You Were Just A Child.

Hiking vacation with boyfie Sukuna

Pairing: modern!Sukuna x Reader (female) Genre: fluff + smut Warnings: 18+, lots of fluff and some smut, outdoor sex, praise. All characters are of age. This story is 18+. Minors don’t interact. This is super self-indulgent because I am on vacation atm and I can’t stop thinking about Kuna being here with me aaahhhh!!! ♥️

Being on a hiking vacation with your boyfriend Sukuna would include:

+ Holding hands with him the whole time during your hiking tours. Or he has one arm around your waist and his hand in your back pocket.

+ He looks so hot in his muscle shirt and hiking shorts and boots, showing his muscular arms and calves and his sexy tattoos.

+ He is so tall and so strong next to you, making you feel so safe and get butterflies just from looking at him.

+ His sexy smirk when he offers his hand to help you climb over a fallen tree or a slippery rock.

+ When he drinks water out of his bottle, looking so sexy when some droplets run down his chin, and you see his Adam’s apple bop enticingly.

+ He hands you the bottle afterward, always insisting you drink something too, even when you complain because you aren’t thirsty. His satisfied smirk, when you take a sip anyway, making him look so smug that you roll your eyes and have to get on your tiptoes to kiss that grin off him.

+ Sukuna always walks on the side of the hiking trail where the slope is. Swapping places with you by wrapping his strong arms around your waist and pulling you to the other side so he can take the more dangerous path. Making you smile because he is so protective.

+ When he smirks and puts a finger under your chin, and tilts your face up so he can slowly lean closer and kiss you. Making your heart race because you can feel his smile during the kiss, and it’s so sexy.

+ Long, slow tongue kisses while he holds you close.

+ Taking selfies where Sukuna stands behind you, tall and buff, hugging you tightly from behind and winking at the camera while he presses a kiss to your neck.

+ Sukuna laughing about the weird looks he sometimes gets from older people because of his face tattoos.

+ Sukuna giving your hand a gentle squeeze and leaning down to murmur in your ear how happy you make him. Telling you that he used to make fun of people who went hiking with their special someone, calling them boring. But now he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

+ Sukuna being so grateful for you and the life you give him. Thanking you for the way you love him. Being so smitten with how soft you are with him. Telling you in such a tender voice how deeply in love he is with you and that he wants this forever.

+ Strolling through town in the evenings after you return from your hike of the day, looking like the biggest lovebirds when you hold hands and laugh together about all the stupid little jokes you make and the shit-talking Sukuna does about all the other people.

+ Holding hands on the table during your dinner dates and only having eyes for each other. Deep, meaningful glances into each other’s eyes and lots of flirting. Sukuna leaning across the table to kiss you and tease you affectionately about giving him such hearteyes.

+ Riding him on your hotel bed later on, basking in the way he moans beneath you. And when your legs are sore from walking all day, Sukuna helps you ride him, lifting you up and down on his cock while he tells you how good you are for him, watching your face the whole time because he loves seeing how cute you look when you cum on his cock.

+ Going on a two-day hike with him and spending the night in a beautiful meadow in the mountains. Lying on a picnic blanket to watch the night sky, your fingers intertwined with Sukuna’s, your head resting comfortably on his chest.

+ Talking softly to each other and sharing slow kisses that gradually grow more intense.

+ Sukuna rolling on top of you, deepening your kisses and slowly undressing you, covering you with his tall, muscular body to keep you warm even in the chilly night air of the mountains.

+ Your naked bodies moving against each other, lips and tongues caressing as you gasp into each other’s mouths. Sukuna loving you with his hands and lips while you stroke his hard cock, until both of you can’t take it anymore and need more of each other.

+ Making love under the stars. Your hands in Sukuna’s pink hair and your legs around his waist, hearing his low moans against your ear, feeling him roll his hips into you, fucking you so deep and so good that you start crying.

+ Looking up at the stars sparkling in the night sky behind Sukuna’s broad shoulders while he makes slow love to you.

+ When you see a shooting star, your only wish is to always call Sukuna yours, to always be this close to him. And somehow you know at that moment that your wish will come true.

AAAAHHH I AM SO IN LOVE WITH HIM 😭😭💗💗 I was going insane because I couldn’t stop fantasizing about boyfie Kuna going on vacation with me, so I had to write all those thoughts down. I hope you enjoyed them too!!

Thank you so much for reading! Comments and reblogs would be super nice 💗

Gaby Moreno x Oscar Isaac - Luna de Xelajú

can we PLEASE get some COMMOTION for layla's comic debut this week?!?!?! I have heard NOTHING!!!

she's GORGEOUS and I'm so excited to read this!!!

