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mrsbarnesblog · 6 months

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i can't let you get hurt

masterlist ko-fi ao3

Summary: You have just moved to New York, where your adopted brother Steve has been living for 5 years. Desperate to make new friends, you give the dating app another go. You didn’t even think that you would have to ask for help from the person who has not left your thoughts for the past month - your brother’s best friend.

Word count: 3.3k

Warnings: fluff, reader is Steve's adopted sister, mechanic Bucky, creepy behaviour, protective Bucky.

Author's note: Does anyone know if community labels are reducing the number of likes and reblogs? because my last post received a suspiciously small amount of notes🤔 but I'm afraid to remove them because Tumblr might decide to block me again

Moving to New York was the idea that has been sitting in your head for a long period of time. Since your adopted brother Steve finished high school, he moved there without any money, without friends, and only with a lot of desires and dreams. You stayed in your small town with your and Steve’s adopted parents because you were only fifteen at the time. It’s been almost five years, and right now he owns an auto repair shop, and as far as you know, it’s a pretty successful place.

You knew that you had nothing to lose; you had no opportunities in your city, no close friends, and it was a really boring and gray life.

Steve only visited you two times, but you regularly spoke on the phone. So when your plane finally landed and you met him, you were kind of a crying mess. He was still your closest person, and you loved him with your whole heart. Steve was now much bigger, with broad shoulders and arms that were probably the same size as your head, but he still had that golden retriever energy, which you really loved.

Steve helped you find your apartment building, where you rented a small and cozy flat from a nice old lady. It wasn’t too much—just a bedroom and living room connected with a tiny kitchen and bathroom. Everything was clean, with light furniture and a lot of plants. It was actually surprising that this place had an affordable rent, and you were happy that luck was on your side.

On the next day, your brother finally showed you his famous place, which he owned with his now best friend Bucky Barnes. And talking about him, he was something else. A tall, big man with fluffy chocolate hair, stubble, and the most beautiful blue eyes you've ever seen. You knew that you were fucked as soon as he looked you directly in the eyes, shook your hand, and gave you a charming smile.

You met almost everyone in the garage. All the guys were super nice and friendly, they even showed you all of their cars that they were working with. You were happy that Steve found such a family here, they were all obviously so close to each other.

Yet, after a month here, you had almost no friends. You found a job in the coffee shop down the street, where you met an amazing redhead girl named Wanda. You chatted a lot during the work, but you two were still far from friends.

That's how you ended up here. On a date with John.

For some reason, you decided to give that stupid dating app another try. John found you there, and he seemed nice, so when on the second day he decided to invite you to a bar, you agreed without hesitation.

How long has it been since the last time someone asked you out? Year? Yes, it was a little sad to realize that no one was particularly interested in you. Before moving to New York, all the guys you talked to seemed to only want one thing, so you had high hopes for John.

Your evening went well at first. You ordered a drink and chatted. He really seemed nice. After the second drink, you decided to stop for a bit because the alcohol started to make you feel dizzy, even though John was persuading you to taste more of the cocktails that he had brought you .

"You know, I think I better slow down with drinks; I really don’t want to be drunk and embarrass myself on the first date." You pushed your glass back a little, smiling politely.

"Oh, c'mon, baby, don’t upset me." John chuckled and put his hand on yours. You awkwardly smiled, not ready for such physical contact. "You’re here alone, right?" He tilted his head, and you didn't miss how his eyes stopped at your boobs.

"Um, not exactly... I mean, I know like five people in this city, and one of them is my brother. But we don’t live together; he has his own life." John nodded his head and leaned a little closer to you.

"So it means that we can have some fun, right, baby?"

"Fun?"

"Mhm." One of his hands stayed on top of yours, and the other one suddenly fell on your leg. Your body tensed at the feeling of his fingers as they started to rub the bare skin of your inner thigh. You definitely didn’t expect it to happen. "I’ll take an Uber; we’ll go to my place, and we can continue our night. What do you think?"

"I didn’t want to—I mean, that’s not what I was looking for—I thought that we were going to just talk and drink, you know…" You tried to take his hand off of you, but his grip only became harder.

"Don’t try to run away now, baby." He grinned. "You dressed up for me, huh? Your tight little dress that shows your boobs says it all. You just want me." You felt goosebumps all over your body because of his look. It was intense and not as innocent as it was before. You felt disgusted because of his words. You wanted to look good, yes, but seducing him wasn’t part of your plan.

So what are you going to do now? You felt unsafe, and you didn’t know how you could escape this situation. He was obviously a creep, and he just wanted to have sex with you. You can’t go home because either he won't let you go or he might find out where you live.

"O-okay- um- just let me- I’ll go to the restroom real quick, and we can go, okay?" You nervously smiled and stood up, almost spilling your cocktail.

"Someone’s excited, huh?" He laughed, looking at your body up and down.

You left without an answer. You really went to the restroom because the bar was half empty, and John would’ve definitely seen you going out. Luckily, the restroom was empty. You locked the door and looked at yourself in the mirror for a few seconds, trying to figure out what to do.

You reached into your purse to get your phone. The first person that came to mind was Steve. Only long beeps were heard, and after the third call, you gave up.

"Fuck, Steve, I really need you right now." You scrolled through your contacts again. It wasn’t a lie that you knew five people from New York. Steve was not answering his phone. Your neighbor Natasha and Wanda from work, were not your close friends, so it would’ve been weird to call them because of this. There was a number of an old lady who rented you an apartment, and she was obviously not an option. And there was another person.

Bucky.

Calling him in this situation was the last thing you wanted to do. Hell, he probably won’t even answer you because he thinks that you’re just his best friend’s little sister, and he’ll definitely make fun of you about this stupid date. But you had no other variants.

"Hello?" He picked up his phone almost immediately, and you even forgot what you wanted to say. "Y/N? Are you okay?" His deep voice was full of worry, and you couldn’t help but feel butterflies in your stomach.

"H-hey, Bucky. Um… I’m really, really sorry that I’m calling you, but Steve is not picking up his phone. Do you know where he is?" You walked around the small room, trying to calm down.

"Yeah, he’s meeting with some girl he's been talking about for days. He’s probably really busy right now." He chuckled, and you felt like you were about to cry. Bucky must’ve heard your breathing change because he immediately went silent. "Doll? What happened?"

"My God, it’s so stupid…" You squeezed your eyes, not wanting to cry.

"Tell me."

"I’m at the bar. I’m on a date with a guy named John, and he became very persistent. He wants me to go to his place, but It’s- I’m not interested in this. And I can't just leave because I’m afraid that he can follow me and find out where I live… fuck I really don’t know what to do, and I wanted to ask Steve to pick me up." Your phone stayed silent for a few moments, and you already thought that he got tired of your mess and just ended the call. "Bucky?"

"Where are you? What bar? Are you in the restroom?" His voice was low, and you knew that he wasn’t happy with all of this.

"It’s that new place a few blocks away from my crib. With big neon red signs at the top. And I’m in the restroom right now."

"I’ll be there in five. Stay there and don’t open the door until you know it’s me." He said that and ended the call, leaving you nervous and excited at the same time.

The loud knock on the door almost made you jump. Fastly, but quietly, you reached there and tried to listen for any signs of who it could be.

"I hear you. Open the door; it’s me." The familiar voice came from behind the door.

You opened the door and met Bucky’s beautiful blue eyes. He seemed a little bit out of breath, as if he had run here. You quickly scanned his body, and the fact that he was wearing your favorite leather jacket made you weak in the knees. His dark brown locks that curled at the ends almost asked you to touch them. It was not your fault that this idiot always looked ridiculously hot every single time.

"C’mon, let’s get you home, doll." He grabbed your hand, leading you out of the bathroom to the bar, where you immediately saw a clearly annoyed John. You saw that Bucky looked at him too, but he stopped only when you were already on the street and when your bad date ran after you, loudly calling your name.

"Hey! Where the fuck are you going? We were supposed to go to my place! You already found someone else to fuck or what?" He yelled, grabbing your other hand at the same time. You felt Bucky quickly move you behind him while still holding your wrist.

"Don’t fucking touch her. She’s leaving, and if I ever see you near her again, I'll rip your useless hands off. Understood?" Bucky growled, straightening his body. He was obviously bigger than John, who was now less brave. John looked at you for a few seconds as he was thinking about what he should say to you, but then just turned around and left. Apparently, you weren't worth it.

You didn’t know whether it was the cool night air or this whole tense situation that made you tremble. You felt Bucky’s warm body get closer to you, and his large, calloused hand rested on your shoulder. It made you feel a little bit fuzzy because you were trying so hard to hide your little (big) crush on your brother’s best friend. Yeah, it was the biggest cliche, but you couldn’t even blame yourself. He was extremely beautiful, with those blue eyes, rosy lips, and a body that you knew was built like God's. Not to mention that Bucky was sweet and a true gentleman.

"You’re shaking, doll. Wait a second." He started to take off his jacket, and you tried to stop him.

"Bucky, no, what are you doing? You don’t have to; it’s not even that cold!" He just playfully rolled his eyes and still threw a jacket over your shoulders, leaving himself only in the tight black shirt. God, this man.

A sudden wave of his cologne surrounded you. Bucky always smelled good. Something clean with a spicy and woody scent. The leather was still warm from his body, and you fought against the desire to bury your nose in it. You didn't even realize that you actually did it, so when you opened your eyes, you saw Bucky, who had this annoying grin on his face.

"So you like it, huh?" He chuckled.

"Oh, shut up. I didn't want to do that."

"Of course, doll. But we should go, I have to take you home safely, right?" Bucky said, leading you to the parking lot. To a motorcycle.

"A motorcycle?" You asked Bucky as you stepped closer to him. "No, I—where’s your car? I’ve never ridden on one of those." He had already sat there and had two helmets in his hands.

"I left it in the garage and didn’t want to make you wait here for too long. But you don’t have to worry; I know what I'm doing, and I'll take care of you. I promise." You came closer to him and let him put a helmet on you. You really tried not to tremble as his hands gently fixed it under your chin. "Now sit behind me and put your legs here." He pointed at the weird looking thing.

You felt weird as soon as you sat in the passenger seat. Bucky was so close, and you could feel the warmth of his body even if it was cold outside. Where should I put my hands? Hug him? Put it behind me? You awkwardly placed it on your own legs, and Bucky must’ve immediately felt your tense body because you heard a chuckle, and the next moment he grabbed your hands and put it around his waist. "You should put it right here, doll. You don’t wanna fall, do you?"

You slightly shook your head before you placed it on his back. It was really hard to control yourself when your hands were laying on his hard press. For fuck’s sake, he should be perfect everywhere, huh?

"Hold on tight, Darlin'." You heard another deep chuckle, and he finally put his helmet on.

You don't know how long you were driving, but when Bucky finally pulled up outside your apartment building, you felt sad and happy at the same time. The ride was something else. This man almost gave you a heart attack when you stopped at a red light and he put his hand on your bare leg and asked if you were okay.

He’s just being nice, stop overthinking this.

You knew Bucky for only one month, but it was hard not to fall for him. He was an attractive, kind, and really generous man; you knew that he was like a part of Steve's family. Sometimes, when you visited your brother and accidentally met Bucky, for a few seconds you thought that maybe he finds you attractive. You always caught him looking at you.

But you knew this type of guy—always charming and flirting—who could have pretty much anyone. It was stupid of you to think that he saw you as something more than just Steve’s little sister.

"See, I told you that I was a good driver and that you'd get home safely." He hopped off the motorcycle and stood before you while you were trying to take the helmet off. "Let me unlock it."

"Thank you, Bucky." You said when you were finally free. "For this, for the jacket... You were probably very busy, and I just ruined your night by making you take care of me. Oh my god, I’m really sorry. I just wanted to forget about one person, and I thought that going on that stupid date would be a good idea, but it seems like the only thing that men want here is sex." You chuckled and watched to the ground.

"Now listen to me, doll." Bucky suddenly stepped closer to you, and you almost fainted when both of his hands took your face and forced you to look him right in the eyes. "You shouldn’t apologize for calling me. I was just hanging out with the guys from the garage, but as soon as you called me, I left everything because I can’t let you get hurt." He nervously licked his lips, and you hope that he didn’t notice how you stared at this movement. Bucky’s hands left your face and ended up on your upper arms. Did he come closer to me? "I don’t know who you were trying to forget about, but I hope that he or she is worth your time."

"We– we’re not really close. I’m probably not even his type." You shrugged. Bucky’s jaw clenched, and he buried his hands in the jeans pockets, as if he was angry and tried not to show you. As soon as he made a distance between you two, you body started trembling.

"Is it someone from the garage?" His head was a little bit tilted to the side, and you knew that right now he wouldn’t shut up about it until you gave him a name. "Maybe Sam? Or Thor? Many girls like him, you know. Do you like show-offs like Stark? Or…"

"You."

You both were silent.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. What were you thinking?

"Say it again." Your throat felt dry, and you just stared at him, not knowing what to do.

"I– Just forget about it, Bucky. It’s stupid–"

You weren't able to finish because a soft pair of lips interrupted you. One of Bucky’s hands cupped your face, lifting you up to his level, and another one laid on your waist. He was soft, warm, and gentle when his lips moved on top of yours. Your head was in the clouds, and it felt like your knees became weaker. You wrapped your arms around Bucky’s neck, completely melting into him. He wanted to stay like this forever. Your skin and your lips were so soft, he could smell your perfume and taste your sweet lip gloss. But he knew that he should stop and do it the right way. After a few seconds, he finally pulled away, but he put his forehead on yours, and it was so cozy, like you two were in a bubble.

"I’m sorry. Was this too much? I overstepped?" He licked his lips as if he were trying to get more of your taste. "I have been thinking about asking you out since the day I saw you. I wanted to do it right. To take you on a date, to be the gentleman that you deserve, and maybe get a kiss on the cheek at the end of the night. Sorry. I didn’t even know that you liked me." Bucky wrapped his hands around your waist, and you nuzzled into his neck, enjoying his scent.

"And I didn’t know that you liked me either. I thought that you felt obligated to take care of me because I'm your best friend’s sister."

"No, I promise you." He kissed the top of your head. "But Steve’s gonna kill me, by the way. He told all of us that you’re not an option and that we can’t touch you."

"Well, I love him, but he can’t decide for me."

"So… Does this mean that you’ll say ‘yes’ if I ask you to go on a date with me? On Sunday, maybe?" You lifted your head to look at him properly, and God, he was so cute when he was nervous.

"Of course, Buck, I wanna go out with you." You smiled at him, and he lowered himself again to give you another sweet kiss on the lips.

"Fuck, you should go home, doll. You’re too sweet for your own good. Wanna keep you all for myself." He mumbled against your lips. "Go."

"Goodnight, Bucky. Please text me when you get home, ‘kay?"

"I will. Goodnight, Doll." You left a soft kiss on his stubbled cheek before finally turning around to go home.

Only at home did you realize that you were still wearing his jacket. At least it was a good excuse for Bucky to see you again sooner. That night, you both ended up texting for hours until you couldn’t keep your eyes open.

Maybe a date with John wasn’t that bad of an idea.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #bucky fanfic #bucky x reader #bucky x you #james bucky barnes #james buchanan barnes #marvel #bucky barnes x you #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine

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silent-stories · 1 year

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𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐘 𝐌𝐎𝐌

Pairing: Eddie x F!Reader

Summary: Eddie wants to introduce you to his mom, so you go to the graveyard with him.

Warnings: angst, fluff, death of a parent

It was late evening and the sky was starting to darken when you sat down on the ground, in front of the stone with Mrs. Munson's name engraved on it.

"Hi mom, this is Y/N," Eddie said as he crossed his legs and stared at the faded photo of the smiling woman on the tombstone "my girlfriend."

He had been wanting to take you there for some time, he said that since he knew your family he wanted you to get to "know" his too, only if you wanted too, of course.

"I've talked about her so many times before, I do it every time I come here actually, but I've never brought her here before." He added pulling his hands out of his jacket pockets and playing nervously with the rings on his fingers.

He kept talking without ever meeting your gaze as if he was afraid of what he might read in your eyes.

"She's here because she's really important to me and I wanted to introduce her to you too. Uncle Wayne has already said that she likes her a lot, they're basically best friends, sometimes I think she loves him more than me." He said the last part with a slight laugh but from his expression he didn't look amused.

"You two have a lot in common, you know?" He asked before pausing as if he was really waiting for an answer.

In return you only heard the rustling of the leaves of the trees caused by the wind.

"She's as kind as you were. She always lets me copy her homework even though I should probably start doing it myself if I wanna graduate. Sometimes she brings home-cooked food for me and Wayne, she and her mom make really good chocolate cakes, you would have liked them a lot." He explained, his voice low.

"Sometimes we cook together like I used to do with you. But Y/N and I always end up making a mess or fighting with flour. But it's fun, so we keep doing it even if we have to clean the trailer from top to bottom afterwards." A sad smile appeared on Eddie's face, probably remembering his days spent with his mother when she was with him.

"And she's as funny as you, she can make me smile with a simple joke even though my day has been shit and I just want to sleep for three days straight." He added and your heart squeezed in your chest.

"She's caring. That's another thing you both have in common. Once I didn't go to school because I had a fever and she missed an important test to come and check if I was okay. Actually I wasn't very okay, she had to keep my hair back as I threw up. I told her she could go anyway but she stayed with me until Wayne was back, at night. She stayed there all those hours, making me rest my head on her stomach and running her hands through my hair just like you used to do." At this point you just wanted to cry. You never thought that all those simple gestures that were part of your relationship with Eddie could mean so much to him.

You reached out to him and grabbed his hand which had started to shake slightly and definitely not from the temperature. He fliched at first, then hold it as if his life depended on it.

"She's also a good listener, she never judges when I talk about my problems and always listens when I talk about things I'm interested in . She says she likes to hear me talk about what I like, Dungeons & Dragons, the band and music in general, books. Once I even started reading the Hobbit aloud to her, but she fell asleep after half an hour with her head on my chest. I didn't get mad, she was too pretty. And I could never be mad at her, she makes me happy." If he was talking about being happy, then why did his voice sound so broken?

"When I'm with her I feel good, mom. It doesn't matter if I'm at school, in the trailer or on a bench in the woods, when I'm with her I feel at home. And it feels good. It feels great." He added as a tear rolled down his cheek.

"She's one of the best people I know." He breathed as you reached up to him and wiped it away with your thumb, slowly caressing his cheek.

"You would have loved her, mom." He said finally, before wrapping an arm around your waist and pushing you against him, resting his head on your shoulder and sniffling.

"It's okay." You said rubbing your hand on the fabric of the denim jacket covering his back.

"I love you." He whispered.

"I love you too. And I'm so sorry I didn't get to know your mom. If she was even half as amazing as you are, then she really must have been great." You said leaving a kiss on his forehead.

"She was." He murmured as his arms still held you.

Your lips brushed his temple leaving a light kiss there too, then you turned towards the tombstone.

"Mrs. Munson, I promise I will take good care of your boy."

