Comment Fic Dump #2
in my own little corner (Hathaways, Poppy/Harry, 281 words)
As she stood conversing with Lady Pleinsworth, Poppy sensed Harry's presence before he spoke a single word. It was a feeling of being loomed over, of being enveloped in the heat that Harry couldn't help but radiate. He touched the skin above her glove and Poppy shivered.
"Pardon me, Lady Pleinsworth," Harry said. "But might I borrow my wife for a moment? There is a matter that requires her urgent attention."
"Of course, Mr. Rutledge," Lady Pleinsworth said. She gave Poppy a knowing smile, and it was all that Poppy could do to not flush crimson. "I completely understand."
Harry tucked her arm in his and steered her towards the hall that led to their private rooms. Poppy knew only too well what that meant.
"Harry," Poppy hissed, doing her utmost to keep her voice low and discreet. "We have guests."
"You have guests," Harry corrected, not breaking his stride. "They certainly aren't here to see me."
"Fine," Poppy said, exasperated beyond reason. "Then I have guests that need attending to. You will have to wait."
Harry turned and gave her his most winsome grin. He pulled her into his arms and pressed her against the evidence of his desire. "But I need attending to. Surely there was something in the wedding vows about that?"
Poppy opened her mouth to huff a laugh, but Harry captured her lips with his. He kissed her sweetly, gently, in the way that he knew she especially liked and she found virtually impossible to say no to. When he broke the kiss, Poppy let out an enraptured sigh.
"What was that you were saying about guests?" Harry asked.
curtain call (RPF, Emmy Rossum/Aaron Tveit, 133 words)
"We shouldn't be doing this here," Emmy whispers. Her hands are tangled in Aaron's hair, his thigh between her legs. His mouth is on her throat and she arches against his hands as they stroke against her bare back. She has never meant words less. Yet, she tries again. "Aaron, stop."
He raises his face to hers and grins, wolfishly. "You don't mean that," he says. His hands drop to her ass, pulling her flush against his body.
Despite her best efforts, Emmy melts.
She tugs his face forward until his lips touch her own. There is nothing gentle about their kiss. It is a war of lips and tongues and teeth, a war that they are equally determined to win.
From behind them, the stage manager says, "Five minutes."
like pigs at the trough (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 376 words)
Artemis sat alone at the picnic table in the West's backyard. She watched as Wally and the Flash -- Barry, she corrected herself -- and Mrs. West all piled platters and bowls onto the table. All of them were heaped with more food than Artemis would have guessed any group of people could ever consume in a week let alone a single afternoon.
It honestly made her a little sick to her stomach.
"You okay?" Wally asked, dropping down onto the bench next to her. His hand tapped restlessly against her thigh, and she covered his fingers with her own, lacing them together.
She nodded toward the mountain of food. "You're honestly going to eat all of that?"
Wally grinned. "Of course. But that reminds me."
Before Artemis could even blink, Wally leaned forward and pressed his mouth against hers. She was too surprised to do anything but kiss him back, despite her rule about parental observed PDA. They kissed, and they kissed some more, until from above them Mrs. West spoke.
"Honestly, Wally, let the poor girl breathe."
Instantly, they sprang apart. Artemis's cheeks went hot, but when she snuck a sideways glance at Wally, he looked altogether too pleased with himself. Artemis elbowed him in the ribs. "Stop that," she hissed.
Wally kissed her again, lightning quick, then grinned. "Sorry. Had to do it before we all dig into that --" he nodded toward the food -- "and you never want to kiss me again."
"He's telling the truth, dear," Mrs. West said. She looked around the table and pointing her finger at each guest in turn as she counted them off. "Are we all here? Then dig in -- non-speedsters first, please." She gave Wally and Barry each a sharp look in turn. "We have guests."
They all helped themselves and when they were finished, Mrs. West waved her hand at the barely touched food. Wally and Barry took it as a sign, and in what couldn't have been more than a minute, only have the food remained.
Artemis blinked. She looked at Wally, who had pink jello fluff on the corner of his mouth. "You were right," she said.
She went back to eating her potato salad.
a clever trick (The Voice RPF, Adam/Blake, 317 words)
"Someday you're going to have to tell me what you have against mimes."
Blake looks up. Adam stands in the door way of his dressing room, his arms braced against the frame. There's a teasing smirk on his face, the kind that Blake knows that Adam knows that makes Blake want to wipe it off Adam's face. But because Adam knows, Blake can't mention it and so he settles for saying, "Does that door need you to hold it up? Are you coming in or not?" instead.
Adam comes in and shuts the door behind him. He looks Blake dead in the eye as he flips the lock.
Blake's throat goes dry. He pats the spot on the couch next to him. "Why don't you come over here and tell me what's so great about mimes, since you seem to be such a fan?"
Adam crosses the room slowly, almost stalking his way across the small space. He sinks into the overstuffed couch like he belongs there, like it's his, and Blake's hands flex into fists against his thighs as he tries to resist the impulse to push Adam down into the cushions. He tries to listen to the words that Adam's speaking, but gets caught up in watching Adam's mouth instead.
Screw it.
Blake leans forward and presses his lips against Adam's still moving mouth. Their skin scrapes against each other, and Blake's hands grasp at Adam's arms. Blake kisses him until he has to choose between kissing Adam some more and breathing, and even then it's not as an easy a choice as it probably should be. He pulls back, gasping for air.
Adam stares, his mouth still hanging open. "You could have just said you didn't want to talk about it," he finally says.
Blake kisses him again.
On Broadway (Smash, Karen/Derek, 234 words)
When the billboard with her face rises over Times Square, Karen is there to watch. She stands there, on the corner of 7th and West 47th, simultaneously in awe and embarrassed at the spectacle.
She did this. She earned it. And yet the Midwestern part of her that will never fully go away recoils at the acknowledgement.
Not today, she tells herself, as people stream past her. Not today.
"I thought I might find you here."
Karen turns her head and there's Derek, hands tucked into his pockets, his coat billowing around him. The expression on his face is carefully bland, but Karen can see behind it now. She can see the fondness and the pride that he tries so hard to hide.
