Pairing: Dad!Javi Peña x Reader ft oc Isabella Peña
Summary: Javi Peña is a Dad.
Word Count: 247
Warnings: Fluff.
A/N: You guys voted and this one won the vote. Thank you so much to my beautiful and talented friend @pascalispunkczechia for writing this beautiful piece to go with this moodboard. I’m so glad to have gotten to work with you again! It’s one of my favorite things to do!
He’s sitting at the kitchen table like he does every night, sleeves rolled up, pretending he’s reading something important. He’s not. He’s listening.
You’re in the other room with the baby. Soft little sounds. A tiny laugh. Water running for bath time.
He doesn’t move at first. Then he stands anyway. He pauses in the doorway when he sees you - kneeling by the tub, smiling down, hair falling into your face. Your daughter, Isabel, kicking, happy, completely unaware of how much of him is wrapped around her tiny fingers.
Javi swallows. “Need help?” he asks, but his voice is already softer than usual.
You glance up. “You can dry her.”
He nods like that’s the most serious assignment he’s ever been given.
Later, she’s wrapped in a towel and he’s holding Isabel like she’s made of glass. Careful. Focused. A little overwhelmed. “She’s got your eyes,” he mutters.
You smile. “She’s got your stubbornness.”
He huffs at that, but he doesn’t argue.
When Isabel finally falls asleep and you’re both standing over the crib, the house is quiet again, he slips his arm around your waist. Not dramatic. Not big. Just there.
“You’re good at this,” you whisper.
He shakes his head a little. “Nah.” But he leans down and presses his forehead to yours. “Couldn’t do it without you,” he says. And this time, he means it in a way that makes your chest ache.
And he stays there a second longer. Like he’s memorizing it.
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Warning: Slight Swearing, A Slap, Death, Talks of Death, Tuberculosis, Taking Herbs
Word Count: 0.9K
Synopsis: Tommy goes to bed in one place and wakes up in another. He isn’t sure it’s real.
Notes: Divider is made by the beautiful @firefly-graphics; I know nothing about gems, but I did google and read my mother’s gemstone book, so please don’t come for me.
Tommy wasn’t sure how it happened. He went to bed in his vardo in the middle of nowhere and woke up in the middle of the forest, Estella, his beautiful gorgeous wife sitting beside a fire. His beautiful dead wife, the one Tommy had just laid to rest just two months ago. When he first saw Estella, he thought it was just another vision his war-damaged brain conjured up again, but when she hugged him from behind, Tommy felt her lips on his neck and smelled the flowers on her skin. He knew it was his Estella.
“So this is heaven, eh? I’ve got to say I never really believed in such a place. The closest I ever got to believing was when we were together, but this, this must be it, if we are together again.” Tommy grabbed ahold of Estella around the waist and pulled her to his lap as she laughed. Her laughter was music to his ears, even years after being together. Estella threw her arms around Tommy’s neck as he placed his forehead against hers.
“Every day we were together was our little piece of heaven, but this is permeant. You’re here because you needed me. Why did you need me, Tommy?” Estella nudged their noses against one another, trying to get her husband to open his eyes to look at her. Meanwhile, Tommy felt his heart drop to the bottom of his stomach. She had to be real and not a dream or a mirage. Estella felt so real. Tommy could feel the velvet fabric of the dress she was wearing against his palms.
“Tommy, why did you ask Esme for the herbs to make you go to sleep? Why did you need me so badly?” Tommy felt a cold soft hand brush against his face. It was ice cold. It was so chilling for them to be so close to the fire, and suddenly he felt his heart breaking again. But, of course, it was not real. It was never real, to begin with.
Cold lips brushed against Tommy, pulling him from his never-ending thoughts. Tommy opened his eyes to the lips, kissing him every day and night with love and tenderness. Tommy knew this was his Estella, whom he loved and cared for.
“It’s Ruby. She got tuberculosis as well. It already took you from me. I couldn’t save you and break the fookin’ curse. The doctors don’t give her much time, but I thought if I came to you, you could do something, Estella, she’s our angel, and I can’t lose her too. I don’t think the kids could take losing their sister too.” Estella pulled Tommy into her chest. It wasn’t often her husband cried. Currently was probably one of the handfuls of times she had seen it happen, and they all had to do with their children and her. She knew this was serious, her daughter was lying in a hospital bed dying, and her husband had almost died via herb ingestion to see her.
