Summary- A little kiss leads to a Christmas morning misunderstanding.
CW-18+, Fluff, so much fluff, Kissing Santa, Pregnancy hormones, tf boys being great parents, polyamorous relationship, navigating a mixed family.
WK-1.6K
A/N- Set in the story of us universe but obviously in the future. We jumped way ahead here folks but I hope you love this fluffy snippet into their future lives.
Not beta read
[Series Masterlist][Main Masterlist]
It’s a little easier now since they let you sleep on the end, but it’s still a chore to roll out of bed with your heavily pregnant belly in tow. You sit on the edge for a moment trying to soothe yourself as the kicks come in quick succession.
You try as quietly as you can to make your way out of the bedroom, stealing a glance at Ben’s large form sprawled across Frankie in the most uncomfortable way.
You're wrapped up in your fluffy red robe, an early Christmas gift from the boys that you’ve been living in for the last month or so while you grow out of everything else you own.
The house is quiet and warm as you shuffle down the hallway and smells like cinnamon apples from the pies you made for Christmas Day.
A peek into the spare bedroom shows you a glimpse into most of your nights when it's Santiago’s turn to put the kids down for bed.
He’s snoring in the chair that sits between Camila and little Santiago’s beds. Both children slumbering away as they dream about the most exciting day of the year.
Some rustling is coming from the living room and you round the corner to a site that will never cease to make you smile. The boys take turns being Santa every year and they never do anything halfway. Your arms are crossed as you lean against the wall staring at the rich, dark red velvet material bent over in front of the tree. Deliberately placing gifts from the giant red bag in various spots.
You let out a low whistle as you make your way towards the bearded man. “Santa has a nice ass.”
He chuckles and stands gesturing with his arms for you to come to him. It’s a bit of a struggle now to be held but he still makes you feel all warm and fuzzy as you sway in the living room in front of the lowlights of the tree. You humm as he rubs your belly, somehow the kicking stops as if the baby taking up home inside knows whose hands are caressing you.
“How’s mama doing?” He asks as he kisses your neck, the fluff from his beard tickling you slightly.
“I’m tired…someone keeps kicking me.” You sigh into his touch as he drops to his knees, his fingers kneading that spot in your back that he knows pains you throughout the day.
“Hey little guy.” He speaks so softly in some adorable voice he’s made up.
“He’s a big guy, Will…a very big guy.” You know well enough having been told ad nauseum Miller babies are big.
“Hey big guy…I need you to give your momma a rest so she can enjoy tomorrow okay?” He holds his ear to your belly and nods. When he looks up at you all you can make out is those piercing blue eyes nestled between the red hat and white beard. “He said okay.”
A small tear escapes as he kisses your belly and stands again. You can’t even blame it on the hormones.
“Go lay down, I’ll bring you some tea when I finish here.” One last kiss to your lips and he’s shooing you away so he can complete his Santa duties and enjoy his peanut butter cookies special request.
****
Frankie stacks the pancakes high on the plate next to the stove, as he moves on to the eggs and bacon.
Ben hasn’t said a word just eyeing the food as you enjoy your morning tea, surprised the kids haven’t graced you with their presence yet.
Santi’s creaking bones enter the kitchen before he’s seen as he cracks his back in the hallway. Frankie laughs from the stove as he flips the bacon perfectly somehow never burning it.
“Laugh it up hermano.” He leans down and kisses your forehead before heading over to the fresh coffee pot.
“I’m not the one that keeps falling asleep in the chair.”
You hear the sound of hurried footsteps down the hallway as Camila quickly emerges into the kitchen beaming from ear to ear. She barrels into Frankie hugging him from behind as he reaches around and ruffles her long black curls. “Buenos Días papá.”
“Buenos Días mi amor.”
Frankie kisses her forehead and she makes her way over to you and Santi to say her good mornings and receive hugs and kisses.
She climbs into Ben’s lap forgoing an open seat as she waits for breakfast to finish. The way the two of them could eat you were worried about welcoming another Miller into the household for lack of food resources.
“Good Morning daddy.” She wraps her little arms around him and it’s a feeling he’ll never get used to.
“Good morning honey.” She stole your nickname early on when she could look so sweet at them and instantly get her way.
There was a rule from the beginning that there would be no distinction unless medically necessary between the fathers. They were all fathers and that’s all that mattered.
“Sweetie, where's Santiago?” She looks slightly uncomfortable as she leans in and whispers something in Ben’s ear.
“He’s not coming?” Ben looks over to you as Santi looks to Frankie now done cooking breakfast.
She leans in again whispering something as Ben’s eyes widen. He has to bite his cheek to keep from laughing at the situation that he knows will need to be handled swiftly.
“He doesn’t want to open presents from a home wrecker.”
You’re grateful you hadn’t taken a sip of your tea or it would’ve been all over your new robe.
Frankie flicks off the stove and heads over to the table. “How do you even know that word, young lady?”
Ben leans in whispering something in her ear and she relaxes slightly.
“Well…ugh.” She’s in the hot seat by way of Santi much like her father often does to other people. You lay your hand on hers and wince slightly cursing this baby for picking the most opportune moments to make himself known.
“Camila it’s okay, you can tell me…you’re not in trouble.”
“Tia Marí said Tio John kissed a homewrecker and that’s why they’re not together anymore.” It comes out all rushed and flustered and you're trying not to giggle at her panicked confession.
Frankie points at Santi while he still looks on confused. “Your sister is off babysitting duty for a while.”
Santi scrubs his hand down his face. “I'm still not following.”
Ben places his hands over her ears so she can’t hear. “Will was Santa last night.” He grits out as she giggles.
Santiago must have woken up and seen you kissing “Santa”.
“Daddy I can’t hear anything.” He starts tickling her as she squeals in delight.
“Good because if you did, you wouldn’t get any presents.” They continue their giggles as you let out a long sigh.
“We’re gonna eat breakfast while you two go handle that.” Frankie starts serving up plates as Ben and Camila clap in excitement.
****
Santiago is face down in the blankets when you enter his room. He was a deep sleeper so it was pretty obvious when he was pretending. His little breaths are coming in shallow like he just ran here and plopped himself down.
You have a seat on the edge as Santi sits in the chair beside him.
Santi rubs his back hoping to calm him a little before he speaks. “Hey bud, you want to tell me what’s wrong?”
Inaudible mumbles come from the pillow and you bite down on your tongue at the mirror image. Payback for all the time Santi made someone chase him for a simple misunderstanding coming back ten fold.
“I didn’t hear you mijo, que pasó.” He slowly rolls him over as Santiago rubs his red eyes.
“I…don’t want…I don’t want.” He’s sniffling and Santi tries to calm him so he can catch his breath.
“Deep breaths bud.”
He shakily inhales and wipes his little hands on the blanket. “I don’t want Santa to break up our home.”
You could kill Maria for almost ruining Christmas morning, but you know one day you’ll get to tell this hilarious story to your children when they’re all grown up. You let Santiago take the reins even though you did kiss Santa. This was not your mess to clean up.
“Santiago, no one is breaking up our home. I love your mama very much.” Santiago crawls over to you as you wrap him up in your arms, kissing his unruly brown locks.
“You promise?” Your heart breaks a little as those little puppy dog eyes look up at you.
“Yes we promise.” He exhales as he relaxes in your arms and you look up at Santi incredulously.
“Santa is my friend…he’s allowed to kiss your mama.” Santiago looks up at his dad with pure shock written all over his face.
“WHAT!” He balks at him as you burst into a fit of laughter.
“HO, HO,HO…” The boisterous sound echoes down the hallway from the living room.
Santiago scrambles off your lap as you fall back with an oomph. Your belly won’t allow anymore movements like that so you succumb to the comfort of his tiny car bed, as his father chases after him.
****
Camila is standing in front of the tree as Santa hands her the first gift.
“Well hello little boy, would you like a gift from Santa?”
He runs up to him with his hands on his hips as he pokes him in the surprisingly hard belly. “Next time just drop off the gifts and go.”
Will looks up confused by his son's words as Frankie and Benny are losing it in the kitchen.
Pairing -Will Miller x f!reader x Tf boys x f!reader
Summary-You and the boys play a game and things take an interesting turn.
CW-18+,MDNI,NSFW, Voyuerism, Smut, Fluff, Rough sex, Dom Will, mentions of anal, mentions of MM dynamics, restraints, mentions of safe word but no use, established poly relationship, Unprotected PIV, cream pie, squirting, aftercare. Appropriate discussion of past relationships.
WC-4K
A/N- Set in the story of us verse but can be read as a stand alone. Reader is not race coded, no use of Y/N. This is my current WIP procrastination, when lightning strikes you must write. My first kinktober prompt. I just reached 400 followers and this is 4000 words so I’m gonna take this as my follower celebration as well.
[Series Masterlist][Main Masterlist]
“Ben, are we seriously playing this?” The five of you are situated comfortably in your usual spots in the living room and somehow the younger Miller has convinced you all to ‘make things more interesting’ in his words.
“I’m too old for this.” Frankie mumbles into his beer as he downs the rest.
“We know…that doesn’t mean you’re getting out of it.” You chuckle briefly as Santi’s hand skirts higher up your thigh under the blanket. He’s been slowly torturing you as you relaxed on the couch, all of you decompressing and going over your week. It was a new ritual to discuss the ins and outs of your time apart but it seemed Ben was growing tired of the normal mostly mundane conversation.
“Hands up let’s go.” The impatient Miller barks from his spot on the floor, too big to fit anywhere else and you're always unsure of why Will won’t just get a bigger couch. You suggested a few months ago that it would be nice for all of you to be able to relax together. He agreed but evidently it takes time to find the perfect one.
Everyone reluctantly puts their hands up, Santiago opting for one hand because he can’t pry his other from the warmth of you under the blanket. The other part of you knows he’ll probably lose this game and he doesn’t feel like putting too much effort into revealing how much of a slut he was before he pulled his head out of his ass and finally told you how he felt.
“Both hands, Pope.” Frankie chides from beside you and Santi squeezes your thigh before drawing his hand out and flipping him off.
This game was an odd choice, almost completely out of left field. The five of you knew almost everything there was to know about each other. Although you’re sure the boys know a lot more about their respective sexual escapades than they know about yours. Nothing among these men is ever done by accident, you’re just waiting to see the angle that’s being played so you don’t end up trapped. The confused and amused looks on the others' faces has you a little at ease since it seems this is a solo mission for Ben and those didn’t always go as planned.
“I’ll start since it was my idea.” Will sends you a look from across the room as to say of course and you’re acutely aware that he hasn’t let out one protest or sign of stopping this game. You’re almost positive it’ll come down to you both in the end and he knows it judging by the smug look on his face.
“Never have I ever faked an orgasm.” You roll your eyes as you put one finger down. Maybe you were going to lose after all. The chuckles from the others don’t help your embarrassment, even though you should hardly blame yourself. It doesn’t need to be clarified that since you’d been with all of them there was no need to fake it anymore, but it was definitely known by all that you had to in the past an ungodly amount of times.
You brave a look up from the carpet that you’d all but memorized as you see Ben's wide tooth grinning at Frankie beside you. You look over just in time to see Frankie put his finger down as the redness creeps up his neck. He’s staring daggers at the younger Miller and Santi’s chuckles send vibrations through your body as you lean into him.
