A/N: not proof read but I hope you enjoy. I remember being pretty happy with this after writing it. This can be read as if the reader and Grissom are purely platonic or if there’s something more.
Request: I saw that you write Grissom in your who I write for list. Could I get a Grissom x Reader where the reader gets a migraine while at work and he takes care of her and makes sure shes ok. I love your csi writing by the way and binged all of your stuff for it - Anon
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“I think I’ve watched this same clip around a thousand times now.” you commented as Grissom came into the room
Request: Gil and the reader wake up one day (well, night) with the sniffles due to LACK of fucking SLEEP. Gil has the symptoms like we see in 8x12, meanwhile (y/n) is sneezing the house down. And Hank is like “oh god…now it’s not one but BOTH of my humans” - @coping-via-clinteastwood
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You groaned and sat up in bed. Running a hand over your cheek you reached the other to shut off your alarm.
You were enjoying a romantic meal for two that night. Gil proved that on top of being a top CSI, he was also talented in the culinary arts and you ate dinner over candlelight, music playing in the background but all you could focus on was each other. You were starting to believe luck was on your side that night as you were left undisturbed but your date night came to an abrupt end when his cell phone rang while you were sitting on the sofa. His left arm was around your shoulders, his hand on your cheek as his lips met yours with knee-crippling passion. But the second Catherine's ringtone sounded through the living room, it was all over.
You pulled away from his arms as Gil moved to pick up his cell phone on the coffee table and rolled your lips, hiding your disappointment with curiosity as he recounted Catherine's details of the crime scene so far. He ended the call after informing Catherine he was on his way and turned to you, his eyes sympathetic while he told you about the crime scene.
"Two skaters saw a man fall from a roof."
"I'll get my coat." You rose from the sofa, picked up your cell phone, and carried it to your purse, placing it inside before walking to the hallway to retrieve your jacket.
Gil drove to the lab to pick up your kits and you covered your dress with an official jacket. As you grew closer to the crime scene you turned your head that was resting on the rest, smiling softly when you noticed he kept glancing at you since you left his place.
"What? Do I have lipstick on my face?" You pulled the mirror down and checked your make up, looking at Gil when he shook his head.
"No, you look fine. I mean you look fantastic." Your smile grew as you pushed the mirror away, sitting back. "I know this is not what either of us had planned for tonight -"
"Comes with the territory." You understood what he was trying to convey, and knew he couldn't predict when a new case was called in. Since he hired you, there was always something there between you, and what started as attraction became something not quite love until you knew there was no other way to describe how you felt about each other. And while you imagined tonight ending differently, you didn't train to be a CSI because of the glitz and glamour that came with the job. "We can reschedule."
Gil nodded, and while he was also disappointed tonight came to an abrupt halt, he was wondering how he would be able to focus on the crime scene while you were wearing that dress.
Nick and Warrick arrived on the scene after Catherine, and Nick remarked how they had beaten Grissom to the crime scene as he was usually the first one to arrive. When Gil parked outside the yellow tape, the two turned to watch as you both got out of the car, sharing a glance at your dress.
Nick smirked as Gil held up the tape, allowing you to duck under before following. "Were you on a date?"
"No, I picked her up on the way." Gil replied before you could sass Nick who assumed he hadn't understood the implications in his question.
You followed Gil to the body, glaring at Nick who wiggled his eyebrows at your outfit, and while you wore a baggy CSI jacket over the dress, the fit around your thighs provided enough hints of the flirty dress underneath.
"Warrick, I want you to photograph down here, before moving onto the roof," Gil ordered, heading towards the building. "Y/N, you're with me."
You followed your boyfriend of two months, biting back a sigh, as you couldn't shake how quickly he shot down Nick and wondered if your relationship would ever be known to the team.
The feeling that he wanted your relationship to be kept hidden stayed with you for days as you worked the case and after following the evidence was proven to be murder. The team working to identify the killer. You suspected that something had been overlooked, something so small that it seemed insignificant which is why you spent over an hour examining Warrick's crime scene photographs, scouring every pixel with a magnifying glass.
Nick entered the room where you were working, photographs organized neatly on the table, and he looked at the photographs for a moment before he spoke. "Grissom wants to see you."
You sighed, sitting back. "It's probably about the particles on the victim's shoes." You looked at Nick with a pleading expression, "Can you deliver the report? I really think I'm onto something."
Nick nodded, "Sure." He observed as you retrieved the file from the table behind you. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?" You sent him a small smile as you handed him the file.
"You seem a little off. Since we got this case you've not been acting like yourself. If its about what I said at the crime scene -"
"I know you were kidding." You sighed, "I was on a date when I got the call. And I haven't had the chance to talk to him about what is going on between us. I mean, I thought I knew, but now I'm not so sure."
Nick sent you a friendly smile, "Talk to him. And if he isn't serious then I can list on two hands how many guys asked if you're single."
You shook your head, laughing lightly. "Thank you."
"Anytime." He walked away and you sighed as you lowered your gaze to the photographs. You hadn't spoken to Gil about anything but the case and you knew you had to confront him eventually, but right now, you focused on the photographs of the scene, hoping to find the answer you were looking for.
Less than ten minutes later Gil entered the room where you were working. You raised your head, raising an eyebrow when he closed the door. He turned around and approached the table.
"We need to talk." He held up the file in his hand and you sighed, predicting what was to come. "Since when is Nick your delivery boy?"
"He was doing me a favor. I'm onto something -"
"No, you've been avoiding me." Gil corrected. "I want to know why."
You sighed, setting the magnifying glass on the table, and walking over to him. "What are we?" You asked. "I mean, is it as serious for you as it is for me?" His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, so you continued, "At the crime scene, you shut Nick down. Like you never want anyone finding out about us."
"Do you want people to find out about us?"
You threw him an aggravated glance, "Don't answer my question with another question."
Gil nodded slowly, "I reacted that way because I didn't think you wanted anyone to know we are dating."
It was your turn to feel confused. "Why? Why would you think that?"
"In these walls, I'm your boss. We both know what people would think."
You stepped closer, shaking your head, "I don't care about that. I've never cared."
"Really?"
You nodded, wetting your lips nervously. "Does it bother you?"
He shook his head, and you smiled softly. "So...it doesn't matter if anyone sees us kiss right now?"
Your smile grew when he stepped closer, shaking your head. "If you don't I'd be disappointed."
Gil mirrored your smile, leaning in to kiss you tenderly. You placed your hands on his jaw, leaning into his chest when he rested his hands on your waist.
Nick walked down the corridor, pausing when he noticed you and Grissom, grinning when he realized Gil was the man you were talking about. He tapped the paperwork off his hand as he left, shaking his head with a smile. It was time to inform Greg that he owed Catherine thirty dollars after the blonde had hinted at your romance weeks ago, but no one believe it could be true as you and Gil were both very private about your life outside work and now he understood why.
Before you started dating, the team noticed the tension between you both and wondered when and if you would ever get together. After placing bets and pulling their hair out waiting for the answer, it was Catherine who saw the way Gil smiled down at you when you showed him a reconstruction as he listened to you excitedly explain your findings. And she knew from the way you turned to meet his gaze, the smile you sent his way, that you were finally dating.
They were relieved when the tension was replaced with light flirting. Gil often slipped and called you any nickname he could think of at the time.
You always referred to him as Gil at work, but lately, you wanted to find a term of endearment that showed how you cared about him. You hadn't expected it to be so difficult.
For over a week you changed the nickname from Sweet Pea to Sugar, and you were determined to find the perfect nickname. You didn't understand how Gil could do it so easily and you feared that he would feel as if you didn't care about him as much as he did you.
"Gilford!"
Gil was following Nick and Warrick to watch their experiment when you called out to him. Warrick and Nick chuckled as they looked at you and Gil wet his lips, shaking his head as he met your mischievous gaze.
"You won't believe what I found."
"My birth certificate? Because last time I checked, my name was Gilbert."
You merely sent him a smile, "Come on," You nodded to the desk you were working at, recovering waterlogged photographs. "You'll be really impressed. Well, more than usual."
"What's impressive is your humility." Warrick jested.
"Don't worry, Warrick, you'll be as great as I am one day." You turned on your heel, and Gil looked at the two amused CSIs. Ever since your relationship became public knowledge, the tension around the lab was released with flirting energy, and now and then, you would become bolder.
Gil fell into step beside you and you sent your boyfriend a smile. "I'm expecting my mind to be blown."
"Have I ever let you down?"
Gil shook his head, "Did you have to call me Gilford?"
"Do you prefer Gilly?"
"I prefer Gil."
"I thought I was only supposed to call you Grissom at work?"
"I think we've passed that stage when you ran down the corridor, shouting Gilford."
You smiled as you approached the computer and Gil pulled up a chair beside you. "Okay, Gil," You glanced at him with a grin, "I reconstructed the photographs recovered from the water."
"Okay..."
"Are you ready?"
"You've been spending too much time in the lab with Greg."
You smiled as you showed him the first photograph you recovered. A group of sophomore students smiling together. "That's our victim." You pointed to a blonde girl who was standing between two guys with dixie cups. "And this," You zoomed into the guy on the right. "is our tech mogul."
"This had to be taken the night of the murder," Gil stated, seeing the victim was wearing the same clothes as the body.
You nodded in agreement. "I reconstructed more." You clicked on another photograph, enlarged it, and cleaned the pixels a little to reveal the transaction happening in the photograph. "There's our tech mogul. Recognise the other one?"
"Our drive-thru king." Gil looked at you when you turned on your chair, facing him.
"I looked into his high school and college records. He's an MIT graduate."
Gil shook his head, "How does an MIT graduate end up working at a drive-thru? And what does it have to do with our victim?" He tilted his head thoughtfully, "Unless she took the pictures."
"She blackmailed him?"
"He would've lost everything. He would make a lot of money."
"Been featured in the biggest magazines." You slowly smiled. "Mind blown?"
Gil stood up, mimicking his mind being blown and you giggled as you walked out of the room with him. "Come on, you could use some time away from the lab." He pointed at you when you opened your mouth to speak, "Do not call me Gilford."
You pouted, "Gilly?"
Gil raised an eyebrow at you and you suppressed a smile as you walked down the hallway. "Can I call you honey bunch?"
He sighed, tilting his head to the side as he considered it before slowly nodding. You grinned excitedly, and he shook his head with a smile.
"Where to first, honey bunch?" You placed your hands on your hips and Gil shook his head as he stopped by the elevator, entering when it was empty.
"We have the element of surprise on our side. We'll stop by his office."
"Ooh, straight to the dragon's lair. Cool." You stood next to him and he glanced at you.
"You really need to spend less time with Greg."
You giggled when he pressed the button for the garage. You were surprised when he took your hand, turning your head to meet his gaze. "I know why you are trying to find a nickname for me. And while I appreciate the thought and effort you've been putting into it, I don't need one. I know how you feel about me without needing words."
"How?"
"Your eyes." He stated with a smile. "They're portals to how you feel or what you're thinking. I don't need to hear it, when I can see it."
"Being so easy to read probably doesn't make me a good CSI."
Gil shook his head, "You're great at what you do. You're passionate about it. You're always excited to see where the evidence takes you."
You smiled softly, glancing at the ground when the doors opened and you stepped into the garage. "You know what I'm thinking just by looking into my eyes?" You turned, standing in front of him, "What am I thinking right now?"
Gil held your gaze for a moment before a smile formed on his lips. "You want to say that your work isn't the only thing you're passionate about." He paused, "And yes, you can still call me honey bunch."
His smile grew when you kissed his cheek before walking to a car, and Gil tugged your hand, leading you to the correct one. You smiled when he tilted your chin, kissing you tenderly.
@rafaelina-casillas requested: “Hiiiii! I’m sorry for the bother but would you please write some smut headcanons for Gil Grissom from CSI? Basically what having sex with him would be like? Thank you in advance and have a lovely day!”
A/N: I never thought I would be making smut headcanons for Gil Grissom but here we are. ALSO IM SO EXCITED FOR CSI: VEGAS! Sorry these are short!
Grissom noticed everything and yet sometimes nothing at all. It took him ages to notice new people in the lab, and even longer to pay attention to their hair color, eye color, etc. His mind saw what it needed to during a case but during those precious off-time hours he couldn’t even tell you the color of the walls in his home.
Those sorts of things seemed trivial to him until late one morning while wrapping up evidence collection at a crime scene. Murder/home invasion, a scene that sprawled from inside the house and down the driveway. The sunlight bounced around vehicle windows and car paneling.
Catherine finally noticed Gil had stopped talking and found him staring with perplexed interest across the driveway. Following his eye line, she found what captivated his attention. The transfer had been working in Vega for a month now but Gil had never taken notice besides learning her name and qualifications on paper.
“Her hair is red.” His voice almost sounded whimsical.