#eddie x reader #eddie munson x reader #eddie x y/n #eddie munson x y/n #stranger things fanfiction #eddie munson fanfiction #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson angst

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neytirisheaven · 5 months

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i can’t lose when i’m with you

warnings: you know the drill: no use of y/n, strong language, sirius calls reader “darling/my darling”, reader is a gryffindor, reader almost gets attacked by remus, slightly suggestive near the end, ooc peter (NO YOUNG PETER SLANDER), a few smoochies at the end, this is barely proofread so i apologize for any mistakes

sirius black x fem!reader word count: 6.5k

summary: in which sirius struggles to ask you out on a date, so the marauders assist him in his goal, aka the 4 times sirius black tries to ask you out and the 1 time he succeeds

notes: so…….. let’s not talk about the fact that i posted this so fucking late and let’s talk about the fact that it’s sirius black…..!! anyways so this is probably not cohesive and there are probably a lot of plotholes and inconsistencies in here but i was STRUGGLING to write this okay, like i would write 700 words and then dip because i literally couldn’t pull anything else out of my ass

LUCKILY, OUT OF the seven years you’ve spent at Hogwarts, you’ve never been so much as looked at by the infamous Marauders. Sure, they messed around with your friends, and you’ve attended their rambunctious parties after a Quidditch win, but you were fortunate enough to not be bothered by them.

That was, until the one and only Sirius Black laid his eyes on you.

You had vowed to never even come close to fraternizing with a Marauder—besides the occasional conversations with Remus—let alone fall into their trap of tricks with their corny pickup lines and their woo-worthy smiles.

And you were going to stand by that vow. No matter what. Or so you thought.

i. i’d touch that fire for you

It all started when you were peacefully sitting at your regular table in the Great Hall, talking to your friends about the newest gossip about a few of the prefects in the year below you. You prodded at the slice of your pumpkin pie, not too interested in the food as you were in the drama that seemed to be unfolding before your eyes.

But, to your demise, your gossip was cut short by a loud declaration of your name—wait, your name? No, this had to have been a joke. Right?

You slowly turned around in your seat to find Sirius Black standing right behind you, a bouquet of flowers magically appearing in his hands as soon as you locked eyes with him. He tossed his luscious hair over his shoulder and beamed brightly at you, gaining a few coos from the girls sitting around you.

“My darling,” he began, “it would be an absolute honor if you would allow me to take you out on a date to Hogsmeade next Saturday. Would you fancy a trip down there with me?” It was probably the fanciest he had spoken since he had dinner with his whole extended family, and he could’ve only hoped that he could woo you over and finally gain your affections.

You, on the other hand, were not willing to fall for what was obviously supposed to be a prank. Why the four pranksters had chosen you, of all people, to be the butt of this prank, you would never know, but it didn’t mean you were to act clueless about it the whole time.

“Go find someone else to prank, Black,” you muttered under your breath, sending your friends a confused look as you turned back to them. Only a few moments later, you felt the gentle tap of someone’s finger on your shoulder, causing you to turn around once more and look at the same boy that had now turned the bouquet into a three-tiered cake in a matter of seconds. You repeated yourself once more, “I’m not interested in your little jokes. It’s not something I look for in a person. But good job for trying.” You sent him a pitiful smile and returned to your conversation with your friends almost immediately, as if you were desperate to get out of the situation you found yourself in. You were desperate.

Sirius’ face fell as soon as you turned around, finally understanding that you were serious about everything you said. He just assumed you were playing hard to get. He didn’t think you saw it as some prank he was trying to play on you.

His dejected eyes met James’ soft, brown ones, only encouraging him to go even more all out compared to what he just did. It wasn’t the best idea, and both Remus and Peter could see it, but when Sirius was as enamored with someone as he was with you, it meant he was serious. Pun intended.

The raven-haired boy practically skipped over to his friends, James transfiguring the layered cake back into Remus’ water goblet and placing it in front of his friend. “We thank you for your sacrifice,” he spoke with no humor laced in his tone, causing the brunet to scrunch his nose up and return to the Muggle book he was currently reading; The Hobbit.

Sirius’s gaze flickered to the thick book in his friend’s hands, then shot up as if a bolt of lightning had struck him. “That’s perfect, Moony! My darling loves reading Muggle books! I’ve seen her with them in the library many times,” the boy exclaimed excitedly, bouncing around like a kid in a candy store.

“You go to the library? Willingly?” Peter questioned with his mouth full, earning a chastising smack to the back of his head.

Remus spoke up, “He’s trying to get her attention. We’ve got to give him some credit for that.”

“Thank you,” Sirius thanked the boy through gritted teeth, a bit peeved that one of his best friends had no faith in him. They had known of his crush on you for all of two months, and in all of his experiences with girls during his time at Hogwarts, he’d never been prepared for a feeling like the one you gave him. “Anyway, since you’re so invested in all your Muggle books, d’you think you could grab me one on your next visit to the Muggle bookstore?”

The three boys tried their hardest to look past Sirius’ flushed, pink cheeks as he requested a simple yet slightly embarrassing task. Peter and James shot each other a look before the latter leaned over the table with some brotherly advice hanging off the tip of his tongue.

“Just don’t be too annoying about it, Pads. You don’t have seven years for it to get less annoying like I had with Lily. Just, y’know, charm your way through it like you always do. I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

ii. long as you dreaming ‘bout me, ain’t no problem

The atmosphere of the Quidditch stadium was always tense, especially whenever it came time for Gryffindor to play against Slytherin. The stands were full of students boasting their house colors, strictly separated into hues of greens and reds. Linus Spinnett animatedly narrated the gameplay, throwing in a few jabs at the Slytherin players here and there.

You watched as James and Sirius sped past you, side-by-side, unable to avoid their gazes. The latter called out your name, but you only ignored him and hid the bottom half of your face behind the scarf wrapped around your neck. He took a sharp turn and began spinning in small circles right in front of you in an attempt to get your attention, but you remained unbothered.

“Don’t you have better things to tend to, Sirius?” Your friend groaned from beside you, wrapping a comforting arm around your shoulders as she tried to shoo him away. “Go win the game, and maybe she’ll talk to you.”

Planting a chastising hand on your friend’s bicep, you whispered through gritted teeth, “Don’t encourage him! He’ll have the wrong idea.” Before you could even turn to Sirius to correct your friend’s statement, he already flew away with a dopey grin plastered on his face. It only motivated him more throughout the game, the quaffle landing in his arms more than anyone has seen before. Even James was surprised.

“Pads, what’s with you?” The Potter boy muttered, inching closer to his best friend. His eyes were trained on the bludgers being beaten around, but his complete focus was on his friend and his out-of-character actions. “I appreciate the need to win, but mate, don’t you think you’re being a bit harsh?”

Sirius took the time to look around at the stadium, his eyes landing on the three Slytherins clutching their arms, then at the scoreboard that showed Gryffindor leading by thirty-five points. “I’m being perfectly normal, Prongs. Thought you’d want to win.”

“I do, but–” James’ rebuttal was cut off by the sound of Linus’ voice echoing through the stadium, rejoicing in the Gryffindor seeker’s successful accomplishment.

“Berthia Thomas has caught the golden snitch! Gryffindor wins the game!”

Sirius’ ears perked up at the exclamation, immediately soaring down to the young seeker and not-so-gently taking the snitch out of her hands. “Do you mind if I take this? No? Great, thanks!” The ends of his Quidditch robes chased closely behind him as he flew all the way up to the stands, meeting you with a smug grin. The golden, engraved ball sat peacefully in his hand, its wings flapping softly against his palm. “For you, my darling,” he smiled at you, offering the snitch like an olive branch in a peace offering.

You eyed the small object in his hand, then glanced up at the scoreboard with the teams’ respective points: Gryffindor, 220 and Slytherin, 70. With a heavy heart and a sharp glare at your friend beside you, you reluctantly took the golden snitch from his hand and held it between your thumb and your forefinger.

Sirius felt a shiver climb down his spine at the feeling of your soft fingertips brushing against his calloused palm. Even the slightest touch between the two of you could make him melt.

“Thank you, Black.” Your voice was almost as soft as your touch. Offering him a small smile, you ushered your friend away from the front row and pushed past the crowd that was now gawking at the supposedly sweet actions of the infamous Sirius Black.

But you didn’t want to fall for it. Everyone who attended Hogwarts, even the clueless first years, knew about them. Everyone who attended Hogwarts had either witnessed, experienced, or heard of their silly little pranks, and you were not one to be fooled so easily by them.

With a fleeting glance, you looked back over your shoulder to see the boy’s figure slumped over the end of his broomstick, sadly looking down at the area of his palm where your fingers so happened to touch.

iii. i don’t got nobody, just with you right now

“Oh, come on! He’s practically courting you at this point! Just let him confess to you, and maybe you’ll see that he’s not trying to pull some elaborate prank on you!” Your friend lectured in the safe space of your dorm room, tugging on the collar of your sweater to try and knock some sense into you.

You protested her points, “You say that as if he isn’t known for leading girls on and breaking their hearts. I don’t want to be another girl for him to add onto his list.”

“James has matured, look at him and Lily! I’m sure if you give him the chance–” “Have you seen him? Potter may have matured, but I’m not too confident in Sirius. He has to do more than just offer me a golden snitch or flowers or a three-tiered cake. Physical offerings do nothing to rid him of the reputation he’s been building for himself since first year. If he’s serious about fancying me, then he has to do something meaningful.”

Before your friend could refute you any further, you looked at her with a heavy gaze to effectively quiet her. The two of you returned to the light gossip you were talking about prior to bringing up Sirius Black, and a few hours later, you both agreed to part ways so you could find a comfy spot in the library to study.

She dropped you off at the entrance on the way to her rendezvous with a Ravenclaw boy in your year, bidding you a curt goodbye before breaking out into what could be considered a skip through the long hallways of the castle.

You pushed through the doors and felt solace in the smell of the books and the soft rustling of students passing between the aisles. The librarian promptly gazed at you and offered a nod, to which you returned with a small smile.

Gazing up at the tall shelves of books, you thought to yourself and began trying to think of which books you required for a successful study session for the evening. Your feet seemed to be leading you to the very back of the library, where you noticed the smallest flicker of yellow light behind a multitude of bookshelves. As you inched closer, your ears picked up the softest whispers being passed between what seemed to be two people.

You furrowed your eyebrows, wondering who could possibly study back here, where the bookshelves are impossibly closer to each other and leave no room for a singular person in the aisle, let alone two people to comfortably study. Grabbing a book off a random shelf to incriminate yourself less in case it was two students chatting about something not meant for curious ears, you pushed past the last row of books to find—

Sirius and Remus? In a rather spacious area, might you add.

They sat at a table placed flush against the wall, a small candle being the only source of light besides the sunlight from the windows that barely reached the back of the library. It was a comfortable spot, albeit the many efforts it took to get past all the tight bookshelves. They hadn’t even noticed you at first, too engrossed in a piece of parchment they had placed onto the table.

The two boys only noticed you when James had joined in, your eyes bulging out of their sockets when you watched him walk through a bookshelf. Well, it was supposed to be a bookshelf. You weren’t surprised that he had seemingly walked through a solid object, no. You’d done that plenty of times whenever you boarded or left Platform 9 ¾ throughout the years. You were left rather bitter that you put in all the effort to squeeze through all the stacks when you could’ve just walked through the bookshelf. Not that you would’ve known, though.

You looked up when James called your name. Sirius and Remus did, too. “When did you get in here? I would’ve noticed if you walked in,” the curly-haired boy frowned.

“I, uh, wedged myself through those bookshelves. Didn’t know there was an actual entrance.” You jutted a thumb over your shoulder and pointed to the very compressed bookshelves. Feeling quite awkward in your current position, with James frowning at you (or more specifically, how you got in), Remus smiling softly at you, and Sirius staring at you, you shuffled closer to the exit. “I’ll see myself out, now. Sorry. I won’t tell anyone about this, either, if you’re worried about that.”

As soon as you stepped foot past the fake bookshelf, you heard Sirius whisper-shouting at James to bring you back into the secret space.

“Wait!” He called out for you louder than he should have, quite possibly alarming the whole library of their whereabouts. With pursed lips, you swiveled on your heel and walked back through the bookshelf, shooting James a questioning look. “So, uh,” he repeatedly looked at you, then behind you, then at you again, “you said you went between those small gaps in the bookshelves?”

You nodded your head, unaware of how Sirius was urging the boy to keep the conversation going while Remus struggled to fish something out of his bag.

“We’ll have to seal that, then.” James spoke more to himself than to you.

Glancing over to the gaps, you spoke up once more. “And just so you know, the only reason I came back here was because I could hear Remus and Sirius whispering. You might want to look into that since you yelled rather loudly. Don’t want anyone else coming back here, do you?”

At your revelation, James immediately turned to his two friends with his eyes blown wide. You then heard a whispered chorus of “You didn’t cast it? I thought you did! Well, I didn’t cast it!” and before they could say much more, you lifted your wand and silently casted Muffliato around the whole area.

Sirius looked at you with more admiration in his eyes than ever before. He was practically looking at you with heart eyes, as if you were all the stars in the world joined together into one girl.

“Also, those gaps are wide enough to be peeked through. You might want to seal it up or put some charm on it so that no prying eyes look through.” The bell of the clock tower rang and bounced around the castle walls, almost as if cueing you to leave. “Well, that’s where I take my leave. And I stick by what I said earlier. I won’t speak a word of this.”

Finally leaving, you walked through the exit and shuffled through the aisle, only to be caught by the wrist. You looked over your shoulder to find Sirius smiling cheekily at you, holding a book in his hands. You turned around, a bit uncomfortable at how your arms harshly grazed at the wood of the bookshelves on either side of you. They were much more spacious compared to the shelves on the other side, but it still left little room for two people to be standing together.

He held the book up to you, allowing you to read the cover. “I bought this for you. I know you’ve been wanting it for a while,” he offered, gently putting it in your hands. “I also wanted to let you know that I didn’t conjure it up or anything. I bought it with my own money and all. If that means anything to you.” Bringing a hand up to his nape, he shyly rubbed at it as he watched your eyes dart from the book to his face.

Your mind was running at unfathomable speeds, trying to figure out how Sirius Black, of all people, found out how you wanted that specific book. You only told two people about it, and you and Lily had only spoken about it today in the confines of your N.E.W.T.-level Potions and Arithmancy classes, neither of which you shared with any of the Marauders. It wouldn’t have been enough time for Sirius to go out and buy it himself, if you were to trust his word on it.

That only left—Remus. You were quietly discussing it in Transfiguration while Professor McGonagall was helping a struggling student. The both of you had already completed the task as soon as she assigned it, so you turned to each other and talked about your shared love for Muggle books. Merlin, you felt so stupid. You thought he would respect your wishes of not wanting to be bothered by Sirius, but apparently not. “Remus,” you whispered lowly, quiet enough for the boy standing before you to barely hear what you said.

“What?” Sirius’ face flushed. “No, no. Moon—Remus didn’t have anything to do with it. Well, not really. But I bought this because I overheard you telling him about it in Transfiguration last week.”

You brushed away the odd nickname for Remus and visibly relaxed, hesitantly hugging the book to your chest. “I see. Well, in that case, I’ll use this book well. Thank you, Sirius.” Turning around and walking away, you spared no time exiting the library with the book in your hands, leaving the raven-haired boy to celebrate.

You had accepted his gift and called him by his first name! Two wins in a row!

iv. how can i snooze and miss the moment?

Surprisingly, Sirius had left you alone for the past three days. You hadn’t seen a day without him at least trying to court you, but for some reason, it was as if he’d turned into a ghost. It wasn’t like you minded, but it felt odd. Unnatural, even.

When it came nighttime, and you’d officially been left alone for three whole days, you decided to take a walk down to the Black Lake. You wanted to be left alone with your thoughts, the cool breeze of wintertime nearing, and the glimmering light of the full moon. The sound of a wolf howling flew past your ears, but you paid it no mind as you knew you were safe. There was no such thing as a werewolf on school grounds, it was impossible. You’ve had some suspicions in the past, but they can’t have been true.

Your hands plucked at the blades of grass beneath you, feeling the lush plant life beneath you. You had found a spot against a tree facing the lake and watched peacefully as the ripples of the water distorted the mirrored image of the moon and the trees around it.

Twigs snapped behind you, and your right hand flew to your coat pocket where your wand lie, but you were just taking precautions. It was probably just some other student wandering around after curfew, too. Everything would be just fine.

After half an hour of thinking to yourself, the sounds of the nature around you were becoming more stressful than relaxing. With a cautious step to the side and a meek glance past the thick tree trunk, you slowly made your way away from the Black Lake and towards the castle.

The faded footpath beneath you had turned into a muddy walkway long before you began attending Hogwarts, but it still felt unsettling. The canopy of the tall trees blocked the moonlight shining down on you, and their rustling leaves became ominous rather than peaceful.

Your hand remained snug in your coat pocket, feeling the wood of your wand against your palm. The howling wolf that was once far, far away now sounded impossibly close to you, and the multiple twigs snapping all around you caused you to grip your wand even tighter. “Hello? Is anybody there?”

No response. More twigs snapped. The ground beneath you began to shake.

“Hello? This isn’t funny! If this is supposed to be a prank, then cut it out!”

Still no response.

And then, out of nowhere, an earth-shattering growl echoed from right behind you. You turned slowly, pulling your wand out of your pocket in a fearful manner. Coming face-to-face with a werewolf, you realized all your reassurances of it being impossible were wrong. And you were about to die.

Pointing your wand at the creature, you looked into its eyes. They seemed familiar. Comforting, even. But this was a werewolf, and they were monstrous creatures, according to your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. You took a small breath and shakily held your wand up.

Just before you could cast a spell in its face, you got pushed to the side. You fell back against a tree with a wince, watching as a stag headbutted the werewolf in the chest with its antlers. “What the—” Your words were cut short by the feeling of something harshly tugging at the hem of your coat, successfully dragging you away from the scene. A yelp left your lips, your fingertips clawing at the ground in an attempt to escape whatever wrath you were facing now.

Looking down, you found a black dog pulling you by its sharp teeth, its eyes boring into you like you’d known each other before. You stopped trying to escape. You just let everything happen as you stared back down at the dog. ‘What was so familiar about these animals,’ you asked yourself, unaware of the werewolf bounding after you.

It had gotten past the stag, which was nowhere to be seen. You assumed you were going delusional. The werewolf, still familiar as ever, picked you up and growled, your wand now in your hand as you prepared to cast as many offensive spells as you could. Incantations left your mouth as quickly as you’ve ever casted before, but they did nothing to stop your impending doom.

The most you did was a large gash along the creature’s arm, but the injury only aggravated it more. Lifting you up as high as it could, the werewolf threw you to the ground as you braced for impact, feeling your body hit the ground just before you blacked out.

When you woke up, you found yourself in one of the infirmary beds with Madame Pomfrey tending to your injuries. Your collarbone was shattered, and you received a few cuts on your cheek, but it was nothing the lady couldn’t fix. You were only in the infirmary for observations and precautions.

As soon as she stepped away, you were met with the embarrassed smiles of James, Sirius and Remus all on infirmary beds opposite of you. “Wha—why are you three here?” You questioned suspiciously, examining each of their injuries for ones similar to the wounds you saw on the creatures the night prior.

James had bandages wrapped around his ribcage and an ice pack on his head. Sirius had multiple gashes along his side and a cast on his left hand. Remus had the most wounds of them all: a large scratch along his cheek, a deep cut on the side of his head, a bandage wrapped around both his forearms, a cast on his right foot, and a gash on his bicep.

