You thought Curtis was taking you home when he offered the ride
Thank you for your patience as I finally get around to answering this!
Your Comforts: Rehoming
Summary: Your long week ends with a surprise.
Warnings: Drugging, Implied violence, Kidnapping, Stalking. Please let me know if I missed any!
Word Count: ~1.5k
Previous; Part of the Yours AU
The whole day, hell, the whole week just felt off. Bucky, your favorite customer, was a complete no-show making your work at the coffee shop go so much more slowly. And Curtis, your tried-and-true volunteer had been absent!
The only good news was that Precious had been adopted. You're happy the senior pup had finally found a forever home. The adoption coordinator said she was adopted by hottie with blue eyes who said he was looking for a companion he could spoil. Precious was definitely going to be happy.
When you enter the shelter your heart soars at seeing Curtis moving bags of dog food.
"Curtis! I've missed you!" you call out as you run towards him with open arms.
"Hey, Honey," he smiles back, returning the hug. "Sorry I didn't warn you I wouldn't be in. Something came up with work."
"Bah, don't worry about it," you say with a squeeze. "I didn't give you warning when I was recovering from my breakup so why should you need to give me warning about work?"
"It was a breakup?" his smile drops, concern written all over his face.
"An embarrassing breakup that I really don't want to talk about, but that I am doing much better from."
He smiles softly, "message received. I'll be here if you want to talk, though."
"Thanks Curtis. I really appreciate that "
The rest of your shift at the shelter goes smoothly. It really does help to have someone so big and bulky as Curtis to move things around and take care of the biggest dogs. Especially when those same dogs constantly want hugs. Or pull on their leash during a walk because they saw a squirrel.
Things start to wind down and it's about time to close up. You triple check all the dogs, looking for empty water bowls or accidents that need cleaning.
When you start locking up you also start yawning. With work at the coffee shop being so draining you've been needing more sleep.
"You doing ok?" Curtis pipes up. "Been yawning more than usual."
"Hm? Oh yeah, just...work stuff, you know?"
He nods with a small smile. "How about I give you a ride home? That way you don't have to worry about missing your bus stop and you can get to sleep faster."
"Thanks, Curtis," you chirp. "I really appreciate that. I can give you some gas money since you're saving me bus fare."
"Don't worry about that," he waves off the offer. "It's the least I can do for someone as sweet as you." Heat rushes to your cheeks as you wonder if Curtis is just being nice or is flirting with you. "I'll wait right outside in the parking lot for you, okay?"
"Okay!"
The rest of the routine feels somehow both too slow and too fast. Butterflies are fluttering in your stomach as you think about the possibility of flirting with Curtis. If he treated you half as good as the dogs he takes care of, he'd be such an upgrade from that cheating jackass.
As he promised, Curtis is in his car, waiting for you and you happy hop into the passenger seat.
"Ok, Honey, let me get your address plugged into the GPS and we can get going."
"Thanks, again, for doing this, Curtis. I can't believe how tired I am!"
"You know what? I've got some soda in the backseat. How about cracking one of them open so you've got the energy to chat with me on the drive?"
"Ooo, yes! Thanks!" you beam as you reach behind you while giving Curtis your address.
When you're settled and buckled in you start sipping on the soda, grateful for the sugar and caffeine. You don't want to fall asleep on him and have him think you're rude.
The chatter flows easily between the two of you for half the drive. You must have been more tired than you thought because you're struggling to keep your eyes open. You try to hide it but not very well because Curtis smiles and tells you he'll wake you up when you get home.
Too tired to argue you let yourself fall asleep.
You're woken up by Curtis gently shaking you. Your eyelids are still so heavy you have to blink a few times and rub your eyes.
"Wow, sorry about that," you yawn. "Didn't realize I was so--"
You stop short when you take in your surroundings. Instead of your apartment building surrounded by busy streets, you're looking at a log cabin in a clearing in the woods. Instead of the usual bustle of pedestrians, you see Bucky stepping out of the cabin, a big smile on his face, as Precious follows him out.