[moon knight: city of the dead (2023) #1]

It’s Oscar Isaac’s speciality ❤️

My only prayer is that when July comes around, Tumblr will once again change their app icon to be Barbie themed in honour of the greatest thing to ever come forth in film history.

ok, confession time.

pairing: miguel o’hara x reader

summary: confession time ٩( ᐛ )و

warnings: none.

a/n: I caved…

“Alright, hear me out.” “No.”

Miguel interrupts without missing a beat. You scoff as you watch him turn his back to you as he refocuses on the many projectors in front of him. “All that technology is going to rot your brain,” you mumble out under your breath.

“What?”

“Nothing. Anyways,” you curl your two middle fingers inward towards your palm as you direct a web to the floating island Miguel was on. “As I was saying, hear me out.” You hear a distressed sigh coming from the man in front of you but decided to brush it off. He was going to hear you out.

He remained silent, an indirect indication for you to continue your thoughts.

“Being stressed all the time is going to do no good for the spiderverse.”

“Arachnoid humanoid poly multiverse.”

“Yeah, that, so as I was saying… having one dinner wouldn’t doom the multiverse.”

Another sigh was let out this time, but this time it was out of exhaustion. He calls out your name causing your back to straighten as he finally turns to face you.

“The fate of the multiverse,” he begins before getting cut off by a web, coming from you, connecting with his torso and jerking him towards your direction.

He tilted his head at you once you stopped pulling him closer, leaving probably three centimeters of space between you two.

He wasn’t surprised by this action, no, you’ve done this multiple times. Pulled him too close for comfort, causing all logical thoughts in his brain to short circuit as it filled with thoughts of you.

You could hear his heartbeat. It’s one of the pros that come with being a spider person, your heightened senses. In moments like these where your own heartbeat was far too hard for you control you’d rely on his to calm you down, however it seemed to have done the opposite.

Why was it so fast?

Hearing your name managed to take you out of your momentarily dazed self.

“Is everything alright?” Miguel, whose body was practically leaning on yours, lightly shook you for he was disturbed by your suddenly quiet self.

“Yeah,” you replied far too quickly as you forced yourself to take a few steps back to create some distance between you two.

“Anyways,” you stuttered out, “I was just going to say how you always loose me whenever you start talking about the multiverse. Yeah, always manages to make my brain shut off.”

Miguel stared at you confused as you start to awkwardly ramble on about how the very premise of the multiverse is strange.

“And it’s so weird how technically-“

“Stop talking.”

You immediately close your mouth.

For the third time tonight, Miguel lets out a sigh as he closes the distance between the two of you. One second your mouth is opening to question why he’s taking more steps than necessary, and the next it’s occupied by the mouth of his.

When you don’t push him away and instead lean into his body, his hand travels up to your neck and his thumb presses against the area where your adams apple would’ve been to tilt your head up slightly more.

The one to end the kiss first is you, Miguel attempts to follow and close that distance once again but gets interrupted by the hand you put on his chest to stop him.

For a second Miguel starts to think he read the entire situation wrong. But you leaned into him so what does that mean-

“Miguel,” you begin saying softly and you looked up at him, “how did you know,” when he gives you a blank expression you let out a small snicker before continuing, “that I liked you.”

He tilts his head again as he looked down at you, “You thought I wasn’t able to sense your heartbeat? Cariño, even though I don’t have the spider sense that you have, my senses are still heightened.”

“Oh,” you say dumbfounded. Right.

“Yeah,” he says quietly as he tries to kiss you again.

“Wait,” you interrupt. “So, do you…like me too?”

“…We just kissed.”

“Yeah but, friends with benefits exist-“

Miguel groaned as you began to ramble on about how kissing doesn’t mean requited feelings, and while he understood what you were saying he’d much rather feel your lips on his than watch them speak about a scenario that wasn’t the case with this situation.

“Ok, then how about we get dinner.”

You widened your eyes at his words, a smile threatens to show on your face but you try to keep your composure, “…Ok. So…is this a date?”

“Yes,” he exhales, “Yes, it will be a date.”

“Ok.” You say excitedly before connecting a web with the ground beneath you two and jumping down, “See you in…?”

“Does thirty minutes sound good?”

“Yeah,” you start to smile, “yeah, thirty minutes sounds good.” You give him an actual smile before turning around getting ready to run through the halls of hq to tell Peter and Mayday all about this interaction.

