Let no man say that you didn’t keep your word, you had not struggled at all the whole journey back to Kattegat.

You had hardly spoken since your capture, there seemed to be very few words that were worth saying when your world was crushed. So on you traveled alongside your capturers in silence as they all spoke happily of the reward they would receive for you.

Even as they hurled insults for the amount of time and resources that had been wasted on the hunt to find you, which must have embellished gossip. Surely, Ivar wouldn’t nearly leave himself destitute just to find you. Still, if only silently, you had to admit it was the most pleasant experience you’d ever had on any ship.

White Hair hadn’t forgotten your threat of killing yourself before being delivered to Ivar, and he seemed to take interest in your comfort despite you not asking anything of him. You had a cabin to yourself, guarded by two men at all times and were fed twice a day. It was much better than being trapped in a crate or sharing a cabin with Ivar while you struggled to learn Norse dialect.

Yes, it was more comfortable to lie in silence on a soft cot with a full stomach while you imagined what nightmare Ivar would put you through when he got his hands on you.

You had quite the collection of nightmares in your mind; beating, public humiliation, imprisonment, whatever it was it would be unthinkably severe knowing your husband. With every day that passed the collection grew, it grew to the point that sleep felt cruel and your full stomach ached in dreaded knots.

Silent days turned into silent weeks at sea, the comfortable bed had become stiff and you began turning your meals away more often than not. All too soon a man was announcing to the crew that Kattegat was within sight.

Hours.

You would be back in Ivar’s grasp in a matter of hours.

All around you there was noise as the crew prepared to reach the docks, your guards opened the door and threw a brown bunch of fabric at your feet.

‘Get dressed, we'll reach land soon. He is waiting on the beach.’ the man said, closing the door without waiting on a response.

Upon picking it up your dread intensifies as you recognize it as one of the many brown dresses your husband enjoyed shoving you into. The weight of the clothing felt heavier with the realization that it was really over.

You sat on your cot, looking down at the dress as if it were the shackles of true slavery, not the slavery you had found yourself missing so desperately. Tears landed audibly on the fabric as you allowed yourself one last time to truly cry out loud and in some semblance of privacy.

It hadn’t mattered how far you got or how long it had taken, you had always known it would end right back here. With you under his thumb suffering in silence like you had always done…but there was another option.

A cowardly and sinful way out that you danced with everyday.

Not now, you had given your word that you would allow yourself to be delivered alive in exchange for safety for your friends. You would have to wait and endure until you got word from the others, but once you had that reassurance…

Then you could let it all go, perhaps Ivar would be so kind as to assist you and you wouldn’t have to commit the dreadful act on your own.

A way out, there is a way out, you have a way out.

The words were a mantra in the back of your mind as you wiped your face and got dressed, whispering a prayer for strength. At last the quiet was interrupted as the ship was anchored and the men began rushing off to their families.

It was easy to picture a image just like the scene when Ivar had returned from visiting the Earl, and just as you had been dreading that then, you were dreading this reunion now.

Your door was opened again without a knock, and in came White Hair with three men he must have deemed worthy escorting you back to Ivar’s estate.

You watched the old berserker search over you and your accommodations for any signs of trouble, but there was nothing to see. There was no broken shards of anything you could cut yourself with or any rope or torn cloth to choke yourself.

He nodded in silent relief as he accepted that you had kept your word.

‘Ivar is refusing to give us our reward until he sees you.’ he said as he grabbed you in the same harsh way he had when he captured you and dragged you to the upper deck.

The sun was high in the sky and the scenery was as serene as it always had been, but it never brought you comfort before and didn’t now. No, as soon as your eyes adjusted to the blinding sunlight, they landed on Ivar standing still as stone on the beach.

There was nothing outside of him, the crowds of reunited families blurred into nothing around him; the beach was as indistinct as the background of a painting, but he was clear as crystal.

Ivar stood at full height, his crutches were newer, his braces shined and his hair was braided in war style but he was casually dressed. In a sea of happy faces he appeared both battle ready and relaxed all at once.

White Hair and his men helped you off the ship and the crowd cleared a path to Ivar without anyone needing to tell them to. In fact the beach had gone almost completely silent when your feet hit the sand. The children all stopped running, the women hushed their eager husbands as they tried to get a look at you, probably so they can gossip about your less than stunning appearance.

At long last you stood before him, his eyes bore into you like a thousand swords and you stood firm against each stab. You would not cower like you had before, because there was a way out this time.

‘My beloved wife.’ Ivar said, his face devoid of any emotion as his eyes traveled up and down your body.

You could feel him judging the weight you had lost and the hard edges that a year of slave labor had put on you. He inspected you like you were a pig he was considering offering as a sacrifice, he wanted you scared of him.

He loved your fear of him.

‘Your eyes are very blue today…Husband.’ you said back.

And they were, the last time you'd seen them like this he had managed to break his left leg in two separate places.

Anger flashed in his eyes before he gave the order to White Hair’s men to escort you back to his estate to wait for him.

‘You should rest…no one benefits from you hurting.’ you added before you allowed yourself to be ushered away from the crowded beach.

You didn’t see the way Ivar’s eyes softened when your back was turned.

On the walk back you pass the hidden path to that secret place, where it had all started. Your sanctuary that you and Ubbe turned into a den of sinful lust. There was a white stone, the size of a fist, that you had used to mark the path and it hadn’t been moved.

Then they haven’t discovered where you had been in those missing hours or who you had been with. That was good, at least that secret was safe and civil war wasn’t bubbling under the surface yet.

Ubbe.

He hadn’t truly crossed your mind since you escaped, you had no need to think of him when survival was all that mattered. Even before there was nothing in your heart for him other than the love you had for all of God’s creations, but he had given you your first earthly comfort.

Ubbe was no fool, he would have been able to maintain his innocence, so would Floki; more good news. Still even if he never truly discovered what happened in his absence, Ivar would torture you for every scenario he imagined.

Once it was in sight you were begrudgingly amused to see the estate was just as lavish as always and the shipmen were exaggerating. There were more livestock from what you could see, and it seemed as if more things had been planted in the small garden you personally tended to. You held your breath before you stepped inside, to enjoy the fresh air in your lungs a little longer.

You had expected to be greeted by the old head thrall, no one knew her name, but to your surprise and dismay it was Freydis who awaited you inside the main house.

‘Welcome home Mistress.’ she said formally.

‘Where is-’

‘I’m sad to inform you she passed shortly after your…departure.’

That was the most unexpected news you had received so far, but it would explain Freydis greeting you. Clearly Ivar had been so impressed by her that he had promoted her ahead of his more senior thralls.

‘The tub has been brought into the bedchamber, dinner will be brought in when Ivar returns.’ the thrall informed before leading you back to the room you’d hope never to see again.

She had made it sound so polite but you weren’t as naive as you had once been, you understood the real message. There would be men guarding your door to ensure you did not leave and meals would be given at Ivar’s mercy.

Starvation and isolation.

You tensed more and more the closer you got to the bed chamber, by the time Freydis was opening the door to let you in you felt as if your legs had become stiff wooden logs and you had to awkwardly force each step into the room.