"Curtis, where are we?" you ask trying to keep the fear from your voice
"We're home," he answers too cheerfully for you. "Before today is it was just a house. But now that you're here, it's finally home."
Bucky opens up the passenger side door and holds out his hand expectantly. Unsure what else to do, you take his hand and let him help you out of the car.
Precious is immediately loving on you and you scritch her ears on instinct.
"Thought she might be a good way to help you acclimate," Bucky answers one of your unspoken questions. "She's quite a pleasure to have around. Even gets along with my cat, Alpine. You'll meet her later."
"Why am I here?"
"Because we want you," Curtis admits nonchalantly as he gets out of the car.
"We each fell pretty hard for you, Honey," Bucky adds. "Imagine our surprise when we found out we were interested in the same girl."
"So sweet, patient, caring," Curtis continues.
"While also being so witty and charming," Bucky nods.
The two men start leading you to the cabin and you realize how big they truly are. You'd ogled Curtis' muscles before but you're realizing Bucky is also well built. You can try to fight, try to run, but you're certain you won't get far.
"I think you'll like what we've done with the place," Bucky tells you. "We made sure it's got all the things you like but we didn't know your opinions on everything so we had to do some guess work."
"There's plenty of space, inside and out, if you want to adopt another dog or two," Curtis adds. "Plus a rather large catio in case you want more cats."
As you get to the door, Bucky waves his watch in front of where a doorbell would be and you hear a click.
"We went all out on the security measures, too," he explains.
"To keep me locked in there?" you rasp as you freeze at the doorway.
Curtis stands behind you, blocking your exit, and gently wraps his arms around you.
"You won't be locked inside the cabin so long as you're good," he sternly informs you.
He takes one of your arms and holds it out for Bucky who pulls out a watch similar to the one he used to unlock the door.
As he fits it to your wrists he adds to Curtis' warning. "This wristband will let you all over the cabin and the property. That's several miles of forest that you're free to wander around in."
"So long as the thing is on my arm, you can find me," you murmur.
"Correct," Bucky nods. "And your wristband is specifically designed to never come off."
"And it can't be broken?"
"If it does, we get notified," Curtis warns, still not letting you go.
Bucky gently caresses your cheek. "We know this is scary. We're willing to work with you until you get acclimated. We've waited a long time for you, we can control ourselves for a while longer "
"Why?" you breathe, unable to get your brain wrapped around this problem.
"Because you're you," Curtis coos with a gentle kiss to your hair.
"If you're wondering why the cloak and dagger, it's because we need people to think you're missing," Bucky adds. "We work for Nick Fowler." He notes the recognition in your eyes before continuing. "If his enemies learn we have someone we care about, that puts you in danger."
"And if you're in danger, we can't think straight," Curtis explains, nuzzling his beard against your scalp.
"And if we can't think straight, Nick might lose some of his hold over the territory," Bucky adds. "So we take you away, people think you're missing, and we never have to worry about you being at risk."
"I don't have a choice," you whimper, tears forming.
"You do have a choice, Honey," Bucky counters. "You can choose to be good and have your every want and need met. Or you can choose to be bad and find yourself locked up in a kennel."
A tear rolls down your face as you take your first steps into your new home.
A/N: Written for the June Jukebox Scribbles. Prompt: Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler / “There's nothing I can do”
A/N2: Reader is female. No other physical descriptors used.
Warnings: Kidnapped reader. Please let me know if I missed any!
Word Count: 299
Main Story
It's been a few days since Bucky and Curtis kidnapped you and placed that damned wristband on your arm. You've been carefully testing the limits on everything, your kidnappers seem to enjoy watching you realize out how trapped you really are. They've even made sure you never fall asleep alone. Each night they join you in the giant bed, one on each side and encourage Precious and Alpine to join the "cuddle pile" ensuring you can't sneak out without waking everyone. It's warm and a bit claustrophobic, but it's better than the kennel.
