Undisputed Bodyguard

Douglas Shepard. Bodyguard to the Stars. Still Undefeated and Undisputed.

[douglasshep]

birdiejennings‌:

“you’re not going to rat on me!” and she means it, says it with her whole chest. her undoing was not douglas shepard and it was not any time soon. it was some truth that she knew within her, that there was nothing in this world that had yet to pose a threat to her. when that changed, she would feel it. “you need me.” after all, he’d shown up here, full well knowing that she was a double-edged sword. “don’t worry hawkeye, we’ll change it up.” she laughed at his discomfort. names, as if they meant anything. “i’ll think about it while you sell me your job.”

“do I really need you? because it seems like every time I come and ask for your help, or for you to... refrain from continuing certain actions, it seems to come back and bite me.” he means it too. probably just as much as she does. they had been doing this dance since they had known each other. whenever something seemed fishy electronically, he knew it was her. and it always was. “we just need, or rather, needed you to run a basic attack. see how fast our cyberteam could react. guess we got our answer already though.”

[douglasshep]

tatum: 👑💎✨ BIRTHDAY PARTY @ AVALON ON DEC. 21ST 👑💎✨

tatum: dw about presents i just want get wasted and make bad decisions w/ my bitches !!!

dougie: i'm not sure whether or not i'll be there in a working capacity or not.

dougie: but i'll be sure to say hello.

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

she couldn’t help but smile against her phone at the change in his voice once he realized it was her, rolling her eyes despite the obvious amusement. “sounds… perfect.” tatum agreed, stopping in front of her steel fridge to peek at her reflection and toy with her wild hair. “meet you in 30?” she’d have to grab an uber, throw herself together a little bit, but a half hour should be plenty of time. tatum waited for his answer before hanging up, getting a ride and then using the time she had until it arrived to get dressed. nothing fancy–she wasn’t in the mood for that shit. she wanted to just be, to wear her lazy clothes and messy hair. in the end she settled for an old AC/DC shirt and jeans, a touch of make-up to hide the dark circles under her eyes and the stress breakout she was starting to have. 

tatum ended up getting there first, grabbing a booth and playing with sugar packets to keep herself busy. she couldn’t help but be reminded of the last time she was in a diner like this–when her personal stalker showed up and she’d practically crawled into jerome castillo’s lap to hide from the creep. the memory wasn’t a fond one, and it only served to increase her already high anxiety. gerald–an actor and former client–had been surprisingly quiet the past few days, and tatum was on high suspicions considering he’d spent the past week flooding her voicemail with threats and other nasty promises. when she felt someone standing in front of her, her hand went into her bag to wrap around the hello kitty pocket knife she kept inside. only when she lifted her gaze and saw that it was douglas did she relax, feeling stupid and jumpy. 

“hey stranger,” she greeted him, offering a half-smile and hoping he wouldn’t comment on the fact that she must look like shit. tatum wiped the torn sugar packets she’d been playing with towards the end of the table, trying to clear away the mess. “how’s… bodygaurding?” 

“yeah... 30 minutes gives me enough time to jog over.” it wasn’t an issue to him to run. if anything it helped him clear his head. though he really wasn’t sure how much that would help him today. this woman... she really confused him. in an enjoyable way. he liked her. he knew that much at least. he liked her a lot. and he was very interested in getting to know more about her. what she was really like. though of course that would all be on her terms. just as he wanted it to be.

he hadn’t been planning on really going out after his workout so he didn’t have any particularly nice clothes. in fact he just had a thin grey hoodie he sometimes used to workout. wearing that and a pair of sweatpants, he began jogging towards the diner he had mentioned to tatum. it was an uneventful jog but he was at the diner easily. walking into the front door, he undid the top of his hoodie slightly, trying to ventilate somewhat as he looked for the redhead. noticing her he slowly walked towards her, keeping his hood up until he was standing in front of her.

sliding down into the seat across from her, dougie offered a slight smile as he let himself breathe a bit. he didn’t realize how hard he had worked himself during the boxing earlier and he was paying for it somewhat now. “hi! you look absolutely gorgeous.” it was the first thing he said as he sat down. it was the first thing on his mind as he sat down. “it’s been going well. i enjoy it. been working pretty hard on a couple of specific clients. how about you? how’s your industry treating you?”