“And that’s relevant to the case why? And no it’s not.” Catherine rolled her eyes, huffing annoyance. She wasn’t sure what to think, Gil hadn’t looked at someone like that since Teri Miller.
“Last night it was blonde and this morning it’s red.” Tilting his head to the side, eyes squinting as if trying to solve a puzzle on no sleep. Cleaning off his glasses, his gaze locked on her again.
“Gil,” slight concern mixed with amusement in Catherine’s hushed tone not trying to call the team’s attention.
“It’s fascinating.” He sounded as if he’d just received a raise and vacation, not ankle-deep in blood and evidence.
“Strawberry blonde is fascinating?” Now she knew he was in trouble.
“Yes, yes it is.” He was grinning like a Cheshire cat.
“Didn’t think that was your type.” Her comment earned a stern glare from him.
“I find mutations intriguing. How quickly but subtly the human body can adapt to its surroundings.” Yup, he was in it deep now.
“First off that’s a little creepy, secondly, mutations? As in more than one?” Even after all these years Gil’s odd behavior still struck her by surprise sometimes.
“Her eyes,” tapping the rim of his glasses with a smile never seen at work. "Grey, blue, green, amber, brown. It’s like the collapsing of a star with an explosion of ever-changing colors.“
Their conversation was interrupted by a tiny squeak, a muffled yelp. Y/n the transfer had crawled underneath the victim’s truck collecting bullet casings where she’d met the most inopportune new friend.
"Help,” her cry was shaky but calm. "It’s in my ear.“
Gil was there in a few strides slowly pulling her out from beneath the vehicle. Her breathing was steady but panicked. Gil lost himself for a brief second in her eyes, they were like a kaleidoscope in the sunlight.
"What was that?” A hint of hilarity in his question.
“Something crawled in my ear,” fear laced in heavy annoyance in her expression seeing the smile growing on his face. "It’s moving, I can feel it moving.“
He was blown away by how calm she was. No flaying limbs, no screams, just an eerie calm in her voice, but those eyes. Those eyes told tales he would have sat and read for ages. Pulling out tools from the kit beside her, a flashlight & a long pair of tweezers, and knelt beside her.
"Relax,” he said more out of habit.
“Frankly I’d rather be screaming like I’m in a horror movie, but I read that only makes them burrow further inside.”
“Impressive and you’re right,” his face too close for comfort to hers he noticed the speckling of freckles that dotted her face. Carefully and meticulously close to grabbing the culprit from her ear. "You don’t seem like the insect sort of woman.“
"Not a bit,” closing her eyes and focusing on keeping her heart rate slowed. Gil’s eyes flickered between the beetle inside her ear and the curve of her mouth.
“Does it hurt?” Knowing the tweezers were scrapping the side of her ear canal because he’d been too distracted by the freckles in the shape of Orion on her cheek.
“High pain tolerance, but the sound of it crawling isn’t helping my imagination any.” Gil found himself chuckling at the unconventional banter in her voice. On the line of snarky, but cheeky.
“Imagination is a wonderful thing but not a trait most adults hold onto.” Finally pulling the beetle free, its leg scrambling wanting freedom from its metal captor.
“Adult,” she sat up rubbing her ear watching him intently. "Is just a term, age is just a number but imagination is endless, limitless, forever.“
Both of them locking eyes in silence, ignoring the rest of the scene around them. Flustered almost shy grins were shared between them. Gil wasn’t sure what it was that was happening between them but he couldn’t wait to find out.
Request: Can I request a Grissom x reader where the reader works in another job and Grissom is so soft for her. She's had a rough day and he tries to make it better? - Anon
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Today had been long. Even saying that though was an understatement.
Your head pounded, feet hurt and you felt so belittled and all around shit about yourself. You wanted nothing but to get home to some quiet and hide.
Unlocking the door you quickly slipped off your shoes, put down your bag and went straight to the kitchen. Grabbing some water you gulped it down allowing the cold liquid to spread through you. Wiping some residue from your mouth you were startled when you heard movement.Turning quickly your eyes met the form of your boyfriend coming to the doorway.
“Gil, you’re home.”
The man nodded “I have been for a couple of hours. Early day. Sorry if I startled you.”
“It’s ok.” you placed your glass by the sink ready to wash later. “I’m just on edge.” you said plainly.
“Long day?”
“Unbeliveably.”
“Shall we sit?” the man offered. Nodding you moved towards him and as you passed him he quickly pecked a kiss to your head. He followed you into the living room. The two of you took a seat next to each other and you could hear the radio in the room faintly playing. You smiled to yourself while you made yourself comfortable next to the man. Leaning back in the chair he put his arm across the back and gestured for you to place his legs on his lap, doing so you leant back against the arm of the chair and let your head fall back. Bringing your hand to you forehead you gave it a rub, trying to relieve some of the pressure there.
“What happened today? Anything you want to talk about?” the man picked his book up from the arm of his chair.
You let your arms flop either side of you and stared at the ceiling “I was made to feel like an utter fool. Given someone else’s workload. Finished it to the best of my ability even though it wasn’t in my specialist area at all. Then was given a last minute presentation by Frank to prepare and present before the end of the day. It honestly, couldn’t have gone worse. Frank was in the audience and took part in grilling me in front of everyone. Saying I didn’t know the answer to some questions and would get back to them wasn’t enough apparently.”
You took a deep breath and could feel tears welling up “He then tore me apart after everyone was gone and said I was a disgrace… so yeah, a pretty decent day.” you finished sarcastically.
The man lowered his book and turned his head to you, reaching his hand over to yours he held it gently. “You’re anything but useless. You’ve proved yourself time and time again. You go above and beyond for them every day. I really wish they’d stop treating you like this.” placing his book down he scooted closer to you, wrapped his arm under yours and around your back and pulled you closer.
The dam broke and the tears started to fall. “I just try so hard. I really do.”
“I know” he rubbed your back comfortingly.
“I’m not just saying it. It exhausts me to the core how hard I work and try for them and it just feel so unfair and like everything gets thrown back in my face. I’ve worked there for so long.”
“they take advantage of you, pile your plate high, because they know you can do it and for Frank. He’s just misogynistic, we’ve both know it for a long time. He hates how good you are at your job and gets a kick of humiliating you. It isn’t right.”
You turned inward on the man and sobbed harder, his hand came up to your hair and held you. “It’s ok Y/N. You’re ok.”
He held you while you sobbed for a while, when they started to subside he added “you know I could always get you a job at the lab.”
You pulled away from the man slightly “I’d just look a fool there too.”
He shook his head “Stop being so hard on yourself. I know you’re feeling down but you and I both know anywhere else would be honoured to have you.”
You looked away from the man and wiped your face and nose ungracefully. "I just want things to be a little easier that’s all.”
“I know.” he agreed “and they will. Take next week as a fresh start and then decide if it’s worth carrying on with them or starting fresh somewhere else. If you decide to walk away next week. That’s ok, we’ll be ok while you look for something new. I can help out. Please don’t worry about anything. Just yourself and your wellbeing. There’s no need to run yourself into the ground over something that doesn’t value you.”
You listened to the man silently and nodded when he finished speaking. Moving into a more comfortable position next to the man you curled up into him while he lay his arm around you.
“I love you so much Y/N. I just wish you could see your worth all of the time.”
You welled up slightly but didn’t cry this time. “You make me feel so loved.” your words were quiet next to the man.
“I’m a very lucky man.” he lifted your hand and placed a kiss to it before lowering it back to it’s original position.
The two of you sat silently and listened to the music for a while.
Thankful you had the weekend to recover you settled closer to the man and let out a breath. Although you’d had an awful day and deep down you could still feel it right now you embraced the peace and quiet, the warmth from the man and the closeness between the two of you.
The sound of the front door opening and then closing immediately sets you on edge. You knew it was too early for Gil to be home and since the third victim of the serial killer, the FBI had officially declared the Strip Strangler, was found, he and his team had been holed up in the crime lab reworking the evidence.
You lifted your head slowly over the countertop and shrieked when you saw someone walking into the living room. You jumped to your feet, sighing in relief when Gil held his hands up.
"What are you doing here?" You asked.
Gil held your gaze for a moment before glancing at the apple you had grabbed as a weapon, raising an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Hey," You set the apple down. "Its the closest thing I have."
He shook his head, "What are you doing here?" He asked, setting his briefcase on the coffee table.
"I asked you first. Did you finally realise that your love for me burns hotter than a volcano and you raced home to -"
"You really need to read another genre besides romance once in a while." He smiled slightly and took a seat on the sofa.
"That bad, huh?"
You frowned, taking out a bottle of water from the fridge when you noticed he picked up his medication for migraines, and walked over to hand him the water.
"And here I was thinking I'd cook something special to celebrate catching the Strangler." Gil looked up at you and you shrugged. "What? I watched the news."
He sighed, swallowing down the pills with water. "We didn't find him. The Feds caught a husband who murdered his wife and tried to cover it up by using the Strangler's M.O."
"While I'm happy to see you, you being here is freaking me out."
"The Sheriff is encouraging my vacation time. Meanwhile Catherine is supervisor. The FBI lied to the city about the Strangler and what little evidence we do have doesn't make any sense."
"And you were benched because you don't do politics. Got it."
Gil sighed as he opened the case file only to close it and you took a seat beside him on the sofa, motioning for him to lay down. He did so with a weary sigh, and rested his head on your leg as he kicked off his shoes.
"Do you want me to trash talk the Sheriff?" You asked softly.
"No, it wouldn't help, but I appreciate it." He paused, tilting his head to meet your gaze. "Wait a minute, why are you home early?"
"I took the day off remember? Use it or lose it." Gil nodded slowly and you observed him with a frown afterwards.
"What?"
"We finally get a moment alone and I feel bad for enjoying it knowing how hard you've been working - well, you always work hard but still...I can wear a suit and mock the Feds?"
Gil smiled softly, shaking his head. "Maybe another time."
You nodded, resting a hand on his chest and he covered your hand with his. "For what it's worth...I think it's a great trait that you don't, you know, play the easy hand when it comes to the politics of your job. The way you use the evidence to give the victims a voice, well...I'm proud of you."
Gil squeezed your hand, "It's worth a lot."
You smiled when he sat up, his smile growing. He placed his arm around your shoulders on the back of the sofa and you tilted your chin up to catch his gaze briefly before he leaned in.
He felt the softness of your lips for mere seconds when he heard a heel on the flooring and pulled away, looking over your shoulder to see Catherine standing in the hallway. You turned, eyes widening when you saw the strawberry blonde standing there.
"Uh, sorry to barge in. Your door was open. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
You smiled softly, placing a hand on his arm, squeezing affectionately before rising from the sofa. "I'll be, uh, somewhere over here. Yeah." You awkwardly shuffled down the hallway to the bedroom. He tilted his head when he saw the nightgown you were wearing and his eyebrows raised. The events over the last few days had taken a bigger toll than he thought.
"Sorry," You heard Catherine apologize. Although you had never met her before officially, you had answered his cell phone once and unknowingly outed your relationship and heard her voice while Gil was on the phone multiple times since then. "Migraine." She picked up the orange medication pot. "It's been a while."
"I get them about once a year." Gil replied. "I'm not used to having people in my house."
"You just don't like it when you can't solve a case," She said, glancing at you with a slight smirk that did not go unnoticed by Gil. "Or command your troops."
Gil sighed, resting his elbow on his knee, rubbing his fingers across his forehead as Catherine walked to the bookcase.
"Did you come here to tell me about your new job?"
"I told the Sheriff I'd pass."
"You don't want to be a supervisor?" Gil turned his head to watch the redhead as she looked at the books.
"Well, if I get a promotion I want it to be on merit...not because you're politically tone-deaf." She turned to meet his gaze. "So...our guys are outside in their Tahoes. If you're a civilian, we are. Except we are putting in for overtime."
"Wait -"
"I'll give you a second to talk it over with your...roommate."
Gil sent her an unimpressed look as she left with a smirk and headed down the hallway to the bedroom, knocking on the door as he announced his presence. "It's me. Listen, uh, the team is outside and they want to come in and work the case again."
You opened the door with a small smile, wearing an ankle length dress. "I'll make some coffee?"
Gil lifted his gaze slowly from your shoes to your gaze and sighed softly at the understanding he saw frequently. "I'm sorry."
Your smile turned teasing, "Ah, you did notice." You placed your hands on his chest, kissing him tenderly. "You can make it up to me. You're good at that."
Gil chuckled as he tucked your hair behind your ear. "Lots of practice."
"Are you okay with introducing me to your team or do I have to climb out of the window and trench crawl to my car?"
Gil shook his head with a smile, "Come on." He took your hand as he led the way down the hallway.
You had only moved into his townhouse last month and previously stayed there a handful of times before. You knew how much Gil valued his space, and to have his whole team here was undoubtedly going to irk him.
