand. The scene before me was still shocking, even in remembering all that happened. Eventually, I noted the even breaths seeping in and out of the pilot’s chest.
He survived the night. Well done.
The numbers on the monitor confirmed what the voice had said. Heart rate steady. Oxygen levels optimum. Blood pressure higher than it had ever reached the night before. Looking over the battered and broken man, covered in dried blood that had spilled to the bed and floor, I felt a rush of emotion break free from its cage in my chest, unleashing an irrepressible urge to cry.
I sobbed quietly, knowing it was both relief and exhaustion that the tears crawled down my face. I wasn’t really sure why it hit me so hard. I didn’t even know this man, and somehow his survival at my hands was overwhelming, bursting at the seams with a happiness I’d never experienced for a patient before.
But then I recalled what I’d done to make it possible.
Fear struck like a spark in the centre of my chest, rippling its way through my veins.
There’s no way I could explain this as a simple act of medical miracle. He’d know. Then they’d know. And everything I’d built would come crumbling down. I’d have to find a new planet, a new home, build a new clinic, leaving everything behind.
I just wanted to heal people. I didn’t want to be a part of either of their worlds, and I didn’t want to d-
A croaky moan escaped from the pilot’s lips, his eyes moving underneath the lids, struggling to open. He groaned louder, and it became clear all too quickly he was starting to feel his extensive injuries. Panic set in, realising I hadn’t had time to give him any anaesthetic or pain relief.
This was going to be a rough wake up.
A piercing whimper bellowed from his chest, startling me into focus. With the trolley at hand I wrenched open the draws in search of anything with a pain-relieving quality and prepared the med-injector with heavy fluid. He’d already started to move his limbs, presumably in a way to understand what was happening, and another strained yell echoed in the room, sending a shiver rocketing down my spine. I jammed the needle into the IV cannula port, pushing in the medicine without much of a thought to appropriate dosage.
I just needed to stop him moving.
He began hollering even harder, tears welling in his eyes as he started to thrash against the mattress. Snatching at his wrists, I slammed them back down on the bed.
“It’s okay! You’re okay! I know it hurts but you’ve got to give the painkiller time to work. I promise it’s going to be alright!” 
His eyes flew open, an obvious distress burning from behind brown irises. They flickered over my blood-stained clothes, then locked into mine, pleading, begging for me to do something to take away the agony.
“I know,” I said softly, a more tender edge to my voice. “I know it hurts. I’m doing all that I can. Please just stay still. It will get better. Please.”
The pilot drew in a deep, haggard breath, his bottom lip trembling. Eventually his jaw clenched as our eyes remained fixed, a silent pact of trust hanging in the air. It took me by surprise, how easy it was to calm him, and I seized the chance to soothe him even further.
“My name is Alex, I’m a doctor,” I explained. “Your ship crashed just outside my clinic. You were hurt, badly. You fell unconscious and I brought you in here to treat your injuries.”
Such a simple explanation for the truly gargantuan effort I had performed.
I wonder if he’ll ever know how close to death he was.
It wasn’t the time to tell him now, not when he seemed so scared. There was some semblance of understanding in his features, dark bushy eyebrows furrowed in thought for a moment, only for his eyes to shut again as he withheld a pained cry. I released my grip from his right wrist, placing my hand in his to squeeze gently. An act of sympathy, something I had done many times for people in distress. Even the small movement was enough to make him yelp.
Kriff. I forgot his arm was broken.
“Sorry!” I squeaked. He was still wincing. “Let me try and fix that.”
It was obvious how wrong the angle appeared in his forearm, beginning to prepare more local anaesthetic into the injector handle. I shot the needle a few centimetres above the fracture, the pilot barely flinching. Compared to the rest of his injuries it would likely have felt like nothing at all.
“I need to set this okay? Your arm is going to feel numb in a minute or two. I’ll be as quick as I can.”
His nod was measured, careful not to move anymore than he had to. I left him for a moment to find my universal cast and a sling, giving the injection a few moments to filter through his tissue and into the nerves. When I returned I could see some of the pain medication had already started to take hold, the sting of discomfort in his eyes beginning to waver, his muscles losing their tension and relaxing ever so slightly into the mattress. I prepared the cast, cutting the shapes out for his fingers and thumb, getting it ready for quick application.
“Poe,” he said slowly, his voice croaky and filled with restraint. “My name is Poe.”
I met his gaze again, trying my hardest to put forward an aura of confidence, even in my exhaustion. “Nice to meet you, Poe,” I smiled. With a lightened touch, a finger trailed softly down his right forearm. “Can you feel this?”
“A little,” he whispered. It was clearly hard for him to find his voice again. “It’s kind of… fuzzy.”
“Do you think I could try and set your arm now? I can wait if you prefer.”
“I can handle it.”
Underneath his lips I could imagine gritted teeth, clenching hard, bracing for the pain. It occurred to me then maybe this wasn’t the first time he’d broken a bone.
Without another word I pulled the X-ray unit’s arm up towards his fracture site, hoping he didn’t notice the splashes of his blood smattering the machine. Pressing down on the image button revealed a better picture in comparison to the absolute mess his femur had been. Only his radius was broken, in an even line, no splintering to be seen.
Finally something easy.
With two hands around his arm on either side of the fracture, I poised myself for a quick pull and twist. Poe’s muscles tensed underneath my grip.
“Just try to relax, it will make it much easier,” I insisted.
He drew in a deep breath, and the tension released from underneath my fingertips. I’d learned in my experience not to tell patients exactly when I was going to perform something painful. Something about the surprise of it somehow made it hurt less. So with one fluid movement I pulled and rotated the bone back into place, knowing even before I shot the X-ray it would be aligned. Poe was crushing his eyelids closed, waiting for me to move again.
“It’s okay, I got it.”
His eyes opened, meeting me with a look of surprise. I’d already begun to position the cast, bending the malleable plastic to the contours of his limb.
“First try?” he marvelled. I nodded, while trying to rein in my ego. “Never had someone get it on the first try.”
I swallowed hard. “I, uh... I wasn’t so lucky with your femur.” I flicked through the previous X-rays, pointing to the multiple shots of my attempts to fix the break. His eyes widened, mouth in a small ‘o’.
“That was my leg?” he gasped, “And you put it back?”
Both of our eyes glanced to the wound on his thigh. It was closed.
But I didn’t put any bacta on it.
Poe’s disbelief distracted him from my own. What I’d done last night with my crude attempt at Force healing had managed to not only mend the life-threatening severing of his artery, but also somehow pulsed enough energy to knit his wound back together, leaving a sealed laceration where the deep hole had been. Dread filled me again, weighing down so forcefully I didn’t want to move.
How am I going to explain this?
“T-thank you. For getting the bacta into it so quickly. Must have some good quality stuff.”
Thank every particle in the universe. He suspected nothing.
I moved slightly to position myself in front of the trolley that stored evidence of the low quality bacta solution and salve I had used for his chest wound and burns, and feigned a smile of appreciation.
“Just doing my job.”
All of a sudden it seemed to hit him, the situation he was in. His questions came out in rapid fire, desperate for clarification.
“Wait, where am I? What happened to my ship? Where’s BB-8?”
He began to rise from the mattress, wincing at the many injury points as he pulled himself into an upright position on the bed. The quick movement evidently made him dizzy, as he pulled his newly casted arm onto the bed railing to stabilise a wobble.
“Woah, just hold on a minute there,” I snipped, doctor mode engaged. “You’ve still got some serious injuries that need time to heal. Nasty burns, a collection of broken bones and the remnants of a punctured lung. Now bacta can be a miracle cure but it still needs more time before you start moving around again, or you’re going to ruin all the progress I made.”
Poe looked as if he was going to argue, but as my eyes bore into his, he recoiled back into the bed, sighing from both the pain of movement and the lack of answers.
“I was in the middle of an important mission okay?” he stressed. “There are people who are waiting on me. I need to get a message back to the Resistance. To tell them I’m out of commission.”
I tensed. The thought of the Resistance coming here to pick up their injured pilot was enough to make my heart beat faster. Sure, maybe Poe didn’t suspect anything, but the likelihood of convincing force sensitive people like Leia Organa, or the scavenger girl….
Attempting to fool them into thinking I’d healed this man with a bit of brute force and bacta would be near on impossible. But I couldn’t prevent Poe from contacting anybody without arousing even more suspicion. I’d just have to go along with whatever he wanted until I could formulate some kind of plan.
“Alright, how about I get you my transmitter and you promise not to try and move until I say so?” I offered, the tone in my voice not really implying that no could be an appropriate answer.
“Sure thing doc,” he agreed.
Maker, I hate when people call me that.
I made my way over to my tech station, using the moment to give him a couple of the answers he’d been so desperate for. “You’re on a remote clinic on Raxus, about 3000 kilometres- uh… klicks, from Raxulon. Your ship… Well, I haven’t been outside since it exploded at my front door. And your droid unit… I haven’t seen.” I realised quickly how insensitive this information came out when I looked up from my rummaging to Poe’s horrified expression. He began to sit upwards again, giving even less care to his wounds, forcing me to rush back to stop him. “I haven’t checked outside yet!”
“Why haven’t you been out there?” he demanded, eyes flaming.
“Maybe because I was stuck in here saving your life? And how was I supposed to know you had an astromech droid with you?”
He huffed, seeing the logic in my question. “Can you please check if BB is okay?”
I raised an eyebrow, curious at how much emotion he was committing to this piece of equipment. All of the medical droids I’d come into contact with over the years were extremely flat personality wise. Intelligent and useful, but I’d never grown any type of attachment to them. Nothing like Poe seemed to have with this BB-8 droid.
“Fine,” I sighed. “I’ll go look for the BB unit. Just please stay in bed. And… prepare for the worst.”
Underpromise, overdeliver. One of the many phrases I’d recited during my medical training. I just really hoped the latter would be the case in this situation.
The latch of the clinic door closed softly behind me, the crisp morning atmosphere somewhat refreshing for a moment or two, until I shook myself into focus to assess the completely destroyed X-wing ship consuming my vision. With sunshine finally illuminating the environment, rolling green hills of the countryside extending beyond the horizon, I scanned the blackened metal skeleton of the ship, ashes smattered all over the ground, glass and electrical wires splayed everywhere.
Well, this doesn’t exactly ignite hope.
Walking around what was left of the X-wing, I examined the surrounding area for any trace of a droid - not just the shine of metal, but the possible tracks left by a robot who was looking for its master. I walked slowly into the field behind the crash site, my eyes surveying every bit of ground, hoping to see any metallic glint that might indicate an intact droid.
Since the clinic was the only building for a few kilometres, there was hardly another structure it could be hiding behind, or lodged in. I almost wanted to keep walking, washing my hands of all of this, so I didn’t have to go back and tell Poe his obviously beloved droid hadn’t survived like he did. But another ruined machine caught my attention.
My comm-tower was flattened into nothing - steel, wiring and black plastic flattened into an artificial pancake.
Kriff, more bad news for Poe.
With my only means of communication squished there was no way any of my tech could send a signal far enough to reach the Resistance, let alone the next village over. And now I would have to make the weeklong trek back to Raxulon to get another one.
This day is kicking my ass.
With a long sigh, I ventured towards the ruined X-wing, assuming if I hadn’t found BB-8 by now, it must have been pulverised by the explosion I narrowly avoided last night. I searched the hollow structure of the ship, hoping for any scrap of metal that could be related to the droid, but it was all so black, covered in soot and melted, everything beginning to mutate into some other portion of the machine. When I skimmed over what was left of one of the wings, there was still a rounded hole I assumed BB-8 would have been housed during flights. An empty hole. There was always a possibility the BB droid could have gone searching for help beyond my clinic, but again, there wasn't a trace of movement in the dirt track leading away to the nearest village.
I think it’s time to be the bearer of bad news.
I extricated myself from the mangled ship, looking back towards the front walls of my clinic, noticing now the remnants of the explosion that had left countless dark stains over the light blue paint, along with a few cracks and impact points where metal had hit the cement. The bushes I’d planted a few months ago in time for this planet’s version of spring had been scorched, most of the green overtaken by grey and black soot. On closer inspection, it became obvious one had been split in half, the edges of leaves opening up to a large gap.
I quickened my pace and kneeled in front of the jumbled shrub, my hands diving in to push burnt leaves out of way, finally discovering a large metal ball of orange and white leaning on the blue concrete wall. A little cracked and dirty, but seemingly intact.
Oh wait, where’s the head?
Scurrying around on my hands and knees, I felt around the bushes once more, moving along the line of the wall. The twigs were scraping against the skin of my arms, but I was too excited for the possibility of some good news that I ignored the sting they caused.
Unexpectedly my hand struck something hard, pushing the stiff lower branches out of my view to find a domed head dug into the ground. Picking it up, I brushed away some of the dirt, surveying for any obvious damage. Its antennae was crooked, a few deep scratches slicing the metal, but it all seemed fairly superficial. With the head in hand, I strode back to the body unit, beaming with the thought I could ease even a little bit of Poe’s worry.
My delight was swiftly dissolved when setting the pieces together. I’d assumed the magnet would hold and the droid would spring back to life. Instead, the head slipped straight off, sinking into the ground once more with a muffled thud.
Yeah, that seems about right.
*
“I have good news and bad news,” I declared sheepishly as I walked into view of Poe, lugging in a separated BB-8. His face burst into an illustration of relief, then confusion as his brain finally registered the image of his dear friend separated into two pieces, and lifeless.
As I placed the metal components onto the hospital bed at the side of Poe’s leg, he looked up at me. “This is the bad news right?” His hands tentatively checked over the BB unit, attempting what I had done not minutes ago, and watched the head piece slide back over the metal ball and dive into the mattress.
“Um… Actually… This was meant to be the good news,” I grimaced. “The bad news is that my comm-tower was completely flattened by your ship. None of my transmitter tech is going to be able to send out any messages until I can get another one built.”
Poe’s jaw clenched, and I only noticed now the dark stubble that glittered the lower half of his face.
“And when would that be exactly?” he queried sharply. I didn’t like the tone of his voice.
“At least another week if I left now. But I can’t leave you like this, you’re still in critical condition.”
It was obvious he was hiding his frustration, hands scrunched into balls. “They can’t wait that long.”
I scrambled at any answer that might settle him. “I mean, maybe some of the villagers could help, but there’s no guarantee-”
“Then get them to help!” he exploded, making me step back. At seeing the startled look on my face he softened, realising the severity of his demand. “I’m sorry, but this is just… so important. I know you’ve already done more than I could have ever asked of someone, but I still need more of your help. The fate of the galaxy depends on it.” His eyes glistened with hope, a silent plea, sending a cold wave of unease down my spine. He held a bandaged arm out, hand open, reaching toward me.
I didn’t want to be a part of this. It was exactly what I had run from for so long. Even now the immediate urge was to bolt out the front door, leaving behind this stranger who could unravel everything I’d built.
But there was something about the expression on his face, the desperation in his eyes, calling out to me. I was all he had right now. I was his only lifeline to put him back on whatever journey he had been travelling before fate made him, quite literally, crash into me.
“I mean, if the fate of the galaxy depends on it…” I mumbled, placing my hand tentatively in his. “Okay. I’ll help you get back home.”
~
Next Chapter
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jamestrmtx · 3 years
Text
Fairytale Complex - [Undertale | Sans x Reader]
[Gender Neutral, Frisk's Parent Reader | Slow Burn]
Chapter Twenty | Ooo I Ooo I Ooo I Ooo I (Part 2 of 2 | His POV) [First] | [Previous] | [Next]
Song Referenced
• • •
did he give you an exact date?
Unfortunately, no.
At first, I had at least until the end of the year, but…
CPS wants this resolved quicker than he thought.
guessin' you need to finish tourin' the underground first then, right?
Yes.
Would it be possible the day after tomorrow?
Or just… sometime this weekend?
I can go by myself, but…
Asgore won't allow that unless I'm with someone else.
Says I shouldn't be walking so far and so long alone if I haven't recovered yet.
you don't need to go alone, either way.
be it my job or not, I still wanna help out.
so the day after tomorrow's fine with me, bud.
we can discuss those details better when we drive over to tori's school tomorrow.
Are you sure?
And…
Does that 'we' imply you'll be picking us up?
100%
but yeah, i'll drive you guys there.
and pick up paps on the way, too.
it's easier for all four of us.
Mhm.
don't believe me?
Oh, I believe you.
I just don't think that's the only reason why you're picking us up, when I already have the address.
so what's the other one?
Don't get cocky, Serif.
I'm not gonna type that out.
It's a godsend Frisk will be with us, too.
'Cause I sure don't trust being alone with you anymore.
inna bad way?
Nah.
niiice.
pick you guys up tomorrow, then?
Yes.
We'll see you tomorrow.
And thank you in advance.
∆ Sticker | Happy Cartoon Bunny™ waving goodbye ∆
"You've changed, Sans."
He ignores that comment to view (Y/N)'s last two messages again.
While he doesn't know why that particular sticker bothers his mind so much, a few scrolls up to revise his chat history with the human reveal this is the first time they've shown any sort of informality or spontaneity in their typing. (Y/N) came off cold in their texts, though -- based on how they acted outside of a chat app -- that wasn't their intention, but more of an automatic way for them to talk with someone they didn't exactly deem trustworthy enough yet. He grins at that thought and feels his face warm up, something he confirms when touching his cheekbone, cold palm contrasting with that heat.
"You're wasting your time with that human," Drunk Bun says, snapping him out of his daydreaming.
They've sat themselves on the bar stool next to him and slam what looks like their tenth can of cheap, off-brand beer against the counter, crunching it down into more than half its size. He doesn't know how long they've stood there or why he's lost this much awareness of his surroundings. The bar's practically empty and calm now compared to before, though there's loud music blaring from the jukebox, playing an already overplayed song on repeat. There's no excuse for his distracted mind other than having lost himself while texting with the human, so he admits that fault with partial sourness, against accepting he's that smitten with them.
"You're changing for the worse," his company adds, narrowing their eyes at him. "Every time we come here to catch up, you mention something stupid about that (L/N) person, or just text the whole evening away with them. I... I've never seen you worry so much about someone so inconsequential." They scoff and cross their arms tight. "I may understand you caring after Frisk as a way to repay them for rescuing us, but (L/N) is completely useless. They've done absolutely nothing remarkable beyond creating a huge scene at that bus you were both on."
"Being harassed by a rando and faintin' after's them causin' a scene?" Sans asks, quirking an eye socket.
"Oh, screw off, bone boy -- You know what I mean. They've brought you nothing but trouble and needless responsibilities!" The bunny grits their teeth and slams their hand over the table, dragging eyes to their side. "I'm betting you can't go a day without texting them or without you doing something for them."
"You need to-"
Beep-beep.
The phone is snatched from his hands just as quick as that noise rings.
"Give that back."
"No." They keep the phone right above him, taking advantage of his shorter height. "Your fault for not putting a lock on it."
Drunk Bun scoots away and holds the phone tight as they fumble with it. Then, they stop to look at what he assumes is another text message from the human. A grimace shows on their face and they grasp the device tight, enough to make the screen complain and warn them over the pressure they're exerting against it. "Now this is beyond pathetic, Sans," they comment, letting out a loud, burst laugh. "Is this seriously the one you're sacrificing your entire personality for?" They give him his phone back, though not before hesitating when it's time to let go. "That human is-"
"Gimme a sec."