Your body had felt every ache that had come with a long ship travel after a failed escape attempt, and you knew all the luxuries that awaited you inside. A soft mattress with thick warm furs, a bath with hot water and scented oils, the jewelry chest and fine furnishings.

The effort took so much focus you had to look down at your feet to make sure they actually moved. When at last you had crossed the threshold you took a deep breath as you steeled yourself, no matter what you would hold strong until you got word from the others.

You have a way out.

When you looked up you were surprised to see that much had changed in the last year, newer furniture arranged to make space for the large wooden tub. There was a large trading map nailed to the wall, decorated with angry knife slashes on at least two dozen ports and one single charcoal drawn circle marking the port you had escaped to.

The sight of it made the thought of the amount of resources that had gone into the search utterly unthinkable to you. Ivar had intentionally left the map to show you exactly how much trouble you were in.

If you thought turning away from the map to look at the bath would make you feel any better you were wrong. The tub was the same one you had been tormented in that last night, but the water was certainly not up to its usual standard.

Large chunks of ice were floating and bopping about in the water as if it had been left outside to freeze before being brought in and the surface broken.

You didn’t waste time being afraid or complaining so that his guards could report your cries to Ivar, you simply undressed and plunged your body into the biting cold water. The shock made you grit your teeth to keep the shriek inside, and you were proud to say you had been successful, that pride would have to keep you warm.

Of course it didn’t but you would tell yourself that it did, you focused on anything that your mind landed on to try ignoring the loss of feeling in your extremities. Time passed slowly until eventually your body had mercy on you and fell unconscious; elsewhere Ivar was getting as much information out of White Hair and his crew.

‘My wife, working as a slave.’ Ivar repeated, his face twisted in disgust.

He certainly didn’t enjoy learning that (Y/N) had chosen a life in bondage over the infinite luxury he had provided for her.

‘It is what was told to us when we brought her before the Earl, he gave no argument to us taking her but a good deal of offense at our ship arriving unannounced.’

‘Did you ask about her arrival and who brought her to the Earl? Who did she spend her time with?’ the prince insisted.

The old man nodded affirmatively.

‘No one paid her much attention but the head thrall reported she huddled with the few Christian women she was with when we caught her and the healers. Amund was the one who vouched for her, claiming to find her in the woods, mad with shrooms.’ he reported.

'You said there was a man with them, who and where is he?' Ivar pushed.

'Slave boy from Brande meant to protect the women, she refused to cooperate unless we granted her companions safe travel to Herning.'

'Was she close with him?'

White Hair looked confused as to how he should know such a thing, but the impatient look on Ivar's face prompted a response.

'I don't believe so, at least that didn't appear to be friendly from anything we saw while we closed in.'

Ivar growled in frustration at the fact that he was still not getting the answers he wanted and this was very little new information. It was more like an extended version of the message Silver Hair had sent by raven informing Ivar of (Y/N)’s request for correspondence with her slave companions.

Still he had gotten every detail about Amund’s part in helping (Y/N) get settled in her new position, but he couldn’t take action against the young man yet for one simple reason.

He had no legal excuse and he was on thin ice with Bjorn.

Amund, it seemed, was a very careful man; he kept to his schedule and met with no one outside of his small circle. There were no late night secret meetings with his co-conspirators or strange notes passed between strangers. Nothing to give Ivar a reasonable cause to call for Amund’s arrest; the speculation of the crew he’d paid would not suffice as evidence for his eldest brother. He would need (Y/N)’s confession naming him as her accomplice in order to make that move without consequence.

Furious as he was he was still simply relieved to finally have her back where she belongs, in his home waiting for him. Thank the Gods she hadn’t been injured in her time away, but she would have to be punished for leaving.

Ivar gave the reward to White Hair and dismissed him so that the old man could get back to unloading the ship before he too left the beach. He wasn’t heading home though, no it was best to get the nasty part done first.

He was sure the moment he saw her in their bed chamber he would no longer be able to keep his facade together. Ivar had missed her and it had taken a lot of self control not to take hold of her on the beach as soon as she was within reach. No, they would have to wait until she understood the severity of her actions and then once he got every answer he needed to ensure she never did this again he could hold her the way he wanted to.

For now he would go visit with the blacksmiths, banging on a few pieces of metal was just what he needed to calm his anger before he spoke with his wife. That was the advice Ubbe had been hammering into his head for ages.

“Ask her your questions and give her time to answer.”

His older brother had truly been his closest advisor, and he seemed to be the only one not trying to convince Ivar to simply divorce her. So his advice was the only advice worth considering as far as Ivar was concerned, but he seriously doubted his own self control and he had to take into consideration that Ubbe’s marriage was not particularly ideal.

Ubbe allowed his wife to have sex with whoever she desired and she gave him the same freedoms, a common practice that worked for plenty of couples.

However, the thought of any man feeling bold enough to even fantasize about his wife made him furious, and no woman attracted him the way that (Y/N) did without ever trying. No, that arrangement would not work for Ivar, he needed his wife to know that other men were not an option and neither was divorce.

The blacksmiths all hushed as he approached and cleared the path to his work area; he knew they were expecting him to be home now that the wife he had destroyed his reputation to find had finally returned.

‘I didn’t come here for peace and quiet, get back to it.’ he said sharply as he picked up his oldest unfinished product.

He didn’t have to repeat himself, the usual banging and shouting continued but no one dared approach him. He was grateful to not be distracted by conversation and he had no shortage of incomplete items on his bench.

The time passed as he worked, his mind danced around the thought of the conversation he would have with his wife when he returned. She would need caring for after her punishment, he knew it was a harsh one, but it was necessary for their marriage.

Eventually the sun began to set and his arms were sore from uninterrupted working, but he felt much more calm now that his muscles were tired. He couldn’t gather the energy to physically act on any anger that might occur during the inevitable conversation.

Once he sat aside his tools he studied his newest completed product, a gift for his wife.

He tucked it into his tunic and rose from the seat he had been in all afternoon, immediately the pain shot through his left ankle and he knew it was broken.

He grunted, loud and sharp enough to silence the others once more, luckily this wouldn’t be the first time he had broken a bone here and his colleagues had a system in place.

The nearest man began to help him back into his seat while another ran for the healer to mend him, but it would take time for them to come back and even longer before he made it home himself now.

Part One

So maybe making all his executives wait for nearly two hours was a bit extreme, but he had managed to get through the meeting easily enough. Just as things were wrapping up the text came from Heahmund informing him that he and (Y/N) were in the lobby with the tacos.

‘Oh excellent, one moment everyone.’ he said, stopping everyone as they gathered their belongings.

‘I know that my tardiness caused you all great inconvenience and I would like to apologize with a bit more than words. Free lunch in the lobby, and there is also someone very special I would like to introduce you all to.’ he announced, a bright smile showing on his face as he spoke.

There were some very confused murmurs, free food was hardly a gift to people in their tax brackets but Ivar was the CEO and you don’t get far in any industry by turning down invitations, so they followed him to the lobby.

Ivar was actually very excited to show off his surprise fiance, or more accurately he was excited to simply see her. She would be in proper business clothes and he was curious to see how she looked when fully dressed.

As the group reached the lobby they found Heahmund and (Y/N) setting out plates, cutlery and napkins on a long work desk that had been cleared off.