“Here is how we’ll fix this, Tommy.” Estella pulled her husband's head back from her body so they looked each other in the eye as she wiped his tears away with the pad of her thumbs like he often did for her.
“In my jewelry box is a citrine necklace. Please take it to Esme, have her charge it, put it on Ruby, and ask her to make a balm. When you see Ruby Tommy, you must promise to wear your mask. So kids can’t lose you too.” Tommy took a deep breath, like most times when trying to keep himself from fighting with his wife.
“If it’s my time to go, it’s my time to go. The kids have Polly and Aberama. They do not need me.” Tommy’s face flung to the side as Estella slapped her husband's face. Then furious at him, she stood up and started to pace.
“Don’t you dare say that our children do not need you, Thomas Michael Shelby. You are the only parent they have left! I fought so hard to stay for all of you. Tommy, I would still be there if I could, Tommy, but I can’t. So that means it’s up to you to be both the mother and the father. You need to be the one that bandages scratches, cuddles the monsters away, settles the disputes, eases the heartaches, and most of all, has the heart to hearts. It’s okay to go to Ada, my sister, or Polly for help, but you need to be the one to do this. You are their father. Act like it, and show them you care. Don’t be like our fathers.” Estella leaned to her knees before him with her hands in his, pleading with him, tears running down her eyes.
“You will never be alone, Tommy, because I’m always going to be in your heart, because you promised to love me with all your heart, but the thing is, you couldn’t. You shared your heart with our beautiful baby boy Charlie and girls Josie, Ruby, and baby Eliza. They will always make sure you are never alone again, either.” Estella stood with Tommy’s hand in hers, yanking him to his feet. The bonfire had gone out. The air was suddenly freezing, colder than he remembered.
“I love you, Thomas Shelby.” Tommy started to look around as he began to notice the forest around them was getting darker and darker.
“I love you more, Estella.” one last lonely tear slipped down Tommy’s cheek as Estella kissed him, whispering in his ear.
Warnings: Fluff and Anxiety, No use of Y/N, some blood, but not described too much.
A/N: I know this is my second or third Sheriff! Javi Peña's piece in less than two months, but I’m obsessed with the idea of a DEA-retired Javi working as a Sheriff. Sorry, it’s been over a week since my last post. My health is a little wonky, and school comes first. Photos of Javi for the moodboard were taken by @pascalispunkczechia, who also beta-read this masterpiece. All mistakes are my dylexic butts mistakes.
Javi had been invited to help S.W.A.T and DEA serve a warrant for a known drug distributor and sex trafficker, Spyder. You didn’t know the details of this arrest warrant and didn’t want to. The things Spyder did left you lying awake at night.
You’d gone in early at six in the morning to make enough coffee for both the Sheriff's office and the DEA agents that were also assisting in the arrest. On the way in, you grabbed breakfast burritos from the local café in town. Javi thanked you with a kiss on the cheek when he saw the setup.
Spyder’s crimes weighed heavily on Javi’s shoulders. Spyder had ruined families, taken children and teens from their homes, and supplied heavily addictive drugs. Just last week at the city council meeting, a mother shared her sob story of her teenage daughter having run away from home, picked up by Spyder’s crew, and getting her hooked on drugs. Her daughter was a shell of the person she used to be. You had cried that night in Javi’s bed as he held you in his arms.
You stood in Javi’s office, watching as he pulled his protective vest over his long-sleeve sheriff's shirt. You’d been worried about what could happen and what could go wrong since Javi got the invite the day before. Your stomach twisted in knots, your palms damp with sweat from the anxiety pumping through your body. You messed up your perfectly blown-out hair from the number of times you had taken the hairband off your head.
Javi gave you his signature crooked smile, the one that had made you fall for him in the first place. Making sure the office door was closed, he pulled your body into his, resting his forehead against yours.
“You have got to stop worrying, I’ve done these types of things hundreds of times when I was in Colombia. I trust Bishop’s guys to have my back. I’ll be back before lunch.” Javi whispered as he pushed a lock of your hair behind your right ear.