When you saw the three CSI's standing awkwardly, trying not to look too obvious about their interest in how their boss lived, while Catherine started clearing the dining table, you subconsciously placed your free hand on Gil's forearm, your smile becoming more timid in their presence. They were a large part of his life, and while you knew you would have met them eventually, the day had changed so fast it felt almost overwhelming.
"Uh, this is Nick, Warrick and Sara. You've met Catherine. This is Y/N."
"His girlfriend."
You supressed a smile as you looked at the floor, glancing at Gil to see him sending Catherine an irritated glance.
"Yes. My girlfriend."
After a chorus of nice to meet you's, you stepped forward to help Catherine clear the dining table and found places for the assortment of items to be stored away later, seeing Gil's eye twitch with the redhead's carelessness as metal scraped across glass.
You left the group to get comfortable and organized as you went to the kitchen to make coffee much to their delight. Gil had mentioned the foul taste of the instant coffee at the crime lab and knew they'd love every sip of the imported blend.
You pursed your lips as you searched the cupboards for the herbal tea you had found that helped alleviate his migraines a little without making him sleepy. A smile formed on your lips when you found the jar, and were unaware of the curious glances sent your way as you made it.
When you set the beverages down, you smiled softly as they thanked you, returning with Gil's tea and affectionately touching his shoulder as you often did that it had become subconscious.
"Thank you." He smiled with a fondness that had more than a few glances thrown across the table. You knew it wasn't just for the hospitality you had shown his team, or for how understanding you were about his job, but for sacrificing a few hours of your vacation day to spend in the bedroom, while he and his team strategized.
"I'll leave you to it." You squeezed his shoulder and headed to the bedroom.
A couple of hours later, after scouring every scrap of evidence they had, everyone had their assignments and were heading out. Gil knocked on the door you'd left open slightly ajar, sending you a smile when you looked up from your book.
"Let me guess...volcano?" He guessed, referring to the level of heat in the book. Since you started dating, he'd picked up a lot of your lingo and you learned the difference between a Carolina Sphinx Moth and a Virginia Tiger Moth.
"They're two archaeologists sent back in time by a pocket watch from the 1800s."
"Of course they are." He said with an amused chuckle.
You raised an eyebrow at him jokingly, as you often teased each other for your differing genres when it came to reading books. One evening, you had browsed your bookcases for something that you went back to now and then, and Gil chose one of his for you to read. He found the romance novel to be incredibly predictable but found it amusing nonetheless. You looked up from the book he had chosen for you often to ask for clarification, and Gil failed to suppress his smile when he saw the slight grimaces you made at the long-winded explanations.
Due to his long hours, it took him three days to finish the book you had chosen, and it took you nine days to finish the book he had selected for you. When you did, you called his office and exchanged reviews on your lunch break. Gil had sat back in his chair with a smile when you excitedly chatted about how interesting it was that monitoring an insect's lifespan can help figure out the time of death. You were always interested in his work but ever since that day you felt more confident in discussing it with him, having a greater understanding of what it was he did for a living and it cemented how important his work was.
You replaced the bookmark and set the closed book on the nightstand as he moved to sit next to you, sighing as he rested his head on the headboard.
"Did the tea help?" You asked with a concerned frown.
"It did. I already feel clearer-headed. Thank you." He turned his head to send you a smile that was filled with a sadness you were familiar with.
"You're leaving?"
"Catherine headed to the lab to meet with Greg. He got a name on the semen left at the three crime scenes."
"That's amazing." You smiled, angling your body towards him, and rubbed his shoulder.
"It's something. Finally. The mysterious red substance we found? Ketchup."
Your brows knit adorably and his smile widened when you sat on your knees. "You're kidding. Ketch - I am never eating it again."
Gil chuckled, and you met his gaze as you joined in. He sent you a smile filled with tenderness and love that it reminded you of the first night he said he loved you.
"I'm sorry."
You mirrored his smile, "It's fine." You assured him as he sat up, feet on the floor. "I'll see you later?"
Your smile grew when he lifted his hand to your cheek, closing your eyes as your lips met. You moved closer as you rested your hands on his shoulder before wrapping your arms around his neck.
"Absolutely." He murmured as he pulled away.
You pecked his lips, "I'll hold you to that."
He ran his thumb along your cheek before standing up. Your gaze followed him all the way to the doorway where he rested his hand on the frame as he turned back to look at you.
"Go forth and prosper, Ser Grissom." You teased with a smile, sitting back and picking up your book.
Gil chuckled, shaking his head, "We really need to have an intervention about your romance novels."
"You liked the one I gave you."
"I said it was predictable."
"Short and sweet."
He hummed, tilting his head with a slight smirk of amusement on his lips. You knew he would never outright admit it, but he did enjoy listening to you relay your books to him, or perhaps it was simply the sound of your voice that he loved.
You mirrored his hum and with one last smile, he walked away. You smiled softly as you shook your head, opening up your book. A few minutes later, he returned with your favorite tea and left a kiss on your head before he left the house.
After chasing a lead with Catherine, Gil returned home to go over the case files and you greeted him over your shoulder as you cooked lunch as he walked to the dining table where his paperwork was left with chaotic organization.
After plating up, you ate on the sofa while he ate at the dining table, both preferring that you did not see the photographs or catch a glimpse of the horrors of the case.
"Another dead end?"
Gil sighed, "He doesn't know who he sold it to."
"What now?" You asked, meeting his gaze when he left the dining table to join you on the sofa.
"Nick is still working on Elaine Snow and Warrick and Sara are tracing the white fibres." He paused, "How did you know I was coming back home?"
"Hey, you're the genius. I'm just forever hopeful." You bumped your shoulder with his, sending him a smile that he mirrored. "How is it?"
"Delicious. Thank you."
"You're welcome. You know, if it would help I can be your sound board." You raised an eyebrow when he chuckled. "What?"
"Sweetheart, you refused to go near the closet after watching Halloween because you thought someone was going to attack you."
"Hey, I got over it. Three weeks later but still!"
Gil leaned his head back as he laughed and you smiled at the sight of him appearing carefree even just for the moment.
"Fine. Offer rescinded."
The sound of his beeper filled the room and he unhooked it from his belt, looking at the message from Warrick. "Warrick and Sara are coming over." He sighed, dropping his beeper onto the coffee table. "When this is all over I really hope they don't make this a habit."
When Warrick and Sara arrived, you were making more coffee while Gil went over his copies of the files for all three cases and you overheard their link to the white fibres to gym towels and the theory that the girls crossed paths by going to the gym trials where they met the killer.
You brought over his coffee with a small smile as they said goodbye and left. "Good news?"
"Possibly." He met your hopeful gaze with a smile. "We're closing in. Slowly, but it feels like we're one piece away from finding this guy."
You rubbed his arm affectionately, "There is one bright side to all of this." Gil raised an eyebrow questioningly, "I get to stare at you all day."
He shook his head, putting his glasses on as he sat down at the table, and you glanced back at him as you walked to the sofa. You bit the inside of your cheek, winking when he met your gaze and giggling when he shook his head.
A short while later, you were lying on the sofa, reading, while Gil kept in contact with his team with new developments. You bit your thumb as the two love interests confessed their feelings for each other and glanced up when you noticed him looking at his cell phone oddly.
"What's up, buttercup?"
Gil glanced at you before explaining that Nick had ended their call with, "Love you too, Peanut." You covered your mouth as you laughed, and he said, "I need to enforce regular drug tests." He set his cell phone down as he turned his attention back to the papers on the table. "He did have something interesting to say though."
You raised an eyebrow curiously, setting your book aside as you approached him.
"A statement was made by someone at the scene..." He continued as he searched the table for the paper he was looking for. "He claimed to have seen a car speeding off after the murder. Nick said there was no record of tire marks made by the Feds or the LVPD." He shuffles some papers around before finding the one he was searching for, "Syd Goggle."
"He made the statement?"
Gil nodded, "He met them at the gym, and they turned him down. That's how he chose his victims. He silenced them with the gym towels, tied them up, brought the semen in ketchup packets to throw us off, and -" Gil paused as he turned to you, setting the papers down. "I'm sorry."
You shook your head, "It's fine." You cleared your throat, "So what now?" You rubbed your arms, pushing down the chill that went up your spine at hearing some of the details.
"Now, we need to link Syd Goggle to the crime scene." He picked up his car keys and you frowned when he shrugged on his jacket.
"Where are you going?"
"To find the proof."
"Alone?" You followed him to the front door. "Gil!"
"I'll be fine. I'll see you later."
You shook your head when he got into the car, sending you a smile before driving off.
You sighed as his car got further away and shook your head. "Scientists." You headed inside where you hovered near the telephone as you spruced up the house to try and drown out your worry. Gil rushing off was not a good sign, you were sure of it.
Hours passed before the telephone rang and you leapt from the sofa, picking it up. "Gil?"
"It's me." He answered, eliciting a relieved sigh. "I'm fine. We got him. I'll explain when I get home."
You ran a hand through your hair, "If you ever run off like that again, Gil Grissom, I will...burn your books." Gil chuckled. "I'm serious!"
A weary sigh left his lips. "I love you."
"I love you too."
Gil told you he had to stop by the lab first before coming home as you said goodbye and you set the telephone down.
When the car pulled up outside, you walked out of the kitchen to greet him, frowning when you saw the bruise on his head. "What happened?"
"I'm fine." He assured you, placing his hands on your arms with a small smile. "He struck me with a wrench. And before you try to drag me to the hospital, Catherine made sure I was checked by paramedics at the scene."
You sighed, a crease forming in your brow, "I'm giving you ice."
"Deal." He smiled easily, and brought you into his embrace, kissing your head.
While you filled an ice pack, Gil went to the sofa, a sigh leaving his lips as he leaned back. You joined him a few minutes later, kneeling next to him and holding the ice pack to his wound.
Gil filled you in on the events leading up to Catherine shooting their suspect. He was talking to a woman who turned Syd away when Sara and Warrick had called with proof that gym towels were involved from fibers they'd analysed. He focused on finding Syd Goggle and found evidence at his residence, leading to a confrontation in the basement as Syd was doing laundry. Catherine shot Syd while he was stunned by the hit from the wrench.
"I should never have put her in that position." He sighed, looking at the ceiling.
You rubbed circles on his shoulder, "Unless you're psychic as well as a genius, I don't think you knew how it was going to go down."
Gil turned his head to meet your gaze, eliciting a soft sigh at the concern there, "I'm sorry for worrying you."
You smiled, lowering the ice pack to lean in, "You're worth worrying about." You kissed him tenderly and Gil placed a hand on your cheek.
You stayed there for a few minutes, both coming to terms with the revelations of the case and its conclusion. Gil was worried more about Catherine than himself, while you were concerned about his head wound.
Eventually, Gil wanted to wash the day away, and you left a voicemail to your boss, taking another day off work the next day. You were waiting in bed while he checked the doors and windows as he always did. He entered the bedroom, and you looked up from your book, eliciting a chuckle from him when he saw you wearing his glasses.
"What are you doing?" He asked, approaching the bed.
"Trying to see the world through your eyes."
"And how does it look?" He joined you under the sheets and you closed your book, setting it on the nightstand as you turned to him.
"Blurry." You replied. "Do I at least look cute?"
"Positively adorable."
You smiled softly as you removed his glasses, and he set them on his nightstand, while leaning in to kiss you tenderly.
You knew how important his work was, and how beneficial his knowledge and experience were - how vital - and never held any ill will. There was a reason why he never had his team over at his house before. This space, with you, was his sanctuary. The evils of the world could be shut out when he closed case files he brought home and you'd take his mind off it for a while and he'd feel re-energized. The world needed Gil Grissom, but with you was where he always wanted to be.
A Mind Like His - Gil Grissom x Reader (CSI: Las Vegas)
Sundays were normally the days you and Gil would go for a walk in the early morning to catch up from the previous week’s action and be able to enjoy each other's presence. This Sunday just happened to be one of the rare days when it rained in Las Vegas. Both of you were fine with that, as usually it cooled the oven that was the city you both love, making things not so dry as well.
On rainy days, you’d either read, watch something on TV, or both do your own thing for a bit. Today Gil brought out his old crossword and Sudoku books and set them on the coffee table. When you were younger and only dating, he would almost always have one or two books with him for when things weren’t stimulating enough. Grissom was all about forever expanding his knowledge of various topics- it was one of the many things you loved about him.
“It’s been a while since you’ve dug these out,” you said, grabbing one of the crossword books and flipping through the pages to see your husband's chicken scratch across the boxes.
“With having a lighter week for cases, I thought we could work on these,” he said with a smile.
You smiled. “Why not?”
Finding a pencil in the side table drawer, you turned to an unstarted puzzle. He did the same next to you, except he grabbed an expert-level Sudoku book.
You worked your way through the easier answers like ‘Casino Card Game ', with nine letters. Blackjack. And ‘Desk go-with’, five letters. Chair.