[douglasshep]

What if I ain’t one of them fools just playin some game

What if I just pulled you close, what if I leaned in

And stars line up and it’s our last first kiss

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

@douglasshep​

she’d been shaking out her clothes for change when the card fell out, forgetting what it was until she caught sight of the familiar lipstick mark on it. the past few weeks had been kinda crazy, contracts stressing out over auditions and looking for a distraction. tatum’s first instinct was to pick up the card and toss it–dougie had been nice, sweet even, but it wasn’t like they’d end up having anything in common. if he got the chance to actually know her, he probably wouldn’t be as awestruck as he’d been at their first meeting. she ended up throwing the card away, only to come back and dig it out of the trash a few minutes later. 

what the hell, right? it was late and she doubted he’d answer, but tatum knew if she didn’t call now she probably never would. as the line continued to ring she found herself kinda disappointed that he didn’t answer, but a moment later the phone clicked and she could hear him on the other-side. “dougie? it’s tatum.” she decided to skip the excuses for not having called him earlier, instead just getting to the point. “i know it’s late but do you wanna… go grab a coffee or something?“ she didn’t really care what they did, she just wanted to be around someone who wasn’t paying her for the time–to have an actual conversation where she didn’t have to play the supportive girlfriend or the sickly sweet waif or whatever other bullshit persona she was supposed to be that week. 

douglas had grown accustomed to working out late at night. most of his clients would be asleep, so not too much risk. honestly it was some of the only time he had for himself. he had just finished his exercising and was wiping himself down with a towel as he heard his phone ringing quietly. throwing his towel off to the side he walked slowly towards the phone and clicked answer. it was an unknown number, uncommon. in situations like that he had a standard answer.

“you’ve reached shepard.” simple. direct. to the point. things he had been trained to be. as he heard the first statement though, any tension he held in his body instantly relaxed. it’s tatum. he didn’t have to wrack his brain to recognize the voice or the name. she was at the forefront. as she had been for at least a few days after they had met, maybe even weeks. he hated the obsessive side of himself even though he knew the benefits from it. he was so caught up in his own mind he almost didn’t hear the question when it was first asked, though he quickly recovered and focused on the situation at hand. “yeah, definitely!” the answer was instantaneous. “i’m just finishing up at the gym. there’s a place nearby that is 24 hours. small diner. it might actually be a denny’s. pretty lowkey.” he wasn’t sure if she wanted lowkey. though she probably didn’t want them in the middle of the night plastered all over the news. so lowkey was probably best. it was a place that was real at least. a place he had had a lot of very honest conversations in during the middle of the night when he didn’t want prying ears. would be nice to have some happier memories there.

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

she couldn’t imagine the world of personal security being very competitive, so tatum could only assume he was referring to whatever he did before becoming a bodyguard. she’d been about to ask about it when her phone began to buzz, her attention shifting as quickly as her personality once she saw the caller ID. tatum accepted the call, already anticipating how the conversation would go. she held up a finger to dougie to tell him she’d just be a second, leaning into her phone to say, “’course i’m not busy, silly! i’ll be over in twenty.” her voice was sugary sweet, a tone she only used with clients who wanted her to be stupid and pretty. it was a little demeaning, but not enough that she’d ever stop doing it. “don’t get started without me,” she added, and you could practically hear the wink in her voice.

tatum hung up, her shoulders rising and falling as she looked back up to the man before her. “looks like i’ve gotta go.” she brought his card to her lips, giving it a playful kiss. “cy’a around pretty boy.”

dougie was about to explain more about his past as boxer when the phone buzzed and he watched the woman in front of him shift into work mode. it was oddly fascinating how she could flip her personality in a matter of seconds. though he tried his best not to think about it in any particular terms. when she hung up, he smiled at her and kept his eyes on her. “well... i hope you have... an enjoyable time?” doug didn’t know the right thing to say in a situation like this so he went back to a typically reliable answer which felt oddly inappropriate this moment.

“see you soon, gorgeous.” the response was immediate as he watched her kiss his card. he normally didn’t reply like that but... it made sense with this girl. she made a lot of things make sense.

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

she tried not to sound a little put off by his words, but there was no missing the brief furrow in tatum’s brows at his reaction to her employment. “it wouldn’t have been strange,” tatum informs, crossing her arms, “but now…” she shrugged. he was cute, awkward with his words. she would’ve expected someone like him to be a little more suave, but his hesitation was refreshing; a nice change of pace, considering the men she usually dealt with were utterly full of themselves. tatum held his card up between her fingers, “i’ve got your number. maybe i’ll give you a call.” she was softer now, quick to get over whatever annoyance she’d had with his earlier words. tatum could swallow hurt in handfuls and get right back up on her feet, the world none the wiser. 

