𝚜𝚙𝚕𝚒𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜

She held his gaze for a moment, mirth dancing in her bright blue eyes contradicting the obvious annoyance shining back at her through his muted hues, but their connection was broken by his sparring partner pulling his attention back to the ring. Still, her grin didn't falter as she watched him react to the attempted onslaught, reaching into the pocket of her discarded gym bag to pull out a heart shaped lollipop and unwrap it before popping the candy into her mouth.

After watching his response with a critical eye, Blair grabbed the sucker by the stick and removed it from her mouth so she could answer properly. Except she ignored his questions and instead offered some unsolicited advice— something she knew would only serve to aggravate him more and yet still chose to poke the bear. "If you plant your back leg and actually follow through with your hits you'll have more power." She said, knowing her friendly advice was unwanted but good nonetheless. "I can get my brother to show you if you want."

That knife was still in his hand, even after she had told him to drop it and clearly he needed to be taught a lesson for the double sin of thinking he could attack her and not listening to her orders. His entire existence was getting under her skin, and Mia felt her chest heat up with the anger he was stirring in her. Why couldn't he listen so she could hurry this up and get her head seen to? But it was the smugness, the clear way he thought he knew her so well that burned her the quickest.

"Don't you ever get tired of being wrong?" Mia asked, tilting her head to cover the wince she felt from her head hammering like a jackhammer was going against it. "I could kill you so easily. You wouldn't be the first. Your last name means something, but you attacked me first, a fact I'm sure my brother would back me up on." Mia spoke and stepped closer. "You're enjoying this..." It wasn't a question, but a fact. She could see the wonder in his gaze, the awe and the pleasure as he looked up at her from his kneeling position.

Fine, let him enjoy it fully then. Using every ounce of her strength to stay steady on her feet, she took one more step forward and pushed the gun's barrel against his pretty lips. "Suck." Mia commanded, her own twisted sense of pleasure seeping into her gaze. This was a contest between them now, to see who could push the other more, who could fuck up the other more and come out on top. So fine, let him see that she was on top. "Open your mouth and suck." She ordered again, her words quiet but full of the power she wielded over him right now.

" your looks alone could kill, bebeğim. " words are spoken through gritted teeth, less as a compliment and more as a matter of fact. shoulders lift in a semblance of a shrug, as though he was unfazed by her ability, despite how disarming he found it to be. mia barone could've been responsible for countless deaths and he wouldn't have doubted it. both physically and especially intellectually, where she quite obviously surpassed him. not that'd he ever admit that part out loud.

when the barrel of the gun is pressed against his mouth, eyes widen with genuine surprise, enough to pull a shallow gasp from his throat. lips part as it expels, metal clanking against his teeth. adem swore he could taste it in his mouth, but he fights back instinctually. " suck ? " she was just as crazy as he was. confirmed. stomach flips with unease, having never been on the other end of this sort of power struggle. hesitation has him bowing away from the gun, moving it into the hollow just below his cheekbone, better angling the barrel towards his spine, where it could really do some damage. what other choice did he have than to comply ? than to quietly, ashamedly enjoy her dominion ?

" i do know, " she said, as she placed the other half of the gummy worm into her mouth. " i know that fire stations are public property, though not public accessed. " the bag was lowered now, as she canted her head. as she watched him approach as if he intended to fireman carry her out of the building. it would be interesting to see.

" i don't end up anywhere by accident, " she offered, before she spun on her feet. her gaze slipped over the different areas around her. noting all the different items that were used to fight any fire. " so, were you off duty when the trailer fire happened? or did you scramble back here to pretend like you'd never left in the first place? "

he allowed her inquiries to hang in the air for a moment as he collected himself, expression slack other than the furrow of his brows. eventually, he speaks, voice unwavering. " who do you work for ? " shayden knew better than to expose himself and the underworld ties he still had, but there was no sense in wasting time with someone who came from somewhere similar. " i don't have to tell you shit. " there's a darkness that coats his tone, street-hardened exterior showing through like a second layer of armor on reserve for precise moments.

