paigesmaze

Paige || She/They || Bisexual || 18 || AO3

[paigesmaze]

Prompt List (And Requests!)

Hey, Loves! I’ve been wanting to post a prompt list in order to start writing some fics. I write for all Markiplier egos. Feel free to send asks with the prompt number, a character, and a genre (ex. prompt no. 23, Dark, fluff). The number of genres can be more than one and so can the prompt numbers. You can come up with your own prompt and send in an ask as well! :)

“Come over here and make me.”

“Wait a minute. Are you jealous?”

“I almost lost you.”

“Wanna bet?”

“Don’t you ever do that again!”

“Kiss me.”

“It could be worse.”

“Looks like we’ll be trapped for a while…”

“You need to wake up because I can’t do this without you.”

“I’ve seen the way you look at me when you think I don’t notice.

“I think I’m in love with you and I’m terrified.”

“Wanna dance?”

“You fainted…straight into my arms. You know, if you wanted my attention you didn’t have to go to such extremes.”

“You did all of this for me?”

“I swear it was an accident.”

“YOU DID WHAT?!”

“If you die, I’m gonna kill you.”

“I fucking hate you”

“The first time you smiled it felt like the universe aligned.”

“It hurts…” “what?” “Loving someone who doesn’t love you…”

“Let me do this, please.”

“You’re not as funny as you think you are”

“I’m just getting comfy”

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should”

“How don’t you know the difference between your left and right?”

“Thank you for being in my life”

“You are such a nerd”

“Why are you so cold?”

“Stop laughing at me”

“You were put on this earth to give me a headache”

“You’re ticklish”

“Can we go home yet?”

“You are a terrible influence”

“One of us is clearly smarter than the other”

“You need sleep”

“Are you just quoting song lyrics?”

“Sleep is for the weak”

“That was you?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“What? I have never-”

“I do not have an answer for you.”

“In my defense, I really wanted to.”

“At least I didn’t break any laws.”

“What did you do this time?”

“How do we get out?”

“I don’t hate you.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Just marry me already.”

“Did I stutter?”

“Did I just say that out loud?”

“How long have you been standing there?”

“I’ve never felt this way before and I’m terrified to be honest.”

“Is that what you call an apology?”

“Is there anything you want to tell me?”

“Somebody’s in love!”

“Can I hold your hand?”

“There is no way this much stupid can fit inside one person.”

“I’m never leaving…I promise.”

“Uh, am I interrupting?”

“I like you, like like you like you.”

“Be my Valentine?”

“Can I kiss you?”

“God, I love you.”

“You’re so fucking cute.”

“Stop being a fucking prick.”

“Do you want me to stay?”

“You’re my everything.”

“I love seeing you smile.”

“I’ve been thinking about you all day.”

“I can’t get enough of you.”

“I like being close to you. You’re warm.”

“Is this okay?”

“This is a one time thing.”

“You know where to find me.”

“Stop doing that”

“Don’t go on that date.” “Why?” “You know why.” “Say it.”

“If you interrupt me one more time— so help me god”

“Is that my shirt?”

“I didn’t mean to say that but yeah, I love you.”

“I’ve never seen anyone look so cute and ridiculous at the same time.”

“Stop looking at me like that!”

“You weren’t supposed to hear that!”

“I’m not scared but if you are, you can hold my hand.”

“Take my jacket, it’s cold”

“My friends get annoyed by how much I talk about you sometimes”

“I’m not going anywhere”

“Fuck you.” - “When?”

“No one’s ever made me feel like this.”

“Here, let me help you.”

“We’re quite literally fugitives of the state.” - “So no pizza?”

“You’re insane.” - “People keep telling me that.”

“You’re pretty.” - “You’re drunk.”

“I told you I’d come home to you.”

“I’ll keep you safe.”

“I didn’t think it was possible to love someone this much.”

[paigesmaze]

hi!! could i please request an illinois x reader with 65 and 83, semi-fluffy where the reader and illy are looking for something in a supposedly haunted old building and illinois keeps making fun of them for latching onto him and jumping at every little sound? thank you so much for your time, have an excellent day :]

Ghost Hunters

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader): Illinois is always busy trying to find his next adventure. When he decides to try out ghost hunting, he invites you, his best friend, along. And it seems as if Illinois knows exactly how to reveal your feelings.

A/N: Thank you for the request, Anon! I had so much fun writing this, it is so fluffy. If there are any other requests, please don't hesitate to submit them. Enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 4,204

Why you had ever agreed to tag along on the trips Illinois would often take was a mystery to you. The adventurer seemed to have absolutely no fears and would travel anywhere if it meant that he could potentially discover some new treasure, even if that meant throwing himself into near-death situations daily.

Maybe you went with him so he wouldn’t get himself killed, or maybe it was because you cherished him more than you cared to admit. Over the years, the man had come to hold a special place in your heart. And even if he didn’t want to admit it, you were his closest companion. Sure, he’d had partners in the past who he looked after, but he never felt as close with someone as he had with you. He would jump at any opportunity to have you nearby when he went exploring, wanting to share every little detail with you. You found it adorable, especially when he would go on and on about the history of his treasures. It was like his words were coming out faster than his brain could even process what he was saying, and though most people would say he was hard to keep up with, you always understood everything he was saying. You hung onto every word he spoke as if it was the most fascinating information you’d ever hear. Though, you’d never actually let it show that you felt that way, as it would surely cause a rift in your already existing friendship.

But there was nothing like seeing him excited about going on another trip, which is why you didn’t hesitate when he asked if you wanted to go on a road trip to Kentucky to visit some haunted hospital he had come across.

In an attempt to “broaden his horizons,” as he put it, he wanted to attempt ghost hunting. And what better place to hunt ghosts than an old hospital where thousands of people had died a hundred years ago. So, he gathered all of his gadgets into the back of his truck, along with all of the supplies that the two of you would need for the next few days, and you were on the road. The two of you had planned to stay at a motel nearby while you spent a few days going through the hospital. The location that you were going to was called the Waverly Hills Sanatorium, a place that you’d heard close to nothing about.

The radio softly played some vaguely familiar tune as you peered out the window of the car door with your chin propped up on the palm of your hand. You let out a content sigh and shut your eyes as the breeze kissed your skin. Though the wind created a bit of a chill on your face, the shining sun left a warm glow on your face. Suddenly feeling a pair of eyes on you, you glanced towards Illinois and saw that his gaze was glued to you, an unfamiliar look on his face.

“Keep your eyes on the road, dingus,” You playfully spoke as you flicked the man in the arm softly. His eyebrows lifted a bit as he concealed a surprising look, seemingly unknowing of the fact that he had been staring at you for a fair amount of time. He laughed softly under his breath.