“Pinky promised me you’ll do your best to come back in one piece.” You brought your pinky up between your bodies. Javi chuckled, but stopped when he noticed the look on your face. Javi quickly laced his pinky tightly around yours and kissed them.
“Cariño, I’m going to work my damn hardest to get back to you,” you sighed, nodding that his reassurance was good enough. “Why don’t you order lunch in the office from that sandwich shop you love so much, my treat?” Javi let go of your pinky and cupped the back of your head, pulling you in for a kiss.
You’d hoped that by the time lunch rolled around, you would be hungry enough to eat and that Javi’s safe return would diminish the anxiety. A knock on the office door had you guys jumping apart, quickly fixing invisible wrinkles on your clothes. Dean poked his head in to let Javi know that everyone was ready to leave.
——
You spent your morning and early afternoon working on paperwork while answering the phone, taking messages, and directing people to the right county agencies. You picked up everyone's sandwich orders at the deli, as Javi had suggested.
When you pulled up to the office, there was hardly a place left to park. You took your designated spot, pushing Javi’s aviators to the top of your head. Relief washed over you immediately because this meant Javi and his deputies were back. Grabbing the three large bags of sandwiches and sides, you quickly made your way into the building.
Emma was the first to see you. She rushed to help you by taking the bags from you. Emma looked both overheated and tired. You thanked her as you placed your purse on your desk. Emma set the bags down, making her way back over to you, leaning in to whisper in your ear.
“Javi is in his office. He asked me to tell you to get back to see him and bring the first aid kit.” You thanked Emma and immediately reached into the bottom drawer of your desk, pulling out your personal first aid kit. Weaving your way between staff, you knocked on Javi’s office door and walked straight in without an answer.
Javi looked up from his place behind the desk, looking relieved when he saw that it was you. Javi had a gauze pad pressed to the left tricep. Your stomach immediately dropped. While you were thankful he was back and alive, you had hoped he would remain intact.
Making his way around to the front of his desk, Javi uncovered his tricep to show you the wound. Relief flooded back into you when he saw it was a reasonably small wound that just happened to be bleeding heavily. Javi gave you that signature crooked smile before he spoke.
“Just a graze, I luckily made it out before anyone could see it.” You shook your head as you pulled the liquid stitches and gloves from the first aid kit. “You take care of me better than anyone else,” you patted the wound with the gauze after putting on the gloves, trying to dry it as much as possible before putting the liquid stitches on it.
“Be honest, you just didn’t want to have to do the paperwork.” You pinched the wound together as you waited for the stitches to dry. Javi barked a laugh and nodded.
“It’s true, it’s such a hassle. I also wanted to get back here and ease your worries.” Javi winked, setting off those fireworks in your stomach again.
“Well, thank you.” You kissed Javi as you pulled the gloves off, then tossed them and the gauze into the trashcan by his desk.
“I promised you, Cariño, I’d come back, and I did.” You felt your shoulders relax at Javi’s words. Javi always tried his hardest to keep his promises to you, and he did keep this one, mostly.
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Holiday Extravaganza Day 13 — Decorating (Steve Harrington)
The holidays aren’t the same without your parents around. You lost them to what your boyfriend calls a Demogorgon attack. It was brutal, instantly becoming the parental figure to younger siblings. But Steve makes it easier.
You teamed up when it came to the kids. He helped you get your siblings up, made sure the table was set for breakfast, just like your mom used to. You guys tackled getting them ready; he would do the boys' hair, and you would do the girls. You would make sure the lunches were packed, and everyone looked presentable.
You worked at a hair salon, sweeping the floors, being a receptionist, and being a go-getter for the other ladies. You also made extra cash watching kids. You had come somewhat of a pro. Steve helped make ends meet by doing the radio show and recording commercials for the local community.
This year's Christmas would be different. Not the usual amount of gifts your siblings were used to, no home-baked Christmas cookies, because you hadn’t helped your mom make them in years, and she never wrote the recipes down. Your dad wasn’t here to chop down the perfect Christmas tree after spending hours looking for it. But at least you all had each other.