Every day you take Precious for a walk, trying to figure out the limits of the perimeter. One of the men always goes with, seemingly fine with the quiet. While you don't try being sneaky, knowing that they're too smart for whatever tricks you might pull, you still don't walk in a straight line to the invisible edges of the territory. If this is to be your prison, you're going to try to see all of it.
Your wristband buzzes making you yelp.
"That means you're getting close to the fence," Curtis explains. "Get closer and buzzes more intensely. Try to cross, you'll get a jolt of electricity so strong it knocks you out."
"Cross the fence?"
"It's a wireless fence. Regular fences require installation, upkeep, and we run the risk of getting attention. Plus, the visual reminder that you're trapped might hurt you."
"You're so sweet," you dryly reply. "And I'm sure screaming won't help?"
"No one around for miles. If we do get trespassers hiking and they find you, we will have to kill them."
"There's nothing I can do," you say more to yourself than anyone.
Curtis gently caresses your cheek. "Sure there is. You can let us love you like we want."
Summary: After finding out your boyfriend was using you to cheat on his wife you decide to take some time for yourself and take stock of what you actually want in a relationship.
Warnings: Stalking, Talk of cheating, Talk of kidnapping. Please let me know if I missed any.
Previous--Next
Series Masterlist
It's been over a week since you and Andrew technically broke up. He just left one morning and, later that day, a blank envelope was pushed under your apartment door, showing definitive proof that Andrew wasn't who he said he was. He'd been cheating on his wife with you! You'd thought he was just a lovable loser, had rough luck with the ladies. In fact, he was married and worked for the government! The only thing he didn't lie about was that he was a lawyer.
Given how connected the asshole was you figure it's probably in your interest to just not mention anything to anyone. Just grieve in private and never tell. Don't want Mr. Cheating Lawyer to sue you for something and have him backed up by the police fabricating evidence for their guy.
You go ahead and call in sick for the week while purchasing comfort foods for yourself and get ready to hole up for a while.
Your first day back to work at the coffee shop starts with a delightful interaction with Bucky, your favorite customer. It was a slow burn friendship for the two of you, he used to be cold and grumpy all the time. But when you regularly got his favorite order right without him having to even ask, it started warming you towards him.
"There you are, Honey," he smiles. The nickname was from when he caught on that honey based treats are your favorites. "Missed you last week. You okay?"
Your smile doesn't reach your eyes when you answer. "Yeah, just...just hit a rough patch and needed some time to mentally and emotionally reset. Y'know?"
"I get that," he nods. "But I'm glad you're back. You gonna stay here or did that reset get you itching for 'bigger and better' things?"
"I'm not sure yet," you confess. "But getting back into the routine will help, right?"
"Cheers to that," he smirks as he raises his coffee.
"Honey! You're back!" Curtis greets as you enter the shelter you both volunteer at. He calls you that because it's your default nickname for all the animals that come in. You chuckle thinking about how Bucky and Curtis call you the same thing for different reasons.
"Hi Curtis! How have you been?" you greet him with a hug.
"Better now that you're back," he sighs. "Pandora's been a real pain without you."
You laugh at the fact that this giant, muscular man with tattoos on his arms is scared of a 3kg Chihuahua. "I keep telling you, just treat her like a queen, bow in her presence, and you'll be fine!"
He huffs. "You do that. I'll stick to walking the big dogs that think they're lapdogs."
"That reminds me, how's our old lady Precious doing?"
"The usual, I'm afraid," he shakes his head. "Nobody wants a senior dog."
"Maybe I'll just adopt her for myself," you pout. "She shouldn't have to spend her days without love."
"I promise, next adoption event, I'll be her biggest hypeman," Curtis reassures. "We'll get her a home."
"Thanks, Curtis," you say with another hug. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go debase myself Lady Pandora, Goddess of Chaos."
"Our girl is back," Bucky smiles at Curtis.