She links her arm through his, pressing against his side. "It's amazing."
Derek tips his face down, his eyes locking on hers. "It is," he says simply.
Karen kisses him. It's an impulsive gesture, one without the slightest artifice or grace. It's nothing more than a perfunctory brushing of lips, and yet it shakes her to her very core.
Derek stares at her, a confused smile turning up the corners of his mouth ever so briefly. "What was that for?" he asks.
"I don't know," Karen answers. He doesn't ask any other questions.
As one, they go back to staring at their billboard.
drunken truths (Hart of Dixie, Zoe/Wade, 280 words)
On the night of George and Lemon's wedding, Zoe goes to the Rammer Jammer for one very specific purpose: to get falling down drunk.
Wade is behind the bar, and he serves her drink after drink without comment, though once she passes three he starts giving her a glass of water for every cocktail. He just watches her with careful eyes, and if Zoe were sober she'd wonder what it meant, but she's not and so she pretends that she doesn't see. The only thing she wants to see is the bar through the bottom of her glass.
The Rammer Jammer closes and Zoe remains seated at the bar, her head slumped down against it. Wade cleans under and around her, and when he's finished and the lights are off, he comes back to her side.
"C'mon," he says, wrapping his hands around her elbows and helping her to her feet. "I'll drive you home."
Zoe stumbles against him, and he steadies her on her feet. He locks the door behind them and helps her into his truck. Somewhere between there and Lavon's, she falls asleep.
When she wakes, Zoe is in Wade's arms and he is carrying her into her cottage. She doesn't open her eyes, and he tucks her into her bed like her mother used to do when Zoe was still a little girl, all gentle tenderness. His lips brush over her forehead once, then twice.
"I wish you didn't love him," Wade murmurs, his lips still brushing against her skin. He leaves without saying another word.
In the morning, Zoe doesn't remember a thing.
by dawn's early light (Revenge, Emily/Daniel, 147 words)
It's when she first wakes that Emily forgets.
Forgets who she is and who she was. What feelings are real and which are fake. She forgets that the man in bed next to her is merely a means to an end, and not someone that she truly might love.
She forgets, and in those moments, Emily lives.
Daniel's arms curl around her waist, and he presses a soft, sleepy kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Morning," he slurs against her skin. He tugs her closer still, tangling their limbs together, until it is impossible to tell where he ends and she begins. He kisses her once more, and it is slow and deep and gentle, declaring his feelings without saying so much as a word.
"I love you," Emily says. It is not a lie.
When she kisses him again, it is.
day is done (General Hospital, Robin/Patrick, 197 words)
The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Patrick stepped through them, careful not to jostle Emma as she slept curled against his chest. In the distance, he saw Robin leaning against their minivan and his face broke out with a tired grin.
Patrick walked faster.
"I thought you still had work left," he said, when he finally reached her side. "Which isn't to say that I'm not incredibly happy you're coming home with us, but rather that I do pay attention to the things that you say."
Robin laughed softly, lifting a hand to push a strand of hair off Emma's face. "I decided it could wait. She's down for the count, huh?"
"Yes," Patrick said, bobbing his head up and down. "So could you --"
"Of course."
Robin opened the car door, and rearranged the straps on the car seat. Task finished, she stepped back out of the way, and Patrick bent to fasten Emma into place. He closed the door behind him and smiled at Robin.
"Hello," he said.
"Hello," she answered.
Robin stretched up on her toes to brush her lips against his.
"Let's go home," she said.
you wake up in the morning (RPF, Emmy/Aaron, 608 words)
It's at the end of a long day of promotion when Emmy gets the question. And despite what happens next, the question is an innocuous one, one that she couldn't reasonably have been expected to know the outcome of when she answered.
A reporter asks, "Is there anyone you're dying to work with?"
Emmy answers, "Oh, Aaron Tveit. I mean -- have you seen him?"
The reporter laughs and moves on. Emmy forgets about the question entirely.
This, as it turns out, is a mistake.
*
The sound of her agent calling wakes her up. Emmy tries her best to ignore it, but really, there are only so many repetitions of the wicked witch of the west's theme song that you can listen to and not lose your mind, so she slaps her hand in the vicinity of the nighstand and by some miracle presses the right button to answer the call. "'ello?"
"Did you mean it?"
"What?" Normally she doesn't have any problem following her agent's leaps of logic, but it's -- she raises her head to glance at the alarm clock and does a double take -- five am and she's not at her best.
"Did you mean it?"
Emmy sits up and pushes her hair back out of her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."
There's a heavy sigh on the other end of the line. "You told a reporter from the New York Post that you wanted to work with Aaron Tveit. Did you mean it?"
"Oh." Emmy has no recollection of this, but it's not like it's not true. "Yes?"
"Good. You're having lunch with him today. My assistant will text you the details."
"Wait, what?" Emmy asks, but it's too late and she's talking to dead air.
She looks at her pillow with longing. There's nothing she'd like more than to bury her head back under it and pretend that this whole very strange five minute interlude didn't happen, but somehow she doesn't think it's going to be possible.
With a sigh, she throws the covers back and gets out of bed. He had better be pretty enough in person to make up for this. It's the least that this day owes her.
*
Emmy's first thought when she spots him in the restaurant are that the prettiness won't be a problem. Her second is that, no, it totally will be. After years of working with ridiculously attractive men, she should be used to it by now. She's not.
He stands when he sees her coming, and she mentally gives him points for manners. "It's nice to meet you," he says, pulling her chair out for her. "Somehow it seems strange that we haven't met before now."
"Yes," she says, unable to focus on anything but how distractingly blue his eyes are. "It is strange."
He grins.
Emmy shakes her head, trying to focus. This is embarrassing. She's a grown woman. She should be able to keep her hormones in check long enough to have a business meeting. "I'm sorry," she says. "I'm not usually like this, I swear."
His grins deepens and her cheeks go hot. "Would it be wrong if I admitted I kind of like it?"