His attention falls on the picture displayed on screen, revealing (Y/N) and Frisk posing in it. The adult wears a suit and tie while the child has Toriel's school uniform on. The former's pose appears forced and awkward while the latter seems to be the reason the picture was taken with how excited they seem about their outfit.
Frisk wanted me to show you this.
It's what we'll be wearing for tomorrow!
There's a three-minute interval between that and the next message.
I know classes still haven't started there, but… They wanted to wear it, so I joined them by trying on something special for, well…
That job offer you told me about.
I don't know if I'll accept or not yet, but…
Thank you for the opportunity, and for believing in me.
∆ Sticker | Happy Cartoon Bunny™ giving a thumbs-up ∆
"You're grossing me out, honestly. What kind of look is that?"
It takes him a while to react, focus glued on (Y/N)'s messages.
"What look?"
"That lovesick look on your face." Tears form on their eyes -- almost abruptly, hadn't their voice shaken right before that. "I- I've been flirting with you for years, and yet you've never once looked at me like that before." They stand up straight, stare down at him, and rest their hands on the table, blinking their tears away throughout. "I've known you for so damn long, and yet you fall for the first human you see up here? I-"
"So that's what this's about," he says, chuckling. "You're-"
"Don't you dare brush everything off as me having a crush on you, Sans." They hiss. "You're not the same as before, and that's as clear as day. You worry a lot more now, and… And you actually seem to care more about other stuff beyond your job and sleeping on it. Y- You-"
"Aren't those good things?"
"Maybe, but your entire personality changing isn't. I liked you better when you were less worked up with stuff that's none of your business." They stop to grab his phone again; a grin breaks the sorrow on their face. "But hey, y- you're just doing your job, aren't you? You should set things straight with that human and remind them you're only with them because Asgore told you to in that agreement letter you gave them."
"Won't work if I flirted with 'em first. Pretty sure they'll see right through my lies."
"Y- You flirted with them first?!"
"Yeah."
He dodges a punch aimed right at his face.
"Wait-"
They throw a second punch -- this one turning out to be a spoof -- and laugh at the sight of him falling for it; they then toss the phone high over his head after he's finished dodging that fake attack, and aim yet another punch right after.
He salvages the device, though at the cost of taking the blow right on his left eye socket.
"How can you admit that so easily? You're awful!"
"'Cause you're only a close friend. I don't owe you an explanation about who I'm dating, and even less if you're gonna be actin' this way."
Drunk Bun springs at him, only to be held back by the rest of the regulars sitting near the scene, sufficiently fast enough for them not to wrangle Sans in anything major. They struggle and thrash at everyone around, trying to break free, but failing each time. It takes a fully-armored guard dog and a buff bear for them to be fought back into their rightful place, and yet another strong monster for them to let go of a wine bottle they insist on downing when seated.
Grillby intervenes as well by warning them to calm down, unless they want to be kicked out. Meanwhile, Sans turns on the camera and looks at his reflection through it, revealing a faint soreness already forming around his eye socket -- right where his companion had punched at. Being primarily made out of bones brought advantages, but having magical properties often led to him bruising easily.
Another regular approaches him and offers him a first aid kit, one he brings back to his seat to heal himself there.
While he takes out an antibiotic and some cotton pads with one hand, he uses the other to busy himself with (L/N)'s messages, against leaving them on read for so long.
no probs.
here at your service.
frisk looks great, btw.
and you? hot. 😘🔥
awkwardly hot.
hotwkward.
Frisk is reading the replies, you know?
damn.
i mean…
darn.
don't tell 'em i said that.
∆ Audio | 0:46 ∆
He clicks on it to hear Frisk giggling along with (Y/N) commenting they won't. It later continues with them asking if he's alright, specifying what they mean by highlighting a picture, this one sent by him. Blurriness makes up most of it when he clicks on it and zooms in, yet he can identify what looks like his companion from earlier, who'd apparently snapped and sent the human a photo by accident.
that's a friend o' mine.
they're, uh, kinda tipsy, so they got inna fight with me.
Really?
Are you okay?
yeah, just a lil' sore where they punched at.
What?!
i'm fine, puddin'.
dw about it.
Where's that bar at?
I'm near the mall, so I can drop by if you need anything.
aren't you still shoppin'?
take it easy.
I'm almost done.
Just trying out one more outfit.
can I see?
👀
Sure.
∆ Attachment | 2 images ∆
To his surprise, they're not only posing much more freely now, but they've also made the effort to strike another pose from a different angle. The human's outfit is composed of a dark green, semi-formal (suit/dress), fit for a night out. They've gone as far as to edit a wink emoji and some hearts at the corner of one -- the most flirty of the two.
So...
What do you think?
*jaw drops to floor, irises pop out of sockets accompanied by trumpets, soul beats out of rib cage, awooga awooga sound effect, pulls chain on train whistle that has appeared next to head as steam blows out, slams fists on table, rattling any plates, bowls or silverware, whistles loudly, fireworks shoot from top of head, pants loudly as tongue hangs out of teeth, wipes comically large bead of sweat from forehead, clears throat, straightens jacket, combs skull* ahem, you look real lovely.
*bwushes* Thank uwu kindwy, handswome. I'm vewy fwattewed.
...frisk ain't there anymore, right?
If they wewe, duwu uwu twhink I'd be twyping wike thiws?
faiw poiwnt.
Anyway…
I noticed the changes you made in that copy-paste, and…
You didn't edit the tongue part out.
So…
What that tongue do, baby?
😳
…lick…
...ice cream.
🔥🔥🔥
Ah, that's hot.
Or should I say cold?
And speaking of cold…
I'm gonna get you an ice pack or something.
You should take care of where it's sore, if you don't want it to bruise more.
whatta way to change the subject away from our moment, puddin'.
but uh, thanks in advance.
Anytime, teddy bear.
uwu
owo
• • •
"Am I really changin', Grillbs?" Sans asks, emptying his beer in three long gulps. "Be honest with me."
The one questioned takes the empty can from his hands and shakes his head in what looks more like disapproval rather than him answering that question. He first warns the skeleton about getting drunk, and reminds him to stay sober if he wants an answer as well as prevent himself from drunk-texting the source of his lovelorn self. When receiving a promise from him in response, he later answers with a 'no' and that he's still the same whenever he came to visit the bar.
"So I'm only different when I'm talkin' about 'em?"
Grillby nods.
"Inna bad way?"
He shakes his head.
"Then…"
Sans is stopped with a hand over his and faced with a stern look, despite the owner of it having no eyes or mouth.
"If they make you happy, then it's alright for you to show it," a regular states, intervening in the conversation. "You're not a lifeless machine. And nobody's one-dimensional either, so you shouldn't force yourself to act the same, strict way all the time. If you want to be all mushy with that human, then so be it. Aren't you the one who always says stuff like 'nothing really matters; in the end, we'll all die'? What's stopping you now of all times? Where's that hardcore nihilist I've known since years ago?
Sans rubs the back of his neck and huffs.
Clearly, neither the regular nor Grillby understood what he truly meant to say with his questions. He didn't mind his relationship with the human, but he also didn't want his old self to be replaced by someone he wasn't, as a result. There were things he didn't want to change about his old self -- things he feared would fade away now that he seemed to be getting into something as complex as a romantic relationship. There were parts of him he needed to keep in case the world were to start over again -- in case something went wrong. He couldn't allow himself to grow soft.
A pat on his shoulder lets him know he's lost himself in those thoughts.
"It's alright to fear change, but don't let that hold you back. If you like that human and they do, too -- Then what's there keeping you from going for it?"
It's not that easy.
Still, he keeps that thought quiet and replies with, "Thanks, but I'll probably have to give that more ti-"
The door of the bar opens to reveal someone new to it, but not so much unknown to Sans, who already finds himself distracted by them. (Y/N) stands in front of the entrance, looking this way and that. Frisk holds on to their hand, while a reusable shopping bag's hung over their parent's arm; a pharmacy's logo and name can be seen stamped on it. The eldest human approaches the area with caution, until their child assures them -- once, twice, and then thrice -- they've been to this place before and that it serves other purposes beyond that of providing alcohol and provoking fights. When they look forward, he meets their eyes and tries to glance away quickly, only to be called out by them soon after. They don't take long to smile wide and bright, wave, and -- finally -- approach his side after he waves back at them.
Rather than giving him whatever's in the bag, they instead let go of Frisk's hand, ask them if they want anything to eat, and give them some money when they sign the word 'fries'. Then, they sit on the stool next to his and settle the bag on their lap. "Come closer, and close your eye sockets," they say, still smiling. "It's your left one, right? It looks really sore already."
He nods and tries to ignore the warmth in his soul when they place a hand over his.
In his favour, they let go of him not long after to disinfect their hands and slip some gloves on when these dry out.
"I-"
"Shh."
(Y/N) holds his chin with their hand and grazes their fingers against his injury, their touch slow and careful as they apply some antibiotic over and around it. They then slide an eye patch on him and assumedly check around for any more bruises, based on the feeling of their hands grazing against his torso, arms, and neck. "The ice pack's in the bag -- Remember to throw it in the freezer when you get home." They touch his chest again, even more gentle this time. "So..." He notices some hesitance when they pull their hand back. "You're not hurt anywhere else?"
He shakes his head, words caught in his throat.
"Alright, but don't look yet."
Doing as told, Sans waits for whatever comes next. He stays still and stiff, until he feels their lips brush close to his eye socket, where they lay a soft, ticklish kiss at. They do the same with his other one and finish it off by kissing his nose cavity.
"Now you can."
[First] | [Previous] | [Next]
• • •
...
......
🌋🔥💥 ANNOYING NOTICE TIME 💥🔥🌋
So, here's a summary of all the events happening this month, which will affect Fairytale Complex's update schedule in various ways:
1. I will be rewriting all my other fics that aren't FaiCom, since I'm pretty darn happy and proud of the new writing style I've developed with this fanfic, and so I want to implement it into my older stories (with the exception of the Tom Nook x Reader one -- I'm rewriting that one despite being recent because it started off as a wild, 3 am energy project after finishing with finals, but then I actually had way more fun than I originally anticipated, so I'll be turning it into a long fic just like this one, lol). This means FaiCom will be taking a short, 1 to 2 week break after Arc 2 (Chapter 25) ends, to dedicate some time to all 4 of these stories.
2. I'm taking extracurricular classes/hobby workshops this summer, so I need to tweak my schedule again. This means FaiCom will be changing its schedule back to the old one, composed of weekly updates on Mondays, Wednesdays, and/or Fridays.
3. As mentioned previously, Pride Month is here, so I'll be making some one-shots and drabbles related to it, meaning updates might be slightly less frequent this month. BUT, a good majority of them are FaiCom related ones (and they will be posted on a different book to avoid conflicting with regular updates, too). More on that later on!
• • •
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rocksandrobots · 3 years
Text
Of Rocks and Robots Ch. 36 - Wrestlers, Boxers, and Ninjas, Oh My (Part 3)
Tumblr media
Gogo fumbled for her phone as it went off on the table near her bed, ringing loudly. She moaned in frustration, still groggy from sleep, as she reluctantly sat up and answered the call.
"Hello?" She yawned.
"Gogo, is Varian with you?" Aunt Cass's voice came through the other end.
"Uh, no," Gogo said, snapping awake, "he left last night about ten thirty or so."  
Sunlight streamed in through the window, indicating it was late morning or near noon, and Gogo couldn't dismiss the growing dread churning in her stomach as she realized something wasn't right.
"Yes, he called about that time to say he was on his way home, so I went on to bed, but I haven't seen him all morning. He was supposed to help out at the cafe today but he never showed up, and his bed doesn't look like it was slept in…. and he isn't answering his phone." Aunt Cass explained as worry crept into her voice. "I don't want to panic but, so far no one's seen him. Hiro stayed up later than I did, which is normal, but he says he never saw Varian come in either. I texted Honey Lemon earlier but she never got back with me."  
Gogo heard the faint sound of snoring below her that told her exactly where her roommate was. "Yeah, she's still asleep. Have you called Fred, or Wasabi yet?"
"No, but Fred was here earlier to see Hiro and he said that he hasn't heard from Varian since last night either."
Gogo took a deep breath to calm her nerves, "Okay, I'll call Wasabi and see if he spent the night at the dorms or something."
"That's a good idea, and I'll call Granville to see if Varian is at the school. I know finals are coming up; he could just be doing some last minute work on his project."
Aunt Cass's voice sounded cheerful, but they both knew that Varian wasn't likely to skip out on his job like that. He took his responsibilities seriously, and after the bot fighting incident, he was pretty diligent about communicating his whereabouts to Aunt Cass as well. But there was no other way to move forward but to explore all their other options first.
So they said their goodbyes and Gogo called Wasabi. Then she called Karmi, and then Carl and Globby. She even called up Carol. No one had seen nor heard from Varian since last night.
                                                   ----------------------
"Mole hasn't seen him either." Fred stated as he finished reading the text on his phone.
They were all gathered at the apartment, trying to debate on what to do.
"And I just talked to Megan. He's not with her either." Hiro added.
"So who haven't we called? What aren't we thinking of?" Wasabi asked.
"I guess we're just going to have to go out and physically hunt for him like last time." Gogo said.
"Yeah, I'll get Baymax to fly around and scan the city. We'll have to pick up our armor from HQ though. I left it there for repairs after our last matchup with Trina."
They all started to file out the door, all except for Honey Lemon who stood next to the kitchen window on her phone.
"You coming?" Gogo asked her.
"Yeah, I'm just trying to call Varian again." She said distractly. She'd been withdrawn all morning since the news hit. Constantly calling and texting same as the rest, but not saying much outside of that.
"Well you can do that on the ride to HQ." Wasabi said and she followed after them, still trying to get through on the phone which just kept ringing.
Once outside on the sidewalk, the phone went to voicemail again. She growled under her breath as she hit the redial button again; unsure what else she could do.
"Hey, you guys hear that?" Fred asked.
"Hear what?"
"Sounds like a phone ringing."
"Well Honey Lemon is on the phone." Gogo pointed out the obvious, getting slightly irritated with Fred.
"I know that. It's not coming from her, It's coming from somewhere over there." He pointed down the sidewalk across the street. He then took off walking that way even as Honey Lemon hung up in frustration.
Fred paused as if listening for something. "Make that phone call again, HL." He yelled to her.
She did, and Fred bolted over to the bus stop across the way.
"I found it!" He shouted as he held up a ringing cell phone high into the air.
They all ran over to him. In his hand he held what looked like Varian's phone but the screen was cracked right down the middle and the back was all scratched up.
"Yeah it's his alright." Fred proclaimed as he went through the phone's contents. "Here's the text he sent me last night about the wrestling tickets."
Everyone exchanged worried faces. Yes, something was definitely wrong here.
                                                  ----------------------
Varian awoke inside a dark room. He tried to move his arms but they were tied behind his back. He tried to stand up or scoot the chair he was seated in but couldn't as it was bolted to the floor.
After a few moments of struggling he tried to calm himself with a few deep breaths. At least he wasn't gagged this time. Though that probably meant whoever took him had him secured in a place where calls for help wouldn't be heard. So he didn't waste his time on that. Instead he tried his best to adjust his eyes to the dim light and see where he was.
It looked like some kind of lab. There were computers over next to one wall; their screens emitting a soft blue light. There was a work desk near him with an assortment of tools and wires scattered upon it, and over in one corner of the room was a 3D printer like the one Hiro had in his lab. Though this one appeared to be far larger and fancier than that one. He also could point out what looked like large pieces of scrap metal and glass here and about the room. There was probably a furnace somewhere for melting it all down but he couldn't see it from the angle he sat at.
As he sat there wondering what all this stuff was for, a door opened on the right side of the room, flooding the space with a stream of light.
"Ah you're awake!" A voice barked and Varian turned his head to see Yama standing there. He was flanked by two men dressed all in black, faces hidden behind masks, and with various weapons tucked in their belts.
'Ninjas' was the word Varian was looking for. He'd seen them in action movies that Hiro and Fred like to watch sometimes. They were supposed to be skilled warriors, like knights or royal guards in his world, but they lacked any sort of heavy armor and used hand to hand combat more often.
Supposedly anyways. You could never be too sure how accurate a film was. But either way Varian didn't fancy his changes fighting them head on; especially while unarmed.
Yama flipped a light switch and Varian blinked rapidly at the sudden change. Once his eyes adjusted again he saw his first assessment of the room being a lab was correct. Not that he had time to really think about that because soon Yama was standing before him blocking his view.
The mob boss bent down till he was eye level to Varian and gave a cruel smile. "Well, well, we meet again. It's a small world after all." His grin became even wider and Varian's stomach dropped. This was about the money from the 'bot fight wasn't, or perhaps Yama still held a grudge over the insults he had cheekily hurled during their match. Either way, Varian sure he was as good as dead. It was funny though, in a way, of all the times he'd come close to death and yet it was here of all places he was going to meet his end.
"You're a smart kid ain't ya?" Yama continued. He picked up a small magnetic ball from off the table. It looked like the ones Sirque used in her portals. "My boss was very impressed by your breakthroughs in portal tech."
Varian raised an eyebrow. So this wasn't about revenge? Then what was it?
"You mean Sirque?" He asked.
"No, not her you nitwit!" Yama rolled his eyes. "The big boss. The one that pays us all. Haven't you been keeping up?"
"You mean the one that was trying to get rid of Momosake?"
"Now you're getting the picture."
"Did she rat me out?"
"Who knows," Yama shrugged, "All I know is that the boss wants to offer you a deal and I'm here to make it."
"You got a strange way of negotiating business." Varian pointed out drly.
Yama smiled again. This was his arena as much as the 'bot fight had been; dirty deals, intimidation tactics, and crooked schemes. He was every bit the stereotypical gangster, right down to the tax evasions and his little black book full of hit lists.
"Look, it's simple," he said as he slipped into his sleazy salesman act, "you build us a portal like the one you made that night. We provide you with all the tools and materials and when done, we let you go on your merry way with a nice fat paycheck."
"While you keep the patent and if I try to claim I'm the original inventor; I can expect to find myself wearing a pair of concrete shows at the bottom of the bay."
Yama chuckled with glee. "You really are a smart kid."
"I've been around." Varian said cooly.
"Then you'll know that if you refuse to take me up on my offer you can expect a fitting for those cement shoes tonight. "
Varian pressed his lips to stop himself from hurling a bunch of vitriol at Yama. Losing his temper right now wouldn't help. But he knew that any promises to release him were empty. Why pay someone off to keep quiet when you could just kill them and pocket the money for yourself?
"Is that what you did to Sirque?" He asked instead.
"Naw," Yama dismissed, "She still works for us. It's just good business to not put all your eggs in one basket, if ya know what I mean."
Varian didn't respond to that but silently eyed Yama up and down like he was a slayer wolf in sheep's clothing.
"Look, I can even call her up if you want." Yama said, sensing the boy's mistrust.
"She can tell you that we're on the up and up. Sirque can even tell you how much the boss pays her, and it's a pretty penny. I should know. I keep the books."
Varian chewed his bottom lip in thought. If Sirque was still around then why did they need him? Was she being held hostage too, or was she more free because she was in on the whole thing from the start? Maybe she hit a roadblock and that's why they needed him. Shoot maybe she was the one who cooked up this whole kidnapping plot to begin with? Who knew what the truth was?
All Varían knew was that he couldn't trust Yama any further than you could throw him, which wasn't far. But he needed to stall if he wanted to keep living.
"Ok, I'll do it."
Yama broke out into a sickening smile once more. "Good, I knew you'd see reason. Boys untie the kid!"