As you scribbled away on the crossword, Grissom worked peacefully next to you. Glasses perched on the middle of his nose, pencil end placed against his lips, eyebrows scrunched together. It was one of his thinking faces.
Now, you were smart, you weren’t Gil Grissom smart. The average crossword you could complete by yourself without having to look at the answer guide, use Google, or ask him for help. His crossword books were a little more advanced than the ones you would grab.
“Pacific Ocean discoverer…six letters…” You mumbled to yourself, secretly hoping for him to help you.
“I believe that’s Balboa.” He said, not looking up from his book.
“Oh?” You said, filling in the name he told you.
“Yes, his full name is Vasco Núñez de Balboa. He first saw what we now call the Pacific Ocean in 1513 after he crossed the Isthmus of Panama,” he said, filling in a number on the page, “The Isthmus being the narrow strip of land that connects North and South America.”
“How do you have all this knowledge stored in your brain? And for your brain to not be like five times its normal size?” You laughed, putting your pencil in the book before shutting it.
“Because that’s physically impossible for it to happen,” he said while taking his glasses off and looking over at you.
You shook your head, standing up and walking towards the kitchen. “You must have a second brain hidden in your abdomen somewhere.”
“Again, physically impossible, honey,” he called after you, his eyes following you.
You looked back at him from the doorway. “Do you want some tea, my giga-brained husband?”
unironically found an old very short Expanse Marco Inaros x journalist!reader blurb fic thing I wrote from 4 years ago that actually isnt bad considering I dont write fanfic??? maybe ill post it. Practicing my Lang Belta came in handy, sasa ke?
★ a/n these four have been on my brain heavy... yes, even aerion! i haven't written these things (i think they were called preferences back in the day lmao) in foreverrrr, so pls excuse if it seems a little rusty. pls also excuse any typos... writing this on sheer will and bedtime procrastination. mwah! ★
MASTERLIST(S) | MODERN!BAELOR AU ˎˊ˗
𓆰 BAELOR TARGARYEN of HOUSE TARGARYEN
Some nights, the heir has trouble sleeping. It is to be expected, as Baelor holds high responsibilities upon his shoulders, to the realm and to his bloodlines. The burden of such often fills his head with thoughts that cannot wait about things that may never come.
Luckily, he has you for when the worries attempt to deter his rest.
Only sometimes does he feel bad for bunching up the soft of your sleeping gown and gliding the head of his cock up and down your slit. You don't wake right away, just furrow your brows and push out a breath that makes him feel like smiling.
A shaky sigh exhales from Baelor as he eases inside you, thrusting until he's balls deep. With an arm around your waist, a careful gaze stuck on your dozing face, he pumps his shaft into your warmth. Hands clutching you as his chin finds the crook of your neck. You only start to squirm when he can't stop himself from picking up the pace, your hole unknowingly clenching and leaking at each quiet slap of his sack against you.
Breaths at your ear pull you halfway from your slumber. The fingers snaking to rub messy circles around your clit yank you the rest of the way.
"B-Baelor–"
"Shhh, my dear," he hushes you, rutting at a particular angle that has you reaching from him in your sleepy wake. He clings you right back, the bed now shaking with each pummel of chasing plunge. "My head will not rest until I fill it with better thoughts… and fill you with my seed. Let me do this, and then we will sleep…"
𓆰 VALARR TARGARYEN of HOUSE TARGARYEN
Once a prince, now a king.
He's older and stronger when you visit his castle alongside the guard of your father's knights, and he looks it. You had heard rumors of the broadening of his shoulders and hardening of his gaze, as that's what happens to every man who finds self upon the Iron Throne. But to see it here, up close, while he spent the night at your side, staring and sharing cups of wine, is better than the magic his blood claims to hold.
The decision to offer you an invitation to his quarters is an easy one. Accepting it, even easier.
Morning comes faster than usual, along with a tug from sleep to feel a pair of lips at your tit, tongue flicking and swirling.
"The wine seems to have dragged us to sleep before I was gifted the chance of tasting you truly," Valarr mumbles, letting your nipple slick out of his mouth before slurping it back between his lips. You sigh a moan, fingers finding the streak of white locks just above his ear.
"Forgive me for letting the night slip away before I could prove that I am worthy of the most beautiful being in all the realm… remain by my side today? Kiss. I am sure your father–kiss–will not mind someone else spoiling his only daughter for a change."
Tilting his eyes to yours, Valarr cups your chest to nose at the skin, awaiting his answer. All it takes is a nod and a groggy grin from you to spark a twinkle in the king's two-toned orbs.
Marvelous.
𓆰 AERION TARGARYEN of HOUSE TARGARYEN
There's something to enjoy about Aerion when he sleeps. He's quiet. The fire that drives his arrogance is, albeit for a moment, dim enough to see the good that could be buried under all his upturned noses and pinched stares. The twenty years of frowns, nowhere to be found during the depths of the night.
In other words, the young man can seem, truthfully, quite tolerable when sleep has him. Which is why it is in the earliest of mornings that he finds himself waking to the pleasure of the flat of your tongue gliding at the underside of his cock.
The young man hums, smacking his lips and not bothering to look at you, his hum thick with drowsiness.
"Breakfast already?"
You bob your head with a light suck before pulling off his cock, wrapping a hand at the base to stroke while you speak.
"This is the only way to keep you from waking up grumpy on training days," you remind him, lapping licks along his tip. Aerion groans, finally cracking open his eyes, just for them to roll when you slide back onto his cock.
"Hmm. More spit," he croaks, folding an arm behind his head and scratching at his chest. You oblige him after a short gag, using the drool to speed your stroke. "And make sure to swallow it all this time, pet. My father will have my head if you're caught waltzing around the castle with my cum on your cheek again."
𓆰 LYONEL BARATHEON of HOUSE BARATHEON
"Hells, you taste even better than last night…"
Lyonel is incapable of rambling to himself like this while his face is buried in your cunt, even now–when you're finally halfway to sleep after him waking you begging to fuck just a few hours ago.
"I swear on the honor of my house that," the stag pauses to swipe another bold lick all the way up to your clit, groaning much too loudly at the taste. "you and this gorgeous centre are the most delectable in all the lands."
When you go to shush his booming tone, Lyonel digs his tongue back inside you with noisy slurps, wagging his head so his nose is smushed right into the patch of hair over your nub of nerves.
Lyonel eats at you, starved despite the fact that he should be well and full and sleeping, as you were.
"Forgive me, my beautiful, glorious consort, but we can sleep in the next life," the man proclaims with wet lips and a shining beard. "This one shall be filled with fruit and dance and my face between your legs until we both go blind."
All you can do is tangle a hand through his curls and roll your hips into the mouth that's trying to devour you. Later, after the sun rises and the world thrums with the anticipation of an incoming day, Lyonel attends breakfast alone, telling the others that you, his poor thing, will not be joining them.
"Lass had a long night," he winks, popping a grape between his shining teeth. Smiling widely.
warnings/tags: 18+, dark themes, DUBCON/NONCON, woc!reader, emperor!lucius, dark!lucius, possessive behavior, forced engagement, implied forced marriage, ignoring a lot of logistics for the sake of the plot so rip, these tags are not exhaustive
wc: 5.4k
summary: An emperor’s favor is no favor at all.
believe it or not this was a writing warm up 😗 next up is hopefully childhood friends to lovers but let’s see where the plot bunnies go 🙂↔️
please let me know your thoughts and happy reading!!!
This is the fourth time in a mere week the emperor has called you to his chambers.
The guard looks vaguely uncomfortable as he stands outside your room. The flickering flames cast shadows underneath his helmet, making the sympathetic curl of his lip all the more severe.
Ink smudges the paper as you place down your pen. The letter to your brother will have to wait it seems.
“My lady.” The guard dips his head as he motions for you to step ahead of him.
The strained smile on your face wavers as soon as his eyes are on the back of your head. It is tough to keep your back straight as you make the short trek to the emperor’s room. Too short one can say but you keep those words tucked under the roof of your mouth.
You are a favorite of his, garnering his favor through virtue of your family or so they say. Your status allows you many liberties but these constant calls have crossed the line of propriety and rumors you may not recover from have begun to spread.
It is a fool’s wish to hope his eyes may stray but you cling to it despite his doglike loyalty.
The man of the hour sits with his back turned and a glass of wine balanced on his lips. His head twists when he hears your quiet footsteps enter his domain, softening when he catches a glimpse of you.
Your stomach twists.
You do not miss how the servants scurry out of sight and out earshot when he turns his formidable gaze towards them. You wish you could grab onto the frail wrist of the girl nearest to you. Your fingers flex as she hurriedly walks past you.
“It is late,” you say when the room is cleared.
“It is,” he agrees, a small smile on his handsome face. “Sit.”
Movements stiff, you take the seat across from him. He’s stretched out on his seat, robes rucking upwards to expose the strength hidden beneath his royal garb. Scars pucker the meat of his legs and there are faint white lines crisscrossing the skin as if depicting a linear story.
You swallow.
You have heard the tales and have determined what is far-fetched and what is truth.
And Lucius is made up almost entirely of truths.
The moment you cross your legs, he is upright and leaned over the minuscule table separating the two of you. Rather than reach for the half-full bottle of wine, he aims for the water, sharing a secretive smirk with you.
Your attempt at mirroring his playfulness is weak. A vague nausea begins to brew in your gut and you fear even water may be too heavy for you.
“Whispers will begin to spread.”
Lucius pauses. His features harden before he forcibly relaxes his face. “I do not see why that matters,” he says. His smile dims and the jug of water in his hand is quickly abandoned.
Sweat dampens your palms. You smooth them over your dress, wincing as the fabric catches on your peeled skin. A few months in Rome and you still have not adjusted to the weather.
“Lucius.”
His name is unnatural and stiff on your tongue. You long to revert back to his formal title but he refuses the honorific.
“It matters because you must marry wisely,” you say gently. “You know this. Let us not waste our breaths on the obvious.”
“Is it obvious?” he parrots back.
His voice takes on a cool tone. He’s not quite combative but you sense you must tread carefully lest his ice be thinner than it looks. But your brother was not made General because your bloodline bowed at the first sign of danger.
You tip your chin up. “It will not do for your senators to suspect you are looking inwards rather than outwards for your alliances.”
It is quiet for a moment before Lucius huffs out a laugh. He shifts his weight, balancing an elbow on his thigh to better cup his chin. Amusement lightens the blues of his eyes. “And if I am?”
You are not nearly as oblivious as your reputation suggests nor are you as great an actress as you believe yourself to be. You know when it admit defeat. There is only one way this conversation will go after all.
But this understanding does not mean you have to go quietly.
“Then I recommend Decima,” you say dryly.
He nods slowly, hiding his mouth behind his palm for a heartbeat before fixing you with a blandly curious look. “The daughter of the richest man in Rome,” he drawls. “Clever.”
He pops a grape into his mouth and chews it thoughtfully. “But not as clever as marrying the sister of my most loyal general.”
No one refuses the emperor. Try as he may to be benevolent and fair and kind, his status means there are certain words he has not been accustomed to since his rise to power.
“I suppose not,” you say finally.
Tilting your head, you fix the way your dress hangs over your legs. His eyes follow the ripple of the fabric but you pretend not to notice how he searches beyond what he can see.
“Is that why you have called me to your chambers so often? To flaunt your cleverness?” you ask, a touch sharply.
Lucius can’t help his grin. He ducks his head and it’s such a genuine display of the boyishness your brother feared his emperor lost, your stomach rolls at the sight.
“Do I not seem to enjoy your company?" he asks with faux surprise.
To your surprise, he slides down onto the ground and shuffles forward until his hands rest upon your knees. The cloth is so thin it feels as if his bare hands are against you. You suck in a breath at the warmth pooling underneath his palms.
“What are you—get up!” you hiss, casting a furtive glance behind you.
He blinks up at you innocently. “I am apologizing for misleading my betrothed. I have done a disservice if you think I call for you for the sake of a ploy.”
“And you will be doing me further disservice if you think I will believe this to mean anything.”
He moves his hands upwards until they lay upon your thighs. His fingers dimple your skin as he squeezes you. “I do not do things I do not mean,” he says firmly.
You lean down, placing your hands over his. “You want a family,” you say.
The words are shards in your mouth. It is not a simple matter of children. Lucius wants a home. The losses that haunt him have made his longing a physical thing. And your stubborn devotion lead you across an ocean you had no business crossing. What is a greater showing of love than that?
“I want you,” he corrects softly.
You almost wish he’d tell you he loves you. That would take rationality out of this equation.
But he wants you.
How do you reason with someone who knows exactly what they’re doing?
-
It was not meant to go this way.
The new ruler of Rome should have been of no personal concern of yours. He existed as a potential threat to your homeland, a story to fear, but not as a real person in your mind.
This remained true until a letter found its way to your family’s home.