“It’s crooked,” you whispered to Steve as you stepped back from the tree. You both had spent your Saturday night with the kids, along with Dustin, Lucas, and Max, decorating the house. It had been a fun adventure, despite your siblings' little meltdowns.
“That's because the top of the tree is crooked,” Steve observed as he placed the last piece of tinsel on it. He wasn’t wrong. Maybe you should have done what Mrs. Wheeler suggested and gotten one of those fake trees. Then again, you were trying to keep some of the family traditions going.
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” Pulling you into his side, Steve hugged you close to his body. His warmth radiates into you. His arms felt like a mixture of safety and home.
“I cannot help but worry. I want it to be perfect for them, for me, because that is how my parents did Christmas for us.” You sighed into Steve’s neck. You were close to tears over how much you wanted your parents back.
“Your parents faked it, as they made it up as they went along; they just wanted to seem like they knew what they were doing. I think you’re doing a fantastic job, and I know they would be proud of you. I know I am.” Steve reassured you, kissing the top of your head.
“I’m only doing as well as I am because of your guys' help, mainly yours, but the gang really helps out.” You turned your body so it faced the front of Steve’s, and your hands moved to the back of his neck. Steve smiled down at you.
“I think we make a good team, and I have a feeling this Christmas will be a good one.” You nodded, agreeing with Steve. “Together we can’t get through anything.”
Forever to my friend and beta reader @pascalispunkczechia, I’m so lucky you don’t mind reading. 🎄 Please like and/or reblog this moodboard to show appreciation. It would mean the world to me.
Holiday Extravaganza Day 1 — Hot Cocoa (Joel Miller)
With Winter just days away and snow already fluttering down from the sky, you could feel the chill in your bones, but you couldn't deny its beauty. Joel worked long, hard days patching up houses that complained of leaks and broken pipes here and there.
You stood at the stove, mixing whole milk with dark chocolate to make your Mimi's hot chocolate. Coffee was brewing in the coffee pot across the kitchen from you.
Joel preferred his hot cocoa with half coffee, a treat you had introduced to him when you first got together.
Joel walked up to his home, and through the kitchen window, he could see you dancing, or more like wiggling side to side in front of the stove. He hoped you would remember his promise to take you for a stroll around the neighborhood to take in the wintery scenery, before dinner.
Stomping the snow off his boots before walking in, he smiled as you hummed to jingle bells. You took the pot off the burner, setting it aside, as you turned around to greet Joel. Opening your arms, Joel walked into your arms and pulled your body close to his, as he took in your scent.
"Long day?" you asked as you pulled back to look into his tired eyes.
"Yes, but I'll be just fine. Did you want to take a stroll still?" Joel looked down at you, hopeful. You smiled at him as you showed him the fresh hot cocoa.
"I thought we could take some hot cocoa in our Yetis to help warm us up as we walk the neighborhood." Joel gave you a smile in confirmation of your idea.
☕️☕️☕️
Joel held your yeti as you pulled your red puffer jacket on over your sweater, Joel reminded you of your matching red gloves and scarf. You laughed as you said, "Yes, Dad."
As you took your drink back, Joel led you out the door, where you met with the cold rush. Joel grabbed your gloved hand in his. The crunch of the frozen snow under your boots was the background noise.
This was your favorite time of the year, when earth seemed to pause in its frozen, icy beauty, as the lights of the town sparkled, adding to the beauty. You also couldn't imagine spending this time with anyone else but Joel.
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Pedrotober Day 21 — Joel Miller, The Last of Us S2
Loving Joel came easy to you. You loved him even on his darkest of days, just as he loved you on your darkest of days as well. You loved the way his calloused hands ran up and down your arms and back when you cuddled. You loved the way he cared so deeply for both his family and found family. You loved his deep voice that sometimes read you to sleep. You so deeply loved Joel.
You find yourself missing him with every fiber of your being, but you still catch glimpses of him, in the manners Ellie picked up from him, in the way that Tommy laughs and smiles, in the smell of coffee, and in his plaid shirts.
You have hope that in some far off distant universe, perhaps you and Joel met at a coffee shop, where either of you finally got the nerve to ask one another out. Perhaps you met walking your dogs, or perhaps Maria once again introduced you both with Sarah at Joel's side. For a love like yours and Joel's was meant to be in every life and every universe.
