Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

You wake up to find the sun hitting your eyes, your body warm despite the cold air. Liam’s arm is around you, his sleeping figure just beneath your touch.

You push yourself to look at him, his expression peaceful as his chest moved up and down rhythmically.

His lips move all of a sudden, twitching into a smirk.

“You’re staring,” he says, eyes still closed.

“I’m gazing.”

“It’s creepy.”

“It’s romantic.”

You’re about to argue some more but he pulls his pillow over his face, obstructing your view of him.

“Hey!”

You pull the pillow off him and he uses your momentum to push you backwards, his lips pressing into yours gently before his tongue seeks yours, deepening the kiss.

He kisses you slowly and lovingly, as if to take the taste and feel of you to memory.

He’s breathless when he pulls away. “Good morning, Mrs. Rys.”

You can’t help but smile back at him.

“Good morning, Mr. Rys.”

Chapter Text

It was six in the morning and the sun has only just risen. Kenji was still asleep in your room, while you had your head in the fridge, trying to figure out something to make for breakfast.

You crack open some eggs to make an omelette, the sizzling sound of chopped onions, bell peppers and mushrooms against the frying pan filling the quiet apartment.

You feel a pair of arms creep around your waist, the fabric of your button down shirt bunching together as you feel Kenji’s strong chest behind you, his head nestling in the crook of your neck. “Mmm,” he sighs against you. “Why’d you wake up so early?”

You chuckle lightly as you pour the beaten eggs into the pan. “Well, someone was snoring last night.”

You feel him smile against your skin, his laughter melodic in your ear. “Ah. Well, someone kept me up last night.”

You feel yourself blush as his arms pull you in closer, his lips pressing soft kisses down your neck.

“Is this my shirt?” he asks suddenly, his head jerking up in realization.

“No…” you say as you pull away from him, reaching to his side for a plate.

You scoop out the eggs and head for the table, but Kenji catches you in his arms again, his head burying itself in your neck.

“Keep it,” he says. “It looks better on you.”

And you smile.

“Good.” You bring one hand up to cup his face, pulling him closer as you press a kiss to his cheek. “I wasn’t planning on returning it.”

Chapter Text

It’s the day of Liam and Riley’s wedding, and Drake and Olivia have been paired together to walk down the aisle as groomsman and bridesmaid, respectively.

Drake finds Olivia looking at him as he fixes his bowtie.

“What? Does my getup not satisfy her royal dictator of taste?”

She smirks at him, pushing his hands away and straightening his bowtie herself. “No. I was going to say you don’t look like a dish rag today, which is code for,” her eyes look up into his, “you look quite handsome today, Drake.”

She straightens his jacket with her palms and hooks her arm into his as they prepare for the procession.

Drake smiles to himself incredulously. “Well, if we’re being nice to each other…” his eyes find hers, “you look beautiful, Olivia. As you always do.”

The humble flush on her cheeks tell him that she’s flattered by his compliment, her bright eyes suddenly interested in the ceiling, the faintest hint of a smile on her lips.

He looks away too when he finds that he doesn’t want to ruin the peace, a little more than amused that he’s got the great Olivia Nevrakis speechless.

They both smile like idiots as the wedding procession begins.

Chapter Text

You’re walking down the street with Maxwell by your side, the moon high and bright against the evening sky. A smile plays on your lips as you find yourself skipping down the road, the cocktails in your system making you feel light as air.

Maxwell laughs a little when you twirl around, the sound of both your laughter filling the air.

“C'mon, dance with me,” you say, your arm stretched out to him and he chuckles, his hand running through his hair. He looks around for any onlookers, but there’s no one but you and him on the street, the pale yellow light from the street lamps illuminating your faces softly.

He almost glows when he breaks into a grin, his steps small and tentative as he walks towards you.

You pull him in impatiently then, the sudden gesture bringing him flush against you, his laughter melodic as he holds your hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. He brings it over your head then, guiding you into a twirl, and you can’t help but smile gleefully when he brings you back into his arms.