Wait, a gash on his bicep?

“It was you, wasn’t it?” You spoke quietly, finally realizing why Remus always disappeared whenever it came time for a full moon and why James and Sirius always missed classes the day after. “James, y—you were the stag. Sirius, you were the dog, weren’t you? And Remus, oh, Merlin,” you gasped softly, remembering all the painful spells he must have had to endure from your wand. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve known.”

The lanky boy shook his head, “No, there was no way of you knowing.” He tried to reassure you even though they all knew it become more obvious every month. “And if you’re concerned about the spells, I’m fine. I got more wounds from these gits than from whatever you casted.”

“Only if you’re sure,” you muttered softly, eyebrows furrowed from the concern for someone you hoped to consider a friend. In fact, you hoped to consider all of the Marauders friends. It was obvious they’d matured from the pranksters they used to be in their younger years, and you were frankly relieved to find out that they were as bad as you thought they were.

You didn’t seem to notice how Sirius looked at you like you held the earth up with your bare hands, and if you did notice, you didn’t mention it. You kept your focus on Remus, his terrible injuries, and how he seemed to be unfazed by them. You felt horrible.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Remus said lightly, as if reading your mind. “I know what you’re thinking. You don’t have to feel bad. I’m used to it at this point.” Opening your mouth to explain how that was why you felt bad, the boy shot you a look and spoke your name chastisingly. You stayed quiet for a while.

“Sirius?” You called out for the boy in the bed directly in front of you. He reacted far too quickly and far too eager to not be embarrassed, but you ignored his actions and spoke up once more. “Why did you save me? You could’ve helped James with Remus.”

The boy pushed himself up so he could sit properly with his back leaning against the headboard of the bed. He ignored the sharp pain in his hand and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. “Couldn’t let you die before the Hogsmeade trip. Speaking of that, since I saved your life and all, I think it’d be a great opportunity to repay me by being my date to Hogsmeade?” Sirius’ statement came out as more of a question. His shoulders were tense and his breathing became rapid, though he wouldn’t admit to anyone how easily you could break down all the confident walls he’d built up.

“I would’ve rather died, then,” you joked.

“Ah, then I’d just have to save you all over again.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

Sirius beamed brightly at you. “Is that a ‘yes’ to Hogsmeade?”

Shaking your head at him, you let out a small chuckle. “We’ll see.”

While you and Sirius playfully bantered back and forth across the infirmary, James leaned over to find Remus smirking right back at him.

“Are they flirting?” The curly-haired boy mouthed to his friend.

“It seems like it.” Remus mouthed back, a smile tugging on his lips.

“I bet five galleons we catch them snogging after Hogsmeade.”

Remus smirked between you and Sirius, still too engrossed in your conversation to notice what was going on around you. “I bet you ten galleons we’ll catch them snogging as soon we get released from here.”

“Deal.”

v. you just too important

After you got released, you returned to your classes like usual and dodged the multiple questions your friends asked daily. You only brushed them away when you couldn’t come up with a sorry excuse as to why you ‘suddenly started talking to Sirius Black,’ but you always told them the most extravagant lies you could string up when you had the chance.

The more time you spent talking to each other, the more you realized why all the girls dropped to their knees at the chance of being with him, even if it was just for one night. The more time you spent talking to each other, the more you realized that you were starting to fall for him. And it scared the hell out of you.

You even tried avoiding him when you first came to the realization that your feelings for Sirius were more than simply platonic, but your efforts only lasted a day before the boy sought you out and annoyed you until you were forced to give in.

So, as the days went by, you became closer and closer. And your feelings for each other became stronger and stronger. This time, though, you didn’t want to fight it. Not at all.

“Darling,” Sirius called out in his usual sing-songy tone as he strode into the Gryffindor common room. He ignored all the odd looks he received from the others and grinned once he found your figure next to the fireplace, entertaining a first year by feeding the flames a few old textbook pages. “Ah, there you are! Remus and I were looking for you!”

You smiled softly at the sound of the boy’s voice, but you didn’t turn around to let him see how he’s finally broken down your walls. “Did you need me, Siri?”

The new use of the nickname might have made Sirius scream his lungs out if he wasn’t in public and wasn’t still actively trying to hide that he was terribly in love with you. Instead, he only stared at you with a lovesick expression plastered onto his features, causing you to scrunch your nose up at the lack of a response.

You turned your head to look up at the boy, your doe eyes only pulling him in even more. “Sirius? Are you okay?” Chuckling awkwardly as he continued his intense, locked gaze on you and your pretty face, you redirected your attention to the equally awkward first year sitting beside you. “Well, if you’re going to stare, then you might as well sit down, yeah?”

Almost immediately, the raven-haired boy fell to the ground and sat crisscrossed, politely placing his hands in his lap as he watched you speak quietly to the young girl, her body relaxing when you placed a comforting hand on her. It was weird to have Sirius just staring at you in the beginning, but after a while, it was like he wasn’t even there. All he did was observe and listen.

He observed how you smiled gently at the girl whenever she spoke up in her small voice. He observed how your eyes lit up with fondness whenever you felt her touch. He observed how she leaned into you without hesitation when you offered to braid her beautiful, light brown hair. He observed how amazing you were with people younger than you, with kids. And he sure as hell observed how you would be a great mother and how he so desperately wanted to make y—well, that was a thought for another day.

Your gentleness was so endearing to him, it only made him fall for you more than he already had, if that was even possible.

Peter, who had been watching the interaction from afar, seemed to have had enough of the lingering tension and opportunities that weren’t acted upon. He wasn’t as aware of the whole situation as Remus and James were, but he was smart enough to piece all the little details together and figure out that both you and Sirius were too scared and were just waiting for the other to make a major move.

So, the boy took the situation into his own hands and dragged his friend away by the collar, taking him up to their dorm room despite the many, many efforts (albeit weak) made by the stronger boy.

“Wormtail,” Sirius whined as soon as he heard the door shut. He pretended like he didn’t know what was going on, but in reality, he was grateful that Peter inserted himself into the situation before the pining became too strong. “Why’d you bring me up here?”

“You know why,” the boy hummed as he scoured through his bedside drawers, looking for his stash of food he always had stocked up. “She likes you. A lot. And Pads, if you don’t make a move on her now, who knows who’ll be there to take her away from you. I know how you feel about her, she knows how you feel about her, and practically everyone else at Hogwarts knows how you feel about her, so just snog her already!”

To Sirius’ surprise, as soon as his friend found the box of chocolates, he didn’t take any for himself and instead walked straight out of the dorm room. The blond boy walked down the curved stairs of the tower and found you sitting in the same spot you were in before he dragged Sirius away.

As soon as you laid your eyes on him, you furrowed your eyebrows and beckoned him over. “Peter, did something happen with Sirius?”

“Ah, perfect! I was just coming to find you. Pads says he doesn’t want to eat, and I was thinking that if you offered him some chocolates instead of me, he might want to eat them. He hasn’t eaten the whole day.” The boy was speaking out of his ass, but he was tired of your unbearable pining, and frankly, so was everyone else.

You furrowed your eyebrows, confused by the sudden shift in character, but you shrugged your shoulders and took the box out of Peter’s hands. Patting the first year’s shoulder, you bid her goodbye and explained your task to her, pushing yourself off the ground and following the blond boy up to his dorm room.

The light box sat in your hands as you watched him rap his knuckles against the door, backing up until he stood behind you. The two of you patiently waited for Sirius to open the door, and as soon as he did, you felt Peter’s hands on your shoulders. Before you knew it, you had fallen directly into Sirius’ arms, effectively pushing the both of you back into the dorm room while the door shut behind you.

The box of chocolates fell from your hands, but it was the least of your concerns when your front was pressed against Sirius’ chest and your faces were centimeters away.

“Oh, um, I—“ you stammered, placing your hands on his chest to gently push him away.

Sirius, on the other hand, had other plans. He wrapped his arms around your waist with a smirk, his eyes flickering down to your lips every few seconds as he spoke. “You know I fancy you, right?” You only nodded at his question, but your flustered expression was enough to encourage him further. “And I fancy you a lot. Like, a lot, darling.”

Your inability to hold eye contact with him may have been embarrassing to you a month ago, but right now in his arms, you could care less. He spoke softly to you, his gaze filled with awe. He made you feel loved, despite all your past thoughts about him and his attempts to get you to go out on a date with him.

Sirius’ voice grew impossibly quieter as he looked into your eyes. “Please tell me you like me, too.”

Looking at his pleading expression and the way his lips just looked a bit too tantalizing with the way he bit it while awaiting your response, you couldn’t help but wrap your arms around his neck and pull him in until your lips collided.

It felt like fireworks, the way his lips moved perfectly with yours. It was like nothing you had ever experienced before. Granted, you were never too occupied when it came to your love life, but Sirius was the best kisser you’d ever come across. His hands were planted on the small of your back, bringing your body even closer to his, and your hands raked through his luscious hair.

Pulling away and ignoring the small complaint that left his lips, you smiled at the boy, “Yes, I like you too, Sirius.”

Despite the fact that you had just kissed him, his eyes still lit up brighter than you had ever seen before. “Really? Are you serious?”

“No,” you laughed, the teasing glint in your eyes telling him exactly what you were about to say next. “You’re Sirius.”

He threw his head back and groaned at the joke, “Merlin, you’re perfect.” And then he pulled you in once more.

The kiss, this time, was more heated, more intense than the first. It was hungrier, with your lips mashing together and your teeth clashing. But it was still filled with love. Filled with the thing Sirius had fought for when he approached you that day in the Great Hall. Filled with the thing he was desperate to gain when he offered you that golden snitch after his Quidditch game. Filled with what he hoped to receive when he bought you that Muggle book you were obsessing over. And most importantly, filled with the very thing that took over when he saw you at the Black Lake, terrified of what would happen if he lost you.

You were both so engrossed in the kiss that you didn’t even notice the door creaking open. James, Remus and Peter peeked through the small crack to find you and Sirius all over each other, your hands tangled in his hair and his hands inching lower.

Remus smirked at the curly-haired boy squatting next to him, holding his hand out with a cocky grin. Annoyed, James pulled ten galleons out of his pocket and begrudgingly placed it into his best friend’s palm, but all three of them knew that no matter who lost the bet and no matter how annoying Sirius would get later on, they were all just happy that you two were happy.

#sirius black #marauders #the marauders #marauders era #sirius black x reader #sirius black x y/n #sirius black fic #sirius black fanfic #sirius black fanfiction #hogwarts #james potter #remus lupin #peter pettigrew

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berryzxx · 11 days

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OMG HI. Could youu pleease do a Matheo x reader. So the reader and Matheo are fake dating to make their parents happy or something? I would really like that because I LOVE ur writing!! I understand if u can't.

Faking it

(part 1)

Mattheo x reader

Summary: You and Mattheo pretend to date because your parents won't stop pestering you and girls won't stop falling over themselves to get to Mattheo

note: ignore the title its not very.........smart

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Mattheo asked putting his quill down and kicking his legs up onto the desk. History of Magic was the perfect time to sit and chat with your friends and catch up on missed gossip.

I shrugged "It's the ball tomorrow so probably getting lectured by my dear mother" A tradition since I was 12. To nag ask me to bring a date with me to the ball. This year was especially important because I hadn't brought anyone with me last year and my mother was not impressed.

Mattheo rolled his eyes "Please. You've got it easy"

I raised an eyebrow. What was he complaining about? "And what's troubling you so much?"

He sighed dramatically "All I here is everywhere I go is do you have a date for the ball? A guy can't even eat breakfast in peace"

I scoffed. He was always so unnecessarily dramatic.

"Well. Do you?" It's not like I was wanting it to be me, I was just genuinely interested. Curious. Not at all wondering who the girl was and what Matheo's standards and type was.

"Of course I don't. All the girls that come up to me are sluts who want me to take them to my dorm after"

I shrug "At least they have the confidence to ask. You'll be left with no one soon enough"

Mattheo rolled his eyes as if what I was saying was utterly ridiculous "There's always someone. And anyways I could always go with you"

I paused. The voices in the classroom had become a background noise in my mind. I looked at Mattheo, trying to see if he was making a joke out of all this. I could usually tell because of how his lips would always pull into a small smirk but this time he was utterly serious.

"Us two?" I asked. I don't know why I said that. Maybe it was to make sure I had heard him right.

"Yeah. It would get those girls off my back and your parents will probably be happy you've found a good looking guy like me"

I rolled my eyes, trying to act like this wasn't something I was excited about or wanted to do "Someone thinks highly of themselves"

Matheo's eyes had glazed over as if he was in deep thought about something. His hand was tapping his knee in a constant rhythm and his eyebrows were scrunched in concentration. It was quiet cute to watch, honestly.

"Y'know. My idea wasn't so bad."

I raise an eyebrow "Your ideas are always bad. Which one are you talking about this time?"

He moved closer to me so I could hear his quiet voice "Me and you. We could go to the ball together. Pretend to date for a while and then act like it didn't work out between us."

My heart beat's pace increased. Why was it increasing? I'd love to tell you but I didn't know either. Maybe it was the fact that I wouldn't mind getting closer to Mattheo. Or maybe the fact that I knew if I accepted his idea I would be heartbroken by the end of it.

"But once we break up I'm just going to have to find another guy" I tried explaining. I did want to go along with his idea but I didn't want to seem too desperate. Also I don't think my parents saw Mattheo as a great influence.

He rolled his eyes acting as if I was the dumb one "Just pretend your going through an emotional...breakdown or something. And by then you'll be able to find someone you like. It's not as if anyone would reject you" He said all this with a serious tone, as if he wasn't telling me to keep a lie going to my family but also probably break my heart in the process. I skipped over the last bit of what he said because if I thought of it for too long I would become obsessed with it and that probably wasn't a good idea.

"I'll think about it" I finally decided. I already knew what my answer was but I didn't need his ego to inflate even more...also because I had pride in myself and wasn't about to cave to on of his ideas so quickly.

*a few hours later*

"Why do you ask to play if you know your going to lose?" I asked Theo feeling slightly bad for him at this point. It was our fifth game of cards and he had lost all of them. He rolled his eyes "I'm helping pass time so you should be thanking me" It was just after our last lesson of the day and we were all in the common room or out in the gardens waiting for supper. Luckily exams weren't anywhere close so I could use this time however I wanted.

I smiled slightly at Theo's disgruntled expression "Right"

Handing out the cards again I picked up my pile and spread them out looking for a diamond. I picked out two debating on which one, choosing the nine of diamonds when I heard a slight noise behind me.

"I wouldn't go for that. I've seen Theo's cards and he's going to get you back if you put that nine down" It was Mattheo. He had taken a seat next to me on a stool having seemingly finished the shouting match he was having with Draco a few minutes ago.

I glared at him in annoyance "You've just told Theo what card I have!" Was he being deliberately annoying or did he not know how card games worked?

A slight smirk on his expression told me he was being irritating on purpose "Don't be mad at me darling. It was a mistake" He had gotten closer to me now his proximity too much for me. Luckily Theo caused a commotion by throwing his cards onto the table, me and Mattheo both turning to look at him.

"I'm not playing anymore. I've had enough of losing y/n" He said dramatically, getting up and sticking up his middle finger at Mattheo before leaving. What was wrong with everyone today?

Mattheo let out a sigh "Finally. Have you decided then?" His voice had changed to being serious within seconds, his teasing smile gone.

I knew what he was talking about but all the same I furrowed my brows and acted confused "decided what?" It was his turn to frown as he moved even closer to me "The fake dating thing? Your memory needs fixing sweetheart" He said quietly waiting for my response.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I couldn't look him in the eyes when he said names like that. Would saying yes lead to me having a broken heart and in a lot of trouble if my parents found out? Yes. But was I doing it anyways? Yes.

"My memory doesn't need fixing" I rolled my eyes but continued on "And fine I'll do it"

Mattheo grinned "Fucking finally" He got up and pressed a kiss to my cheek "I'll see you later. If anyone asks tell them your taken" He walked away out of the common room and to who knows where. I lightly touched where he had kissed my cheek. Was this going to be normal now? Him just kissing me any time of day? Not that I minded.

I looked around the common room to see a few girls in my year already walking over to me, raising their eyebrows. They were probably going to ask what the kiss was about and I'd have to tell them I was dating..... realisation hit me.

Mattheo hadn't kissed me because he wanted to but so the others could see and would come and ask me. He was smart. I would give him that but it did hurt my feelings slightly.

After a lot of explaining how me and Mattheo got together and lying for three hours straight I slipped into my bed earlier than usual, staring at my dress for the next night. It was a dark green almost the exact shade of our Slytherin robes except in silk. I turned to my other side wishing I hadn't eaten so much dessert because it still didn't seem digested to me. I could hear hooting in the distance, guessing it was probably other students owls, coming back or going out to send letters.

I had sent a letter to my parents just after dinner, telling them not to worry and how I had a date for the ball this year. I had re written the letter so many times, worried the expression when they read my words would make it obvious I was lying. After the fire had eaten up 4 parchments I finally sent the letter off hoping for the best. Pansy had ended up reading over my shoulder before I could stop her and had found out I was "dating" Mattheo. At first she was upset I hadn't told her. Her arms had been crossed and a permanent frown had been etched onto her face.

I couldn't lie to her so I eventually told her the truth, her eyes widening as I explained everything.

"I'm sure it'll be fine" She had said eventually. I hoped she was right.

The next day rushed by extremely quickly. It felt like I had just had breakfast but here I was waiting for my mother to show up. She had said she wanted to "meet me before she left for something extremely important in a different country"

She just meant she was going on holiday without me but I didn't mind. The last time I had gone all she did was talk about my grades and the clothes I was wearing or something else that annoyed me. I turned to Pansy who was starting to look at her nails in boredom.

"You should go. Start getting ready" I said to her. She was waiting with me, just inside the school gates. Pansy shrugged "I don't mind. You need support when your dear mother comes because Salazar knows you can't lie"

I crossed my arms even though I knew she was kind of right "I can. Listen I'll be fine, trust me. Go get ready"

Pansy hummed in thought "It does take me a while to do my eyeliner.....fine. See you, don't crumble under pressure" She blew me a kiss and walked back in leaving me to crack my knuckles repeatedly even though they were already cracked.

I couldn't even wait in peace because as soon as Pansy left I heard gravel crunch behind me and when I turned to look who it was, Mattheo's grin made me want to stop time. God he was gorgeous and he didn't even try.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as he stood next to me, his body heat reaching me at his close proximity. He raised an eyebrow a knowing smile on his lips "You can't lie to me forget lying to your own mother"

I huffed in annoyance. Why did everyone underestimate me? I mean they were right but still. And how could I lie to Mattheo when his chocolate eyes would make me melt in mere seconds? And how did he know what I was waiting for? Pansy must have told him on her way in.

Without warning my mother apparated in front of me before I could confirm what I was thinking. She was wearing smart wizarding robes. She had probably just come from work. Like usual she didn't hug me, just giving me a once over and then turning to Mattheo instead.

"So your dating my daughter?" She got straight to the point, tossing her blonde waves behind her, eyes narrowed. Mattheo nodded his expression serious

"Yes maam"

Her eyebrows raised slightly but she carried on quizzing him about his grades, plans and even what he thought about marriage. I wanted to die right about now. Luckily she only turned to me at the very end of her little interview "I expect you to have good grades by the end of the year. Your father sends his love" And with that she apparated away just as quickly as she had arrived.