“Ok,” Miguel says under his breath as he watches you leave.

“Why are you so awkward?”

“Lyla shut up.”

Wrong

Pairing: Jake Lockley x afab!reader (with mentions of Marc Spector x afab!reader & Steven Grant x afab!reader)

Word Count: 2.9k+

Summary: Your first date with Jake takes a bit of a steamy turn but ends in a rather soft moment ~based on this ask~

Warnings/Tags: 18+ alludes to & mentions of smut, lots of kissing, obvious mentions of DID, probably way too much use of nicknames, overconfident!jake but also lil shy!jake, virgin!jake, talks about consent, small touch of manhandling, and of course fluff

a/n: as always thank you to my bestest friend in the entire world @natashasvixen for always reading my stuff no matter how shit it is, love you😘 also thank you so much to whoever sent this ask your message was so sweet and kind. I'm ngl this was going to be full on smut but it took a turn and I kinda just ran with it

“What?” A smile creeps onto your face as you look at him. Jake is lounging in the corner of the small couch. One of his arms is slung over the back of the couch, his fingers just grazing your back while the other leans on the arm of the couch. His head is propped against his fist and he’s staring at you, he has been all night. There’s the slightest smirk on his face, you find it so odd how a face you know so well can look so different. 

The night had been unexpected, after meeting Jake only a handful of times the more self-assured alter had asked you out on a date. And now, the conversation Marc had brought up makes a little more sense. A couple of days ago your boyfriend asked how you felt your existing relationship fit around his other alters. Marc had been open and honest about Steven and Jake from the moment you met, you’d had countless conversations about his DID but this particular conversation had come out of nowhere. Like quite literally he’d randomly just asked about it while you were in the middle of watching something. You were obviously curious about the other alters and it was honestly taking some getting used to different people in the same body. Even though they were part of him and he’d told you about them, Marc was still a little reluctant to share you with Steven and Jake. Selfishly he wanted you all to himself because deep down he knew the pair well enough to know that they would fall for you as hard as he had. 

But now, here you are cosied up in their apartment where Jake had prepared little snack boards and had even set up a little chocolate fondue that you’d both been picking at all night. You’d been talking about an old childhood memory while quiet jazz music plays in the background and Jake just listened. He hadn’t really said a lot, only really replying in one or two sentences but he listened to every word you spoke and he didn’t care how much you talked and talked and talked.

Suddenly, he surges forward and your body jumps at the unexpected movement, his hand hovers next to your face for a second until you visibly relax. Your eyes lock with his again, and you keep looking at him even when he looks down at your lips. His fingers gently touch your jaw, his thumb slowly dragging across your bottom lip. Your lips involuntarily part at the contact, a shaky breath coming out as you do. You think he's going to kiss you, and your body automatically gravitates closer to him forgetting you haven’t kissed Jake before. Learning boundaries with Steven and Jake was definitely taking some getting used to, especially since Marc had very few physical boundaries with you. Now, Jake’s definitely smirking, his eyes glancing into yours and then back to your lips before he backs up again, all contact gone. You don’t get a chance to protest or even pout at the loss. 

“Chocolate,” you dumbly watch as he pushes his thumb into his mouth, cleaning off the small drop of chocolate that was there. The conversation you’d previously been having lost as you just stare at his hands, solely thinking about his hands, you know those hands too well. Now, you’re wondering if Jake’s touch would feel the same as Marc’s or if it’d be rougher, maybe softer, “are you okay hermosa?” 

“Mmhm,” it comes out squeaky and you realise you’re literally squirming in your seat. He’s looking at you like you’re prey and he’s been starved and now he’s ready to pounce.

“Are you uncomfortable hermosa?” His head tilts to the side, eyes surveying you as you continue to squirm unable to sit still. It’s not that you’re uncomfortable, you just now can’t stop thinking about certain situations involving Marc’s hands. “This couch isn’t very comfortable.” Jake cuts in before you can even reply to his question, shifting in his own seat, his legs spreading a bit wider and the godforsaken hand you can’t stop thinking about now rubbing the top of his thigh. “You are always welcome to sit here cariño.”

You freeze, looking at him with wide eyes unsure you heard him right but he glances down at his lap before looking at you again and you know you absolutely heard him right. Then your body’s moving before you can fully think it through, he grins up at you as you situate yourself in his lap. His hands glide up your thighs to hold your waist as you straddle him and now, you’re face to face with him you’re not sure what to do. The little burst of confidence you’d just had fizzles away as you look down at him, Jake’s stare is so intense it scrambles your already fuzzy brain. 