“if you’re going to be working for prometheus, you should probably get used to talking to beautiful women like me.” she teased, giving him a long look before adding, “then again, you might wanna learn to keep your distance from us. this company fucking sucks you dry, and we’re just another part of the machine.” prometheus was infectious–the vanity, the selfishness. it bleed out into people, made them nasty and petty and evil ( though, tatum’s pretty sure she was a coldhearted bitch even before promehteus ). 

dougie looked at the ground for a moment as he tried to figure out a way to organize his thoughts and explain what he meant. “i just meant i didn’t want you to think that your job had anything to do with me asking you out. positive or negative. like... it’s your job, you know? how shitty would i be to judge someone’s job?” he asked rhetorically, trying to find the right way to show what he meant. at her comment about giving him a call, a large smile crept across his face. “that would be nice.”

“umm... i sincerely doubt there are any people here more attractive than you. and i do genuinely mean that.” he replied instantly as he looked at the redhead. “yeah, i’ve been in an industry that chews you up and spits you out like that before. you just need to know when to get in, when to get out and who to trust.” the statement probably would’ve meant little to most people. but to himself, remembering the unceremonious ending to his boxing career, it made sense. 

[douglasshep]

birdiejennings‌:

“a visitor for me!” she clapped her hands together, putting down her phone and looking at the thoroughly amused expression on dougie shepard’s face. he could be upset all he wanted, what he really needed was to save his breath and just make his server passwords a little harder to guess. she liked their relationship, the fun back and forth. will she or won’t she go to jail! “you need help picking out a new codename for yourself. the eagle just isn’t cutting in any more and you need a change!”

“one of these days you’re gonna go too far and you’re really gonna mess up, you know that right?” dougie asked as he looked at them. rolling his eyes at her comment he took a moment to let her second comment land. “it’s an inside joke...” he stated quietly before looking away for a few seconds, eventually sliding his gaze back onto birdie. “then what would you suggest?”

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

money wasn’t an issue–between her paycheck from prometheus, her side hustle camming, and all the shit her clients gave her, tatum could easily find a way to foot the bill for some personal security. what she hated about this was that it felt like admitting defeat, like letting the creeps win and losing just another piece of her freedom because of it. tatum chewed her lip, internally arguing with herself over the merits of taking on a body guard. she certainly didn’t need or want someone breathing down her neck 24/7, but tatum did the like the idea of having someone she could readily call on for help. “do you… have a card or something?” she asked, curiously. after a moment she crossed her arms over her chest, adding, “and i’m not crew or anything. i’m an escort.” anthony sure as fuck wouldn’t be pleased with the idea of tatum calling some scruffy hot guy for help, but anthony could bite it. as much as he liked to think he owned her–he didn’t.

dougie swallowed hard when he heard her mention that she was an escort. he hadn’t actually ever met someone who worked in that industry. or at least not that he knew of. “i guess i can’t ask you out on a date without it sounding kinda... strange now.” he answered as he looked at the redhead. quickly digging through his pockets he grabbed a business card and offered it to her. “don’t worry about times. you can call whenever you want. we might need to do a bit of software install on phones and stuff.” he smiled at the woman as he touched his beard absentmindedly. “i was going to ask if you wanted to get coffee or a salad or something, but i understand if that would be weird. i’m... not great with talking to beautiful women like you.”

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

tatum shrugged off his compliment, holding back a comment about being a quick learner. sex work was hard–it could chew you up and spit you out if you weren’t careful. though she’d had a pretty sheltered life with her parents up until she left home at 18, tatum had always been self-sufficient in a way. she knew how to take care of herself, to protect herself. and that’s what had kept her mostly alive && well these past few years, able to deal with men who wanted nothing more than to use and abuse her. “well you’ve gotta know something–or else no one would be putting their lives in your hands.” she offered in return. after her own comment, tatum began to think. she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, giving douglas a long look up and down. “so. do you only work for contracts?” 

doug had always thought that the main reasons people hired him were his skills from boxing and just the amount of recognition that some people still seemed to have for him. he wasn’t sure what else he really had to offer. except for the resources he had managed to make available on his team. “I mean I guess so. I just try and keep them monitored as much as possible.” he answered simply as he looked at the redhead. noticing the shift in her movement, he became curious as to what the source of her newfound anxiety could be. then the question was asked. “nope. I work for anyone who can afford it. contracts will get assigned to me sometimes and prometheus will bankroll my expenses when protecting them. but for someone like yourself who i’m assuming is crew or show support it would be your own money. though we could always come to an arrangement.”

[douglasshep]

Mmmwhatchasay ur a failed athlete turned failed bodygaurd

“Failed is a funny way to say Undefeated.”

[oldmemesandhelpandthings-gone]

Send Me Your Assumptions About My Muse

and I’ll respond with “Correct”, “Nope”, or “Kinda”.