You take both his hands and guide them to either side of your waist, your own hands wrapping around his neck.

He’s surprised by it at first – whether from the intimacy of it or the unfamiliar dancing form, you’re not sure – but he relaxes when he meets your eyes, the corners of his mouth pulling into a soft smile.

You begin to sway on your sides, your bodies moving in time to music that only the two of you can hear, your eyes never leaving each other’s.

He pulls you in closer then, his hold on you firm as he brings you to a stop, his eyes looking deeply into yours before he leans in and kisses you, your eyes falling shut instinctively.

He brings one hand up to cup your face, while his arm wraps firmly around your waist, holding you in place as his lips move against yours, softly but insistently – passionate but steady.

And in that moment, it feels like everything, all at once.

You’re breathless when he pulls away, your eyes opening slowly to meet his.

The smile on his face was undeniable, his gaze tender and earnest as he strokes the side of your face lightly, your heart melting a little when he tells you three words you didn’t realize you wanted to hear tonight.

“I love you.”

Chapter Text

You sit at your desk in Prescott Industries, stacks of folders and loose papers scattered around you as you frantically try to get everything ready. The office was still quiet, the floor mostly empty in the early morning.

You have just hit ‘print’ when you hear the printer making weird noises.

“No, no, no! Not now!” you shout out at it, as if the damn thing would understand you.

But the machine eats at your perfectly clean book paper anyway, and you run a hand through your hair in frustration. You reach in to pull out the crumpled mess, but someone’s extended hand and a takeaway cup of coffee get in your way.

You look up to find a pair of baby blue eyes staring at you.

“So this is what you leave me alone in bed for?” Grayson jokes, an easy smile on his lips.

You suddenly feel guilty for having left the apartment so early.

“Sorry.” You take the cup from him shyly. “You were sleeping so soundly and I didn’t wanna wake you… but I had to do some last minute changes to the presentation for the Board. And you don’t even need to be in this early, so I–”

He smiles tenderly as he watches you ramble, and you purse your lips in response, knowing you’ve been forgiven.

“Thank you,” you smile in return, bringing the coffee cup to your lips as you watch him unjam the printer.

“All good,” he announces when he’s done and the printer hums back to life. You rejoice as your document begins printing properly.

“You are a life saver,” you tell him, and he nods appreciatively before he turns to go into his office.

You’re about to sit down again when he calls you, his hand suddenly on your cheek, his lips meeting yours in a tender kiss.

“You forgot that before you left this morning,” he beams at you, and you feel yourself blush when a group of people begin entering the office.

You duck your head down to hide.

“People are watching,” you say.

But he just smirks and says, “let them.”

Then his lips are on yours again, kissing you slowly, savoring you, but then you feel his tongue graze your bottom lip and you remind yourself not to get carried away.

You tug on his shirtsleeve and he understands, pulling away with a tender gaze.

Then he smirks at you and winks, his voice low as he whispers, “to be continued.”

Chapter Text

You’re sitting in your study, head hunched over your desk, the pen in your hand tapping mindlessly against the table.

You feel your vision blur and your hand comes up between your eyebrows, fingers massaging away the strain in your eyes.

You rest back against the chair, eyes now closed shut, the glare of the mid-morning sun through the window hitting your face.

The weight on your shoulders melt away as you fall into a peaceful lull, the warmth of the sun relaxing against your skin.

The peace doesn’t last as your body jerks awake though, a loud grumble sounding across the room.

You wake up to find Liam’s eyes trained on yours.

“Someone’s hungry,” he teases, a gentle smile on his lips as he walks across the room to meet you.

You try to hide your surprise when he sets a plate of pancakes down in front of you.

“I was told you haven’t had breakfast yet,” he explains before you can ask, and he crouches down to your side. “I thought we agreed you’d take care of yourself.”