“Eres tan hermosa, mi amor,” you giggle nervously when his fingers brush along your cheek down to your jaw. His eyes follow his hand as it moves and you can’t look away from his face. You’re somehow surprised but not surprised at all that Jake’s won you over so easily, the man already has you like putty in his hands. 

“I-I don’t know what you’re saying,” he chuckles briefly, his eyes glued to his hand that lightly brushes your jaw. He is obsessed with the way your head moves so easily with his touch, the cogs in his brain turning with more ways he could use that to his advantage.

“It doesn’t matter,” Jake holds your chin in his hand now and you let out a shuddered breath when his eyes lock with yours again, “I’m going to kiss you, hermosa.” You’re nodding your head the best you can and Jake’s smile grows at the action. Slowly, he straightens his back, getting closer inch by inch. Your own hands finally start working again as they move up his chest to pull him closer by his shirt. You’re getting impatient, needing to kiss him like you need to breathe and quite frankly Jake finds it amusing. Just as he’s close enough that you can feel his lips just barely brush yours, he stops. Jake freezes right where he is and his hold on your chin keeps you locked in place. You can’t move forward no matter how much you try and so, you whine, unashamedly you whine because you’re so desperate to kiss him now, “tan impaciente.” 

Jake holds you there for a few seconds more, taking great satisfaction with how much you begin to squirm again. He finally shows you some mercy, sliding the hand holding your chin to your neck allowing you to move freely. You don’t hesitate to push forward, finally pressing your lips to his. Your body instantly relaxes, sinking further into Jake’s hold. The confidence radiates off of him as you kiss, one of his arms coming up to support your back while the other hand cradles your head. It all feels so familiar, at this point, you think your brain’s on autopilot. Your hands smooth over his now wrinkled shirt, one making its way up to the back of his neck attempting to exude some confidence or show some control by manipulating which way he moves now. You’re able to wordlessly direct him and he listens, moving in sync with you. Your heart races in your chest but you find comfort in the fact under your fingers you can feel Jake’s beating wildly too. You don’t want it to end, right now all you want to do is kiss him until you can’t breathe—and you can’t. You’ve been kissing so long that you’re lacking oxygen and you have to unwillingly part from him to heave in air. Jake pushes forward to kiss you again and you have to smile. Despite the fact, both of you are panting after your little make-out session he is so desperate to keep you right where you are. 

“Hermosa,” Jake whines and the sound makes a flurry of emotions swirl in you. Your head tilts back a fraction in order for you to breathe but that doesn’t stop Jake from eagerly placing kisses from your lips down to your neck.

“What does that one mean?” Your fingers slide into his hair and tug ever so gently in a silent request for him to come up for air too. You can’t deny the way his lips feel against your skin is intoxicating, the closeness makes your entire body tingle.

“Beautiful,” his voice is rougher than before and he finally sits back, his eyes slowly drifting up your face as the hand still resting on your neck moves. His fingers lightly trace along your jaw again, “so beautiful.”

Now, you can fully see his face in the dim flat lighting you can make out the tint of red coating his cheeks and the tips of his ears. His slightly parted lips are swollen and rapidly he pushes out air. The man looks utterly devastating and he’s the one calling you beautiful. You can feel heat prickle your skin the more he looks at you, his eyes are studying you so intently. The overwhelming urge to kiss him again takes over and you push yourself toward him to try to close the gap again—try being the fundamental word. He pulls back with a smirk before you can kiss him, for a second you’re confused sitting back and looking at him curiously. He doesn’t move or say anything, he just sits there smirking so you try again. You push yourself up and just barely brush your lips against his before he pulls back again, an amused look still on his face.

“Marc,” you cry out in frustration before it registers in your brain. Suddenly, you drag yourself back when you realise your mistake but Jake only tilts his head slightly, one of his eyebrows raising. “I’m sor-”

“Oh, cariño,” his hold on you tightens by the second. It’s almost like a switch has flipped and you can’t tell if it’s a good or bad thing yet, “I have ways to make you remember my name.” Your breath hitches in your throat, eyes going wide at the implications of what he’s just said. Jake closes in on you again, and your eyes fall closed as you feel his breath against your neck. His nose brushes along your jawline toward your ear, “is that something you want hermosa?” An uncontrollable whimper escapes you much to Jake’s satisfaction, a deep chuckle sprouting from him at the sound. Jake hums questioningly, fishing for a direct answer.