[birdiejennings]

birdie jennings loved many things about her life. her studio apartment, her telephoto lens collections, her secretary job where she was able to spend hours sitting at a desk under the guise of organizing client information. until interrupted by someone who either really needed to talk to the most boring man on the planet, or had stumbled into the wrong office. “he’s not in.” lucky her, she did always prefer having the place to herself. free to do what she wanted, take down information as she pleased. “i’d love to leave a message for him though. as many details as possible.”

[douglasshep]

douglas shepard had many thorns in his sides. many of whom he seemed to be perpetually being paid to protect. and then there were those who made the whole protection aspect of his job considerably harder. especially the ones who liked to hack his clients and try and extract information from them. or to gossip. as the woman looked up at him, he released an extremely heavy sigh. “not here for him, birdie. i’m pretty sure you can guess why i am though.” 

[douglasshep]

tomas-visser‌:

Shit. Shit shit shit shit shit. Tomas kept his gaze on the kitchen counter top as he mumbled some kind of pathetic excuse, “I.. I mean, there’s thousands of contracts.. you could’ve been looking for anyone…” Panic had already started to set in, Tomas was taller but in this moment, he felt so much smaller than Douglas. It’s the way he phrased it, that set a deep pit in his stomach, the unease and anxiety, bubbling its way up his throat, making lying sound like the worst of sins. “I-.. I’m sorry... I just.. they didn’t give me a choice. I didn’t think I’d need it,” he finally looked up, even more fear in his eyes not sure if it sounded insulting, “no that’s not what I–sorry not to be rude - I’m sure you’re amazing at your job just- I’m not that.. high profile.” He doesn’t usually gets recognised on the streets, he had the privilege to get by pretty easily in public, he was just good as fading into the background, he always has. Why would Prometheus waste security resource on him?

“Well the way it was brought up to me is that they expect you to turn into some super duper star or something. Reaching the A list and all that. Makes you known. Which means people will not like you. Or try to hurt or take advantage of you.” He was just trying to open the taller man’s eyes to what happened in the world of gods and heroes that the American people made for themselves. “If they didn’t give you a choice then it’s in your best interests.” He believed it. Definitely. He knew that they had the people he was protecting’s best interests in mind. Or else they wouldn’t hire him.

[douglasshep]

Mmmwhatchasay tatum needs the most protecting

“Umm... pretty much all I know about her is she’s sassy and pretty so... you could well be right there? I would need some more information on her, to do a risk assessment... I would need to... you know... get to know her. Purely for professional reasons of course.”

[douglasshep]

txtumsgrace‌:

tatum’s face was glued to her phone, as per usual, attention torn between dealing with clients and with reactions to her little julia levitt cam stunt. she crinkled her nose as the stranger continued speaking, obviously not getting the message that she didn’t care. she eventually let out a small sigh, looking up–surprised to see what an absolute beefcake the guy was. tatum paused briefly to admire him, eventually finding her words again. “wait–you seriously named your company ‘lost lambs’?” tatum snorted. “it’s fine, you’re hot. you can be tacky i guess.”

dougie rolled his eyes slightly at the statement before letting out a deep sigh and allowing himself to deflate slightly, letting himself slouch ever so slightly find some sense of ease. it wasn’t ever easy for him though. “it started out as an inside joke between me and a couple close buddies of mine. how I was a shepard and always wanted to protect lost lambs.” he explained slightly. she wasn’t going to be helpful with finding his client. so maybe he could at least try and relax and be a normal human for once. “well thanks. you’re not so bad yourself. honestly you’re one of the most attractive people i’ve ever met.”

[douglasshep]

freyaasquith‌:

Freya had been more than ready to pour on the usual charm when she saw the man approach her but as soon as opened his mouth, she felt the flirtatious smile drop like a rock. “I sure as hell hope that you weren’t hired by the Asquiths. If that was the case, you’re free to leave. We no longer need your services. If you were hired by someone else then I’d love to help out.” If it turns out her parents hired a body guard she was going to absolutely lose it. Hadn’t she done every thing they’d asked of her since she signed on to the contract? 

Dougie knew he had been hired by her parents. He knew lots of clients who had him assigned to them weren’t particular fans of the idea of having someone like him following them around. She seemed not too different from most of the more... difficult clients he encountered. “Sorry to disappoint, but yes. I was hired by them. And yes, I was hired for you.” He stated bluntly as he looked up momentarily before letting his eyes settle on hers. “Unfortunately, it’s my job to keep you safe now. I’m sorry that is frustrating to you.”