‘Ivar. How did we do, do you think it is enough?’ (Y/N) asked as she saw them enter.

She looked stunning, the pantsuit was simple; black with gold accents and buttons, and it certainly fit her well. Her hair was still not styled and her face was bare, but because the suit was simple it didn’t look out of place.

She was gorgeous.

‘You did excellent.’ he smiled as he placed his arm around your waist.

‘Let me introduce you all to someone very special…this is my fiance, (Y/N).’ he introduced.

What happened next was a bit of a whirlwind of congratulations, and polite questioning about why no one in the office knew he was dating. To his great surprise (Y/N) was the one to answer and she did so perfectly.

‘Oh please don’t be too upset with him, I am very private but now that we’re tying the knot I figured I should meet his colleagues. I was so nervous getting this lunch ready I lost track of time and made him late for your meeting; please forgive me.’ she said sweetly to the old timer who was currently interrogating them as she handed him a plate.

‘Nothing to forgive young lady, love makes time meaningless.’ he smiled kindly.

‘Besides, that was the nicest he has ever been in any meeting.’ the old man added in teasingly.

‘I am nice. Ask anyone.’ Ivar said, looking around for support.

He found nothing but silence and avoided eye contact.

‘No one is blaming you for it Ivar, you being a hardass keeps us working hard to keep our pockets full. But maybe have your wife drop by every other week to keep you civil and to definitely keep bringing these.’ the man said after he had taken his first bite.

There were several murmurs of agreement, it seems everyone was in agreement that the tacos were delicious, or anyone who didn’t think so had the social sense not to show it at least.

‘Well we can make some arrangements for that, if my wife doesn’t mind dropping by.’ Ivar said, looking at her sweetly and she looked back at him.

‘How about I only bring them if you are on time for your meetings.’ her tone was clearly flirtatious.

Sure he could have kept things at that, but he just couldn’t waste the low hanging fruit she had set up. So he leaned closer to not so quietly whisper into her ear.

‘You made me late for the mee-’ he was cut off when she suddenly covered his mouth with her hand, looking wide eyed and embarrassed.

‘Anyway! I can definitely bring the tacos, oh look a bird outside.’ she said quickly, interrupting him and hurrying outside.

The old man let out a bark of laughter as they watched her scurry away.

‘A very shy one you got there lad, again congratulations, I will be expecting my wedding invitation soon.’ he said before he moved on to another conversation.

Ivar smiled in gratitude as he followed his “shy” fiance outside and found her leaning comfortably against his car.

‘How did I do?’

‘Amazing, the shy thing was a good touch…excellent exit strategy.’

‘Thanks, I was tree number one in my school play, so you know, I’m a pretty good actress.’ she joked.

‘Well thank goodness I got you before Hollywood did.’ Ivar added.

‘Yeah, those vipers aren’t nearly as nice as you…and you are apparently not very nice.’

‘I am nice!’ Ivar complained.

‘As nice as broken glass.’ Heahmund said as he approached the car and (Y/N) laughed at the offended look on Ivar’s face.

‘Heahmund doesn’t count.’ Ivar complained as he opened the car door.

‘I think he counts.’ (Y/N) said as she climbed into the backseat.

‘Me too.’ Heahmund added as he started the car.

‘Would a mean boss pay as much as I do?’ Ivar asked as he closed the door behind him.

‘He’s a sweetheart, truly a saint.’ Heahmund conceded immediately.

‘Wow, well I guess now is the part where we see how nice he’ll be to me if he can change your tune that fast.’ (Y/N) said as the car started moving.

Ivar knew that the compensation had been his own idea, but having it brought up in a moment of genuine connection was sobering.

‘Yeah, did you have any number in mind?’

‘Not really, not gonna lie I’d be cool with just a place to stay since I sorta gave my place away over lunch. I have my own job, and not paying rent will really help me save up.’ she shrugged.

‘OK, hold on, are you serious?’ Heahmund asked.

‘What?’ (Y/N) asked in confusion.

‘Alright, it's really REALLY not my business, but you two are on such opposite ends of the financial spectrum right now you need a middle man.’

‘What do you mean?’ Ivar asked.

‘I mean she doesn’t get that you aren’t offering under the table minimum wage; (Y/N), he doesn’t use the word compensation for values under fifty thousand dollars.’

‘Fifty thousand dollars!’ she shouted, eyes wide in shock.

‘He paid that for spilling hot coffee on me last month, that’s his minimum. Those are the numbers you’re throwing around in his head right now.’

(Y/N) looked as if someone had just forced all the knowledge in the world into her mind, completely stunned by the apparent amount of wealth she had carelessly connected herself to. Ivar was also coming to the realization that she had no idea at all what he was in the financial world; a giant.

She didn’t know he could buy her mansions just as casually as other men bought their wives jewelry. Didn’t know that he was offering her generational wealth as they chatted over cheap tacos.

He dared to glance at her horrified face and he turned around to look out the window in shame. He had been too hasty, he hadn’t explained clearly or introduced himself properly as a member of one of the richest families on the continent. Rushing into announcing it had been ridiculously foolish because now he could not undo it without ruining himself.

‘I- fifty thousand- I’ve never even seen that… I can’t possibly take that much.’ she said breathlessly as she leaned back into the seat.

‘Contract marriages are more common than you’d think, there is an average settlement. Of course I come from an above average family, so you would get significantly more for helping me.’ he said, already feeling the guilt weighing down on his shoulders.

He knew very well the destruction sudden wealth could bring on those unequipped for it, he had weaponized it a few times in career. Give a person with no financial literacy a large cash advance, watch the money run out and see how far they fall once it’s all gone.

(Y/N) had stumbled into one of his worst business traps, and he hadn’t even meant to set it for her.

An awkward silence fell over the car as Heahmund drove, the traffic at a stand still as they made their way to Ivar’s condo.

‘So…you follow Bridgerton rules because you have actual Bridgerton wealth?’ (Y/N) broke the silence at last.

‘Pretty much, yeah.’ Ivar replied, still not looking at her.

‘You really paid fifty thousand dollars for a spilled coffee?’ she asked.

‘It was hot.’

More silence.

‘Do you not want to-’

‘I’m not saying I don’t-’

They had both spoken at once and stopped just the same.

‘Ladies first.’ Ivar invited.

‘I’m not backing out, but that kind of money changes some things.’ (Y/N) started seriously.

‘What things?’ he asked, feeling some hope returning to him.

‘Well for starters there’s-’

WHACK!

It took a few moments for Ivar to fully process that he had just been smacked upside his head. His only confirmation other than the physical sensation of it was Heahmund nearly choking on his laughter in the front seat.

‘How about you lead with the whole “I’m about to change your tax bracket” thing when you ask a stranger to marry you?’ she complained.

‘And don’t think you’re buying any wife services from me.’ she added in firmly, pointing a threatening finger at him.

Wife services?

‘Oh! No! No no, I would never expect that!’ Ivar said quickly, his face becoming red in an instant at the thought of what she was thinking.

(Y/N) watched him stutter out his apologies and lowered her accusing finger, but she kept her eyes firm on him.

‘Seriously though, I don’t want you thinking you bought me. I’ll do my part but I do it my own way, you aren’t going to be my boss or anything like that.’ (Y/N) said with finality.