“How did she not know?” You ask him in the sweetest tone, no judgment behind it, just genuine curiosity.
He scrubbed his hand over his jaw, his calloused fingers digging into the patchy part of his beard. No doubt thinking how long this night will be if we have to explain each finger down,but of course that’s always Ben’s plan. He wants to draw this out for as long as he can.
“I pulled out and spit on her back.” He says it so sheepishly you almost feel bad for him. An image flashes in your mind and you make the mistake of looking over at Will who is doing his best to not completely lose it. You cup your mouth trying to suppress the giggle but it’s far too late.
“Laugh it up honey.” The funniest part is how could anyone not be thoroughly enjoying themselves when Francisco Morales is behind the wheel, but you figure it’s their loss.
You wrack your brain for something you’ve never done that they may have.Blowjob,one night stand,sent a nude photo,had sex in public…those are all out.
Will interrupts your thoughts as he speaks from the loveseat. “Never have I ever had a threesome.” He just saved you in more ways than one as you see Benny and Frankie glance at each other as they put a finger down. Santi tsks beside you and you don’t even have to look over to see he did as well.
You miss the look Santi shoots Frankie above your head as he makes a mental note. Ben may have been a thorn in his side at times but right now he could kiss the ground he walked on. Unbeknownst to you this has turned into a silent competition of memorizing everything you’ve never done,each time you don’t put a finger down he clocks one of them. He doesn’t even care that he’s about to lose as the room thrums with sexual tension.
As you predicted you and Will have the most fingers left. You have three,Will has two and Benny has one that he’s been holding onto for dear life. Santi and Frankie had long been out, Santi rejoins the group after refreshing your drinks. He knew he hasn't missed anything since it was getting harder to think of things as the game went on.
You need to get Ben out and you were sure this next question would. If it also took one down for Will then you would just be getting lucky you guessed.
“Never have I ever done anal.” Santi stifles a moan next you as Frankie not so subtly adjusts the growing bulge in his jeans. You were so focused on winning that you have no idea how thin of a thread they were holding onto. Frankie’s been fighting the mental image of checking each thing off your list one by one. Santiago isn’t faring much better not having realized how much innocence was still lying dormant in you.
Ben concedes as he grabs the pillow he was using on the floor, your brace for the moment that he decides to toss it at you only for him to place it gingerly in his lap.
“Welcome to the club.” Frankie mutters under his breath as you stare down Will who now has one finger up…interesting.
“Never have I ever been tied up.” Fuck
You put a finger down and wait for the responses that eventually never come. Will was playing dirty, he knows for a fact you’ve been tied up. It had only been a week since he asked you if you wanted to try it.
This was it,you had to go for the kill…but how bad did you want to win? You know there’s only one way but it will certainly come at a cost. In the end the cost may be worth it.
You raise up on the couch sitting back on your heels,proudly displaying the two fingers you have left. You can’t chance a look at anyone besides Will or you might chicken out. Frankie’s fingers grip nervously at the blanket that’s fallen next to you. He wants to reach out and touch you, the only sound over your beating heart is the rustling of the couch cushions as Santi leans forward just into your peripheral vision. Breath in…Breathe out 3,2,1.
“Never have I ever made someone squirt.” You say it so fast they almost don’t catch it…almost.
“Ha…he’s never made anyone…” Ben is silenced mid sentence as Will closes his fist and leans back into the seat. He doesn’t really care that he’s lost, in reality he’s actually won this game. Judging by the shocked looks on their faces or Ben’s mouth hanging agape. You didn’t fully think this through, your brain was clouded with the thrill of winning.
He almost feels bad for you as he says the momentary look of triumph quickly turns into one of defeat. It’s written all over your face as the realization sets in that you’ve completely fucked yourself, you would be a horrible poker player because you just revealed all your cards. If this were a lion's den you were a fresh piece of meat.
A drop of sweat trickles down your back as you lower your hand slowly to place it on your thigh. The room is so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
“Prove it.” Santi’s voice is so close to your ear you nearly jump out of your skin.
Will tilts his head at you as if to challenge you. This game was far from over and you’d be damned if you were going to lose. You stand from the couch and walk over to him. Four sets of eyes watching your every move as you grab his hand and pull him to stand. You raise your eyebrows as an acceptance to his challenge and he starts to lead you away from them toward the hallway. You sense no movement behind you as you make your way to his bedroom.
“You boys coming or not?” A small stampede sounds behind you and you chuckle picturing them trying not to trample each other as their bodies catch up with their feet, no doubt all thought having left their brains.
****
Santi’s lost count, has it been five or six times Will has brought you to the edge only to pull away and deny you what you so desperately want and need. He’s no stranger to this game but he doesn’t think he’s ever been this turned on by it. Watching from a whole different viewpoint. Being a spectator is thrilling and watching you writhe and chase his touch after each denial makes his cock achingly hard in his jeans.
Frankie’s not doing much better as he tries to follow Will's rules he laid out before starting. If you want me to show you then you don’t touch her unless I tell you to. The captain in him didn’t come out often anymore but when it did he commanded respect.
Ben stares on with excitement and curiosity written all over his face. He watches as you grip the sheets, your chest heaving as sweat beads down your forehead. Will told you not to touch yourself and Ben didn’t know you could be so obedient.
Wills got you so on edge you can’t be shy anymore about the way you beg for him and plead for him to let you come. A far cry from when you first entered the bedroom.
He had slowly undressed you and instructed you to lay flat on the bed. He crawled over your body kissing and biting his way up your thighs and your stomach. His hand caressed your breast as his tongue laved over the other. It was too much and not enough as your eyes met the others standing in the room. They’d all seen you in this position before but something about them watching suddenly has you feeling vulnerable.
“Look at me.” He leaned in and kissed you, deep and passionate as his hand gripped your waist and his tongue prodded your mouth. An expert distraction to bring you back to the moment.
“It’s just me and you.” It was the last thing he said to you before he methodically took you apart right before their eyes. You knew he was taking his time, putting on a show. He wasn’t simply going to make you squirt and move on like some conquest. He wanted to draw this out, show them what he was capable of.
He started with his mouth as his breath ghosted over your slick folds. He looked up at you through hooded lids one more time to give you a chance to back out, when you gave no indication of wanting to stop he dragged his tongue expertly through your slit. Parting it with his thumb as he dove in circling your clit. You were a goner from the beginning as he brought you to the first cliff only to leave you hanging. You cried out his name in desperation as he dipped two fingers in, pumping in and out as he bit down on your thigh. The pleasure and pain mixed in with you on display had your nerves alight.
With each denied release you can feel the pressure building in your core, it’s so close you can taste it on the tip of your tongue. You can taste yourself as he leans over you again kissing you through your whimpers as your body shakes beneath him.
“Will please…” Your sweet voice begging is like music to their ears. Frankie would give you whatever you want if you asked him but Will doesn’t budge.
“Please what sweetheart…I can’t read your mind.”
Son of a bitch he’s trying to kill you.
For all his resolve Santiago can’t help but be impressed. Even if this sudden burst of confidence is all a show for them he has to admit he would’ve caved by now and just went straight for the finale.
You’re not even sure when Ben and Frankie sat on the bed leaning against the headboard beside you, or when Santi sat at the end to have a perfect view of your pussy clenching around nothing as your arousal drips onto the sheets below.
“Please Will, I need you inside me…I need to come please.” You’re practically crying as he shushes you, his cock leaking precum on your stomach as it twitches in anticipation. He’s not going to be able to last much longer at this rate either.
He leans back on his heels as he grips the base of his cock, slapping your clit and dragging it through your slick as he slowly prods your entrance. The noise you make almost has him buckling as you sigh into it finally having what you want.
He starts at a slow pace as he wraps your legs around his waist, he can see the way your face contorts with every slap of his hips against yours. You can feel every vein and ridge as the lude sounds of your sweat and slick echo in the room.
You can’t see it from where you are but Frankie’s itching to touch you, desperately wanting to break the rule as he watches you try not to touch yourself.
Ben is mesmerized as he watches your breasts bounce with every thrust of Will's hips, he wants to latch onto you and bite down until you're screaming his name, but he knows his brother would do more than scold him if he so much as tried to touch you right now.
Santi’s waiting…waiting for any sign or movement as to how he does it. He’s thoroughly enjoying himself but he’s seen nothing new, nothing he hasn’t done to you a dozen times over. Any indication as to what Will has managed to do before the rest of them. It’s driving him a little mad as he watches you beg for it like you’ve never had it before.
You can feel the tension building as Will picks up his pace, he shifts your legs to either side of his head as he punches the air out of your lungs with every thrust. He brings his thumb down rubbing fast circles on your clit as you try to grab his wrist. That all too familiar feeling has you keen and arch your back. “Grab her hands.” Frankie moves before you can think, your wrists gripped tightly in one of his palms above your head.
“Wait…please.” He chuckles under his breath as his chest heaves with the sharp movements. Not mere seconds ago you were begging to come and now you’re begging him to stop.
You crane your head back and lock eyes with Ben, his eyes are etched with worry as he lays there helpless to your pleas. “Will!”
“She’s fine…aren’t you sweetheart?” You can’t think, he’s fucked you so dumb you cant remember your own name let alone formulate a sentence. “Yes.” Is all you can manage.
“She knows what to say if she wants to stop.” He grits through his teeth as his orgasm steadily approaches, his thighs burn and he’s surely bruised your calves as he grips tightly to them.
You’ve never safe worded with him and you don’t plan on it now. It feels so good as the searing hot sensation creeps up your spine threatening to take purchase in your brain. “Please don’t stop.”
He gestures to Frankie to grab the pillow, who moves with lightning speed as he situates it under your back. Santi looks at your face then, and he finally sees it. The look of panic and bliss as you succumb to the inevitable. He’s seen this look before but he ran from it afraid that he might hurt you. Will punches something deep inside you as he lifts your hips, the sound you make bordering on pornography while your arousal coats his stomach almost forcing him out of you completely.
He thrusts once and twice before nearly collapsing his weight onto you as he comes through your high. He releases your legs as he leans in to give you a kiss. Will was nothing if thorough and he always made sure you were okay. It’s in this moment that you truly feel like it’s just the two of you and not aware of the blissed out expressions of the other men.
“You did so good for me.” He pants out against your mouth as he desperately tries to catch his breath.
You highly doubt this is what Ben had in mind when he suggested this game but it ended much better than any of you would have anticipated.
Moments pass and you’ve just barely recovered. You’re in need of a shower and some water as you try to move slightly, the grip on your wrists tighten as you look back at Frankie.
Chapter summary-The boys find a way to make your birthday very special.
CW-18+, Angst,Fluff,lots of fluff, tears but happy tears.
WK-5k
A/N- This is my first completed series so I’m very proud of myself for that accomplishment. I’m not saying goodbye to this group so please be on the lookout for future stories involving them as their relationship progresses. Thanks for sticking around 🤍 all of you.
[Series Masterlist][Main Masterlist]
Not beta read
Final chapter-It’s my party
“Come in officers.” You don’t skip a beat as you move aside to let the two men enter your home. Your training won’t allow you to let on that your heart is beating a mile a minute.
You gesture them over to your dining room table to have a seat. Of course the couch feels more personal and you don’t want them to be comfortable. The more comfortable they are, the longer they’ll stay. You want to be able to sit with your nervous legs concealed under a table versus on display for them to judge your movements.