“God, you always have to be so mean to me, don’t you?” He joked. “You forget who you’re with. I will gladly leave you to the company of those ghosts if you keep it up, honey.”

Your cheeks felt warm at the affectionate nickname as you let out a breathy laugh. Even with the stupid insult he’d thrown your way, he still seemed to fluster you. The way that he shamelessly threw out those little pet names or the way that he would stare at you with that god-forsaken look on his face always left your mind racing. It had always been this way, you two were the best of friends and did nearly everything together. You always told yourself that Illinois was a natural flirt. He was charming and extremely handsome. Anyone could see that.

You never thought that those comments were sincere, though. You told yourself that he was just comfortable with you. You were best friends, co-adventurers, roommates, and nothing more.

You snapped out of your trance when you realized that Illinois was waiting for any kind of response from you. You shook yourself out of it and asked, “So, ghosts? What happened to finding undiscovered treasures in creepy ass caves?”

“Well, I thought that I’d branch out a little, you know? Communicate with the dead a bit, make some ghost friends,” He joked. “Plus, I spent way too much money on that equipment back there and I have got to put it to good use before I lose my mind,” He said, gesturing towards the odd contraptions in the trunk.

You chuckled as you glanced at said items in the back of the vehicle. Seeing the bright lights of the motel coming up, you were anticipating being able to finally stretch after your long six-hour journey. The few rest stops that you had taken hadn’t done much to help with the soreness you felt in your body from sitting in the same position for such a long period.

Illinois pulled into the driveway of the small building, hopping out of the truck almost immediately before hoisting as many bags as he could over his shoulder. You peered at him from your spot behind the truck, letting out a false scoff as you saw that Illinois had not only taken the equipment and his things, but he had taken your bags as well.

“Show off…” You muttered as you closed the doors and locked the vehicle. Illinois looked at you, a wide grin on his face as he waited for you to join him in traveling up to your shared room. You gathered your keys from the front desk and made your way towards the hallway of doors.

When you and Illinois arrived at your room, you quickly unlocked and opened the door, ready to sprawl out on a bed and fall asleep. Before you could even think to do so, you stopped abruptly, glancing at the arrangement of the room.

“You have got to be kidding me,” You let out a frustrated sigh. Looking at Illinois, who stood behind you, you spoke, “You booked a two-bed room, didn’t you?”

He furrowed his eyebrows and brushed past you, a hand on your arm as he walked by to view the room for himself. There he saw that there was only one bed in the room that he had booked. Looking around once more, he noticed a couch on the other side of the room and dropped the bags down in the empty space next to it.

“As much as I know how much you’d probably love to cuddle up to me all night, I can take the couch,” He smirked at you. You looked at the man, mouth agape as you desperately tried to find the words to make a comeback.

Illinois walked up to you, his face inches away as his fingers brushed your jaw. Your eyes widened, wondering what he could possibly be doing. “Close your mouth, you’ll catch flies,” He said before winking and turning away, leaving you in even more of a mess than before.

“Asshole,” You muttered as your face burned.

The two of you had finally settled down a bit for the night, and as Illinois sat writing down notes in his journal, you were on your computer researching what history the Waverly Hills Sanatorium Held. According to the things you had seen, it was an establishment created in the early 1900s as a place to treat tuberculosis, or the “White Plague,” as some had called it. The hospital was only meant to hold up to 50 people at a time, but as the plague spread, the number of patients held at a time increased. It is said that over 6,000 people died in the sanatorium. Surely, you and Illinois would have an interesting experience attempting to communicate with these people.

After a bit more research into the topic, you began to get yourself ready for bed, and Illinois doing the same. After a brief goodnight, you two finally fell asleep, anticipating what the next day would hold in the haunted hospital. You had never really believed in supernatural occurrences all that much, but it did freak you out a little that you might come into contact with something of the sort, not that you would ever admit that to Illinois. He would surely never let you live that down.

As you sat in the passenger seat again the next day, awaiting your arrival at the hospital, you pestered Illinois with questions about where the two of you would be exploring when you got there.

“So, I looked a bit more into it,” You spoke. “The sanatorium has what’s called the Death Tunnel, basically a 525-foot-long concrete tunnel where they went to dump all of the deceased bodies after people had passed. And according to all of the websites I looked at, none of those dead bodies ever came back from that tunnel. They were all burned or buried underneath the end of the structure,”

Illinois glanced at you, a bit surprised for a moment. “You really cared enough to do that much research?” He asked. You looked at him, a confused expression on your face.

“Yeah, of course,” You smiled. “You’re only like, my favorite person, of course, I care about what you’re interested in.”

He turned away from you with a small smile, his cheeks turning pink as he cleared his throat before speaking up again. “Well I’m glad you looked into it because we will be visiting the Death Tunnel, I have a ghost box that we can use to try and talk to some of the deceased that were buried or burned in that very place,”

“Is that not creepy to you in the slightest bit?” You questioned.

“That’s beside the point, we’re here,” He uttered as he parked the truck in front of the abandoned hospital. Clouds hung in the sky, a dark contrast compared to the previously bright and sunny day. You craved that type of weather now as you shivered thinking about entering the building.

You and Illinois each grabbed a bag out of the backseat and made your way up to the entrance of the sanatorium. Its doors were etched with tiny swirls and intricate lines hidden by the decaying wood of its frame. It seemed like most, if not all, of the windows had been broken, as well. Surely a product of the vacancy and break-ins that had happened on the property over the years that it had been abandoned.

Illinois turned the doorknob and swung the frame open. Small splinters of wood fell from the door as it made a loud creaking noise. You and Illinois spared a glance at each other before you spoke, “Well, I’m not going in first, there has to be so much dust in that place,” your mouth fell into a flat line as you tried to hide your panic with a lie.

After Illinois didn’t make a move to walk into the building, you spoke up again. “Are you scared?” You asked, your voice cracking a bit at the end. You cursed yourself in your head. Your plan to appear as fearless as possible might have been a bit flawed. You hadn’t even walked into the hospital yet, and you had goosebumps littering your skin just at the thought of entering.

Illinois broke the silence. “I’m not scared, but if you are, you can hold my hand,” he smiled smugly at you.

“Stop being a fucking prick,” You murmured, grabbing his larger hand in your own quickly before stepping into the building with him. Illinois was awestruck at your boldness. Sure, you two weren’t uncomfortable with touching one another, but it’s not like either of you had gone out of your way to do something so forward.

He pursed his lips together and gripped your hand a bit tighter as he felt it shaking a bit. He liked to poke fun at you sometimes, and being in a haunted building was a great opportunity to do so. But something about the situation made it feel wrong. It seemed like you were truly terrified about what would happen if you stayed in the area. And he hated the way that you nervously glanced around and the way that you tried to hide how shaky your breathing was becoming.