"Would've been a good time to take her to her new home, she just goes on vacation and never comes back to work," Curtis complains.
"Moving her then would've been a bad move and you know it," Bucky argues. "She was in an emotionally vulnerable state, she wouldn't be able to appreciate what we're trying to do."
Curtis just grunts. "I'm tired of waiting."
"Nick's rules," Bucky shakes his head.
To keep the people of his territory from panicking or trying to fight back, Nick set rules for his own men that were designed to encourage trust. But there were allowances for his innermost circle, provided they passed certain tests. Curtis and Bucky would only be allowed to make you disappear if they provided a better home than you were currently living in, gave you every amenity you'd want, and waited until Nick gave the okay. Nick wasn't about to let them act without making sure she was someone they'd stay dedicated to. If they took her and then got tired of her, there'd be consequences.
But Curtis and Bucky aren't worried about that. You're it for them. They know it.
That's definitely the look of someone who's angry. But who is he mad at and why?
Warnings: Implied violence, Kidnapping, Talk of cheating. Please let me know if I missed any!
Next
Series Masterlist
Even before he's fully awake, Andy knows he's in trouble. His head is throbbing and the last thing he remembers is leaving your apartment and putting his wedding ring back on before you woke up. He was glad to have found a way out of spending more time with you. But then there was a thump on the back of his head.
His eyes aren't open but he feels the restraints around his arms and ankles, fastening him to a chair. He isn't gagged, though, so they clearly expect a conversation. This isn't a ransom situation, it's an interrogation. Well he's not an assistant DA for nothing. He can talk himself out of this easily enough.
"We know you're awake, Barber. Open your eyes and let's get this conversation started."
Andy complies and sees two of Fowler's top lieutenants glaring at him. Curtis "The Axe" Everett and James "Winter Soldier" Barnes. Two of the most dangerous men in the city.
"What is this about?" he sneers. "You know your boss doesn't allow you to touch government officials without good cause. And I know you don't have that."
"Does Laurie know about your girlfriend?" Barnes' tone is as icy as his nickname.
"And before you try to say you don't have one," Everett interjects. "Remember who you're talking to."
Andy bites back a rude comment. Fowler's gang wasn't the biggest but it was the strongest and the richest because they invested in information. Where other mobs would resort to violence as a first choice, Fowler saw the wisdom in blackmail and bribery instead.
"So what if I have a sidepiece?" he argues. "What's that got to do with your boss? You know his rules. I'm off limits!"
"We have Nick's blessing," Barnes tells him. "Because if you can't trust a man to keep his promises to his wife, how can you trust him to keep his promises to you?"
"Business is different," Andy tries to argue but his voice is dry.
"Not when it comes to family," Everett counters.
"And definitely not when it comes to the court of public opinion," Barnes adds. "What would the public think if their DA---"
"Assistant DA," Curtis interjects, eyes never leaving Andy. They all know it's a sore spot for Andy that he's not the District Attorney.
"Right, what would the public think if their assistant DA was cheating on his wife? How could such a man properly represent them in court? Your political career would go up in smoke."
Andy is fuming but he can't think of a way out of this. Fowler's backing was his only chance but now that he knows that's gone, he's grasping at straws.
"What's the cost?" he finally grumbles.
"You and your wife are moving to a lovely little town on the opposite side of the country," Barnes starts. "That program she works for is opening a new branch there and you, being a good, loving husband, are going to support her and move with her to the new location."
"I'll be starting over!"
"But with a good record," Barnes counters. "That's the final gift from Fowler for your years of help."
"If you refuse, or if you ever step foot in this city again, though," Everett growls, "and you'll find yourself physically, financially, and politically ruined."
"I understand," Andy scowls. "Now let me go so I can get the good news from my wife about our move."
"Glad to see that jackass gone," Curtis says.
"Can you believe he didn't even ask if he could say goodbye to our girl?" Bucky adds.
"I know. She deserves so much better than him."
"And she'll get it."