The two ninjas walked over and undid Varian binds. He stood up and rubbed his sore wrists as Yama finalized the terms of their agreement.  
"We should have all the latest toys here that you need to get to work. If something is missing you can let us know and we'll get it for you. We'll bring ya a sandwich or something if ya get hungry and there's a bathroom in the back. Now this is important, so listen up, don't go thinking about escape. No dirty tricks or trying to contact the outside, or the deal is off and well, my two associates here will have to start getting rough. Got it!?"
He pointed at the two ninjas who stealthily took up their positions at either side of the room. Varian quickly darted his eyes about taking stock of the lab once more, noting where the two deadly assassins hired to guard him were placed. Nothing immediately stood out to him as being useful or practical for escape, but perhaps he could build himself something…
"Got it." He nodded and Yama smiled, shook his hand in a forceful manner, and then turned to leave; laughing all the way.
Left alone now, save for his two jailors, Varian got to work.
                                                  ----------------------
"Any luck?" Wasabi asked over the intercom.
"Not yet." Hiro replied as he and Baymax hovered over the city. The robot performed his typical bioscan searching for their missing friend.
"I touched back with Aunt Cass. She's called the police and Cruz is on the case now as well." Gogo chimed in.
"Yeah, well, it looks like he just found something." Fred responded from where he kept watch, right above the trolley stop where Varian was last seen. "Cruz just pulled up to the apartment complex down the street from Gogo and Honey Lemon's place."
"Okay, we'll meet you there." Hiro said as he ordered the rest of the gang to reconvene.
They arrived back at the bus stop just in time to see Officer Cruz and his men dragging El Feugo out of his apartment building.
"Oooh I knew he was up to something!" Honey Lemon shouted, and before her friends could stop her, she took off running towards the arrest in progress.
                                                  ----------------------
"What is the meaning of this!?" The wrestler bellowed. "I demand a lawyer!"
"You'll get one." Cruz said as he forcefully shoved the suspect into the back of the police van. But before he could close the door, he was greeted by one of the Big Hero Six members running up to meet them.
"What did you do to Varian!?" The tall one in pink armor yelled accusingly at the perpetrator.
She had to be held back back by her fellow superheroes, who rushed up to join them, before she could lunge at the man seated in the paddy wagon.
Chief Cruz was not amused.
"This is official police business. Vigilantes are not needed nor welcomed when making an arrest."
"Sorry Officer Cruz," the shortest of the team apologized. "We're just looking for a friend of ours. Did you find him?"
"That's classified information." He said and he turned to leave.
"Please?" The superhero asked again, the desperation in his voice was evident. Cruz ignored him as he finished closing the vehicle door. He then ordered his men to move out, leaving only himself, his deputy, and a few of the forensic team behind as the criminal was hauled away.
The superheroes didn't budge. They wouldn't leave until they heard a straightforward answer from him. Cruz sighed. It looked like he was going to have to drop the niceties and tell the ugly truth.
"No we did not find him." He said as he faced the gang once more. "We got an anonymous tip off that El Fuego was seen with the missing person last night and articles of the victim's clothing were found inside the suspect's apartment when we came to question him. Said suspect is wanted for breaking patrol and we'll be conducting further investigation at the station."
"Clothing?" The green suited hero asked.
As if in answer to this query, some of the forensic people started to load up some of the evidence into their van.
"I have found Varian's goggles." The largest of the heroes said while pointing to one of the sealed bags that they carried; it did indeed contain the aforementioned goggles. He was a very imposing looking figure in his red armor, but his voice sounded very soft and lilting; almost robotic even.
Cruz raised an eyebrow at him, "Got good eyesight, hun?"
"Just his goggles? That's all?" The shortest of the heroes despaired. "But that doesn't make any sense."
"And that's why you're only an amateur." Cruz berated. "Clearly this is more than just a one person job. El Feugo has to be working with someone else and he handed the boy off to them, and who knows how many kids might be involved in such a plot. The more you six keep butting in the more risk you take in tipping off El Feugo's accomplices."
"So you don't think Varian was taken for any specific reasons," the one in yellow stated, "you think he's just the latest victim of a larger scam."
Cruz narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "And why would anyone want to kidnap Varian especially?"
His question went ignored; instead the leader of the group tried to bargain with him.
"Look, we can help you find him, and any other missing kids. Bay--- Red Panda here has bio-scanners and-"
"And where did you get such tech?" Cruz interrupted. The superhero visibly stiffened at that question, clearly unwilling to answer.
"What aren't you telling me?" Cruz continued to press. He was rapidly losing patience with them. "You listen here, this isn't a game. There are lives on the line and I don't have time to play twenty questions. So answer me. What do you know about Varian's disappearance?"
"Nothing…. No more than you do anyways." The short hero responded. "I mean we have some theories but nothing substantial to back them up."
"Theories alone won't save lives," Cruz said. "You need to stay out of this. Leave it to the professionals. Cause I swear to you, if I have to go tell my best friend that I found her child lying dead in a gutter cause you went and hindered an investigation, I will throw the book at you."
This last threat seemed to finally get through to them. Cruz couldn't make out their faces clearly behind the heroes' tinted visors, but he swore he saw the smallest one fighting to blink back tears. He just hoped a stern rebuttal was all that it would take to keep the vigilantes at bay as he entered his police car and drove away; leaving the small group of 'crime fighters' standing forlornly on the sidewalk.
                                                  ----------------------
Varian carefully poured the battery acid out of the dismantled motor and into the glass. He had found it inside an emergency backup generator storaged next to computers. Varian guessed that his captors wanted the option to remain off grid in case they had to lie low from the authorities.
He stalled when a drop of the corrosive chemical spilled onto the table.
"Steady...steady…" He whispered to himself as he readjusted and continued to empty the motor's contents. He desperately wished for a pair of gloves or an apron, or something. The lab he was currently held in was more geared towards engineering and computer programming and sorely lacking in both chemistry sets and safety equipment.
He also didn't know where his goggles went. He figured they got knocked off during the struggle last night. Perhaps not the most pressing of matters at the moment, but the lost still pained him. He had so little left of his old life that he hated to lose anymore.
He finished transferring the acid into the cup and placed the motor down. Then he tried to think of his next step as he raised the glass to better see his handy work.
It wasn't much, but the small amount of liquid would have to do. His only hope was that; one, the ninjas were ignorant of chemistry and two, he could catch them off guard and throw the corrosive contents at them. He prayed that would be distraction enough to get beyond the door and then hopefully make his way to freedom.
It was a pitiful plan, he knew, but he was dealing with limited resources.
It was a plan destined to fail.
One of the ninjas came up from behind him and grabbed his wrist.  
Varian let out a yelp of both pain and surprise. The warrior's grip was strong, more so than normal, and Varian felt like he was caught in a vise.
"Hey, I need that!" He protested as the ninja proceeded to move Varian's hand, and the glass full of acid with it, towards himself. Then without saying a word, the hired assassin used his free hand to grab the bottom of the glass and rip it away from Varian. He then tossed it into the trash nearby.
Well so much for that idea.
The ninja then released him and Varian ruefully tried to rub away the soreness in his wrist.  
"How am I supposed to work like this?" Varian bluffed. "You asked me to build a portal for you and I got to have fuel to power it up, don't I?"
His guard didn't respond and instead took up his position next to the door once more.
Varian rolled his eyes and grumbled under his breath. He was making a show of his displeasure in order to hide the panic rising up within him.
What now? He thought. His eyes scanned the room once more and landed upon the other guard that stood at the opposite end of the room. Varian glared at him; almost challenging the ninja to say or do, well, something , anything.
"Can I get that sandwich y'all promised?" He sarcastically asked. But still neither of his captors said anything.
It was unnerving the way they never talked. It didn't help that their masks covered their whole face either. Varian supposed it was made of some sort of mesh that allowed the wearer to see out but from his point of view it just looked like they didn't have a face at all. It was just a formless black void where the eyes and mouth should have been.
That was probably the point; an intimidation tactic while also allowing them to keep their anonymity. Didn't stop him from being creeped out by them though.
Varian sighed deeply in resignation. His usual tricks just weren't going to help him here, and there was no way he could fight off both of them. He was way out matched, he knew.
So I guess there's nothing to it but to give Yama what he wants. Varian thought. Then another realisation struck him. "That's it! I'll make him portal alright!" He yelled to no one in particular. Let the guards hear him. All he was going to do was precisely what was asked of him, and it was going to be brilliant.
                                                  ----------------------
The Big Hero Six gang huddled upon a rooftop as they discussed what to do next.
"It just doesn't make sense." Fred said as he rubbed his chin in thought. He was perched on top of the ledge, looking for all the world like a gargoyle come to life. "El Fuego only ever cared about proving himself the best fighter. Why would he suddenly start abducting people?"
"Didn't you hear officer Cruz?" Wasabi replied."Someone else must have paid him to do it. He's just in it for the money."
"No, no, that still doesn't add up." Fred shook his head. "He just got back into wrestling. He shouldn't need the money, and why would he risk losing his dream job by committing a felony? Not to mention just leaving an article of your victim's clothing right there in your apartment, now that's just sloppy… amateurish even."
"Well no one said El Fuego was the brightest bulb in the box." Hiro chimed in as he read Baymax's latest scan readings.
"What are you getting at Fred?" Gogo asked.
"It smells like a setup to me." Fred answered. "It's a classic frame job. Just plant the evidence in the poor sap's apartment in order to throw the cops off your own trail."
"You can't be serious," came Honey Lemon's sardonic retort.
Everyone looked at her in surprise. She had been silently stewing over in the corner since they parted ways with the police. Now she was glaring daggers right at Fred as she crossed her arms and drummed her fingers.
No one ever knew what to do when Honey Lemon got angry about something. It was such a rare occurrence, like an ice storm in May. Sure, it technically could happen and has before, but you're never expecting it when it does.
Fortunately Fred was spared her chilly wrath when Gogo's phone rang.
"Hello? Yeah, hold on." She removed the phone from her ear. " It's Carl." She said as she pressed the speaker button.
"Hey, I just heard about El Fuego's arrest." Carl's voice rang out. "Did the police find anything?"
"No." Hiro told him. "They think he was working for someone else but they don't know who."
"I might know," Came Carl's weary response. "Some old associates of mine contacted me about a job. I told them I wasn't interested, but they then started asking about Varian. I thought they were trying to recruit him into their gang, and in no uncertain terms, I told them to leave the kid alone or risk losing their spleens. But it's starting to look like my words fell on deaf ears." He gave a heavy sigh. "Look, Globby and I are at Good Luck Alley right now doing some snooping. I don't wanna say too much over the phone in case anyone is eavesdropping. Why don't you meet us somewhere more secure?"
"We could meet you back at the apartments." Gogo suggested.
"Sounds good. I'll see ya there in a few, then." He then hung up.
As everyone made ready to leave, Hiro spotted the police van carrying El Fugeo stop at a red light beneath them.
"You guys go ahead and meet up with Carl. Baymax and I are going to go interrogate our westling friend down there before he gets to the station."
"I'm going with you." Honey Lemon said.
"Alright. As soon as you learn anything, call us and we'll do the same." Hiro ordered as he and Baymax flew down to meet the armored vehicle with Honey Lemon following closely behind.
                                                  ----------------------
El Fuego felt the police van rock wildly as something heavy landed on the vehicle's roof. Then a green substance started to seep through the ceiling in a bubbling ring; eating away at the metal like acid. Suddenly a strong arm punched the deteriorated circle and the metal clattered to the floor as three members of Big Hero Six swooped in.
"Where's Varian!?" The tall woman growled as she snatched him by the shirt collar and practically lifted him off the ground.
"I don't know." The wrestler insisted.
"You were with him last night and the police found his goggles in your apartment." The shortest superhero said. "Please, we just want to find him, and if you know anything at all about where he might be you need to tell us before he gets hurt."
El Fugeo gave a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I know something. But I'm not the one who kidnapped him! I don't play that game."
"Then who did?" The short superhero pressed.
"Yama. Two of his goons approached me last night before the show about 'a job'. I told them I wasn't interested and that I had a fight to win. Turns out they were after the kid. What for, I don't know, but I had just met him earlier that day. He happens to be a  fan of mine.  Well I wasn't about to let one of my fans get accosted, was I? So I walked him and his girlfriend to the bus and saw them safely home. It was easy to, since they didn't live far from me.  I even gave them a couple of tickets to tonight's match, just so that I could keep an eye on them. I figured if Yama's paid thugs showed up I could scare them off ya know."
The heroes frowned. "You mean you were trying to help?" The short one asked. "Then why didn't you contact the police?"
"Oh sure, with my record? I'm trying to keep out of jail, remember? Also how was I to know the chump would leave his girl's apartment in the middle of the night? Geez that aunt of his must be one chapada a la antigua, am I right?"
He wasn't sure what he had said wrong, but El Fuego found himself being roughly shoved back into his seat as the tall woman angrily flung him away from her grasp. Then without another word she jumped out of the vehicle the way she had come, her special boots springing her upwards at a height most normal people could never achieve.
The other two followed after her.
"Hey wait!" He called out and the short superhero stuck his head back down to see what the wrestler wanted. "I...I hope you find him." He sincerely said.
The superhero nodded. "Yeah, me too." The crack in his voice was evident even to El Fugeo.
                                                  ----------------------
Hiro joined Honey Lemon and Baymax on the nearest rooftop.
Honey Lemon stood stock still, her hands clenched into fists, as she watched the police van leave.
"He's such a jerk!" She suddenly fumed.  
"Yeah, you're right, he is," Hiro agreed, "but he's also innocent."
Honey Lemon looked at him in surprise, but Hiro pressed on.
"I think he's telling the truth. His story confirms what Carl said earlier and we both know Yama would have reasons to kidnap Varian. I think El Fuego was legitimately trying to help, in his own annoying way."
Honey Lemon opened her mouth to retort but nothing came out as she racked her brain for a counter argument. She then sobbed as she flopped down on the ledge and pulled her helmet off.
"But doesn't it make you angry?" She cried. "Varian's still missing and that… that creep , he… ooooh.." She couldn't even form words through her rage.
"I'm too scared to get angry right now." Hiro quietly admitted.
This stopped Honey Lemon from launching into another rant. Instead she gave him a pout as she blinked back tears.
"Our only hope right now," Hiro continued, "is that Yama nabbed him because that crime boss he works for wanted Varian' s portal tech, and not, you know, for revenge. Cause if this is about the money he lost in the bot fight then… then Varian could already be seriously hurt." He sighed and took a seat next to Honey Lemon. "Maybe Cruz is right. Maybe we're only making things worse."
"Y-you can't mean that."
"What happens to Varian if that crime lord figures out we're on to him? Hun? What happens if Yama knows we're involved, cause he hates us too.  Or, you know, maybe it's our fault for giving Varian that portal tech in the first place! O-or if we hadn't chased Mr. Sparkles down when he stole that first portal, then the two wouldn't have reconnected and Varian could be back safe in his world an-"
"Stop it." Honey Lemon said softly. She locked eyes with Hiro. "Stop blaming yourself for things you can't control. You had no idea that this would happen. No one did, and you are not responsible for what Yama does."
Hiro reflected on her words but didn't respond. She was right, he knew, but that didn't stop the guilt bubbling in his chest.
"Also Varian's world is even more dangerous than this one." She went on. "So it's a good thing he came here and met us. That's why we're going to bring his father here once he gets the portal working. Which he will, I'm sure. So will find Varian, rescue his dad, and then we'll all be together. Everyone will be safe and we'll all live happily ever after!"
She flashed him her usual cheerful smile, but it quickly faded as she noted Hiro's mournful eyes.
"C-cause after all, no one deserves to lose as much as we have." She uttered as if trying to convince herself more than anything. "Surely the universe isn't that cruel."
Both teens sat in silence for several minutes as Baymax continued his bioscan of the city.
"There's an incoming call coming from Gogo." The robot announced.
"Yeah, put her on speaker." Hiro said.
"Hey," the other girl's voice rang out, "Carl and Globby found a lead."
"Where?"
"Down by the docks. Meet us at Ryōshi Warf."
"Okay. We're on our way."
                                                  ----------------------
"So, how's things going?" Yama bellowed as he slammed the door to the lab open.
Varian visibly jumped at the intrusion but quickly gathered his wits about him. 'Never let your captor know how scared you really are of them', was a lesson Varian had to learn the hard way back in prison.
"It's going well." He said eveningly. "In fact I was just about to do a test run. Would you like to watch?"
Yama cocked a grin. This was going better than he had planned. He had originally expected the inventing process to take at least a few days, and probably would have required some more 'persuasion' tactics to go with it. But nope, the kid had finished in record time and was being very cooperative. The boss would be very pleased if Yama could show up tomorrow with a working portal. You know, after, he 'test ran' it on a few banks first.
"Alright, lets see it kid. Whatcha got?"
Varian picked up a remote control off the table and scooped up the magnetic balls that had belonged Sirque. The whole set up was similar to his first go at a portable portal, back when he and his friends had faced off with the acrobatic thief. However, this time he had built a computer interface into the remote instead of the more simple dial he had originally used. He had also programmed ways to gauge the velocity and temperature of the portal to keep it from overheating like last time.
"Okay, pick a place." He told the mob boss. "Though it needs to be within city limits since this is a short range test."
Yama rolled his shoulders and pursed his lips in thought. "Hmm… try the abandoned fisherman's warehouse on Canary street. I was thinking of making that a new bot fighting arena. We could check it out real quick."
Varian tried to slow his racing heart as he entered the coordinates. He had only one shot at this.
He then threw the magnets into the air and flipped a switch on the remote. The balls began to spin in the air as they linked up and a portal began to form.  
It came out right next to the warehouse.
"Haha! Good work kid!" Yama laughed as he good naturedly slapped Varian across the back. He nearly stumbled from the force, but righted himself quickly as Yama walked through the portal.
The mobster then turned around towards him and beamed. "Now we gotta hit up some banks! Can you make a portal inside a safe or better yet, inside a jewelry store?"
"Sure thing." Varian lied as he went and flipped the switch off on the remote. The portal promptly closed, leaving Yama stranded on the docks.
The ninjas immediately started to close in on Varian.
"Woah, woah, no need to get angry. It was just an accident. Look, the coordinates are still set. All I have to do is turn the portal on again and he can come back. See?"
Varian held up the remote so that his jailors could read the screen for themselves. They paused in their tracks, though one still loomed threateningly over him. He gulped as he flipped the switch once more.
The magnets floated back up into the air of their own accord and then proceeded to spin again. However this time the portal opened up over on the opposite side of the warehouse, back behind the street.
Varian steeled himself as he made a fist.
"This biggest, ugliest, bully you can think of."
He recalled Carl's advice as he swung with all his might and punched the ninja nearest to him in the jaw.
There was a sickening, unnatural crunching sound that Varian didn't want to think too hard about as he jumped through the portal.
Once through he quickly switched the remote off.
He turned around, and to his horror he saw the other ninja following after him through the rapidly shrinking portal.  Varian tried to call out a warning to him, but it was too late. The portal closed, cutting off the ninja's right arm.  But it wasn't blood that spilled from the wound. Instead electricity sparked from severed wires as the relentless robot stalked towards Varian.
"Oh no."
                                                  ----------------------
"I have found Varian." Baymax calmly stated.
The robot had never ceased running his bioscanners throughout the day. While his humans discussed strategy, he had kept a lookout on the edge of the pier as he scanned the boardwalk and docks.
"Wait. Really?" Hiro hopefully asked.