Thank you @norththelemon, @alyssamariag, and @alwayslurkinginthebackground for hosting Pedrotober. 🦋🪽✨ If you are interested in a Moodboard, I'm currently taking requests. Please like and/or reblog this moodboard to show appreciation. It would mean the world to me.
Summary: The family celebrates Iris’s grandmother’s birthday. Joel has an extra gift that the whole family is in on, except for Iris.
World Count: 0.9k
A/N: I’m rewriting this to get what I want to say in seven parts. There is no use of Y/N; the reader has been nicknamed Iris. Sarah is alive, there was no outbreak, and Ellie is her sister. This is loosely based on Shania Twain’s song, which has the same name.
Previous Part 2 | Masterlist | Next Part 4
Their morning started before the sun even came up. Joel and Iris took Arya, their husky, on a walk. On their way home, they stopped at Starbucks. They shared a shower and some pancakes before Ellie came home from Riley’s. Sarah followed ten minutes later, kissing Iris and Joel on the cheeks. It wasn't often that they had both Miller girls under their roof simultaneously. They were on the road by nine thirty and in Providence just before noon.
When they arrived, Iris’s grandparents sat on their front porch with some great-grandchildren scattered throughout the front yard. Francine, Iris’s grandmother, got up from her swing and met them as they all piled out of the SUV. Ellie leaped into Francine’s arms, hugging her as they laughed. Ellie and Sarah followed Francine to help take the cookies out of the oven.
Eugene Iris’s grandfather greeted the couple, shaking Joel’s hand while pulling Iris into his side for a hug. It wasn’t long before they were spoiling their lunch over Francine’s cookies.
By the time supper time had arrived, there were about thirty people scattered throughout the yard to celebrate Francine’s 80th birthday. Ellie had sat with the little kids and busied herself making newspaper hats and telling them stories about Peter Pan.
Joel shared the swing bed with his eldest, Sarah, and Iris, with Arya at their feet. The atmosphere was winding down as the adults sipped their cocktails in various spots around the fire pit that Joel and Iris’s father, Dylan, had set up.
“Dad, don’t you have another gift, Grandma Francis?” Sarah looked at her dad with a big smile. Iris, too, looked at Joel, confused. They had given their gifts to Francine before supper—a spa gift card and a satin scarf they had seen at the farmers market.
Joel winked at Sarah as he climbed off the swing bed, letting Sarah take his place, and pulled Iris up. Arya stole Iris’s spot, making the latter huff. Turning her focus to Joel, she got even more confused as her family started to pull out their electronics, and Joel got down on one knee.
“Joel, stop. You're going to hurt your knee.” Iris tried pulling Joel back up to his feet, but he just laughed with Sarah and a few of her family members. The subtle sound of an acoustic guitar in the distance and the string lights in trees made the scene romantic.
“Iris, the first time we met, you sat across from me on the subway with your violin between your legs. You had on this pea soup colored scarf with a matching pea coat.” Joel stopped to lick his lips before he continued. “I remember thinking, ‘God, she's the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.’ Then our eyes met, and you gave me the perfect smile. I knew then that my life would never be the same.” Joel stood up to wipe Iris’s tears from her face.
“A month later, you met my girls, and I knew instantly when you girls ganged up on me, I found something unimaginable. Your love for them goes as deep as mine, and I couldn't ask for anything more.” Pausing, Joel wipes the tears from his eyes.
“You blessed our home when you brought home Arya as a puppy. You love my brother as if he were one of your own. You fill our house with stories when you play one of your many instruments.” Iris gazed lovingly into Joel’s eyes as she brushed his tears away.
“What I’m trying to get at is, I can’t imagine a future where you aren’t at my side. Where we go through whatever life throws our way, because with you at my side, I can get through anything.” Joel got back down on his, crackling and making many people laugh when he moaned. “Iris, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” Along the way, Joel got out the familiar ring that had sat on Lydia’s ring finger till she passed. Hands clasped over her mouth, Iris’s eyes glistened under the string lights.