"She's gonna be hurting for awhile, but we'll help her through it."
Summary: The “Garbage Men” are the guys in the mob who get the dirt on others and clean up after the higher ups. They have many different ways of gathering intel by running legitimate businesses. One such business is Jefferson/Jensen’s cyber cafe where you regularly go to work. You’ve actually become good friends with Jefferson’s daughter and Jensen’s niece. You even volunteered as their after-school tutor. One day, there’s a robbery attempt where you get hurt protecting the girls. This is how you are introduced to Curtis Everett, the guy in charge of the “Garbage Men”.
A/N: Reader is plus sized, femme. No other descriptors used.
Summary: The “Garbage Men” are the guys in the mob who get the dirt on others and clean up after the higher ups. They have many different ways of gathering intel by running legitimate businesses. One such business is Jefferson/Jensen’s cyber cafe where you regularly go to work. You’ve actually become good friends with Jefferson’s daughter and Jensen’s niece. You even volunteered as their after-school tutor. One day, there’s a robbery attempt where you get hurt protecting the girls. This is how you are introduced to Curtis Everett, the guy in charge of the “Garbage Men”.
A/N: Reader is plus sized, femme. No other descriptors used.
Warnings: Shooting mentioned, not written. American healthcare system. Bullying with an emphasis on fat shaming. Please let me know if I miss any!
Part 2
Series Masterlist
Curtis stormed into the manor. Normally he didn’t care for visiting the higher ups, surrounded by their opulence but this wasn’t normal circumstances. He headed straight for Steve and Bucky’s office, the folder Jake compiled for him under his arm. As much as Curtis wanted to act on this he knew he had to get permission first, as Mace kept reminding him.
As soon as he entered the office, the Bosses greeted him.
“The nieces are okay?”
“Yes,” Curtis replied. “We did a priority background search on the would-be thief. Found no connections to other families so he was likely just an idiot trying to get some quick cash.”
“And the guy who took the bullet,” Bucky asked.
“She is currently in the hospital,” Curtis felt his fists tighten, thinking about her situation. “It wasn’t life threatening, just a quick surgery but she’s not gonna be allowed to walk for a few weeks.”
The bosses nodded their heads, “you made sure Beck is her doctor?”
“Yup. But there’s a hitch that I need permission to fix,” Curtis took the folder out from under his arm. “She got fired for missing some big meeting. First person she called was her boss, to explain what happened, and the asshole fired her over the phone. Now she’s trying to leave the hospital way too early because she’s scared of not being able to afford the care.”
Steve and Bucky looked astonished at this information. “Who the hell fires someone for that? Especially when she has the proof to back her story,” Bucky huffed. “You got that information, right?”
“We got it months ago when she first started tutoring the nieces,” Curtis affirmed. “Had to make sure she wasn’t someone playing the long game.” He handed the folder to Bucky who opened it. The men took a few seconds to find her boss’s name. Curtis was pleased to see Steve’s eyes go steely with anger.
Steve looked at Curtis, “I’ll make sure he gets handled.”
Bucky cut in, “for now, work with Huffman to get the paperwork settled. Officially, she’s been employed by us, as a tutor, for months. We’ll make sure the backpay gets added to her account. Beck and Jensen can work to make sure her insurance goes back as well.”
Curtis nodded his thanks and left to go back to the hospital. Hopefully she hadn’t succeeded in leaving.
“Please,” you plead through tears, “please just let me go home.”
Dr. Beck shook his head, “that would be wildly irresponsible of me. You have no emergency contacts, which tells me you have no one to help you out at home. You need to stay off of your leg for at least a week and you need help to do that. If that means keeping you here for that week, so be it.”
“I can’t af-”
Dr. Beck interrupts, “I’ve been in touch with some people, namely the family of those two girls you rescued. You’re not paying for anything and they insist you get your full rest here.”
“I…” you’re flabbergasted at the news. Jake and Jefferson had always been kind but you never got the impression they were so well off they could cover someone else’s medical bills. You can’t stop crying. It’s been a tumultuous day.