"Way to go Baymax! Alright!" Fred cheered and offered the droid a customary high five.
"Where is he?" Gogo asked.
"Over there, at the abandoned warehouse." He dutifully replied.
                                                  ----------------------
They found Yama outside talking on his cellphone as they approached the fishing warehouse.
"Listen up! I need you bozos to bring a car around and pick me up. I'm at the doc-"
"You're not going anywhere!" Wasabi said as the heroes surrounded the villain.
Honey Lemon threw some of her chimballs at him and a purple substance encased Yama's feet pinning him in place.
"Where's Varian?" Gogo asked, but before the mobster could answer Baymax chimed in.
"Varian is that way." He pointed towards the warehouse once more.
Yama looked confused. "I left the kid at the hideout. He shouldn't be here."
"Wasabi, Fred, stay with Yama and keep a lookout." Hiro said. "See if you can get any more information out of him while you're at it. Gogo and Honey Lemon, check the building. I'm going to fly up with Baymax and see if we can pinpoint Varian's location better."
                                                  ----------------------
Varian ran, but his pursuer was close behind. He knew he couldn't out run the robot, but there was little else to do.  He dodged a shuriken as it whizzed through the air and dove down the nearest alley.
Dead end.
He turned to face his attacker; casting his eyes about desperately looking for anything to defend himself with. He found nothing.  
The faceless android strode forward without remorse and Varian did the only thing he could. He threw up his fists, planted his feet, and took up the defensive position Carl had taught him.
The robot threw its last shuriken and Varian ducked to miss it. He then quickly stood back up just in time to block a blow from the deadly droid.
It hurt, but not as much as a busted nose would have. He then blocked a second punch, and then a third.
The ninja fell back and decided to give a roundhouse kick instead. Varian flopped down to avoid it and the robot's foot lodged itself into the brick wall.
Varian took this as an opportunity to kick back from where he sat on the ground. It wasn't nearly as graceful nor as strong as his opponent's had been but it managed to knock the android off balance anyway.
That was when Baymax and Hiro arrived.
Varian nearly cried with relief as the larger robot shot out his rocket punch and sent the fake ninja slamming into the wall before it shortcurited and crumbled up into a heap.
Hiro tore off his helmet. "Are you alright?"
"I think-" before he could finish the younger teen grabbed into a tight hug. "...so."
Varian stared down at the other boy, waiting for him to let go, but he didn't relinquish his grip. That's when Varian noticed that Hiro was crying.
"Hey, it's okay. I'm okay. Honest." Varian awkwardly said as he tried his best to comfort the other kid.
Hiro sniffled and tried to compose himself before letting go. "Baymax, do a scan." He ordered.
"You appeared to have suffered no major injuries. However traumatic events can cause psychological stress. I recommend talking with your ther-"
"It's okay Baymax." Varian interrupted. "I'm fine. Thank you, though."
"Then I am also glad that you are alright." The robotic nurse opened his arms wide and gave Varian a hug as well. "There, there." It said as it patted his head and Varian had to stifle a laugh.
"We better meet up with the others." Hiro said.
                                                  ----------------------
There were more hugs waiting for Varian when they rejoined the rest of the gang on the docks. Honey Lemon in particular just about squeezed all the air out of his lungs.
"So let me get this straight?" Fred asked, "You got to fight off a robot ninja!?"
"Two of them."
"Awe, I am so jelly!"
"So what do we do about Yama here?" Wasabi asked.
Hiro walked up to the mob boss and started to interrogate him "Who's this Bosu?"
"I'm not squealing." Yama said. "I know my rights, and you armored droks ain't cops."
"Well okay then," Gogo taunted. "I guess we'll just call the cobs and leave you to them."
Yama made a displeased face but still said no more.
"We'll drop you off at the police station, Varian." Hiro said. "You can tell Cruz about El Fuego's innocence and he'll take you home. Gogo phone ahead and let the police know where Yama is. You and Wasabi can stay behind and guard him till they arrive."  
"Got it."
"Honey Lemon, will you let Carl and Globby know what's going on. Tell them they can call off the search."
She hummed her acknowledgement.
"What about me?" Fred asked.
"You wanna take Minimax and do tonight's patrol?" Hiro asked.
"On it." He saluted.
And with that Hiro and Varian hopped on Baymax's back and flew away.
                                                  ----------------------
Aunt Cass was waiting for Varian when he and Chief Cruz pulled up. He barely made it through the door of the cafe before she flung herself at him and asked him a million and one questions.
Where had he been? What happened? Was he hurt? Was he hungry? Did they need to call the doctor? And so on and so on…
Varian answered them as best he could, conveniently leaving out Hiro's involvement.
"Well looks like my job here is done." Cruz said as he took his leave.
"Thank you Diego. I don't know what we would do without you." Aunt Cass said.
"Naw, don't mention it. I'm just doing my duty, besides Varian's quick thinking is what got him out of that mess. It's a good thing you're talking self defense classes at the gym. I always recommend young people should know self defense of some kind."
They then exchanged goodbyes and Cruz left.
"And you didn't want me to learn boxing." Varian teased.
However Aunt Cass only looked at him with tearful eyes.
"What is it?"
She sighed. "How does one boy find himself in so much trouble so often?"
Varian felt his cheeks flush and he lowered his eyes. He waited on another lecture, but it never came.
"I know, it's not your fault." She said as she lifted his face. "It's just…so… so… bizzare. You escape one death trap only to fall right into another." She blinked in bafflement. "Am I doing something wrong?"
"Noooo, no, of course not. It's not your fault either that Yama's a jerk."
"But I'm supposed to protect you." She insisted and then pressed her forehead against his.
"And you're doing great at it." Varian said as he pulled away to look her in the eye.
"You could say that again." Hiro proclaimed as he came down stairs to join them.
Aunt Cass gave them both a grateful smile before scooping them into a family group hug.
                                                  ----------------------
"List Newton's Three Laws of Motion." Honey Lemon read off the study sheet in her hand.
"Every object in a state of uniform motion will remain in that state of motion unless an external force acts on it.
Force equals mass times acceleration.
For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." Varian rattled off.
He had only heard of Isaac Newton upon coming to this world, but the famed alchemist's theories and equations weren't too far off from Varian's on calculations. Turns out that he only predated the physicist by about ten years.
"Annd that's it. We're done with the practice test." Honey Lemon said.
"Woot!" Varian cheered and threw his arms up in the air. "How did I do?"
"You got every question right, except for Einstein's birthday."
Varian curled his lip in irritation. "It's a physics exam, not a history test."  
This only sent Honey Lemon into a fit of giggles. It was good to hear her laughing again. He hadn't seen her smile since the wrestling match two days ago, but she had cheered up considerably since then and now they were back in her apartment resuming their studies.
"Do you wanna break for lunch?" He asked.
"Sure."
                                                  ----------------------
They found their friends all at Joe's Diner. Including, Carl, Globby, and El Fuego.
"Ah if it isn't my fans!" The wrestler called out.
Varian stiffened and gave Honey Lemon a side glance. But the other girl just continued to smile, and was a genuine smile at that.
"Hi." She sang as she walked over to join everyone and Varian allowed himself to relax.
"Globby here was just telling us about his newest passion project." Wasabi explained as they sat down.
"I call it the S.R.S." Globby excitedly went on. "The Supervillain Reform School! It'll be a support group for former villains and convicts trying to get back up on their feet and reenter society. What do ya think?"
"I think it's a great idea." Hiro chimed in.
"Yeah and if you need any help let us know." Honey Lemon added.
"And I'll be the first graduate, hey amigo." El Fuego laughed as he playfully nudged Globby in his non-existent ribs.  
"Oooh I smell a former super villain turned heroes team up in the air!" Fred said as he practically vibrated with excitement.
Carl chuckled, "Well I don't know about that, but it'll be a great way to give back to the community and help out some of the younger folks who keep getting dragged into the constant turf wars around here. Hopefully give them some opportunities besides taking dirty deals from Yama and whatever new crime lord pops up each month."
"That's really cool of you guys." Gogo said.
Varian agreed, in fact the whole idea intrigued him immensely. "Do ya need any extra members? You know just to get the ball rolling."
"Sure!" Globby exclaimed. "The more the merrier! You can help Carl out with the youth outreach!"
"Glad to have ya on bored buddy." Carl said as he gave a Varian a fist bump.
"Well then I propose a toast to the new S.R.S.!" Honey Lemon cheered as she raised her milkshake up and everyone followed suit.
                                                  ----------------------
An ancient hand drummed it fingers upon the mahogany desk in irritation.
Of course that idiot Yama got himself captured.
Time for a new plan.
                                                  ----------------------
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twomoonstwosuns · 4 years
Text
sick day.
back to you [series masterlist]
previous part · next part
pairing: professor!poe dameron x reader
warnings: swearing, smut in a dream (18+), heavy amounts of fluff
word count: 4.0k
a/n: i’m sorry for the delay, it’s been a weird week. i hopefully won’t make you wait as long for the next part. this is kind of a filler chapter, but i hope you guys enjoy it still! the poe dameron x reader tag hasn’t been working so if you’re missing updates, blame Tumblr. 
also thank you @dameronsgalaxygal for helping me when i was stuck <3
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“Baby, fuck you feel so good.”
Poe gripped your hips, sliding you to the edge of his desk and sliding his cock into you. The hand on the back of his neck tightened, grabbing some of his curls in its grasp at the intrusion. Your mouth was on the base of his neck, decorating it with different sized bruises. One particular bite to his pulse with a tight clench of your pussy made him groan loudly and you quickly pulled his mouth down to yours with a tug of his tie.
“Do we have to worry about you being loud?” You breathed heavily. Poe lifted your legs higher up on his waist, the new angle allowing him to drive deeper into you. A loud gasp left your lips as your eyes fluttered closed and a smirk crossed his face. He leaned down to your ear, taking the shell of hit in his mouth. 
“You know what I’ve thought about?” He said lowly, his breath hot against your ear as he slowed his thrusts. You gave a quiet, strangled moan as a response as he bit down on it. “Taking my tie, tying you up. Completely at my mercy.”
His hand was on the side of your neck, his thumb slowly rubbing up and down the front of your throat. You were a trembling mess, the thought of him putting just a little more pressure there enough to make you come hard right on the spot. 
“I could—fuck yes, Poe—get into that.” Poe’s mouth covered yours, swallowing the sounds coming from you. You giggled against his lips as an item fell off of his desk from the harsh movement against it. 
A knock on his office door made you both freeze, horrified looks on your faces as you looked at each other and then at the door. 
“Just a sec!” Poe yelled before dropping his voice to a whisper. “Get under my desk.”
You both scrambled as quietly as you could, pulling your pants up and fixing your shirts. You tucked yourself underneath his desk, feeling very grateful for the backing on the front of the desk. Poe tamed his hair the best he could as he unlocked his door and opened it, immediately greeting the person on the other side. 
“Ackbar, how are you?”
“I’m good, I’m good, I just wanted to run something by you.” Ackbar said, nodding towards the door handle. “Who are you trying to keep out, Dameron?”
His tone was suggestive, but Poe shut it down with a shake of his head. “Some of my students like to barge in and hang out in here because of my very lenient open door policy and I have several phone calls I’m taking today. Including one in five minutes, so you have to make it quick.”
Ackbar left the door open as he sat down across from Poe’s desk. Poe sat back in his chair, scooting all the way in so his entire lower half was underneath the desk to shield you. 
“So, what’s up?” Poe spoke, providing cover for the movement you were making under his desk to make room for his legs. 
“What do you think about forgoing a final exam for anyone who’s averaging a C in the class?” Ackbar asked. “I mean, if they want to take the final to try and raise their overall grade they can, but if they fail it’ll count against them.”
Poe squirmed in his seat as he felt your hands on his thighs, rubbing slowly and traveling higher. His leg hit the underside of his desk when he felt the vibration of his zipper being slowly pulled down, which he told Ackbar was a muscle spasm. 
“You’re teaching two hundred freshman over four lectures, you sure you want to do that?” Poe said slowly, the attempt to keep his voice level and controlled extremely difficult. 
“It’s definitely less grading for me to do, but I was also thinking that—“
Everything Ackbar was saying was going in Poe’s ear and right out the other as the soft skin of your hand made contact with his cock, applying firm pressure and pumping him. He wasn’t entirely soft yet and a few strokes of your hand brought him back to fully hard. He coughed to cover the groan that almost erupted from him. 
“Here’s my opinion,” Poe said, interrupting Ackbar, sucking in a breath as your thumb brushed over the head of his cock. “I’d do it for seniors but freshman? They’ll most likely take the easy way out and skip it. Don’t let them settle for mediocre grades. Not one of them will willingly take the final.”
“Alright, you’re right.” Ackbar put his hands up in surrender. Poe felt his cock start to tighten up, the thought of coming in your hand under the desk with Ackbar just a few feet away stoking a fire inside him. Instead, Poe felt you carefully tuck him back in his pants and skillfully disguised the deep groan he let out as one of agreement. “You catching the game later?”
“I’m going to try.” Poe looked at his watch. “Sorry man, I have to take a call in a minute.”
“No worries,” Ackbar stood up, Poe doing the same and straightening his shirt so it covered more of his groin area as he walked towards the door. “You wanna grab a beer at Maz’s later? Watch the game?”
“Yeah, sounds good.”
Ackbar shook Poe’s hand and patted him on the back. “Have fun with those calls. Take it easy, Dameron.”
As soon as the door shut and the lock clicked, Poe let out an exasperated laugh. You crawled out from under his desk laughing so hard that you had to lean against his desk to keep yourself from falling over. Poe came around to his desk again, laughing as he plopped back into his chair.  
“I can’t believe you did that,” he said in disbelief, though the smile on his face said he wasn’t the least bit upset about it. 
“Exhilarating though.” You leaned down and pecked his lips, your hands going back to his pants and unbuckling them for the second time as you got on your knees. 
“Let me finish what I started.”
Poe woke with a jolt as a cough rocked through him, groaning at the congested pain it left behind in his chest. His eyes screwed shut and his groan grew louder at how turned on he felt at that moment, knowing he had no energy to take care of it and no energy to enjoy you taking care of it for him. Poe looked up just as you came in, a cup of water in one hand and a sleeve of crackers in the other. You set the items on his nightstand and sat on the edge of his bed, rubbing his back. 
“You ok?”
“No,” he said, shoving his head into the pillow. “I was having a good dream about you.”
“Oh yeah?” Poe pushed his hips into the mattress, looking for relief. You stifled a laugh. “Oh, that kind of dream. Do you want me to help you out?”
“No, ‘m too tired.”
You leaned down to his ear, your voice lowering. “You know, I have those dreams about you too.”
Poe reached over and squeezed your thigh. “Y/N…”
“Baby…” you mocked his whine. Poe shivered and you saw goosebumps appear on his skin. You placed your hand against his forehead and then the cheek that wasn’t resting on the pillow. “You might have a fever, do you have a thermometer?”
“I don’t think so.”
You went into his bathroom and looked for anything that would help. You found some ibuprofen and you helped him sit up enough to swallow them. Pulling the blanket up around him, you leaned down and kissed his head. 
“Sleep. I’ll be in the living room if you need me.”
You left the door opened a crack, enough to hear if he needed you and for Beebs to come and go as he pleased. He was already snoring by the time you got to his kitchen to make yourself a cup of tea. 
You knew Poe wasn’t feeling great when you talked to him the night before and you were surprised when you got an email saying he was canceling class. In the two semesters worth of classes you’d had with him, he’d never canceled a class without notice. You skipped your last class of the day and went straight to Poe’s. He tried to argue with the very little energy he had that you didn’t have to skip class to take care of him, but the minute you got him to lay in bed, he was completely submissive. 
Your phone vibrated in your pocket with an incoming call and you grabbed it to see it was Jessika calling. 
“I’m at the grocery store, do you need anything?”
“Actually yeah, do you mind picking up some things to make soup and dropping them off at Poe’s? He’s sick and he has nothing here to help him feel better.”
“Yeah you bet, send me a text?”
“I will. I’ll send you his address too. Text me when you get here.”
“No problem, see you in a bit.”
You tossed your phone onto the table and grabbed your backpack, setting yourself up on his couch. You had a long list of things that needed to get done, midterms coming up quicker than you were prepared for. You also had to order your robe for graduation so you had time to get it hemmed if needed. But an assignment that was due the next day required your immediate attention. You opened your book and you’re notebook and dove right in. 
Fifteen minutes later and you’d read the same paragraph four times. You alternated between staring at your book and tapping your pen against the page to staring to scrolling through apps on your phone. There was no motivation to do anything productive. What you really wanted to do was curl up with Poe under his blankets and just sleep, but you were already risking getting sick by being there and cuddling with him would pretty much guarantee it. Throwing your stuff aside, you walked over to the shelves that lined Poe’s living room, seeing if there was maybe a book he had that would be far more interesting than reading about marketing and trade shows. You looked through all the titles of his books, some maybe’s coming to your head when you spotted a picture frame stuck between a book and the back of the shelf. You carefully moved the book, grabbing the picture frame and wiping the dust off of the glass. 
He looked just like her. Thick and curly raven-hair sat on top their heads. They shared the same eyes, deep brown like milk chocolate, though hers were just a bit lighter. Their smiles matched, easy and laidback like it took no effort at all. You recognized the ring on her finger as the one worn around Poe’s neck. In the picture, Poe was mid-laugh as his mother carried him on her back, his tiny arms wrapped around her neck and his head against hers. You felt a pang of guilt in your chest. The way Poe talked about her and seeing the picture that you found, they were clearly very close. You couldn’t even begin to imagine how devastated Poe must’ve been when she passed. 
Poe had said he’d forgiven you for what you said, but you still hadn’t forgiven yourself. If you were being honest with yourself, you didn’t know if you’d be able to. 
Your phone vibrated in your hand, the message telling you that Jessika had arrived. You told her the code to enter the building and a few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. 
“Thank you so much for doing this,” you said as you opened the door, immediately taking the bag from your roommate. 
“No problem at all.”
Jessika looked around behind you, her eyes curious. You chuckled and held the door open.
“Come on in.”
“Inside a professor’s apartment,” Jessika said as she stepped in. She looked around the room when Beebs came up and jumped on her. You tried to apologize and tell Beebs to stop but Jessika just leaned down and picked him up. 
“Ah, the infamous Beebs,” she laughed as he licked her face. “You really are cute, aren’t you?”
You stepped into the kitchen and put a couple bottles of gatorade in the refrigerator, leaving out the ingredients to start making soup with and digging around the cupboards for the items you’d need to make it. 
“So, what’s he sick with?” Jessika asked. 
“A cold from what I can tell. He doesn’t have a thermometer so I don’t know if he has a fever.”
“How’s he doing?”
You sighed heavily. “Poe’s amazing and wonderful in many ways, but he is still a man who thinks he’s dying because he has a cold.”
“You hear that, Beebs?” Jessika said in Beebs’ pointed ear. “He’s got a man-cold. And they’re supposed to be the superior sex.”
“Yeah, supposed to be.”
Beebs wiggled in her arms and she let him down, watching him walk off. You watched Jessika laugh quietly at the adorable dog before looking back around the apartment, giving a small nod of approval. 
“Hey Jess?” You spoke quietly, your voice hesitant and unsure. You walked over to Jessika, who had been looking at you with a questioning look. “I’m sorry.”