‘Wouldn’t want it any other way.’ Ivar agreed, putting his hands up in surrender.

‘Good, now don’t tell me how much you’re giving me. I’ll take it in monthly payments, no lump sums.’ she sighed as she relaxed into her seat once more.

Ivar let out a breath, relieved that he’d made it out of that conversation mostly unscathed and with the added happiness that she wasn’t motivated by his money. He also truly had no intention of bossing her around in their marriage and he hated the idea of buying her.

‘You can give all your information to Heahmund when we make it home, give him your address and he can grab a few of your things too.’ he said.

‘Home? Already eager to get into married life?’ (Y/N) teased in her casual tone once more.

‘The news will spread fast, we gotta look like a couple ready to commit to each other. Didn’t you say most couples live together before they get married?’

‘Fair enough.’ she shrugged.

She called her new friend Cammy and asked her to pack up some of her more important things; like her laptop, toiletries, some clothes and few sketch pads.

At last they reached the parking lot of Ivar’s condo building.

(Y/N) whistled as the car pulled up to the main door.

‘I’d normally ask how much the rent is to make small talk but I think I’ll skip that one and move on to the weather.’ she hummed as she went to open the door.

Ivar quickly reached over her and stopped her from grabbing the door handle, taking hold of her wrist. The quickness of the movement meant that he did realize how close he was getting until he could see her backing away.

‘Sorry.’ he apologized.

‘I have to get the door, my mother likes to keep her eye on things and we have to look the part until we make it to my floor.’ he explained before he got out himself, cursing his own existence as he walked around the car to her door.

Once he opened it (Y/N) let him help her out of the car and she casually linked their arms in a romantic display.

‘Game face until we get off the elevator, right?’ she asked, smiling at him.

‘Yes, and we have to stop by the desk to get you a key.’ he said, quickly clearing his throat when his voice came out nervous and high pitched.

‘Ooh new keys, how official already and it’s only day one. I’m seeing matching pajama pictures in the near future, it’s gonna take a lot for me to convince my crowd that I genuinely decided to get hitched.’ (Y/N) hummed as they began walking.

‘Mr. Rangarson, Ma’am.’ the doorman greeted them as he opened the door.

‘Soon to be Mrs. Ragnarson, if you don’t mind telling the others for me.’ Ivar informed as they passed.

He saw her look back at the doorman curiously before she began looking around the lobby.

The luxury decor and furniture had become a common backdrop in his daily life, but she seemed to have a hard time looking at everything all at once. Her eyes were bouncing from the light fixtures, to the art on the walls and the patterns on the marble floor.

‘I don’t think I could afford the oxygen in this place.’ she whispered to herself.

‘You can look around more if you want, I’ll get the key.’ he offered, but her grip tightened on his arm.

‘No, I can do that later, you only get one shot at a first impression. If I’m gonna live here I think its best I don’t act like a visitor.’

He agreed silently and led her to the desk, where again (Y/N) played the role of nervous new fiance perfectly as they requested a new key and got her security information. The woman at the desk was very friendly as she and (Y/N) spoke, and it was more than professional politeness. It seemed everyone that spoke with (Y/N) found her delightful, Ivar had been passing this desk for two years and had never had such open conversation.

‘The best pool time is actually six pm, the last hour before it closes, all the families are gone and the hot tub is empty.’ the woman said as she handed (Y/N) the key.

‘Well I’ll be testing that at some point this week, hopefully I’ll catch you there some time Julie. Thanks so much, nice meeting you.’ (Y/N) said politely as she let Ivar pull her away to the elevators.

‘Doing great, keep it up in the elevator.’ he whispered into her ear as they waited on the doors to open.

She leaned into his side even more as she whispered back.

‘Why?’

‘My family owns the building and my mother watches the security footage, my floor is private, no cameras.’

‘Jesus Christ.’ she groaned through her smile as they finally stepped on the elevator.

‘Yeah, its hard to have secrets when your family has eyes and ears everywhere. Never stopped my brothers of course.’

They stayed close as they watched the floor number rise and rise, Ivar placing his arm around her waist as they chatted softly.

‘I know, growing up rich means no privacy as far as parents are concerned, trust me.’ Ivar sighed.

‘Can’t wait to marry into that kind of nosy family, who needs privacy right?’ (Y/N) joked as the elevator doors opened on the top floor.

‘I couldn’t agree more.’

Ivar looked up and immediately felt all the blood in his veins freeze.

‘Mother.’ he greeted.

Aslaug stood before them, dressed in a dark green dress and extravagant jewelry as she scowled at her son with her arms crossed.

‘Fine.’

(Y/N) stood staring at him like he just said water was dry.

‘What?’ she asked.

‘I said fine, no extension; I’ll call Alfred and tell him to forget it, but we are still meeting him on Tuesday. Those conditions are ridiculous and they need to go, will you agree to that at least?’ Ubbe asked as he sat aside the broom and dustpan.

(Y/N) watched him take a seat at the table and wait for her to do the same, but still she stood in confusion.

This whole thing felt off to her.

In five years she could count on her hand the number of times that she had sat at the kitchen table with Ubbe. Seeing him sit in the mahogany chair was odd; him looking at her directly felt practically alien.

‘Sit down, please.’ he pleaded.

Against her own better judgement and her desire to simply fight him, (Y/N) sat back down across from him.

‘Making the changes now is pointless.’ she started.

‘I disagree, and quite strongly, those conditions made it impossible for you to even exist as a functioning person. I want to see you unrestrained and free to be as interesting or as boring as you actually are.’

‘What if I have no desire to let you know me?’

‘It would be a shame, but it’s your decision to make. Of course that would mean spending five full years doing exactly what my Mother wanted you to do, and knowing that you never put up a fight.’ Ubbe challenged.

That made (Y/N)’s jaw clench, and she knew her husband saw her tenseness. Antagonizing everyone she met was one of the few things that Aslaug did expertly, and she never missed a chance to rub (Y/N)’s face in the ridiculous document she signed.

“Shouldn’t expect much from a daughter in law too eager to marry into wealth.”

“No need to mind your manners in front of her, she lives in red tape.”

"She was the best I could find on short notice, shame I didn't have more time to look."

‘I’ll go to the meeting with Alfred.’ she agreed begrudgingly before she tried to stand and leave.

She felt Ubbe catch her arm to stop her from walking away.

‘One more thing.’ he said as he stood and moved to stand closer to her.

‘What?’ she asked, sending him a suspicious glance.

‘Let me be your real husband.’

‘Excuse me?’

‘You don’t want to give me more time, I have no choice but to accept that, but I still want to see what a real marriage with you is like. You did your part and played an amazing housewife, let me join the cast to play husband.’ Ubbe said as looked at you, pleading in his eyes.

‘I will be the husband I should have been for you this whole time, maybe by the end you won’t be so eager to end things.’ he pressed on, and that snapped (Y/N) out of her confused daze.

‘There is nothing you can do that would make me stay.’ she said as she pulled her arm out of his grasp.

‘Then why not let me try anyway?’

‘Because-’

‘You’re afraid I’d be right; that you would fall for me and decide to stay?’ he baited.

‘Get over yourself, it would be a waste of time and energy.’