"Tapestries are more for stoner teens who carved out some of the drywall to hide their bongs." She teased, laying back down fully on her blanket, arms going back behind her head as she listened to the sound of the waves breaking below. It was the soundtrack of their time together, really, and Mackenzie couldn't help how the comfort and familiarity had her body relaxing into the stone beneath her. "Oh I know. Pyro." She mused, laughter escaping her lips at the tone of his voice. Though it easily died down as he continued and she found herself both nodding along and rolling her eyes. "Maybe I'll just step in a bunch of paint and run across a canvass for you." She teased, head turning to look at her brother with a crooked grin. "No, I can make you something. Might take a bit, you know my process is... unconventional. But I got you. Just get me the dimensions, yeah? So it's not too small or ends up not fitting on the wall where it's supposed to go."

With her hands moving off of the blanket to feel the ground beneath her, Mackenzie picked up a small rock and tossed it over the ledge, closing her eyes and focusing as she listened for the 'thunk' she knew the stone would make as it fell into the ocean. "In the mean time, I have a bunch of canvases I need to get rid of. Half finished and finished ones. Think we could do another bonfire with 'em soon?"

Fingers tapped on his arm slightly, funnelling the nervous energy within her into something other than reaching up to brush the curl from his forehead. "Fine, sure, yeah. But better with you." Shoulders pulled up into a loose shrug, as though that would somehow make her words carry a little less weight. But she'd never really believed in holding in her feelings and with him honesty just seemed to flow from her lips without her really meaning it to. Maybe it was just too hard to hide that he was important to her. That every day she got to see him was somehow just better, even if the way he talked about her set something alight in her chest in an almost unbearable way. He manages to do it again, the way he didn't view her outpouring of emotions as anything negative like so many others had stirring emotions, chewing her lip slightly to stave off a new wave of tears. "You're gonna make me start all over again if you keep being so nice."

Shifting slightly on the counter, words turned more upbeat as she found herself fixated on how little he apparently cried. He really was the stronger of the two of them. "But okay, we gotta fix this 'no crying' thing. I think that's our new plan for the night, I'll break out all my saddest film choices and we'll see if we can get them flowing." Excitement grew in her tone, feeling as though she'd just struck gold with how they could kill the time before Blair came home. "Promise it actually feels pretty good, letting out whatever you keep all cooped up."

" oh, is this a challenge now ? " he laughs if only to stay in full control of the situation, discomfort brewing beneath a hardy laugh like a distant storm floating in on the horizon.

at least she was distracted from cleaning, he figured, allowing himself to play with the concept of actually crying if only for her sake. a laugh rumbled in his chest, and he'll finally pull his hand away from the little cut on her ankle. " see ? all better. you're immortal. " he was gentle in the way large hands lift her from the counter top and set her back down on the ground, intentional as ever when it came to someone else's body. especially grace's. sink is turned on just to quickly wash his hands, wiping them on his pants instead of the cute little hand towel the girls had hung up. it's a subconscious example of how little he thought of himself, as though he didn't deserve to use it. " we still gotta sweep up the glass, but then i'll let you torture me with whatever sad shit you want. "

"Consider it taken care of then." The blonde had never made it a secret that she thrived with the type of control her life afforded her, or the pleasures that came with the financial security she got to enjoy. Fingers moved across her phone as she texted and made a note to clear stuff with finance department of the hospital. "If you'd prefer to be taken into private care rather than this, just say the word and I'll have it arranged. Public hospitals certainly have their charm, but there is nothing wrong with more privacy than whatever this is."