They likely know as much as they can about you. Your military background and a basic knowledge of your schooling and home life. What they likely don’t know is you are no basic militant soldier and you’ve had them clocked since they stepped through the threshold of your home.
Any form of torture or interrogation you’ve been through will make this look like child’s play.
You have a seat at the head of the table facing the door. Not offering them something to drink was another tactic in making sure they were uncomfortable enough to make this quick.
“We just want to ask you a few questions regarding your boyfriend Michael’s disappearance.”
“Ex.” The officer who couldn’t keep his eyes away from the low cut neckline of your tank top looks up at you finally. “Sorry to interrupt but we broke up weeks ago.”
“Well that would explain why one of his coworkers reported him missing and not you.” Officer Williams seems to be offering up information you don’t necessarily need but could definitely be used to your benefit. “She seemed to be under the impression you two were still together.”
“We got into a pretty big argument and I asked him to leave. He hadn’t been acting himself lately and he didn’t really react well to my questioning his odd behavior.” You hold his eye contact as he waits for you to continue. “I have a box of his things that he never came to get if you want to take a look.”
He perks up at that and you stand to head out of the kitchen towards your bedroom. You don’t miss the way the other officer watches you walk clearly not having any sense of decorum about him.
You linger in the hallway a moment listening to their hushed voices. “She doesn’t know anything, let's just go.”
“I know but I need to go through the routine.” He says through gritted teeth.
Your leaving gave you a moment to breathe and come up with some idea of what you were going to say when they inevitably brought up the boys.
You set the box down in front of the shorter officer and he goes for it like a kid being handed a toy to keep himself busy. Leaving you with the one who had some semblance of professionalism.
He tilts his head towards the ornate bouquets on your countertop. “Those all for you? You must be a lucky woman.”
“Oh my friends spoil me, they dropped those off earlier.” Not entirely a lie.
“What’s the occasion if you don’t mind me asking?” I do mind actually.
“It’s my birthday in a few days.” The mention of your birthday makes you wonder if you would even be able to see them or know what’s going on.
The other officer seems bored of looking through the box of his random assortment of clothes and paperwork that he left as he slides it forward.
“I don’t really see anything in here but I’d like to take it off your hands if you don’t mind?” You throw your hands up and he tucks the box under his arm as he stands seemingly ready to go.
“Well officer Williams and I should be getting out of your hair.” He offers a tight lipped smile at his partner who doesn’t manage to disguise his eye roll from you.
You’re torn between acting like you don’t care about his disappearance and not wanting to come off like you care too much about your ex boyfriend. It would be a little suspicious even without evidence that you’re involved that you could care less about someone you spent over six months with. Truthfully you’re relieved.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t offer you any more information.” They wave you off in your attempt to sound concerned.
“It’s probably for the best since he was involved in some pretty shady business dealings.” The more competent of the two turns around to hand you his card. “I’m sure you’re more than capable of handling yourself, but if anyone comes around here giving you trouble or asking questions about him you give me a call.” His wink suggests something else and now you’ve all but written off these two idiots, who are no doubt on a wild good chase.
“Those your delta buddies?” The other officer gestures to their photo on the wall with you strategically placed in the middle.
Annoyed at pointing out the obvious but forced to bite back a smart retort. “Yes, that was taken shortly after I joined.”
“Well I’m sure you could call on one of them if you run into any trouble.” They chuckled to themselves as they stepped out into your front porch.
You have no idea
****
Will closes the laptop just after you close your front door. He runs his hands through his hair as he stares up at the ceiling, breathing a sigh of relief. It’s done
Santiago’s idea to purposely leave you in the dark offered you the chance to have a genuine interaction should the cops show up. Which they assumed they would since you were his most recent relationship.
Ben’s already left from the table, no doubt to start packing his bags because he knew once the cops left they were going to head home. Ben may have worn his heart on his sleeve but they were all holding on by a thread not being able to talk to you or see you in person.
The little glimpses of you they got through the camera only served as a means of torture. Watching you do the most menial task in the kitchen while dancing or kicking your feet on the couch when the book your reading gets interesting. They want to be there for those things everyday.
Someday
The next mission, which they had days to plan out being holed up in the safe house was orchestrating your birthday. You always told them not to make a big deal about it. Just being with you boys is allI want.
They skated on that for too long. You deserved more for your birthday than the normal hang out at the bar in your usual spot. You are a big deal so they should make you feel like one. Especially if they were going to show you how committed they are.
Everyone had their specific tasks tailored to their skill level and you’d be a fool to think each of them weren’t going to treat this like the most important thing they’ve ever done.
All doubts about their relationship or what people would think were out the window before they even stepped foot into the safe house.
If they were willing to travel to another country and steal a drug lord's money, they could just as easily tell society to fuck off when it comes to you.
****
You haven’t slept that well in a long time. Some may find it odd after being questioned by the police, but Mike being gone puts you at ease. Knowing whatever happened to him was not by accident and whatever they did, it was for you.
You were completely ruined for any other man when you stepped foot into their lives. It’s a shame it’s taken you this long to notice because you’ve wasted so much time.
Your relationships with each of them over the years have developed into something you can’t live without. You couldn’t put your finger on why your brain wouldn’t allow you to look at any one of them as just a friend. It made things difficult when your lives were on the line so you shoved it down deep somewhere to hide away and never resurface. Until Tom passed away and all those feelings came flooding back and instead of embracing it, you ran head first in the wrong direction.
It’s a little sick and twisted but you really have your ex to thank for pushing them back into your life and making all of you open your eyes up to see the most perfect thing was already happening right in front of you.
You're thankful you have work to keep you busy today. You know it’s highly likely they’ll be coming home from wherever they are and you don’t want to sit by your phone all day waiting for a call or text.
You hop in your shower letting the hot water (scalding) as Frankie would put it cascade over you. Washing the last few weeks away, the steam is opening up your lungs and you feel like you can breathe for the first time in a long time. You nearly choke on it as you hear your phone ping from the counter. Almost breaking your neck and towel rack in the process of jumping out to read your text.
Benjamin: I'll be seeing you this week honey
When
Benjamin:😘
You stand their half naked soaking the mat beneath you as you wait for a response. You look up and see your blurry reflection in the mirror and get a sneaky idea. Your hands brush quickly over the mirror streaking the glass but revealing you just enough. You pull the towel up slightly before you bite your lip and snap a photo.
Image
Benjamin: Sweetheart you’re killing me.
Benjamin: I’ll see you on Wednesday
****
Wednesday couldn’t come soon enough. Thankfully you weren’t assigned to the ER today so you had time to rush home and shower, unsure of when Ben would be showing up or if he was planning on staying.
You put on your favorite leggings that hugged your curves perfectly and your old army tee shirt. After giving yourself a once over in front of the floor length mirror you dabbed on some new perfume that you treated yourself to for your birthday.
The doorbell rings and you try not to sprint to the door as you shuffle through your hallway, taking a slow deep breath before opening it.
Your legs nearly buckle at the sight of Ben on your porch, looking the most nervous you’ve ever seen him. He’s shakily holding a piece of canvas paper in his hands as he sways back and forth. He has a blue polo on to match his eyes and a pair of tan slacks. His hair is combed back out of his face and he looks so handsome you could cry.
“I missed you.” He breathes out like it’s the first time his lungs have had air in weeks.
You can’t help yourself when you launch into his arms and he clings to you like his life depends on it.
It feels like an eternity as you stand on your front porch just holding him, breathing in his scent. A new cologne you don’t recognize that washes over you.
“Oh shit the paper.” He reluctantly lets you go to smooth out the paper he dropped on the ground as you try to glance at it and he holds it back from you with a wink.
“What’s that?” You gesture towards it as he skims it over again like he’s reciting lines.
“It’s an itinerary.” He smiles at you then and your heart can’t take how much you’ve truly missed him.
You step aside awkwardly to let him in but he doesn’t move from his spot on the porch. “Are you coming in?”
“I’m not supposed to.” He sounds a little defeated as he says it which causes even more confusion for you. “Read the itinerary and leave…”
“Oh so you’re here on strict orders?” You’re hoping the teasing will ease some of this tension. “So read it to me.” You step further into the house far enough away that he would have to follow.
“You think you’re slick?” You nod your head as you sit down on the couch with your legs tucked under you.
He mumbles something under his breath about getting in trouble as he sits next to you. “There will be a special delivery here, when you get off work tomorrow.”
“What..”
“Obviously I can’t tell you what it is or that would ruin the surprise. Just be here to sign for it at 7.” He shifts a little on the couch so he’s facing you.
“Friday Maria is taking you to do some kind of spa day.” His emphasis on spa has you laughing.
Santiago’s sister Maria was always your number one fan. She was the woman you could confide in when you were constantly surrounded by men who just didn’t understand. You know she always secretly hoped you’d end up with Santi but you’re sure she has no idea what’s actually going on. She just recently moved closer to Santi after her divorce and you feel a little guilty for not having reached out sooner. You didn’t want to burden her with your own issues when she was just getting her life back together.
“Saturday at seven a limo will arrive to pick you up and take you to a separate location for dinner.” He sets the paper face down on the coffee table and smooths his hands along his slacks.
“Ben, the first rule of kidnapping is never let them take you to a second location.”
“Don’t worry sweetheart, you can trust the driver.” He winks at you again and if he doesn’t stop you're going to have to glue his eye shut.
“So…I guess you have to go now right?”
“Ya…I should go.” Ben doesn’t move as he watches you fidget with a run on the couch thread.
His hand reaches out to still your movements and you finally look at him. It’s been so long since he took you on that date and by the way you’re looking at him it would be so easy to just walk you down your hallway. To the bedroom he’s been in so many times to simply sleep. He could cave like Santiago and you would let him.
He leans in, pressing you back against the headrest of the couch. His face is just inches from yours as you close your eyes. His fingers trace the outline of your bottom lip and then trail down your neck as he cups the back of your head and finally presses his lips to yours. It’s soft and slow, like you're just breathing each other in. He tastes like mint with a hint of your cherry lip balm that you left in his car ages ago.
He pulls away reluctantly and rests his forehead against yours. “I promise after Saturday, we won’t have to keep stopping this short.”
You groaned under your breath. “I don’t know what that means.”
He kisses your forehead and stands from the couch, pulling you with him. Without your shoes on it feels like he towers over you. You wrap your arms around him one last time, burying your face in his chest.
“You’ll know what it means soon enough hon’.”
****
Texting the boys to find out what your special delivery was of course yielded no results. You resigned yourself to guessing throughout your work day as to what it might be.
Your house couldn’t possibly hold any more flower arrangements and you don’t think they would get you a pet. Or would they? You don’t think they would do something that rash for your birthday, but then again Mike was nowhere to be found and that wasn’t of his own doing.
You make it home just in time to make yourself a quick dinner, grilled cheese and tomato soup one of your favorites. You’re hardly paying attention to the show you put on when the doorbell rings. You bolt up from the couch and open the door hoping to see one of the boys.
A beautiful woman in a crisp black suit is standing next to a rack with black garment bags lined along it.
You look down briefly at your shorts and oversized shirt. You’re two for two opening the door to some very well dressed individuals, while in your lounge clothes.