“Hey,” he began. When you didn’t acknowledge him, he started again, “Hey, look at me, honey,” You snapped out of it, jumping a little bit before meeting his gentle gaze. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, I mean it. I know I made all of those jokes about how you’d be too scared to go through with this, but that’s all they were, jokes. If you don’t feel comfortable here, we don’t have to stay.”

His sincerity made you want to cry. You laughed at your silliness and the predicament you were in. You didn’t even believe in ghosts, it was so stupid that you were getting so worked up about the whole situation.

“No. No, I’m okay. It’s so dumb, we can just get on with it. I know how much you were looking forward to this,” you replied. You met his eyes and nodded, further proving your statement.

“If you’re sure, then we’ll go on with it. But the second you feel like it’s too much, just tell me. And I won’t let anything bad happen to you, you know that” He smiled at you. You gave him a sheepish smile back and the both of you made further steps into the building, turning your flashlights on in the dim rooms.

“So, I was thinking we can try to take some pictures in a few rooms, scope the place out a bit. And then we can go see the Death Tunnel and try to contact some of those ghosts I was talking about,” You nodded your head at his plan. He looked at you once more, affirming that you were okay with everything as his thumb brushed against the hand that he was holding.

You felt butterflies in your stomach, a welcome sensation compared to the fear you were feeling only moments ago. Something about the way that Illinois looked at you and the way that he wanted to make sure that you were absolutely okay with the trip made you fall even further in love with him if that was even possible. You don’t even remember when you started to feel that way for the adventurer. It was like you had always known that you’d be able to trust him with everything, that he’d always be there for you and you’d always be there for him.

After taking several pictures inside of the building with the specially made cameras that Illinois had purchased, the two of you sat outside in the truck, viewing the photos that were taken.

”What exactly are we looking for in these?” You asked.

“Bright flashes or little white circles, I think they’re called orbs,” He answered, flipping through a few more pictures.

“There!” You exclaimed, pointing to a small ball of light in the corner of one of the pictures taken in one of the hospital rooms. Though you were still absolutely terrified at everything that was the Waverly Hills Sanatorium, you had to admit that it was exciting being introduced to all of these new and exciting ghost gadgets and facts. Maybe they were real, or maybe you were just finding things that didn’t mean anything. Either way, the experience was becoming much more fun than you had expected.

“It’s kind of pretty,” You said as you looked at the orb in the picture. It had a soft glow around it and it sat underneath the window in the decaying room. None the wiser to you, Illinois was staring at you as you gushed over how cool the picture was. Of course, he was passionate about his work and the things he discovered, but something about the way that you looked so happy felt so much more fascinating and enjoyable to focus on at that moment.

After you ranted for a moment about the picture, you looked up at Illinois, only to find that he was already staring at you with an endearing smile on his face. That same look he had given you on the drive to the motel.

“What?” You asked. “Is there something on my face? A cobweb? I swear, it is so insanely gross in there I wouldn’t be surprised if I had a nest of spiders on me right now.”

“No, no, there’s nothing on your face, you’re fine,” He chuckled. “We should head down the Death Tunnel. I want to try out the ghost box,”

So, you and Illinois began to travel down the short path that led to the tunnel. You had already clarified with the man how far into the tunnel you’d actually be traveling and agreed that going halfway would be far enough. You turned your flashlights on and made your way about 200 feet into the tunnel before stopping in the darkness.

Your hand still gripped Illinois’s tightly, providing a sense of comfort to both of you. Even though being in the dark tunnel proved to be extremely terrifying, knowing that your best friend was there with you helped ease the fear a bit.

He set up the ghost box quickly as the two of you made yourselves comfortable, sitting side by side against one of the walls of the tunnel. You jumped as the static of the ghost box echoed in the tunnel and filled the air.

“What I said still stands, you know. We can leave at any point, we don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Illinois reassured you.

You looked at him appreciatively and shook your head. “No, I can do this. We’re good,”

He nodded and switched the box to another setting before placing it in the center of the tunnel. A few noises were coming from the static, but you couldn’t make out any words. Your breathing picked up as you wondered what those noises really were. Were they truly ghosts? Was the machine broken? What if the machine was built to make noises on its own? Questions raced through your mind as the two of you finally heard one word.

“Out,” It spoke quietly but firmly. You two looked at each other, confirming that the two of you had heard the same thing. You both stood up, feeling a bit anxious. It spoke the word again. Then again. And again. Illinois picked up the box, fiddling with the settings a bit before you both heard a loud crash at the end of the tunnel. Both of your eyes shot open as wide as possible before the two of you bolted out of the concrete structure as fast as your legs could carry you. Adrenaline pumped through your veins and your feet pounded against the hard ground, echoing on the walls along with Illinois’s tracks behind you. You could still hear the metallic crashing sound at the end of the tunnel as the word, “Out,” echoed over and over again against the walls.

After the longest twenty seconds of your life, you and Illinois finally made it out of the tunnel, pausing shortly before you realized what had just happened.

”The truck, get to the truck,” You breathed out heavily as you began running again. Getting to the truck quickly, you two jumped in and pulled out of the driveway of the sanatorium swiftly. You and Illinois shared panicked glances as you both fought to catch your breath.

“Holy shit, what was that?” You spoke up after a minute.

“I have absolutely no idea,” Illinois replied. He seemed to be almost as freaked out as you as he had the same questions racing through his mind. Few words were spoken between the two of you as you finally made your way back to the motel, the sun setting in the distance. One more night in this place and you’d finally be able to go home. At least you wouldn’t have to visit that terrifying place again.

When you entered your shared room, you anxiously stood in front of the couch that Illinois had thrown himself down on.

“So, let me get this straight,” You started. “I’m going to pretend like we didn’t get verbally assaulted by a ghost, and I’m going to pretend that I didn’t hear metal slamming against the wall of a pitch black tunnel at a haunted hospital. That did not happen,” You paced around the room.

Illinois watched you carefully and stood up slowly, to not scare you any further.

“Honey, hey, stop,” He placed his hands on your shoulders to stop you from pacing around the room anymore. “You’re okay, we’re not there anymore. Nothing is going to happen, trust me,”

You calmed down a bit as you looked at him. You let out a deep sigh as you pressed your forehead to his chest, relaxing in his embrace. He wrapped his arms more comfortable around you and pulled you closer.

“I should have had us leave the second that I saw how nervous you were when we got into that building,” Illinois whispered, feeling like part of this was his fault for dragging you along.