“Yes. Yes please, Jake-” You don’t even get to finish your sentence. Jake’s tight grip holds you close as he effortlessly stands, his lips back on yours even as you yelp out in surprise. Your legs instinctively clamp around his waist while your hands now grip his shoulders for some form of stability. Jake’s kisses are frantic, the surprising change completely welcome as he moves you both through the flat. “Jake. Jake,” you manage to breathily speak his name, as if to make up for your earlier mistake, trying to get his attention and he only hums as his mouth moves back to your neck. Your head involuntarily moves to allow him more access, your mind clouded by lust instead of rational thinking and at this point, you may just allow him to do just about anything to you. Rather abruptly and unceremoniously, Jake shoves books off of Steven’s messily organised desk before he cruelly lets go of you making you gently thud onto the wooden surface. 

“Now you remember?” You can do nothing but blink up at him as he looks smugly down at you, your silence only boosts his confidence. Although all he wants to do is move at a hundred miles an hour he forces himself to slow down, to establish consent and trust with you. Jake wants nothing more than to be trusted, to be loved and he knew he wanted those things from you and only you. He however simultaneously wanted to pull you apart until the neighbours knew his name too. Your hands slip from his neck down his chest, and his hands catch your wrists as they move, “cariño.” 

“Tell me what that one means,” you lean in closer almost like you’re moving in to kiss him again and in response, he nudges his chin up just enough to brush your lips together. 

“It can mean more than one thing,” Jake kisses you once, “it can be sweetheart.” Another kiss to your lips, “dear,” and another, “honey,” another, “love.” His words mixed with the affection make you smile even as you try to pull your hands free but he holds firm. Jake pulls away just enough so he can look into your eyes again, “cariño-”

This time he says the pet name a little more seriously and that rational part of your brain enters the room again. The lusty haze clouding your judgement clears and you can see the faint look of doubt that washes over him.

“I haven’t- Not with-” His gaze drops to your hands, watching as he lowers them to rest on your thighs. You curiously look at him as he stutters, you’re surprised to hear it as it seems like that’s more of a Steven thing. “I want to be with you,” his eyes suddenly snap up to yours again, “I want to get on my knees and bury myself between your thighs.” There’s the self-assured Jake you know, “I want to bend you over that very uncomfortable couch and have you screaming my name.” You swallow thickly as he spills out the desperate fantasies that fill his head. His fingers delicately graze up your thighs until they reach your hips, holding on so you can’t scoot any closer to the edge of the desk. “But,” his eyes close for a second and when they open he’s looking down again, “I also want you to trust me.” You try to interject but he keeps going, “and I want to fully trust you.” Jake winces, expressing something so mundane he wants from another person feeling foreign to him. 

He can’t look at your face, he’d never admit it but he’s scared. Never has he gotten further than this with anyone, everyone always wants more, to push further than he’s willing to go and he wants that. Some primal part of him wants it more than anything but this softer side he likes to keep behind closed doors just wants someone to want him for more than sex. 

“Jake,” your voice is soft. Your hands gently move up his arms until you can hold his face between them, you repeat his name again and this time he slowly looks back up into your eyes. “It’s okay,” the corner of your lips twitch when you see his stoic look drop almost immediately, “we can go as slow…or as fast as you want to.” 

It’s like a weight is lifted off his shoulders, his arms slide around your back and he pulls you into an embrace. The move catches you off guard but you’re quick to hold him, your hands cradling the back of his head and neck wanting to savour the soft moment. You manage to turn your head enough to kiss the side of his head, your nose buried in his hair that smells like the hair gel Marc sometimes uses. Jake pulls away just enough to look at your face for a moment before he moves closer, nudging his nose against yours. Then he’s kissing you again, this time slower and softer it makes this speed feel even more intimate than before. 

Jake rests his forehead against yours, your lips parting for only a moment, “can we just do this for a minute hermosa?” You’re nodding your head letting out a breathy laugh and angling up to kiss him again. 

You both stay like that for much longer than a minute, fluctuating between short pecks and longer, slower kisses. He can’t keep his hands still, they move so gently across your skin from your hips to your thighs, to your waist even moving up to hold your face at one point. They find their final purchase on your sides, fingers digging into the soft skin there. Jake only stops his pursuit to press a kiss to your cheek whispering quiet words to himself like a prayer. 

“Where did you get all your ideas from then?” Your own whispers interrupt him, a smile creeping on your face as he pulls away. That blush coating his cheeks has grown and he frankly looks adorable. 