I have a delivery, I’ll need you to sign off as she says your name. She hands you a small pad to sign and you politely step aside as she wheels it into your home.
“Is there anywhere in particular you’d like me to place this?”
“There is fine, thank you.” You haven’t torn your eyes from the rack as you try to decipher what’s inside.
She offers you a courteous smile as she exits through the front door. You stand there briefly as you watch her walk to a sleek black delivery van and drive away.
You slam the door and push the rack to your bedroom so fast you almost knock it over. It’s safe to assume it’s clothing so you strip down to your panties and fish your nice bra out of your top dresser drawer.
The sound of the zipper and rustling fabric is all you can hear over the sound of your rapid breaths. Your hands are shaking with excitement as you open the first bag to reveal a navy blue satin dress. You take it off the hanger and notice the intricate straps on the back, opting to forgo those and just step into it.
You pull the thin straps over your shoulder as you look at yourself in the large mirror in your bedroom. It’s been a while since you got really dressed up, and despite your unkempt hair and no makeup you feel so beautiful in it.
You smooth your hands down the silky fabric and straighten up a little.
You look good
Your excitement starts to build as you quickly realize you have several more items to try on. You delicately extract yourself from this dress so as to not damage it. There’s one way you get to keep all of these so you need to treat them very carefully until you decide what you’re wearing.
The next dress is a burnt orange color with a velvety smooth fabric. You brush your thumb across it reveling in the way it feels, knowing how good it will feel in your skin.
It is decidedly less difficult than the first and stretchy enough that you can pull it over your head. It has thicker straps and a slit going up your left thigh. The first dress was beautiful but this is leading so far.
You set his dress on the hanger and put it in your closet before moving on to the next.
The next is a bright yellow strapless dress. The fabric is chiffon and it’s so far the most revealing thing you could possibly own. It’s stunning when you pull it out but you’re also wondering how exactly you're going to zip this. It’s sort of origami on the top and has a train which you love.
You zip it as far as you can by yourself and even with it slightly agape in the back the boning in the bodice is cinching you in. You round your shoulders back with your hands on your hips as you marvel at the image before you. Part of you wanted to take a picture of each one and send it but now you’re certain they want this to be a surprise.
If picking the best of four was going to be your future you were going to have to get really good at making diplomatic decisions.
The final garment bag has a note attached to the top.
We know you’ll look beautiful in any of these but please pick your favorite to wear on your birthday. Don’t be worried about the weather or being in front of a crowd when making your decision.
As if they could read your mind. They know you might think twice about wearing a few of them in public and the humidity at times could be unbearable even with nothing on.
They are all yours to keep. Happy Birthday Honey.
You feverishly wipe your eyes and set the note down on your bed.
The final garment bag reveals a sparkling red dress. You walk backwards as you pull it out and the layers of fabric trail behind it. You hold it up to your chest in the mirror and try your best to compose yourself. It’s all so overwhelming and exhilarating all at once.
You're careful with the straps as you step into the dress. They might as well be non-existent with how thin they are. The sweetheart neckline is doing wonders for your chest and the silhouette billows out into an A line skirt. You do a twirl in the mirror as the fabric rustles the ground. You feel like a princess in this dress and you find yourself staring for far longer than you want to.
You glance around looking for your phone, remembering you left it in the living room. You traipse through the house in your dress and find it sitting on the arm of the couch. It’s been over an hour. A text from Santi not long ago is your only notification.
Santiago: What ya doing cariño
You type out a quick reply and wait until you see those three dots.
Playing dress up
Santiago: How is it going
Very well
Santiago: Which one are you wearing now
You know I can’t tell you
Santiago: It’s the red one
Goodnight Santiago
Santiago: Goodnight cariño
****
You're nervously pacing your living room, waiting for Maria to arrive. You haven’t seen her since the wedding and that marriage fell apart faster than it was conceived. You’re embarrassed that you haven’t reached out to see how she’s doing but Colombia happened around the same time and you both took a step back. Days turned into weeks turned into months and neither of you knew where to pick up again.
Your doorbell rings ripping you from your thoughts as you take a deep breath for the third time this week and answer the door.
Her back is to you, admiring the flowers on your trellis when you open the door. She turns to you with that same blank expression that Santiago has all but perfected. The tears brimming her eyes give way to the demeanor she’s clinging to.
Much like Santiago it doesn’t take much for her to break as she steps forward and pulls you into her arms. You can hardly understand each other as you mumble apologies through tears and a little bit of her hair is in your mouth as you cling to her. It’s sloppy and messy and you love it. You missed her so much and the relief washes over you at the realization that she missed you just as much.
“I think we both need this today.” She leans back and frames your face with her hands, wiping your tears with her thumbs. “Are you ready to be pampered?”
You nod, still too overwhelmed to speak without choking back tears.
“Okay Honey let’s go.”
****
You’re thankful they booked you a couples massage. The thought of being alone right now after spending such a great day with your friend was paralyzing.
She had a lot of questions for you about your life over the last few years. You didn’t have a lot of answers for her but you did your best to put her at ease.
You're lying side by side on separate tables as two strangers try to rub years of stress and worry out of your sore muscles. It’s comfortably quiet for some time as you take in the tranquil white noise and smell the lavender and eucalyptus in the room.
“I’m glad you guys finally figured it out.” Her voice is slightly muffled with her head down on the massage table. You don’t know if she’s referring to Santi or if she even knows half of what’s going on. “I just have one question for you.”
“Sure…ask me anything.”
“Do you know what you’re doing?” You think for a moment at the weight of her question. You turn your head on its side so she can hear you clearly before answering.
“Not a clue.”
She turns her head to you and smiles. “Good…people who know what they’re doing scare me.”
You both laugh and she reaches out to lock her finger with yours as they dangle between the two tables.
****
You stare at yourself for the second time this week in this beautiful dress. It was perfect for whatever tonight had in store.
It’s five till and you're anxiously awaiting your ride as you stand by the door placing the strappy heels on your feet.
For the first time all week, you hear a light knock instead of the doorbell. When you open it you’re met with Frankie dressed in a tight black button down and black slacks. His hair is on display which you assume has some kind of product or gel. His brown curls frame his face perfectly as he smiles down at you.
He leans in, placing a kiss on your cheek. “You look…beautiful.”
“You don’t look too bad yourself Morales.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment even though you didn’t pick my dress.” He takes your hand as you step out onto the front porch. You turn around but he’s already got his spare key in hand, locking up behind you.
“You’ll just have to take me somewhere I can wear it.”
“That can be arranged.” He helps you down the steps as a long black limousine comes into view in front of your driveway. He opens the door for you and helps you slide in before he starts to close it.
“What are you doing?”
“Someone has to drive hermosa.” He closes the door, shrouding you in darkness until the car starts up and the back seats are lined with soft yellow lights.
This is by far the most extravagant display of affection and attention they’ve ever paid to your birthday. Every year you’d spent together you told them you simply just wanted to enjoy their company.
It didn’t bother you that you always went a little too hard on their birthdays because that’s how you show love. You think this may be their way of making up for doing just the bare minimum and then some.
It’s hard to tell where you're going with the sun having set and the dark tint of the windows. It’s not until you pull up to the airfield where Frankie works that you recognize your surroundings.
Coming into view is an open hanger with the boys standing in front. It’s a beautiful sight seeing them all standing there…waiting for you. Santi and Ben are talking to each other as Will stares down at a small piece of paper.
Frankie heads over to them before opening your door. Santiago looks at him and grins as he makes his way over. He has the most adoration in his eyes as he opens the door for you.
“Fuck…you look beautiful.”
He holds his hand out for you as you try to swallow the lump in your throat. Ben lets out a low whistle as you exit the car. You’ve been in hostage situations less nerve wracking than this moment.
They lead you to the open hanger and you’re taken aback at the romantic set up. A singular plane in the background.White roses and candles line the table set up for five.
“So…how did we do?” Frankie’s deep baritone voice settles into your bones as his hand rests against your back.
How do you tell them it’s the most beautiful thing anyone has ever done for you? How do you tell them you’ve been waiting for this moment longer than you’d care to admit?
You turn to him then as he sees the tears in your eyes.
“Please don’t cry.”
“Don’t worry they’re happy tears.” You laugh as he wipes your cheeks.
Frankie pulls up a chair behind you and you sit as he goes to stand by the other three.
Will digs into his pocket and pulls out the piece of paper he was reading when you arrived. He opens it and folds it back quickly.
“I was going to read some things we all wrote down, but it doesn’t sound right anymore.” He pauses briefly as the others stare in confusion. “I’m sick of listing out reasons why this works. I can’t explain in words how I feel…how we feel about you.”
“You’re doing great.” The sarcasm dripping from Benny’s voice has you chuckle.
You’re glad Will seems just as nervous as you are. He was always the one who had a way with words and now here he is unable to form a coherent thought.
“All I’m saying is, we want you to give whatever this is between us a chance. Life feels so much better with you in it everyday.”
You can hear yourself saying yes before he even finishes what he’s said.
“Did you expect me to say anything other than yes.”
“I don’t know sweetheart, I’ve never done anything like this before.” Ben claps his brother on the shoulder as they all surround you.
Summary-Set before the reader and the boys are officially together and how it all came to be.
CW-18+,MDNI,individual warnings for each chapter.Angst,fluff,comfort,mentions of ptsd,cursing,mlm, brief mention of homophobia,mentions of sex, canon events,we hate tom. Please let me know if I forgot any warnings.
WC-3.7k
Chapter Summary- The boys discuss your future and your past.
Not beta read
Notes-See Masterlist for full story notes
[Series Masterlist]
Chapter III The deal is off
——————————————
The further he gets from your house the more you feel the weight lifting off your shoulders. You glance up at Benny watching his eyes as he makes sure your boyfriend ex gets in his car and drives away. You don’t know if he even realizes he’s rubbing soothing circles on your shoulder to steadily ground himself.
“I hope you don’t mind if we stay?” He glances at you with those puppy dog eyes and you can’t resist.
“I would be upset if you wanted to leave.” You can feel him relax against you as he breathes a sigh of relief.
“Come on honey, let's go inside.” You’re too exhausted to notice him helping you through the most menial task of standing and walking inside your own house.
As you enter you see Frankie putting your table where it should be and Will surveying the hole in your wall and Santi…grabbing his keys? Of course he was leaving, all of this was too much. You couldn’t ask him to stay after dealing with your shitty ex. His eyes meet yours and you desperately try to wipe the tears welling in your eyes,putting on the best Im okay smile you can muster.
As if he can read your mind he strides over to you with confidence as he pulls you into a tight hug. You can smell his cologne on his neck as he cradles the back of your head with one hand and places a soft kiss on your temple.
“Cariño I’m not leaving, I just need to grab something from the truck.” You reluctantly let him go and have a seat on your couch.
The events of the last few hours seem like a blur. You have so many questions you need answers too but is now even the right time to ask? What are these feelings you have brewing for the men you’ve known your entire adult life? It has to be the vulnerable state you’re in causing these inappropriate thoughts. You had a boyfriend less than ten minutes ago. A poor excuse for one and frankly seemed like your only option.
You’re pulled from your thoughts when Benny plops down next to you and grabs the remote. Frankie sits on the other side of you and pulls you against his broad chest relaxing against the arm rest. Okay so we’re not going to talk about it…that’s fine with me.