I let out a sigh "Thanks. She's a handful sometimes" I told him, feeling bad that he had to take the brunt of her questioning. He shrugged wrapping an arm around my waist "It's fine, nothing I can't handle"

"You don't have to pretend like we're dating when no one's looking you know" I said to him quietly. It was getting dark now and no one would be out in the gardens anyways. Mattheo ignored me, carrying on walking toward the castle, his hand shifting to pull me closer

"Someone could be looking though the window, sweetheart. You can't be too careful" He whispered in my ear, his voice making my insides heat and my legs feel like jelly. I blinked at him as he straightened up acting as if he hadn't just made butterflies erupt in my stomach from a few simples words.

FUCK. FUCK. FUCK.

I couldn't survive one night next to him without my brain cells melting how would I survive a whole fucking week?

note: If i made this into one long thing it would be too long and i prefer shorter parts...SORRYYY :(

#berrysfics #mattheo x reader #mattheo riddle x reader #mattheo riddle #slytherin boys #mattheo x you #mattheo x y/n #mattheoxreader #mattheo riddle x you #slytherin boys x reader #mattheo riddle imagine #hogwarts imagine #slytherin fic #matheo riddle x reader #matheo x reader #matheo x y/n #matheo riddle #matheo riddle x reader fic

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olenvasynyt · 3 months

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Similarities between Elain and Lucien

Alright, this has been something I’ve wanted to talk about for a while now because it is a huge reason why I ship Elucien. I think many people don’t realize how similar they are to each other, which might be driving many people away from the idea of Elucien being a thing in the future. And I know a lot of people dismiss or deny these similarities too. So I want to point them out and talk about them! And some of these may be a little bit of a stretch but a lot of them I feel are pretty significant and intensional on SJM’s part.

Love for parties and socializing

They are both social people. They are seen to enjoy parties, enjoy being in crowds.

Tamlin made Lucien emissary because of how social he is. He has many friends and allies across Prythian, he enjoys the parties and social aspects of court.

Page 161 of ACOTAR: “I claimed Lucien as my own—-named him emissary, since he’d already made many friends across the courts and had always been good at talking to people, while I…can find it difficult.”

Page 32 of ACOMAF: [Tamlin] assured me that he hated the gatherings as much as I did, and that Lucien was the only one who really enjoyed himself.

Elain also enjoys parties and socializing, we see it the most often in ACOTAR:

Page 256 of ACOTAR: “The socialite season, which ended a few weeks ago, apparently, full of parties and balls and luncheons and gossip, gossip, gossip. Elain had told me all about it at dinner the night before, hardly noticing that it was an effort for me to get down my food.”

She plans the ball Papa Archeron throws in Feyre’s honor and at that ball, we see how social she is and how much she enjoys it.

Page 268 of ACOTAR: But I tried to smile, if only for Elain, who flitted about the room, personally greeting each guest and dancing with all their important sons.

After the sisters are changed into Fae we lose sight of that side of Elain but in ACOFAS, Nesta points it out to Feyre when they are having a fight about Elain, that their sister used to love crowds and parties, she didn’t always hate being in crowds like Feyre claims.

Traveling

Traveling is one of their interests. As I said before, Lucien has many friends across Prythian, he has traveled a lot during his youth and as the emissary of Spring.

Page 160 of ACOTAR: “…so he spent his youth doing everything a High Lord’s son probably shouldn’t: wandering the courts, making friends with sons of other High Lords…”

And Elain has talked about her interest in traveling.

Page 256 of ACOTAR: “’These bulbs came all the way from the tulip fields of the Continent. Father praised that next spring he’ll take me to see them.’”

Dismissed by the people around them, especially growing up

They are dismissed by the people around them. When they were growing up, they were not wanted or needed by their families. They weren’t really taken seriously.

Lucien explains that he wasn’t wanted or needed during his youth:

Page 106 of ACOWAR: “As the youngest of seven sons, I wasn’t particularly wanted or needed. Perhaps it was a good thing. I was able to study for longer than my brother allowed by brothers…I could train for as long as I liked. I learned what I could of the land from its people. Learned about the people, too.”

and Feyre explains in Sliver Flames that their mother treated Elain “as barely more than a doll to dress up”. Their mother saw little to no potential in Elain:

Page 130 of ACOSF: “I mean, it was always that way with us, and our mother. She only had an interest in Nesta. She ignored me, and saw Elain as barely more than a doll to dress up.”

I don’t think their childhood was the same, Beron and Lucien’s brothers were a lot more harsh to him, and Nesta said that Elain never received the same abuse that Nesta did from their grandmother. But I find it interesting how Lucien says perhaps it was a good thing he wasn’t wanted or needed. Lucien wasn’t held to a high standard as his brothers were, he wasn’t used for politics as much as they were. He was and still is underestimated. And I think all of this applies to Elain too, not only with mother Archeron and their grandmother but also in general, with her sisters and the IC.

Good relationship with one of their parents

They are the favorite child of one of their parents. LoA loved Lucien the most because he was her son from Helion:

Page 456 of ACOWAR: “The Lady of Autumn’s favorite son—not only from Lucien’s goodness. But because he was the child she’d dreamed of having…with the male she undoubtedly loved.”

And Elain was loved the most by Papa Archeron I think, she was his princess, she was the only one who treated him kindly:

Page 17 of ACOTAR: “He was smiling mildly at his beloved Elain, the only one of us who bothered to really speak to him at all.”

Clinging on to their old lovers

And this similarity is probably the most important imo: they are stuck in the past clinging to their old lovers that they lost.

Lucien is often thinking of Jesminda to the point where he is stuck on her; when he is in front of his mate alone for the first time, he compares her to Jesminda, who has been dead for centuries. He has had plenty of lovers before but Jesminda is a huge part of his heart.

Page 249 of ACOWAR: “But there she was. His mate. She was nothing like Jesminda.”

I think his guilt influences his thoughts but he cannot get over her and the life that he was going to have with her. He expected to marry her, he thought they were mates, and when he is in front of his true mate he has feelings of passion and attraction but he is disheartened because Elain is not Jesminda. He can’t stand to be in the room with her.

Page 250 of ACOWAR: “But he couldn’t breathe as she faced him fully. She was the most beautiful females he’d ever seen. Betrayal, queasy and oily, slid through his veins. He’d said the same to Jesminda once.”

And Elain is stuck on Grayson. She was expecting to marry him, she thought he loved her and all of that falls apart because she got her fae mate.

Page 498 of ACOWAR: ‘I don’t care what his name is, you are his mate.’ ‘It means nothing. I don’t care who decided it or why they did—‘ ‘you belong to him.’ ‘I belong to no one, but my heart belongs to you.’ Grayson‘s face hardened. ‘I don’t want it.’ He would’ve been better off hitting her, that’s how deep the hurt in her eyes went.

She wishes to be human still and having a mate is the most fae thing you can have and this is disheartening to her and she avoids Lucien because of this.

Page 167 of ACOFAS: “‘He doesn’t know me.’ ‘You don’t give him the chance to even try to do so.’ “‘I don’t want a mate. I don’t want a male.’ She wanted a human man.”

This is super super significant to me and it is going to be a conflict when we get Elain’s book.

Relationship with violence

I think they both avoid violence, maybe even hate it, but they understand that it is necessary. They tend to be more diplomatic, especially with their loved ones and allies, but they will tear their enemies to shreds.

Page 282 of ACOTAR: “Lucien told [Amarantha] to go back to the shithole she’d crawled out of.”

Page 653 of ACOWAR: “Elain stepped out of a shadow behind him, and rammed Truth-teller to the hilt through the back of the king’s neck as she snarled in his ear, ‘don’t you touch my sister.’”

Aspects of their personalities

Their personalities are pretty different but they have some key similarities that I think stick out:

Can be reserved and also bold

They can be both reserved and bold. We see Lucien being courteous in ACOWAR when first arriving in the NC but he obviously did not trust the IC. Holds back his frustration and sadness with Elain. He avoids talking in conversations but you know he’s definitely thinking. And Elain is very much like that too, and her boldness is starting to grow more which we can see in ACOSF.

Encourages people to have an attitude with them

With Lucien’s boldness and Elain’s newfound boldness, they encourage people to have an attitude with them to kindle a better relationship.

Page 92 of ACOTAR: “Do you ever stop being such a prick?” I (Feyre) snapped back. Dead—really, truly, I should have been dead for that. But Lucien grinned at me. “Much better.”

Page 597 of ACOSF: “‘Oh, fuck you,” Nesta snapped, and then choked. Elain blinked. Nesta blinked back, horror lurching through her. And then Elain burst out laughing…’You never said such a thing to me! I think that’s a good sign, isn’t it?’”

These two parts are so similar to me!

Good, loyal people

Lucien is very much a rake and can be a bit of a snarky asshole, but he can be a gentleman. He is loyal, generous, and overall a goodhearted person. We see this when he helps Feyre UTM, at the Cauldron with Elain. When he and Feyre first arrive in the NC in ACOWAR, he is wary and curt at first but he is polite, courteous and respectful after.

And so many people talk about Elain’s goodness. Feyre admires that she still has these traits after everything which is this quote, Nesta talks about it in ACOSF, so do the IC.

Page 258 of ACOTAR: “I marveled at it, actually—that those years of poverty hadn’t stripped away that light from Elain. Perhaps buried a bit, but she was generous, loving, and kind—a woman I found myself proud to know, to call sister.”

Their innate goodness despite everything they've both been through is something they have in common.

I think to end this, I have to talk about what these similarities mean, and my biases are coming in as a person who loves Elucien, but I think these similarities are set up for a reason. They are similar in a lot of ways and the differences they have will cause conflict and spark and chemistry that SJM loves to write in her romances. There has been a lot set up for them. Lucien travels often while Elain does not, Lucien has met Papa Archeron and admires him. I didn’t mention this before but both of them have so much symbolism with light which is super significant. And as I mentioned, conflict. Conflict is important in SJMs romances, she said in this interview in 2020 that a love interest needs to have conflict and a spark. The issues they both have with clinging on to their old lovers and avoiding each other are going to be brought up, why wouldn’t it? Lucien is a male that is rakish and loves banter and SJM loves that in a love interest, so I think there is a huge potential of him bringing out Elain’s boldness once they start being comfortable in each other’s presence. And we have already seen it before but Elain can bring out the gentleman who shows his love.

You don’t have to like Elucien, you don’t have to see any chemistry, but their story isn’t over yet, and whether we get them as a couple or not, these similarities are going to be important, the conflict they have will be explored. And I’m very excited.

This is a summary of my TikTok video I made btw! If you wish to check that out, my username on there is also olenvasynyt. And if you found this post because of my TikTok, then hi lmao

#elucien #lucien vanserra #a court of thorns and roses #elain archeron #acotar #tiktok video summary

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 4 months

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AITA for telling my wife her book isn't that good?

So me (27M) and my wife (27F) have been married for 5 years. In the entire time we've been married, she had put her professional advancement on hold and chooses to stay at an office job with little potential for career advancement because her true dream is to write and publish books and she says she won't have time to write and pursue that dream if she has to put all her energy into a career she doesn't care about. I think that's not a good attitude to have, because being able to make money from writing books and getting published is really difficult and depends a lot on luck and her career choices impact me because we're married. If she doesn't reach her earning potential then I will need to make up for it by earning more for the both of us. So I feel a lot of the burden in finances while she just gets to chase her dream.

She has been resentful of me for a while that I don't support her writing, but I do! I think she's a great writer and I'm very proud of her, and I tell lots of people that my wife is a writer when they ask what she does. The only thing is that she's always talking about her books and thinking about them and talking about them to her friends and writing partners. She claims to have ADHD and writing is her hyperfixation but she's never been officially diagnosed and hasn't ever tried medication or anything. She'll work on them when there are things to do, like the kitchen is a mess or it's dinner time. And before people get mad at me for expecting her to be a maid I cook and clean a lot too. I just want more participation from her because I get tired of doing everything and sometimes I just want to be taken care of, too. She cleans and cooks sometimes, though she always half-does things, but it just bothers me when I get home hungry from work and she's been home for 20 minutes or so and she hasn't started cooking and the house is a mess and she's just sitting at her laptop.

If I'm honest, I don't like reading. English isn't my first language which makes it harder, and she writes what she calls "young adult books" and they're plots about teengers that aren't very interesting to me. I tried to read her book and got about six chapters in, but it was just really hard for me to keep going so I never finished it. Honestly I don't really care about her books, and it bothers me that her books are ALWAYS on her mind. For example if we're intimate, sometimes her gaze goes distant and I can tell her mind is elsewhere and probably on her books, and when we finally get time together it's like she's not interested in the conversation until it touches on writing or her books. I don't usually talk to her about her books much though, so to be honest she doesn't talk that much to me about it, she'll text other people. But I can tell she always wishes I would talk to her about it. I just wish she could be interested in something that isn't her own writing, like me and our life together.

So this issue kept coming up with her saying I'm not supportive, and I decided to take it to heart. I wanted to support her as a writer and help her achieve her goal of publication. So I sat her down and told her that while she's a good writer and her finished book is good, it's not great, and she's telling a story about a girl who's experiencing poverty and death and mental illnesses, all of which she doesn't have experience with, and it shows. It's a good accomplishment, but probably won't be published so if she wants to be published, she should maybe start something else. Well, she blew up at me and started yelling at me that I have no room to say that because I'm not the intended audience and I never finished it anyway and that she knows more about publishing than I do and her friends and family that read it thought it was amazing. But first of all, she can't trust her family and friends because they'll just support her even if it's not what she needs to hear, and I should be the one who she can count on to tell her the truth. Besides, I'm in the finance industry and know much more about business than she does. She got angry and stormed away and refused to talk to me for the rest of the day.

I don't want to apologize, because I think she needed to hear it. But she was so mad and even talked about it to her therapist, so I'm wondering if I'm the asshole for saying that in the first place and if she's actually right and I'm not really supporting her.

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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slowestlap · 4 months

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Bradley Scanes, Max's trainer during 2020-2023 seasons, did an interview with The Red Flags Podcast (22 Jan 2024)

I took one for the team and transcribed the bits I found interesting enough to share:

[12:40] Talking about the first times Brad met Max and how important it is that you click together well:

I think it's the most important. We had a good conversation in that time, I think the decision probably set on the fact that, for half of the time I was there, he was out driving the car. But I was there, talking to his dad, talking to his family. And really got on with Red Bull and really kinda fit into that mold and did for my whole 4 years with him and it was so nice. And I appreciate Max for this, his dad for this and the rest of the family because I felt part of the family the entire time which was really really nice and you know, we'll stay friends.

[24:00] From what I saw, I saw a guy that was elite. He knew where he wanted to go. You could see the drive, you could see the work ethic. The work ethic was tremendous. And for me it was just, I've gotta create the optimal space for him to be him and him to do him.

[27:30] Talking about flexibility and adaptability being the traits that separates greats from the rest:

He's on the grid being interviewed by two or three different tv stations, or something's happening with the car, he gets in the car and drives exactly the same no matter what's going on. And that's for me what I've seen from the kinda good to great.

[28:25] Was it hard to train him this year when he was so far ahead?

No, no. If anything he was more motivated this year than any year before.

[34:55] I feel like you have to be elite at falling asleep. Is Max like "allright time to go to bed" and he's like "okay [snores]"? Can kinda turn on turn off?

Yeah, he's really good at that.

[48:50] On staying motivated to win:

The mindset to keep winning is there. We love winning and it's what we get out of bed for, it's what we do our work for. We want to win no matter what it is. We going to Monza, going to Belgium, we wanna win that race. We want to win every single race and if the championship comes in the end the championship comes in the end. That's the mentality he has. […] The first one was motivated by winning the first championship, the second one was motivated by seeing off Ferrari and making sure we got the second (wdc) and that we're here to stay. And then the third one we were motivated by winning every single race and setting every single record that we could.

[1:14:55] Talking about other drivers posting tough work out videos while Max posted a lighter work out:

That's the thing actually, it's a conversation we've had before because we have the markers where we need to get to. How you get there doesn't really matter. We managed to do it in the most time efficient way, in the most enjoyable way for Max and how it doesn't impact on the other stuff as much. […] He doesn't like working out, everybody knows that. But when he's in the session he gets after it. It's just shifting that mindset, he might not want to do it ever again but there's not too much encouragement needed actually in session which is always nice. It's nice to work that way.

[1:16:10] If Max pisses you off what exercise are you doing to punish him? What's his least favorite?

Single-leg squats or planks.

[1:17:35] How long can Max plank for?

Decent amount of time. I don't actually remember but we must have hit like 4-5 minutes in pre-season test and a bit longer come summer break.

#max verstappen #red bull racing #bradley scanes #a winner :)#i feel like the last two questions are the most important tbh hjhjsdk #mp #podcast

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inmyicyworld · 11 months

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I can't let you get hurt

Bucky Barnes x Reader (brother’s best friend AU)

Summary: you have just moved to New York, where your adopted brother Steve has been living for 5 years. Desperate to make new friends, you give the dating app another go. You didn’t even think that you would have to ask for help from the person who has not left your thoughts for the past month - your brother’s best friend.

Word Count: 3.3k

Warnings: language, reader is Steve’s adopted sister, creepy John Walker, John is commenting reader's clothes, Bucky is a big softie, protective Bucky, idiots in love, fluff.

Author’s note: I’ve wanted to finally start writing for a long time. so I decided to share my thoughts and dreams about this man (aka my husband). English is not my first language and I’m really sorry if you find any mistakes. it’s my first attempt to trying to write in English so I hope it’s not that bad.

masterlist my ao3 ko-fi

You knew that you had nothing to lose; you had no opportunities in your city, no close friends, and it was a really boring and gray life.

That's how you ended up here. On a date with John.

Your evening went well at first. You ordered a drink and chatted. He really seemed nice. After the second drink, you decided to stop for a bit because the alcohol started to take a toll on your head, even though John was pushing you hard with the new drink he brought you.

"You know, I think I better slow down with cocktails; I really don’t want to be drunk and embarrass myself on the first date." You pushed your glass back a little, smiling politely.

"So it means that we can have some fun, right, baby?"

"Fun?"

"O-okay- um- just let me- I’ll go to the restroom real quick, and we can go, okay?" You nervously smiled and stood up, almost spilling your cocktail.

"Someone’s excited, huh?" He laughed, looking at your body up and down.

You reached into your purse to get your phone. The first person that came to mind was Steve. Only long beeps were heard, and after the third call, you gave up.

"Fuck, Steve, I really need you right now." You scrolled through your contacts again. It wasn’t a lie that you knew five people from New York. Steve was not answering his phone. Your two neighbors, Natasha and Wanda from work, were not your close friends, so it would’ve been weird to call them because of this. There was a number of an old lady who rented you an apartment, and she was obviously not an option. And there was another person.

Bucky.

"H-hey, Bucky. Um… I’m really, really sorry that I’m calling you, but Steve is not picking up his phone. Do you know where he is?" You walked around the small room, trying to calm down.

"My God, it’s so stupid…" You squeezed your eyes, not wanting to cry.

"Tell me."

"Where are you? What bar? Are you in the restroom?" His voice was low, and you knew that he wasn’t happy with all of this.