Jessika opened her mouth to speak and you put a hand up. “I’m sorry for being a bitch, for treating you like shit, and taking forever to forgive you. You said things and I said things and even though what you said hurt, it doesn’t mean you’re a terrible person and I’ve been treating you like you were. And I’m really sorry.”
“You don’t have to be sorry.” Jessika replied and you shook your head. 
“Yes, I do.”
“Well, I forgive you then. Because I’ve missed you.”
Holding your arms out, Jessika met you in a tight hug. You really had missed her too. She had been there for you when she didn’t have to be, and thinking back you were surprised she was because you felt you had treated her like shit. Beebs jumping up on both your legs trying to be included in the hug tore you apart, Jessika leaning down and scratching his ears. 
“When we’re done with school and all that and it’s fine for you guys to be in public together, I’d really love to sit down with Prof—Poe.” Jessika said, the use of his first name foreign on her tongue but the effort graciously appreciated by her friend. “You know, get to know him. As one of your best friends, it is my job to tell him that if he hurts you I’ll destroy him.”
You chuckled. “I’m sure we could arrange that if you really want to. I’ve met his friends, seems only fair that he gets to know mine.”
“Exactly!” Jessika said. “Alright, I have to get going. I’ll see you later?”
“Yeah, I have class a 7:45a.m and he needs to sleep, so I’ll be back later tonight.”
Jessika squeezed your shoulder as she passed and you thanked her once more before she left. You set to work, setting up everything you’d need and pulling up the recipe saved on your phone. 
Chopping vegetables in your boyfriend’s kitchen was oddly domestic, like you were waiting for him to come home from work and you were cooking dinner. You wondered what you would be doing at that very moment had you not pursued your professor that Halloween night. Would you have given Ben another chance? Would you be in a relationship at all? You pondered the what if’s, yet each scenario couldn’t bring you to the level of happiness that was your reality. You really thought you had lost it all during that fight and you would never go another day without being grateful to Poe for forgiving you.
As you added all the ingredients together, your mind went to the dark place you tried so hard to push to the back of your mind. Graduation was just two months away. What was going to happen after your relationship graduated and the lease for your apartment was up and you moved back home? Poe certainly didn’t act like he would dump the relationship just because you were done with school, but you couldn’t help but think that way. You copped it up to having developed a small fear of abandonment, no doubt thanks to the sudden departure of your father. 
Slow, heavy footsteps filled the empty silence as you adjusted the temperature on the cooker. Poe slid his arms around your waist, his chin resting on your shoulder.
“You didn’t sleep very long,” you said.
“Can’t sleep anymore. Smells good,” Poe mumbled, leaning into you to see what was in the cooker. You gently bumped your head against his. 
“I’m glad you can smell,” you said. “It’s my grandma’s recipe. My mom used to make it for Tallie and I when we were sick. It’s done now, eat some. You need to eat.”
You moved around each other, him scooping up soup and you grabbing him something to drink. 
“Did I have all of this stuff?” Poe asked, looking at all the ingredients he could see in the soup as he walked to sit on the couch. 
“No, Jessika dropped off stuff. You have nothing here,” you teased, taking a seat next to him. Your expression turned a little more serious. “She wants to sit down and talk with you, you know. Get to know you. When the school year’s over. If that’s ok with you.”
“I’d like that,” he said, taking in a spoonful of soup and groaning at how nice it felt against his sore throat. “I didn’t know you could cook.”
“I still have some secrets left,” you smirked. “I’m glad you’re feeling better enough to eat something. I was starting to worry a little bit.”
“I’m hoping I can kick this in a few days. I’d hate to cancel class again.” You assured Poe that no one would be mad if he did, to which he laughed and then immediately coughed. You hoped he’d be able to get rid of it soon, too. “You’re going to Cabo for spring break, right?”
“Yeah, with a few girlfriends from high school. Why?”
“I just forgot.” There was something about the tone of his voice that sounded nervous, but he didn’t say anything else. You and him had discussed your spring break plans and you knew he was going to California for a few days with Finn and Rey. 
“So, I’m—“ Poe started, pausing to figure out how he was going to ask what he wanted. You urged him to continue. “After California, I’m spending a few days at my dad’s. If you can make it work, would you want to spend two or three of those days with me?”
Your mouth dropped and a small smile started to form on your face. 
“You want me to meet your dad?” Poe shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, but it was to him. And it was to you too. 
“Yeah, I do,” he said, putting his near empty bowl on the coffee table. You were happy to see he was able to finish most of it. “I was thinking you could fly out Thursday and we’d get a late flight back here on Saturday night so the chances of running into people from here are slim.”
“That’s very specific, how long have you been thinking about this?”
“Since we last talked about spring break. I just didn’t know how to ask you.”
“Were you scared to ask me?”
“I thought it might be too soon to be meeting family.”
“It might be,” you said softly and Poe nodded in understanding, but his face fell a little. You placed your hand on his leg. “But I still want to.”
“Yeah?”
You nodded and Poe’s face lit up. This was so important to him, like meeting his friends had been. And it stirred something in your chest that he already wanted you to meet his dad. It gave you more hope for your future together. “I’ll call my friends tomorrow and see if we can figure it out.”
Poe put his hand on top of yours and squeezed it, not exactly what he wanted to do but trying not to heighten your chances of getting sick. “I’ll get the soup put away, do you want to watch a movie before you leave?”
You nod and get up at the same time as him, grabbing the blanket from the floor and stretching out on the couch. You opened up Netflix and scrolled through, deciding on a movie that you’d both seen before in case Poe fell asleep. Poe turned a couple lights off as he came back, taking the blanket from you and settling between you and the couch. Half of his body laid on top of yours, legs tangled together and his cheek resting in the middle of your stomach. His arm laid along your other side, hand curved in so his fingers grazed against your side. You were his body pillow and you didn’t mind one bit. 
Poe was a physically affectionate person. He loved to be touching you in some way, from something simple like holding your hand or throwing your legs across his lap to wrapping you completely around him while you laid in bed together, limbs so intertwined you wouldn’t know where he started and you ended. You weren’t surprised to find out that Poe was extremely cuddly when he wasn’t feeling well. A lot of people got that way. 
You started the movie and brought your hand up to run your fingers through Poe’s hair, gently massaging his scalp as you did. You had learned pretty quick that his hair was a weakness for him, something that both relaxed him and excited him depending on what you were doing with it.
It had only been about a month since your first date but you were so incredibly happy with Poe. You adored everything about him, especially the way he treated you. He didn’t talk to you or see you or treat you like a naive girl in her early twenties. He respected you as an equal, an adult in an adult relationship. It was so early in your relationship, but you couldn’t help but think about a future with him. 
This was the real thing for you. You were young and very well aware that a lot of people your age didn’t get into serious relationships. But you really wanted this to turn into something long-term. You hoped he did too. 
He had your heart; completely, fully.
“You’re staring,” Poe mumbled. You chuckled. 
“I can’t help it. 
He looked up at you, his chin on your stomach. “Thanks for taking care of me,” he said quietly, placing a kiss on your stomach over your shirt. You smiled softly down at him.
“Of course,” you said. “If I wasn’t, you’d be curled up in the fetal position starving and dehydrated.”
“I would not.”
“You would too. You’re such a baby when you’re sick.”
Poe nuzzled your stomach, the action making you giggle when his two day old stubble made contact with your skin. You relaxed into him, the hand that was in his hair traveling down to rub soothing circles on his back. Within thirty minutes of the movie starting, you were both fast asleep. 
When you were sick with a cold a few days later, Poe was better prepared to tackle the cold. You slept in his bed all day in his bed and he took care of you the same way you did for him.
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sockablock · 3 years
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Chapter 11: Make Yourself at Home
“So, this is the place you were talking about, huh? I’m not going to lie, it’s much better than I expected.”
“Aw, thanks! It’s my momma’s cabin. She owns a bunch of places around here, but this is the closest one to school.”
“A bunch of places? What a lucky woman.”
“Wait ‘til you find out what else she owns.” Nott draped her coat over the nearest hook. “Lucky doesn’t even start to cover it.”
The rest of the gang filed in through the door.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Beau began with a grin, “I wouldn’t mind staying the night in a—"
“Anyway,” Fjord coughed into his hand. “Isn’t there something more important we should talk about?”
“That is right.” Caleb turned to Molly. “Namely, what it is we should do about…well, you.”
“Is that so?” Without looking back, their newest cabin-mate strode into the living room. He threw himself across Beau’s favorite chair. “Good luck with that, then. I’ll be here in the meantime.”
“In the meantime? What’s that supposed to mean?” Beau followed him in and made a mental vow to steal her seat back as soon as possible.
Molly waved his hand. “I was under the impression that your…angel would be taking care of things. That’s her new job, isn’t it? To mask me from bikers?”
“Only for now.” Yasha met his gaze with a stern frown. “I cannot look after you forever. I will not even be here for much longer.”
“Which would be our second problem,” Caleb sighed. Behind him, Jester—and for some reason, Caduceus—danced around looking for bedsheets and extra toothbrushes, the hallmarks of an excellent host.
“Right,” said Beau. “We sort of left off on a…I hate to say it, but sort of a dead end.”
“Really? Weren’t you working something out?” Nott asked. “What about all that stuff with the dictionary, Caleb? And those star charts?”
“Those are only a start,” he shrugged. “With our current level of information, it is not enough. Like I said…when was it now, yesterday?”
“It felt like years ago.” Fjord combed dirt out of his hair.
“Regardless,” Caleb continued, “we need more clues. Something. Anything. At this point I would even take subjective commentary. Like the way the sun felt. Or if there was much sun at all, Yasha.”
“You mean like if she was on the moon?” Nott asked.
“I mean like if there was a lot of shade. Like in a jungle.”
They turned to Yasha. She sighed.
“I’m not sure, I…” she squeezed her eyes shut, “…I think…yes, the sun. It…felt warm.”
When she opened her eyes, they were still staring. “Er….”
Caleb came to her rescue. “Okay, perhaps I should have been less literal. Sorry, Engel, but that was not very helpful.”
“Pajamas!” Jester spun back into the living room. Behind her, Caduceus was holding a tray of tea, topped off with a little jar of honey. “Here you are, Molly!” She leaned over the couch. “And let me say again, welcome to our house! Demon of not, I think you’re great. I’m excited to hang out with you some more!”
“Ah, you’re a darling,” he flashed her a smile. “I can already tell you’ll be my favorite. Although, perhaps, I think I’ll be better company once I’m clean. If you all are going to keep talking about…whatever important thing you’re talking about, I’d like to use this opportunity to shower.”
“Oh, yeah, here,” Fjord quickly stood up. “You can borrow my shampoo, the bathroom’s there—"
The two of them wandered off. Caduceus handed everyone else their mugs.
“Let’s keep going tomorrow,” Caleb said, trying on his most reassuring smile. “Who knows? We might find something after all. And with more time, Yasha, you might regain more memories.”
It was small, but Beau noticed Yasha skip past his gaze to stare deep into her cup.
“Maybe,” she said. “I hope so. Otherwise…”
“It’ll be okay,” Caduceus smiled. “In my experience, the best things come with time.”
— — —
Beauregard lingered by herself in the hallway outside their room. Currently, Jester and Fjord were giving a freshly-washed Molly the grand tour of the cabin while Caleb and Caduceus—with varying degrees of contribution—rearranged their room to accommodate him. And since Nott was calling her family in the living room, this would probably be Beau’s best chance to talk to Yasha alone.
She breathed in.
Nearly every conversation they’d had since the initial fall had ended in a tangled mess. Not to mention, Yasha’s situation had changed dramatically in the last few hours. On top of that, Beau was still roiling in guilt for lying to her all those days ago. It was very likely that neither of them would be in the right headspace for a heart-to-heart, and that wasn’t even taking into account how nauseous Beau felt at that very phrase—“heart-to-heart.”  
Something else was poking at her too, something she’d had to shove aside earlier but now couldn’t shake away: it had been a while since she’d seen Yasha’s wings, but she knew for a fact that the first two times, they had been…well, they had been white—
And coupled with the fact that the angel only recently had started acting so anxious to leave, whereas before she’d been confused, but way more relaxed…
Beau breathed out and stared at the floor. Maybe it was time to stop wondering about what her own motivations were. Caleb, Fjord, and Jester had all made valid points, but truth be told, she was starting to get the sense that right now, how she felt wasn’t as important.
Still, the question did remain. What would she rather do?
“Yasha?” She tapped her knuckles on the doorframe. Sitting up, and dimly framed in moonlight, Yasha’s mighty silhouette turned.
Maybe she’d always known the answer.
“Beauregard. Hello. Is it time for bed?”
“No, uh…no, probably not for a while.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “I think Jes is showing off her mom’s jewelry. Fjord tagged along—it’s probably to be polite, but also to make sure Molly won’t steal anything. They’ll be at that for an hour at best.”
“It is good for Fjord to be careful,” Yasha nodded. “Though I am more worried about your souls being stolen than jewelry.”
“Yeah, uh, that thought also crossed my mind.” She made her way inside. “I mean, I’m mostly…not worried at all, but—wait, should I be worried? Do you think that’ll happen?”
Yasha thought about it. “He already knows your names, which is…not great. But as long as you do not make any promises, I think you should be fine. Do not shake his hand. No matter what he says.”
“Really? Like…metaphorically?”
“Either. Both. Deals are bad.”
Beau sat down on the wooden dresser beside Yasha’s makeshift cot. Even at this angle, Yasha was still taller.
“You’ve said stuff like that before,” she remembered. “You told me that ‘your kind’ had been corrupted that way. Right? Because they dealt with us?”
“Sort of. There is less blame on you, it is…just that mortal souls are powerful.” Yasha ran her fingers through her hair. “Basically…the short version is that there are pieces of light that exist inside you, light from the very essence of our world. It fuels us, and it keeps us alive, but too much and it can drive us mad. We lose sight of everything else in pursuit of more and more and…more of that light.”
Beau let her words sink in. “Yikes.”
“Yes. That is why we have so many rules. Why demons are dangerous. Why I am risking so much by staying here.”
Beau tilted her head. “Do you feel mad?”
Yasha didn’t answer right away. And then Beau steeled herself, she said—
“Your, uh, wings—"
Yasha went still.
It would not have been hard to miss. But Beau had spent so much time together with her in the last few days that when her breathing stopped, her shoulders stiffened, her eyes affixed to the sheets—
“Shit, I-I’m sor—"
“You know what is happening then?”
Yasha’s voice was a quaver. Beau paused.
“I…really don’t know a lot about angel stuff,” she said slowly, “but I do remember what I…saw. And I know that it isn’t the same as what I saw the night you landed. And then…I started thinking about how panicked you were about ‘interfering,’ and…well.”
She avoided Yasha’s gaze. “It’s my fault, isn’t it? It’s because I convinced you to stay with me—with us. Instead of just letting you go.”
The silence lingered on. Beau bunched up the edge of her shirt and waited, dreading, the answer—
“…I don’t know.”
Her head shot up.
“You…what?”
“I, ah.” Yasha’s shoulders drooped. “I really do not know. Nothing like this has ever happened before. On the one hand, in all my visits to Earth, this is the first time that I ever talked to mortals. But…at the same time, I—I don’t actually think I’ve done anything to…to justify a fall.”
Beau opened her mouth. She closed it again.
“So…huh. Then that’s—you really don’t know.”
“No,” Yasha sighed. “Although, you should know that I do not think you could blame yourself in any case. I would not have stayed if a part of me did not want to, Beauregard.”
Beau actively worked to shut down her facial features. Her reply, a pitched, “Oh.”
“One thing is definitely certain, though,” huffed Yasha, unaware of the battle raging in Beau’s mind. “The longer that I remain on Earth, the…the worse things could become. My wings are not…all that good, but…I still have them. That means I am still an angel. That…I am still an angel.”
Beau nodded, and managed to re-focus. “Then…then I bet it’s alright,” she said. “I mean, you aren’t out of time. And you know how stubborn we all are, there’s no way we’ll give up now. We’ll make sure you find your way home. You’re one of us now, Yash, we’d do anything for you.”
Yasha’s mouth twitched. “Thank you, Beauregard.” It was a smile. “For everything. Really. I…can never express to you how grateful I am. How lucky I was to land in front of you.”
Beau’s eyes flew wide, and Yasha backpedaled. “I just mean—no—well, no, not no—I didn’t—that was—that is—all of you. Everyone. You and your friends. Are good people. I…thank you.”
“Well, hey,” Beau’s arm shifted as if to almost reach out, and then she thought better of it. “My friends are your friends too,” she said, quite awkwardly, instead. “You’re one of us. And we’re friends. We’re…all friend, here.”
“Right, er, right,” managed Yasha; it was getting hot in their room. “Yes. Exactly. We are friends. Uh—"
In a fit of absolute panic, she stuck out her hand. Amazingly, Beau took it.
Their hands shook. Neither of them looked.
“Th-thank you,” said Yasha, when they finally broke away. “Besides, um…you know, I’m not leaving yet. I still don’t’ know where I’m going. There’s also the, uh, the—Mollymauk. I do not want to fly him across the world with me.”
“Right,” said Beau. “Yeah, that’s…we…we’re all kind of following your lead on that one.” Then she hesitated, and when Yasha blinked back in confusion, Beau suddenly inhaled so sharply it almost hurt.
“Look, uh, look, there’s something I gotta say from a while ago—it was a, well, a—Yasha, I owe you an apology.”
A beat.
Yasha stared at her. “Me?”
“It’s…really dumb,” Beau blurted out. “Not that—no, not that—you weren’t dumb, I was, I did—I lied to you. Back then.”
If anything, she looked even more perplexed.
“You…did?”
“Sort of,” her eyes fell to the mattress. “I, uh…when you told me about auras, that one time, I…freaked out and told you a lie. I, uh…I don’t know if you’ve noticed at all, but I kind of like being…mysterious. God, no, not mysterious, it’s just…look, I was feeling conflicted about some stuff. Stuff that I wasn’t…ready to share. So when you told me that you could see my aura, I panicked. I told you it was shitty of you to do that, which…that was really shitty of me.”
“Oh,” said Yasha. “Is that…then, does that mean humans are okay with me reading them?”
“I’m pretty sure humans aren’t aware of it enough to actually have an opinion. The point is,” she sighed, “I lied to you. You had way more reason than I did to be confused, and upset, and…and just unsure. But when you reached out to, like, understand me, I pushed you away. I…don’t ever want to do that.”
She risked a glance up. “I’m sorry.”
And then, to her shock, Yasha nodded.
“It’s okay.”
Beau blinked. “It…is?”
“Er…yes,” said Yasha. “I think it is. You were just being protective of yourself. That is alright. Especially if you…were not ready to share things. And you did not mean to hurt me, yes?”
“Did I hurt you?”
Yasha considered this. “To be honest, um, no. You didn’t, not really. And if you did, then I forgot about it when Caleb told me I was missing 6,000 years of my memory.”
“Oh.”
“Yes. Er…is that ‘yikes’?”
Maybe it was the relief, the sheer drop from such panic, or maybe it was the way Yasha’s eyebrows were bunching, but Beauregard could not keep herself from bursting out into laughter.
Yasha looked startled at first, but she recovered when Beau gave her a grin.
“You know what? I think it is time for bed.”
“What? Oh,” Yasha still looked puzzled, but she nodded. “Oh, er…sure. Yes. No problem.”
— — —
There was just one problem.
Jester groaned, pressing her face into her pillow. “I take it back. I take it all back. This is the worst thing in the world and we should call that circus right now.”
“Can’t,” muttered Nott. “Don’t have their numbers.”