“It’s not your fault, Illinois, I promise. I told you I was okay with it. You didn’t do anything wrong. Let’s just stick to finding treasure. No more ghosts, or supernatural shit, alright? I think we find ourselves in near-death situations enough already, there’s no need to mix ghosts in with that,”

Both of you chuckled as he pulled away from you, nodding. “You’re right, I think ending up in monkey heaven is much better than dying at the hands of an angry ghost,”

“Who knew that ghost hunting could be so tiring?” You groaned as you planted yourself face down on the bed. Illinois chuckled at you quietly before making his way towards the bathroom to get himself ready for bed.

You two made yourselves comfortable. You laid on the bed while Illinois remained on the couch. You tossed and turned for nearly an hour. The room was dark, and all of the lights were off, save for the dim lamp that Illinois had opted to keep on near the entrance of the room. Every creak you heard from the walls, and every noise that the neighboring guests made caused a surge of panic to rise in you each time.

“Illinois, are you awake?” You whispered. Nothing but silence filled the room for a moment, leading you to believe that Illinois was already asleep. You turned once more to try and find a new position that would hopefully help you fall asleep before you heard a reply.

“Yeah, I’m up. You can’t sleep either?” Illinois asked groggily. You heard some shuffling around before you replied with a quiet, “No.”

Just as you were about to turn to face him on the couch, you felt a dip in the bed before his arms snaked around your waist, pulling you towards him. You froze up for a moment before relaxing in his arms and letting out a content sigh.

You turned around in his arms, meeting his gaze. You waited for a moment, wondering if you should say anything. Before you could even think, you started speaking.

“You know what’s stupid?” You asked Illinois. He hummed, urging you to continue. “The only time that I felt like everything was really okay today was when you were holding my hand. I don’t know. It was strangely comforting.” You looked away from him as you anticipated his reply. His arms tightened around your waist comfortingly.

“That’s not stupid,” He began. “You know, that was all you. The hand holding. I’ve got to say, I was a bit shocked when you did that. Blatant flirting is usually my thing,” He chuckled.

“What? I, I was not flirting, I was just-” You started, sputtering out nonsense. You were cut off by his lips meeting yours in a gentle kiss, his lips brushing yours gently. Once you realized what was happening, you quickly kissed him back, eagerly sealing your lips to his as you wrapped your arms around his neck, one hand tangled in his hair. Illinois chuckled into the kiss before the two of you hesitantly pulled away from each other with grins on your faces.

“You’re cute when you ramble, did you know that?” He mumbled.

You groaned at him while he laughed at your antics and pulled you closer to him, tucking you gently underneath his chin before pressing a kiss to the crown of your head.

Maybe joining him on these trips wasn’t so bad after all.

[paigesmaze]

#94 and #95 with part1 space Mark comforting the reader after they confide in him about all the loops and not being able to sleep because of it

Hold On (Head Engineer!Mark x Reader)

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader): Loop after loop, all you wanted to do was rest. You were tired of the running. The fighting. The dying. And you wanted Mark to be safe. After finding him time and time again, you just wanted to be safe with him and stick together. He hadn’t held up that end of the deal with you. So, the two of you found yourselves at the end of space and time, desperate to find a solution to end the madness, and rest. All you had to do, was hold on.

A/N: Thanks for the request, Anon! If there are any other requests from anybody, feel free to leave them in the Ask box. Enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 905

“Please. Let me go. I know I can fix it. I know there’s a perfect solution. I just have to find it!” Mark screamed as the warp core above him was attempting to drag him into another timeline.

“Please, Y/N, let me go. You have to let me go!” He pleaded, fear encompassing his eyes. You looked at him, eyebrows furrowed in sadness as you shook your head. You weren’t going to let him go. Not after all you’d been through together. The plan was to stick together. Don’t let each other get hurt and don’t let each other go.

And you weren’t letting go.

You ignored Mark’s pleas as you snatched the crystal out of the contraption that Mark created. In almost an instant, the portal closed, leaving Mark behind. He fell onto the ground next to you, panting.

“Paradox resolved. Paradox resolved. Paradox resolved,” The computer repeated in the background. It came to a gradual halt as Mark began to realize what you had done.

“No, no, no. What have you done? You destroyed us. You destroyed everything. This was our last chance to fix things and it’s gone. I spent an eternity in hell rebuilding this stupid machine, and you threw it all away!”

“I don’t know if you’re evil or just stupid,” You flinched as Mark stepped closer to you, betrayal and anger dripping from his words. You knew he was hurt. But you did the right thing. You made the right choice. Mark continued his rant.

“If I’m not back there to fix it...” He began, the realization finally settling in. “If I’m not back there, then the warp core is not back. I thought-I thought I rebuilt it because you destroyed it. Unless...I built the warp core? I sent it back?” Shock and horror came over his face as he realized the truth. He slid down to the floor.

“I built it. It was my fault,” His eyes began to gloss over with tears.

“I...” You began as tears fell from your eyes. Your mouth hung open as you desperately tried to find the right words to say. You knelt down to where he was on the ground. “I couldn’t let you go, Mark. I can’t lose you. And this isn’t your fault. You didn’t mean for any of this to happen. We can still fix it. But we have to stick together. I need you to promise me that. I can’t lose the one person that I love most in this entire, stupid universe. God, I didn’t think it was possible to love someone this much, but you make me do crazy things. You make me want to sacrifice every single thing for you because I love you and I can’t stand seeing you hurt or in pain. You have to understand that. Please,”

Looking up at him, you saw that he was looking down at his hands. For a moment, you were worried that he was still angry at you. That he had still thought you’d betrayed him. But instead, when you tried to make eye contact with him again, you were tackled into a desperate embrace as Mark held onto you like his life depended on it.

“Y/N, I’m so sorry. God, I’m sorry. This is all my fault and I should’ve realized it sooner. I should’ve been there with you, by your side the whole time. But I left you alone and I won’t let that happen again. I’ll keep you safe, I promise. You’re my star, and you’re right. You’re always right,” He chuckled as he stroked your hair and pressed haste kisses along the crown of your head.

You squeezed him back just as tightly as you cried into his shoulder, glad to finally be safe with him. Neither of you were in danger anymore. He fell back against the wall of the ship, pulling you with him as you collapsed in his arms. You were so tired. Tired of running. Fighting. Dying.

Mark’s hands held you tightly as he rocked you back and forth in his arms.

“I’m-” he began. “I’m just so damn tired. I don’t know when the last time I slept was. I don’t know if I’ve slept at all. Have you?” He took your chin in his hands and gazed down at your tear-stained face. You shook your head. You felt like you hadn’t slept in years.

“I’m so sorry, my star. I thought that the only way to stop this was to stop you, stop all of this from happening in the first place. But it was me. It was me. All those mistakes, all those lifetimes, all the people. I guess I lost hope. But you didn’t,” He gave you a warm smile and brushed a strand of hair out of your face, his hand coming to rest on your cheek. You smiled back up at him, leaning into his soft touch. You were finally home. He felt like home.