“I’m gonna come fix the hole on Friday, it’s my day off.” Will states as he makes his way to the kitchen to grab some beers from your fridge. You’ve missed the way they all fit into your life so easily. You’re trying your best to choke back the tears that have been threatening to spill since they arrived.
Santi toes the door open with his boot as his arms are full of grocery bags. “ I got all your favorites honey.” You can feel the lump tightening in your throat and your chest constricting-what is happening?
“Well I know what we’re watching.” Benny smiles at you as he selects the Mummy your favorite from the Netflix recently watched list.
You’re getting hot and they feel too close, it’s all too much. Not addressing the elephant in the room shouldn’t be this hard but it’s making your skin crawl.
Will comes over and hands Benny a beer as he gets comfortable on the loveseat. “I think Santi is making you something stronger.” He winks at you and you’re grateful you’re seated because you would have been in a puddle on the floor at that moment. Are they doing this on purpose?
Santi rounds the couch and sets his beer and your margarita on the coffee table.
“You’re in my seat.”
“Come on man there are no assigned seats.” Ben whines as he slumps down to the floor in front of you. Always doing as he’s told despite the protests.
You’re surely on the verge of a heart attack as the pain surges through your chest. The lump in your throat makes it hard to swallow and you don’t know how long you’ve been holding your breath.
Frankie senses too late what is happening as you stiffen against him, your shirt is clinging to you and your breaths have become ragged, you grip his thigh trying to ground yourself as the pressure consumes you.
“Honey?” You don’t hear him call you as he leans in, drowned out by your own thoughts of why you deserve this treatment. Too caught up in your self loathing to comprehend that they’re trying to pull you out.
Santi hands you a Reese's, your favorite candy. You stare with your palm open like it holds all of life’s answers. The damn breaks as you sob into Frankie’s chest. They’re all staring at you wide eyed and concerned as he consoles you.
“Shhh… I know it’s a lot. It’s gonna be ok hermosa.”
He knows all too well how it feels when you're drowning above water. No one can see the signs until it’s too late. The feeling like you’re suffocating but you have plenty of oxygen at your disposal. Every breath you take isn’t enough to stop the barrage of tears once they start.
“I told you to get sour patch kids.” Ben half whispers to Santi. Your crying turns to laughter and you’re sure they’re convinced you’ve lost your mind.
You take a few deep breaths into Frankie’s chest, inhaling his woodsy scent and faintly hearing his coaching your breathing. You can feel the steady rise and the fall of his chest.
“Thank you.” You say barely above a whisper.
Frankie squeezes your shoulder simultaneously with Santi squeezing your leg. A calm silence falls over the group as the tension recedes from your body.
“Sweetheart you don’t have to thank us, you’ve saved us more times than this.” Will…always the voice of reason. “This is our fault.” You open your mouth to protest but he raises a gentle hand.
“We’ve let you save us too many times, we’ve become so reliant on you that we failed to see when you needed us.”
You don’t really know what to say at this moment so you open your favorite candy and take a bite. It’s never tasted this good. You give Benny the other half as he half bites your finger causing you to giggle. You offer one to Frankie and he happily obliges.
“Mmm my guilty pleasure.” The double meaning is lost on you.
You offer one to Will and your fingers brush as he takes it from you. “Only because you offered.” Ever the gentleman.
“Before you even offer I’m not eating it.” Stubborn as a mule.
“Santiago…if you don’t take it I'm going to cry again.” Not your best tactic but it will surely work.
He groans in protest as he takes it from your hand.
“You have to eat it too.” Frankie barks out a laugh that makes you swell with pride.
“That’s my girl.” He whispers in your ear as he squeezes your waist. The barrage of emotions you’re feeling right now can only be described as delirium.
“As you wish for cariño.” Santi slowly puts the chocolate in his mouth, not breaking eye contact. The air in the room is leaving for completely different reasons. You are in trouble
Three margaritas deep and your sadness has quickly been replaced by your drunken state.
“Please just admit they’re all hot.”
“Honey, you say this every time we watch this.” Benny is resting his head on the cushion between you and Frankie.
You’re playing with his hair as he leans into your touch.
“Tell me…you don’t think they’re attractive?” The alcohol has you feeling a little bold and relaxed. Something you haven’t felt in weeks.
“Oh they’re definitely attractive…so how did you end up with Mike if you find them attractive?” Frankie slaps him in the back of his head as a hush falls over the room.
He’s right, how did you end up with him? You can’t even be mad at his question. You can however dish it back.
“I can’t date all of you and evidently you’re the most eligible bachelors in town…so the rest of us get Mike and people like him.”
You miss the knowing glances they all send each other as your head slumps back on Frankie’s shoulder.
You don’t know when you fell asleep or how you ended up tucked into your bed but a sudden panic falls over you at the thought of being alone. That is until you hear the low sounds of the tv still on in your living room and the not so quiet sound of Benny's voice. You can sleep peacefully knowing they would never leave.
****
“Will you lower your voice,you’re gonna wake her up.” Santi bristles at Benny as he emerges from your kitchen with more beers.
Benny has had his fair share of tequila and can’t possibly be in control of the octave in his voice.
“Listen…all I’m saying is we already spend every moment of our lives together,it wouldn’t be that big a deal.” He’s half whispering and shouting and his brother just rolls his eyes.
“No.” Santi deadpans just staring at the tv, anything to take his mind off the ridiculous proposal from Benny. He looks to Frankie for some help but he’s too preoccupied with the animated way Benny is flailing his arms as he talks and he knows he’s lost his comrade to the tequila as well. He’s seen that look in Frankie’s eyes so many times. The look he’s given him when he’s feeling flirtatious. The look you all give each other from time to time.
“I don’t recall you being the boss of me Santiago.” He says in a sing-song tone, Frankie can’t help the giggle that escapes him watching the antics unfold.
“You’re outnumbered anyway,Frankie was already planning on asking her out and I know my brother is in love with her.”
“Leave me out of this.” Will says half asleep from the loveseat.
“I would rather have her in my life and be alone than not have her in my life at all if me or any of you idiots broke her heart.”
A silence falls over the room as they all ponder what life would be like without you in it.
Surprisingly Frankie breaks the silence first before Benny can cause anymore annoyance to his half drunk and sleepy cohorts.
“We almost didn’t have her in our lives because of that asshole…so I’m willing to try and see where this goes.”
Santi huffs a laugh to himself as he runs his hands down his face. “And you’re both gonna be fine with whoever she chooses?” The question on everyone’s minds lingers in the air.
“I trust you guys more than anyone and I’d be happier if she was with one of us than some guy I know would break her heart.” Benny always wore his heart on his sleeve,never backing down to defend one of them or you.
“Fine…do what you want but when it all blows up in our faces just know I will never forgive you for ruining what he had.”
Benny leans back against Frankie on the couch, a triumphant grin on his face as he’s lulled to sleep by the rise and fall of his chest. He is so content like this, dreaming of you and finally able to relax for the first time in weeks knowing you’re safe and he has everything he could ever ask for under one roof.
It’s settled then, the deal is off.
***
10 years ago
They’re all crowded into the mess hall after another boring day of cleaning and bitch work. The air is thick with tension since they haven’t been on assignment in weeks, not since Frankie’s near death injury. Frankie wasn’t thinking clearly when he was stabbed in the side, he hadn’t properly swept the room…preoccupied with his thoughts after hearing a gunshot close by and wondering if it was Santi or Benny injured. He doesn’t know when things started to shift for him but as the weeks went on he felt more than friendship for his comrades. It nearly got him killed.
Frankie’s never been that close to death and Santi has been distant since. The thought of losing him pushed feelings to the surface he’s never felt before. He didn’t know how to handle them, of course he loved his friends and would lay down his life for them but this was something else. He was never good at addressing his feelings and so he ran. He couldn’t physically go anywhere so into his mind he went.
It made everyone on edge, Frankie had a sadness in his eyes and Benny wanted to help him anyway he can but he pushed him away. They were all fracturing as though weeks prior they weren’t the closest they’ve ever been.
Will constantly snapped at his brother telling him to get his shit together, Tom snapped at all of them for being so caught up in anything besides their jobs. They were acting anything but the special ops soldiers that they were. Too many feelings were involved causing them to implode.
“Davis,Garcia,Morales,Millers…report to the briefing room nineteen hundred hours.” The sound of the lieutenant colonel causing a bush to fall over the room. He exits swiftly on his feet in his crisp army fatigues.
“Fuck.” Tom says not so quietly “I knew you guys were gonna fuck this up acting all weird.”
“Fuck you.” Frankie spits back at Tom as he stands with his tray to leave the hall. Santi and Benny can’t hide the grin spreading across their faces. It’s the most he’s said in weeks and they’ll cling to that small gesture if it’s all they can get.
Benny looks up at Will and sees the heartbreak in his eyes, he knows that being in delta is everything to him, he wishes he could take it as seriously as his brother does. He hopes things haven’t been ruined for all of them and he vows to try harder for him if they can get a second chance. He mouths a silent “I’m sorry.” To his brother which he returns with a smile and for the first time in weeks Ben feels like he can breathe a little.
They’re all silent as they make their way to the briefing room, the unanswered question looming among them. A million thoughts swimming in their head about their future. Would they be disciplined?demoted?discharged? None of it feels right to think about.
Of course they arrive 15 minutes early, all of them too nervous to wait any longer. As they approach the room a soft voice is heard through the door followed by laughter from the colonel. He’s laughing? They didn’t think the man was capable of anything but surly disposition. They exchange confused glances amongst each other as Tom opens the door first.
You’re leaning against the desk with your arms folded across your chest, the crinkle in your eyes and the small dimple in your cheeks is the least distracting thing about you as you laugh at something the colonel said. The standard issue army shirt and pants do nothing to hide your figure and it takes Frankie a moment to realize Tom is the only one seated at the desks.
You turn to face them as the four men are left gaping in the doorway like fools.
“Have a seat.” The colonel pulls them from their thoughts as you clear your throat and stand at attention in the front of the room. The smile has dropped from your face as you level them with your intense gaze. Intentionally making eye contact with each of them as they move to sit down.
Ben awkwardly crashes into Santi causing the desk to scratch against the floor and he hopes the floor would swallow him whole at this moment.
They’re the picture of imperfection and the farthest thing from highly trained soldiers, looking at the moment more like highschool teenagers. You drop your head to crack a smile but Will catches the way you clear your throat to disguise the laughter.
“Gentleman, this is your new combat medic, I wanted you all to meet and become acquainted before your new assignment next week.” The colonel says your name and Santi is repeating it in his head as many times as necessary so as not to forget, he wasn’t always good with names but he didn’t want to forget yours.
Frankie’s mind drifts elsewhere as relief floods him knowing they wouldn’t be disciplined for whatever he thought the military knew about his their situation. He feels a little bad that the previous medic had been discharged but it was her job to try and save their lives in the event something happened. He thought that day may have been his last as he watched her shakily stitch him up and eventually Will moved her out of the way and finished opting for his horrible stitch job and steady hands to hers.
“You can talk in here but be back to your quarters before curfew,understood.”
A resounding yes sir from the group and he’s exiting the room but not before he smiles at you.