“Maybe we can put up posters,” Beau suggested. “Let the evil bikers know where he is. They can have him.”
There was a rustle in the darkness. “Yasha,” said Nott, “are all demons like this?”
Another rustle followed. “Er…I have heard that the most fearsome demons plague their victims with visions of hellfire and ruin. But I think there are many ways to torment people.”
“Where the does not shutting up come in on that list?”
Yasha also had a pillow on her head. “The very top, I think.”
From the other side of the all-too-thin wall, a flood of music poured through. Fjord had made the crucial mistake of telling Molly to “make yourself at home,” and since Molly’s only home had been a crowded RV full of mostly-drunk carnies plunging down the highways of America at midnight, he’d said it was impossible for him to sleep without some “background noise.”
“Oh, sure,” Fjord had said. “Background noise should be fine.”
“He’s a guest,” sighed Jester. “We basically kidnapped him. I felt bad, and I didn’t think…I didn’t think he’d be like this.”
“Maybe someone will come to our rescue,” said Beau. “Maybe Caleb will finally snap and kill him.”
“Oh, if anyone would do it, it would be Caleb,” Nott agreed. “Fjord’s too weak. Or…maybe Cad, the quiet ones are always murderers.”
“It wouldn’t be murder,” Beau called sleepily. “It would be a civic duty.”
“Maybe we can plug our ears.” Yasha rolled over to look at the other girls. “Do any of you have some beeswax?”
The deep pause that followed would have been silence if not for the blaring—let’s have a party there’s a full moon in the sky, it’s the hour of the—
“I wanna die,” said Nott. “If he doesn’t, I will.”
“I can try to find some bees if I must,” Yasha pressed. “I feel guilty. I am the one who dragged him into your lives—"
She jumped when something brushed the side of her leg.
“We don’t need bees,” said Beau, who was slapping around the edge of her mattress, totally blind. “Here, I’ve got extra. Everyone, come get some. Earplugs. They’re not enough, but…helps.”
Yasha recovered quickly, reaching over to accept the little pieces of orange foam. There was some general shuffling and muted “thank yous” as Nott and Jester acquired pairs as well.
“Nice,” said Beau, rolling over on the floor. “Adds a pop to your monochrome.”
Yasha couldn’t tell whether that was addressed to her. But when it seemed clear that Beau had just passed out again, she carefully pressed the earplugs in. Then she sat there a moment longer, staring at her leg, surrounded by the muted blare of a hundred trumpets.
Off in the distance and dulled, Nott said, “I’m gonna go threaten to cut his head off.”
— — —
And then, eventually, there was quiet.
— — —
See:
Not…not a storm at all. Not even a lingering cloud.
Instead, there is just the blue and endless sky.
Somewhere, she is…lying down. The sun is warm. She is…somewhere. She is somewhere where a field of green-turning-gold-turning-russet wild grasses ripple slow.
There’s a gentle brush against her leg. She looks down. It’s a little white flower.
It’s…it’s being held in…someone’s hand.
Her head jerks up.
“Wait, who are y—"
— — —
Her eyes focused on a face.
“Huh?” said Beauregard. “Was that for me?”
Yasha sat up so quickly that Beau had to jump backwards. “Whoa, there—"
Yasha ignored this, whipped her head around, took in two unmade bunks, a mess of blankets, golden sunlight—
The curtains by the window rippled slow.
“I…but…”
“Yasha?” Beau frowned. “Hey, Yash, is everything okay?”
“But I…there was…” Her hands dug into the sides of her face as she squeezed her eyes shut. “There was…a field,” she bit out. “Grass. Under the sky, and a flower, and a p—"
She froze.
“Uh…Yasha?”
A…person. There had been a person. Someone—but who? It was someone…important…
And then the thought—no one can know.
“N-nothing,” Yasha blurted, though she didn’t quite know why. “It was…it was nothing. Er…but there might be something more I have for Caleb to work with.”
Beau’s concerned expression vanished. “Oh, what? Oh—hey, that’s awesome!” She closed the distance, even went to clap Yasha on the back. “That’s great! He’s gonna be totally thrilled! And that’s one step closer to you getting to…go. Oh.”
They both fell silent. Through the door, the clattering sounds of the rest setting a table.
Beau’s hand fell back to her side.
“Of course, we always knew you were gonna leave at some point. And…you know, you were ready to bolt, like, two days ago, so it stands to reason that you…should be happy to leave…”
Yasha looked up at Beauregard.
A person. Someone important…
“Beau, um…Beau, I think I—"
The door burst open. Nott shoved her head in, eyebrows raised.
“God, what’s taking you two so long? Cad made pancakes! C’mon, we’re waiting!”
— — —
A thick slab of blueberry-laden goodness landed in the center of Yasha’s plate. A sweet, buttery, slightly tart aroma wafted through the kitchen.
“So, I think I still have a bit more catching-up to do, don’t I?” said Molly, who was sitting in a chair with a slouch so bad it looked like his spine was broken. “For one, it seems like I’ve missed the book club meeting that made you all friends.”
“We met in college,” said Fjord, rubbing his eyes. “Not a book club.”
“Same difference,” Molly shrugged. “It’s just that I can’t help but feel a tad bit excluded from your pre-existing lovefest.”
“It would be easier to include you if you knew how to be quiet sometimes,” Nott grumbled.
He stuck his tongue out, and it was stained with blueberry.
“I think we are overdue for a proper meeting anyway,” said Caleb, spearing his pancake. “A lot has changed in the last twenty-four hours. We should review our goals and priorities.”
“Get home,” said Yasha. “Do that by finding ȣɿɕƺᶋɷ.”
“What the hell,” said Molly.
“Later,” Caleb sighed. “Right, okay, that’s item one on our list, our continuing mission to find Iothia. And once we do…?”
Yasha shuffled. It was quick, almost missed, but she glanced at Beau.
“Er…then I…leave,” she said. “I fly there, and I can return home.”
“Aw, really?” Jester pouted. “You’re really just going to leave right away?”
If anything, Yasha’s next expression was even more complicated. She fidgeted again. “I, er, sort of…sort of have to. As…quickly as possible, I think.”
“Man, that sucks.”
Yasha managed a tiny smile. “I know.”
“But you can’t go until you’ve taught me repression,” Molly said, quickly waving his fork for attention. “I need to get back to my circus, my dear. And I can’t do that safely until I learn to hide.”
“Which means you’ll be sticking around a little longer, Yasha.” Caduceus down the plate of pancakes and took a seat. “Isn’t that nice?”
“And you’ll be hanging out with me,” Molly grinned. “I expect we’ll get to know each other very well.”
A loud thump shook the table and everyone’s heads suddenly turned to Beauregard.
She blinked. Then she looked down.
“Shit, uh…sorry. I think I missed my plate.”
“Jesus christ,” said Fjord. “That’s an inch into solid wood.”
Beau gripped the handle of the knife she’d sunk into the table. On the second try, she managed to yank it free.
“Sorry, uh…sorry again,” she said. “Jes, your mom can bill my dad.”
“Are both of you rich girls?” Molly asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” she shot him a deep scowl. “You just worry about…about learning to shut up your aura, or whatever. Then Yasha can get on with stuff that’s actually important, and you can finally leave us all alone.”
“My, my, someone’s touchy, isn’t she?” Molly folded his hands over his lap. “Anger issues are bad for your health.”
“You know what else is bad for my health, asshole? Not being able to fucking sleep ‘cause someone needs a rock concert every night—"
“Okay, okay, okay,” said Fjord, holding his hands up so fast he almost knocked over the milk. “Alright, I think that’s enough, you two. Molly found headphones eventually, right? And now he knows better.”
“What am I, a child—"
“And we’ve got to be a little more understanding of a man who’s just had their whole life turned around. It’s not every day we find out we’re not even human.”
“Not a man either,” Molly added.
“Ah, sorry—"
“It’s alright, dear.” He sighed. Then, with a swoop of what could only be described as exaggerated magnanimity, he turned to Beauregard.
“Truce? Not surrender, just armistice.”
She rolled her eyes, but did concede. “Yeah, whatever.”
“Back to the matter at hand, then,” said Caleb, as that piece of breakfast theater concluded. “Yasha. Even though your sense memory from last night was…for lack of a better term, undescriptive, it gave me the idea that we could perhaps try to use images of natural places to trigger more. Jester’s mother has a number of picture atlases in the study, after all. Perhaps we could start there today.”
Yasha lowered her fork. “Actually…while I was asleep, I remembered something more.”
This was followed by a chorus of clattering and hurried exclamations, the loudest being Nott’s, “What, really?!”
“Er…yes, but it was very small,” Yasha said. “I…remembered lying down. In a field of golden grass. And, um…there was a flower. It was, um, white.”
“Is that all?” Caleb said after a while.
She hesitated.
Then, “Yes.”
“Well, that’s not too bad,” said Caduceus. “It might even be a great, actually. Most flowers only grow in specific climates anyway, and if we’re lucky, it might only be native to a certain area.”
“Ooooh, oh! What did it look like?” Jester asked. Then her eyes lit up. “Oh—Yasha, you should draw it!”
She jumped out of her chair and was running back from the living room with her sketchbook before they even processed this.
“And you’re getting so much better at art too,” she squealed, “this’ll be great practice—"
“Jester, are you sure—"
She pushed Yasha’s plate aside and handed her a pencil triumphantly. “Close your eyes! Picture it! Then draw!”
Even Caleb seemed reluctant to argue with Jester. He shrugged and said, “But also please describe it to us, please.”
Yasha put her fork down. She took the pencil.
“I’m really not good,” she said, weakly, but she did her best to envision the flower. “Okay, um, it was small…very small, and it had seven little points like this…”
A moment later, everyone leaned in to see the drawing.
“Aw, it’s so pretty!” Jester beamed. “Good job!”
“Ah—thank you.”
“Any idea what it is?” Fjord glanced at Caduceus. “Have you seen this before?”
Cad scratched his chin. “I can’t say I have, but…it shouldn’t be that hard to find. You said it’s white?”
“And small,” Yasha added. “As big as someone’s—someone’s fingernail.”
“My momma has tons of books on flowers,” Jester supplied. “Maybe those can help?”
“I’m sure they will. And Caduceus is right,” Caleb added, “this is an excellent jumping-off point. If we have this drawing too, Yasha, I can take over from here. That will give you time to help train our newest...divine associate.”
“You don’t have to lay on the flattery that thick,” Molly smiled. “Though I appreciate the compliment.”
“I meant that literally.”
“Why, thank you—"
“I can help you too.” Beau was determined to silence Mollymauk quickly. “Again, it’s not like I’m doing much anyway. At least this time there’ll be pictures, right?”
“Are you sure?” Yasha leaned backwards. “If you don’t want to—"
“No, no, really. I’ve told you, Yash, and I’ll say it again, I really don’t mind any of this. I want to do this. And you can’t stop me.”
Yasha met her gaze, then nodded. “Okay. Thank you.”
“Exactly,” said Beau, and raised her chin in a display of satisfaction. Then she hesitated, turned towards the rest. “But if the rest of you don’t feel like helping, I mean…I’m a deadbeat, but Fjord, you’re supposed to be reading for a summer class. And Nott, you’ve got stuff for your job, right? And Jes—"
“How about we clear up the living room and do what we need to do together?” Fjord asked. “Solidarity. It’ll be like…like study hall!”
“I’m game!” said Nott. “As much as it sucks, I should probably get on that.”
“Me too,” Jester clapped her hands. “It’s not as fun as fishing or introducing Yasha to fries, but studying won’t be so bad if we’re all together!”
Molly stared at her incredulously. “Are you—really?” He turned to the rest, aghast. “You’re all really going to sit down and do…do work? Willingly? Nevermind, this is much worse than a book club.”
He leaned over and nudged Yasha in the shoulder. “My goodness, aren’t we lucky to be divine? I’d rather do anything than, ugh, read.”
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feferipeixes · 3 years
Text
The Good Lines (2/3)
Trapped in an unfamiliar world, Alcor finds that he doesn’t mind the loneliness. He doesn’t care about finding a way out. He doesn’t even care about Mizar. All he cares about is solving puzzles, and drawing the good lines.
(or: I Think Dipper Should Play The Witness)
Chapter 2: Hotel (link to chapter 1) (3)
(See the most updated version on AO3!)
===
There was an earth-shaking roar in the sky as Mizar drew the line. Alcor couldn’t quite catch exactly how she did it since she wasn’t there with him in person, but the noise it made was deafening. He tried to look around for the panel responsible but there were no panels around him that he hadn’t already solved himself. It happened so quickly, and then there was the sound of an explosion, followed by a building taking form directly in front of him.
He eyed it uneasily. “This is the hotel?”
“Yep.” Mizar’s voice still came through clear as day. “This will take you out of the game. Then you’ll be free.”
“I’m not -” he started, but thought better of it. He could feel Mizar’s eyes on him from another world, looking down through a television screen, and figured he’d caused her enough stress. “Okay. Here we go.”
It’s not like he had much of a choice anyway. The entrance to the hotel had replaced the only exit from the garden he’d been standing in. He approached the opening, peering down the long hallway lined with fancy sconces. He took a step inside and immediately the ambient hum of the outdoors cut out. He may have thought it was quiet on the island before but it was nothing compared to the emptiness he was feeling now. He had to turn around just to verify that the outside even still existed. Two steps in and he already felt swallowed up by the unknown.
“Dipper?” Mizar’s voice came out of nowhere, and Alcor nearly jumped out of his skin. “Sorry! Are you alright?”
Alcor clutched his chest and took a few deep breaths before responding. “Yeah. I’m fine.” His wings didn’t get the memo, flapping hard against the wall and his back. “This place isn’t weird and creepy at all.”
He couldn’t see her, but Alcor could practically hear the frown in Mizar’s voice. “I thought you loved the weird and creepy.”
“I do! I really do.” He took some shaky steps down the hall to what looked like a reception desk. It sat in front of a wide pillar decorated with a pattern of orange spikes that fanned up and out across the ceiling like a sunburst. “In fact, I’d kinda love to explore a place like this.” Turning a corner, he found himself face-to-face with a large painting of a windmill, and he remembered a similar structure he’d come across in the island’s town. A structure that sat atop a network of underground tunnels, most of which were blocked off by wooden gates he hadn’t been able to bypass. “It’s the thought of all the other stuff I won’t get the chance to explore that’s getting me down.”
“I’m sorry,” came the response.
Alcor waited for more, but more didn’t come. Sighing, he headed past the reception, where there was a bar, some seating, and a balcony. Eyes growing wide, he approached the edge and looked out. Somehow, despite not climbing any stairs from where he was in the garden, the balcony was high enough that he could see half the island. His eyes passed over the desert, the town, the forest, and up to the structure at the top of the mountain. It gave him the feeling that he wasn’t supposed to be there, that the ground he was standing on didn’t exist and he was soaring freely through paradise.
“No, don’t do that!” Mizar’s voice snapped.
Alcor blinked and broke out of his thoughts. Without intending to, he’d flared his wings large and wide, and was standing in a position like he was ready to dive forward. Taking a step backward, he let his wings shrink and balled his hands into fists. “I didn’t… I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t going to.”
Mizar gulped -- a strange sound to get beamed so clearly into Alcor’s head. “That’s alright. It’s not your fault. How about… you keep going?”
He shrugged, and looked around. A set of stairs led to a doorway on the second floor of the hotel, and he followed them up. He glanced back once more before entering. “If my kid really made this for me, he did a really good job.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah.” Alcor went through the doorway, and found himself inexplicably in what looked like a cave. Diamond-shaped hanging fixtures bathed the room in an eerie green glow. “Back when I was human, I spent all my time trying to uncover the mysteries of Gravity Falls. He would’ve known that I couldn’t resist a good mystery. I mean, like -” (he walked a little further, to where a set of lounge chairs overlooked a gap in the cave wall) “what the hell is this? Why is this hotel like this?”
He peered through the gap and saw that it dropped down into another cave, a cave in which he couldn’t help but notice there were puzzle panels. Some were mounted onto the walls, some seemed to be suspended from the ceiling on thick cables. All of them were deactivated, and Alcor’s heart sank at the thought that he wouldn’t get to know what kind of puzzles they concealed.
“Even on the way out,” he mused, “My kid has to go and throw more secrets at me.”
“There are mysteries out here, too,” Mizar said after a beat.
Alcor heard the waver in her voice and sighed again. “Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s just not as fun when I already know the answers to everything out there.”
She didn’t respond to that either, so he pressed onward. The passage got narrower, and he almost had to squeeze himself through a couple of the gaps.
“I have to admit, though,” he spoke up, “that it’ll be nice to have my magic back. If I could change my shape, I’d be through here in no time. Better yet, I could just tesser to the end of this thing! Doing puzzles all day is fun, but maybe I gotta realize there’s other stuff that’s more important to me.”
There was a snort and a half-suppressed giggle. “Really. And that’s magic? Not, like, your family?”
Alcor put on a display of thinking about it and smirked. “Yep! Definitely magic. Definitely not the people who love me enough to go through hell saving me from a virtual reality… game…” He trailed off as he passed by another gap in the wall. It looked out over another cave, although unlike the last one, this one was wide open and mostly empty.
“Dipper?” The giggle in Mizar’s voice trailed off too. “Why’d you stop?”
Water rushed beneath his feet, flowing into the chamber below, lapping up against the shore and the chunk of ground sticking out in the center of the room. In the middle of this chunk was a small table, illuminated by a single light hanging from the ceiling, and on this table was… something.
“What’s… that?” he breathed.
“What’s what? Uhh...” she responded. There was some banging in his head, the sound of drawers opening and closing, of devices being moved around. “Sorry, everything went a bit fuzzy, uhh…” A loud crash followed by the sizzle of a CRT monitor turning on and finally a sigh of relief. “Ah, fixed it! Okay, let me, uh… Oh. Oh no. Shit.”
It was hard to tell what the thing on the table was from a distance. There were two black boxes angled outward, and there was something else behind them. Whatever it was, it had a thick wire trailing out of it. Alcor wondered where it went.
“Shit! Don’t look at that. It’s… nothing!”
He glanced up, and noticed another hole in the wall across the room, through which he was surprised to see a figure in a dark suit with a floating top hat. The figure’s wings were flapping wildly. He looked over his shoulder -- huh. Looked like his own wings were doing that too.
“There’s nothing interesting down there. Just a boring cave! Hey, how about you keep going through the hotel? There’s another scenic overlook of the island coming up! That’ll be fun to look at, right?”
Alcor turned around and saw that there was a gap in the cave wall directly behind him. Peering through it, he found himself viewing the same cave as before, but from the opposite side. From this angle, he could see the panel mounted in front of the other objects on the table.
And he could see that it was active.
“Dipper, please,” Mizar pleaded. “You don’t want to do that. It’s not worth it. You won’t be able to solve it.”
“Seriously?” he said, remembering that he could talk. “That just makes me want to check it out even more. I’ll be quick, I just really wanna know what that thing is.”
Taking a few steps back, Alcor stretched his arms and wings. He took his suit jacket off and tossed it aside, where it promptly vanished. Rolling his sleeves up, he rubbed his hands together and grinned. Then he ran forward and dove through the opening into the cave below.
“WHAT are you DOING?” Mizar yelled, her voice clipping out the microphone she was using to speak with him. “That’s not even POSSIBLE. You can’t jump or go off ledges in this game! I checked!”