" honestly, i've had worse. " care, he means, knowing fully well that he didn't have to explain any background information to his ex wife, seeing how privy she already was. if it weren't for the fact that the ambulance had been called by someone else on his behalf, shepherd would've likely avoided medical professionals altogether. the mc had their own medics, as well as connections to other underground-based care, and while it wouldn't have been nearly as glamorous ( nor would he have gotten the priviledge of seeing so many unexpected visitors ) he would've certainly opted for it. " and they're letting me out soon anyway. i've just got to take it easy for a while. that'll be the hardest part, i think. "

The man in front of Pierre right now was a stranger, one that Pierre sometimes still struggled to get to know.

That night when he'd found out his father wasn't the only thing he'd been missing out on, but on family dinners, seeing his two youngest siblings grow up the way he'd seen Blair grow up; being there for them. The more he looked at Bailey, the hardest it was for him to understand what motivated his father and what had made him abandon every child he'd ever had.

"She's been through worse," Pierre didn't elaborate, for some reason, opening up wasn't as easy with the older man. Even for someone as open as Pierre. The frown in his face made him shake his head, not really wanting to talk about his mother with the man that had abandoned her. And maybe that was the root of it all...more than abandoning Pierre, it was his mother's suffering that he couldn't look past.

"I didn't think you'd remember her, if I'm honest." His mother, that was.

" of course i remember her. " shepherd revealed, tone soft like honey coated his throat. how could he not ? while the male idolized his family, and had fallen madly in love with agatha not far after he'd skipped out on pierre's mother, the horrors of what he'd done to her still painted the back of his eyelids most every night. even if it only reared its head for just a split second, guilt had woven itself into shepherd's very existence. it'd feel strange to experience a single moment without the underlying leftovers of his younger self.

even pierre had seen him , as awkward as it may have been he still saw how weak he ended up. he couldn't help but think about his imprisonment , did he ever feel weak ? did he ever cry ? did he ever miss francis ? dozens of letters sit unopened in a small decorative box shoved in the back of his closet , maybe the answers were there but he refused to open that wound.

" damn. pears are actually my favorite. " it's a joke, lips pressing into a satisfied line as he ogled the basket's contents. the gesture means more to him than anything wrapped in the cellophane, though he can't help but to dream up some comedic version of a bailey shepherd specific gift basket : expensive rye, fresh rolling tobacco, a pile of scratch off lottery tickets. maybe a bible, more so for the irony than any real value. he actually preferred his religious texts to come used, often stopping into used book stories to check out their ( minimal ) christian reading sections. unknown to even himself, this preference stemmed from a desire for authenticity, to feed off a faith that was fully real, unlike his own.

"Sounds like you need to be reminded of your manners." She countered while depositing her phone face down and back to it's original spot on the dresser. Sami chose to ignore his request and instead walked back over to him, climbing back onto the bed and straddling his waist as her hands went beneath the shirt he'd pulled on just moments ago to allow her nails to drag down his chest— the pressure enough to leave angry red marks along his skin in their wake. "But because I'm feeling generous and well and thoroughly fucked thank you, I'll give you one opportunity to remember on your own. Do you want to try that again?"

in the present moment, she morphs into the distraction — it's one of his favorites of her many personas. she moves with grace, returning to him in the bed. he aligns his hips with the back of her thighs, adjusting beneath her so he can gaze upwards with admiration. a worshipper at the throne of something far beyond himself.

No matter what he's going through.

"No, I can't. Because it's ugly and it's annoying me personally. It's almost offensive." There was amusement laced in her words, but the way she stared back at him was nothing if not calculated.

" i don't see what the point is in discussing it. " there was no purpose in hiding his obvious crisis. lottie read him like a manual she already had the keys to the machine it was written about. tone is pointed, spat like daggers. " i'm fucking grieving. " not his father, but the perception of patriarch. the father/son narrative. the false ideal and false idol.