It was written in your brother’s familiar scrawl and voice. He regaled to your family how he found himself across the world, omitting the worst of his ordeal, while promising his present safety.
With palpable regret, Kahlil declared himself unable to leave Rome, not while she remained under such uncertainty. The new emperor, Lucius Verus, had earned his loyalty having freed him from the clutches of the tyrannical twins and pushing him towards a path of glory.
And you knew at once what you must do.
You had to leave.
You had to feel his heartbeat underneath your hands and see that his blood was the same shade as yours. You refused to move on with your life as it was only knowing your brother existed. You would never be at peace without confirming that mortality ran through his veins.
The journey was brutal. It veered into the territory of being something you could not handle but you had no other choice than to handle it. Days stretched into weeks and weeks stretched into months but soon, you were touching down onto Roman soil.
The months at sea had been beneficial however as the language, while unfriendly to your ears, was familiar enough for you to navigate your way to the city. Hope permeated the air of the reborn city and whispers echoed the streets about a new age of peace.
Frankly, you didn’t care.
You asked around for your brother, eyebrows grazing your hairline as you learned of his newfound fame amongst the people. It took less than a week for you to scrounge around for a way to informally meet the beloved general.
It was rather anticlimactic.
There were a handful of places the general frequented with his men and none were easily accessible. Luckily, the innkeeper’s daughter took a liking to you and directed you to whose pockets were light. And so, you found yourself ducking underneath a curtain and into a plume of opioid smoke.
Your nose wrinkled at the acidic scent but paid it no mind as you searched the back room. Feigning confusion as some soldiers called to you, you darted around as each man you ran into did not resemble the one you knew.
On the cusp of marching back to the inn and declaring Caelia a liar, you found him. He was leaning over the balcony, melancholy stretching across his side profile.
His name left you as a breath, carried away by the slight breeze. But somehow, he heard you.
Kahlil lifted his head, a painful sort of resignation weighing down his shoulders, until he made eye contact with you.
In a matter of seconds, he stood before you. And he was okay.
He hugged you. His arms, muscled beyond your imagination, crushed you against his chest but it was a welcome pain, cracking your chest open and burrowing straight into the fragile meat of your heart.
“You shouldn’t have come,” he muttered against your hair. The admonishment is nonexistent, more a reflex to say rather than something from the heart. “But I am glad to see you.”
You pushed against him. He allowed you to pull back just enough so you could look up at him, vision blurred from your tears.
He was nothing like you remembered and you mourned this. Scars decorated his skin and callouses roughened his hands. But it was him.
His smile was still slightly awkward and the shape of his brows framed his eyes as perfectly as they always did. The kindness you feared was taken from him in his years of fighting remained in the crinkles of his eyes and the softness of his features.
“I missed you,” you said, voice catching in your throat. A fresh set of tears burned at your waterline. “I am so sorry we could not find you.”
His expression crumpled and Kahlil shook his head. “There is no one to blame but those who took me,” he said firmly.
You shut your eyes, swallowing down the sob that threatened to break free at his forgiveness.
He wiped the stray tears dripping from your face, laughing as if he did not look as foolish as you did. “You are still a crybaby.”
You laughed, more a hiccup than anything.
Kahlil was kept from saying more when someone uttered his name from behind.
“Highness,” Kahlil said, standing tall.
He wiped your remaining tears and his own before turning the both of you towards the voice.
A handsome man stood in front of you. His hair was dark and his beard thick. His arms were corded with muscle, similar to your brother’s, but there was a predator type of strength lurking underneath the surface in which Kahlil lacked.
The title registered in your mind as you stared and with an embarrassed look towards Kahlil, you dropped your head in deference.
The man quickly dismissed the formality and motioned for you to lift your head.
“I am Lucius,” he introduced. His gaze flicked to your brother in question.
You gave him your name, voice raw from your tears. He asked you to repeat it and you did so, watching as he rounded his mouth over the syllables.
“My sister,” Kahlil interjected. “The one who thinks no consequence too severe to keep her from making reckless decisions.”
At this, he pinched your ear lobe.
“You talked about me?” you asked, blinking up at him. So many years had passed. It was a wonder he remembered any stories of you to tell.
“Yes,” Lucius said, drawing your attention back to him. He stared at you, an unreadable look in his too blue eyes. “Quite favorably too.”
He took in the circles staining your under eyes and how you clutched at your brother as if he were an apparition brought to life. Your hand ached with how tightly you held the fabric of Kahlil’s clothes between your fingers but you could not make yourself relax. You worried you would wake and find yourself back on the boat and under the throes of that fever once more if you let go.
“You traveled far.”
The observation managed to sound impressive off of Lucius’ tongue as if he found you admirable. It made you squirm.
Memories of the journey flashed through your mind, bringing forth echoes of the anxiety you suffered for months on end. But you shrugged as if it was easy. Because in a way, it was.
Kahlil was at the end of the journey. There was no easier path to take.
“And I would have gone further had it been necessary,” you said. “Luckily, it was not. I might have thrown up my stomach if I was stuck on that ship any longer.”
Kahlil made a face. “The waves are a punishment,” he said sympathetically.
“You must be tired,” Lucius said. He had not taken his eyes off of you. “Come.”
And that was how it began.
You had a few uninterrupted weeks with your brother before he departed in search of allies for Rome. Kahlil promised you a home wherever he was and Lucius was all too happy to uphold such a promise.
Your quarters were moved to be closer to Lucius’ in Kahlil’s absence. It did not take long before you replaced time spent with him with Lucius.
In the instances you were alone with him, you forgot he was the emperor. His smile was infectious and he had a clever wit about him that kept you on your toes. The stories sprung from his lips kept you enthralled and you found yourself prolonging these moments with him.
Charisma was a necessity for leaders and Lucius had it in abundance.
Slowly, he began encroaching into your space. A hand on your lower back, a brush his fingers against your waist, lingering hugs that involved him burying his face in the hollows of your throat.
He was too close too often.
People began to take notice and sly comments were whispered under breath.
Once the rumors circulated close enough for you to hear, you began to pull back. You ignored the informal requests to see him and found reasons to decline the formal requests to his chambers.
Lucius did not take well to your sudden reticence and the rumors worsened as his demand for you grew.
If you knew being friendly with Lucius would lead to this, you would have made your room a jail in Kahlil’s absence instead.
-
Lucius becomes bold in the days after your engagement is announced.
He pens a letter to your brother of the news. You sign it without reading it. Lucius purses his lips but sends the letter without much complaint.
You write your own letter, minimally mentioning the engagement, and praying Kahlil reads in between the lines and slows his journey back. As your father resided an ocean away, your brother will have to make do and you fear his loyalty for Lucius will override his love for you.
Congratulations are heartfelt and plentiful from the people and ring insincere from the upper echelon. But the pushback is minimal and so, Lucius gleefully goes forward with the wedding planning.
It will be a grand affair, one you know he does not care for in the slightest. If it not for the fact that it would be the greatest showing of ownership, you believe Lucius would have dragged you in front of seven witnesses to declare the union.
The first time he presses a kiss against your temple in front of the most gossipy of his senate, you nearly buck your head back into his nose. His hand rests against your side and he murmurs something against your skin, sealing whatever it is he has said with a gentle kiss.
The sound of your blood rushing is all that fills your ears so you do not know if Lucius requested something of you. It does not matter.
He has made his point.
His affection worsens after that.
The engagement permits him to seek you out as he wishes. His men roll their eyes lightheartedly when he stops what he’s saying to call you over during training. He is quick to leave meetings or lunches if he senses they have turned into leisure rather than productive discussion to make his way back to your quarters now that you rebuff his.
No matter where you are, he finds you.
In the rare moments you are left to your own devices, you find yourself with no friends nor hobbies to keep you occupied.
You notice men do not raise their heads when they see you. Any conversation you try to hold with one ends with excuses as to why they suddenly find themselves too busy to speak to you.
A guard follows you around the clock. You manage to wrangle his name out of him—Scipio—but it is for nothing as a fortnight later, you do not see him again. From then, you have a new guard every day.
The women, few and far between in the palace, are sweet. But it is clear whatever comes out of your mouth goes directly to Lucius’ ear. So you busy yourself with fictional hopes of your future and dabble in petty gossip when you find yourself in their presence.
It is suffocating.
“There you are.”
The corner of the garden you’ve taken a liking to darkens as Lucius blocks the sunlight seeping in through a window.
He’s angelic under the golden cast of the sun. A man more than worthy of his position.
“Ah, Highness,” you greet, offering him a nod.
There is a pinch between his brows.
“We are to be married,” he reminds you, crouching down. He runs a gentle hand through the flowers you are observing. “You are my equal.”
“But we are not husband and wife quite yet, Highness.”
His hand leaves the flowers to cup your cheek. He turns you to face him, thumb brushing against the softness of your lips. Unconsciously, you swipe your tongue over the trail of warmth left behind. A slightly salty taste permeates your mouth.
“You are my equal,” he repeats. “And I expect you to treat me as such.”
The skin around his eyes is dark. Exhaustion makes him look pallid. Your avoidance is the last thing he wishes to deal with, this you are sure, and it tugs at your heart to see him so tired.
“You should go to bed,” you say.
“Will you join me?” he asks.
You jerk back. His hands falls off your cheek.
Lucius laughs at the stunned look on your face. He moves closer into your space, looking down at you.
“You are annoying,” you say hotly. “And I am busy. Obviously.”
He hums. “With thinking of ways to delay our wedding, yes?”
“Please. I have better uses of my time.”
Besides, he has made it nigh impossible to find a loophole. An emperor’s word is law and he has used his to shackle you to him.
“So you do not conspire to find a way to break our engagement?” he surmises mildly.
A fissure of fear opens within you. Hadrian had promised you discretion but clearly, a bit of luck is needed to escape the ever watchful eye of Lucius. But you have not been informed of any ports closures and so, you choose to hold your cards tightly to your chest.
You twist a petal between your fingers. “How can I conspire when all I know are these walls,” you motion towards said walls, “And the people you install in my circle.”
He watches you for a too long moment, scrutinizing the unnatural stillness of your expression. “The sense you hope your brother will impart on me will not change anything,” he says eventually.
It takes considerable effort for you to not show any sort of relief at his warning. The more pleading your letters became, the more Lucius clung to your side so you had eased up in the past few weeks. It does not come as a surprise he is actively reading whatever it is you write.
“Is he a confidant in name only, then?” you retort.
“He loves me,” Lucius says instead. He’s softened, bearing the weight of a man who knows it takes only a word for blood to be spilled in his name and for it to be spilled gladly. “But he loves you more.”
Pursing his lips, he fingers a stem. He doesn’t flinch when a thorn splits his skin. A droplet of blood runs from his finger and drips into the soil.
“But he loves Rome more?” you guess, peeking at him from under your lashes.
He watches the blood continue to spill into the soil. Just when you think he won’t answer you, to give weight to the truth you fear more than anything, he says, “Kahlil thinks I am a good man.”
And that is a sentencing all on its own, you suppose.
-
The bath water practically scalds your skin as you sink into the tub.
It is refreshing in a way. The slight sting keeps your thoughts from straying.
Kahlil’s recent letter leaves you with no choice but to hasten your escape. Any ship will do for you need to leave before the week’s end if Kahlil’s timeline is to be trusted.
You allow yourself a few more minutes in the bath, a few more minutes to act as if you are as any other, before you drain the tub and dry off.
You exit the bathroom, towel tucked loosely around yourself. Smoothing the left over oil onto your lips, you pause when you notice a shape out of the corner of your eye.
Lucius lays atop your sheets.
A strangled scream leaves your throat and you’re throwing a candle at him before you recognize it is him in your bed and not some stranger come to make true of your worst nightmares. Though, this is not a much better sight.
He catches the candle with one hand and deposits it on the floor, eyes wide in bemusement.
You hitch the towel higher, fisted fabric at your throat as you take him in. He’s stretched out lazily, hair wet and skin shiny with cream. The sheet covers his lower half and you force your eyes to rip away from the dark trail of hair on his lower abdomen. For all intents and purposes, he looks ready for bed.
“I brought you a gift,” he says, sitting up. He gestures to the box on top of your vanity. “Come here. Let’s look at it together.”
While said lightly, this is clearly an order.
You stand, shifting your weight. You are hyper aware of how naked you are underneath this flimsy towel. “I need to change, Highness.”
Annoyance flickers across his face. “Come here.”
Shuffling to your vanity, you heft the box as best you can with one arm and make your way to Lucius. The second you are within arm’s reach, he shoots out his hand and wraps it around you. He drags you forward and forces you to sit nestled between his thighs.
His cock is a heavy weight at the base of your spine.
You immediately straighten up and try to scoot forward but he doesn’t allow for this. He settles the box on your legs and brackets you with his arms.
“Open it,” he murmurs against your ear, resting his chin atop your shoulder.