"It’s that new place a few blocks away from my crib. With big neon red signs at the top. And I’m in the restroom right now."

"I’ll be there in five. Stay there and don’t open the door until you know it’s me." He said that and ended the call, leaving you nervous and excited at the same time.

The loud knock on the door almost made you jump. Fastly, but quietly, you reached there and tried to listen for any signs of who it could be.

"I hear you. Open the door; it’s me." The familiar voice came from behind the door.

You opened the door and met Bucky’s beautiful blue eyes. He seemed a little bit out of breath, as if he had run here. You quickly scanned his body, and the fact that he was wearing your favorite leather jacket made you weak in the knees. His dark brown locks that curled at the ends almost asked you to touch them. It’s not your fault that this idiot always looked ridiculously hot every single time.

You don’t know whether it was the cool night air or this whole tense situation that made you tremble. You felt Bucky’s warm body get closer to you, and his large, calloused hand rested on your shoulder. It made you feel a little bit fuzzy because you were trying so hard to hide your little, big crush on your brother’s best friend. Yeah, it was the biggest cliche, but you can’t even blame yourself. He was extremely beautiful, with those blue eyes, rosy lips, and a body that you knew was built like God's. Not to mention that Bucky was sweet and a true gentleman.

"You’re shaking, doll. Wait a second." He started to take off his jacket, and you tried to stop him.

A sudden wave of his cologne surrounded you. Bucky always smelled good. Something clean with a spicy and woody scent The leather was still warm from his body, and you fought against the desire to bury your nose in it. You didn't even realize that you actually did it, so when you opened your eyes, you saw Bucky, who had this annoying grin on his face.

"So you like it, huh?" He chuckled.

"Oh, shut up; I didn't want to do that."

"Of course, doll. But we should go, I have to take you home safely, right?" Bucky said, leading you to the parking lot. To a motorcycle.

"A motorcycle?" You asked Bucky as you stepped closer to him. "No, I—where’s your car? I’ve never ridden on one of those." He had already sat there and had two helmets in his hands.

"I left it in the garage and didn’t want to make you wait here for too long. But you don’t have to worry; I know what I'm doing, and I won't let you get hurt. I promise." You came closer to him and let him put a helmet on you. You really tried not to tremble as his hands gently fixed it under your chin. "Now sit behind me and put your legs here." He pointed at the weird looking thing.

"Hold on tight, Darlin'." You heard another deep chuckle, and he finally put his helmet on.

He’s just being nice, stop overthinking this.

But you knew this type of guy—always charming and flirting—who could have pretty much anyone. It was stupid of you to think that he saw you as something more than just Steve’s little sister.

"See, I told you that I was a good driver and that you'd get home safely." He hopped off the motorcycle and stood before you while you were trying to take the helmet off. "Let me unlock it."

"We– we’re not really close. I’m probably not even his type." You shrugged. Bucky’s jaw clenched, and he buried his hands in the jeans pockets, as if he was angry and tried not to show you.

"You."

You both were silent.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. What were you thinking?

"Say it again." Your throat felt dry, and you just stared at him, not knowing what to do.

"I– Just forget about it, Bucky. It’s stupid–"

"And I didn’t know that you liked me either. "I thought that you felt obligated to take care of me because I'm your best friend’s sister."

"No, I promise you." He kissed the top of your head. "But Steve’s gonna kill me, by the way. He told all of us that you’re not an option and that we can’t touch you."

"Well, I love him, but he can’t decide for me."

"So… Does this mean that you’ll say ‘yes’ if I ask you to go on a date with me? On Sunday, maybe?" You lifted your head to look at him properly, and God, he was so cute when he was nervous.

"Of course, Buck, I wanna go out with you." You smiled at him, and he lowered himself again to give you another sweet kiss on the lips.

"Fuck, you should go home, doll." You’re too sweet for your own good. Wanna save you all for myself." He mumbled against your lips. "Go."

"Goodnight, Bucky. Please text me when you get home, ‘kay?"

"I will. Night, Doll." You left a soft kiss on his stubbled cheek before finally turning around to go home.

Maybe a date with John wasn’t that bad of an idea.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky x female reader #bucky x you #bucky fic #james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes #james bucky barnes #bucky x y/n

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hellfirenacht · 7 months

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Wing Man Part 4

Fic Summary: Steve ‘the Hair’ Harrington is your best friend, and is constantly striking out. Sick of this, you two make a deal; you’ll wing man for each other. Hooking Steve up with dates is easy, but he finds himself struggling to find you a date. At least, until Dustin starts talking about his new cool friend Eddie.

Chapter Summary: Well, the arcade was a bust, but maybe going to a local dive bar and listening to music will yield better results.

4k words

a/n: This chapter is shorter than usual because my brain fried when writing it at work lol But we finally get to talk to Eddie without Steve cockblocking (too much)

Proof read? You have no proof I can read.

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It wasn’t until Monday after school that Dustin was able to make his way back to Family Video. After the night at the arcade, he’d been caught up with sneaking chats with Suzie and spending time with his mother. Not to mention the dentist appointment that caused him to miss a good chunk of Monday morning. If anything, dating and matchmaking be damned, Dustin had earned the treat of renting a movie and shoving candy into his newly cleaned teeth.

The freshman walked in, said hi to you and walked shamelessly into the back while you called after him half-heartedly that he wasn’t supposed to go back there before turning back to your conversation with Robin.

“Jesus, Henderson you can’t just barge into the back of any job I get!” Steve said as he sat in the break room. “I’m going to have to say no to you at some point.”

“Yeah, yeah, we’ve talked about this.” Dustin said, sitting next to him in the small room, grabbing some of Steve’s chips. “Anyway, has she said anything about Saturday night?”

Steve watched in annoyance as his friend helped himself to his lunch. “No, she hasn’t said anything about what happened. When I clocked in she said she didn’t want to talk about it.”

“Probably because we might have... totally ditched her.” Dustin admitted. “On accident! It wasn’t my idea!” He added quickly as Steve gaped at him.

“What?!” Steve was surprised. “Wait, what happened?”

“Well when the two of you left, Eddie decided that we were done and we all went to get pizza instead.” Dustin said. “I saw her when we were leaving.”

“Shit. So he saw her leave with me, which probably didn’t help.” Steve groaned. “Did Eddie say anything about her?”

“Yeah he... said he wasn’t interested.”

“Really? Shit. I knew he was a freak, but I didn’t think he had bad taste.”

“Why aren’t you dating her?” Dustin asked. “You won’t date Robin and now you won’t date her? Are you allergic to dating cool girls or something?”

“Robin and I are just friends.” Steve said firmly. “And who said I didn’t try to date her? I tried to ask her out once but she turned me down. She said I was ‘too normal’.”

There were tears streaming down Dustin’s face two minutes later from how hard he was laughing at that. Steve Harrington could get any girl in town, and got shot down by the wierdo.

“Yeah, yeah, get it out of your system, Henderson.” Steve groaned.

“She’s too good for you, Steve.” Dustin finally managed to say, calming himself down.

“So Eddie was a bust so I guess I’m back to square one.” Steve sighed. “I guess I could take her out to a bar and help her get numbers. If she can keep herself from saying something too weird for at least ten minutes it’d be easy.”

But it didn’t feel right. You already knew what you wanted, and any bar in town would just be filled with the same normal, boring people that you’d never had an interest in.

“You know... Eddie’s band plays at the Hideout.” Dustin said suddenly.

“Yeah, I thought we just established that wasn’t an option.” Steve frowned.

“Okay but hear me out, she liked Eddie, right?”

“Yeah, so?”

“So? So if she liked Eddie then she’d probably like someone who also likes Eddie. He told me that people come to watch his band play specifically.” Dustin was grinning wide.

“Henderson, you might be onto something.” Steve was starting to follow his friend’s logic. “If his fans like him, then she’d probably like his fans.”

“Precisely, Steve!”

The two of them grinned at each other as if they’d just cracked the code to helping you out. However, Steve was only aware of half the plan. That night at the arcade hadn’t been sitting right with Dustin since Eddie tore out of there like a bat out of hell with the rest of the club in tow. He’d seen the way Eddie had stolen glances at you when he thought no one was looking, and only Eddie could miss the way you had been staring at him as the two of you talked.

Dustin wasn’t sure what the hell Eddie’s problem was saying he wasn’t interested, but if Steve was giving him a chance to be nosy and meddle he was going to take it. You had been nice to Dustin this summer, and after starting the new hell that was high school he wanted to help you out. Eddie had been the only person who had been nice to him and Mike in school, and you had been nice out of it.

If this didn’t work he’d leave Steve to his own problem, but Dustin had this one last trick up his sleeve.

“So Eddie’s never talked about having an interest in anyone before?” Steve asked as he tossed his trash and handed over the remaining chips to Dustin.

“Not really. Jeff mentioned that he used to have a thing for some girl named Ronnie, and they all act really cagey about someone else named Paige.” Dustin said with a shrug.

“I have no idea who those people are.”

“I don’t either, they don’t talk about it much.”

“Alright, well I guess we’re gonna go to the Hideout.” Steve decided. “Wait, isn’t his band him and a bunch of high schoolers? How are they even allowed to play in a bar?”

“It’s a bar, not a club, Steve. They can be there, they just can’t drink. Legally.” Dustin decided not to share that Eddie had one or two fake IDs that the barkeeps were happy to overlook for Eddie at least.

“What do you know about clubs?” Steve was surprised. “The only club you should know about is your weird fantasy club.”

“I watch MTV, I know how some things work!”

The banter between the two continued until you showed up in the break room.

“Steve, your break ended fifteen minutes ago. If you get your butt to the front I’ll fudge the time sheet and say you just forgot to clock back in.” you said. “And Dustin, honey, I love you. You aren’t supposed to be back here. Actually, I don’t care because you’re a good kid. Just ask before you barge in, okay? If Keith’s here I’ll actually have to enforce that.”

“Yes, Ma’am!” Dustin gave you a salute as the two of them made their way back to the front. When Steve took his place behind the counter, Dustin took a piece of paper out of his bag and handed it over.

“What’s this?” Steve took the paper, looking at the list of movie titles.

“My payment. I want these movies for my services. We had an agreement.”

“Jesus, Henderson you’re gonna give yourself nightmares with these.”

“Nothing’s been scarier than what we’ve been through.”

“Fair enough.”

You looked to be as thrilled to be at the Hideout on a Tuesday night as you would be at the DMV. You didn’t have anything against the place, but you didn’t have anything for it either. You’d been to bars a few times with friends with varying degrees of enjoyment. Hell, this wasn’t even the first time you’d been to this bar. Hawkin’s didn’t exactly have the biggest variety of places to drink in town, and this place was the town’s “old reliable”. Cheap enough for the blue collar workers to enjoy a cold beer after work, but with enough variety to have the young adults of the town fill up the booths on the weekends.

It was not the weekend though, it was a Tuesday night. A weird night for Steve to drag you out to a bar to help you get a date. As you swung your body on the barstool waiting on your drink you glanced around. There was a small, cramped stage set up in the back and a few older men were hanging around.

“So... Steve not to be terribly picky and not to sound ungrateful, but I’m not so sure about this.” You said, scanning the bar for anyone who didn’t look old enough to be your dad or grandpa.

“There’s a band that’s supposed to play tonight.” Steve said, pointing over to the stage. “I heard they’re about our age so I thought it’d be worth a shot.”

“A band?” You considered it. “What type of music are they supposed to play?”

“I think it’s a metal band.”

You snorted into your soda. “A metal band? In Hawkins? Oh, this I have to see.” You hopped off the stool to make your way over to the cork board that was covered in advertisements for the town. You scanned it until you found a flier that had been covered partially by an advertisement for lawn care.

CORRODED COFFIN- TUESDAY NIGHTS

That must have been it. It didn’t give you any information about the band, other than the name and when they played. The logo was hastily drawn on in black and red markers as if putting this up was a last minute idea. You pulled the paper off the board and repositioned it so that it was front and center instead. There, that was your good deed for the day; giving a small band an additional 8.5 by 11 inches of visibility.

“As usual, I have learned nothing.” You declared, taking your seat again. “I have a name and that’s it.”

“What’s the band called?” Steve asked.

“Corroded Coffin.” you replied. “Shouldn’t you know? This was your idea!”

“I was just told there was a metal band that played, I wasn’t given a name.” Steve had been given the name and immediately forgot in the near endless ramblings that Dustin had gone on about.

“You’re gonna think I’m crazy-”

“I already do.”

You laughed and continued. “You’re gonna think I’m crazy but the name sounds familiar.” Your legs were swinging off the stool, leaning back against the bar with your elbows. “How can you forget a name like that?”

Easily. Thought Steve.

A few more people were starting to show up now, though it was still pretty dead and slow. Even as people shuffled in and out of the small bar, there was no sign of anyone who you’d deem “age appropriate” for you.

“So you tried to set me up with a high schooler and now it looks like you’re trying to hook me up with someone twice my age.” You joked.

“Yeah, I was hoping there’d be more people here to choose from.” Steve looked around the room. Dustin had said that this band was supposed to have a crowd but he wasn’t seeing evidence of that anywhere.

“Ah well, even if tonight is another bust we can still have fun.” you gave him a playful punch. “If the band is bad we can bond over that, and if they’re good you probably won’t appreciate it and I’ll subject you to my every thought about it.”

“You do that anyway.” Steve breathed out a small laugh.

“I’ll be worse, cross my heart.”

It wasn’t long until the doors to the Hideout opened again, with two highschoolers struggling to fit a drum set through the doors. You snickered as they twisted the parts trying to adjust the bulky equipment. That’s right, the circular drum goes through the square hole.

“Steve, high schoolers.” you whispered. “Again?!”

But then you realized that the two teenagers looked familiar. Familiar in a fresh way. Familiar in a ‘Hey, didn’t I just see you the other day?’ way. Your stomach twisted as they finally managed to get through the door and make their way to the stage for set up.

“Hey, Steve, these kids look- shit.”

Your heart leapt in a way you didn’t expect when the man you’d poorly attempted to get to know just a few days ago walked through the door with a guitar case strapped to his back. He was laughing with another member of the band as they carried in an amp. Eddie didn’t even look your way as they made their way to set up on stage.

He played guitar. Of course he played guitar in a metal band. Jesus Christ, you were actually going to murder Steve and Dustin if this whole situation wasn’t going to kill you first. Eddie dropped his leather jacket on the side of the stage, leaving him in a band shirt that you couldn’t make out the name of in the dim lights. He had really nice arms (how had you missed the tattoos last week??), and the way he was smiling so genuinely and joking around with his friends made you feel fuzzy on the inside. He hadn’t looked like that when you two were talking-

“You’re drooling again.” Steve said.

You shook your head and quickly turned around, putting your back to the stage.

“Steve... what the fuck.” You hissed, glaring at him. “I know I didn’t exactly share what happened on Saturday, but I thought it was pretty clear that it didn’t go well.”

“Listen, I had no- I” Steve couldn’t lie to you. “Henderson said he’d be playing tonight, but I swear I’m not trying to hook you two up again. I really thought that when he said there’d be a crowd there’d be more freaks here!”

You smacked your head on the bar a few times with a groan. “It was so awkward. I told him I’d be right back but then when I went back in everyone was gone. He wasn’t interested in me.”

“His loss.” Steve said. “Listen, we’ll stick around for a few songs and if no one else shows up then we can leave, deal?”

“Deal.”

You tried to ignore the pounding in your heart as you pointedly refused to turn around. You didn’t even know why you cared so much that Eddie was there again. You had only talked for a half hour before he left, but the man had stuck in your mind since that night.

You had been attracted to guys before, but Eddie was on some other level.

“So, are you stalking me now, Harrington?”

FUCK.

“Nah man, just in the mood to do something different tonight.” Steve said, trying his hardest to play nice. He had to remember that this was for you, even though he was starting to like Eddie less after his disinterest in you.

“I didn’t take you as a man with music taste.” Eddie said. You hated that this man seemed to always sneak up on you. You finished off your drink and turned around to join the conversation before Steve made things worse.

Fuck it. It’s not like this could be any more awkward than how things were left off. You might as well have some fun.

“Actually this was my idea.” You said, lying through your teeth with a grin. “Steve here knows nothing about good music, so I thought I’d show him a little culture.”

Steve was now looking at you with his jaw dropped, wondering where the hell that came from. He looked offended, and Eddie? Eddie’s eyebrows shot up as recognition crossed his features as he looked at you.

“So you like metal?” Eddie said, his gaze now locked on yours. You felt an odd pounding in your heart as you looked up into those amazingly round brown eyes. “What’s your favorite band?”

It wasn’t a challenge. There was nothing in his tone to indicate that he was about to turn into a total dick about music, and that both put you at ease and made your attraction to him far worse.

“Well, Black Sabbath is always good.” you thought. “But I’m gonna have to go with WASP. I’d rate them a 69 out of 10 for being so damn horny in their songs.”

Eddie’s eyes lit up and he smiled wide, the same kind of smile he’d just given his band mates a few minutes ago. You licked your lips and felt Steve kick your foot, probably signaling you to stop drooling.

“So someone in this town does have good taste!“ Eddie was moving around more now, taking a few paces back and then back towards you clapping his hands.

“I don’t like to limit myself.” You said. “I’m always looking for new sounds and music. It’s like I feel like I’m suffocating if it gets too quiet.”

You winced internally at the statement, knowing that it was probably off putting but to your surprise Eddie only got more excited.

“Exactly!” He practically yelled.

How was it so easy to talk to him, and so hard at the same time? Why was it that every conversation so far had ended so awkwardly when moments like this felt easy?

“So how long have you been playing?” you asked, looking over at the stage where he’d set his case down.

“The band’s been playing together since we were in middle school, I started playing guitar around fifth grade. We’ve had a rotating cast of members, so I started it, and Jeff’s been there the longest after me.” he pointed to a member fiddling with his bass. “Zack and Gareth joined in high school.”

“And was Chris Morrison ever part of this band?” you teased.

“Fuck no!.” Eddie laughed. “My uncle would say that Chris couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket with a lid on. He tried to play manager. Tried. After seeing how he ran his campaigns, I wasn’t interested.”

“Didn’t he also run for student council once?”

“You remember those posters?!” there was a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Oh, he never ran. The rest of us were so done with how he was running Hellfire we put those up detailing why he was shit at leadership.”

“You’re kidding!” you gaped. “Jesus, you guys are weird.”

Eddie bent down in a joking bow. “I got a week’s detention for that stunt. I wasn’t the one who made most of them, but Higgin’s always had it out for me. Still does.” He mumbled that last part mostly to himself.

“Why do you two keep talking about Chris Morrison?” Steve asked, and you suddenly remembered that he was there too. Whoops.

“Common thread, apparently.” you shrugged. “It’s too easy to rag on the guy.”

“You had to be there.” Eddie said, as if you and Eddie were sharing connected memories that you were both part of rather than piecing together fragments of a puzzle where you were both corner pieces. The same picture, but never touching.

At least, as far as you were aware.

Steve was looking at you as if you were both insane. He was probably right.

“Okay, okay Steve’s right. I don’t want to talk about Chris fucking Morrison anymore.” you said. “How long have you been playing here, at the Hideout?”

“Every Tuesday for about 2 years, give or take.” Eddie said. “We started monthly, but we get a crowd now so they asked us to play weekly.”