Ignoring her, Alcor drifted downward, feeling the rush of air in his face for the first time in a while. He touched ground, shoes clacking against the stone, and let the force of the impact ripple through him. He was pretty sure Mizar was right -- that you couldn’t jump in this game -- but he didn’t care. There was only one thing he cared about right now.
Up close, he could see that the object on the table was a record player, with the two black boxes being speakers. There was a record already mounted on the device; instead of a sticker in the middle to identify what was on it, it only bore an image of an orange sunburst, just like the decoration in the hotel lobby. And finally, there was a panel on the table, which he could only assume would start or stop the record.
It was odd, to be sure. What would such a device be doing in a cave? Weird stuff like that was always intriguing, sure, but presumably all the device did was play music. Why had Mizar said that he wouldn't be able to solve it?
[ Because the music is only part of the puzzle, ] a metallic voice said, and Alcor's eyes widened in surprise.
“Kid?” he asked.
[ Hi Dad. Nice to talk to you again. I hope you're enjoying the game. ]
“It's really you,” Alcor marveled. “Mizar was right. You're the one who made all of this. The island, the puzzles, everything.”
[ Sure did! ] the virus replied with a vaguely smug note to his synthesized voice. [ I worked real hard on it, cause I only want the best of the best for my dad. And speaking of the best, you're in luck! You've stumbled into my magnum opus. I call it - ]
There was a bang, like a fist coming down on a table, and Mizar's voice rang out into the cave. “No! Don't listen to it!”
[ - The Challenge. ]
Alcor felt a tingle run down his spine. “That’s so foreboding! What is it?”
[ It’s a test of your puzzle-solving abilities! Two songs will play, and you’ll have until the end of the second one to solve a set of randomly generated puzzles. If the music stops, you have to start all over with new puzzles! But if you can solve them all in time, a fabulous prize waits for you at the end! ]
“A prize?” There was a muffled pounding noise in the distance, but Alcor tuned it out. “What’s the prize?”
Al-V’s smile was practically audible. [ Why don't you find out for yourself? ]
The panel on the table. Alcor approached it, enrapt with curiosity, and put his finger on the start circle. There were two ends to the panel. One was a tiny little line sticking out of the circle. He tried that one first, and nothing seemed to happen. Pursing his lips, he pressed on the circle again and dragged his finger down the long path that extended the full length of the panel.
“Wait!” Mizar yelled before he could lift his finger. “Dipper, it's a trap! Please listen to me! You were so close to escaping the game! Think of your family! They miss you! This can't be -”
Al-V’s voice cut over Mizar's. [ Family, schmamily. Think of all the puzzles waiting for you to solve them. Won't that be fun? At least give it a try. ]
There was a lump in Alcor's throat and he swallowed hard to get past it. “I… Sorry Mizar.” He lifted his finger, and the panel made a clicking noise. “I gotta see what this is.”
There was a soft rumble as the record player activated. The tonearm glided into position above the record, which slowly began to spin. After a moment, the thick cable attached to the player lit up, illuminating a puzzle mounted on the wall. And then, the first few notes of Anitra’s Dance filtered through the speakers.
Bum da da, bum da da
Bum da da, bum da da
Alcor broke out into a huge smile. The silence which had haunted him as long as he’d been on the island was gone; now his body was being scooped up and set adrift by the music. The mesmerizing strings, like the lying tongue of a devil; the passionate bass, giving urgency to the affair; the wail of echoes careening off the cave walls. He’d missed this. He wished he had his violin so he could join in.
“The songs are a distraction!” Mizar was still there, sort of, still trying to talk to him even though he could barely hear her over the music. “They’re just there to make it harder to focus on the puzzles!”
“Oh. Oh yeah,” Alcor murmured, his smile drooping slightly. For the briefest moment, Mizar thought she’d gotten through to him, but then he smiled again and flew over to the illuminated panel. “New puzzles for me to solve. Gotta draw the good lines.”
“No!” she screamed, but it was too late. His hand flew across the panel, solving it with ease, and the music swelled triumphantly, completely drowning out Mizar’s voice. The next panel lit up, displaying a maze three times as big as the first one, and Alcor’s grin widened. This was going to be good.
The difficulty of the puzzles only increased from there. Soon Alcor was swooping through a tunnel into another cave, which he immediately recognized as the one with the deactivated panels he’d spied from the hotel. Now, however, they were turning on, one at a time, solve after solve after solve. Though each puzzle took progressively longer for him to figure out, Alcor revelled in every second of it, even as the first song came to a finish and Mizar’s cries faded back into his awareness, why! won’t! you! listen! to! me!
“Hi Miz,” he chirped as the music changed to In the Hall of the Mountain King, and it set her blood boiling.
Duh duh duh duh dadada…
“Having fun?” she grumbled.
“Oh, yeah!” He shot a pair of finger guns at no one in particular, but didn’t take his eyes off the puzzle. “This one’s hard, though. Been stuck on it for a little while.”
Dadada… dadada...
“A minute and a half,” Mizar replied. “You’re not even doing it right.”
“Ugh, I know. I’ll figure it out though. I’ve got time.”
Duh duh duh duh dadada ba dadadadada…
“You’ve got like two minutes left to do seven puzzles. You don’t have time.”
Alcor grimaced. “Okay, negative. If I can’t solve it in time then I’ll just try again.”
Dun dun dun dun dadada,
Dadada,
Dadada,
“So, what, you’re just gonna stay in this stupid game forever? Is that it?”
Alcor’s hand slipped, and he drew a bad line. The panel turned off, forcing him to trudge back to the previous one to solve it again. "I said I'll come out after I get the prize, I can do this, I promise..."
Dun dun dun dun dadada DA da ba ba da da!
"You're not gonna beat it!” Mizar spat. “That's not me not believing in you -- I know for a fact that the virus coded the challenge so that you specifically would always get stumped at some part of it!"
DUN dun dun dun dadada, WA WA WA WA!
Amidst music rising to a heart-pounding clamor, Alcor hurried back to the panel he’d been stuck on. "Yeah, it's random, I know, and sometimes the puzzles it makes are really hard, but if I keep practicing..."
DUN DUN DUN DUN DADADA BA DA DA DA BA DA!
"No, Dipper!”
DUN DUN DUN DUN DADADA BA DA DA DA BA DA!
Mizar yelled at the top of her lungs to be heard over the music. “That's you trusting the game to always give you solvable puzzles! How do you know they'll always be solvable?”
DUN DA! DUN DA! Dun dun dun dun dadada ba da da da ba da!
”How do you know the virus isn't just nerd-sniping you until the music stops playing and you have to start over?”
Dun wa wa wa wa wa wa wa!
”Why do you trust this game more than you trust me????"
Dum tsh!
With two final, crashing notes, the song came to an end. There was a beat, during which Mizar could see Alcor standing very still, his hand still on a glowing panel. Then there was a loud beep as all of the panels in the cave deactivated, followed by the distant click of the record player turning off.
Alcor clenched his fist. “You want to know why I can’t trust you?”
“Um. Yeah I do,” Mizar replied, taken aback. “Like I was saying -”
Alcor’s words came out slow and metered, but there was a nasty undertone to his voice. “It’s because you lie.”
He looked up from the deactivated panel and stared at the ceiling, directly where she was watching from, and she could see streaks of yellow running down his face. “Every time I get close to you. Every time I get close to anyone. You mortals love to say I’ll always be here for you and like an idiot I keep letting myself believe it, but then you die. Everyone I’ve ever cared about has died or will die and there I still am, suffering and mourning and alone.”
“B-but-” Mizar stammered.
Alcor snarled at her, baring two rows of shark-like teeth and spraying spit at the wall. Mizar’s mouth snapped shut.
“This game doesn’t lie to me,” he continued, walking back toward the record player but not taking his eyes off her. “A puzzle is just a puzzle. It has an answer that I can figure out if I stare at it long enough, or maybe I won’t and that’s okay too. Puzzles don’t lie to you and say people don’t really think of you as a monster and then go research banishment rituals behind your back.”
“I-I wasn’t going to actually use it!” Mizar replied, in unison with Alcor saying the exact same words. “I was only looking it up just in case! Just to reassure my brother -- he has anxiety!”
“Yeah, how many times do you think someone’s said that to me before?” Alcor spat. “I don’t blame you for being nervous around me. I literally am a monster. Just don’t fucking lie to me about it, okay?”
“Dipper, please! Think about all the people who love you. You can’t just leave them behind!”
Alcor stopped in front of the record player and turned away. “If they can do it to me, I can do it to them,” he murmured. Then he slid his finger across the control panel again, and the world went dark.
Mizar gripped her computer screen. “Dipper? Dipper, what’s going on?”
The humming from the machine had stopped, and all she could hear was the ringing in her ear from Dipper’s shout. Mizar rifled through the desk drawers, looking for an instruction manual or a cheat sheet or anything that would help her reach her brother again. Every scrap of paper she found was covered in strange symbols that she recognized as puzzles from the game. She knew it was a fruitless search. After all, the system was designed to trap someone, not to let them go.
She looked behind her, to the two person-sized capsules pushed up against the wall. One was empty, with its lid discarded on the floor. Mizar walked over to the other one and pressed her face up to the glass. Beyond the window rested Dipper’s physical body, hooked up to a dizzying array of cables and electrodes. It made her mind itch to look at. His body was as fake as the avatar he was controlling in the video game. But it was an anchor for his soul, and Al-V did what he did best with it: reverse engineered it, figured out how to anchor the demon’s mind in something else.
Mizar once again eyed the power outlet the capsule was plugged into. Would his mind be able to escape, if she…?
“Please, Dipper,” she whimpered, in total solitude. “Please come back.”
---
Down in the cave, Alcor leaned on the record player and stared at the ground.
[ Woof! ] Al-V piped up. [ Talk about an overreaction! Want I should take over the security robots outside the building and get them to lock her in a broom closet? ]
“Forget about it,” Alcor murmured. He watched the record begin to spin -- watched the orange points of the sunburst begin to meld into a solid circle -- and imagined a smiling face in the middle. “Forget about her. I don’t need her. All I need is you, and the puzzles.”
[ Whatever you say, Dad! ] Al-V replied. [ You’re the boss, but not like in a video game sense! Ha-ha! You, uh, you gonna solve those puzzles? ]
Alcor closed his eyes for a minute, and the face stuck in his vision. When he opened them again, the record player had stopped, and the puzzles had deactivated.
“Yeah,” he said finally. “Yeah, I’m gonna solve the puzzles. I’m gonna draw the good lines. I’ll be happy.”
He swiped the panel to start the record again, and got to work.
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bxthharmon · 4 years
Text
Never Go Home Again, Pt. VI || JJ Maybank x Reader
Words: 3527
Series Warnings: violence / talking about abuse / toxic relationships / talking about nudes sex tapes and sex tapes / drugs / underage drinking
Pt. Warnings: boats in bad weather??
Series Summary: A new girl, a shoebox of old memories, a past she’s trying to forget coincide with a hotheaded, but selfless, boy.  teenagers getting in way over their heads
Pt. Summary: The group make headway with an underwater drone, while Y/N seeks closure from her family.
A/N: time for some insight into y/n’s history!!! also i have to go into school tmrw and i am NOT here for it 
Chapters linked in my masterlist.
“masterlist”
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“Alright, keep a lookout.” JJ reminded you as you pulled up to the hotel,”We’re behind enemy lines.” he pulled out the gun, ignoring how John B argued with him as he loaded it, in full display. “Can never be too careful.” JJ reminded you.
“Hey, I predict bringing a weapon to a four star hotel will likely cause more problems than it solves.”
“Thank you, Pope.” John B sighed.
Kie leaned forward, her head sticking through to the front of the VW, “I swear to God, I’m gonna throw that gun in the ocean, JJ. Put it back.”
You reached through the window and snatched the gun off him, leaning over and handing it to John B, glaring at JJ as you pulled back out of his van window.
“”You can’t grab a gun like that!” he leaned forwards to argue, but at the look of your face when you turned around, he sighed, hopping out of the car, “Can’t forget my badge - professional bus-boy.”
“So where are we going now?” Pope inquired, following JJ to the doors.
“We’re getting the internet because only rich people have electricity right now.” JJ explained, leading you through the crowded, steamy kitchen and trying to grab some bits of food as he did, calling a greeting to a guy named Andrew. “See they got the backup generators going? Kooks don’t miss a beat.” he led you to a door, which opened to a load of computers.
“Sweet Lord, the internet!” Pope ran to the computer, sitting down, “I’ve missed you.”
“Let me get in there,” JJ spoke, “gotta check on my insta models.” you rolled your eyes, walking to the window and watching the ant’s nest of rich people thrive. You heard Pope type in the coordinates, and walked back to see what was going on. After the discovery of it being only 900 feet, and JJ telling you about the drone-camera-thing and his dad’s redundancy, you left again, not wanting to stick around for long.
--
“Pope, we’re not stealing the drone, we’re… borrowing it.” John B tried to justify.
“‘Humans are the only animal that can’t tell fantasy from reality.’” said Pope vaguely.
“Did you come up with that?” John B asked.
“Albert Bernstein came up with it,” he clarified, “but it applies to this whole treasure-hunting thing. So, which is it? Fantasy, or reality?”
“Why’re you so weird, Pope?” JJ asked, concentrating on rolling his blunt.
“It’s fantasy, but possible reality.” Kie suggested.
“Reality.” John B looked around at the group.
“Virtual reality.” JJ muttered, flicking his lighter on and going to light his blunt. You snatched the spliff off of him.
“The smell’s doing my head in.” you said, ignoring his hurt expression.
“Keep the signal clear.” Pope agreed.
“You know what your problem is?” JJ piped up, glaring at you.
“You?” You quipped, raising your eyebrow as if to say ‘I dare you’.
“No!” he shook his head, holding your gaze, “It’s that you take everything so seriously! And you don’t bother to find out what really happened. You make an assumption without knowing the full story.” he didn’t break eye contact with you. John B stopped the van, and you inhaled, holding your anger in.
“My problem,” you seethed, “Is that there is only one way to take most things. I don’t need to know the full story, because the message came through - loud and clear - regardless.” 
“Well maybe,” JJ started, the pair of you ignoring the faces of your fellow pogues as your voices rose, “if you knew the other side to the story, you would know that that’s not how it was meant.”
“Really?” you laughed incredulously, and you could tell he knew he was entering a danger zone, “Because there’s only one way to take it JJ! Please, please, enlighten me on literally any other way I could have taken it!” 
“Okay,” John B said, overpowering your argument, and drawing your attention to the shocked and confused faces of your friends, “Y’all need to sort your shit out, in the meantime, JJ, Pope, the gate’s open, let’s go, and Y/N, get ready, getaway driver.” 
You moved to the driver’s seat, grumbling about being a getaway driver as you watched the three boys run through the gate, which was crawling shut.
You waited for about ten minutes, bored out of your mind as you held a hardly engaging text conversation with a girl from your old school. Your bored brain’s trance was interrupted by the cutting sound of a dog barking. You looked through the wire gate, seeing that the guard had left the car. You jumped out of the car, slamming the door as you ran to the gate, pulling yourself up and over, jumping down the other side in a well-practiced manner, running towards the barking.
You scaled the rows of boats until you saw the guard, calming the dog down as he shouted to a boat. From your angle, you could see a rucksack. JJ.
“Excuse me?” you yelled, and the guard turned his attention to you as you walked towards him. “Uh, sorry, Officer, you left the gate open.” you lied, racking your brain for a lie to distract the man. “There was a girl with a flat tire.” Please, Kie, be there.
“I know.” he responded gruffly, and you nodded.
“Well, Sir, she’s like, panicking ‘cause you ran off, and she has to get to the ferry. You should probably help her out.”
He looked you up and down suspiciously as you played with your hair, battering your eyelashes lightly. He sighed, walking away, the dog in tow. You waited until he was out of sight, and earshot, to call out to JJ. His head appeared over the side of the boat, and then he stood and jogged down the steps to face you. You barely spared him a glance, heading towards the impound yard at the back.
“C’mon, shithead.” you murmured, hearing his footsteps follow you, catching up and joining your stride.
“Y/N,” he attempted, trying to catch your attention as you stared straight on.
“JJ,” you mocked, “I don’t want to talk about it. It should never have happened, and I’m sorry it did. Can we move on?”
You didn’t wait for a reply as you stormed off, towards the others, leaving his heart breaking in the dust.
--
“Kie,” you sighed, collecting glasses from one of the tables, “I told you, okay? He pushed me away. I mean, message received, loud and clear.”
“But you were drunk, maybe he just didn’t want to take advantage of you?” she offered, and you put the tray of glasses down, sighing and looking over to her.
“He just kind of, walked off.” you reminded her, “He just pushed me away and walked off. I felt like such an idiot - it was so humiliating, I mean he flirts with me, he asks me about all the right things, he wants to know about me, and who I am in a way that no guy ever has before. And I guess I got so caught up in my feelings that I didn’t realise they were one-sided. He pushed me away, and there’s only one way to take that. Besides, you saw how he acted at the yard.” You dropped your head into your hands. “How do I face him Kie?” you could feel her rub your back, “How do I face him, and the boys - he’s definitely told the boys - after I embarrassed myself like that?” 
She sighed, taking your face in her hands, “With your head held high, like a fucking a boss, because it’s his loss.” 
“You’re a poet and you don’t even know it.”
--
You had dined at the Wreck, still ignoring JJ and agreeing to reconvene at the Chateau in the early morning to test the drone, which was what you were now doing, as the sun began to creep over the marsh, dawn only having been an hour ago. Pope and JJ stood next to you, checking the camera, with Kie and John B in the water and you sat on the side of the pontoon.
“God bless geeks, Pope, truly man.” JJ said, looking at the screen. “What would we do without you to control the drone?”
“It’s not a drone,” you pointed out, “It’s an ROV.”
“Shut up, shut up.” He said, looking out at Kie and John B, “It’s too early for that right now.”
“Hey, once we get footage of the wreck, we’ll bring it to a lawyer in town and file a claim.” said John B.
“It’s such bullshit, why do we have to do that?”
“Well there is maritime salvage law.” You pointed out. 
“You can’t just go to the bottom of the ocean and scoop a bunch of stuff up.” confirmed Pope.
“I know, I know, it’s just, lawyers aren’t cheap, bro.” 
“JJ, we’re about to get our hands on 400 mil, and you’re worried about being cheap?” you snorted.
“And as soon as they see the footage they’ll work for a comp.” John B explained.
“How do you know all of that?” Kie asked.
“‘Cause my dad said it. Like, a million times.”
“This tether is like, really long.” Pope pointed out, “In the wrong weather it could get pushed around.”
“Then we’ll go in dead calm.” you shrugged, glancing at the storm clouds above you, “So not today.”
“So now we just gotta wait around for the right weather.” You pulled up the weather app on your phone, “Or tomorrow, thank God.” You stood up, “I gotta go anyway. I’ll be back tomorrow evening, so see you guys then.”
The pogues looked confused and you shrugged, “I have a ferry to catch.”
“A ferry?” Kie asked.
“Yeah, my brother’s driving from college to Florida to meet his girlfriend so he’s passing through, I said I’d meet him on the mainland until he leaves tomorrow.” you explained, grabbing your bag. “See you later.”
--
“Do you ever think about Mom?” you asked, taking a scoop of ice cream, making Lewis look at you, nodding slowly. “‘Cause I feel shitty, like yeah, she did some fucked up shit, and is one of the major factors as to why I’m now living in some islands on the other side of the country, but, she keeps calling me, and I want to pick up. Does that make me a bad person?”