Your fingers shake as you pry open the lid. All you can focus on is how the room feels as if it ends and begins with Lucius.
When you get the box open, you don’t know what you are looking at. And then Lucius pushes a finger against the object until a set of familiar brown eyes stare back at you, unfeeling and condemning all at once.
You shove the box away from you, turning into Lucius before you can see Hadrian’s head roll onto the floor.
He allows the change in position, letting your weight guide him back down to the bed before he hooks an arm around you and reverses your position. The towel slips and he follows the line of your throat and downwards.
He brings his hand down to push away the towel pooling at your hips. Instinctively, you grab at his wrist, tears beginning to line your eyes.
Lucius stills.
“Did you think I would let you leave?” he wonders.
He sounds genuinely confused and somehow, that little slip of sincerity allows a frigid wave of fear to crash over you. Rationally, you know your skin to still be warm to the touch but you shiver, ice replacing the blood flowing in you.
“I thought you would find me more work than I am worth,” you say quietly. Your heart strains against your rib cage.
The corner of his mouth twitches. “Did you now?”
He easily breaks free of your hold and you can do nothing as he makes quick work of your towel. Lucius slowly runs his thumb along the inside of your thigh, leaving a trail of warmth.
“Lucius.” His name is torn from your throat, a plea wrapped up in a warning. “Don’t. We are not married yet.”
He laughs, dropping his head down until his forehead lies flat against your collarbone. His breath is hot against you, sending the chill inwards.
"But we will be,” Lucius promises easily. “And I will wait no longer.”
He’s kissing you before you can make an attempt at delaying what is seemingly the inevitable.
His lips are hard against yours, impatiently slipping his tongue into your mouth and finding purchase against your teeth. Lucius is uncharacteristically sloppy, betraying the desperation he’s kept so carefully hidden.
You put your hands against his chest and curl them into fists when pushing only results in him tightening his hold on you.
Recalling what the other women said about their first time, you push down your fear until it settles underneath the acceptance you forcibly yank over yourself like a veneer.
His fingers caress your soft, bare skin as he trails his hands up your thigh. The coarseness of his chest hair against your overly sensitive skin sends static skittering across your nerves.
You stifle a whine when he pulls away from you just enough to let you pant against his mouth. Your stomach gives a sickening lurch when there’s pressure between your bodies, a dull ache at the apex of your thighs.
He slips his finger into you inch by inch and tears wet your cheeks when he adds a second one. Experimentally, he stretches you out until you’re left with no choice but to let your legs fall open, inviting him in.
The longer he presses into you, the more you feel yourself relax, noting your loosening muscles as if happening from an outsider’s perspective. Wetness drips down his wrist, pooling in the crease of his elbow and he grins, eyes pointedly going down. You refuse to follow him.
“Not as shy as you like to come off, hm?” he murmurs, circling his thumb over you and drawing out a high pitched moan.
You bite your lip immediately, a harsh breath ricocheting in your chest. You try to stamp down the pleasure beginning to curl into a coil in your belly. It tightens when he digs his teeth into your fluttering pulse.
It is when you are on the brink of something that he eases up, slipping his fingers out and bringing them to his mouth. You almost clamp down on his hand when he pulls out but resist the urge by the skin of your teeth.
You shift, drawing your legs closer in the hopes of chasing that mounting high he’s taken from you. A dizzying sort of heat has set your blood aflame, akin to a fever.
You must be sick, you decide. It must be a sickness that has not yet been discovered that plagues you and leaves you feeling empty where Lucius does not touch you.
He cants his hips up, lining himself up. Your eyes widen when you feel him prod your entrance. The sheer size of him terrifies you because it won’t matter if he doesn’t fit as you hysterically believe he won’t.
He’ll find a way.
“Lucius, wait,” you hiccup, swallowing down the anxiety thrumming alongside your arousal.
He grinds himself between your thighs, slicking himself with you. He doesn’t bother acknowledging your mindless babble and instead, licks away a wayward tear on your cheek.
Lucius sinks in an inch, your name a wrecked sound. He sounds different from what you’re used to, strained and roughened around the edges.
“Please kiss me,” you beg, curling a hand around the base of his neck. His curls are wet, the space between them almost humid from the heat emanating from him.
His hips stutter and he braces himself against the mattress.
“Kiss you?” Lucius repeats hoarsely, peering down at you with his pupils blown wide with a haunting desire.
You nod weakly, urging his face closer. The stretch of him burns and while not entirely unpleasant, it makes your heart quicken and your belly flutter.
He sinks in deeper and catches your gasp in his mouth. You part your lips instantly as he bears down on you, pushing deeper and deeper until he’s seated inside you. Numbly, you wonder if you’ll ever be whole again, if Lucius has carved out a space in you only he can fill.
Lucius lets you adjust to him, running a soothing hand underneath your chest. He traces circles around your nipple and it’s a searing heat that takes the edge off.
He kisses you gently. It’s almost too sweet to bear but you respond in earnest, angling your hips upwards to give the okay. The discomfort has loosened into something you handle and the knot noosed around your heart untangles to leave a bloodied heap in its wake.
He thrusts into you as if to test your resolve. You whimper as pleasure seeps into your core. You break away from his greedy mouth and soothe yourself with pressing kisses against his strong jaw. You nip at the bone as you catch your literal and metaphorical breath. It’s hard to tell if it’s the lack of air or Lucius himself making you lightheaded.
The thread of restraint he’s meticulously maintained snaps at the strung out noise. Lucius fucks you hard and deep, perhaps a little deeper than intended if the guttural noise that leaves him is any indication.
The pleasure in your belly ratchets up and a strangled moan is gutted from you when his cock brushes against some part of you that sends sparks right up your spine.
Immediately, he’s thrusting into that spot over and over again and doesn’t stop until he stiffens with a groan.
He spills into you, cock twitching as you milk him for what he’s worth.
Your name is on the tip of his tongue and branded across his heart.
Lucius chants it, peppering kisses all over your face as he collapses carefully on top of you. Fatigue wears at you and you close your eyes, hating yourself for finding comfort in how he immediately presses a kiss against your swollen eyelids.
“I love you,” Lucius whispers.
It is the worst thing you have ever heard.
this fic is finished. there will never be a part 2. thanks!
Warnings: NSFW 18+ | Minors DNI | smut | Tony is a bit of an a-hole because he goes M.I.A | Carmela mention | reader low key gets the Gloria treatment for a second LOL | some self inflicted isolation | anxiety | mention of reader losing weight due to stress | smoking | sweetheart!Tony | pet names | creampie | use of the word 'daddy' twice | Tony loves you very much he's just afraid of you getting hurt | implied that Reader is Tony's sugar baby
⊹₊˚ꕤ˚₊⊹ omfggg its finally here. I've always wanted to fuck Tony Soprano and he's such a dilf. Not to mention I loveeee complex characters that I can goon to. I've always wanted to read a fic about Tony like this so I created it myself. I hope I've done justice to his character and I hope you all enjoy <33
It starts late in the evening — the night Tony's supposed to come over. You nick yourself while shaving, and though trivial, it only sours your already frustrated mood.
Tony has been distant as of late. Not completely removed, but pulling away. You knew that'd come with the territory of being in sexual relations with a married man, one in the mafia at that.
And you're trying. You really, truly are trying to be good. After all, that's what he has you for — something quiet and removed from it all, a little bit of peace.
But it's been hard.
Especially when your razor clips your skin and suddenly the water on your tiled shower trickles down towards the drain in a dark red.
You hiss, pressing your hand into your shin.
"Shit!"
It'd taken 15 minutes and seven blood-soaked cotton balls before the bleeding stopped, and you could put a Band-Aid over it.
You were shivering, only wrapped in a damp towel, and your wet hair cold against your neck.
With your hands dried with blood, you made your way to the sink, cleaning the dark red splotches from your hands.
And just as you'd left the bathroom and made your way back to your bed, the phone on your bedside table rang shrilly.
With a groan, you plopped yourself down onto your comforter and picked up the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey, hon."
It was Tony. He sounded happy.
"Hi, Tony. Are you coming over soon?"
"Listen, I–" he sighed, and you could see him pinching the bridge of his nose as he chose his next words. You already knew what was coming.
"Listen, m'not gonna be able t'come over tonight, 'kay?"
You close your eyes to keep yourself from rolling them — even in his absence, there's something there that wills you to behave for him.
A dribble of water trickles down your back from your hair, and you shiver a little bit.
You've been quiet for too long.
"Hello?" Tony calls, annoyance already heavy in his voice.
"Yeah, yeah," you swallow, picking at the edge of the band-aid on your knee. "I understand."
"Okay. Good, good." Tony says, a beat passes.
"Tony?" You worry your bottom lip between your teeth, weighing the words on your tongue.
"Hm?"
"When am I gonna see you again?" You close your eyes as soon as the words leave your mouth, as if removing your sight will somehow make what's happening not happen. Will it to be unreal.
He's quiet for a moment too long.
"M'not sure, hon. I– I gotta lot of stuff goin' on down here and..." you hear him sigh, "alright, alright, listen. I'll be there next Friday, 'kay?"
You can't help the way your heart flutters at that.
"Really?" Not even hiding your excitement.
"Yeah, yeah. Just try not to do any dumb shit, alright?"
You nod happily, remembering he's expecting an answer.
"Yes, I understand."
───────
Tony, unsurprisingly, doesn't show on Friday.
And though deep down you knew he wouldn't — sifting still wet leaves of lettuce and chopped carrots around your plate — you couldn't help the sinking feeling in your stomach.
Though you knew he wouldn't. You'd still hoped he would.
You sat at your pinewood dining table — the one Tony had bought for you as a surprise when he'd made some offhand comment about the one you had bought in your college years being "too friggin' small."
You'd liked that table.
That was the first. Then, it was the jewelry, the clothes, the cars, the upgraded apartment that he paid the rent in full for, and still does. You still haven't seen a single bill delivered to your front step.
The orange dusk had turned into a dark autumn night sooner than you'd realized. Like a part of the world outside of your apartment had shifted with you.
You stood on the balcony attached to your bedroom on the second floor. Swirling maroon wine in a milk glass — not quite sure why you hadn't just chosen one of your wine glasses from the China cabinet.
It wasn't a nuisance. But still, looking at the wine swirling about the cylinder glass irked you in annoyance. It was wrong.
Maybe, you supposed, you were punishing yourself for Tony. For expecting something of him that was never stated to exist between the two of you.
After all, that was why the two of you worked so well to begin with. You wanted someone there — someone to provide. And he wanted someone to take him away from everything. You guess somewhere along the way, you desired a different expectation from him. But, beneath it all, you knew deep down you'd always wanted more ever since this little arrangement started, and you knew that he knew that, whether either of you showed it or not.
He would've called. A mess of heavy and thick thoughts run through your mind as you trace your feet along the bottom of the steel railing. This is him leaving you. You're too much. Always too much. You hate him. You hate yourself for hating him.
He was abandoning you.
A tear runs down your cheek, warm in the cool autumn evening air. You sniffle against the ambiance of cars and traffic.
You should've known better. And realistically, you did. You knew it was a bad idea from the start. Getting together with a married man, a married man in the mafia, no less. It was to be expected that you were at the bottom of his priority list. Didn't mean it hurt any less.
And it was so easy; when you told him that if the two of you ever had to call it off for whatever reason, to just tell you. That you'd understand. You would be shattered and irreparably torn until you built yourself up again, but you'd at least have your dignity and his honesty.
But Tony was anything but honest. Your shared relationship was a perfect example of the type of man he is.
You didn't understand why he was seemingly dragging it out just to hurt you. Why couldn't he just call you up and tell you he couldn't see you anymore?
The thought of calling him crossed your mind, making your way back into your bedroom and pouring the remainder of your wine down your sink drain.
That'd put you in more trouble than you were in already.
Tony had a lot of rules regarding your relationship: How you should behave, what was expected of you, and what you should and shouldn't ask for. But out of all, the one of utmost importance was that you were to never, under absolutely no conditions, make Carmela or the children privy to your existence. And that meant that you were to absolutely never call his phone or drive down specific streets or even think of passing by his neighborhood, let alone enter it.
But the thought still sat in the back of your mind. Festering in a bubbling pool of hurt.
And somewhere between you lying down in bed and turning out the light, the realization that you would never even know if he was hurt or, god forbid, dead.
You guess Paulie might call. Maybe Silvio, if it was bad enough. But even then, it's not as though you're the first person they'd think of if something were to happen.
You go to sleep with a pounding headache and sore throat.
───────
And so you fill the void for a while, with whatever you can. Shopping trips, random dates, cry sessions, movie nights with your girlfriends.
But nothing ever soothes the wound, nor does it heal over. It's like it's caught something, rotting away at you. You see him in everything.
You begin to wonder if he really has left you for good. If this is it. If he even liked you to begin with. If he even remembers you, he had to, you spent the better half of a year together.