“A crowd.” You nodded, looking around the dead bar. “Damn, I must be pretty lucky to have the front man talking to me when you have all these people here to see you.” Behind the joke, the tone you used was sincere and playful all at once. You sat up a little straighter, leaning towards him on your barstool.

That was a flirt. You just flirted. There was no taking that back. You were gonna have to commit now.

There was something boyish about the smile he returned, calm and relaxed. “Oh yeah, you should feel special. As you can see we have a crowd of about-” he turned to the rest of the bar, counting the patrons. “-Right, about four drunks. I guess Tim’s out today.”

“Well, make that four and a half drunks and also Steve is here.” you shook Steve’s shoulder playfully.

“Half?” Steve looked at you, pushing your hand off.

“I drove here, I can’t get wasted. But I can have one or two drinks and be fine.”

“Well, if you happen to bite off more than you can chew, I have room in my van for you.” Eddie said. “I could give you a ride.”

Well, that wasn’t what you had expected. Your stomach was flipping like an acrobat at the suggestion. He was offering you a ride home if you wanted to drink? After he’d disappeared on you? Just what was this guy's deal?

“If I’m biting my drinks that’s cause for concern. I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to bite a drink.” Smooth, so fucking smooth. You might as well call yourself Skippy because you were as smooth as chunky peanut butter.

But Eddie just laughed and shook his head. “Yeah, you’re right. But the offer’s on the table. Or the bar, since you want to be literal.”

“I’ll think about it.” you said. “I don’t normally go home with men I just met at bars but if your band is any good I’ll consider it.”

His grin widened at that “Then I’ll be sure to tell the guys to pick up the slack tonight.”

That was a flirt, right? Eddie just flirted back with you. That had to be right? You almost wanted him to go away so that you could confirm with Steve that your suspicions about that line were correct.

“Eddie! Get over here and help with the amp, it’s doing the thing again!” One of the teens from the stage called out.

Eddie sighed and looked over at his band that was messing with the amp they had brought in. “Again? Alright, I have some tape in my toolbox.” he called back to them before turning to you. HIs eyes flicked over to Steve for just a split second before meeting your eyes again. “Talk to you after the set?”

“Yeah, I’d like that.” you said, “After all you might be my ride home.”

And with that, Eddie turned and left.

“What was that?” Steve said immediately looking at you. “Where did that come from? Your idea? Going home with him?!”

“What?” you asked, taken aback. “You told me I should actually flirt, so I flirted!”

“Where was all that on Saturday?! Hell, where was that for the past two months we’ve had this deal going?” Your friend was looking at you like he hardly recognized you.

“Great question Steve, and it deserves a great answer.” you nodded. “I have no fucking clue. Maybe I’m exclusively attracted to guys that I don’t think I have a chance with?”

“He offered to drive you home.” His eyes darted over to the stage where Eddie had reappeared with a toolbox, messing with the amp. “I don’t know how you missed it but he was flirting with you.”

“Oh, good, I thought I was losing it.” you laughed. “Glad we got that established. Cool. Loving that. Now, on one hand he’s offering me a ride home. On the other hand, to get this supposed ride home I will have to intoxicate myself. Which sounds fun in theory but he’s also a guy I barely know.”

It should have been sketchy, it really really should have been. The only man you would trust to get your drunk ass home without worry right now would be Steve.

“Hey, can I get another one of these, please?” you asked the bartender, holding up your glass.

Once your refill came, you grabbed the drink and stood up. The band was finishing up the sound check and it looked like they were about to start.

“Come on, I want to sit closer. I’m feeling reckless tonight.” You grabbed Steve’s arm and dragged him to a table closer to the stage. Eddie made his way to the mic and smiled at you and your raised your glass to him with a smile.

“Thanks for coming out tonight, we’re Corroded Coffin and we’re here to make you feel like you’re fighting demons in hell!”

It was in that horrible, terrifying moment when the lights dimmed and the sound of an electric guitar ripped through the air, that you realized something; you were going to end the night with the biggest, stupidest, useless crush on Eddie Munson and there was nothing you could do about it.

Part 5

Dividers by @strangergraphics

I would also like to note that this is a work of fiction. You're allowed to make questionable decisions when playing with fake scenarios. Just roll with it.

Tag List: @k8loo @terrormonster55 @sp1dyb0y1008 @crocwork-clockodile @ali-r3n @mxcheese @josephquinnschesthair @gagasbee @peaches-roses-sins @witchwolflea @vintagehellfire @royale1803 @cumslutforaemond @prestinalove @browneyedgirly93 @perpetualmess @thebook-hobbit @mistonk @cultish-corner @grishaversecaptivated @sortagaysortahigh

#nacht fic #eddie munson x reader #wing man

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faislittlewhiteraven · 28 days

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Been thinking this a while but

You ever think about why the House and King in SASASAaP is so much worse than it is in ISaT?

Like, at first I put it down to just 'different timelines/different worlds' but the more I think about it, the more I've realized it is very much the same world and King and the difference specifically lies with the two game's respective Siffrins.

Why the House is so different: In Act 5 of ISaT when Sif 2.0 is running around losing his mind, the House very clearly warps around him. At first this seems to be just Sif's perception of events but when the friends come to rescue him, they bring up that the rooms were warped around, which means that Sif's Wish Craft doesn't just warp time but also space. Because ISaT Sif on some level didn't want the loops to end, the House grew longer, pathways stopped making sense, they were lead to every room of the house where they had any kind of precious memory with their family (but notably not the rock trap room) etc...

And clearly the same thing is happening to the House in SASASAaP, the difference is Loop/OG's mindset: They want to get through the house as fast as possible without 'distractions' like the very helpful Hidden Library they don't know exists but at the same time they dread the king (dread their friends dying over and over and over) so the path is short and free of bosses (including those 'Nostalgia' star crest Sadnesses), but full of time consuming and tricky puzzles to delay them -even just a bit longer- from what they see as the inevitable end. ...Also the path no longer requires the Keyknife and OG Sif gets outright angry at the Change Statue when the others pray at it so make of that what you will.

Ok, so the Houses are affected by Sif's mental state, but what about the King? The King is a totally different kettle of fish. He very much is not effected by the respective Sifs' Wish Craft but he can pick up on it. And well, how does he react in ISaT when he realizes Siffrin 2.0 is using Wish Craft?

... *Thinks about a hand, squeezing*

So yeah. My theory for why the King is so much worse, especially in the Perfect Route in Start Again is simple: Loop/OG Sif had been looping so long that their reek of Wish Craft's sweet smell was basically covering the whole party and the King, not knowing who to torture directly, responds by trying to kill them all especially horribly, especially on the 'Perfect' route where Sif likely continues hiding their looper status even as they are dying. ...Trying to mentally break them just as he tries to break Siffrin 2.0 in ISaT.

...Which is also why he doesn't auto kill everyone in the 'True' route - because that's the route Sif gives up pretending they're not a mess, meaning the King can identify that Sif is the Wish Crafter by the party's concern for them and their lack of reaction (much like the King did in ISaT), can see that Siffrin is already breaking, and thus being the 'merciful ruler' he is, decides to toy with them a bit, only going for the killing blow when he gets lower on health and starts getting concerned he might lose (which in turn means most of his attention in the fight was on the clearly not ok Sif, the party likely noticed and that's probably why Isabeau was able to jump in and block the King's fatal attack in time).

So um. YEAH. That's my thoughts on SASASAaP's King; he's the exact same as ISaT's King the only difference is that by the time OG Sif reached him the first time, they'd already looped a horrific amount of times and reeked so strong of Wish Craft that the King never even entertained the 'talk them down' facade and went straight for the kill/'torture them into submission' option every time.

Not sure these details matter too much really but I figure it might be helpful to all the Loop lovers out there making wonderful fanfics to consider (circumstances Odile can theorise about if Loop ever gives her enough hints to try, perhaps?) so... yeah. Hope my thoughts were interesting and would like to hear your thoughts on the stuff I didn't manage to figure out like the skill differences between the two parties, and various people frozen in the House having different pronouns and things (currently going with: Loop/OG Sif is not really listening to anything and is possibly misremembering details they don't care about for the later but the former is very much 'I know this is probably because refined mechanics but what if-?!' area for me and I'd love to see in-setting reasoning for it) <3

Edit: Realized I forgot to mention a thing: A sweet scent is never brought up in SASASAaP probably because that might've been a later addition to the plot but I like to think it's more because everyone in the prologue is just so used to it at this point that the party are putting it down to being part of the 'King altered' House while OG Siffrin is completely numb to it at this point, and the King's not interested in talking so... yeah. No one brings it up. ...Might also explain why Bonnie doesn't offer the Melanga fritters: the sweet scent could potentially alter the taste (and also they're not 100% sure Sif likes them) so instead they offer sweets like the candy and Palmiers that would be less effected, the burnt samosas which are 'already bad' and the fish head which probably tastes so strong that Bonnie's less worried about it's taste being masked. But that's just my spitballing for excuses so hope that's helpful for anyone wanting to use this info? XD

#start again start again start again #sasasap #start again a prologue #isat #in stars and time #isat loop #isat spoilers #isat act 6 spoilers #fan theory #SAaP #start again spoilers #sasasaap spoilers #two hat spoilers

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blueberrypancakesworld · 3 months

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Hey there! So I’ve just recently gotten into Lost Boys, and was wondering if you could write a short where they meet the reader by saving them from the train during the bridge scene? Poor reader is just hanging onto Dwayne for dear life, begging for him not to drop her. And they’re all tryna be funny and make her laugh so she’s less scared. And then they take her home and she’s left flustered cause four hot guys actually talked to her lol.

Our hearts hold you little bat

warning : fluff&comfort, tiny angst, implied flirting

info : Four hot guys that are also vampires what a dream. Happy that you recently gott into tlb. I was very happy writing this for your dear anon. So I hope you like it and have fun reading, everyone else too ;)

masterlist

In a town like Santa Carla, it felt like there were only three things to do. You walked along the beach and swam in the sea, you went to the funfair and listened to music or you simply walked through the town and nature in the hope that something would happen.

But your choice fell into the third category. In a town like Santa Carla, she had visited the beach thousands of times, sunbathed in the water and enjoyed diving, which had only led to a few small fish that got boring after ten times.

The funfair and the concerts that would take place almost every weekend. Even after hundreds of thousands of visits, they were still entertaining and she liked dancing, eating cotton candy and singing with her friends and family.

But everything becomes too much at some point and she found that the night in this city slightly outside where you could have your peace and quiet was so much better. Peace and quiet is good too she thought as she looked up at the moon in the background as she turned to the beach which was still lit up, she could still hear the music, the saxophone being played could still be heard here.

"Like my own background music," she quipped and continued along the path, still old but still in use, it seemed to fit everything here. It was the height of strange people in the city while she also saw herself among them, but what was normal in this city?

She knew that she could get scared just as well as the other young adults, children and teenagers. ,,Not the murder capital of the world for nothing," she muttered as she walked along the path and saw the old bridge that Hlz and metal had seen for decades and probably years.

A beautiful constuction that stood under the stars, a constuction with history. History of the place she was interested in the place she was interested in. But one look at the party on the beach made her realize again that although she was having fun, she hadn't found a boyfriend or a relationship here yet, it wasn't that there weren't any dates but it had never happened in any way. She didn't really know how and the boys didn't want to.

But she shook off the thought, the wood creaked under her shoes, the metal seemed to tense up, but not because of her, was it? Something she didn't think about because the only thing she could never remember was when the train was coming. Running her hands over the railing, she didn't see the figures below her, the four beings, the handsome creatures in the form of four boys.

Enjoying the view, she looked at the beach, the city lights, the stars in the sky and the moon. It was a beautiful moment in the darkness of the evening. But this beautiful moment was interrupted by a fibrillation that brought her out of her thoughts as she looked beside her. ,,Oh shit!" she exclaimed as she caught the light and started to run.

She knew the bridge was long, the wood was rotten, the metal was rusty and the path wouldn't take her home straight away. It was as if, for the first time in this town, she was feeling terrified in the face of death. The pleading and running she could hear the horn, the light coming closer and the rattling of the wheels rumbling in her chest.

,,Come on fuck please just a little more" she mumbled but something inside her told her that she couldn't outrun a train traveling several hours and miles. A cry of fear escaped her as she closed her eyes and realized that she was not going to be caught by the train for a second when she suddenly felt arms around her.

Arms that were under a leather jacket, a dark leather jacket with a leopard on the sleeve and a bare torso underneath. ,,Wh-What?" she mumbled as she realized she wasn't caught in the train. But she screamed when she saw the ground beneath her and clung to someone. A person in the air? Confused, she looked at the man who looked at her with a slightly amused grin.

,,I've got you," he said calmly and she clawed at the scratching post like a cat, but the stranger didn't seem to mind. ,,Oh, Dwayne, don't be so shy... hey, sweetheart, do you have to scare us like that?" she heard a voice and looked carefully beside her, clawing even more at Dwayne, who was still holding her like she was nothing. A blond man flew next to them, long blond voluminous hair and a smile on his lips as he put his hand on hers.

,,You're flying? What-what are you Superman?" she asked, still not understanding what was going on, it was like a shadow the four of them. She had seen these four before on the solid but always just like a shadow. A damn good-looking shadow.

A laugh came from the four of them which made her squirm and she made a startled sound as one flew headlong towards her. ,,Don't hate, just grin I mean look at the view...besides I'm Marko, volumen hair is Paul and there in front is David" said the one with the curly hair and she saw the last of the four. She saw the light blond spiky hair, the leather coat and the glimpses of the cigarette.

,,Marko's right, sweetheart... enjoy this night view until you're back on the ground, don't want it to be uncomfortable," David said and gave her a grin as he joined his group. She tried to concentrate on the view, even though she kept looking back at the four of them.

Marko grinned at her and tried to tell her stories, Paul made bad jokes, David offered her a cigarette every now and then and talked about something, and Dwayne praised her for how well she was doing. The beauty of the creatures no it wasn't true she had seen the pointy fangs. These four beautiful vampires were really the best part of the night.

At some point it was quite nice to see the city from above and especially Dwayne's hands still holding her. She gave the four of them her address as the morning slowly threatened to come again and they flew there.

Luckily for her, she had left her window open because having to explain to her parents why four punky looking boys were standing outside the house was complicated.

,,Here sweetie," said Dwayne, gently helping her through the window as she finally got her feet back on the ground and the four of them hovered in front of her window. It was only now that she realized what had happened that a grin came to her lips and she could barely contain her excitement.

Four handsome vampires had rescued her and flown through the night. that was incredible i mean the train-you vampires...thank you for everything" she thanked the four of them who smiled at her.

,,Oh sweetie you have no idea how good everything will be tomorrow night at the same time" David mumbled and she knew she would be there, knew she was flying with the four of them again. But most of all she knew that there was now a fourth option. To roam the night with the lost boys.

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

#the lost boys #the lost boys 1987 #tlb 1987 #tlb david x reader #tlb dwayne x reader #tlb paul x reader #tlb marko x reader #tlb david #tlb marko #tlb dwayne #tlb paul

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shelby-fangirl00 · 1 year

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Hiii! Could you write a Tommy x reader where the reader grew up with the shelby and has always been super close with either John or Ada because she's closer to their age. Then as she got older Tommy started to become protective/jealous over her? Maybe some angst with some fluff at the end? You're the best (:

HI! I love this request. Sorry it took a little longer than expected! Hope you enjoy!

Kempton Race

Warnings: Adult language, mentions of sex

Word Count: 2327

‘Red or white?’ Ada asked me as she held up two different colored heels.

I turned around and faced her, tilting my head and squinting my eyes.

‘Definitely red today. You’ll ruin those white ones in all that mud.’

She smiled and sat down at my small kitchen table, placing the small red heels on her feet.

Ada had invited me to join her and her family at the Kempton Race. It was a big day for the Shelby’s or at least for Tommy. Monaghan Boy was racing today.

As we continued to get ready in my tiny home in Small Heath, we decided to have a couple of drinks.

‘Do ya think Avery will be there today?’ She asked me, hiding the mischievous grin from behind her glass.

I shot her a warning look and threw my whiskey back before answering.

‘Jesus, I hope not.’ I rolled my eyes.

‘Is that over with then?’

‘He’s such an arse. I’m only of use to him when he needs his balls emptied. Fuck him.’

She raised her eyebrows and shrugged her shoulders.

‘Don’t they all?’ she laughed out.

‘Fuck em, eh?’ She said to me as he held her glass up in the air. She was referring to her strange relationship with Freddie. She didn’t like to talk about it much, but what I did know about him is that he was also a dick in the same way Avery was.

Avery was a local boy who, on occasion, visited me in the night. It was nothing serious, just fucking. I had finally stopped letting him come by. It was doing more harm than good at this point.

I smiled and clinked my glass into hers before taking another swig.

Me and Ada had been the best of friends since we were little girls. We were both the same age, 22. We had been inseparable for years. Growing up around Ada and her older brothers was interesting, to say the least. I was close enough to John growing up too. All three of us used to get ourselves into trouble quite often. I have many fond memories with the Shelby’s, even Tommy. Me and Tommy’s relationship, as children, mostly consisted of him teasing and embarrassing me in front of his brothers.

Over the last couple of years, he was…different. I didn’t know what it was about him that had changed. He seemed to be protective over me at times, which I found to be odd. If me and Ada stayed out extra late with other men at the Pub, instead of scolding just Ada, I also was lectured. Was it jealousy of the other men in my life? Or did he see me as more of a sister? I could never tell with him. The tension between us lingered often. I didn’t know what we were, but he had never expressed any feelings towards me. To him, I’m probably just his sister’s friend, too young for him to even consider me in that way.

The older we all get, the more I noticed Tommy. He was obviously always the pretty boy growing up, but now, it was different. Every time I was near him, his beauty seemed to just…radiate. It was quite intimidating.

-----

Ada and I were sitting in a booth at the races. Looking around to see all of the nicely dressed betting men bustling around outside. I wondered if Thomas was anywhere nearby.

‘Don’t you worry, dear, Tommy will be here any moment now.’ Ada giggled out.

I swatted at her arm and shushed her.

‘What are you talking about? Think that I’m looking for your brother?’ I chuckled out. I was, in fact, looking for her brother. I would never admit that to her.

‘Oh come’on! I see the way you two look at each other when you think the other isn’t looking. It’s quite adorable actually!’ She whispered to me as she leaned in.

Just then, we heard a low voice coming from behind us.

‘Evening, ladies.’ Tommy sighed out, his hands stuck in his pants pockets, as he walked around us and sat down beside me.

You eyed him down as he took off his cap and slid it into his coat pocket, slouching into the seat next to me. I couldn’t help but to stare a little longer than I probably should have. His sharp jaw, freckled, pale face, heavy blue eyes…

He then turned his head to face me, catching my eyes in his, face expressionless.

‘I haven’t seen ya in a while, where ya been hiding?’ He asked me, his thick Birmingham accent flooding my ears.

‘Not hiding, I know that much. Are you feeling lucky today, Tommy?’ I asked, quickly trying to change the subject.

He looked into my eyes a second time, making my stomach do flips.

‘Oh, I am feeling very lucky today, love.’ He said, his eyes not leaving mine.

I couldn’t help but flash him a small smile, letting my eyes fall down the frame of his body before looking back out at the race track.