‘It's my energy and my time, and I want to spend it with you. Please let me do at least this, it's just thirteen days out of five years.’ Ubbe pleaded.

(Y/N) looked up at him in silence, studying him outright, she had seen him lie a million times and she knew all his tells. She had only seen him genuinely focused a handful of times, when there was potential trouble with work or a family crisis.

This was his serious face.

‘You want to play house?’ (Y/N) asked, clearly still suspicious.

‘Well I wouldn’t say it quite so crudely, but yeah, I want to play house.’ Ubbe agreed, his blue eyes sparkling in hope.

‘Do you even know how to play that game?’

‘I’m a quick learner.’

‘What if I say no? Will you cancel the meeting with Alfred?’ she asked as she eyed him warily.

‘Fuck no.’ Ubbe said, his face twisting in offense.

‘I told you already, I never knew about the conditions my mother snuck into the contract and they need to be removed. If I had known I never would have allowed you or anyone else to sign up for that kind of treatment.’

Silence fell as she continued to search him for any sign of dishonesty, but his eyebrow didn’t twitch, he didn’t pick at his nails or avoid making eye contact. He was being genuine, and that both irritated and intrigued her.

‘List five things you know about me, if you can list just five right now I will consider it.’

Ubbe looked surprised by her challenge, he was expecting another outright refusal, but he quickly began to try to take the olive branch she was extending.

‘You make great pasta, you…journal every night before dinner, um you snore sometimes. When you clean you play golden oldies, and… you hate cooking whole chickens.’ he recalled and hoped his answers were good enough.

‘What makes you think I hate cooking whole chicken?’ she asked, surprised by the randomness of that last one.

‘You only cook it like once every few months.’ he shrugged in defense of his answer.

(Y/N) looked away but Ubbe could see the ghost of an amused smile on her face, and it made him hopeful.

‘I don’t like feeling the loose skin and bones while I’m cleaning it, makes me feel sick.’ she confirmed.

‘I listed five.’ he said.

‘You did.’ she conceded.

‘So will you-’

‘I said I would consider it.’ she interjected before she moved to the stove and turned off  the now bubbling stew.

‘Hand me a bowl?’ she asked, and Ubbe eagerly got one out for her and another for himself.

‘Did you not eat?’ (Y/N) questioned, filling both bowls evenly.

‘No, not yet; thought I would try waiting on you this time.’

Again she stared at him in that way, the way that told him she wasn’t sure yet about believing him. He briefly imagined an alternate universe where she wouldn’t have to question it, one where she knew she could trust him without a doubt.

Wordlessly, she carried the bowls to the table and set them down, Ubbe grabbed the spoons and handed one to her as he took his own seat.

An uncomfortable silence filled the kitchen, only the weak sounds of the silverware hitting the bowls tried to break the tension as neither husband or wife knew what to say right now. The playing field felt so foreign to both of them; it wasn’t the passive silence they  had mastered navigating in this house.

‘I didn’t know you knew how to cook anything, figured you never would have needed to learn.’ she said after a while.

‘Just enough to not starve through college, I know it’s not as good as yours.’ Ubbe replies gratefully.

‘It’s good.’ (Y/N) compliments, almost reluctantly.

He knows why she is hesitant, any compliment she sent him in the beginning was met with dismissal and rudeness.

“It's cooking, not brain surgery.” that was the type of dismissive thing Ubbe would have said last week.

‘Thanks, I’m glad you like it.’ he says.

Another silence fell, and again (Y/N) broke it; she couldn’t stand the quiet now that it was finally broken.

‘If, and I am only saying if we were to play house then there are things I need you to answer for first. It is genuinely important to me that you acknowledge how badly you have hurt me in this marriage. This is me communicating that to you clearly, without all the wine and whining.’ (Y/N) said directly.

She said it firmly and all in one breath, which left her nearly gasping by the end of it. Still as soon as she got in a good breath she continued her speech before the silence could crush her again.

‘If you are hoping I will just pretend the last five years didn’t happen then there is no point in doing any of this, because I can’t.’

‘I won’t ask you to do that, whatever you want me to answer for I will. Whatever you need me to do, consider it done.’ he said eagerly.

‘Tell me why. What was it about me that made you want to treat me the way you did?’ (Y/N) asked directly.

Ubbe saw her arm tense and he knew she was clenching her fist, digging her nails into her palm. Something he noticed she often did whenever her own name came up in conversations, as if speaking about herself at all was uncomfortable. 

As if she were waiting on a never ending supply of insults to rain down on her at any moment.

‘Listen to me, (Y/N).’ he said, pulling her hand from under the table and rubbing over the red indents her nails had already left.

‘I was…horrible to you. That is my issue, you did nothing to deserve it and there was nothing about you that pushed me away. I never learned anything about you because I wasn’t ready to be married when it happened.’

She studied him, her expression still as stone to not give any sign of being swayed one way or the other.

‘That’s the beginning; what about the rest? Five years is plenty of time to get used to a change, why did you never stop?’

‘I- I don’t know, I’d never been in anything serious so I didn’t ever think to stop. You never brought it up so I thought I was in the clear, thought you were content with things. I didn’t know you weren’t allowed to speak up.’

She took her hand back and began picking at her fingernails.

‘Not publicly, I tried in the beginning to talk to you about it, and you called me nag. Anytime I tried to initiate any kind of conversation you let me know that this was a contract marriage you were forced into.’

‘I really don’t know why; because my mother chose you, because I felt guilty, because I know you deserve better than me. Any of those reasons, all of them. I’ll probably need to get solo counseling to fully answer you.’ Ubbe replied earnestly.

‘Counseling?’

‘Yes, for the both of us; couples’ and individual. Hopefully, with some professional help we can at least say we both tried.’ he answered.

(Y/N) sat down her spoon, calmly stood from the table and began to walk away; leaving Ubbe to stare at her retreating back.

Ubbe had taken his time to put the food away and wash the dishes properly, something he actually hadn’t had to do since he was a college student staying in the dorms. He was more than out of practice, but he wanted to do a good job so that (Y/N) wouldn’t have to correct it later.

He hadn’t heard any movement upstairs in the last few minutes and assumed that (Y/N) must have gone back to sleep, it was the early hours of the morning after all. Once he put away the last of the dishes he made his way upstairs, slightly afraid he would find his bed empty.

As quietly as he possibly could Ubbe made his way down the hall, and he stopped by the guest room and looked inside. He was happy to see that the bed was neatly made and empty.

With more hope than he deserved to have he walked normally toward the master bedroom and he opened the door to find (Y/N) sleeping just as she had the night before.

Ubbe got undressed and climbed in behind her sleeping frame, he felt her shift, as if to move away before she settled in his arms.

He had done this last night, held her close just like this, but it was different this time. This time it wasn’t a stolen moment, it was him genuinely holding her as his wife and she was allowing it. The room was still pitch black, but the sun would be rising soon, for now Ubbe could only feel her in the darkness.

‘Goodnight (Y/N).’ Ubbe whispered before he placed a kiss on her shoulder.

Sleep found him easily, his dreams were the disconnected meaningless kind that he could never fully recall when he woke up, but he remembered (Y/N) was in it. She was smiling at something he had done or said in the middle of chaos, he was happy he didn’t forget that part.