“It’s all going to be okay. Whatever happens, we’ll stick together,” Mark whispered. “You can sleep, now, star. You need it.”

You and Mark stayed there for hours, wrapped in each others’ arms, finally safe and protected from the harsh realities of the universe. And whatever came next, you knew that the two of you would be okay. So long as you had each other, and so long as you just held on.

[paigesmaze]

“We can go to the carnival. Share cotton candy, maybe even hold hands 👀”

[paigesmaze]

I'm not sure if I've already requested or not but I love your Illinois work and I'm craving more. So Illinois x reader where Illinois is reassuring us that he does genuinely like us back. Another idea if thats not good is us reassuring him that we won't die like the rest of his partners. The rest is up to you, setting included.

Treasure (Illinois x Reader)

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader) Early one morning while making breakfast, you ponder over your friendship with Illinois and begin to question his flirty remarks. You are completely infatuated with the man and finally confront him about what the two of you really are.

A/N: Thank you for the request, Peachy! I’m so glad that you enjoyed my other work, that means a lot. I am atrociously down bad for Illinois so this fic has me twirling my hair and giggling lmao. If there are any other requests, please don’t hesitate to submit them. I am working on a few other fics right now for other requests that I have gotten, so if you are waiting, they will be out soon! Thanks for your patience and enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 1,356

“Good morning, sweetheart,” You heard Illinois’s voice ring through the kitchen as you flipped another pancake onto the plate next to the stove. You mumbled back a quiet greeting and endearingly rolled your eyes at the overused nickname. It seemed like Illinois’s only goal was to fluster you at every chance he got. And it worked. He most certainly knew the effect he had on you, the power that he held over your emotions. A flirty comment from him could leave you exuding happiness for a week straight. You hid your giddiness well as to not embarrass yourself.

For months, you had been pining over the adventurer. He’d given little clues that he was interested in you, but he did that with everyone. Hell, he even thought the other egos in the manor were infatuated with him. So you told yourself that you weren’t a special case. He didn’t truly feel anything for you, it was just his flirtatious personality.

And you were stuck yearning for him and silently hoping that he reciprocated your feelings. It seemed as if you two had been dancing along the line between friends and more for a while. Every time you and Illinois would get romantically close again, you would pull away in fear that he didn’t actually feel anything other than platonically for you.

So you resorted to staying friends. Friends who flirted on a near constant basis. Well, friend. He seemed to be the one doing most of the flirting with his constant remarks and the sweet little nicknames that he would pepper into his incessant teasing. Each time you would try to mock him back, you ended up in a puddle of embarrassment. He claimed it was adorable, just another one of his jabs at your heart. You seemed to feel a sense of false hope often when it came to the man.

You never knew if he was actually serious about his intimate gestures with you. The brushing of your hands when you walked side by side, or the random hugs that lasted just a moment too long to be considered friendly left you confused. He was a charming soul. He captured everyone’s attention, and he enjoyed giving them attention right back. Which is why you didn’t feel special when he acted close with you. Maybe that was just his personality, maybe he wasn’t interested in you at all.

Lost in thought, you hadn’t realized that you were burning one of the pancakes you were cooking. Cursing under your breath, you quickly tossed it in the trash, letting out a heaving sigh as you shook your head at your mindlessness.

Illinois looked up at you from where he sat at the island, his eyebrows knit in concern. He stood up and walked towards where you had been previously standing in front of the stove, pouring another spoonful of batter onto the pan.

“Oh, Illinois, you don’t have to do that,” You spoke as you gently pushed his arm aside, trying to take your previous spot in the room back. He shook his head, grabbing the hand that tried to push him out of the way. He held it gently, rubbing soothing circles on the back.

“Are you feeling okay today?” He asked. You looked at him, feigning confusion.

“Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t I be? I get to hang out with my favorite adventurer,” You joked, trying to hide the fact that not a minute ago you were having an existential crisis over your foolish infatuation with the man in front of you.

He let go of your hand, opting to wrap his arm around your waist instead, pulling you into his side as he flipped another pancake onto the plate.

“You just seem a little distracted today, is there something bothering you? You know I love you too much, I will send someone to monkey hell if they’re giving you a problem, sweetheart,” He laughed, referring to the time where you two had been stuck in monkey heaven during the adventure where the two of you had met. You tried to force a smile as your eyes drifted towards the floor. He just casually said that he loved you like it didn’t make you all giddy inside.

“I hate that I can’t tell whether you’re joking or not,” You spoke before you could even process the thought going through your head.

“About what?” Asked Illinois, amusement in his tone. He finished making the pancakes as he sat the towering stack on the counter, pulling all of his attention towards you. He fully faced you, putting his other arm around your waist and dragging you closer to him.

“It’s just...” You began. God, why was it so hard to simply say how you felt? You felt your eyes began to well with tears as you tried to explain yourself, scared of rejection.

“Hey, hey, hey,” He spoke in a hushed, comforting voice. “It’s okay, I promise I’m not going to be upset at you, whatever it is,”

You looked at him, sniffling quietly before resting your forehead on his chest. “It’s so stupid,” you chuckled lightly. He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into a protective hold. His warm touch made you melt completely into him as you relaxed, his scent calming you as you took deep breaths in.

After a moment, you finally pulled back a bit, glancing at him. He was staring directly back at you, and when your eyes met his, he gave you a soft, reassuring smile.

“No one’s every made me feel like this,” You began, chucking at the situation your were in. He rubbed his hands along your back, allowing you to continue. “You make me feel like I’m important to you. Like you enjoy being with me. And I know you make everyone feel that way. I mean, you’re amazing. You’re smart and curious and funny and charismatic and-and I’m just feeding into your ego, but what I’m trying to tell you is that you mean a lot to me. You’re my everything and I can’t get enough of you. And when you joke about saying that you love me it just makes me feel like we’re never going to be like that.”

Illinois gazed at you with an unreadable expression on his face for a moment, processing your words. He leaned down, pressing a soft kiss on your forehead before speaking.

“There is no way this much stupid can fit inside one person,” He joked. You pulled away in shock, staring up at him with wide eyes. He laughed, gently grabbing you and tugging you back towards his frame.

“Let me finish, let me finish,” He chuckled. “You are so important to me you really have no idea. I mean, do you see how often I stare at you? It’s honestly stalker-ish, sweetheart. You make me so happy. I really do mean it when I say that I love you. That’s not a joke,”

He finished his statement, looking into your eyes with a loving gaze. With both of your hearts beating faster and faster, he slowly dipped his head down and captured your lips in a tender kiss, embracing you even closer, if it was possible.