“I read.” You’re taken aback by that response, and now you’re just wondering exactly what he’s been reading. Jake moves in to kiss your cheek again, making his way closer to your ear. “I also watch a lot of por-“

“Okay!” You giggle as his fingers brush against your sides. That was the kind of thing you were expecting him to say first. Jake smiles down at you, a proper goofy carefree smile and he looks so sweet like this. It’s contagious, he’s got you grinning so much your eyes crinkle in the corners. A comfortable silence surrounds you, delicately your fingers comb through his hair. You’re both just taking a moment to admire each other. 

“You know Steven isn’t going to be happy about this,” you lean to the side and look down at the heap of books and papers scattered on the floor. Jake follows your gaze before you look back at each other and he just shrugs. 

“Worth it,” one of his hands cups your cheek and he dips down to kiss you again. It was definitely worth it. 

Weightless.

Steven Grant x FReader.

Tags - Warnings: Sad baby Steven. Angst but not that bad, lol. Mentions of violence. Mentions of Marc and Jake. Word count: 1477. Summary: The feeling of being trapped goes beyond the ankle bracelet that keeps him tied to the bed. It’s the emptiness of waking up every day without knowing what happened the night before, the memories of a relationship he didn’t experience firsthand, or perhaps the empty sockets of a deranged god looming over him every minute of the day.

First he hears the alarm, then he feels the pain of his entire body throbbing because Marc did who-knows-what with it. Or maybe it was Jake. Does it even matter? The point is that someone didn’t have the courtesy to keep the suit on for a few more seconds the previous night so that Steven could wake up without feeling like a truck had run him over.

Fortunately, this time he remembered to remove the ankle restraint before getting up to avoid a doubly painful fall. It didn’t take much effort for him to stand up; he was never one of those people who liked to stay in bed after the alarm went off, although, of course, that was also Marc’s fault.

If he could avoid being in bed as much as possible, it was better for him.

He swallowed the lump in his throat when he noticed the absence of one of the two goldfish that had been living in his fish tank for the past few months. He didn’t even want to ask, although the mess in his apartment was explanation enough that some kind of fight had taken place there.

When he looked at his reflection in the spoon he used to mix his coffee, he hoped that one of them would apologize. Marc did it occasionally, Jake would silently fix the mess and hope that would be enough to solve his mistake.

Nothing.

Silence, not even a glance.

That’s how it was for a few seconds until his phone rang, notifying him of a message.

✉  →  Lovey. ♡

✉ ; Good morning, Steven!

✉ ; Do you want a donut? I’m about to buy some for breakfast.

✉ ; Goodnight! Love you. <3

✉ ; Hey there! Look at this picture of a kitten I found. It looks just like you, don’t you think?

✉ ; Goodnight. :)

Finally, amidst six unanswered messages from you, Steven finds one of his own.

✉ ; I kove tou.

He rolls his eyes to himself. Did he really send that without even checking if it was properly written? Well, it was to be expected, it was the last thing he did before falling asleep.

Another problem caused by Jake and Marc. They checked text messages the second they arrived, so when Steven wanted to communicate with you, he found himself with at least ten of your messages unanswered, just opened, waiting for a response.

Frustration made him close his eyes and take a deep breath. Couldn’t they do that one simple thing for him? Just let him know he had to reply to something. It was simple.

“Jake? Marc?” He called out as he turned his head towards his open bathroom. He could see his reflection from there without any problem.

There was no response.

“She matters to me.” It was the only thing he said as his knuckles pounded on the table, a self-soothing action. “She’s all I have. Do you know that?”

Marc wants to object but stays silent so Steven can continue.

"She’s all I have.” This time his voice breaks, and his hand continues with the pounding. “My apartment is no longer mine. I no longer have my job. I no longer have my body. I no longer have my life.” The pounding grows stronger as tears fill his eyes.

Steven has never had a problem with his sensitivity. When he feels the need to cry, he does, and that’s it.

“She matters to me.” He repeats. “And you can’t do one simple thing for me, which is to support me.” He slams his phone with the opposite hand against the table. “I’m going to lose her because you can’t even notify me that I have a message to respond to. You’re suffocating me, both of you.”

There were a few seconds of silence before he continued speaking. “I’m trapped.” It was the last thing that came out of his lips.

As if God himself had heard his words, the poor phone starts ringing. It’s a call, and Steven can do nothing but take a deep breath and clear his throat so that his voice doesn’t sound as fractured as it feels.

It’s you. And you don’t wait a second after the ringtone ends, not even waiting a greeting from his side.