When he opened his eyes the room was well lit through the curtains by the afternoon sun, he could guess it was probably one or two o’ clock judging the brightness through squinted eyes.

As he sat up he noticed the bed was empty again, for a brief moment he worried that (Y/N) hadn’t truly been comfortable when she woke up, but then the very distinct sound of vomiting came from the bathroom.

Hangover.

Ubbe got out of bed and followed the noise to find his lovely wife hugging the toilet and looking utterly miserable as she caught her breath.

‘I don’t even fucking like wine, it all taste like pissed in grape juice.’ she complained once she realized he was watching her.

‘It doesn’t seem to like you either.’ he teased as he helped her stand up.

‘You okay, all done?’ Ubbe asked, gesturing to the toilet, in response she nodded and swatted away his hands.

‘Let go, I stink. I need to shower, get out.’ she complained as she began pushing Ubbe out of the bathroom, but he resisted.

‘Can’t a man join his wife in the shower?’ he asked, just before he shoved out completely.

She stopped and looked at him with so much confusion on her face that he could see that for a moment she didn’t fully remember their agreement last night, that she had agreed to allow him the chance to participate in their marriage.

Just as he was about to explain it he saw her face redden as she did remember.

‘Not when she is still hungover, but she would appreciate breakfast.’ she said quickly before she closed the door.

Ubbe felt the rejection as he heard the shower turn on, but he also noticed the olive branch in her statement. She wasn’t ready to be openly affectionate with him, but she was giving him a chance, that’s all he needed.

So he let out a yawn and went to the guest bathroom to brush his teeth before he made his way to the kitchen.

He was still thinking about the part of his dream when he opened the fridge, he wanted to see that smile in reality. With that singular goal, and a bit too much confidence in his cooking skills, Ubbe took out everything to make a breakfast feast.

Pancakes, sunny side up eggs, bacon, fresh squeezed orange juice, strawberries and coffee; that was the vision he had in mind. The problem was he didn’t exactly have the best time management for cooking, and he burned just about everything he possibly could because he would walk away from the stove to make the juice. Ubbe was on his eighth black pancake before he remembered the eggs and bacon were also burning.

At last the smoke detector had no choice but to begin to wail through the house, startled and overwhelmed he rushed to turn on the fan and began waving the smoke away from the detector.

It really was remarkable how fast things went to shit.

‘Hey! Hey! What the fuck is happening in my kit-my kitchen.’ (Y/N) came running into the kitchen, with shampoo in her hair and a satin robe clinging to her dripping skin.

She looked at the scene before her with wide eyes; the smoke, the stack of hockey pucks, the black pans and Ubbe looking as if he had been caught doing something he had no business doing. The kitchen was in a state it had never been in before, every dish Ubbe used sat dirty upon the island, all the ingredients left out and spills and splashes of batter decorated the stove top.

‘I- ahem, I made breakfast.’ he confessed as the smoke detector finally went silent.

She looked at him, then at the kitchen again before she looked down at herself and covered her face with both hands.

‘I’m sorry! I’ll clean all this up and you can-’ Ubbe began frantically apologizing as he saw her shoulders begin to shake.

‘Please don’t cry, you can finish your shower and I’ll throw all this out.’

A loud laugh broke the silence.

(Y/N) moved her hands so that only one covered her mouth as she tried to stop her laughter, but she wasn’t successful. Her muffled laugh continued as her eyes moved from one mess to the next, there were tears in her eyes as she finally moved her hand away.

That smile.

If he had to burn breakfast every morning for the rest of his life to see that smile again, he would have the fire department on speed dial.

‘Oh my God!’ she sighed breathlessly as her laughter finally subsided.

Ubbe realized he had been holding his breath and cleared his throat before he spoke again.

‘Maybe, I should leave the kitchen alone.’ he said.

‘Oh no, you aren’t getting off that easy, you’re cooking for the next two weeks, however I see now you need supervision. Get a head start cleaning this, I have a shower to finish, obviously, but I’ll help when I’m done.’ she said, pointing at her overall appearance before turning to leave.

‘I don’t know, I think you could start a new trend, Shower Chic will be all the rage by next week, but I doubt anyone will pull it off like you.’ he said as he took a better look at the way the wet robe hugged her body.

(Y/N)’s eyes widened in shock at his tone before she looked down at herself and realized what kind display she had been unintentionally showing her husband.

‘Close those eyes, you haven’t earned a peep show.’ she said, as she wrapped the robe tighter around herself.

Not that it did anything for modesty, the beige robe was soaked and nearly see through at this point. She looked like a Goddess, caught bathing by his mortal eyes, and he wanted to choke himself for refusing to see this sooner. It was practically wasteful for him to have looked elsewhere when she had been willing to accept his advances.

‘What does orange juice and strawberries earn? Morning kiss?’ he asked.

At the direct flirtation (Y/N) looked taken aback, her eyes darted quickly around the room like she was looking for who he was talking to.

He hated to see that her first reaction to his attention was to think he couldn’t be talking to her, as if she wasn’t worth a second glance. He was relieved when he saw her take a deep breath and step closer to him.

‘A fist bump?’ she offered, holding out her fist and watching him with unsure eyes.

Ubbe looked at her hand and scoffed before he instead interlaced their fingers and placed a kiss on the back of her hand.

‘Yeah, I’m not getting friendzoned by my wife, no fist bumps.’ he declined as he rubbed over her knuckles.

Again she looked like she was confused as to why he was looking at her like this, and he knew it was because he never had before.

She pulled her hand back and looked at him seriously.

‘You don’t-you don’t have to lay it on so thick, ya’ know, no need to force yourself just for my ego.’ (Y/N) said before she turned to leave.

This time, instead of stopping her by catching her arm, Ubbe caught her by the waist and held her so close that his own clothes became damp.

‘I’m not forcing anything, I just wanted to flirt with my wife.’ he confessed.

‘You’ve never wanted to before, and plenty of men are happily married to women they aren’t attracted to. We can do the next two weeks without you having to pretend you’re suddenly smitten with me.’

With a sigh of great disappointment Ubbe let her go and watched as she left to finish her shower.

She didn’t say it to start a fight, and she hadn’t even sounded angry when she said it; in her mind there was no way he would be genuinely attracted to her. He knew he hadn’t given her any reason to think otherwise in the last five years, and he was quickly learning that he wouldn’t be able to rely on physical attraction to mend things.

Within the next ten minutes, he had cleaned a majority of his mess, but he was still scrubbing the pans when (Y/N) came back into the kitchen. She was dressed in sweatpants and an oversized hoodie, an ensemble he’d seen a million times, but now he felt like she was intentionally covering up, perhaps she always was.

She didn’t say anything when she entered, just came in and took the still black pan from him and began inspecting it sadly.

And with a sigh she turned to the pantry.

Ubbe watched her move wordlessly around him as she filled the pan and all the other scorched cookware with baking soda, lemon juice and hot water. She moved to the fridge and took out more bacon and eggs, it was only after she started cooking did Ubbe finally speak up.

‘How did you sleep?’ he asked, wincing when he startled her.

‘Um… pretty good considering how awful waking up was, but it's what I needed according to my therapist. The big break she’s been pushing me to have with you, she’s going to love the update.’ she said as she laid the bacon on a baking tray.