You flash him an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize the time. I just needed to make a few more revisions to my speech–”

He shakes his head and cuts you off, his hand taking yours.

“No excuses,” he says, his thumb stroking lightly against your skin. “Your health is my top priority, my queen.”

He brings his other hand to the swell of your stomach, caressing softly. “That is, until this little one is born… then I’ll have to make room for another one on my list.”

And you almost think you’re imagining it when you feel your stomach moving again, but then Liam’s staring at you wide-eyed and you know.

The baby just kicked.

“Did you just…” he says and you nod.

“Yeah.”

A bright smile spreads on his lips.

“Looks like someone wants to be top priority too,” he jokes, pressing a lingering kiss to your bump before standing up to meet you at eye level, his hand coming up to your face.

“Don’t worry though,” he says, leaning in close. “There’ll always be room in here for you.”

His mouth presses onto yours gently, and you feel an overwhelming amount of joy, the feeling of his arms around you and your soon-to-be born child – your family – filling you up.

“I love you,” he says, crouching back down to give your baby bump another quick peck.

And there hasn’t been a time where you’ve thought that it wasn’t true.

And this one was no exception.

“I love you too.”

Chapter Text

You’re sprawled out on your bed, face pressed against the mattress, Eva sitting on your back, her legs straddling your hips.

“Lower?” she asks, lips close to your ear.

You moan appreciatively at her touch.

“Mmm. Lower.”

Her hands trail down your body, fingers digging deep into your skin.

“Harder?” she whispers, and you know she’s teasing you.

But you give in anyway.

“Mmm. Harder.”

You can almost hear her smirking when her fingers dig into your sides, pushing straight into your ticklish spots, her pressure alternating between light and hard.

“Eva!” you manage to scream in between laughs, and you turn yourself over to push her back into the bed, her rich golden brown hair surrounding her like a halo.

Her eyes meet yours and you both pause for a while, slow smiles spreading on your lips, eyes sparkling with delight. She slides her arms around your neck, pulling you down, your smiles touching in a gentle kiss.

“ That ,” you tell her, “is not what I would call a massage.”

And her laughter sounds like sweet music in the early morning, the confines of her room suddenly your entire world.

“Yeah? Why don’t you show me what it feels like and I’ll return the favor?”

And again, you know that she’s teasing you, her smile a mixture of fondness and friendly competition–

… and you give in anyway.

“Turn around, babe.”

Chapter Text

James loves to drive.

He doesn’t love the traffic he encounters during his daily commute, but he loves how he gets opportunities to just sit there and think.

Sometimes he’ll just stare mindlessly into nothing, or he’ll hear a song that he thinks you’d like and he’d break into a smile.

Sometimes he’ll call you just to tell you about it.

Sometimes he’ll call you for much less.

“Nothing,” he’d say when you ask what’s up. “I just called to say I love you.”

Then he’d have the biggest grin on his face when you say it back, and his smile doesn’t leave him the entire drive.

He loves it when you’re in the car with him, telling him stories about your day. He also loves it when you just fall asleep, and he gets to see your rhythmic breathing, your features calm without a trace of worry.

He thinks he could just sit there and watch you.

But the car behind would probably honk at him and waking you up is the last thing he’d ever want to do.

He especially loves it when you get to go away together, the destination not always his priority. He loves getting to keep you to himself, and he always savors every chance that he can.

He doesn’t love it any much more until a few years later though, and he’s sitting there alone, tired and hungry from the day.

But he knows that he’ll see you at the end of his drive, a warm smile on his face as he anticipates the look on your face, the warmth of your touch, the joy radiating from your smile as you whisper in his ear, “… welcome home.”

Chapter Text

Drake pushed the lock of stray hair from her face, his finger tracing lightly against her cheek. He studied her features as she slept, the light passing through the trees casting a soft glow upon her face. He watched the rhythmic up and down of her chest, appreciating the warmth of her body against his.