There was a knock outside the privacy curtain and a deep voice asking, “is it okay to come in?”
“Yeah, come on in,” Dr. Beck replied. “Been expecting you.” He turns to the source of the voice. Walking to your bed is a tall, muscular man with a buzz cut, beard and the most piercing blue eyes you’ve ever seen. You blink back tears and try to compose yourself. Crying around medical staff is one thing. Crying around strangers who might not be used to tears is something else.
“I’m Curtis,” he holds out his hand to you.
“Hi,” you shake his hand, confusion written all over your face.
“I’m here to inform you that you do, in fact, have medical insurance. You also have backpay.” Curtis starts putting paperwork on the patient table in front of you. “You’ve been tutoring my nieces for several months. The least we could do is make sure you’re being paid for your time, complete with benefits. Just need you to sign a few things.”
“What?” Far from answering your questions, you find yourself even more in the dark. “I…I don’t understand…”
“You helped my family,” Curtis replied. “Not only did you offer your time and patience, you’ve given your health and well-being. The least me and mine can do is take care of you.”
“I, uh,” you hesitate, trying not to insult, “are you sure you can afford this?”
“Yes.” There was no room for argument in Curtis’s tone. His face was stern and you discerned no cracks indicating he was lying in any way.
“I don’t know what to say,” you whisper.
“Don’t say anything,” Curtis tells you. “Just sign here, here and here.”
With a look to Dr. Beck, who gives you a reassuring smile and nod, you take the proffered pen and shakily sign where Curtis tells you to.
“And, with that,” Curtis gently smiles, “you were officially hired by us three months ago as a private tutor for two of our nieces. When you’ve recovered, you will return to your work and we may have more for you to do.”
Ransom was having a great day. His ugly assistant missed a big meeting and he finally had grounds to fire her. She'd been hired by his grandfather so he couldn't just get rid of her without a reason. He even encouraged her remote work so he wouldn't have to look at her. Now he could hire an assistant on his own and actually pick someone easy on the eyes.
It's not like the job was difficult. He needed someone who could research stuff he needed to know for his writing. Anyone could do that. He could, too, but he didn't want to and could afford to hire someone else to do it for him.
He was in the middle of writing up the job ad when the door to his office slammed open, making him jump. Steve Rogers was glaring at him as he strode into the room.
“Rogers,” Ransom smiled. “To what do I owe the honor?”
“Did you hear what happened to the nieces today?”
“Jake and Jefferson's girls? No.” Ransom was genuinely concerned. Those girls were spoiled by everyone in the families but they still managed to be the sweetest people he knew.
“There was an attempted robbery at the shop,” Steve continued, walking closer and closer to Ransom. “They were nearly shot by the idiot. Thankfully, they were rescued and someone else took the bullet.”
As Steve sat down on the desk Ransom started putting some pieces together. He wasn't an idiot. The nieces almost being shot and his assistant actually being shot? It would also explain the rage emanating from Rogers.
“The woman who took the bullet requires a lot of medical care. But, of course, she can't afford it since her asshole of a boss fired her.”
Ransom gulped, “I can hire her back. Say it was a moment of anger, a mistake that never should've happened.”
Steve stood and pulled up Ransom by the front of his sweater, forcing him to stand on his toes. “Do you remember,” Steve growled, “why we had to send Lloyd into exile?”
“Too many casualties?”
“Close. He viewed people as expendable. This family got started by helping others. Helping the Unions. Supporting the communities. So when you treat someone like that, you disrespect all of us.”
Steve let go of Ransom’s sweater, setting him on his feet. Without warning, he punched Ransom in the stomach so hard he doubled over.
“You are on notice,” Steve told him. “You've been straddling the line for some time now. But one more slip, and you're gone. Understood?”
Ransom coughed, “yeah, I get it.”
“And you don't have to hire her back. We got her a much better boss.”