He could see her trying, trying to speak comfortably with him but her shoulders were tense as she spoke. She was clearly a creature of habit and him suddenly breaking the five year silence was something she wasn’t used to.

It shouldn't be that way; she should be able to come into the kitchen expecting at least morning small talk with her husband, not being jumpscared when he attempts to have a conversation, but what was he expecting? That she would just suddenly warm up to him now that he was willing to acknowledge her as his wife when she was so close to being free of him anyway?

‘You have a therapist?’ he asked.

Finally, he thought to himself; the beginning of a conversation, even if it was only small talk, it was a conversation.

‘Yeah, I needed one after… yeah, she’s good, I’ve been seeing her for almost as long as we’ve been married.’ (Y/N) said softly.

Ubbe felt the sting of guilt but at least she was willing to talk to him openly.

‘Do you think she would recommend one for me?’ he asked.

‘Yes, I’ll send her an email; she is a marriage counselor so I’m sure she’d love to sit down with both of us.’ she replied, sending Ubbe another suspicious look as she continued cooking.

She moved around the kitchen like a wizard, unlike him she managed to cook everything all at once without burning anything. Nothing was left out, her pancakes came out golden and her eggs were served over easy, the bacon was perfectly crispy when it was pulled from the oven.

‘You really are an amazing cook, you know?’ he complimented after he realized he had been watching her in silence. He had never taken time to watch her cook anything, in fact he purposefully ensured he was always preoccupied when he was in her presence.

‘Thank you, I always knew enough to get by but I like to think I’m a pretty decent self trained chef now. It's a very practical way to pass the time and with the right background noise I can cook a buffet.’ she said, sounding for the first time as if she was truly relaxed.

Her shoulders had dropped as she began plating the food carefully, almost lovingly.

‘Baking too. I know you don’t really like sweet things but whenever I know I’ll have the house to myself I spend every second I can experimenting with recipes. I donate most of it to the local homeless shelter and they seem to enjoy it well enough.’ she continued, walking over to the table.

‘What makes you think I don’t like sweets?’ he asked as he poured two glasses of orange juice.

Ubbe sat down (Y/N)’s glass and took his seat across from her before taking a sip from his own cup.

‘In five years of going to stuffy corporate parties and social events I’ve never seen you finish a full slice of cake. You accept it, say it's delicious and give the usual small talk and then you sit it aside to pursue the real business.’ she reasoned.

She was right, he’d never been big on sweet things even when he was a child, but he hadn’t thought anyone would notice without him saying it directly.

‘Well, I’d love to try anything you’d be willing to bake me.’ he said, careful not to sound too heavy handed this time.

She seemed to realize how casually she was talking, and her hands went into her lap where Ubbe assumed she was digging her nails into her palms again.

‘It’s OK, you don’t have to eat things you don’t like…you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.’ she said, and Ubbe could practically see her wall building itself up again.

‘I do want to, I want to put some effort into this marriage. You’re right I don’t like sweets, I think chocolate tastes like dirt, but if you baked it I’d eat a mud cake. You must have done a million things you didn’t want to do for me, let me meet you halfway.’ he confessed.

‘This is weird.’ she said with a huff, sitting down her fork harshly as if she couldn’t hold it in.

‘We have spent years in almost complete silence, and now we are struggling to keep the quiet at bay. I don’t -’ she took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

Ubbe had to stop himself from begging her to keep talking, he didn’t want the wall to be built up again.

‘I don’t do this with anyone else but you.’ (Y/N) finally said.

‘What do you mean?’

‘This! This… insecure bullshit, I’m not like this with anyone else. I wasn’t like this before, I could talk with anyone I wanted to without a thought. You? I couldn't avoid you and you couldn’t stand me, so I adapted to the environment. I have rewired my brain to survive this and it’s changing.’ she said, with her eyes darting around the room to avoid looking at him.

Each word hit him like a bullet, he knew she would address what this marriage has been like for her but he still bristled at hearing what he’d put her through. It made him feel unbearably shitty to know that while he was sitting on his phone looking for his next hookup she was in the next room babysitting her sanity.

‘You’re right.’ he finally admitted.

‘It was…unrealistic to expect we could both just flip a switch and suddenly know how to communicate.’ Ubbe said as he leaned back in his chair.

She looked at him, quiet once more, but this time she was waiting for him to fill the silence.

‘If you want, I mean if you really feel like you need to we can cut ties here. We’ll still get the conditions scrubbed and spend the last weeks living separately.’

Now it was Ubbe’s turn to avoid eye contact, he didn’t have the backbone to face her knowing she would always think the worst of him. Knowing that he stole five years of her life to gain his inheritance, money he didn’t need because he was employed at the bank, he wasn't like Sigurd who lived off of his while he pursued his music career.

For nothing, he had stolen her life for nothing.

To his great surprise, his attention was pulled away from his plate when he felt a soft hand land on his own as it was resting on the table.

She still looked at him in that strange, unfamiliar way; but her face was firmly set.

‘My name is (Y/N) (Y/M/N) (Y/L/N), I keep my word because that is who I am. Drunk or not I made a deal with you last night, I’ll keep it.’ (Y/N) said.

‘I think we should see Helga today.’ she added.

‘Helga?’ he asked, a mixture of confusion and hope stirring in his chest.

How the actual fuck did Ivar find himself in this mess?

Standing still as a statue in a closet and watching his best friend enjoy what was clearly meant to be a very private moment.

‘Hah… fuck~’ she moaned over the unmistakable buzzing noise coming from beneath her blanket.

Seriously, how the fuck did he end up here?

He wasn’t supposed to be watching (Y/N) naked in bed and moaning softly as she held a vibrator between her legs.

_________________________________________

It was the night before her birthday and he had planned to jump out at midnight to equally startle and surprise her before they went out for the night.

(Y/N) had been studying like her life depended on it for the past two weeks and he thought hitting a few campus bars would be a much needed break. So in his own defense he hadn’t been trying to peep in on such an intimate scene, but when she came in and began removing her clothes he froze.

Ivar and (Y/N) had been best friends since orientation freshman year and it was honestly his first time having a girl as a best friend so a good portion of the friendship was him treating her like one of the guys but he couldn’t exactly do that right now.

Not when he is seeing what exactly she’s been hiding under those baggy campus sweats, she looked at herself in the mirror for a second before she took down her ponytail and sighed.

‘Another year survived bitch.’ she hummed to herself as she ran her fingers through her hair lazily.

Ivar, who was already wide eyed and panicking in the closet, watched through the ajar door as (Y/N) turned away from the mirror and opened her bedside drawer.

BZZZZZ!!!

He had to physically cover his mouth to stop the gasp that threatened to expose him when that sound filled the room.

Holy shit, he thought as he realized that this harmless little joke had gone from going terribly wrong to being absolutely nuked by this turn of events.

‘Start the year right.’ (Y/N) said as she climbed into her bed, she covered her lower half but she didn’t pull the blanket up fully so he could still see her breasts and the motion of her hand between her legs as she pleased herself.

Her eyes closed and her jaw dropped as her breath hitched at the first touch, soon she relaxed into her pillows and began letting out soft moans.