She looked so peaceful, he thought. And he wished that he could just keep her like this. Shelter her from the bitterness of court. Keep her close to his side at all times.

But he knew there was no taming that spirit of hers. No dimming that fire in her eyes.

It was one of the things that drew him to her.

Like a beacon in the night, her light shone brighter the closer he got, and before he’d known it – before he could do anything about it – her light touched him. Warmed him. Enveloped him in a place that felt new and scary, but safe.  

With her arms wrapped around him like this, he knew this woman had taken his heart.

And every time they’ve had to part, every time they’ve had to leave their little bubble, it felt like she took a part of it with her.

He used to worry about not getting it back.

But every look, every touch, every moment spent together has told him otherwise.

This was a promise, he realized.

So later when she wakes up and inevitably leaves him again, he doesn’t worry anymore. Because all he needed was to see that beautiful face of hers – see that wonderful, loving smile directed at him – and he’d know.

This one will bring it back home.

Chapter Text

You feel the sun on your face and a warm hand resting on your stomach. Kenji’s voice is a whisper in your ear and your eyes flutter open to find that he’s not beside you. Instead, he’s laying lower on the bed, his head propped up on his hand, his other hand stroking softly along the fabric of your nightshirt. His voice is the gentlest you’ve ever heard it.

“Hey, baby girl. It’s Dad.”

You watch the softest smile grow on his face, and his fingers come up to his mouth to stop the chuckling sound in his throat, his eyes telling you that he’s still stuck in blissful disbelief.

“Anyway, uh, I’m not sure how to do this, but the doctor said that you can hear us now, so, hi.” He smiles and his thumb strokes lightly back and forth. “It feels like a dream to think that you’re gonna be here soon. Your mom and I are going to be so happy when you do. I hope we’ll make you happy too.

“I can’t wait to see the person that you’re going to become. I’m going to love you and your mother so much. I already do. So grow fast, my little girl. Grow strong. I can’t wait ‘til I finally get to meet you.”

Tears start welling in your eyes and you don’t know whether to blame the lack of sleep or your hormones but you don’t really care.

You stroke Kenji’s hair softly to let him know that you’re awake and the tenderness in his eyes fill you up more than you thought possible.

“Hey,” he greets you with an earnest smile.

And words cannot describe how full your heart feels, so you hope he knows how much you love him in this moment.

“We’re going to be a family,” you catch yourself saying.

He pulls himself up to meet you, and his hand comes on the side of your face, stroking softly as he whispers with a blissful smile. “Yes, we are.”

Chapter Text

Your head is heavy in your hand, your vision blurry as you struggle to keep your eyes open, the view of your professor and his presentation on cost-benefit analysis slowly turning into black.

Your jaw slips from your palm, and you catch yourself before your face hits the desk, the faintest feeling of something hitting the back of your head capturing your attention.

You almost think you’re imagining it until you find a crumpled ball of paper between you and the back of your seat.

You scan the crowd and find a pair of baby blue eyes looking at you, urging you to open the note.

“You’re drooling,” it says in Grayson Prescott’s neat script.

And you stick your tongue out at him, prompting his eyes to crinkle with delight, a fond smile on his lips.

Flash forward to a few years later, and you’re sitting in a similar seminar room, Prescott Industries’ Chief of Operations sharing his inspirational anecdote to a group of hopeful students while you take notes for documentation.

You’re typing on your laptop when you feel the same hit of crumpled paper on your head, your gaze immediately finding a certain blue-eyed CEO’s.

You throw him an accusatory look as you take the crumpled ball in your hands, mouthing to him a defensive, “I’m not sleeping!”

And he mouths to you in response, “Just open it!”

You straighten out the note and the sight of his neat script brings an undeniable blush to your cheeks, your eyes meeting his again as he mouths to you the same words he’d just written, throwing in a wink for good measure.

“I love you.”