Santi notices and thinks how wildly inappropriate it may have been or maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, but he can’t necessarily blame the colonel for shameless flirting. There was a draw about you that he couldn’t shake.
“I’m Sant-
“Im Fran-
They begin introductions at once and you can’t help the giggle that escapes you at their eagerness. Santi glares at his friend and Frankie raises his hand in mock surrender.
“I’m Santiago Garcia but you can call me pope.”
“I’m Will and that’s my brother Benny.”
“I’m Fraancisco Morales but you can call me Frankie.” He blushes slightly and you’re unsure why he would be embarrassed by his name.
As if on cue Benny clears his throat “You can call him Fish actually.” Frankie groans and raises his hand to shield his face from you.
“I’ll kill you” he mouths to Benny and any nerves you had for this introduction and joining this tight knit group are slowly dissipating.
You don’t have the heart to tell them the colonel has already told you as much as he could about each of them and of course that included their names. You knew as much about each of them as a small file could tell you except for the fact that they were distractingly handsome and beautiful.
It’s almost unreal that they all ended up together as if they were some inappropriate military calendar that you could buy at the cheap corner store. Even Tom who has yet to introduce himself had some appeal.
“So what are your qualifications?”
Maybe not
“You must be Tom.” He gapes at you unsure of how you knew his name, before he can open his mouth for a reply you raise your hand at him.
You walk the short distance to the desk he’s seated at as you place your hands on the front coming almost eye level with him.
“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t qualified and I certainly don’t need to list my years of experience or accolades to you. The colonel isn’t going to send me home because for some reason you might not like me or deem me to be unfit.”
It’s embarrassing and Frankie is grateful to whatever god above that your attention is honed in on Tom as he adjusts the growing bulge in his pants at your unwillingness to back down from a challenge.
“I’m only going to say this once, when you’re bleeding out from a stab wound or a gunshot, I’m the one you want by your side.” You lean away from the desk as Tom stands to tower over you. You still don’t shy away as he comes toe to toe with you. You could hear a pin drop as they all hold their breath awaiting his response.
“Honey listen, I’m only going to say this once. I’m the only one in this group that gives orders.” Tom smirks at the rage filling your eyes,hoping he can back you down and thinking he’s successful as you move to leave the room. You stop just short of the door as you turn on your heels.
“If you call me honey again it will be the last time you speak.” He laughs and some of the tension leaves the room as they all let out a breath.
“Sure thing honey bee but I don’t know what you think you’re gonna do.”
You open the door to leave, throwing a mischievous grin over your shoulder. “Bees do sting you know.”
It’s quiet for a moment after you leave, despite Tom's gruff introduction it seems you fit right in.
“We need some rules.” Tom says first and Will nods in agreement.
“Do not fuck her.”
“Jesus Tom who said anything about that.” Frankie should be ashamed for coming back at him so harshly, seeing as though he was having some trouble concealing that he wanted to do just that earlier.
“That was mostly directed at Pope, but after your little injury I figured we needed to lay down some ground rules.”
Santi hangs his head, he can’t protest not with the way his reputation was and the fact that he may have inadvertently played a role in Frankie being injured.
“He’s right,we need to tighten up and get our shit together. We can’t have this getting complicated with our lives on the line and I don’t want to lose another medic.” Will always the voice of reason.
“Okay but what about after?” Benny is half joking,half serious. Will slaps the back of his head as Frankie tries to conceal his laughter.
“No…I don’t care if it’s years down the line, we don’t need to complicate this anymore or ruin any friendships.” It’s the honesty in Santis voice that has Benny and Frankie sure that this is the way it has to be.
Chapter summary-The boys carry out their plan and try to stay afloat.
CW-18+,MDNI, angst, mentions of abuse, ptsd,mentions of drug use, violent ideations, addiction issues,fluff,protective tf boys.
WK-3.6K
Notes- This chapter is written in the boys pov. The story will be coming to an end soon but I will continue with one shots about their lives when this is all over.
[Series Masterlist] [Main Masterlist]
Not beta read
Chapter VIII part II Keep you safe
I’ll be at your house in 5
Will: What are we talking about?
Mike
****
As Santi drives distractedly to the Miller/Morales household he thinks about all the ways he’s tried to avoid the inevitable. In the weeks following the dramatic exit of your ex, you were all he could think about. He was never one to face his emotions head on and he certainly wasn’t going to entertain this idea of them all dating you.
Just like the weather in Florida his emotions would take a drastic turn as jealousy turned into envy, watching his brothers one by one succumb to the pull that was you. Even Will, his last line of defense, couldn't resist the feeling of finally being happy. Santiago was a glutton for punishment, he had been his entire life and this situation was no different.
No amount of avoidance or distraction could keep him from thinking about you. He didn’t know where to begin. What does he say? Why can’t he call you? Why can’t he return your calls? All these unanswered questions only seek to cloud his judgment. Instead of doing the obvious like his brothers managed to do he opts for stalking?
It’s not really… in his mind, he’s just driving by your work and all your favorite lunch spots and taking the long way home to pass by your house. Of course this is all easier to him than simply picking up the phone and telling you he’s been madly in love with you since the day you met and he wanted to tell you before the other guys but since they did it first he’s been stubborn.
On one of his routine drives by your house in which he swore this time he would stop and knock on your door. The bouquet of flowers he bought placed in his passenger seat are practically laughing at him. The incentive to actually get out of the car. He rounds the last corner to your street, the late afternoon slightly blocking his view but not enough to see the eye sore of a truck parked just a few houses down from yours.
A myriad of emotions flash across his mind…anger,frustration,annoyance. He’s white knuckling the steering wheel, cursing himself for thinking you may have taken him back. The irreparable damage this would do to all of you and of course he had seen it coming a mile away.
Except…you aren’t home, the tell tale sign of your Jeep not in the driveway because for some reason you refused to use the garage. He knows you always loved the natural light that spilled into your living room from the front window and Frankie constantly reminding you to turn on your porch light when you get home. The blinds are closed and the light is off.
He creeps by slowly passing your house as he pulls alongside the truck to see that asshole in the front seat staring down at his phone illuminating the light on his smug face. What the fuck is he doing sitting outside your house?
He wants to confront him, he should confront him and scare the shit out of him for even being within 50 feet of your house. All the things he should do and all the things he would’ve done in the past somehow overtake him. Instead in an uncharacteristic way he continues driving. The fool doesn’t even notice him. Some part of Santiago knows he’s not stupid enough to hang around too long.
He’s probably doing the same exact thing that landed him in your street in the first place. He should call you and tell you that your crazy ex is parked outside your house…but how would he even begin to explain why he knows that?
Instead he drives home and stews, pacing his living room until he’s sure a permanent track will be etched into the ugly brown carpet. The only thing that snaps him from the monotony is the sound of his phone off in the distance. He brakes from the track to take the few short steps to his kitchen when he sees your face light up on his phone screen. A picture you took of yourself with his phone because you couldn’t believe he didn’t have pictures assigned to contacts. He thought it was stupid to go through all that…he knows what the people look like that call him. Now he is so grateful to see your face when you call.
The sweet moment is quickly broken when he doesn’t even have time to say hi. Your panicked voice rushed out on the other end. Something about Mike being at the bar and you think maybe following you home. Shit… he’s telling you to stay where you are, he’ll come get you. He has to after all since this is all his fault. He should’ve confronted him, scared him a little or at least told you to be careful. His own stubborn reasons for not doing so surely put you in danger from this psychopath who can’t take no for an answer.
He should’ve told you when he picked you up or maybe even when you were in his bed. There were more important things to be said in that moment and none of it matters now…because Mike is a dead man.
****
“Nice to see you too.” Will greets him at the door as Santi barrels into the house to sit at the dining room table.
“We need to take him out.” Frankie sits beside him at the table. He tries to make eye contact with him but the man is all wild and frazzled.
“Who?”
Santi looks up, finally staring directly at Ben, a permanent smile etched on his face because he knows exactly who.
“The man finally gets laid and he wants to go on a killing spree.” He flips off the younger Miller as he huffs out in frustration
“Not a spree, just one man.” He grits out between his teeth. He doesn’t know why he’s so annoyed at the situation. It’s not their fault…maybe a small fraction of him thinks it’s all their fault for not getting their shit together sooner and realizing what they wanted was right in front of them.
He takes a deep breath to compose himself and his thoughts. He tells them everything, all of the messy details. Starting with the fact that he’s been in love with you since the day you walked into all their lives. He tells them about the days he’s been checking on you “stalking” Ben points out but continues nonetheless. He tells them about seeing him sitting in his car down the street from your house and not doing anything about it. He fights down the bile threatening to rise up in his throat at the thought of something happening to you because he didn’t step in.
He doesn’t feel guilty about last night but he can see from an outsider viewpoint that it may have looked like he took advantage of a vulnerable person. They don’t judge him for it. They have all had some questionable moments with you in the weeks after you broke up with your piece of shit excuse for a human being ex.
It’s quiet for a while once he’s finished talking. All the men just taking in the information and processing it in their own way. Will disappears to his room for a moment and Frankie just shoots him a look of sympathy. He put all his cards out there and it probably sounds insane. They have so much blood on their hands, what’s one more person? It’s just not that simple. They’ve all left that life behind,the life of killing and not looking back. Since Tom's death things were different, so many innocent lives lost and not enough money to wash away their sins.
Will returns a brief moment later with a manila envelope in his hands. He slaps it down on the table in front of Santiago who has his hands buried in his salt and pepper curls.
“I’m in.” Santi looks down at the envelope as he slowly opens it revealing its contents.
“Iron head you're supposed to be the voice of reason.” Frankie leans in trying to read the details as Santi’s face turns even more into a frown if that was possible.
Apparently Will had spent the last several weeks looking up any and all information he could find on your ex. His dodgy past with substance abuse and not being able to keep a job was boring useless information. The fact that he had an ex wife that you never mentioned who just so happens to have an active restraining order against him was not surprising either. His missing ex girlfriend was what made Will dig deeper.
He can see the moment Santiago gets to that piece of pertinent information. The multiple domestic abuse reports that fell on deaf ears because law enforcement either doesn’t care or they never had enough information to put him away. The investigation took place in a completely different state and ultimately went nowhere when they didn’t have sufficient evidence to place the blame on him.
He moved to Florida when her family wouldn’t stop “harassing” him. A fresh start in a new city, with an unsuspecting new victim.
They’ve made people disappear for much less and he can only assume the worst about the poor missing girl. People like him didn’t deserve due process.
“Did you verify all this information?” Will just levels Santi with a stare.
“You know Will, he double and triple checks everything.” Ben may be his annoying little brother but he always had his back.
“When were you going to tell me?”
It’s awkward and quiet for a bear as they all look at each other. Santi knows the answer, he just doesn’t voice it out loud. He wasn’t going to tell him. He’s spent the last several weeks saying how he doesn’t want to be involved and he doesn’t think this will work so why would they include him in this new revelation.
“Look man, I didn’t even know what I was gonna do with this information.” He sighs as he scrubs his face with his hand. “I didn’t want to tell Honey and freak her out,I couldn’t tell Ben for obvious reasons.”
“Hey I’m not that rash.” Anymore.
Frankie grabs the papers, skimming the rest of them over, his anger and frustration has reached a fever pitch and he can’t hold back anymore. “I’m done sitting around doing nothing. I know you have a plan so just lay it out.”