"Not wrong," she says. "Ungentlemanlike, perhaps. But not wrong."
"I can live with that," he says. His hand covers hers over the white linen tablecloth. "I can definitely live with that."
Emmy finds she can live with it too.
what you did today (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 1315 words)
The day after Sportsmaster ends up in Belle Reve at the hands of the team, Artemis breaks up with Wally. Wally might be a boy, with all the accompanying boy blindness, but even he's not blind enough to miss the connection.
He tries to be understanding. Having a super villain for a dad must suck, and he can see how it would make someone doubt their ability to be in a normal, functional relationship, even with someone completely awesome, which, fyi, he totally is. But a week goes by with nary an apology for being so shortsighted, and then two weeks without the begging him to take her back scene that he's been imagining, and enough is enough. His understanding has limits, and the fact of the matter is that he flat out misses her.
Wally misses her stupid hair and how it always manages to work its way into his mouth when they're making out, and the fact that Artemis has never met a midriff baring top that she didn't like, and don't even get him started on how much he misses her boots. Those boots have a regular, starring feature in Wally's fantasies and he's not even ashamed to admit it. No one who's ever seen them would judge him for it.
And he misses other stuff too, like how good she smells and how she never lets him get away with anything and how she always double checks to see if he remembered his snacks before they go on a mission, and okay, the list of things he doesn't miss would probably be shorter.
So Wally does what he does best: he solicits his best friends help in plotting against his girlfriend (because that is what she is, whatever she might say). And Robin is only too happy to help, which means that Zatanna is only too happy to help, and suddenly the entire team is in on Operation Get Wally and Artemis Back Together, as Meg dubs it. Wally's grateful for the help, even if he hates the name. Beggars can't be choosers, or whatever it is that his mom always used to say.
The plan is simple. Zatanna will call Artemis to the Cave for a girls night, only she and everyone else will have vacated the premises before Artemis arrives, leaving only Wally for company. Robin will promptly shut down the zeta tubes immediately after Artemis gets there, thus ensuring that no one else is getting in or out, leaving Artemis no choice but to talk to Wally.
It's a good plan. Which is, of course, why it had no chance of succeeding.
First, Artemis makes it to the Cave in like, record time. She pops out of the zeta right as everyone else is standing in front of them getting ready to go, and because she's not dumb about things like recognizing a set up when one is right in front of her, her hackles immediately go up.
"What's going on?" Artemis asks, already bristling. Her arms are folded over her chest and her booted toes are tapping against the floor.
Wally groans. This is really not how he wanted the boots reintroduced into his life. It really wasn't.
Bless her, Zatanna tries to cover. "We were just going out to buy ice cream. We'll be right back. I promise!" She rushes everyone else into the zeta tubes before Artemis can say a word or jump in after them.
Which leaves them alone, even if it wasn't how they were supposed to end up that way. And judging by the look in Artemis's eyes when she turns to face him, Artemis is only all too aware of that fact too.
"Wally," she says, her voice tight, "want to tell me what's going on?"
"Hey, beautiful," he tries, desperate to salvage the situation. "Fancy meeting you here."
"Wally."
And just like that, his will crumples, because really. How is anyone supposed to stand up to her when her voice does that vaguely threatening thing?
"I may have asked them all to give us some time together."
Artemis shakes her head, her hands dropping to her sides and balling into fists. "I can't believe you. God, Wally, what part of I don't want to --"
Which is Wally's cue to cut her off, because even he has his limits. "No, Artemis. If you really didn't want to be my girlfriend anymore, that would be one thing. But that's not it, is it?" He takes a careful step toward her, watching her face for signs of imminent kicking or hitting. He's man enough to admit that she could kick his ass and that he sort of likes it. That doesn't mean he wants to give her the chance to do it. "You still like me. I still like you. And yet we're not together. You want to tell me why?"
"I don't like you."
Wally takes another step closer until he's close enough that he can grab her wrists. "Liar."
Artemis laughs, a little bitter and a little broken. "Yep. That's me. I mean, how was I ever supposed to be anything else?"
"Artemis. Look at me." He takes a chance on letting go of one of her hands to tilt her face towards his. "You are not your dad. You couldn't ever be him."
"You don't know that."
He looks her dead in the eye, willing her to believe him. "I do know that. I wish you'd believe me."
Artemis breaks his hold on her wrist and starts to pace. "You don't get it, Wally. You couldn't get it, and I love that about you, but --"
"Wait," he says, holding up his hand. "Repeat that please."
Artemis looks confused.
Wally tries not to grin triumphantly.
"Repeat what?" she asks.
"Oh, I don't know, the part about you loving me?" He snags her wrist again and drags her closer. He wraps his arms around her so that she can't get away. "I'd really like to hear that part again."
She shakes her head, trying to deny it. "You must have been hearing things."
"I was," Wally says, nodding his head and giving into the grin. "I was hearing you say that you love me." He leans in closer. "Can you keep a secret?"
Artemis snorts. "Obviously."
"I love you, too."
Wally doesn't wait for her answer, but kisses her. He kisses her with all the pent up frustration of the last two weeks of not being able to kiss her. He kisses her with everything he feels for her now, and everything he wants to feel in the future. He kisses her so that she'll understand that what's between them is real and that he won't let her mess it up if she promises to do the same for him. He kisses her because he needs to kiss her like he needs to breathe. He kisses her because it's the only thing in the world he wants to do, and finally, finally when she kisses him back, Wally knows that she's gotten the message.
When the matter of breathing becomes urgent enough that Wally has to break the kiss, he drops down onto the couch and pulls her onto his lap. He nuzzles against her neck, his thumb stroking along the bare strip of skin on her stomach. "So," he says, kissing the spot on her collarbone that makes her shiver, "how was your day?"
Artemis tugs him up by his ears to kiss her. Wally doesn't complain once.
and I will wake up happy (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 263 words)
Artemis hears the knock on the door, but ignores it and buries her head back in her pillow. It's midterms and this is the first chance she's had all week to go to bed before 2 am. She's not giving this chance up, no matter who's knocking.