Just then, two large hands grabbed my shoulders and squeezed a little too roughly.

All three of our heads turned to see Avery standing behind me, a big drunken grin on his long face.

‘Well hello love, where have you been hiding out?’ He asked me sarcastically, mocking Tommy and I’s previous conversation that he had been listening in on.

‘What can I do for you Avery?’ I asked, standing up and facing him. Tommy stayed silent, not looking away from the racetrack now.

‘So official today! Have you already forgotten that I was just in your bed the other night?’ He questioned me loudly, trying to embarrass me.

My face turned red and my hands balled into fists at my side.

‘Fuck off Avery, or I’ll smack that shit eating grin right off your face!’ Ada yelled out at him from her seat beside me.

I heard Tommy chuckle quietly at this.

‘Alright, enough. Come’on Avery,’ I sighed out as I walked around Thomas to take Avery’s boney hand and pull him away from any more embarrassment. I walked him back towards the stables, stopping in front of Monaghan Boy’s empty one.

‘What’s going on Avery, why are you here?’ I sighed out, crossing my arms over my chest.

He extended his arms and stepped closer, pulling me into him.

I turned my face away, rolling my eyes at his awful attempt of affection. He was always handsy like this when he was drunk.

‘Avery, I told you already…I can’t see ya anymore.’ I whispered, placing my hands on his chest lightly, deciding that fighting him would just make things worse.

‘Why is that? Am I not enough man for ya anymore? Would you rather have some thieving Shelby inside of you now, is that it? Is that why you’re here with them?’ he spat out. The alcohol on his breath stung my nose.

‘Avery, you’re drunk…please-

Just before I was able to demand that he let me go, he was jerked back completely flying and slamming down on his back. Clumps of hay and mud covered his clothes and hair.

‘Sounds to me like you should take a hint and let go of her.’ Tommy said calmy. Avery’s eyes were wide with shock and a bit of fear.

When Avery didn’t move fast enough, Tommy leaned over his body.

‘Lay a hand on her again, and I’ll cut ya. Now Fook off.’ Tommy said lowly.

Avery then stood up quickly, glancing in my direction for a quick second before walking away. Even he was smart enough to know not to push Tommy any further.

‘Tommy…that wasn’t necessary. I had it under control.’ I said as I straightened out my dress and wiped the dirt off of my shoes.

‘You sure about that? Cause it didn’t seem like you did.’

I rolled my eyes dramatically.

‘He was just drunk. He gets handsy, but most men do in my experience. He’s harmless-’

‘-Until he isn’t. I’ll cut him if he lays another hand on you.’

My breath quickened as an awkward silence fell over the both of us.

‘Well, what do you care anyways Tommy? I don’t need you to protect me.’

I looked up to study his expression.

‘I don’t want you hanging around him anymore love, I’m serious.’

I giggled at this, stepping closer to him.

‘Even if he is a arse, I will see whoever I damn well please. What are you, my father?’ I scoffed at him. What right did he have telling me what to do and who to see?

He raised an eyebrow at me as his face hardened even more, his jaw clenching.

‘Far from it.’ He stepped an inch closer, so close that I could reach out and touch him. My mouth hung slightly open as I practically gushed over him. His eyes were glossy and full of a look I hadn’t seen before. I could tell he was irritated by my disobedience.

I wondered if this was more than just me being protected and safe. If Ada had noticed Tommy’s affection towards me, then there must be something there, right?

‘Why are you saying all of this? Why do you care?’ practically at a whisper.

‘I care because…I can’t stand to see you wasting your time on someone like that! Some small-town fuck like him.’

‘Tommy, you realize that I am small town too! And so are you! How am I any better than him?’ I yelled out at him throwing my hands up in the air and slamming them back down at my sides.

‘But you are more than this fucking town and he isn’t! You are different than him! You’re…intelligent and wise beyond your years. You are kind…and forgiving, sometimes too forgiving! You have a bright future compared to the rest of us.’

He stopped and rubbed his hands into his eyes and sighed loudly, realizing the weight of his words that were now up in the air. Practically stunned from this, I twiddled with my fingers before opening my mouth to speak.

‘You really think that about me, Tommy?’ was all I could think to ask.

His eyes slowly fell from my face to trace the curve of my body. I shuddered under his gaze, goosebumps covering the back of my neck. I imagined him kissing me, the feeling of his skin making contact with mine. It seemed so unattainable.

‘Are my affections towards you not obvious?’ He calmly asked, his voice going up an octave.

‘Tommy…I didn’t have a clue.’

‘Do you not feel the same?’

‘I…I didn’t say that. I just thought you only saw me as one of your little sister’s friends. I didn’t think you had ever given me a second thought.’ I tried to look at him, but he looked down at his muddy black shoes. I think my response disappointed him.

I took a few steps closer to him and placed the palm of my hand on his cheek to cup his sharp face, forcing him to look at me. As our skin connected, his eyes peered down into mine, surprised by my sudden forwardness.

He lifted his hand to place against mine. He turned his head slightly, letting his freckled lips plant the softest kisses on my wrist. His eyes studied the nervous expression on my face. I had never seen Tommy act so tenderly.

A deep warmness filled up my entire body as our skin touched for the first time. We had never been this close to each other before.

All at once, his hand gently dropped mine to place his rough fingers on my chin, lifting my face up to look at him. He let a light smile flask across his face before he craned his neck to peck my jawline. He lifted his face slightly as I turned my head to face his.

At the same moment, our lips collided. They slowly molded against each other’s for a few seconds before parting.

My face flushed and became red under his gaze, but my eyes never left his.

‘Do it again, Tommy.’ I panted out, trying my hardest not to crumble underneath him.

Without hesitation, he leaned down and kissed me again. His plump lips pushed into mine, this time with more force. Our mouths parted, and recollided again and again and again. The kiss quickly became hot and needy. His hands made their way to tangle into my hair. My heart was nearly beating out of my chest, I was sure he could feel it.

My hands greedily clung to the clothes covering his chest. I teased him with my tongue, slightly flicking it into his mouth. He moaned desperately into my mouth as I did so, sending a warm wetness in between my legs. I couldn’t fathom what was actually happening. It felt like a fever dream.

As I parted ways with his mouth, He softly nibbled my bottom lip in between his teeth, pulling at it lightly before letting go completely.

I stood there, not daring to say a word. We both continued to breath heavily, our chests inflating and deflating. We quickly tried to wrap our heads around what just happened.

I smiled up at him sweetly as his thumb then made contact with my lips, rubbing them lightly back and forth, studying them with his eyes, his mouth parted open, still reliving the feeling of my lips on his.

‘You’re even more beautiful up close, which should be impossible.’ He stated quietly, thumbs still tracing my lips.

I smiled before lifting myself up on my tippy toes to crash my lips on his once more, not being able to get enough. I had no idea what would happen after this. What I did know is that after having a single taste of Tommy, I wouldn’t be thinking twice about Avery ever again.

#thomas shelby #tommy shelby #tommy shelby fanfic #tommy shelby x reader #peaky blinders x reader #peaky blinder fanfic #peaky blinders #one shot #fluff #tommy shelby fluff

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twinklelilstarkey · 1 year

Text

Tutor: Blind Date

Words: 5.9k Type: ANGST BABYYYYY Summary: Your friends set you up on a blind date. Warnings: Female!Reader. Secret Relationship. Lying to friends and family. Might need some more proofreading. A bit of a cliffhanger ending, but you can also guess what might come next. [Angst is not between Rafe and Y/N]

Tutor Masterlist (for context, you should REALLY read the smuts <3)

Inspired by the idea given by @ajdjshei

I do NOT give you permission to repost my work. If you’d like to read my stories on other platforms, you can find them on my Wattpad and AO3.

“Absolutely not.” You say with a forced chuckle.

“Oh, come on!” Kristy says defensively, yet with a smile clear on her face. “When was the last time you went out with someone?”

Her words make you turn your head simply to not give her a glare. You were on your way to the bathroom - running away from the beginning of a conversation that can only end with you being the theme of - and were caught by surprise right as you were getting off your bed.

All of the girls are sitting either on your bed or by your desk, and today is one of those days when they love to just come over and spend time with you. They usually want to watch movies, other times gossip, and, of course, convince you to meet new people. Specifically boys.

“Aiden was the last one, probably.” One of the girls adds.

“Can we not talk about him?” You say, cringing.

“I agree.” Kristy says and, after a pause, bounces in excitement on your bed to get your attention, “But, please, hear us out. You’d have so much fun.”

“But I do not want to go.” You slowly tell her, trying not to sound too serious for the sole reason of not wanting to be rude. “Please, let it go.”

“But why?”

You turn around and walk over to your bathroom, wanting to distance yourself from the situation. You can hear some of the girls laughing, which relaxes you. To them, this is still just you making everything dramatic for fun, even when your speeding heart is making sure you know that it’s not.

You cannot see a way out of this situation without being rude. But what else can you even do? You can’t tell them the real reason why you don’t want to talk to a guy at this party or, especially, go on a date.

“Come on.” You hear Kristy's voice a bit more muffled now, right as you leave the bathroom door only a crack open.

You lay your hands on the cold counter and sigh once more. You stare at yourself in the mirror and force your mind to think. You need to find a reason, one that might not sound too harsh yet might be carrying a little bit of truth. You can always say that you’re interested in someone, but you also know how your friends are. They wouldn’t breathe until you told them who it was.

You hear shuffling in the bedroom as well as some whispers, and, deep down, you know that you can’t hide in the bathroom forever. You need to get out and talk to them, but it’s hard. You just saw Rafe this morning. Spending time with the girls and not mentioning him even once feels… wrong. Yet, mentioning him seems even worse.

For so long you’ve trusted them with your everything, and, as more and more days pass, you only lie to them more. It’s not fair.

It feels fine when you’re with him, and it helps that you’re able to spend entire nights and mornings with him. Rafe makes everything bad go away. But, when he leaves, it’s as if you’ve just been lifted from a protection spell. Everything and everyone can and will hurt you. All because you’re with him.

You fake doing something in the sink before walking back out with your chest heavy and mind slow. As expected, when you step out, you’re greeted by all of the girls’ eyes and grins. They really want to take you out with some guy. You have no other way out of this.

“It’s just one blind date,” Kristy assures one. “You can say ‘no’ after the first 5 minutes. Just do it for us. Just try to go on this date.”

Hope spreads through the room as the silence continues. You’re making it seem as if you’re considering it, and… you are.

“What’s his name?” You ask them while making your way back to the bed.

Some squeals of excitement break through the silence of the room at your words, and you lay down on the bed, right where you were prior to this conversation starting. You lay your head on your pillow as your eyes stay on Kristy and some of the other girls beside her, and their smiles are gigantic.

“It’s a blind date, dummy. You can’t know that.” Kristy says playfully before laying her head on the other pillow while looking at you. “But we know him.” She lays her hand on yours, “And we promise that he’s a really, really nice guy.”

You look over at the other girls and all of them just nod at you, almost as if silently promising you that Kristy is giving you the most husband-material man on the entire island. You open your mouth to answer them but consider staying quiet for just a little longer. Going on a date doesn’t mean anything. You’re just continuing to act as if you’re single, lonely, sad, and without a Rafe Cameron in your life or bed. You’re doing the right thing.

“Fine… I’ll go on the date.” You say.

The room breaks in absolute hysterics. The girls jump, clap, giggle and let out small screams in excitement. You almost can’t contain your smile over their happiness, but you do snuggle closer to your pillow when all of their attention comes back to you. The hint of a familiar smell on your washed pillow hits you right as you snuggle in closer. Your body reacts in automatic comfort at the faint smell of cologne.

Your eyes move back to Kristy, and she smiles brightly at you.

(...)

To your relief, you were able to get ready for the date on your own. The girls did ask you for pictures of the clothes you were picking and what make-up you were thinking of doing. You really did not want to overdo anything when it came to this date. So, from your clothes to your hair and make-up, everything was casual. Just like something you would wear to go anywhere, really.

The restaurant the girls picked is one just by the end of Figure 8. It’s a family restaurant, well frequented by both Kooks and Pogues. It relaxed you when they mentioned it. You didn’t want it to be anywhere expensive or too lonely. Somewhere where you would be okay with going on your own to meet someone new, who you have never seen before.

“We’re here.” Kristy happily says from the driver’s seat.

It’s just you, her, and two more girls in the car and they all turn to face you when the car is parked right in front of the establishment. The sun is beginning to set as dinner time is right on the verge of starting, and there are already some people going in. You stare at the couple letting the door close behind them as they step inside. You’re really doing this.

“Don’t act so excited.” One of the girls tells you jokingly.

You force a smile, and they all chuckle at you. You lay your hand on the door of the car and sigh when feeling the cold handle.

“We’ll pick you up in an hour.” Kristy tells you before you can open the door, “But do not hesitate in telling us if he’s thinking of taking you home. We’ll happily oblige.”

You fake a laugh and hide the obvious fake sound by opening the door. The soft warm breeze hits you right as you do it, and you jump out of the car. The girls offer you some words of encouragement, but you didn’t do more than just offer a nod and a smile before, quite purposely, closing the door while one of them was mid-sentence.

You don’t look at the car another time, knowing that you will find all of the girls smiling and waving at you to just continue walking. You make your first step towards the restaurant, while simultaneously reaching for your phone in your bag. Step after step, nothing gets easier. You really don’t want to do this.

You pull the door open and walk in, letting it close by itself behind you. Your eyes scan the main room of the restaurant, and you can already find the larger tables filled with groups of friends. As well as some others with one person, or another with a couple, who is just sitting and talking while looking down at their menus.

“Y/N?”

You follow the sound of the voice and turn around to face someone taking a step toward you. It’s a guy just about your age, his hair is dark and straight, perfect skin and a nice smile. His glasses set perfectly on his face as his brown eyes stare back into yours. He looks like a nice guy, a really nice guy.

“I’m Kristy’s friend, Alex.” He says while extending his hand towards you, which you accept into yours, “Wow, you look just like the pictures she showed me.”

Looks like the date was only blind to you. You hide your discomfort towards the whole plan Kristy must have done for this date and simply shake his hand and offer him a smile. It’s not his fault the two of you are in this predicament, only Kristy’s.

“Why don’t we go get a table?” He asks when your hands separate.

And off the two of you went. He did the talking, and you simply followed his steps. Alex made the effort to choose the table by the window, one where you could see the beach and the sunset. Right as the two of you are seated, you very much hide your face behind the menu for a few seconds and prepare to overthink your every action from here on out.

The drinks and food were ordered, and the conversation was fluid for most of the time.

You sip your water as Alex continues to speak. You listen to his words attentively each time he begins a sentence, but you hate yourself for how many times you get distracted by other things around you. Sometimes it’s by people walking into the restaurant, a waitress walking by, or a burst of louder laughter from the table near you.

Alex is a nice guy, exactly like the girls had said. He listens to you, and he’s interesting. His stories or his topics of conversation are not boring. And he is handsome. But you are still very much uninterested in what could be the outcome of this date.

You’ve been trying to avoid looking at your phone out of respect, but you have felt it vibrate on your leg countless times. You’ve peaked here and there, and each time it has been the girls asking for updates. Nothing interesting.

“So, what about you?”

You look away from the window to look at him with widened eyes.

“Hm, what?” You ask, caught off guard by him asking for your input.

Alex chuckles at that, and you force a little smile to play off your lack of attention to his words. He doesn’t seem offended. He’s simply amused.

“I asked you what your favorite movie was.” He said with his bright smile.

You do a little ‘oh’ with a chuckle, and his smile widens as you do. Your answer starts off as basic, just simple words of the name, and you can tell right away the way interest just takes over his face. That’s when your answer becomes longer and more detailed, just like his had been. And he nods and looks you in the eyes the entire time, fully engrossed with what you’re saying.

“Yeah, and that is… all.” You say at the very end, making him smile at you again.

“It’s a valid answer. I’ll give you that.” He says, making you grin at him. “What about…” He thinks for just a little bit. “Vacations. Where did you like to travel the most?”

You hum as you begin to think, yet you're quickly interrupted by the waitress bringing you your appetizers and laying them on the table before you. The two of you thank her as she puts them down before walking off.

“I don’t know…” You come back to your answer. “I’d have to think a little harder on that one, I think. What about you?”

Alex is quick to jump on his answer with great enthusiasm, making you feel a little bit more at ease with him as the meal continues. You two eat while on the same topic of conversation, and you laugh at something he says. You notice then the way his face lights up when you do it, and the way he seems so more relaxed as you speak.

To make up for that, you give him an answer on your favorite vacation destination as soon as he’s done talking about his. His ears almost visibly perk up at that, and he smiles and chuckles at the many details that you have as your justification.

“My mom doesn’t like it there as much as me, but I promise that it’s better than how she describes it.” You say with a smile, “Have you ever been there?”

“No, I haven’t.” He says, smiling behind his cup before taking a sip.

“You have to. It will change your opinion on family vacations forever, it just makes everything better.”

He chuckles at what you say, and you smile at him again, happy that you were able to entertain him too. When there's a shift in the noise of the restaurant as new people come in, you check the time on your phone and notice that it’s at a time when every restaurant will be packed no matter what. You’re thankful that you guys got here earlier.

“I’ll definitely make my siblings consider it for this summer.” He tells you while putting his cup down.

“You have siblings?” You ask curiously.

“Yes.” He nods, “Four of them, actually.”

He laughs at the surprise on your face, and he soon begins to explain them. As you two continue to speak and get to know one another, your friends drive back into the restaurant's driveway.

It was cruel to make you believe that you are on your own, but, still, they needed a reason to make it possible for you to get a ride back home from this guy. They trust him enough to do it. And, while they do, they’re not stupid enough to leave their friend on a blind date all alone.

“Do you think it’s going well?” One of the girls asks while they all try to be entertained by whatever is happening outside of the car.

They’re hidden quite well in the parking lot. They parked not too close to the restaurant, but close enough to be able to run in if needed or to see you walk out with the perfect man, who will drive you home, on your arm.

There’s a tree right by the car, and they all know that whenever the night will fall, the car will simply disappear without the street lights being able to light it.

“Must be.” Another one of the girls answers, “She hasn’t even read my message.”

Kristy keeps looking outside, entertained by watching the people going into the restaurant as the usual time for dinner sets in, as well as some others who have already finished up.

The girls slowly realized that they’re in for a long time of nothing since you’re not even answering any of their messages, and, therefore, they will be left to try to find something to talk about and not worry about you as you continue your silent treatment.

(...)

It’s about 20 minutes later when the girls in the car gain some enthusiasm. And that is only because of the sight of you walking out of the restaurant. You don’t have your things with you, and you also don’t seem to be leaving.

That had been their first guess. Maybe something happened, and it was so bad that you just walked out of the restaurant without even saying a word in the group chat. But, in reality, you look just fine. You stand off a bit to the side when walking out, not wanting to block the entrance or exit. Your dress is flowing in the breeze, and that’s when you turn in their direction that they see that you’re on the phone.

You don’t see them, of course, as it has gotten darker with the sunset but they see you as the lights over your head light up your figure for anyone looking onto the empty porch. You smile as you begin to speak, and they watch you silently walking to the railing, resting your elbows on it as you stare into the parking lot.

“Who is she speaking to?” One of the girls asks.