You still remember the way he'd look at you. The way he'd hold the back of your neck to keep you steady when your knees would weaken when he'd kiss you. Or the way he'd play with your hair on movie nights, your head in his lap and his hand at the base of your skull, stroking and scratching in just the right way that'd lull you to sleep. And the way he'd feel against you when it'd just get to be too much; his hands would slip up to hold your jaw, pulling you into a warm and gentle kiss, whispering against your lips, "m'right here."
───────
You don't even remember how you got there. Between fuzzy flashes of streetlights and passing cars. Songs on the radio that played in the background. Tony's cashmere sweater pulled over your long-sleeved shirt for warmth. He'd forgotten it one of the times he'd come over last winter.
Fingers playing and thumbing at the hem resting on your jean-covered thighs. If Tony were to walk down the long driveway right now, your presence would be undeniable — not a chance in hell you'd be able to drive off without him seeing.
But it's late in the afternoon, and quite frankly, you're not sure if he's alive or dead. The house seems relatively quiet, which doesn't soothe your anxiety about his lack of presence. Carmela hasn't driven past you, leaving or returning, and you're not willing to get any closer to try to see if the Chevron is parked up at the front of the house.
This is dangerous. Extremely dangerous, and you're every bit aware, sitting in the quiet of your car. Letting frost and snowflakes decorate your windshield.
What if you just backed up into the wooded area and let the elements take you? Would Tony find you? Or Carmela? Would Tony have to pretend he had no clue who you were when questions started popping up about some random dead girl in the woods adjacent to his house?
Your teeth grind, and you worry the pad of your thumb between your teeth. Unwrapping and wrapping your cashmere-covered hand around your steering wheel.
Another rule broken. You know you're in for it if Tony ever comes back around — if you even allude to your being here. You can't even imagine what he'd say, let alone do, if he found out you were sitting outside of his driveway for the better half of an afternoon.
You don't remember the next thirty minutes of yourself sitting there in the quiet. Watching and shivering and biting your lip raw.
And you sure as hell don't remember getting home until you're clicking your key into the front door lock and falling onto your couch in heavy sobs.
Time moves fast, but the pain of Tony's absence and the wound that's left heals over slowly. It's not often that you find yourself not thinking of him.
Tonight, is no different.
You're sitting at your kitchen table, messily coloring in a page you'd ripped out from a coloring book you had stored away, nursing small bites from a bowl of strawberries.
The microwave dings, and you make your way into the kitchen, retrieving your plate of warmed buttered toast; the timer on the screen of the appliance catches your eye.
4:00 minutes.
And suddenly you realize it's been four months since you've heard anything from anybody about Tony. Your head feels heavy.
You'd found out he wasn't dead around the five-week mark of his absence. After your little visit to his house, you showed up at Bada Bing! and sat in the lot one night. Watching men and women filter out of the building.
It's around 1:00AM when you see the white Chevrolet pull around the back.
Immediately, you're sinking further down into your seat to try and conceal yourself when you see Tony get out and make his way through the back door of the building.
Relief floods your system at the sight of him. To know he's okay, that everything will be okay. But a heavy flood of sadness drowned the moment of quiet just as fast.
Tony was alive, but Tony wasn't seeing you. He was alive and choosing not to call you; he was fine and choosing not to visit you. As a matter of fact, Tony was so unbothered by anything that he was hanging out at a strip bar.
It was a miracle you made it home that night with the way your tears flooded your vision. When you lay in bed that early morning, you didn't even care if he'd seen your car or not. You weren't sure you ever wanted to see him again.
You shake your head from the memory and shuffle back to your dining table, picking up a pink crayon to finish the highlights of the auburn mane you'd colored in of the lined horse.
Just as you take a bite of your messy toast, a knock pounds at your front door. So aggressive and fast that you nearly jump out of your skin.
The chef's clock in your kitchen reads 9:00PM.
Who the actual fuck is at your front door right now?
"Just a minute!" you shout towards the entryway, pushing your dessert off to the center of the table and making your way to the door of your apartment.
You're not even sure why you didn't look through the peephole. Tony always got mad at you when you neglected to do so. One time, he flicked the back of your head and gave you a thirty-minute lecture when you opened the door to a deliveryman without looking.
When you get the door open and come face-to-face with Tony, your heart literally shatters, and you immediately break into tears.
"No." You go to shut the door, but he stops it with the toe of his shoe.
"No, you don't get to do this, Tony." You try to shut the door again, but this time he stops it with his hand, pushing the door all the way open and stepping into your house.
"Tony!" you cry, trying to shove him out without having to touch him too much. You're not sure you're gonna survive this.
He catches your wrists in one hand and shuts the door behind him with the other.
"Hey, hey!" He holds you there, watching your mascara smear and trickle down your cheeks, "The hell's the matter with you?"
Like an impetuous child, you attempt to wriggle out of his grasp, pulling back against him and crying so hard that you're hyperventilating.
"Let me go!" You stomp your foot and throw yourself about, but he keeps you steady with his hand on your wrists. "I'm serious, Tony!" and you almost can't even recognize your own voice with how broken you sound. Your throat's raw already, and your cries sound shattered and torn.
You just feel like giving up. It's not fair.
Tony just holds you there, like a parent disciplining a child, waiting until you tire yourself out.
Eventually, you stop fighting. choking on your own tears and hyperventilating and trying to catch your breath.
Tony's grasp relaxes a bit. The pad of his thumb strokes just below one of your wrists. He shushes you softly. Not patrenzing but just grounding.
"Alright, there y'go." he lowers your hands slowly, still soothing you. "That's it."
───────
There's something intrinsically haunting in your appearance; the amber light of your den illuminating your fatigue.
You're visibly smaller — thinner and more frail as you cower in on yourself in the corner of the leather couch. You're fucking trembling and pulling the knit of his sweater over the tops of your knees. Looking up at him with wide and wet eyes, dark circles rimming your lashes, and your cheeks almost gaunt.
He knows what this is. He's been there — in that inescapable pit of anxiety that just drowns you no matter how hard you fight to stay afloat.
Tony's staring down at you expectedly. Hand stuffed in his pockets and lips pulled tight, he glances around the living room. As though he expects you to explain why he's shown up at your house at 9pm.
You sigh shakily and fiddle your hands between your chest and your tucked knees.
"Tony..." your voice is so raw, "Tony, I don't want to fight with you." Your tears are still there
───────
"Do you hate me?"
A light scoff. He shakes his head.
"No, God no."
You've never heard him so quiet.
Tony strokes the backs of his knuckles over your cheek softly.
Poor wounded animal, comforted by its devourer.
He runs the pad of his thumb over the plush of your bottom lip.
"Sweet girl," his eyes drop down to your lips, and he looks you over, leaning back into your couch, "...c'mere."
And when he helps you crawl into his lap, pulling your thighs onto either side of his, he tucks you into the thick of his chest and presses a kiss to your hair.
He lets you cry. He doesn't try to quiet you. He just lets you work through it. Let's you use him to hold onto something. To keep yourself afloat in the heavy fog.
It's only when he feels the tension rooting you simmer and your sobs reduce to sniffles that he nudges you in that oh-so-Tony way, urging you up to look at him.
And you do, eyes wet and rimmed with red, with lashes thickly strewn together.
Tony smiles softly at you, trying to ease the wrought tension. He taps the wrinkle on your chin. "There she is, eh?" He hums, pinching the soft apple of your cheek.
Still hurt, you push his hand away with a sniffle.
He catches your hand almost instantly. The display of power isn't lost on you. Nor is the dominance he deliberately shows you in his decision to not be more aggressive. He's giving you an out.
"And don't give me that face neither." Tony points at you, crow's feet wrinkle at the corners of his eyes where he's narrowed them at you. "I oughta put you over my knee for what'chu did."
Immediately, you're visibly tense. Your heart drops into your stomach at the thought of what he's exactly referring to.
"M'sorry." Though you're not entirely sure which part of what you've done in the past four months you're apologizing for. All of it, you suppose.
"Know that was your car outside the bar." Tony lowers his hands from your wrists to stroke up and down the length of your thighs. This is his way of apologizing to you; you know it's never been easy for him, the nature of admitting his wrongdoing. He has his ways. He knows he's been neglectful.
Relief floods your body. You drop your eyes to where your hands find the fabric of his shirt. Playing with the buttons and fiddling with the fabric.
"Are you friggin' stupid? Y'tryin' t'get y'rself killed?" His voice rises just enough to make a fresh round of tears rise. "Those men out there are not people y'should be hangin' around!" He points away from you, his expression furrowed and hurt.
You don't even know why you say it. Maybe to get a rise out of him all this time. Just to get under his skin. To make him work harder despite everything.
"You're there."
Tony doesn't entertain your behavior even for a second.
"You watch your mouth with me, young lady." And by the tone in his voice, you know it's not something that's suggesting play time. This is serious, and he's expecting that you treat it as such.
The urge to push back at him is heavy. You settle for narrowing your eyes at him. He does it right back.
"The hell is up wit'chu?" He squints at you so much that his eyes disappear and his brows furrow.
You're guessing he's about thirty seconds away from shoving you off his lap and fucking you on the floor — that's usually how nights where you misbehave go down. No pleasure for either of you. He fucks you until you're swollen and raw, till you've got carpet burn from the floor and till you're sobbing and can't breathe and he's gotta put you back together again. Neither of you are allowed to cum on nights like that. He's just as much of a masochist as you've figured.
Shaking your head, tongue clicking to the roof of your mouth.
"Tony..." a deep sigh, "you disappeared for months, I, I-I didn't even know if you were alive or dead. It scared me."
Tony's always had much too expressive eyes. They reveal everything he's thinking and not saying. And as he eyes the painting on your wall behind where you sit on his lap, you know it's his way of acknowledging that you're right.
There's a quiet that settles over the den of your living room. Your head is all fuzzy from the crying and the woodsy smell of his cologne and the way his shirt feels in your small hands. The way he's so warm and big underneath you, meaty hands soothing you at your hips as he runs them up and down your skin from under your sweater.
"... I," Tony shakes his head some. There's something occupied in it that you can quite catch, "I've been workin', y'know." Jersey accent thick on his soft lips. He gives you a sheepish look, one that suggests the conversation is over, whether you like it or not. He's embarrassed and even revealing to you why he went M.I.A four-month period manifests as his way of apology.
The hurt still simmers beneath the surface, but you nod nonetheless, sniffling a bit.
Tony tucks your head up by your chin, his thumb and forefinger holding you there to look you over, pouting at your teary eyes.
"D'awh, c'mere."
You've always loved it when he holds you. He's so much bigger than you that the rest of the world disappears under the safe blanket of his arms, and the warmth of him seeps into your skin through your clothes.
Large hand stroking your hair, he coos to you and presses gentle kisses to the top of your head.
"Missed you, Tony." You kiss his chest through his shirt, dropping your head to rest on his shoulder.
He runs the backs of his knuckles across your cheek, "Look at me."
And of course you do.
You drag yourself up to meet his eyes again, your hands placed on the thick of his chest.
His knuckles still stroking the soft of your cheek, moving lower and lower until his thumb presses against your plush bottom lip.
His digit slips past your lips easily, resting against the warmth of your tongue.
"There's my good girl." Tony's eyes are set on you.
You break away to moan at the praise, lashes fluttering against your warmed cheeks, and tongue wrapping around his salty digit.
He chuckles at your reaction, running his tongue over his lips. "Missed that, huh?"
You nod, wrapping a hand around his wrist to hold his hand there. Free hand twisting into the fabric of his shirt.
Tony maneuvers a bit under you, pulling your hand away from his shirt and weaving his fingers with your much smaller ones.
He's so warm. So big. Your mind is flooded with his smell and his everything. You think you might die right here in his lap with his thumb on your tongue and his cock pressed up against your panties.
He's unusually patient with you tonight. You know why, you both do. He's letting you lead while still showing you he's there if you need him to take over. Tony knows what it's like to just need control some days.
You pull off of his thumb but keep a hold of his wrist, panting and pressing kisses to the pad of his thumb and down his wrist to the crook of his elbow.
"Tony," you hum, pushing at his shirt before attempting to pull at it to get it off of him, "off." It's all you say, eyes lidded and mouth heavy with drool.
Tony sits up, holding your face in his hands. Your small hand is still wrapped around his wrist.
"Hey, hey. You sure you're alright?"
You nod, closing your eyes and leaning into his warm palm, rolling your hips into the thick bulge of his cock.
"Want you," you slur, lips parting in a breathless sigh and brows furrowing when he drops one of his hands from your face to cup your cunt through your panties, thumb circling your clit through the soaked fabric.
Tony holds you firm by the base of your jaw. Stroking the curve of your jaw gently.
He slips your panties to the side, smearing your juices over your folds and up to your clit before pushing a thick digit past your folds.