Besides, Artemis doesn't know that many people who knock. Sneak in through windows, blow up doors with bombs or batarangs, tear a door off its hinges? Sure. She knows plenty of people who do those things. She does them herself. But knock? It's not really in their vocabulary or skill set.
The knocking stops, so Artemis assumes that Barbara answered the door. There are muffled voices in the hall and then her door opens, very slowly and carefully, as if whoever is doing it is trying their best best to be stealthy. Against her pillow, Artemis's mouth turns up into a smile.
She only knows one person that will do that for her.
The bed shifts and depresses as someone adds their weight to hers, and the arms that settle around her are warm and so, so welcome.
"Hi," she says, her voice thick with sleep.
"Hi," Wally answers, pressing his mouth against the side of her throat. "Did I wake you?"
She shakes her head. "No." She pats her hand against his where it's curled around her hip. "Glad you're here."
Wally kisses her cheek and settles his face against her hair. "Me, too."
When she falls asleep, it's with a smile on her face.
fireworks (Pink Carnation, Colin/Eloise, 399 words)
My eyes drifted shut.
Colin's lips touched mine. There weren't fireworks. It was nice -- pleasant, even -- but after all that verbal foreplay, I'd well, expected more. It was disappointing, to say the very least.
And then Colin moved.
He shifted just a little closer, pressing me back into the rough stone. Our bodies aligned, hard against soft, and his hand came up to cup my cheek. His breath blew hot against my lips, and he murmured, "Let's try that again, shall we?"
He didn't wait for an answer.
This time when his lips touched mine, they were firmer, more insistent. More firework-y. My hands tangled in his hair, trying to drag him even closer, not willing to allow even a centimeter of space to remain between us. Colin made no objections whatsoever.
His hands skimmed my sides, tracing the curves of my body with a proprietary thoroughness, as if they belonged there and had always belonged there. I found myself in complete agreement with this course of action.
"Yoo-hoo!" came a voice through the night, and it was enough to shatter the moment.
Colin's hands immediately ceased their movement and his forehead slumped against my own. His ragged breath mixed with mine, as he let out a short, rueful laugh.
"Sally," he said.
"Sally," I agreed.
I expected him to step back, but he remained where he was, pressing me back against the ancient stone. Clearly, he was no more anxious to let this interlude end than I was. But end it must, so I pushed him gently back, straightening my borrowed dress as best I could manage. There was no way to fix my makeup and so I gave it up as a lost cause.
"How do I look?" I asked.
"Beautiful," he answered.
I rolled my eyes. Really, he chose now to be charming? It was sweet, but incredibly deluded. I started toward what passed for the door, the better to head off Sally at the pass, but Colin caught my hand in his.
I looked back at him, not able to contain the foolish smile that sprung to my face. Which, naturally, was the moment that Sally chose to join us.
She looked at our joined hands and my rather more rumpled appearance and came to the appropriate conclusion.
"Just here for the archives?" she asked.
Wally and the Deep Blue Sea (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 684 words)
Artemis isn't a big believer in fate or signs or destiny. She believes in choices and that people are responsible for their own paths. She has to believe that, really. If she doesn't, then following in her father's footsteps is a foregone conclusion and that what she's doing now -- doing what's right -- is nothing more than a waste of time.
She can't believe that. She won't believe that.
Still, just because she doesn't believe in signs, doesn't mean that she doesn't recognize them when they're there, especially when they're literally flashing neon and tell her to step right up for a chance to drop Wally West into the dunk tank.
Those signs she has no problem seeing.
Artemis pays her three dollars for three baseballs and waits her turn while the people in line in front of her all miss their chances. She listens to Wally heckle them from his safe, dry perch above what she can only hope is freezing cold water, and smiles to herself.
Her turn comes and she steps up to the piece of masking tape that marks the throwing line. Wally's eyes go comically wide at the sight of her and she would swear his jaw actually drops.
"Artemis?" he sputters, and yep, the jaw thing actually happened. "What are you doing here?"
She gives him a little wave. "Hi, Wally. Fancy meeting you here."
"You shouldn't -- you're not -- GO AWAY," he finally settles on, and it takes every ounce of self control Artemis possesses not to start laughing.
"But Wally," she says as sweetly as she knows how, "this is for charity. Think of the children."
Wally's face, which was already as red as his hair, flushes even brighter, and she sees his hands clench into fists by his side. "Fine," he says through gritted teeth. "Give it your best shot."
"Oh, I will," she promises, and with that out of the way, she winds up to take her first throw.
Into the dunk tank drops Wally. He comes up spluttering, swiping at the water in his eyes.
"You did that on purpose!"
She rolls her eyes. "Duh, that was sort of the point." She hefts her second ball. "Aren't you going to climb back up there?"
"No. No way." He shakes his head, his arms crossed firmly over his chest. "Not in a million years."
"Um, Wally?" says the geeky kid who took her money. "You kind of have to. She did pay."
Wally glares at him. "Traitor."
But he climbs back up onto his perch anyway, grumbling the whole while. He's just gotten settled when Artemis lets the second ball fly and drops him back into the tank. When he surfaces, she holds up the third ball and he heaves a resigned sigh and climbs the steps one more time.
"Enjoy this," he says. "It's never happening again."
"We'll see about that," Artemis says. She throws her last ball and Wally falls into the tank for a third time.
The ticket kid is already holding a towel and Artemis snatches it from his hand. "I'll take that to him," she says, and she's waiting by the side of the tank when he emerges from under the water.
"Hi," she says. She holds out the towel.
"Nice to see you, too," Wally answers, taking it from her outstretched hand. "Did I do something to piss you off that I don't know about?"
Artemis shrugs. "No more than usual."
"Okay," he says. "I just wanted to check before I did this."
And before Artemis can even shriek -- how did she forget he was so fast? -- she's in the dunk tank with him, pushing her wet hair out of her eyes and cursing his name.
"I hate you," she says.
Wally kisses her, laughing as he presses his lips against hers. "The feeling is entirely mutual, babe."