****
From this moment forward you have to be kept in the dark, at least until it all blows over. They’ll spend the next week making sure their alibis are air tight. They had a lot of people who owed them favors and they were about to cash in on them.
Years ago the six of you went in on a safe house that went mostly unused except for the occasional restock of clothing and supplies. That would be their home for the next few weeks after Mike has his accident.
Santiago had warned him that last night how easily they could make it look like he disappeared. With everything they now knew about him it was going to look that much easier. He owed a lot of people money, various gambling debts around town and his constant need to get high. Or perhaps someone from his ex’s family decided he needed to pay. They were going to make sure he did and couldn’t harm anyone in the future, most importantly you.
Will and Frankie got to work on their alibis and preparing the house for their departure. Ben went scouting all of Mike's normal hangouts to get an idea of his routine. Santiago ordered surveillance to be set up at your house and the Millers so they could keep an eye on you and watch for any suspicious activity.
The plan was full proof, as was everything else they set out to do. Four delta force soldiers against one sap was going to be child’s play. Their main concern was keeping you in the dark, especially after Santiago slept with you. There was no doubt your mental health was going to take a hit but they couldn’t risk you being involved in any way.
****
5 days
“Hurry up!”
“I’m going as fast as I can paint. It can only dry so fast Fish.” Will puts the finishing touches on the drywall he promised you he’d finish.
“She’s still at work anyway.” Ben’s mouth is full of lasagna and he can barely get the words out as he eats straight out of the dish you left in the fridge.
Santiago shoots him a dirty look as he secures the last camera pointing towards your living room. Ben idly flipping through the tracker app in his phone that they placed in your Jeep a few days prior. They still had about an hour before you were set to leave work but they didn’t want to risk running into you, sabotaging the whole plan.
This was the last step before heading to the safe house a few hours outside of town. Mike had been disposed of rather easily, their original plan to have him get in a “car accident” went completely out the window when Will tracked down his old booky. You don’t get second chances when you owe someone one hundred thousand dollars…especially when you’ve been dodging them for three years.
The boys still wanted confirmation, which meant they would still need to lay low for a bit. At least until the cops questioned you, which they assumed would be one of the first places they asked. It would take a few days for his job to alert someone that he stopped showing up and then if anyone cared about him at all they would report him missing. The first place they always go is a current or recent partner.
It needed to look genuine that you had no idea of his whereabouts.
Frankie is jotting down the information to log into the surveillance on a pink post it he found in a drawer. He scoffs at the ridiculous password encryption Santiago chose.
“Can you make this password any longer?”
“Ya I can. Do you think it should be longer?” Pope’s so preoccupied he doesn’t hear the sarcasm that was dripping from Frankie’s question.
“Fuck…we need to go now!” Ben scrambles to put the food away, almost dropping the whole tray in the process. “Her car says it’s at our house.”
Santi jumps down from the counter as Will heads to the garage to put the paint supplies away. Frankie’s looking over the room but at this point it doesn’t matter, they don’t have time to clean up their mess and you were gonna know they stopped by either way. This was their plan after all to make sure you knew they were safe and they still care about you.
The boys pile out of your house as Frankie locks up, making sure your porch light is on.
****
“She’s waving at the camera.” Ben smiles at his phone as he watches you safe and comfortable in your living room. “Hi Honey.” He waves back as Santi peers over from the seat next to him.
“She can’t see you dipshit.”
“I know that asshole.” He shoves his arm as he leans against the window in the backseat of Frankie’s truck.
It’s going to be a few hours before they’re at the house and it’s going to be a long week if they keep at each other's throats like this. Ben has always been the more sensitive one so they all know to keep a close eye on him. Santi had agreed to let him be in charge of watching your whereabouts to help ease some of the pain. He’s starting to regret that now that the younger Miller is obsessively checking in on you and they’ve barely left town.
Santiago’s phone buzzes in his pocket, he pulls it out quickly as the soft light illuminates the inside of the car. Frankie looks in his rear view as he sees Santi chuckle to himself.
“Everything okay hermano?” Frankie says in a hushed tone.
“Sí, I just got an email notification to reset the password for the surveillance.”
Ben flips him off with a wide grin on his face as he resumes his obsession with watching you. “That was from Honey, in case you were wondering.”
“I’m switching seats with Will when we stop for gas.”
****
7 days
The four of them haven’t spent this much time together… isolated since Colombia. That ended well. The house was in a remote enough location that they were able to spend time outside without being seen. There’s not enough fresh air in the world to quell the storm brewing amongst the men.
Anxious and restless nights at the reemergence of feeling like they're on a mission. You’re not there to comfort them or talk them off a ledge when they wake up in a cold sweat after a nightmare. The sweet soothing sound of your voice would usually be enough to stave those thoughts for weeks or months.
Frankie hasn’t felt this close to using in a long time. Where would he even get drugs anyway? Just the thought of it has his blood run cold.
Ben has bags under his eyes from staying up and watching the surveillance for any signs of trouble, any signs that you’re in danger. At least that’s what he tells his brother when he asks if he’s been sleeping.
Santiago’s maladaptive daydreaming is the only way he’s coping. In his mind you’re all on a beach somewhere exotic, relaxing in the sun and enjoying fruity cocktails that he no doubt told you he didn’t enjoy but secretly he loved them. You were going to spend the rest of your life traveling and pursuing your real dreams with the money they went to get back in Colombia…the money you didn’t have.
Will works on the house. It’s the only thing he can think of doing to keep his mind occupied. He fixes the shutters that were damaged in the last hurricane, he quiets the hinge on the back door that makes his hair stand on end when someone goes in and out. He stains the wood on the floor length mirror in your room that came with the house. He remembers the look on your face when he first showed it to you. He would give anything to see your face right now.
*ping*
DF4L
Honey🍯: Hey
Fuck
He steps out into the living room at the same time as Santi and Frankie. All their eyes scanning the open layout for any sign…
“Where’s Ben?” Santi takes in Frankie’s frazzled state but he doesn’t have time to deal with him right now.
“I don’t know, he was in his room last time I checked.” Frankie says nothing as he fidgets with the phone in his right pocket.
Will heads to the opposite hall to check his room and Santi heads to the front to search for him outside. Frankie waits a moment then heads to the back patio. He can see the tall blonde staring out into the open woods. He approaches him slowly afraid he might startle him with any sudden movements.
*ping*
Honey🍯: I don’t know what’s going on but if you’re having second thoughts about all this just please let me know.
He notices his slight movement as he stares down at the phone. His finger hovers over the call button but he knows he can’t risk that. A simple text back wouldn’t hurt.
“Don’t do it Ben.” Frankie’s hand reaches out to steady on Ben’s shoulder. He can feel him trembling beneath his touch. He steps up a little closer as he trails his hand down his arm, pressing his chest to the back of him. He drops his head down taking in a shuddering breath as Frankie gently takes the phone from him.
They stay there awhile just holding each other as the two other men look on from the back patio.
****
“I’m already pushing it with four bouquets, I’m not leaving a note too.” Santiago’s not sure who caved first but both Will and Frankie had pleaded with him to leave some sign of life so you didn’t have a complete meltdown. Ben hasn’t said a word to any of them since your text went unanswered.
“Just write something short pendejo.” Frankie is watching your location closely as he talks to Santi on speaker phone.
He knew where you were headed as soon as you left the house. The place where you always went to think or grieve. He was hoping it wasn’t the latter. The sun was just beginning to set now which meant you’d probably be leaving the beach soon. That still gave Santi plenty of time to leave a “short” note along with the bouquets he picked out since they all couldn’t decide on one to share.
Ironically the only thing they’ve managed to share peacefully in the last several years was you.
“Pinche cabrón, wants me to write a note.” He reaches for the pink post it on your counter. Santiago is usually great with words but right now the words he wants to say…he wants to tell you in person.
****
Santiago can breathe a small sigh of relief as he drives the gravel path up to the safe house. This would all be for nought if you started to doubt their affections for you.
His reprieve is short lived as he enters the home to see the other three men crouched over a small laptop on the wooden dining table.
“The cops are there.” Will speaks matter of factly as he keeps his eyes glued to the screen.
Chapter Summary-The boys go m.i.a and the reader takes this time to reflect.
CW-Angst,fluff,insecurities, this chapter is entirely in readers pov.
WK-3.2K
Notes-See series Masterlist for full story notes.This is one of two chapters that will be written from the readers pov and then the boys.
[Series Masterlist][Main Masterlist]
Not beta read
Chapter VIII Keep you safe part I
—————————————
It’s been 3 days….Not long, but long enough. Long enough for your mind to wander. Santiago had told you he loved you,he told you not to worry if you hadn’t heard from him for a while.
But that was 3 days ago, and the other guys never made any mention of being m.i.a. It was normal for Santiago to drop off the face of the earth from time to time. The others not so much. Ben and Will had a strict training regimen to get ready for fights and Frankie just recently got his wings back.
You know they wouldn’t just abandon their day to day lives for another stupid mission. Being alone with your thoughts brings you to a dangerous edge. What if they went back to Colombia? What if they were having second thoughts?
Internalized misogyny has you thinking how crazy it was that you’d basically jumped into a relationship with your best friends and slept with one of them. You’re on a roller coaster of emotions as you convince yourself that they would never do that to you.
They each had called you separately, making promises for the future. Somehow trying to reassure you that this is what they truly wanted. Every night since then you’ve clung to those conversations. Falling asleep knowing that these weren’t like the other guys…these were your boys.
****
It’s been 5 days…to say you were feeling a little desperate was an understatement. Work had been a nightmare dealing with the aftermath of another hospital nearby shutting down the ER meant you had to take on a lot more work. Days like this before Mike usually consisted of you calling one of the four to vent about your day. The countless times you ended up driving right to their house to spend the evening with them. They were the only ones who understood how you could deal with such day to day trauma and still be able to function.
You couldn’t help yourself and took the long way home after leaving work to drive by their house. Only Wills' truck was parked in the driveway and it didn’t look like anyone was home. Was it weird that you were sitting in your car contemplating life right outside their house? Yes-the answer is yes. You opted to continue home instead of marching up to the front door to find out where the hell they are. You hadn’t heard from any of them, not even a text to let you know they were alive.
Once you arrived home, you took off your work shoes and hung your bag on the hook by the door. You flopped down on the couch completely exhausted mentally and physically from the last few days.
You must’ve broken some Guinness book record for quickest turn around from a breakup.
You feel insane as you laugh alone in your living room. Santi’s list pinned to your fridge of pros and cons that you stare at everyday when you get up to make breakfast is practically taunting you.
You were flying pretty high on Monday morning, so high that your coworker had to make a comment about how well you seemed to be doing after the break up. It wasn’t exactly a lie when you said that it was a relief to be rid of that asshole but you failed to mention you were dating arguably the most attractive men in a 500 mile radius.
But that was 2 days ago. You’re not flying so high now.
Something catches your attention as you lay your head back onto the cushion. The spot where the drywall was fixed had been completely painted over. A perfect match and only Will would know the color seeing as he was the one who painted the wall the first time.
When you moved in he was the first one to come over and inspect everything with a fine tooth comb. He helped you scrub the walls and paint to rid them of the awful smoke smell from the previous renter. You knew how much he loved to work with his hands and keep himself busy.