You're immediately rising up on your knees, chasing and trying to run from his touch all in the same.
"Sh-sh-shhh," he coos, curling his finger inside of your heat, cocking his head just a bit to watch the way your juices coat his skin.
"Tony–" you choke, looking down at him with watery eyes. He thinks you look so pathetically his, so needy and all perfect for him.
Tony moves without a word, sitting up to pull you into a hot and messy kiss, adding a finger to your cunt in the same motion and pumping into you.
He tastes like cigars and mint. You run your tongue along the roof of his mouth and over his teeth, and he chuckles into your mouth.
You break the kiss when his fingers graze that spongy patch inside of your heat, pressing your forehead to his and letting soft moans fall from your swollen lips.
The squelch of your cunt is pornographic — so vulgar that you quiet yourself, pulling your lip between your teeth and whimpering behind your lips.
Tony presses kisses to the side of your face, licking a fat stripe from the curve of your jaw to your ear before biting at your lobe.
"Know it feels good, lemme hear ya'." He murmurs into your skin.
You whimper softly, wrapping an arm over his shoulder, digging your fingers into the fabric of his shirt to keep you steady.
He helps rock you, large hand on your hip, guiding you to grind against where the soft of his palm meets your swollen clit. You're fucking soaked, juices coating his hand and wrist, dribbling down his skin and chasing after his silver pattak.
God, you missed him so fucking much. You're already so close.
Tony rips his hand away from you, and you gasp, dropping your head onto his shoulder with a wanton moan, your thighs trembling on either side of his from keeping yourself upright so long.
"On the floor. C'mon." He pushes you a bit, but when you stand on shaky legs, he's quick to drop the facade and steady you with a big hand holding you up at your hip.
You swallow with a shaky breath, "M'okay, I got it."
Tony watches you as he unbuckles his belt and pushes his pants down just enough to pull his heavy cock out of his briefs, the swollen red tip heavy in his hand. a bead of pre dribbles down the girthy length. Your mouth waters.
he spreads his thighs for you, slipping his large hand into your smaller one, resting on the top of his knee. You take him into your mouth so easily, plush lips spread around the girth of him, and the weight of him heavy against your tongue.
You both moan at the same time. He squeezes your hand at the vibration, dropping his head onto the back of your couch.
You struggle to take him any deeper than halfway, coming up every so often for air before swallowing him down again. Tears stream down your cheeks, leaving smoky rivers of mascara. You're struggling to breathe, your hand falling somewhat loose in Tony's hand.
He pushes you off of him at one point, dropping your hand onto his lap and holding you up by your forehead, his other hand stroking the length of his cock.
"Take it easy, okay?" he narrows his eyes at you when you take a deep inhale, bumping your knees against his calves as you work the tingles out of your legs, having resorted to squating instead of kneeling.
You nod at him.
"Get down, why're you sittin' like that?"
You drop yourself to your knees without a word. The carpet hurts, and it must show on your face by the way that Tony grabs one of your decorative pillows next to him and drops it between his legs.
With your knees pressed into the soft fabric, you swallow him down easily, holding your hands at the index of his thighs, trying to take him all the way.
Tony hisses against his teeth, sweeping your hair into a large hand to hold away from your face.
"Christ."
You pull off of him and press a peck to the pink, swollen head, tongueing his slit. He makes a noise you know far too well, and you're immediately off of him. wiping your mouth with the back of your hand and trying to catch your breath.
Tony brings his hand to your jaw, pulling you towards him to straddle him again and pressing his tongue past your lips. He presses his cock up against your folds, running the fat tip back and forth.
Breaking away, you press your foreheads against each other, moaning when the head of his cock slips into your heat. You stay like that for a moment, dropping up and down slightly on the head.
It always takes you a bit to fully fit him inside of you. He's always been so much bigger than you in every sense of the word. And it's been so long that you're tensing and tightening at the intrusion.
Tony kisses up your jaw, whispering against your skin, "Y'okay?"
You nod, eyes shut and focused on trying to take him. "Are you okay?" you ask, throat dry and lips swollen. You're getting frustrated that it's taking this long. All you've wanted in these past few months is to have him fuck you, and now you can't even do that.
He nods against you, so aware of you.
"Relax, sweetheart."
You huff, whimpers bordering on tears.
"Tony—" your voice breaks, and he's already pulling you into a kiss, letting you sob and rock against him. He's holding everything for you, letting you unravel the hurt and the pain and the frustration; he just takes it, makes it look so easy.
Tony hums into your mouth, dropping his hands to squeeze and spread the plush of your ass. You moan at his touch, dropping your head to his shoulder and rocking against him until you feel the girth of him resting heavily against your warm walls.
You sit there a moment, sighing and stealing kisses.
Tony gives an experimental pump under you, wrapping an arm over your waist and sinking deeper into your cunt.
chants of 'uh, uh, uh,' spill from your lips, lips messily pressed against each other, and his hands warm and heavy on your soft skin.
"My sweet girl," Tony whispers against your lips, pressing a kiss to the corner of your mouth before tucking you into him and pounding up into you.
His name is a broken whimper on your tongue, wet and choked when you cum around him, walls flexing and contracting. Tony fucking moans beneath you, pushing you up so that his cock slips from your heat before he's guiding you by the neck onto the couch, forcing you onto your hands and knees as he stands above you.
He keeps his hand on your throat, not squeezing, but a reminder enough of who's in charge. His other hand strokes his cock beside you.
"You're so fuckin' hardheaded, you know that?" he hisses, pressing his nose into your hair, "Thought I wouldn't see you hangin' around outside the club. Thought I just abandoned you, the hell is wrong with you?"
You sob, sinking into an arch that Tony follows, getting up behind you on the couch and slipping his cock back into your heat. You shriek when he sinks all the way to the hilt, heavy balls pressed up against your folds.
"Tony, oh fuck." You try to reach back for him, dropping your head onto the couch, looking at him from over your shoulder. "Tony—" you cry.
He grabs your wrist and tucks it against the dip of your back.
"No."
His cock stretches you deliciously.
"What're the rules?" he growls, balls tapping against your soaked cunt. You can hardly fucking think.
You struggle to find the words for a moment.
"Not to..." a broken moan, "Not to bother you when you don't come around — haaa,"
Tony rewards you with a generous rub to your clit.
"If you know the rules, then you can follow 'em."
You nod, drool spilling from your lips onto the couch. Your juices stick to your thighs, slipping down the length of your legs.
"Was that a 'yes?' "
You cry, nodding again, "Yes, Yes!"
"Yes, what?"
"Yes, sir!" you sob pitifully.
Fully shaking and warbling beneath him, Tony takes mercy on you and presses himself against you; thick chest to your back and a large, meaty hand woven with yours.
He pulls your hair away from your face with the other, still pumping into you, pressing soft kisses to your wet skin.
"Oh my— oh fuck" you shiver.
"Thaaats it, sweetheart." he presses a kiss to the back of your ear, "C'mon, you're right there, I can feel it."
"Want you to cum with me," you manage, turning to meet him in a sloppy kiss.
Tony's breath hitches softly against your lips. You both mold into one another when you cum. His warmth seeps into you and spreads a ring of white around the base of his cock as he pumps into you, riding you through your orgasm.
You almost fall under the weight of him, but he's quick to roll the two of you over, slipping beneath you and holding you to his chest. Both of you still trying to catch your breath.
You feel like crying again. The overwhelming emotions flood your head, and you catch your breath in your throat.
"Hey," Tony strokes the top of your head, "hey, c'mere. Quit poutin'."
When he wraps his arms around you, shielding you from the scary and dark and all-consuming world he's had a part in thrusting you into, for the third time that night, you feel yourself break apart in his hold. And he doesn't ask anything of you, he just holds you and whispers soft apologies into your hair, massaging the back of your neck with his rough hand.
You fiddle with the gold chain of his necklace, pulling it in and out of your teeth while rubbing yourself against him.
"Daddy's sorry."
You whimper. That word holds more weight than you care to admit in the moment, and part of you knows that's why Tony chose to pull that card while you're a mess in his lap, shrinking in on yourself, hurt in all the wrong ways because of him.
"I forgive you." You mumble. Voice small and quiet. He pulls your head away from his neck to press soft kisses to your lips.
"Yeah? Y'forgive daddy fr'bein' a jerk?" He tickles your sides teasingly.
You shriek, giggling and nodding and trying to escape his hands.
"Yes, yes, yes!" You're squealing, and leftover tears are streaming down your face.
Tony stops and pulls you back into him, smushing your cheeks together with a big hand, pressing kisses all over your face.
"How'd daddy get so lucky?"
───────
When you wake up, you're cold and still in Tony's sweater.
Tony's not there.
You can hear a window or door open somewhere, so you wander throughout your apartment until you find him on your balcony. Leaning out and over the railing, blowing puffs of smoke into the chilled night air.
You stand beside him, wrapping your arms around yourself to keep warm. He's only in his wifebeater, but he wraps a big arm over your shoulder and tucks you into this side, and you're suddenly all that much warmer.
It's so quiet. The road is clear, save for the occasional car that drives by. It's too early in the morning for people to be leaving for work and too late for people to be coming home.
"Y'are a real good girl, you know that?" Tony says, running his hand up and down your arm.
"Tony—"
"Whadd'ya do with the money I give you? You still goin' ta' college?"
You nod against him, eyeing the cigar.
"Almost finished. Took an extra semester 'cos I added another minor."
Tony blows a cloud of smoke, and you can feel that he's looking down at you, so you turn and meet his eyes. He watches you for a moment — one that's so gentle and so sickeningly domestic that you almost let yourself live in it. Live in it as though he were truly all yours.
He holds the cigar away from you and leans down to press a soft kiss to your lips. You press your tongue against his teeth, and he lets you in, groaning when you suck his swollen lips.
His hand on your arm slips down to hold your waist, guiding you to lean against the railing. He traps you there, an arm on either side of you as he presses kisses to your lips, the corner of your mouth, and down to your jaw.
"I gotta get up early in the morning."
You nod. The tears well, but you push them down.
"Will you stay the night?"
He nods, pulling back to take another puff of the cigar before smashing the embers into the steel railing. Tony slips his hands under your thighs and picks you up, carrying you into your bedroom, where he gently lays you on the bed the way a father would. A hand cradling the back of your head and the other at the dip of your back.
He climbs into bed with you, pulling your back into his chest. He presses a kiss to the side of your head. You know he's watching you — he does it sometimes when things seem too big. Like he hasn't had any control. Maybe that's what this whole disappearing act was. You pretend to sleep until you slip unconscious.
───────
In the morning, you play house.
Tony's already up, dressed, and reading the newspaper while sipping coffee from one of your Garfield mugs.
"Your paper's old."
You shrug and slip into the chair beside him.
"You're old."
"Watch it."
You giggle and hide your face in his side.
"Y'want food? I think I have cereal."
Tony gives you a pointed fatherly look.
"Are you friggin serious? I take care of you, and you use what I give you to buy cereal?"
Another shrug.
"My classes are early, I don't feel like cooking at seven in the morning." You whine.
"Jesus Christ." Tony rolls his eyes.
You pour yourself a bowl and make your way back to the kitchen table, but before you're able to sit down, Tony scoots his chair back and pulls you by your pj shorts.
"C'mere."
And so you sit on his lap, lying your head against his chest while taking small bites of your lucky charms, offering him a spoonful here and there, which he takes with a muffled 'thank you, sweetheart.'
"The birds sound so pretty."
Tony hums, readjusting his hands that are scooped under you to keep you upright and held against him.
"Yeah, they do... You got class today?" He dips his head to meet your eyes.
You take another spoonful of your cereal with a nod.
"Ya like your classes?"
Another nod.
"M'talkin' t'you, y'know." There's no bite behind it, but you know better than to push back. It was a warning of sorts.
"Yes, sir. I like my classes." You mumble around the sugary marshmallows.
He bounces his knee under you and checks his watch once before pushing your hair behind your ear and pressing a long kiss to the top of your head.
"I gotta head out pretty soon. Got some work I gotta finish up."
You nod.
"Can I walk you out?"
Tony nods, "Of course, y'can."
He helps you stand, pulling the hems of your PJs shorts down when they've ridden up from your seat on his lap. He takes your bowl and places it on the table too before slipping his hand into the dip of your back, walking side by side towards your front door.
You're not really even sure you're expecting anything, but he cups your face in his big hands and pulls you in for a soft kiss, the pads of his thumbs smoothing gentle circles at the curve of your jaw.
"You needa brush your teeth. Y'taste like nothin' but sugar. Next m'gonna be paying for a dental visit, huh."
You giggle and pull away, face flushed.
"Now you be good, you understand me?" He taps the tip of your nose.
You nod, and his brow arches just a little.
"Yes, sir."
Tony strokes the curve of your jaw and presses a kiss to the corner of your mouth.