Artemis pushes his head back under the water.
As she stood conversing with Lady Pleinsworth, Poppy sensed Harry's presence before he spoke a single word. It was a feeling of being loomed over, of being enveloped in the heat that Harry couldn't help but radiate. He touched the skin above her glove and Poppy shivered.
"Pardon me, Lady Pleinsworth," Harry said. "But might I borrow my wife for a moment? There is a matter that requires her urgent attention."
"Of course, Mr. Rutledge," Lady Pleinsworth said. She gave Poppy a knowing smile, and it was all that Poppy could do to not flush crimson. "I completely understand."
Harry tucked her arm in his and steered her towards the hall that led to their private rooms. Poppy knew only too well what that meant.
"Harry," Poppy hissed, doing her utmost to keep her voice low and discreet. "We have guests."
"You have guests," Harry corrected, not breaking his stride. "They certainly aren't here to see me."
"Fine," Poppy said, exasperated beyond reason. "Then I have guests that need attending to. You will have to wait."
Harry turned and gave her his most winsome grin. He pulled her into his arms and pressed her against the evidence of his desire. "But I need attending to. Surely there was something in the wedding vows about that?"
Poppy opened her mouth to huff a laugh, but Harry captured her lips with his. He kissed her sweetly, gently, in the way that he knew she especially liked and she found virtually impossible to say no to. When he broke the kiss, Poppy let out an enraptured sigh.
"What was that you were saying about guests?" Harry asked.
curtain call (RPF, Emmy Rossum/Aaron Tveit, 133 words)
"We shouldn't be doing this here," Emmy whispers. Her hands are tangled in Aaron's hair, his thigh between her legs. His mouth is on her throat and she arches against his hands as they stroke against her bare back. She has never meant words less. Yet, she tries again. "Aaron, stop."
He raises his face to hers and grins, wolfishly. "You don't mean that," he says. His hands drop to her ass, pulling her flush against his body.
Despite her best efforts, Emmy melts.
She tugs his face forward until his lips touch her own. There is nothing gentle about their kiss. It is a war of lips and tongues and teeth, a war that they are equally determined to win.
From behind them, the stage manager says, "Five minutes."
like pigs at the trough (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 376 words)
Artemis sat alone at the picnic table in the West's backyard. She watched as Wally and the Flash -- Barry, she corrected herself -- and Mrs. West all piled platters and bowls onto the table. All of them were heaped with more food than Artemis would have guessed any group of people could ever consume in a week let alone a single afternoon.
It honestly made her a little sick to her stomach.
"You okay?" Wally asked, dropping down onto the bench next to her. His hand tapped restlessly against her thigh, and she covered his fingers with her own, lacing them together.
She nodded toward the mountain of food. "You're honestly going to eat all of that?"
Wally grinned. "Of course. But that reminds me."
Before Artemis could even blink, Wally leaned forward and pressed his mouth against hers. She was too surprised to do anything but kiss him back, despite her rule about parental observed PDA. They kissed, and they kissed some more, until from above them Mrs. West spoke.
"Honestly, Wally, let the poor girl breathe."
Instantly, they sprang apart. Artemis's cheeks went hot, but when she snuck a sideways glance at Wally, he looked altogether too pleased with himself. Artemis elbowed him in the ribs. "Stop that," she hissed.
Wally kissed her again, lightning quick, then grinned. "Sorry. Had to do it before we all dig into that --" he nodded toward the food -- "and you never want to kiss me again."
"He's telling the truth, dear," Mrs. West said. She looked around the table and pointing her finger at each guest in turn as she counted them off. "Are we all here? Then dig in -- non-speedsters first, please." She gave Wally and Barry each a sharp look in turn. "We have guests."
They all helped themselves and when they were finished, Mrs. West waved her hand at the barely touched food. Wally and Barry took it as a sign, and in what couldn't have been more than a minute, only have the food remained.
Artemis blinked. She looked at Wally, who had pink jello fluff on the corner of his mouth. "You were right," she said.
She went back to eating her potato salad.
a clever trick (The Voice RPF, Adam/Blake, 317 words)
"Someday you're going to have to tell me what you have against mimes."
Blake looks up. Adam stands in the door way of his dressing room, his arms braced against the frame. There's a teasing smirk on his face, the kind that Blake knows that Adam knows that makes Blake want to wipe it off Adam's face. But because Adam knows, Blake can't mention it and so he settles for saying, "Does that door need you to hold it up? Are you coming in or not?" instead.
Adam comes in and shuts the door behind him. He looks Blake dead in the eye as he flips the lock.
Blake's throat goes dry. He pats the spot on the couch next to him. "Why don't you come over here and tell me what's so great about mimes, since you seem to be such a fan?"
Adam crosses the room slowly, almost stalking his way across the small space. He sinks into the overstuffed couch like he belongs there, like it's his, and Blake's hands flex into fists against his thighs as he tries to resist the impulse to push Adam down into the cushions. He tries to listen to the words that Adam's speaking, but gets caught up in watching Adam's mouth instead.
Screw it.
Blake leans forward and presses his lips against Adam's still moving mouth. Their skin scrapes against each other, and Blake's hands grasp at Adam's arms. Blake kisses him until he has to choose between kissing Adam some more and breathing, and even then it's not as an easy a choice as it probably should be. He pulls back, gasping for air.
Adam stares, his mouth still hanging open. "You could have just said you didn't want to talk about it," he finally says.
Blake kisses him again.
On Broadway (Smash, Karen/Derek, 234 words)
When the billboard with her face rises over Times Square, Karen is there to watch. She stands there, on the corner of 7th and West 47th, simultaneously in awe and embarrassed at the spectacle.
She did this. She earned it. And yet the Midwestern part of her that will never fully go away recoils at the acknowledgement.
Not today, she tells herself, as people stream past her. Not today.
"I thought I might find you here."
Karen turns her head and there's Derek, hands tucked into his pockets, his coat billowing around him. The expression on his face is carefully bland, but Karen can see behind it now. She can see the fondness and the pride that he tries so hard to hide.