Chapter Text

Beckett was… distracted, to say the least.

He’s been sitting under a tree in the courtyard for most of his lunch period, hopeful that the change in environment will help him focus. He’s been trying to write his Attunement History paper (which isn’t due for another two weeks, btw), but his earlier attempt at the library proved futile when his thoughts kept drifting to another young Attuned.

Of all the sections they could’ve filed, it just had to be Attunement History – which he was taking this semester.

He sighs. The blank page stares at him as mockingly as it had when he’d first tried to write on it, his gaze falling onto the crumpled pieces of paper that used to be his first and second draft.

Taking them in his hand, he conjures up a flame in his palm, watching the tiny embers eat at his frustrations.

“Well that’s a bit over dramatic.”

He looks up to find you watching him with amusement, your head tilted to the side. He doesn’t (can’t) say a thing as you sit down beside him without further invitation, your hand shuffling through your bag as soon as you do.

“What are you doing?” he finally asks, sounding a little more stoic than he intended.

“Opening my bag…?”

He clears his throat. “I meant, what are you doing here?”

“Getting shade from the sun…”

He resists the urge to roll his eyes. “Is there something that you need?”

His tone is more insistent, impatient to know the nature of your company.

You shrug. “Not really, no.”

“Then why are you here?” The words fall out of him and he realizes as soon as they do how snobbish he sounds. “I- I meant… you came here and sat beside me. There must be something that you need.”

You laugh. “Not in particular, no.”

“If you need help with our History paper–”

“Isn’t that due in like two weeks?”

“Our Spellwork assignment then.”

You shake your head, chuckling. “No.”

“What about–”

You cut him off with a hand on his arm. “Maybe… I just wanted to spend time you, Beckett.”

You offer him a smile and his cheeks flush red, the heat spreading all the way to his ears.

“Oh.”

You retract your hand and pull out a box of sliced apples from your bag. “Want some?”

He accepts your offer with a quiet smile, and he finally gets himself to write his paper as he sits beside you in the courtyard with your snack box between you, his mind finally at peace.

… After he told himself to stop nervously glancing at you every five seconds, that is.

Chapter Text

“Uhh... what happened to you guys?” Ryllea asked as she took in the disheveled state Tyril and Mal — who were supposed to collect firewood — had returned to camp in.

They were covered in some sort of yellowish green slime, their hair tangled and sticking whichever way.

“We got attacked by jelly monsters—“ Mal began to explain, but Tyril cut him off.

“I told you, they are not called jelly monsters!”

Casting the firewood they’d gathered aside, Tyril stormed off the campsite once more, hands already working on the clasps of his armor as he headed towards the river.

Stupid Mal for wanting to check out that stupid cave.

It had been a tiring day for everyone as it was. If the rogue hadn’t gone off mission to check if there was any “treasure” in that abandoned cave, this never would have happened.

Tyril grumbled with frustration as his hands kept slipping on the smooth material of his armor, his fingers almost trembling with fury.

“Let me help you with that.”

Ryllea walked up from behind him, her hand coming over his, warm and steady.

With a small smile, he let her make quick work of the clasps on his armor, the two of them slipping into the river afterwards to clean off the gunk.

She didn’t ask any questions as she helped him clean his armor, only shooting him a soft smile whenever their eyes met. They worked side by side and soon they’d washed off all the slime from Tyril’s armor and clothing, the only remnants of his misadventure with Mal being the slime that had dried up in his hair.

“May I?” she asked, picking off a piece of dried slime from Tyril’s hairline.

He nodded in response and turned his back to her, lowering himself into the water so that his hair fanned out freely.

Ryllea’s hands were gentle on him, caressing the sides of his face before threading her fingers through his long locks, smoothing out the knots.

Tyril felt the tension leave his body with every stroke of her hand, his eyes closing as he relaxed, his body surrendering to her touch.