“You mean the world to me, sweetheart. You’re my little treasure, don’t ever forget that. And don’t ever doubt my love for you,” As you were about to lean in for another kiss, Wilford came waltzing into the kitchen, clearly being lured into the area by the aroma of pancakes filling the mansion.

Quickly attempting to pull away from Illinois in embarrassment, Wilford gave you a knowing look, smirking at you. Illinois swiftly pulled you back towards him, holding you from behind with your back pressed against his chest.

“Somebody’s in love!” Wilford exclaimed, throwing every topping in the kitchen on top of his plate of pancakes. You groaned quietly in protest as your face turned crimson. Illinois laughed at you, not letting you go. After all, he had finally gotten hold of the most precious treasure he would find in his lifetime, you, his sweetheart, and his little treasure.

[paigesmaze]

Prompts 3,17 and 47 with Illinois? Please?

"If you die, I'm gonna kill you" (Illinois x Reader)

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader) Illinois drags you along on one of his crazed adventures, this time in a rocky canyon. The two of you come across a dangerous path that you must cross, and a near-death experience brings the two of you closer than expected.

Prompts #3, #17, and #47: "I almost lost you," "If you die, I'm gonna kill you," and "Don't call me that." Mostly fluff with a bit of angst in the middle.

A/N: Thank you for the request Anon! It's much appreciated. If anyone has any requests, feel free to leave them in the Ask box. I have a few right now that I will try to write as soon as possible. Enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 1,431

“Pick up the pace, sweetheart. We don’t have all day,” Illinois’s voice echoed off the tall, rocky boulders surrounding you. He decided earlier that day that he would drag you along on one of his crazed artifact-searching adventures. This time you ended up in a large canyon that seemed never-ending.

“Don’t call me that,” You mumbled as your face crimsoned. Always the flirt, Illinois turned his head and shot you a wink from a few steps ahead. You rolled your eyes, attempting to cover the small smile that overtook your face.

You would never admit that his amorous antics ever got to you, and you definitely wouldn’t be caught dead admitting that you constantly felt a burning desire to be with him. He wasn’t even interested in you, you had convinced yourself. Hell, the first time you’d met the man, he wouldn’t stop blabbering about how you would likely fall in love with him because “They always do.” He was an egotistical prick, but he was your egotistical prick. The one who you’d spent months pining over. But you were only his friend, his pal, his partner in crime. You were there to explore and go on adventures with him, not make an absolute fool of yourself by falling for him.

You took a few fast-paced steps forward to catch up with the confident adventurer. He glanced over, tilting one of his eyebrows up towards you in a ridiculing manner.

“What? Can’t stand being apart from me for too long?” He teased, nudging your arm. You avoided eye contact and instead locked your eyes on the mountainous layers of multi-colored rocks surrounding the path that the two of you followed.

“No, just looking for a way to get this ‘adventure’ over with sooner,” You smirked, poking fun at him. He gasped, putting his hand over his heart as he feigned offense, a faux pout taking over his expression.

You chuckled, swatting his arm down gently. He flashed a charming grin at you as he wrapped said arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer to his larger frame. Your laugh slowly came to an end as you quite literally stopped breathing. No matter how many flirty comments or touches he initiated, you always felt those butterflies in your stomach. You wanted to hate it, to hate that you were absolutely infatuated with the man, but you couldn’t bring yourself to not long for him to be yours.

Illinois glanced at the map held in his free hand as the two of you continued walking. You looked over, observing all of the small marks and scribbles on the crinkled, cream-colored paper. There were stars drawn in red, likely checkpoints for the explorer. You watched as his eyebrows knitted together in concern and he stopped walking, drawing you towards him with the arm that was slung around your form. He let out a heavy sigh and examined the rugged environment.

You sent him a questioning face, wondering why he was so concerned while studying the map. “Well, it looks like we’re not going to be able to take this path for much longer, sweetheart. It gets real narrow up ahead, so stay close, and be careful. One wrong step and you’ll fall all the way down...” His eyes widened as he pointed his finger towards the terrifyingly dark depths below you, “there.”

“Just remember, stay cool as a cucumber and you’ll be just fine,” he emphasized as the two began hiking along the path again. “Oh, and if you die, I’m gonna kill you. I can’t lose my sweetheart,” He winked. Of course, he found a way to throw that sickeningly cute nickname into a spiel about death.

“Well, I can’t lose my favorite explorer, either. So be careful,” You smiled at him. For a moment, you could’ve sworn that you saw Illinois blush at your comment.

You two were slowly coming up to the thin, crumbling rock path ahead. It seemed to extend itself to the other side of the normal path for about 50 feet. Its width couldn’t have been more than a foot, and directly next to the wall, there was a pit that contained stacks upon stacks of pointy, reddish-brown rocks. You would surely never make it out alive if you were to fall into the abyss.

Illinois must have sensed your nervousness, as his hand slowly came to rest on your back, his thumb drawing small circles across your shoulder blade in an attempt to provide you with a sense of comfort. You paused for a moment, leaning into his touch and taking a much-needed deep breath. You suddenly snapped out of your trance, remembering the situation at hand. You stepped ahead of the man who held your adoration.

“Are you sure you want to go ahead of me?” Illinois asked. You nodded, trying to appear much more self-assured than you truly were. You took a small step forward, getting an idea of how difficult it would be to get across the canyon safely. As if safely was even an option. It felt like if you had put even an ounce too much pressure on the rocks, they would disintegrate beneath your feet. As carefully as possible, you pressed yourself against the wall of the path while shuttling, as to not fall. Illinois cautiously followed after you, feeling the rocks rumble beneath him as he took short steps.

There came a point in the path which seemed extremely delicate, only about ten feet away from where you began. You had no idea how you were going to make it across the whole wall of rock without dying. Putting some pressure on the surface with your shoe, you saw small pebbles and dust make their way down the wall, disappearing into the darkness. You didn’t want to give up now, as you had only just begun, so you decided to put all of your weight down on the space.

Suddenly, the path crumbled underneath you, and, in that split second, you screamed as your hands tried desperately to grip onto anything near you. Illinois’s hand was swiftly thrown towards you as you searched for anything to grab onto. One hand caught the edge of the wall and the other was being held up by the explorer as the rest of your body hung directly above the dimness below you.

“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,” you repeated over and over again, the panic overcame you as you quickly came to and processed your narrowly missed death.

Illinois was downright terrified as he gripped your hand as tight as he possibly could.

“(Y/N), listen to me, you’re going to be okay, sweetheart. Just hold on, alright?” He carefully helped pull you up back onto the wall and immediately pulled the two of you back onto the solid ground, a few feet away from where you had fallen.

The two of you collapsed on the ground, holding each other tightly as you caught your breath.

“Oh my god, I almost lost you,” he whispered repeatedly as he held you close to his chest, protectively embracing you.