She links her arm through his, pressing against his side. "It's amazing."
Derek tips his face down, his eyes locking on hers. "It is," he says simply.
Karen kisses him. It's an impulsive gesture, one without the slightest artifice or grace. It's nothing more than a perfunctory brushing of lips, and yet it shakes her to her very core.
Derek stares at her, a confused smile turning up the corners of his mouth ever so briefly. "What was that for?" he asks.
"I don't know," Karen answers. He doesn't ask any other questions.
As one, they go back to staring at their billboard.
drunken truths (Hart of Dixie, Zoe/Wade, 280 words)
On the night of George and Lemon's wedding, Zoe goes to the Rammer Jammer for one very specific purpose: to get falling down drunk.
Wade is behind the bar, and he serves her drink after drink without comment, though once she passes three he starts giving her a glass of water for every cocktail. He just watches her with careful eyes, and if Zoe were sober she'd wonder what it meant, but she's not and so she pretends that she doesn't see. The only thing she wants to see is the bar through the bottom of her glass.
The Rammer Jammer closes and Zoe remains seated at the bar, her head slumped down against it. Wade cleans under and around her, and when he's finished and the lights are off, he comes back to her side.
"C'mon," he says, wrapping his hands around her elbows and helping her to her feet. "I'll drive you home."
Zoe stumbles against him, and he steadies her on her feet. He locks the door behind them and helps her into his truck. Somewhere between there and Lavon's, she falls asleep.
When she wakes, Zoe is in Wade's arms and he is carrying her into her cottage. She doesn't open her eyes, and he tucks her into her bed like her mother used to do when Zoe was still a little girl, all gentle tenderness. His lips brush over her forehead once, then twice.
"I wish you didn't love him," Wade murmurs, his lips still brushing against her skin. He leaves without saying another word.
In the morning, Zoe doesn't remember a thing.
by dawn's early light (Revenge, Emily/Daniel, 147 words)
It's when she first wakes that Emily forgets.
Forgets who she is and who she was. What feelings are real and which are fake. She forgets that the man in bed next to her is merely a means to an end, and not someone that she truly might love.
She forgets, and in those moments, Emily lives.
Daniel's arms curl around her waist, and he presses a soft, sleepy kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Morning," he slurs against her skin. He tugs her closer still, tangling their limbs together, until it is impossible to tell where he ends and she begins. He kisses her once more, and it is slow and deep and gentle, declaring his feelings without saying so much as a word.
"I love you," Emily says. It is not a lie.
When she kisses him again, it is.
day is done (General Hospital, Robin/Patrick, 197 words)
The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Patrick stepped through them, careful not to jostle Emma as she slept curled against his chest. In the distance, he saw Robin leaning against their minivan and his face broke out with a tired grin.
Patrick walked faster.
"I thought you still had work left," he said, when he finally reached her side. "Which isn't to say that I'm not incredibly happy you're coming home with us, but rather that I do pay attention to the things that you say."
Robin laughed softly, lifting a hand to push a strand of hair off Emma's face. "I decided it could wait. She's down for the count, huh?"
"Yes," Patrick said, bobbing his head up and down. "So could you --"
"Of course."
Robin opened the car door, and rearranged the straps on the car seat. Task finished, she stepped back out of the way, and Patrick bent to fasten Emma into place. He closed the door behind him and smiled at Robin.
"Hello," he said.
"Hello," she answered.
Robin stretched up on her toes to brush her lips against his.
"Let's go home," she said.
you wake up in the morning (RPF, Emmy/Aaron, 608 words)
It's at the end of a long day of promotion when Emmy gets the question. And despite what happens next, the question is an innocuous one, one that she couldn't reasonably have been expected to know the outcome of when she answered.
A reporter asks, "Is there anyone you're dying to work with?"
Emmy answers, "Oh, Aaron Tveit. I mean -- have you seen him?"
The reporter laughs and moves on. Emmy forgets about the question entirely.
This, as it turns out, is a mistake.
*
The sound of her agent calling wakes her up. Emmy tries her best to ignore it, but really, there are only so many repetitions of the wicked witch of the west's theme song that you can listen to and not lose your mind, so she slaps her hand in the vicinity of the nighstand and by some miracle presses the right button to answer the call. "'ello?"
"Did you mean it?"
"What?" Normally she doesn't have any problem following her agent's leaps of logic, but it's -- she raises her head to glance at the alarm clock and does a double take -- five am and she's not at her best.
"Did you mean it?"
Emmy sits up and pushes her hair back out of her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."
There's a heavy sigh on the other end of the line. "You told a reporter from the New York Post that you wanted to work with Aaron Tveit. Did you mean it?"
"Oh." Emmy has no recollection of this, but it's not like it's not true. "Yes?"
"Good. You're having lunch with him today. My assistant will text you the details."
"Wait, what?" Emmy asks, but it's too late and she's talking to dead air.
She looks at her pillow with longing. There's nothing she'd like more than to bury her head back under it and pretend that this whole very strange five minute interlude didn't happen, but somehow she doesn't think it's going to be possible.
With a sigh, she throws the covers back and gets out of bed. He had better be pretty enough in person to make up for this. It's the least that this day owes her.
*
Emmy's first thought when she spots him in the restaurant are that the prettiness won't be a problem. Her second is that, no, it totally will be. After years of working with ridiculously attractive men, she should be used to it by now. She's not.
He stands when he sees her coming, and she mentally gives him points for manners. "It's nice to meet you," he says, pulling her chair out for her. "Somehow it seems strange that we haven't met before now."
"Yes," she says, unable to focus on anything but how distractingly blue his eyes are. "It is strange."
He grins.
Emmy shakes her head, trying to focus. This is embarrassing. She's a grown woman. She should be able to keep her hormones in check long enough to have a business meeting. "I'm sorry," she says. "I'm not usually like this, I swear."
His grins deepens and her cheeks go hot. "Would it be wrong if I admitted I kind of like it?"
"Not wrong," she says. "Ungentlemanlike, perhaps. But not wrong."