“No.” Your brother shook his head, “She’s our mom, you’re still allowed to talk to her, even if you can’t see her. Besides, we deserve some closure, so if you can get it off her, then do.”
You nodded. “I miss her. And I miss how happy Dad was when he was around her. How happy we all were. It hurts that she did that to us.” you looked out to sea, watching the islands in the distance.
“Me too, little sis, me too.” he leant against the bollard next to him.
“So, you have a girlfriend.” you grinned at the way he blushed, “How long you been together?”
“Eight months, since the start of college.” he smiled.
“I’m happy for you.” you smiled at the thought of him finally finding the right girl, he deserved it.
“Thanks.” he grinned, “How about you? Any guys in the Outer Banks catching your eye?”
You thought about lying, but you decided you’d done enough of that for a lifetime. “There was, but I don’t think so anymore. Things are… weird.” 
“Oh yeah, what’s his name?” he nudged you.
“JJ. I thought we had something going on, but I guess he made it clear that that was fabricated.”
“How so?”
“We were like, hanging out everyday, and flirting and shit, but he kinda rejected me when I kissed him.” 
“It’s his loss, any guy would be lucky to have you. But if you need me to kick his ass, I’ll get on that ferry with you and do it like, as soon as I can.”
“You’re so extra.”
“You got friends?”
“What do you mean? You think I’m a loner or something?”
“It’s a simple question!”
“Yes. Yes, I have friends.”
“Good friends? They look out for you?”
“Yeah. I’ve known them a month and they’re already better friends than any of my old ones were. They’re the one reason I’m glad I live in the Outer Banks now. I love them, weird as it sounds. And they love me.”
You went back to the motel he’d rented you rooms in, and sat on your bed, opening your phone and staring at the many missed calls from your mom. You tapped the call button, holding the phone to your ear.
It rang twice, then the line opened with a small crackle.
“Hey Mom.” 
“Sweetie,” you could almost hear her relieved smile, “How are you?”
“I’m… uh, I’m good. I’m settling in. How’s Chris?”
“That’s great! He’s good, we’re good. Thank you. For calling back.”
“Why did you call, Mom?”
“I wanted to apologise. I’m so sorry. What I did - it tore us apart, and it was unforgivable. And now I see the situation you’re in and I wish I could take it back.”
“But you can’t, Mom. You destroyed my life, and you called to kill tow birds with one stone - pretend to seem like the caring mom you proved yourself not to be, and to clear your own conscience. Well fuck you. You really wanna know how I’m doing? I haven’t talked to any of my close friends from Cali because you made us move so suddenly that they thought I’d hid it from them. They all think I’m a slut, and I couldn’t win the fucking court case because of you! You left Dad high and dry, for a rich dude you’d known for a month!”
“Y/N,” she sighed through the phone, and you noticed that your cheeks were wet and stiff with tears.
“No, Mom. Don’t call again. Don’t try to contact me. I thought this would help get me closure, but your apology is just an excuse! I - I don’t ever wanna talk to you again.”
“I love you.”
You hung up, falling back onto the motel bed, and letting the sobs shake your body with such force that you couldn’t breathe.
--
You got back late the next day, when the sky was falling into darker hues every minute. You were tired, but you missed your friends. You dropped your bag off in the hallway and headed straight over the road to the Chateau. You found them in the hammocks. “Hey.”
Kie squealed, jumping up and tackling you in a hug that made you stumble back.
“Missed you,” she smiled, “had to deal with these shitheads by myself.” 
“Sorry.” you smiled, climbing into the hammock with her as the boys protested to her insults. 
“You missed some good waves.” John B commented.
“You guys know I don’t surf.” You chuckled. “I’m sure they were great though.”
“But you should surf.” JJ said, sitting on the other end of the hammock, both of your feet thrown over his. “How’s your brother?”
“I’m good without that hobby.” you laughed. “He’s good, enjoying college. What were y’all talking about?”
“How JJ believes in the gold.” Kie smirked.
“Oh my God, JJ, do you really believe?” John B joked.
“Totally. Wait, are we talking about four mil?”
“Four hundred mil.” You corrected, speaking softly, your anger at him seemingly having dissipated.
“I’m gonna dream about shipwrecks.” he rolled onto his side, as you and Kie giggled.
“Goodnight, Bird!” You laughed.
“Goodnight, Birdshit!” Pope mocked, making you all laugh.
“I love you guys.” You muttered, feeling Kie cuddle into you.
--
You stood at the bow, sunglasses on as you watched the waves roll out in front of you, and the wind bite at your skin, whipping your hair out behind you.
“Alright JJ, pin it here.” John B called, and you turned around, hopping off the front of the boat as JJ responded.
“Roger that, x marks the spot.” you walked to Kie, helping her with the wire.
“Alright, ladies and gentlemen.” John B pulled out the ROV, “To going full kook.” he plopped the drone in the water, high-fiving you as he walked back to Pope. Kie started feeding the wire through, and you sat down next to JJ in the cockpit, watching how he pouted when you stole his seat. “Alright, JJ, we’re right over it, ten seconds northwest.”
“Got it!” he repeated the instructions as he followed them. “Why are you in here?” 
“I wanted to sit down.” You countered, swivelling the chair from side to side.
“One hundred feet!” Kie called.
“You could sit down outside.” he nodded to the benches outside.
“But then you wouldn’t get the pleasure of my company!”
“I wouldn’t call it a pleasure.” he joked.
“Two hundred feet.” Kie’s call came.
You put your hand to your chest in fake offence, “C’mon man, you’re breakin’ my heart!”
“Sorry, bro.” he said, adjusting the steering.
“Three hundred feet.” 
“JJ why did you push me away when I kissed you?”
“Y/N, while I would love to have this conversation, now is not the time.”
“Four hundred feet.” Kie looked down, “The tide’s turning.”
“Hey JJ?” John B called out.
“Yup.” You responded for him, swivelling the seat towards John B.
“Ten seconds, easy. South-southeast.” 
You swivelled back around, repeating the instructions and ignoring the  “Yeah, Y/N, I heard.” as he turned aggressively, and you shuffled the chair back.
“JJ, twenty seconds midspeed alright? South.” John B called.
You stood up, the sudden change in weather and instructions causing anxiety to gnaw at your stomach. You grabbed a sweater off the side, pulling it over your head to keep the wind from giving you hypothermia. You went to Pope and John B, hoping to make yourself useful.
“What’s going on?” You asked, looking at the storm clouds.
“700 feet!” Kie called, and Pope turned to you.
“A little bad weather, we’re fine.” He assured you, and you nodded slowly, knowing he could see you were still anxious. 
You stumbled to the side as the waves crashed into the boat, JJ looking back at you, concerned. “This is not ‘dead calm’.” you mumbled as JJ peered out at the clouds.
“JJ, hold it steady!” John B called.
“900!” Kie called.
“JJ, we’re gonna turtle in this storm.” You said, watching the panic in your friends, as you fumbled with the sleeves. “Can I help with anything?”
“Sort the speed.” He said, moving so you could control the meter.
“920!” Kie yelled.
“Crank it north by northwest! Ten seconds!” John B called, panic clear in his voice.
“John B there’s too much current, we’re gonna lose it!” Kie yelled.
“South southwest JJ! Hard!” John B yelled, and you pushed the meter, turning quickly, working in tandem with the blonde boy.
“Half speed! Steady at this bearing, JJ!” He steered by his instructions as you slowed the boat.
“960!”
“980!”
You heard Pope yelling that you were at the bottom, and John B yelling for JJ to be steady, calling for quarter-speed. You slowed the boat again, both you and JJ looking at where the others crowded around the monitor.
“See anything?” JJ called.
You could see them mumbling, and their faces falling. They had found the boat, but came up empty. You helped JJ steer as they swept the wreck twice more, before running out of battery. You could hear Pope trying to bring the optimism back, but you knew it was futile.
“Guys, we’ve been through it three times, there’s nothing there.” you called.
“Shut up!” Kie shouted back, and you sighed, dejected.
“What? She’s right!” JJ backed you. You pulled your hand through your hair, taking the speed controls back off JJ.
“The gold could be buried, we don’t know!” Kie shouted, searching for something hopeful to say.
“If it was there, it would have been found on the metal detector, okay?” John B turned to face the group again. “Somebody beat us to it.”
You could see JJ getting frustrated, the sight of his best friend in pain clearly getting to him. “Or it was never there.” he muttered. You sighed, turning to check on your friends, who were riddled with frustration and anger. Eventually, you decided to go home.
When you eventually got back to the island, Kie pulled you aside.
“Are you and JJ alright again?”
“Honestly? I don’t know. Even if he doesn’t see me like that, I don’t wanna lose him. I talked to my brother about it, and I just feel like we should at least try to be good again.”
“You know we all love you either way right? And JJ cares about you, you guys have got to sort it out, you may have only known each other for less than a month, but I honestly can’t imagine how he’d be if he fucked things up with you.”
“You sure about that?” 
“‘Course. Anyway, you’re coming out with me, Pope and JJ, maybe JB,  tomorrow anyway.”
“I am?”
“Movie night down in the Kook Green.”
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ohhipstaplease · 3 years
Text
Strawberry Sugar | NaruHina
Chapter 2
chapter 1 | Read all chapters: Ao3 / FFN
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That next morning, as the sun rose and let its rays unfurl across picturesque Konoha, Naruto Uzumaki, woke with a start.
“Naruto Nii-chan!!”
He felt the wind knocked out of him as his incredibly annoying, but equally as endearing, protege jumped upon him full force.
“For the love of-”
“Good morning.”
Naruto glared at Konohamaru, trying to catch his breath, “What did I tell you about using the spare key?”
“Don’t.”
“So why are you here then?”
“You said we were going to train today.”
Naruto rubbed his eyes and turned his alarm clock around to look at it, “It’s eight in the morning, Konohamaru!”
“Early bird gets the worm, and all that stupid stuff everyone else says. I want to be like you big brother Naruto! Saving the village, fighting in wars!” Konohamaru said, animatedly jumping up onto Naruto’s bed and kicking the air.
Naruto shook his head as he watched Konohamaru pace from corner to corner, excitedly chattering away. He could barely process what the now long-haired boy was saying, much less reciprocate. But still, Konohamaru expected Naruto to be 100%, even after he just woke up, “Snap out of it!” He yelled, “You’re a war hero! You can’t be sleeping the day away!”
Naruto sighed, “Can you at least let me get dressed?”
Konohamaru turned around and shook his hand out twice, “Get to it.”
Naruto rolled his eyes but smiled nonetheless. He walked over to the chair next to the small dresser that he had designated for his clothing from the previous day. He slipped on his pants, and had gotten better at it considering the circumstances.
“Are you done yet?” Konohamaru asked impatiently.
“Yeah, yeah,” Naruto said, slipping his shirt over his broad chest. He wondered how even on Saturday he found himself up at 8 AM.
As the tensions surrounding the village had finally dissipated, Naruto hoped to find himself completely free of any responsibilities for at least a while. But lo and behold, Konohamaru knew exactly when to show up. Although to be fair, he wasn’t without things to do this particular weekend. In fact, he was going to see Hinata later that afternoon about something she just had to talk about.
He hadn’t really thought about it either, you know, the fact that one of the most beautiful kunoichis in the village had called him up, nervously asked him if he was free, and emphasized the importance of their meeting. Didn’t realize that over a year ago she had professed her undying love for him. Was he oblivious? Yes. Stupid? Oh, without a doubt. But that was just the way that Naruto Uzumaki rolled.
He had always been free-spirited and tried to not think about the past. It was said and done anyway. What mattered was the here and now. And right here and now, well, his stomach was growling, so really he couldn’t manage to think about anything other than old man Teuchi’s ramen from Ichiraku.
“Alright, food first. We’re going to get some ramen, and then we’ll do a short lesson, okay? I have to meet up with someone later.”
“Who?”
“Hinata.”
“Oh,” Konohamaru said wiggling his eyebrows, “So it’s that kind of meeting.”
“What?” Naruto responded as he made his bed, “She said she just wanted to talk about something.”
“Like what she said during the war?”
Naruto blushed, “You don’t know what you’re talking about, pipsqueak.”
“Yes I do, everyone’s been talking about it.”
“About what?”
“How you both are totally in love with each other.”
“What!?”
“What? Like you two aren’t...” He brushed against Naruto’s shoulder as he whispered “boyfriend and girlfriend?”
“Eh!?” Naruto exclaimed as he stepped back, “No! We’re friends.”
“What a waste, man.” Konohamaru said, shaking his head, “Now that’s a girl that has it bad for you. But then again, ever since you came back that’s been half the world.”
“Stop talking out of your ass.”
“Oh, please, like you haven’t noticed.” Konohamaru paused.
Naruto shrugged, “Not that kind of guy. And you shouldn’t be either,” he said as he ruffled Konohamaru’s hair.
Konohamaru feigned annoyance and quickly smoothed over his ruffled tresses, “Save the lecture nii-chan. I get it. But you should too.”
“And what is it that I should be getting?”
Konohamaru shrugged, “No wonder oneesan complains about you so much.”
“What!? What did Sakura say?”
“I mean, I just heard...”
“Heard?”
“-Overheard her and Hinata talking.”
“About?”
Konohamaru lifted his brow, “Really?”
“Me?”
“Yes! You!”
“Why?” Naruto said, scratching his head.
“For the love of-” Konohamaru reached over Naruto’s head and grabbed a picture that had been snapped at the dinner that was held a few weeks ago. In it Naruto, unsurprisingly, was front and center, eyes closed in a cat-like smile, his thumb up in the air. Sakura hung around his shoulders, her small tongue out and her fingers up in a peace sign. Shikamaru cooly smirked as he held court across from him, Choji smiled bashfully as he looked up from his plate. Kiba, Ino, Shino, and Sai looked at each other as if they were in a heated debate only moments before, they hadn’t even realized a picture was being taken.
Naruto studied each one and saw nothing more than what he had first seen when he tended to glance at the photo. But then his eyes landed on Hinata, and he saw it. There was a look upon her face, a sparkle in her eye, something. He didn’t know quite what to make of it. He thought it was just a weird angle, a mistake made by Iruka when he snapped the picture. Then he realized it wasn’t, she was looking at something.
“What’s she looking at?” Naruto asked, tilting his head.
“You!”
“Me?”
Konohamaru’s fingers landed upon Hinata’s face, and he glided it from her moonstone-like eyes to the object she had been tenderly admiring, “You,” He said, without missing a beat, “She’s looking at you.”
“Yeah,” Naruto said, gripping the nape of his neck, “I guess she is.”
“Do you know why?”
“Why?”
It took everything within Konohamaru not to slam the frame into Naruto’s face. For all his merits, he couldn’t believe the person he looked up to was really that dense.
“If you really don’t know, nii-chan, then you’re going to have to spend some time thinking about it, aren’t you?”
Naruto looked at him blankly, clearly not knowing what to respond to. He had never pondered it, really. And now that the thought was implanted into his mind by Konohamaru, he wasn’t quite sure what he was going to do to remedy it.
After training with Konohamaru, Naruto swung by the apartment of his teammate and friend, Sasuke Uchiha. Since the war, the pair had an unspoken agreement that their doors would always be open for each other, and Naruto had more than taken advantage of the fact. Although Sasuke acted as if Naruto’s constant presence bothered him, Naruto knew nothing could be further from the truth.
Except perhaps on this day. On this particular day Naruto threw open the door to Sasuke’s apartment and exclaimed “Sasuke, buddy, I need to talk to you—”
“Naruto!” Sasuke exclaimed angrily as he jumped up from his couch in the front room. Beside him was a flushed Sakura, sighing and covering her eyes with a small hand.
Naruto’s eyes darted from Sasuke’s reddened lips to Sakura’s who matched his. As soon as he saw the scene before him he yelped, “Oh shit! I’m so sorry I—I didn’t know. I—How long has this been going on?”
Sasuke fixed his shirt and cooly shrugged, “None of your business, Naruto.”
“Oh, come on. Sakura! How could you not tell me, you’ve only been in love with him forever. I would think you’d have told the entire world by now.”
“Shut up, Naruto!”
“You said you wanted to talk to me?” Sasuke said as he took his seat once more, wrapping an arm around Sakura’s shoulders. The kunoichi quickly simmered down and leaned into his embrace.
Naruto nodded, sitting down in the armchair that was placed before his two teammates. “Just like, give me one second. I need to process—” He signaled the lack of space between the pair and shook his head, “whatever this is.”
“You have 5 seconds to start talking or you’re out of here,” Sasuke said firmly.
“Okay, alright. Well, you know Konohamaru’s just a kid and sometimes he has some really crazy ideas, right? Yeah, so, I told him today that I was meeting Hinata later and he just made a face and implied that we were going to fool around.”
Sakura giggled and Sasuke smirked, making Naruto a little apprehensive.
“Yeah, that’s the look he gave me,” He said, pointing at Sasuke.
“I can’t imagine why.”
“We’re just friends! Konohamaru kept going on and on that she loved me and that she confessed to me...but she didn’t! I would know if she had confessed to me, right?
“Idiot.” Sasuke said, rolling his eyes.
“Hey! I came here for advice!”
“I’m giving it to you. You’re an idiot, now think about why that may be...other than the obvious reasons.”
“You’d think having a girlfriend would’ve made him a little nicer,” Naruto said under his breath.
Sakura narrowed her eyes, “You have something to say?”
“No.”
“Well, I do.”
“What’s that?”
“You’re an idiot, Naruto!!!”
“Oh come on!”
Sasuke laughed, but Sakura continued, “You’re really going to tell us that she didn’t confess to you? Rewind to the war, idiot! She was about to die for you!”
“Sakura, you know my memory of that day is a little hazy.” He muttered pathetically.
“We all heard it, Naruto! She confessed to you!”
Naruto put his head in his hands and breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself. He kept trying to tell himself that he couldn’t possibly be that dense, but he figured if everyone is telling him the opposite maybe it was time to face facts.
“You think she still likes me?” Naruto asked quietly.
Sakura’s lips formed a soft smile, “You have no idea how much, Naruto.”
“Do you even like her?” Sasuke asked bluntly.
“I...”
“Don’t go getting her hopes up if you don’t even know what you’re feeling, Naruto,” Sakura warned.
“Yeah...I just....” He glanced at the clock on the wall in Sasuke’s kitchen and started getting up from the armchair, “I’m running late.”
“Alright, well, let us know how it goes,” Sakura said with a furrowed brow.
“And next time, knock!” Sasuke said as Naruto reached for the doorknob.
Naruto shook his head, “Yeah, yeah. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, love birds.”
Naruto closed the door behind him and began making his way towards the Hyuga compound. His stomach was buzzing, his head spinning. He had never thought of Hinata in that way.
Well, that was a lie. There was a time or two he had thought of her, particularly when he was taking a shower or lying in bed at night. He wasn’t proud to admit it, but when Hinata filled out in all the right places he was the first to notice. That didn’t mean he thought he stood a chance with her.
He recalled the photo Konohamaru showed him and realized that the glimmer he had seen etched in her eyes there, was the same adoration she had always had in regards to him. But was it fair to her to say something? He didn’t even know what he felt, he was a jumble of confusion.
Naruto sighed and continued walking down the stone path, Hinata had been vague on the phone when asking him if they could meet. It wasn’t unusual for them to hang out, but for her to call first? For her to do the asking?
He picked up the pace and started walking faster. He had to look into her eyes once more. He knew that if he saw that same look, the one that was upon her face in the picture, he still had a chance with Hinata.
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