“Illinois,” you said his name softly, squeezing him tightly, grounding yourself to reality. You didn’t die. You were alive. You and Illinois were alive and safe. When he kept talking, you repeated his name in a more audible voice.

“I almost lost you, I’m so sorry, we shouldn’t have taken that path, I should’ve found a different way, I shouldn’t have put you in danger like tha-”

“Illinois!” You shouted. He quickly looked at you, thinking that you were hurt or mad at him. You held the sides of his face in the palms of your hands, forcing his eyes to meet yours. “I’m okay. I’m here. You saved me Illinois, I’m here and alive because of you,”

“But I almost didn’t. You could’ve died, (Y/N). I can’t lose you. I-,” He paused. “I love you and I can’t lose you,”

You were awe-stricken as you stared into his eyes. Your breath was caught in your throat and you were unable to say anything for a moment. He looked at you, silently pleading you to say something, anything at all.

“Illinois, I love you too. And you didn’t lose me, I’m here. I’m not going anywhere,” You smiled warmly at him as he gazed down at you affectionately. He pulled you closer to him, if that was even possible, as he pressed a kiss to your temple.

“I promise I won’t let anything bad happen to you ever again, sweetheart,”

[paigesmaze]

can you do prompt #1, #63 and #72 for noir mark

(try your best for your writing, so thank you and have a good day )

A Melodramatic Love (Noir!Mark x Reader)

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader) After looping through realities among the multiverse time and time again, all you wanted to do was find your way back to Mark, your Mark. Your lovely, lunatic of an engineer who you had spent what felt like years trying to find. In past universes, you were met with Marks who didn’t remember you, didn’t know who you were. Finally, you find Mark in what seems to be a film noir. Finally, you found your Mark, and you never plan on losing him again.

Prompts #1, #63, and #72: “Come over here and make me.”, “God, I love you.”, and “Is this okay?” Basically just tooth-rotting Fluff.

A/N: Thank you for the request, Anon. It's greatly appreciated, and I hope you have a good day/night, as well! If there are any more requests from anyone, please be sure to leave them in the Ask box. Enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 1,373

“Another day, another crisis,” the Computer spoke. You stepped out of your cryo-pod, drink in hand. Your surroundings appeared gray and dull, not a hint of color in sight. The light coming from the oh-so-skillfully placed window in the ship glowed a bright white as you gauged the area. You were yet again stuck in another loop of trying to find Mark. Your Mark.

“Current ship status, broken. Just like my marriage.” The Computer continued as you swirled the vibrant gray liquid around the reflective sides of your glass. You wondered how you ended up in this reality out of all of the possible places the wormhole could take you.

Suddenly, you heard air hiss as the cryo-pod across the room gently swung open. Out walked Mark, or some version of Mark, his cynical appearance throwing you off a bit. During the past, however long it had been, you and Mark had been through hell and back. You had found him, lost him, died in front of him, and watched him die. After everything all you wanted to do was curl up in his arms and forget whatever torturous loop the two of you seemed to be trapped in. You wondered if this Mark had remembered all that had happened to you both.

You took a moment to gaze at him. He was clad in slacks and a slick white button down. A tie was thrown lazily around his collar and his suit coat swayed behind him as he continued taking slow steps towards the control panel. When you met his eyes, his eyebrow tilted upwards towards you as a sly smirk took over his expression. Your face burned dark gray from embarrassment as you realized that the man in front of you noticed the way that you were very obviously checking him out. Attempting to distract him from your ogling, you approached the control panel, trying to make it seem as if you were doing something to fix the ship.

“Here I am again, back for another ride on the merry-go-round of life,” You glanced at Mark, and it was as if his thoughts were being projected into thin air. His lips remained pressed in a thin line as he raised his glass towards you, yet you could audibly hear his thoughts as if he was talking directly to you. You raised yours glass at him, reciprocating his odd gesture. You were almost a bit relieved to have ended up in a sort of stylish Hollywood crime drama. It was certainly a welcomed change of pace compared to the constant panic you had found yourself in previously.

Mark’s thoughts continued to make themselves present in the room. “Am I immortal? Am I some kind of God? Or was this just another cruel game leading you on with beautiful promises only to stab you in the back and leave you for dead?” You watched as he gently took steps towards the window of the room, looking angelic as his form cast a shadow over you, staring up at him. According to his monologue, it seemed as if this Mark had remembered your adventures together, your wits, your jokes, your bonding. He glanced at you, giving you a soft smile. This was your Mark. A very dated version of your friend who you were secretly enamored with. You smiled back at him.

“Whatever it was, at least the company is nice,” Mark’s narration continued as he took a step in your direction, his steps gracefully matching the soft jazz music that lilted through the space.

Tilting his head, he spoke, “Well, it seems like that didn’t work out so good for us, eh, Captain? Oh, well. You can’t win them all.” He batted his fist against the control panel to emphasize his point. The Computer’s utterance rang across the ship.

“All problems solved. Well, not all problems. Not the problem of my broken heart, oh no. Some problems can’t be fixed with the swing of a fist, no matter how strong you are. When the love of your life tears you to pieces, well, that’s a wound that just won’t heal. The kind of wound that leads you down-” The Computer was cut off as Mark slammed his fist down against the panel again, harder this time, and the voice stopped. Your eyes ricocheted off of him, a twinge of amusement in your eyes as he smugly looked down at you. As if nothing had happened, he continued his soliloquy, this time out loud, seeking a response from you.

“The Captain looked right through me with those baby gray eyes, the kind of look that could kill, and the kind of looks that could kill to match.”

“Oh, hush,” You shyly chuckled as your hands fiddled around with one another and your eyes met the ground, desperate to find a distraction from the gorgeous ego in front of you. You heard his feet shuffle around the floor as your gaze remained glued to the floor.

“Come over here and make me,” Mark spoke. You could almost hear the smug smile in the inflection of his voice. His confidence made you doubt yourself a bit as you approached him slowly. You tilted your head upwards to glance at him, only to find him staring directly back at you, an endearing look in his eyes.

His lips curled upward in a sly smile as he took in your appearance. Your hands were clasped together, an attempt to ground yourself to reality as you were trying to stay present, in the moment, and not get lost in the eyes of the 1940s-esque man in front of you. A dark blush was spread across the back of your neck, at the tips of your ears, and along the structure of your face.

“How adorable,” You heard. Mark’s eyes widened for a moment, his thoughts being narrated by whatever universe you were in. Inhaling deeply, he became intently focused on the glass in his hand, trying to pass off his embarrassment. You stood in front of him, lips parted in a state of shock. Snapping out of your trance, you placed your glass down on a table nearby, taking Mark’s out of his hand as well.

