I don’t have words. Parts one and two surpassed every expectation I had when I made the requests. Sully is just as unsettling here as he was in part one and I love it.
“It’s going to be hard to convince that lot that you’re off-limits, but I’m sure if I explained we had a little… arrangement, they’d leave you alone.”
Using the other officers as the threat is evil. Sully is the reason they’re dangerous in the first place, and now he’s positioning himself as Dodger’s protection from them. Smithy and the others are genuinely chilling. The way you describe their looks, and Dodger’s sense of being stripped bare under their gaze, is spot on. They saw him at his most vulnerable and were aroused by it, which would feel utterly terrifying to him.
Dodger turning to Sully because he doesn’t want to be alone, but also can’t bring himself to hide how he feels 😭. Of course Sully exploits that. Ordering Dodger to kiss him and then holding back. Dodger knowing he’s on the verge of panicking, but finding a twisted comfort in not having to hide it 😭 He needs to break down, but won't allow himself or doesn't want to do it alone, so this becomes his way of releasing and giving himself permission to fall apart.
Sully plays his role perfectly. “It’s okay,” Sully soothed, his voice straining sickeningly. “Get it all out. I won’t tell anyone.”
“I’m here. You don’t have to be strong with me.”
Gah. It’s the perfect creepy comfort. He does such a good job saying things that should be comforting, but in a way that is clear he doesn't care at all and just makes Dodger feel worse, especially if he does take comfort in it for even a second.
There’s the tiniest element of truth in it too. Dodger still feels he has to be strong for his family and for Theresa. We’ve never really seen him fully break down with them in the show, only with Donny. Even with Theresa, he was more open but still trying to keep his emotions in check. Sully already sees him as weak and has seen him completely unravel, which makes it easier to let it happen again, even when it’s obvious that what Sully truly gets off on is the sheer level of distress he’s causing, so it just makes Sully want him more. Then as soon as it's over, Dodger feels worse than he did to start. It's a giant, twisted, trauma spiral.
Thank you for including Frankie putting the pieces together. She is going to have added trauma, knowing Dodger did this to protect her. Darren will be so conflicted when he finds out: wracked with guilt that his friend went through that, but also deeply grateful that Dodger protected his daughter.
Theresa coming back and being supportive was wonderful and feels in line with how she’s been portrayed in the show. I’m relieved that Dodger is going to report Sully in the end, tho I can’t help worrying about what Smithy might do once Sully is gone. Unless Sully being taken down is enough to make him back off, he could be a serious problem.
It's so, so good. I can't believe I've had these two amazing fills, plus the dodgernapping, and I still have another angsty fic and the new smut request on the list- from what you've written here I already know those are both going to be amazing. You are too good to us 💌
I've just been silently screaming to myself with utter joy and re-reading this for the last 10 minutes. I love you, 😈 anon, and I am beyond thrilled that you enjoyed the follow-up - it wouldn't exist without your requests! I'm also just filled with so much joy when you guys read these fics and understand exactly what I was going for, like the way you pointed out Sully was positioning himself as Dodger's protection when he was the one who put him in danger, and the fact that it's all "a giant, twisted, trauma spiral." Okay, no, I need to respond properly, I'm still just flapping about with absolute joy lmao.
I really wanted to convey how much of a threat the other officers were to ensure that Dodger had yet another reason to not break off the deal with Sully; even if he could convince himself that Sully wasn't stupid enough to risk prison by hurting Frankie, he couldn't guarantee that the other officers wouldn't hurt him. Even with Sully telling them to back off, there would be doubt, but the fact that they do back off is reason enough for Dodger to believe the only thing protecting him from them is Sully, and that is exactly what Sully wanted, as you said. "They saw him at his most vulnerable and were aroused by it, which would feel utterly terrifying to him." !!! You worded it perfectly. Knowing that they get off on him being in that state would absolutely terrify him, because it means they might take the risk to get him like that again.
God, the moment Dodger goes to Sully for some kind of comfort was my favourite scene to write, because it's so twisted, and the emotional devastation is just brutal. Dodger has felt completely on his own since that night, and Sully is the only person he feels he can turn to because, as you said, he's seen him at his weakest already, and as much as Sully was getting off on it, he gave him comfort, and in the moment, that's all Dodger could care about. If Sully wanted to be mean, he could push him away instead, but he knows that by making himself Dodger's sole source of comfort, he'll keep coming back to him, and he'll have him completely under his control, because it starts to twist Dodger's perception of what's happening because he's now actively seeking Sully out. And I'm so grateful you specifically pointed out that Sully held back after ordering Dodger to kiss him. It felt like an extra little twist of the knife. "Dodger knows he's on the verge of panicking, but finding a twisted comfort in not having to hide it. He needs to break down, but won't allow himself or doesn't want to do it alone, so this becomes his way of releasing and giving himself permission to fall apart." I'm actually silently screaming so much, because you put it perfectly!!
Yeah, Frankie realising that it was to protect her felt awful, because that's going to be weighing on her, no matter how much Dodger tries to tell her that he made the choice himself and that it wasn't her fault. Darren 😭 I desperately wish I'd included Darren's reaction to finding out about all of it now, god, that would have been devastating. You're right though, he'd hate that Dodger had to put himself through that, but he would also be deeply grateful to him for protecting Frankie. God, it's so messy and painful.
I definitely played off of Theresa's scenes in the show for her ones in the fic - especially how understanding she was when she came back. I went with the idea, without saying it outright, that she still did the sex work in Japan in this fic, so, she absolutely 100% understands and that's why she knew that it was all coming from a place of hurt and suffering. I had to end it on a slightly optimistic note with him deciding to report him, but yeah, Smithy could still be a problem for sure. I'm not even sure how we handle that one, or the other officers. Hopefully, if Dodger could get Sully sent down, they'd steer clear on the off chance that he was able to do the same to them (especially Smithy with his shady past). Otherwise, we're just swapping one problem for another, and quite frankly, I feel like Sully really is somehow the lesser of two evils here 😭
Thank you so, so much, 😈 anon. I am truly grateful to you for the requests, and for coming back here to share all your thoughts with me :') You are clearly very good at inspiring some evil genius in me lmao. I am only as good as you lot inspire me to be <3