“Iris, answer the poor man. My knee kills me; I'm just watching him kneel like that.” Dylan had joked to his daughter, having broken the silence.
“Please say yes, it took us weeks to pick a ring, only for Dad to realize your mother's ring was perfect.” Ellie had sat herself in Sarah’s lap during their dad’s proposal. “I also do not want to split holidays between you.” Sarah laughed at her sister's antics while she wrapped her arms around her waist. “On second thought, it would mean twice the presents.” Eugene barked a laugh at Ellie, while from a few feet away, Iris’s older brother Jax threw a pillow at her, making Arya bark.
“Joel, I cannot picture a better way to spend the rest of my life.” Iris pulled Joel to his feet, grabbing his hands in hers. “Kiss me before my family starts a riot, or we take a hit from Grandma’s cane.” Joel pulled Iris in for the requested kiss as everyone whooped and excitedly hollered.
“I was looking forward to twice the gifts, but now all I have to look forward to is using noise-canceling headphones,” Ellie grumbled as Joel nestled the ring onto Iris’s left hand. Joel stuck his hand in the middle of his back, giving his daughter the middle finger, earning a laugh from his oldest.
“I didn't think life could get any better, yet you always have ways of surprising me.” Iris cupped Joel’s face, gazing into his eyes, and pulled him in for another kiss, as their pinkies intertwined.
Summary: It’s the hardest time of the year for Iris. Joel does everything he can to be there for her.
Word Count: 498
Warnings: Angsty with some fluff. Character death is mentioned in passing, but neither Joel nor Iris.
A/N: I’m rewriting this because I want to finish all the parts eventually. I’m writing this series in memory of my Mum, who passed away 9 years ago. She was always encouraging me to write. No use of Y/N, the reader is nicknamed Iris. Very loosely based on this song, by The Classic Crime. Thank you @geralt-of-baevia for reading this and encouraging me to write again. All mistakes are my own.
Masterlist | Next Part
Joel woke to the sound of music coming from down the hall, behind the closed bedroom door, as he reached his arm out on the empty bed. The bed has long gone cold, indicating that Iris left the bed some time ago. Reaching blindly for his phone off the bedside table, Joel sits in bed, his feet touching the cold hardwood floor. Blurry-eyed, he staggers, shuffling his way to the bathroom. Grabbing his toothbrush in his empty hand, he turns on the NPR morning news summary and brushes his teeth. Stopping mid-stroke when Steve Inskeep mentions the date. Quickly and efficiently as he could, Joel finished brushing.
Turning the news off, Joel returns to the bedroom, where he grabs his white T-shirt from the back of the corner chair. Following the music, he makes his way down the hallway of their shared condo. The music gets louder with each step he takes toward the music room.
Joel finds the door to the music room, closed a jar, with the sun peaking out. Standing outside the door, Joel listens to the string instrument tell a story. Immediately, Joel recognizes the song, a sad one, one that Iris plays on her darkest of days.
Resting his head against the doorway, Joel pictured Iris in the middle of the room, barefoot with her eyes closed, tears building up as her bow dances across the strings. Iris's emotions run freely. Before he knew it, the song was at its end, and he was brushing his tears away
Joel never paid attention to music until he met Iris on the MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority). Love caught him like the subway they had been on. Iris teaches Joel that music has emotion and a story to go with it if you stop and listen.
Opening the door fully, Joel enters the room, sidestepping the boards that would creak to life. He finds her standing in the middle of the room, head hung low, tears running down her cheeks, just as he had pictured her. Iris only gets this way twice a year: on the anniversary of her mother's passing and now, her mother's birthday. Joel clears his throat, making his presence known. Their eyes meet as he gives her a soft smile, which she returns.
Together for years now, Joel could read Iris like an open book. Her mother's last letter sits behind her on the piano bench. Joel knows that she needs to play, but at the same time, she needs his company. Walking forward, Joel grabs Iris by the waist, picks up the letter, and sits her on the bench.
Joel took her violin and softly placed it in its home, kissing the crown of her head.
“I love you so much, Iris,” Joel whispers as Iris places her head softly on his shoulder. “Play me a story,” he begs. Iris puts her fingers on the ivory keys and lets her soul play him the saddest song he has ever heard.