“This city is trying to kill me.” You say quickly, taking advantage of the fact that for the first time in a long time Steven managed to answer the call in time. “Do you want to go to the beach?”

Steven laughs. Well, more like exhales through his nose, doubting whether you’re serious or not.

“I’m 5 minutes away from your apartment.” You speak again to confirm that you’re not joking. “Do you want to go? Are you free?” He can hear your smile in your voice.

“I’m free.” His gaze wanders over the mess in his apartment; he’s definitely not free. Besides, he already knows that on Wednesday afternoons Jake… Whatever it is he does those days, he never wanted to answer him.

“Steven.” The voice finally makes itself heard in the mirror. “Not today. You know that I…”

“Please, let’s go.” The English accent is stronger when he’s annoyed, you’ve noticed that even though seeing him annoyed is like seeing Halley’s Comet. “I can’t take it anymore. Please, take me.”

“Do you think we should pursue architecture?” You hit the plastic bucket with your small plastic shovel until your instinct tells you that you can lift it without risking the sand getting stuck.

You form the piece number 8 in your huge sandcastle while Steven is trying to figure out how to create a fake tiny lake without the sand swallowing the water.

It’s fascinating to see him in a completely different environment from the one you always find yourselves in. In the city, there’s always noise, people are always busy, always rushing from one place to another, and you feel your lungs hurt from breathing in the pollution around you.

You prepared enough activities to keep yourselves occupied the whole day, and you were still on the first one, spending a good twenty minutes concentrating on building the sandcastle. Of course, the first ten were a struggle to avoid fixating on Steven’s tanned skin, the way a small belly formed in his body from sitting upright, or even the muscles in his arms flexing as he dug with his own tiny shovel.

When you noticed his focus on the game, you wondered if Steven ever had the chance to do something like this as a child.

You knew his situation inside out; it had become an explanation for the days he disappeared without a trace, the bruises on his body, or the unanswered messages. So, it was impossible for you not to feel warmth in your chest when you saw him smile, attempting a very poor imitation of the Giza Pyramid with wet sand.

“I brought some residents.” A couple of Calico Critters figurines were in your hands, a handful that you offered to the guy beside you.

His eyes lit up.

“Did you collect these? They’re definitely your kind of trinket.” You nodded in response to his question, smiling with flushed cheeks. “Alright, this one will be the pharaoh.” He was so delicate when he took one of the teddy bears in your hands that a sigh escaped your lungs.

“These will be his servants.” You stacked the figurines around the construction, which seemed to have no particular sense. You even placed one in Steven’s makeshift water lake, which had somehow worked already. “Steven?”

“Huh?” The smile on his lips dazzled you as he looked up. His curls were more pronounced with the moisture from the beach, his cheeks flushed from the heat, and you had never seen someone whose eyes were complemented so well by the golden hour.

Those huge brown eyes that made your heart race, they usually stood out because of the dark circles underneath them, but today they seemed to shine like stars, even in the full light of day.

“Did you like the beach when you were a child?”

“I don’t know.” He was honest; his childhood was something very blurry for him. It wasn’t like that before, but Marc’s appearance had complicated something in his brain. Now he doubted which parts were true and which were not, so the most accurate thing to do was to admit that he didn’t know. “I had a dream about Layla a while ago, I know she went to the beach one day with Marc or something like that. Maybe I’ll ask him later if he used to like it, if he bothers to respond.”

“What do you mean?” Your fingers arranged another Calico Critter at the fake entrance of your sandcastle.

“They disappear when I ask questions. Both of them.” Steven began to fill his own bucket again, compacting the sand inside it every now and then with his small shovel. He had chosen the yellow one. “This morning they decided to ignore me.”

You simply nodded, already familiar with the tone of “I’m going to talk until I’m tired” in his voice.

“Can you believe it?” His hands flattened the sand where he planned to place the bucket. “I woke up feeling like I got beaten up, and I don’t doubt that it happened. It’s the second time this week, not to mention the mess in my apartment. That must be the mess number 118 since we apparently cleared things up.”

He wishes that he was dramatizing, but he has lost count of how many books he has lost in those messes and how many goldfish they try to replace as if Steven was a child who wouldn’t notice.

“I thought there would be no more lies between us, I thought we were working as a team.” He avoids your gaze as his chest tightens and his breathing becomes erratic; here comes the crying again. “But I’m not included anymore, I’ve realized that.”

Silently, you decide to lean your cheek against his shoulder. His skin feels as warm as it looks, and it’s pleasant, the warmth of both of you colliding comfortably.