"I can live with that," he says. His hand covers hers over the white linen tablecloth. "I can definitely live with that."
Emmy finds she can live with it too.
what you did today (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 1315 words)
The day after Sportsmaster ends up in Belle Reve at the hands of the team, Artemis breaks up with Wally. Wally might be a boy, with all the accompanying boy blindness, but even he's not blind enough to miss the connection.
He tries to be understanding. Having a super villain for a dad must suck, and he can see how it would make someone doubt their ability to be in a normal, functional relationship, even with someone completely awesome, which, fyi, he totally is. But a week goes by with nary an apology for being so shortsighted, and then two weeks without the begging him to take her back scene that he's been imagining, and enough is enough. His understanding has limits, and the fact of the matter is that he flat out misses her.
Wally misses her stupid hair and how it always manages to work its way into his mouth when they're making out, and the fact that Artemis has never met a midriff baring top that she didn't like, and don't even get him started on how much he misses her boots. Those boots have a regular, starring feature in Wally's fantasies and he's not even ashamed to admit it. No one who's ever seen them would judge him for it.
And he misses other stuff too, like how good she smells and how she never lets him get away with anything and how she always double checks to see if he remembered his snacks before they go on a mission, and okay, the list of things he doesn't miss would probably be shorter.
So Wally does what he does best: he solicits his best friends help in plotting against his girlfriend (because that is what she is, whatever she might say). And Robin is only too happy to help, which means that Zatanna is only too happy to help, and suddenly the entire team is in on Operation Get Wally and Artemis Back Together, as Meg dubs it. Wally's grateful for the help, even if he hates the name. Beggars can't be choosers, or whatever it is that his mom always used to say.
The plan is simple. Zatanna will call Artemis to the Cave for a girls night, only she and everyone else will have vacated the premises before Artemis arrives, leaving only Wally for company. Robin will promptly shut down the zeta tubes immediately after Artemis gets there, thus ensuring that no one else is getting in or out, leaving Artemis no choice but to talk to Wally.
It's a good plan. Which is, of course, why it had no chance of succeeding.
First, Artemis makes it to the Cave in like, record time. She pops out of the zeta right as everyone else is standing in front of them getting ready to go, and because she's not dumb about things like recognizing a set up when one is right in front of her, her hackles immediately go up.
"What's going on?" Artemis asks, already bristling. Her arms are folded over her chest and her booted toes are tapping against the floor.
Wally groans. This is really not how he wanted the boots reintroduced into his life. It really wasn't.
Bless her, Zatanna tries to cover. "We were just going out to buy ice cream. We'll be right back. I promise!" She rushes everyone else into the zeta tubes before Artemis can say a word or jump in after them.
Which leaves them alone, even if it wasn't how they were supposed to end up that way. And judging by the look in Artemis's eyes when she turns to face him, Artemis is only all too aware of that fact too.
"Wally," she says, her voice tight, "want to tell me what's going on?"
"Hey, beautiful," he tries, desperate to salvage the situation. "Fancy meeting you here."
"Wally."
And just like that, his will crumples, because really. How is anyone supposed to stand up to her when her voice does that vaguely threatening thing?
"I may have asked them all to give us some time together."
Artemis shakes her head, her hands dropping to her sides and balling into fists. "I can't believe you. God, Wally, what part of I don't want to --"
Which is Wally's cue to cut her off, because even he has his limits. "No, Artemis. If you really didn't want to be my girlfriend anymore, that would be one thing. But that's not it, is it?" He takes a careful step toward her, watching her face for signs of imminent kicking or hitting. He's man enough to admit that she could kick his ass and that he sort of likes it. That doesn't mean he wants to give her the chance to do it. "You still like me. I still like you. And yet we're not together. You want to tell me why?"
"I don't like you."
Wally takes another step closer until he's close enough that he can grab her wrists. "Liar."
Artemis laughs, a little bitter and a little broken. "Yep. That's me. I mean, how was I ever supposed to be anything else?"
"Artemis. Look at me." He takes a chance on letting go of one of her hands to tilt her face towards his. "You are not your dad. You couldn't ever be him."
"You don't know that."
He looks her dead in the eye, willing her to believe him. "I do know that. I wish you'd believe me."
Artemis breaks his hold on her wrist and starts to pace. "You don't get it, Wally. You couldn't get it, and I love that about you, but --"
"Wait," he says, holding up his hand. "Repeat that please."
Artemis looks confused.
Wally tries not to grin triumphantly.
"Repeat what?" she asks.
"Oh, I don't know, the part about you loving me?" He snags her wrist again and drags her closer. He wraps his arms around her so that she can't get away. "I'd really like to hear that part again."
She shakes her head, trying to deny it. "You must have been hearing things."
"I was," Wally says, nodding his head and giving into the grin. "I was hearing you say that you love me." He leans in closer. "Can you keep a secret?"
Artemis snorts. "Obviously."
"I love you, too."
Wally doesn't wait for her answer, but kisses her. He kisses her with all the pent up frustration of the last two weeks of not being able to kiss her. He kisses her with everything he feels for her now, and everything he wants to feel in the future. He kisses her so that she'll understand that what's between them is real and that he won't let her mess it up if she promises to do the same for him. He kisses her because he needs to kiss her like he needs to breathe. He kisses her because it's the only thing in the world he wants to do, and finally, finally when she kisses him back, Wally knows that she's gotten the message.
When the matter of breathing becomes urgent enough that Wally has to break the kiss, he drops down onto the couch and pulls her onto his lap. He nuzzles against her neck, his thumb stroking along the bare strip of skin on her stomach. "So," he says, kissing the spot on her collarbone that makes her shiver, "how was your day?"
Artemis tugs him up by his ears to kiss her. Wally doesn't complain once.
and I will wake up happy (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 263 words)
Artemis hears the knock on the door, but ignores it and buries her head back in her pillow. It's midterms and this is the first chance she's had all week to go to bed before 2 am. She's not giving this chance up, no matter who's knocking.