“Twelve year old me would have killed for your hair growing up,” she joked. “My hair was a frizzy mess when I was younger. Kade said it drew attention in all the wrong ways. When we started earning a little extra coin, one of the first things Kade bought me was this bottle of hair oil from a travelling salesman. He was so magnetized by the man’s sales pitch that he bought it without asking for instructions on how to use it.”

Her fingers worked into his scalp, massaging lightly before they ran down the length of his hair, one hand supporting the weight of it while the other hand brushed down. She repeated the motion even as Tyril could feel the last of the slime washing off, her fingers occasionally brushing against the back of his neck and bare shoulders.

“He gave it to me with a proud smile and helped me comb out the knots in my hair. Told me I was going to be the prettiest elf in all of Riverbend. Turns out we weren’t supposed to leave it on overnight though. My hair turned this crazy bright pink color and it wouldn’t wash out for days.”

A chuckle escaped his lips at the mental image, Ryllea’s expert hands gently massaging his temples before weaving back into his hair, the motion causing him to lean some of his weight towards her.

“We tried to look for the salesman again, but he had already left town. Kade felt so terrible, he put the oil in his own hair too. Luckily, a travelling fair came to set up that same week and hired us for our ‘eye-catching’ looks. Suffice to say, the fair got a lot of attention that week and Kade left the haircare shopping to me from then on.”

Tyril laughed heartily, surprising even himself when he realized how light it sounded, unburdened for the first time in a long while. Ryllea sidled in closer, pressing her body to his, supporting some of his weight.

“You seem to be feeling better,” she said, her hands coming to rest on either side of his shoulders.

He laced his hand through hers, appreciating the way her warmth enveloped him, her free arm coiling around his torso affectionately. She laid her head against his back, the steady rhythm of her breathing matching the beating of his heart.

He brought her hand to his lips as he smiled.

“I have you to thank for that.”

Chapter Text

The two of you are sitting on his couch, side by side, cartons of dimsum sprawled out as the latest episode of Itaewon Class plays on tv.

“Oh my god no,” you whisper with a rice roll halfway shoved into your mouth, your eyes wide as the episode ends on a cliffhanger. You remember to tuck the rest of the rice roll in after a brief daze, chewing slowly as you watch the end credits roll.

Rafael snickers beside you.

“What?” you ask defensively, though it comes out as nothing more than a mumbled “mmf”.

“Nothing,” he laughs, not bothering to hide his smile as he wipes the cheong fun sauce off your face. “You’re cute is all.”

You scrunch your nose playfully at his comment. “Yes, I’m adorable, but you’re supposed to be watching the tv, not noticing the eleven ways I smear cheong fun sauce all over my face.”

You narrow your eyes in mock offense.

“Eleven, huh?” he grins, reaching across the table to find the carton holding the shrimp dumplings. “I’ll have to be on the lookout then, I’m pretty sure I’ve only seen five.”

He pops the dumpling into his mouth, eyes still teasing, and for a moment, you just stop to enjoy the smile on his lips, his handsome face alight with amusement.

“What?” he asks when he notices you staring. But then a sudden thought crosses his mind, worry creeping onto his beautiful features. “Oh crap, did you want that last har gow?”

His jaw falls slack and you can’t help but smile at the sight before you — this man, who had just been teasing you a second ago, is now genuinely concerned that he’d upset you by eating the last shrimp dumpling.

You feel your heart swell with joy.

“Mmm,” you hum as if deciding what to do, taking advantage of his momentary confusion to lean into his space. “Maybe just a taste.”

You press your lips to his and Rafael relaxes under your touch, laughter bubbling behind his smile.

When you pull away, there are sauce marks on the edges of both of your mouths, causing the two of you to hunch over in laughter.

He brushes his hand tenderly across your cheek, reaching down to your lips to wipe off the sauce.

“Should we make that number twelve now then?” he teases, and you shove him playfully before he catches your lips in another kiss, the rest of the world melting away in this moment.