“I feel like I’m walking blind. I don’t know at what point in my life I am, I don’t know what we have planned for the future, or if this is all I’ll have for the rest of my days.” His cheek rests against your hair, a way to let you know that he happily receives your touch. “I feel like I’m…”

“Trapped?” You complete with a sigh. Even his words come out as if someone is strangling him, choked, painful.

“Trapped.” He nods slowly, comforting himself by focusing on how his index finger draws fake windows on the sandcastle. “And you.”

“And me.”

“How can I ask you to be with me if I can’t even send you a coherent text message?” The pain in his chest is stronger than the shyness he would feel at any other time admitting his interest in you.

But the truth is, it’s already too obvious.

What Steven and you have is not easy to label. In fact, it’s impossible, but it would be foolish to pretend that there isn’t something you’ve both known for a long time.

You love each other. And you’re trying to do what’s best for each other.

That has always been enough for you.

“We are together, Steven.” Your head remains on his shoulder as you lean back slightly, enough to look at him with a faint smile. It would be stupid to pretend that you’re not worried about him and everything he just said, but it’s more important for you to clarify that your relationship doesn’t have to be part of all that emotional burden weighing on his shoulders for so long.

“Eh? B-But I…”

Your lips silence him, a very short and small kiss. Chaste and innocent, just like Steven himself, or like the feelings you share.

“We are together.” You confirm once again before going in for another kiss.

The rest of the day at the beach is as peaceful as the beginning. Together, you eat the pile of snacks you packed and even toast with two juice boxes, one apple and one orange.

You step on the sand mounds that used to form a castle together and, almost at the end, you sit on the shore to let the water tickle your feet. You also filled your little bucket with water several times to pour it on Steven, but that’s another story.

You saved the best part for last.

“Did you know that Dr. Seuss was a terrible person?”

“Steven, I didn’t bring it up so you could ruin a childhood experience for me.” You bite your lower lip to keep from laughing as you make room on the beach lounger that both of you claimed as your own as soon as you saw it.

You had to lie on your side so that both of you could fit without being cramped, even raising your leg over his and resting an arm on his chest.

You close your eyes, enjoying the feeling of his breath rising and falling against your arm slowly.

“One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish.” He says amidst a small laugh. This must be a trap of yours to hear him stumble over his own words in that adorable English accent that always makes you smile.

“A classic.” Your fingers wander over his abdomen, tickling him.

“Okay, okay. I’ll read it, leave me alone.” He finally gives in before clearing his throat.

The discussion was longer than the time it took for you to fall asleep. With your head resting on Steven’s chest and one of his arms around your shoulders as he held the book in front of both of your faces.

As soon as your breathing became heavier, he decided it was time to stop the torture of reading a rhyming book as someone who spoke so fast. So, he placed the book on his stomach and focused on holding you, feeling the beating of your heart against his body.

The sun began to set, and for the first time, Steven had time for himself and his thoughts.

He didn’t hate Marc. He didn’t hate Jake. How could he? They were two vital parts of him, and like him, they had a thousand things to carry. Maybe next time he would ask both of them how they feel or if they’re doing okay.

Sometimes he forgot that he could have these moments. Feeling light, carefree. He could take a break and forget about the rest of the world in your arms. Could they do that too?

With a sigh, he let go of all the heaviness he had been carrying in his body since he woke up that day. And he looked down.

The way you assured him you two were together was the next thing that crossed his mind. Was being trapped really that bad? The truth was, no. He liked his life, at least the part that belonged solely to him.

He liked being trapped in his small apartment with the things he loved the most. He liked being trapped in the noisy city that had embraced him since he arrived. He liked being trapped in his body with Marc and Jake, not being alone. He liked being trapped in your arms.

He just had to take the time to appreciate it more often.

Miguel probably laughs at you lowly while you’re crying on his cock, begging to come. Maybe he makes you sit on it, inch by inch because he’s so big that he can’t just push his way in, making you whimper when he hits your cervix while you drip all over his thighs.

Maybe he takes you from behind, and right after hearing you sniffle into the sheets where you were being pummelled into, he lifts you up by the nape of your neck. His sharp teeth bared at your skin as he asks you to tell him how it feels, his large hand pressing on the bulge where he can feel himself inside you.

Not touching you where you need him to, but resting his fingers there and waiting for you to respond to him when he asks, “feels good, yeah? Tell me, baby, need you to tell me. Then I’ll let you come, I promise,” and the pin prick feeling of his fangs starting to sink in has you coming undone anyway