Knowing their schedule inside out was part of what made her so good at her job, so when Ambrose Jow walked through the door her eyebrow raised slightly. Not quite surprise but curiosity in the glance she spared him before she began sorting through the files on her desk once more, customer service voice kicking in after a few moments. “Mr Jow.” Loud enough for her boss to hear through the slightly ajar door that they had an unexpected guest. “What can we do for you?” Expression remained relatively neutral, managing to resist the urge to point out that he didn’t have an appointment. Blunt as she was she wasn’t stupid, she knew the main players all too well and antagonising a man who could wield more power than she ever could would likely only end one way.

If it wasn't for her looks, her skills in bed, Benito would have dropped her from his life a long time ago -- but perhaps it was that mutual loathing that fed into the desire, the entertainment, the way it fed into his most carnal desires while knowing there was no chance at anything sparking between them other than disgust,.

Legs parted wider in a subconscious effort to let her step between them, eyes trailing over her body as she came closer. "Mmh, that's probably the asbestos underneath it going right to your brain." He countered with a chuckle, meeting her eyes once more. The command instinctively made him bite the inside of his cheek, defiance swelling up in his chest -- but, nevertheless, he was impatient, and the less time he had to spend in this room at the end of it the better.

He stood then, eyes never leaving Griselda's, only a sliver of space between their bodies. Fingers pinched the hem of his shirt, bringing it up and over his head before quickly discarding it onto the floor -- fuck, he'd need to bathe that in bleach later. "You next." He said, bare shoulders, chest squaring up as he looked down at her now. "Or are you gonna make me have to rip it off myself?"

" are you a firefighter here? " the answer seemed obvious. but zehra also knew how some things weren't as they appeared. and he had become an object of fascination, which had led her down a path of uncovering bits and pieces of information. but now she needed outright answers. she needed confirmation of what she had found. and what she now knew. " they aren't alive, you know? " she said, as her gaze flicked down to the bag. " you can just grab one. or two. or more, if you want. "

in griselda's mind, alix lived in a bubblegum castle smack dab in the middle of candyland. that was to say, her life was sugary sweet and her lies were that much sweeter. whenever the pair spent time together, gris found herself walking the line of playing pretend and and embracing absolute lunacy. today, they were leaning towards the latter.

a part of him bristled at the taunting from the woman that knew him all too well. that knew how he would want to know this information. that he would press, and press. and press. until she finally relented the information to him. the knowledge that had otherwise been withheld from him. but, at what cost? would she push back, want something in exchange for what she knew? or would she be kind, and give it to him without further taunting?

as the question lingered, cassio feigned a look of disinterest. all while she curled in closer, as her hand rested familiarly on the curve of his arm. his gaze watched her, fixed her with a questioning look. if only because she had uttered those few more words that tangled within his thoughts. five years, a long time. an amount of time that seemed worthy of being shared. or rather, expected to be shared with the man that now shared a bed. " are you going to tell me without payment? or do i need to pull out my check book? " poorly teased words, if only because cassio couldn't shake the want to know what had caused tommy to spend five years in jail.

but it is cassio who sits before her. not some deserving local criminal. not an enemy of the state. not her usual preferred prey. he isn't a target, just caught in collateral damage, pretending the shrapnel now lodged in his heart had been there the whole time.

she crawled closer to him, shifting her weight so she was sitting on her legs, palms of her hands bracing against his thigh, offering balance as she loomed in. " hey, " she began, voice honeyed, " it's okay to feel weird about not knowing. " amber eyes sink into his in an attempt to soothe him further, though there's something unsettling about the power she still exudes. " i'm telling you because i care about you, cassio. it's fun to tease you, but i want you to be careful. they busted him for the same kind of shit you make a living off of. " shoulders bow together the further in she leans, offering a calculated glimpse down the front of her shirt. " you ever let him drive your car ? i wouldn't. that's how they got him. " in truth, griselda didn't have all the details of the precise incident that'd initially gotten tommy in trouble with the law, but she was skilled at painting a picture. whether or not it was based on truth was another story.