“Maybe Ashley?” Kristy says, making everyone remember that one of the girls is home. “I’ll text her.”

No one dared to take their eyes off you as you continue your conversation. Only Kristy was able to since she does need to text Ashley to see if she’s the person on the phone. It’s not like they can exactly text you to ask why the well you’re out of the restaurant in the middle of your date to speak on the phone.

When Kristy looks back up, you’re laughing while looking around the parking lot. Whoever it is on the phone, they’re not letting you know of an emergency. It seems like a normal conversation. A casual and funny conversation. Is it really that important to make you step out of your date to have it, though? Unless you were letting Ashley know how amazing everything was going while Alex went to the bathroom, it just doesn't make sense.

“Ashley answered.” Kristy squealed as the phone vibrated in her hand. Every girl in the car looked away from you to stare at the screen as she unlocked her phone to read it. Disappointment was all they felt when they did, “It’s not her.”

Slowly, all eyes are back on you as your friends stare up in confusion.

They watch as you stand away from the railing and turn to face the door of the restaurant, the phone still against your ear. Your dress moves with you, and you smile as you say the last words. The girls watch without even blinking, not wanting to miss a second.

“We’re still on dessert.” You tell him for the tenth time, “It will only take you like 5 minutes to get here. You don’t need to leave the house yet.”

“Need me to pay for it?” The question makes you laugh.

“No, Rafe. I don’t need you to pay for my date with another boy.” You laugh out your words, “Just come pick me up… Please?”

“I will. You have 10 minutes.”

“Yes, sir.” You giggle as you pull the door of the restaurant open.

The girls watch from a distance, all of them unknowing of everything that you said or laughed at. Ashley is making Kristy’s phone insanely vibrate as she also wants to know what could be going on. They all exchange looks when you disappear back into the restaurant with your phone still by your ear as you probably say your farewells to the person on the other line.

“Who do you think it is?” Kristy asks the girls as she watches the door close behind you.

“It could be her mom.” One of the girls shrugs, “She was all excited when we told her of this date, remember? Maybe she called in to know about any updates.”

“You think?” Another girl asks.

“Who else could it be?” Kristy asks, now facing the girls again, “We would know if she had other friends.”

They all silently agree, and an awful silence fills the car.

In the restaurant, you take back your seat, noticing that Alex is back in his chair. You smile at him ever so slightly, and he smiles as well.

“I’m sorry. Didn’t know you’d be back so quickly.” You tell him, “I just had to answer a call.”

“That’s okay.” He tells you sweetly.

(...)

Rafe did decide to not do what he said he would on the phone and give you more time to finish the date. He doesn’t like the idea, but you did ask him to not force you into having to run out of the restaurant only because he was impatient - with sweeter words, of course. You had told him on the phone all about wanting to keep this façade with the guy so he wouldn't run and tell your friends that you didn’t even try to enjoy the date.

When Rafe drove into the parking lot, the girls didn’t pay him too much attention. To them, he was just one more car getting into the parking lot for a later dinner, but they don’t judge how late people like to eat their food, especially if they have other things to worry about.

Rafe sent you a text as soon as he was parked, and you read it under the table, continuously smiling at the boy who has definitely understood that this date will lead nowhere, but is still too nice to you. You two are able to have various long and pleasant conversations throughout dinner, so you're not too upset with having been forced to go out with him in the first place.

It’s after a long moment of silence that he makes the sudden question, “Can I ask why?”

You look up from your phone after answering the girls for the first time during the whole night, and the boy notices how your smile falters when you look at him to think of an answer.

“Why what?” You ask, oblivious to what he’s asking.

He shrugs before saying more, “I guess… Why are you not interested in this being a date?” His tone isn’t judgmental, you can tell, yet still, you freeze at the moment you need to justify your actions of the night.

“I don’t know.” You try to get away easily.

Your eyes focus somewhere else, and you try to calm down your racing heart as you look around you. You could always answer him sincerely and say that you have a secret boyfriend, but that would be utterly stupid. The number of messages that you’ve gotten all dinner, will be the amount that he will get as soon as you tell the girls that this night didn’t work out. They will spam him infinitely to know more about what happened. More on why you didn’t like him. Even the strongest person on Earth would have a hard time dealing with this, therefore, anyone would just spill the truth to get the girls off of them.

Alex begins to form a smile on his lips, but both of you are interrupted by the waiter walking up to the table. Alex is the one that insists on paying for the food, which only left you to act defeated as the waiter took his card. He found it funny as you did so, and you two seemed to go back to pleasant conversation after that.

When the food is paid for, it’s the first time you notice how empty the restaurant seems now that the rush hour of dinner has gone by. You two did spend a good amount of time talking, more than eating, for sure, but you seriously had no idea how long you two sat in this restaurant.

You smooth your hands over your dress and walk with Alex to the exit. You smile at what he’s saying. He continues to act friendly with you even after you’ve told him all about not wanting tonight to be anything. The girls were right, he is nice. He’s absolutely the definition of a nice person, but, still, he is not who you want.

He pushes the door open for you, and you thank him with a smile. You walk out, your eyes meet the dark skies and it is yet another proof of how long you two talked. Pulling your eyes away from the sky, the two of you stand on the porch, staring at the lit-up parking lot, way emptier than before.

“Do you have someone to give you a ride home?” Alex asks you, making you have to turn to face him.

“I do.” You say, making him smile and nod, “But, thank you.”

You nod at each other once, and your eyes go back to the parking lot, trying to find the car you’ve grown somewhat accustomed to.

“Is he driving her home, or what?” One of the girls squeals inside the car, startling Kristy and another one of the girls.

“He must be.” Kristy says, “She hasn’t texted us to come and get her yet.”

They watch as the two of you speak. The girls have no possible way of knowing what you’re saying, but they can always imagine it. None of them care to guess the right answer: the awkward goodbyes after a failed blind date.

Due to Kristy’s window being halfway open (since they were all dying in the overheating car over an hour ago), all of the girls are able to hear the sound of a not-so-distant car door closing. That doesn’t sound any alarms in their heads, but one of them does look out of the window. She can’t exactly see who the person is as they stand by the car for a while when locking the doors, but she stares. She stares at the dark figure and then back at you, not wanting to miss out on anything that you’re doing.

“Where the hell is he going?!” Kristy asks out loud, making all of the girls alarmed.

Alex has just waved at you and is finally going down the steps of the restaurant’s porch to walk over to his car. You two have extended goodbyes and wishes for a nice and safe drive home many times before one of you finally walked off.

The girls in the car stare silently at Alex disappearing in the dark parking lot, going ahead to find his car. They don’t have words to describe what just happened, as they were so sure that the date would work. They had spent weeks on this plan, to get you on a date with him and finally fall in love again. But now it all seems like it was for nothing.

You look down at your phone as you take steps closer to the stairs, and the girls all think the same thing without knowing. They’re expecting one of their phones to ring or vibrate with a message of you wishing for them to pick you up. They waited, and waited, for more than a minute, and all they felt was confusion when the message never came, and you already stored your phone back in your bag.

One of the girls now remembered the figure of the late customer, who had just walked out of his car. She has now looked in his direction again to find him missing from the parking spot, where only stays a car. She’s looking all around the parking lot, not entirely comfortable with not finding the figure of a man disappearing into the night as her best friend stands alone on a porch.

They all stare at you but that one girl. In their defense, they’re oblivious to the person altogether, let alone where they’ve gone now. You are looking around the parking lot when suddenly something catches your attention. Your head turns in the direction of that something, and a smile appears on your face. The girls don’t dare to move in the car as they wait to see what it is.

The dark figure reappears before the girl’s eyes, and it does right in front of you. She opens her mouth to speak, but she stops when she sees the way you smile at the person.

“Do you think that person’s her ride?” She is able to ask out loud, making all of the girls notice the new presence that has gotten your attention.

No one answers.

You speak some words while slowly walking over to the stairs of the restaurant, your smile never really disappears, but that doesn’t mean that the girls will ever be less alert. As you get to the stairs, finally, the figure steps closer to the light. A guy and none of the girls can see his face.

You stand by the top of the stairs, and he comes closer, his back to the girls’ car. You don’t walk down the steps, but he moves closer and closer. You go down one step, mid-sentence, and your hands come down to rest over his broad shoulders.

“Who the fuck…” The question hangs in the air of the silent car.

They watch as you stop talking and then suddenly tilt your head back in a laugh. They never ease up at the sight and are unmoving, unable to do so.

You go down one more step and, just like that, the man in front of you wraps his arms around your torso as you continue to chuckle more calmly now. Your bodies are glued to one another, and he’s pulling you off the stairs. Your hands stay by his shoulders as you hear him speak, and you are extremely focused on what he’s saying.

One of your hands moves from his shoulder to the back of his neck. The girls can barely see your face now as the man stands taller than you and still with his back to them, but they see the way you frown and smack the man’s shoulder at whatever he just told you.

A harsh gasp rips through the car’s silence as soon as the man just moves down and kisses you. Kristy and the girls who don’t dare look away expect you to hit him off or try to push him away, but that sight never comes. In fact, you kiss him back.

Kristy feels her heart ache at that. She’s your best friend for goodness sake, and she didn’t know about any of this. None of the girls knew about any of this. They all made this night for you because you supposedly never moved on after Aiden, yet still, you didn’t tell them why you never wanted this date in the first place. Let alone tell them that you had a boyfriend, or whatever the man is to you, this entire time.

This time, the silence in the car is all because no one dares to speak. No one dares to break the silence that has formed all around them as they continuously stare at you.

You separate from the kiss and suddenly push away from the man’s arms. The girls stand straighter at the sight. You’re still smiling, so it isn’t like you’re running from the man, and they all watch as you walk around him. You speak as you do so, looking at the man as if teasing him with your words as you do a perfect half-circle around him.

The man himself turns his head to follow your movements and as you stand behind him, they can tell from the way you stand that you’re preparing for something. Your interactions with this man are playful and innocent in their eyes, but they cannot look past the fact that you didn’t tell them anything.

That is when the man turns to face you and his face is lit by the street lights and the ones by the porch. The girls don’t register it right away, as if not noticing who it is at first, but that protection of oblivion only lasts until you do as you were preparing to. They watch as you look around for the man’s car and get ready to run from him and get there first. Again, it’s innocent and maybe a little childish, but your smile takes over your face as you begin to do it.

After dodging the man’s hold a few times and initiating this chase of who gets to the car first and if he can get to you before you even step to the other side of the road, the chase ends right as you try to make a run for it. You turn your back to him, and with the man’s arms wrapped around you, he lifts you off the ground before you can even dare to cross the road.

You squeal in a panic as he does so, so quickly, and that squeal comes in the form of a name. The name to the face the girls haven’t been able to process or acknowledge due to shock.

“Rafe! Do not-” The other words are lost in the midst of your giggles, and due to the silence all around the parking lot and Kristy’s open window, your scream traveled all the way inside the car.

Rafe holds you close to him as you let your head fall to his shoulder, defeated on your own game, and your chuckles don’t stop until he puts you back on the ground.

“Not fair.” You tell him, trying to calm down after getting scared the way you did.

Rafe snorts in front of you and begins to cross the road, finally. You notice his hand a little outstretched towards you, and you walk a little faster to keep up with him. Your hand holds onto his, and you make sure to intertwine your fingers before walking toward the car. Your other hand holds onto his arm, and you hug it to your chest.

You get to the car and let go of Rafe. He walks with you to your door, and when he opens it, you unknowingly get away from the glances of the girls. Before jumping into the car, you turn around and go up on your tippy toes to kiss Rafe one more time. He leans down to make it easier, and you’re lost in the kiss all over again.

In the girls’ car, they watch as you jump into the car, and Rafe Cameron closes the door before walking over to the driver’s side. By the time he drove away, the girls hadn't dared to speak once, and all of their bodies had been consumed by the negative emotions of repulsion, anger, and disgust. They’re not sure to whom the emotions are directed at. They don’t want to think that they could ever feel this way with you, but it becomes harder to admit that as the image of what they just saw replays in their minds.

Kristy, with her elbows resting on the center console of the car, scrubs her face as if to wipe away the memory, but her entire body twitches in nausea after watching what just happened.

After so many warnings, after knowing so much about what he has done, you still went against all advice she had ever given you. Never get close to Rafe Cameron. Never make eye contact with Rafe Cameron. Don’t ever let Rafe Cameron get interested in you, just be invisible in his home. Rafe Cameron hurts people. Rafe Cameron takes people to hospitals over his childish outrages. Rafe Cameron is no good. Rafe Cameron is bad news.

Uncovering her face, Kristy leans back in her seat to stare at the leather around her. The car is still deadly silent, and no one is looking at each other. At the center console, there’s the only thing that dares to make any noise: Kristy’s phone, vibrating with Ashley’s contact as she calls to know all about tonight's date.

DID YOU LIKE THIS??? PLS TELL ME YOU DID. This just had to happen at some point.

#rafe cameron #rafe cameron x female reader #rafe cameron x fem!reader #rafe cameron x you #rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron angst #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron imagines #rafe cameron fic #outer banks #outer banks 3 #obx #rafe cameron obx #drew starkey #rafe outer banks #rafe x reader #rafe imagine

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karenandhenwillson · 20 days

Text

I've seen so much discourse about Bucktommy and especially Tommy and it is so wild. I just want to write down some of my thoughts over all of it because that tends to help me to stop thinking about it.

"Oh, how can anyone just abandon Buddie for Bucktommy?"

Has anyone really abandoned Buddie, though? Or are they just for the moment very excited about a new and so very carefully portrait queer story line? Just because some people talk more (or for the moment only) about Bucktommy, doesn't mean they don't like Buddie anymore. They just have something shiny and most importantly canon to fawn over for the moment.

Also, I'd like to give that question back: Why aren't you all excited for a carefully and softly portrait new queer storyline about a character a huge part of the fandom—including the actor himself—hoped for years would get a queer story line?

And it's a pretty unique queer story. Of course, we had Michael figuring out his sexualtiy and growing comfortable in it right at the beginning of the series. But there are some huge differences between Michael's story and Buck's story.

For one, we ended up in the middle of that story. Michael had already done a huge part of the work of getting to know himself. He was ready to live as a gay man. And second, nothing of what we saw until season 3 was from Michael's point of view. It was all from Athena's point of view.

So it was a "coming-out late in life" story line, sure. But it was a queer storyline from a straight perspective. And in some instances, from a very hurt perspective about it all (which are, of course, very valid emotions for Athena, May, and Harry, but it still gave the queer side of the story line a certain taint). And they did that beautifully, too, no doubt. I especially liked that the family didn't break over it, that they grew with that experience, and that Michael and Athena became great friends over the years.

But now we also have a "coming-out late in life" story line from the queer perspective! 9-1-1 is pretty much the only series I'm following right now, so I have no idea if we had something similar recently. But from all the talk I've seen, it's pretty damn unique, especially for a male bi character. So, of course a lot of people are super excited about it. Because it's honest and good representation that the writers and the actors are handling with a lot of care.

"Oh, if it were a female love interest, you'd all hate her again!"

First of all, go back read that paragraph about many people being excited about getting a queer story line again! I think that's about 40% of the answer for everyone wondering about it.

And then, of course, Tommy has now already more depth and character and background than we ever saw about Ali or Natalia. And despite some people claiming he didn't have any kind of redemption arc, he truly had a lot more of a redemption arc than Taylor ever got even if only glimpses of it were ever shown on screen. (Maybe I'll get into my thoughts about that in another post.) Not gonna talk about Abby, because I think most of the dislike for her came long after that relationship was over after she ghosted Buck (and after Eddie had shown up).

One huge difference between every love interest of Buck or Eddie we have seen in the past to Tommy is also, that Tommy gets along really well with Eddie. We've already seen a friendship develop there. That never happened with any of the women either Eddie or Buck dated before. We saw that one dinner Buck and Taylor had with Eddie and Chris, but it was very clear it was the first time, and that was over half a year into Buck and Taylor dating, probably more like nine months.

If you wear slash googles around Buck and Eddie or not, their deep friendship is undeniable. It's very much canon that they both have a hand in raising Chris. Any love interest coming in has to deal with that, and has to somehow fit into that friendship. Tommy is the very first love interest in canon we have ever been shown to have that potential at all.

I'm personally part of the fandom that thinks that Buck and Eddie have great potential in a romantic way, BUT that they are first and foremost soulmates, no matter if platonic or romantic. And at least the Bucktommy fics I've read so far have all acknowledge the friendship of buck and Eddie and Chris' role in Buck's life. With Tommy being very accepting and supportive of it. (Though, I admit I’m very careful in my selection process.)

"Oh, Bucktommy is only a steppingstone for Buddie anyway! Don't get so invested in it!"

Who are you tell anyone what they should get invested in? I also think, with the excitement right now, even if Bucktommy break up, the ship itself will live on in fandom.

And also, didn't any of you learn out of the cheating story line they settled Hen and Karen with?

There is barely any content for Henren*. And I've been looking! Most stories they are tagged in don't really focus on their relationship. And those who do focus on their relationship get barely any attention. And you know why that is? Because a lot of people can't or don't want to deal with the cheating. (I deal with it by trying to ignore it or seeking out content where it's fixed!) Do you all really want to have a second queer story line that centers around cheating?

And even if none of you care for Henren (which... I know many don't *shrugs sadly*), have you all already forgotten the real pain over Buck kissing Lucy and then not fessing up to Taylor about it right away? (Once again, I deal by either ignoring it or seeking out content that fixes that bullshit.)

I'm honestly pretty disgusted by all the speculation about 7x06 that has anything to do with Buck and Eddie cheating on Tommy and Marisol during the bachelor party. And even more so about all the fics one can find about that, or that use Tommy as a device for Buck and Eddie realizing they are in love. (Honestly, even filtering out the other relationship tag while looking for stories in one relationship tag doesn't prevent one from stumbling over those stories right now, no matter if one is currently looking for Buck/Tommy or Buck/Eddie stories. It's so fucking annoying. I've turned to only reading old Buddie fics for the moment.)

Aside from the whole cheating of it all, why do any of you think the next episode will focus on anyone else but Maddie and Chim?

"Bucktommy is so racist! But really, no surprise in this fandom!"

What's no surprise is that "racist" is once more used as a buzzword in this fandom. To the point that BiPOC fans of Bucktommy are being told they are racist for the ship they like. (Nothing new about that in this fandom either.) Honestly, half the arguments about why the ship is oh so racist either make my head hurt while I try to follow the many, many, many mental loops people are making to get there, or they just make me laugh outright.

Do some of you really believe it when you say "Buck got together with a White man instead of his Latino best friend, so of course that's racist!"??? I'm just... Are you okay? Do you maybe need something warm to drink, a snack, and a nice place somewhere in the sun far away from the internet to just enjoy nature for a little while?

As I said, I'll probably make another post about Tommy's redemption arc over the whole "He is an unrepentant racist and misogynist". That redemption arc exists and has been baked in since season 2 (even if some of people clearly lack the media literacy to see it). Though, other people already put together great meta posts about this. But maybe if there are enough of it, some people will for once acutally read and start to think instead of continuing to spew their hate.

*PS: If anyone has good Henren contant, especially fanfiction, feel free to drop me a DM. I'm always looking!

#911 abc #tommy kinard #even buckley #bucktommy #hen wilson #karen wilson #henren

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