He looked up in surprise as you approached him slowly, lessening the space between the two of you at gradual pace. One of your hands came up to gently caress his cheek as you breathed him in, the scent of vanilla, wine, and what you could only describe as him filling your senses. His hands came to rest on your waist as he drew you closer.

“Is this okay?” He questioned gently. You nodded towards him, taking all of him in, the way he felt under your hands, the way he was gazing into your eyes. Surprising both of you, you quickly dragged Mark’s head down to capture his lips. He hummed into your lips, a small chuckle escaping him. He pulled away for a moment, the loss of contact leaving you yearning for more, before swiftly bringing you into another series of gentle, sweet kisses.

The two of you gently pulled apart, your hands still grasping onto each other, fearing that you might lose each other if you let go. “Eager, are we?” You laughed at Mark as he pulled you into a tender embrace, the warmth from his body enveloping you in affection.

“God, I love you,” he whispered into your ear, squeezing you close to him. You tilted your head up, pressing light kisses to his neck.

“Do you really mean that?” You asked him, pulling away to look him in the eyes. He looked at you like you were the brightest star he’d ever seen.

“Of course I mean it,” He kissed you again.

“Well, I love you to the moon and back,” You said. A laugh bubbled out of his chest as he pressed chaste kisses to any part of your skin he could access, still holding you close, never wanting to let you go.

Wherever the two of you would end up in the merciless loop of time and realities, you knew that you always had each other to find, to look forward to, and to love.

[paigesmaze]

Sleepless Nights (Darkiplier x Reader)

AO3

Summary: (Gender-Neutral Reader) Due to your sleeplessness, you find yourself in the presence of Dark and his office in the late hours of the night, and he begins to grow a soft spot for you. You find comfort in being around the ego. What happens when he stops showing up?

Prompt #11: “I think I’m in love with you and I’m terrified.” Fluff with a pinch of Angst.

A/N: This is the first fic that I’ve ever written, so please share any critiques or feedback that you may have. Enjoy, Loves! :)<3

Word Count: 1,128

It was yet another sleepless night in the Manor, where all you seemed to do was roll around under your covers, desperate to coax your body into sleep. You had spent hours trying to tire yourself out by reading, meditating, listening to music, but nothing was helping.

You decided to distract yourself from your misery and made your way downstairs to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. As you turned the stove on, you saw a lamp in the living room click on and illuminate the space. Footsteps began to make their way towards you as you filled the tea kettle with water. Looking to see who was coming, you were surprised to see Dark in the doorway.

You and Dark had become close companions during your time at the Manor. It began one night, when you had not so surprisingly found yourself unable to sleep. You had been pacing around the halls outside of your bedroom, near Dark’s office, when he opened his door to investigate the soft pattering coming from outside of his study. He was met with you turning on your heel to do another lap around the hall. You looked up, panicked, and began profusely apologizing for disturbing the man during such late hours.

He had secretly found your sincerity endearing, and invited you into his office, claiming that if it was “the only thing that would get you to stop pacing around his door”, then he would allow you to stay in the room with him and occupy yourself with the mountain of books on his shelves.

So, for months, when you couldn’t sleep, you found yourself seated on the sofa in front of the fireplace of Dark’s study while he worked. During this time, you two had found yourselves growing closer. You had become his soft spot, and the other egos in the house had taken notice to this.

After your meeting that night, the egos noticed that Dark’s presence began to brighten. Though he was still his cold self, he seemed to be a bit more laid back. He wasn’t always on guard and he looked genuinely happy to be around you. The two of you would often be found not-so-subtly pressed up against one another reading in the bay window of the living room.

At night, he would stop his work while you were in his office so that he could read alongside you on the other end of the sofa, with the fire illuminating you both. This would lead to quick  conversation. Soon you found yourselves discussing your pasts, your fears, and your dreams with one another. You quickly found yourself falling for the ego, and tried your best to hide this from him, as to not ruin what the two of you already had.

But for the past week, it seemed as if Dark had been avoiding the space, avoiding you, all together. Each evening that you made your way to his office, he was never there. Instead, he had made his way directly to his bedroom after dinner with the egos and yourself every night. So, you had resorted to your old habits when you couldn’t sleep. The ones that always led to you being bored out of your mind. That led to your current predicament in the kitchen, standing in front of the stove, waiting for the water inside of the tea kettle to boil. Dark stood leaning against the door frame, his eyes observing your figure as you placed your cup down on the counter. You glanced at him, noticing how he wasn’t wearing his suit coat, and how the buttons at the top of his shirt were undone. 

You looked at him, giving a small smile. He only gazed back at you with an unreadable expression on his face. The normally cold and confident ego had seemed almost nervous as he walked further into the room, reaching above you to grab a cup for himself, the palm of his other hand softly brushing the small of your back as he did so.

You tensed up as you felt that funny feeling in your stomach. You hadn’t talked with him in over a week and yet he was acting like nothing had happened, like he wasn’t avoiding you at every turn.

The high pitched whistle of the tea kettle rang in your ears as you moved to quickly shut the stove off and began to pour the water into both cups. Dark mumbled a quiet thanks.

“Where have you been?” you asked, turning to look at him, the space between the two of you barely there. Dark hadn’t spoken so much as a word to you since he stopped appearing in his office at night. He remained quiet as his eyes drifted towards the floor. 

“It’s just...You’ve been avoiding me. It’s like you don’t even want me arou-”

“No,” Dark interrupted. “That’s not it. I wouldn’t ever not want you around” he sighed. He looked up from the ground, meeting your eyes once again.

He slowly grabbed your hands in his, rubbing his thumb along your knuckles, the outline of red and blue glitching around his arms against his pale skin. Your face burned red.

“I’ve come to a realization lately and I haven’t known how to approach you. I do want you around. I want you around always. I like it when you’re with me, when we’re together”

His rambles were interrupted by him clearing his throat, obviously embarrassed at his small rant, as he was trying to keep up his hardened exterior. You squeezed his hands and quickly asked, “Why have you been avoiding me lately. Did I do something wrong?”

“I think I’m in love with you and I’m terrified” he stated. You stood in shock, dropping his hands. His expression turned to one of hurt as he glanced away, taking a step back.

You swiftly stepped towards him, connecting your lips together in a sweet, slow kiss. You breathed him in, feeling his skin under your hands. He moved his hands to cradle your head, pulling you even closer. His aura radiated red and blue light as you moved you arms around his broad back.

Pulling away and leaning towards your ear he whispered, “So I take it you feel the same way?” You felt his lips curl into a smile as a laugh left your lips. You nodded and pulled him into a warm embrace. He held you to his chest, pressing a kiss to your temple.

Thanks to your sleepless antics, you had found your way into Dark’s arms as the two of you made your way back up to his office, finding comfort in the familiarity of the place that you called home.