You get up for closer inspection and it looks dry but you can’t mistake that distinct smell of fresh paint. Even over the strong smell of your scented plug-ins that Frankie couldn’t get enough of. He got you several for Christmas but insisted the lavender-vanilla scent was his favorite. He also said that was his favorite because it ‘smelled like you and it was the only one without a ridiculous name’.
A small part of you is relieved that you can pretty much assume they’re not off on some mission in another country but definitely frustrated at the lack of communication going on purposefully.
No doubt Santiago’s idea…there was no use trying to wrap your head around why he thought it would be a good idea to keep you in the dark. Santiago always had a heightened sense of security and protection. He blamed himself so much for what happened in Colombia. When he came back things were different, he felt the need to control every aspect of what you all did. Even something as simple as planning a night out had to be practically drawn out on paper.
You all didn’t keep many secrets from each other but you never told the others about a night you and Santi went out for one too many drinks and he let it slip that he should have taken control of the situation with the helicopter. ‘I was so greedy I couldn’t think straight. I should’ve told Tom to fuck off and left him there with that money.”
There was no way any of you could’ve known what was going to happen in the days following.
The uneasy feeling in your stomach may have been more than just worries. With the chaos of the day and your mind wandering elsewhere you had completely forgotten to eat. You make your way towards your kitchen as you notice a small note on your island written on a pink post it.
Hermosa, we set up some surveillance around the house to make you feel a little safer. The instructions to set it up on your phone should be in your email by the time you read this.
It wasn’t signed at the end but judging on the handwriting and the pet name it had Frankie written all over it.
You scramble over to the couch to pull out your laptop. A few unread spam messages followed by [email protected]. There you find detailed instructions and a username and password already set up to view the footage on your phone or laptop.
Username-HoneyB1990 Password-OetXMKiOJwkcgBA3cNir. Absolutely not Garcia. You get it set up on your laptop first and see 6 small screens in view. One clear view of your front yard,driveway,each side of your house, back patio and living room?
You can see yourself from the back in real time sitting on the couch as you wave your hand in the air, is that what I look like? You can hardly see the camera placed in the far corner of the kitchen above the cabinets.
Once you’ve played around a little and set up the app on your phone you attempt to change the insane password that Santi obviously set up. You throw your head back dramatically as an email is sent to [email protected] to change the password for this account. You flip off the camera as you close your laptop shut. You probably looked insane assuming they were even watching.
Your stomach grumbles again reminding you of your original task food. Thankfully you had actually managed to meal prep this week to prepare for your busy week at work. You open the fridge to find your tray of lasagna half eaten.Ben, the hungriest person known to man and quite literally a bottomless pit. You can almost see it now, the three of them working meticulously to set up the surveillance and paint while he eats various foods from your fridge.
Ben snuck over to your house a lot to eat food from your fridge. Ever since you’d known him he couldn’t stop raving about your cooking or baking, pretty much anything you made. He was always the softest and the most sensitive out of the four. The first time you had him over to your house you made dinner for the two of you. It was the first time you made the infamous lasagna dish so you were a little nervous, even more so when you heard him sniffling while eating.
‘That bad huh.” He couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of crying over lasagna.
‘No Honey, it just reminds me of my grandma.”
You didn’t hesitate after that day to make it for him whenever he asked.
It did make you feel a sense of comfort knowing they were all here together, doing something for you. That knot that has been forming in your chest over the last five days loosened just a little more.
****
7 days… Seeing evidence of them around your house only made you feel temporarily better. The dreaded feeling set in again as you curled up on your couch watching Disney movies trying to self soothe.
The amount of times you stared at your phone or jumped up when it made the slightest noise only to be disappointed when it was inevitably nothing or at least nothing of importance.
Your finger hovered over the call button but you were undecided on who to call. This was uncharted territory and you didn’t want to offend one by not calling and now your brain is doing circles around how to even navigate a simple phone call.
As informal as it felt you needed to hear something-anything from them, so you decided to just text the group to keep things fair.
DF4L
Hey
You wait for what feels like an eternity for any kind of response.
I really miss you guys
Still nothing…
I don’t know what’s going on but if you’re having second thoughts about all this just please let me know.
It was already too late to take it back once you hit send. Part of you knew that they weren’t but you couldn’t shut off that insecure feeling like you’d ruined what you had in such a short amount of time. You try hard to swallow the lump forming in your throat as you wait.
Benjamin:💬
Your heart skips a beat at the blank text bubble. You wait for a further response but it never comes. You can’t stop the tears welling up in your eyes, your anxiety getting the best of you as you attempt a final message. The image of your green text when you send a question mark finally does you in. It’s like the tears can’t stop flowing once they start.
The front of your -Santis shirt is soaked as you dry your eyes. It was too late to call anyone else to go out for drinks to try and get your mind off this. You probably would’ve got some interesting looks anyways with the state of your puffy eyes and lack of sleep.
You couldn’t keep doing this, it wasn’t healthy and so you decided after one more night of sulking you were going to do as much as humanly possible to keep yourself busy.
Sunday was spent deep cleaning your house and organizing every room. The mind numbing tasks were a bandaid on the gaping wound of your heart as you tried to keep yourself occupied. After grocery shopping,gardening, and a ridiculous amount of online shopping you were starting to lose it.
It had been an uncomfortably hot and humid day which was typical for Florida, but as the day went on you noticed it getting a little cooler. You stepped onto your front porch reveling in the beautiful setting sun. There was only a few hours left until it was time for you to start your nighttime routine to get ready for the coming work week.
You stepped back inside only to grab your keys and phone, you couldn’t help but wave at the camera situated in the corner of your kitchen as you made your way out the door. You had done it subconsciously after they had them installed. It made you feel better even if you were waving at no one.
****
Sunset beach was only an hour drive from your house. Once you were in your jeep with the windows rolled down, your playlist on shuffle and the breeze wafting through the car you felt like you could finally breathe.
You drive for a while happy to have some clarity, a familiar guitar plays on your music
🎶I've got sunshine on a cloudy day
When it's cold outside
I've got the month of May
I guess you'd say
What can make me feel this way
My girl, my girl, my girl
Talkin' 'bout my girl
My girl
I've got so much honey
The bees envy me
I've got a sweeter song
Than the birds in the trees
Well, I guess you'd say
What can make me feel this way🎶
“I put a song on for you.” Ben leans into you obviously tipsy as you try to keep from falling off the bar stool.
The six of you have lost track of how many times you’ve been at this lone bar tucked away in this corner of the world no doubt on a u.s. military issued suicide mission.
“Ben, I told you I’m not singing.”
“Don’t worry sweetheart, you’re not singing. We are.” He gestures among the table as he makes his way to the small stage.
“Who the fuck is we?” Tom looks around the table as the other men have already accepted their fate.
The other three men stand and Frankie shoots you a look you don’t think you’ve ever seen from him before. You try to disguise your embarrassment even though you’re not the one on display.
Santi mouths ‘you owe me’ as Benny leads the chorus to my girl. It’s all so sweet and perfect, even with Tom sporting a permanent scowl next to you, he couldn’t ruin this moment if he tried.
The fact that Will even got up although you’re sure he’s not singing and the red is steadily creeping up his neck at the exposure.
No one else in the bar really cares about this display of affection. Except you care… and maybe you always have. You belonged to them and they belonged to you.
The memory of that night floods your mind as the song finishes. All the thoughts of the past few weeks lull you into a sense of calm as you pull off to the side with your destination in view.
You take off your shoes as you near the beach wanting to feel the warm sand between your toes, the sun is just starting to dip low on the horizon and your body moves you to the edge of the shore as the waves lap at your feet.
The connection between all of you feels right,like all the puzzle pieces finally fitting together. As the colors of the sunset deepen you think about all the countless conversations shared,the dreams and the occasional disagreements that only seemed to strengthen your bond.
Your relationship is much like this sunset,it has its own unique beauty and it’s perfectly imperfect.
****
As you enter your home you can sense it feels very different from when you left. It only takes a brief moment to notice the four large bouquets on your kitchen island. Their vibrant colors and sweet scent fill the room instantly warming you from the inside. Each bouquet seems carefully chosen with a mixture of roses,lilies ,daisies and other assorted flowers.
As you step up to examine each bouquet closely you can recognize the distinct styles and preferences of this heartwarming mystery gift.
One bouquet filled with elegant red roses and baby’s breath, a romantic and traditional gesture that must be from Frankie.
Another arrangement bursting with wildflowers and sunflowers, is undoubtedly the work of Benny. Your free spirited,golden retriever who probably wanted the most extravagant display.
The third vase holds an array of exotic orchids and tropical blooms. Some flowers you don’t recognize because the mystery that is Santiago always had something up his sleeve.
And the final bouquet, with a collection of delicate pastel blossoms and peonies, all different shades of your favorite color. The color Will helped you paint your room when you first moved into your house. Its taste reflected his refined attention to detail.
With a smile you realize that all your worry has been for nothing. Whatever reason they had for being gone you could live with. This incredible display of affection was enough to let you know they weren’t going anywhere.
A small note is placed between the four vases.
Pros-4 of everything, whatever you want whenever you want it.
Cons- Having to decide which one is the best.
A singular tear drops onto the note as you close your eyes and laugh to yourself. It was simple and yet said everything you wanted to hear.
A knock on your door has your stomach doing flips, your giddy with excitement as you try to walk calmly to open it. With each step you take a deep breath as you swing the door open.
“Hi Miss, I’m officer Williams from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Department and this is officer Jones.” The taller officer gestures to his partner who sports a curt smile. He takes note of the tears on your face and you wipe them with the sleeve of your cardigan.
“How can I help you, Officer Williams.” It only takes you a moment to recover, your military training and years of experience in persuasion have taught you that despite their professionalism, they’re still men. The smaller office smiles at you then as he looks you up and down with no shame.
You have no idea why they could be here and any attempt at disarming them would only work out in your favor.
The taller officer clears his throat as he shifts nervously on your doorstep. “ We would like to ask you a few questions about a missing person Michael?…Do you mind if we come in?”
I’m working on a long fic set before the reader and tf boys are officially together and I’ve been struggling to finish so I figure why not post a snippet to motivate myself.
The story of us
“Hey Santi”, you try to hide the quiver in your voice and the constant sniffling. “I’m so sorry, I can’t make it tonight I’m just not feeling well”. You stammer out hoping to end the conversation as quickly as possible.
“No,no not again, this is the third time”, he says sternly yet his voice is laced with concern. “I’m not above begging, but you can’t tell the guys or I’ll have to kill you”. He chuckles nervously on the other end.
You can’t hide the barrage of tears that start to flow because you know how much he cares and you feel so guilty canceling on them-again.
“Cariño, I was just kidding, please don’t cry, you can tell them I begged if it means we get to see you” his voice now laced with obvious panic.
You’re trying desperately to calm your breathing and push down the guilt that you feel for lying yet again to your best friend. “ I know you were just joking, I just…” hiccuping between words trying to stave off a horrible panic attack. “I had a long week and work was so stressful, I don’t want to put a dark cloud on the night”.
He knows you're lying but he’ll never push you.
“Okay cariño, you said that last time but I won’t push you”.
****
Comments and reblogs are much appreciated and let me know if you would like to be tagged once it’s finished.