Besides, Artemis doesn't know that many people who knock. Sneak in through windows, blow up doors with bombs or batarangs, tear a door off its hinges? Sure. She knows plenty of people who do those things. She does them herself. But knock? It's not really in their vocabulary or skill set.
The knocking stops, so Artemis assumes that Barbara answered the door. There are muffled voices in the hall and then her door opens, very slowly and carefully, as if whoever is doing it is trying their best best to be stealthy. Against her pillow, Artemis's mouth turns up into a smile.
She only knows one person that will do that for her.
The bed shifts and depresses as someone adds their weight to hers, and the arms that settle around her are warm and so, so welcome.
"Hi," she says, her voice thick with sleep.
"Hi," Wally answers, pressing his mouth against the side of her throat. "Did I wake you?"
She shakes her head. "No." She pats her hand against his where it's curled around her hip. "Glad you're here."
Wally kisses her cheek and settles his face against her hair. "Me, too."
When she falls asleep, it's with a smile on her face.
fireworks (Pink Carnation, Colin/Eloise, 399 words)
My eyes drifted shut.
Colin's lips touched mine. There weren't fireworks. It was nice -- pleasant, even -- but after all that verbal foreplay, I'd well, expected more. It was disappointing, to say the very least.
And then Colin moved.
He shifted just a little closer, pressing me back into the rough stone. Our bodies aligned, hard against soft, and his hand came up to cup my cheek. His breath blew hot against my lips, and he murmured, "Let's try that again, shall we?"
He didn't wait for an answer.
This time when his lips touched mine, they were firmer, more insistent. More firework-y. My hands tangled in his hair, trying to drag him even closer, not willing to allow even a centimeter of space to remain between us. Colin made no objections whatsoever.
His hands skimmed my sides, tracing the curves of my body with a proprietary thoroughness, as if they belonged there and had always belonged there. I found myself in complete agreement with this course of action.
"Yoo-hoo!" came a voice through the night, and it was enough to shatter the moment.
Colin's hands immediately ceased their movement and his forehead slumped against my own. His ragged breath mixed with mine, as he let out a short, rueful laugh.
"Sally," he said.
"Sally," I agreed.
I expected him to step back, but he remained where he was, pressing me back against the ancient stone. Clearly, he was no more anxious to let this interlude end than I was. But end it must, so I pushed him gently back, straightening my borrowed dress as best I could manage. There was no way to fix my makeup and so I gave it up as a lost cause.
"How do I look?" I asked.
"Beautiful," he answered.
I rolled my eyes. Really, he chose now to be charming? It was sweet, but incredibly deluded. I started toward what passed for the door, the better to head off Sally at the pass, but Colin caught my hand in his.
I looked back at him, not able to contain the foolish smile that sprung to my face. Which, naturally, was the moment that Sally chose to join us.
She looked at our joined hands and my rather more rumpled appearance and came to the appropriate conclusion.
"Just here for the archives?" she asked.
Wally and the Deep Blue Sea (Young Justice, Wally/Artemis, 684 words)
Artemis isn't a big believer in fate or signs or destiny. She believes in choices and that people are responsible for their own paths. She has to believe that, really. If she doesn't, then following in her father's footsteps is a foregone conclusion and that what she's doing now -- doing what's right -- is nothing more than a waste of time.
She can't believe that. She won't believe that.
Still, just because she doesn't believe in signs, doesn't mean that she doesn't recognize them when they're there, especially when they're literally flashing neon and tell her to step right up for a chance to drop Wally West into the dunk tank.
Those signs she has no problem seeing.
Artemis pays her three dollars for three baseballs and waits her turn while the people in line in front of her all miss their chances. She listens to Wally heckle them from his safe, dry perch above what she can only hope is freezing cold water, and smiles to herself.
Her turn comes and she steps up to the piece of masking tape that marks the throwing line. Wally's eyes go comically wide at the sight of her and she would swear his jaw actually drops.
"Artemis?" he sputters, and yep, the jaw thing actually happened. "What are you doing here?"
She gives him a little wave. "Hi, Wally. Fancy meeting you here."
"You shouldn't -- you're not -- GO AWAY," he finally settles on, and it takes every ounce of self control Artemis possesses not to start laughing.
"But Wally," she says as sweetly as she knows how, "this is for charity. Think of the children."
Wally's face, which was already as red as his hair, flushes even brighter, and she sees his hands clench into fists by his side. "Fine," he says through gritted teeth. "Give it your best shot."
"Oh, I will," she promises, and with that out of the way, she winds up to take her first throw.
Into the dunk tank drops Wally. He comes up spluttering, swiping at the water in his eyes.
"You did that on purpose!"
She rolls her eyes. "Duh, that was sort of the point." She hefts her second ball. "Aren't you going to climb back up there?"
"No. No way." He shakes his head, his arms crossed firmly over his chest. "Not in a million years."
"Um, Wally?" says the geeky kid who took her money. "You kind of have to. She did pay."
Wally glares at him. "Traitor."
But he climbs back up onto his perch anyway, grumbling the whole while. He's just gotten settled when Artemis lets the second ball fly and drops him back into the tank. When he surfaces, she holds up the third ball and he heaves a resigned sigh and climbs the steps one more time.
"Enjoy this," he says. "It's never happening again."
"We'll see about that," Artemis says. She throws her last ball and Wally falls into the tank for a third time.
The ticket kid is already holding a towel and Artemis snatches it from his hand. "I'll take that to him," she says, and she's waiting by the side of the tank when he emerges from under the water.
"Hi," she says. She holds out the towel.
"Nice to see you, too," Wally answers, taking it from her outstretched hand. "Did I do something to piss you off that I don't know about?"
Artemis shrugs. "No more than usual."
"Okay," he says. "I just wanted to check before I did this."
And before Artemis can even shriek -- how did she forget he was so fast? -- she's in the dunk tank with him, pushing her wet hair out of her eyes and cursing his name.
"I hate you," she says.
Wally kisses her, laughing as he presses his lips against hers. "The feeling is entirely mutual, babe."
Artemis pushes his head back under the water.