Ivar felt like his brain was breaking and his body wasn’t in much better shape.

Every heavy and shaky breath he heard her release made his cock twitch in his jeans while his mind screamed at him that he needed to get out of here before he saw even more than he already has.

But how could he possibly get out now?

If he barged out it would freak her right the hell out and probably destroy their friendship if they couldn’t find a way to get past this, but if he waited until she finished…

God, what would he do with himself if he watches her finish, his cock twitches again at the thought. The thought of seeing his overly serious friend’s face as she pushed herself past the point of self control; hearing what her stern toned voice sounds like when she cums.

He tried to shake his head clear to focus on the fact that if (Y/N) found out that he had watched her like that it would definitely destroy their friendship. Because even if by some miracle she forgave him, he would never be able to unsee her like that.

BZZZ! BZZZ! BZZZ!

(Y/N)’s breath hitched again and her moans became a bit more high pitched as she changed the setting on the vibrator. Her free hand came up to cup her breast, pinching her nipples hard enough to make herself wince.

‘Mmm…fuck.’ she panted as she began to move with a bit more need.

Ivar watched as her hips began to move along with her hand, and he began  to both thank and curse the blanket for covering what it could.

The bulge in his pants was becoming unbearable as he watched her, despite how mortified he was with himself for it, Ivar couldn’t deny that this aroused him.

Watching her right now, the voice that called for him to leave became smaller and smaller in his mind, and the quieter it became the less control he had over himself. The urge to take care of his own needs grew with every soft moan that hit his ears.

Unable to stand the uncomfortable confines of his jeans any longer, Ivar risked everything to just reach down and adjust himself, but that had been a terrible mistake.

In the simple motion of lowering his hand, Ivar’s elbow bumped a stack of shoe boxes and they fell with very noticeable thuds.

‘What the fuck?!’ (Y/N) half screamed half gasped as she threw herself out of the bed in her sudden fear and ran into her bathroom, slamming the door behind her naked figure.

Shit shit SHIT!!!

‘GET OUT!’ she screamed from the bathroom.

‘I’M SORRY! Don’t scream!’ Ivar cried as he finally was able to step out of his hiding spot without being in the same room as his naked best friend.

‘Ivar?!’ 

The door opened just enough for (Y/N)’s flushed face to be visible, and when her eyes landed on him she looked venomous.

‘What the fuck are you doing here?! Leave before I call campus security! Or better yet, the police because I have half a mind to fucking kill you right now!’ she hissed angrily before she slammed the bathroom door shut again.

Ivar didn’t need telling twice.

He ran all the way back to his own dorm on damn near the other side of the campus, which he knew was unnecessary, but he needed to run off the nerves. When he finally made it inside his legs were sore and he was too tired to even acknowledge himself below the belt.

Just as he had stopped panting from his impromptu marathon run the worse noise in the world hit his ears.

RING! RING! RING! RING!

Ivar pulled his phone from his pocket and read (Y/N)’s name on the caller ID, shit, he wasn’t ready for this talk, but he couldn’t ignore the call.

‘I can explain, I promise I can.’ he said immediately as he answered the phone.

‘You have exactly thirty seconds.’

‘I was going to jump out and scare you then take you clubbing for your birthday. I left the birthday balloons in your closet if you don't believe me.' he explained quickly as his heart raced in anxiousness.

‘So you just stood and watched because…?’

‘Well when you came in getting naked I kinda didn’t know what to do then you kept going and what was I supposed to do then?’ he reasoned.

‘Maybe make me aware of the fact that I apparently had a live audience before I got in the bed you idiot.’ (Y/N) argued.

‘Okay, well… fair enough.’ he admitted in defeat.

‘Yeah so let’s loop back around to me screaming what the actual fuck?’ she groaned on the other end.

‘Look I am sorry, like seriously so sorry. I will turn in my emergency key to your dorm and everything.’ Ivar apologized as his panic was eased by their casual conversational tone.

‘Keep your key Ivar, just promise to never bring this up to another living organism, and if you make a singular joke about it and it hits my ears your lungs will hit the floor. We clear?’ she threatened.

‘Trust me there was nothing to laugh at in your dorm, outside of how fucked my head was I realized how bad it would look if I just came out.’ he sighed as he sat in his desk chair.

‘True, look as long as you aren’t weird about it I won’t be weird about it. Business as usual starts right now; so what club are we going to first, I’ll meet you there.’

‘You still want to go out tonight?’ Ivar asked incredulously.

‘Why wouldn’t I want to celebrate my twenty-second birthday with my bestie, did something happen?’ she asked innocently.

‘Nothing at all, I just need to shower and change first. I’ll meet you at Finehair’s.’ he agreed.

‘Cool, and remember, don’t be weird about it.’

‘Nothing to be weird about, I’ll see you in like forty five minutes.’ Ivar promised before he hung up.

He covered his whole face with his hands and groaned to himself, because now that he wasn’t panicking about ruining their friendship; all he could think about was how she looked when she lost in pleasure.

The ghostly echo of soft shaky gasps that bled into moans still haunted Ivar’s burning red ears as he removed his hands from his face and leaned his head back to look at the ceiling. He didn’t need to look down to know he was hard again.

Ivar followed her inside and he heard her close and lock the door behind him as he took off his jacket and shoes. When he turned he saw her just standing there, waiting for him to decide how they were going to start this.

‘Come here.’ he said, and he was happy to see she followed the direction without her usual challenging remarks.

‘Good girl, are we both on the same page for tonight?’ he asked as he began to lift the fabric of her shirt.

‘Yes.’ she replied, her voice so small he barely heard it, but once he did he proceeded to lift the shirt over her head and he tossed it aside.

‘Will you follow the rule, let me know how you feel? If you want to stop?’ he continued as he moved to unbutton her jeans.

‘Yes.’ she said again, louder and more sure of it this time.

Before he could begin on removing the pants he felt himself being pulled into a kiss; a kiss that he hadn’t been prepared for but was very happy to participate in. Her lips were soft and the lingering taste of liquor made him want to devour her.

He walks her back to the bed without breaking the kiss until he is on top of her on the full sized mattress. Seeing her there, in the bed she’d been pleasing herself in a few hours ago makes his already hard cock ache in his pants. More than anything it made him want to please her, make her feel better than she ever could when she was alone.

‘You sure, we’re getting past the point of no return.’ she asked as she kicked off her shoes.

‘I’ve been sure about this all night.’ Ivar nearly growled before his lips were on hers again.

He swallowed the surprised sound that tried to escape her and he did the same to every noise that followed as they clumsily undressed each other. It was definitely not a sexy process and eventually they had to just separate long enough to remove the items properly, but that did nothing to spoil the mood.

When at last their clothes were removed and (Y/N) was back in his arms, Ivar wasted no time and began kissing down her neck. He kissed everywhere he could reach as (Y/N) melted into his touch.

Ivar felt like it was the best chemistry he’d ever had with any woman, she fit perfectly in his arms and he fell into place as she spread her legs.

They broke the kiss to gasp at the feeling of closeness with no clothes between them, Ivar could literally feel the warmth of her entrance on his cock. He knew if he did what he wanted right now, this wouldn’t last long.

If he were to slide into her and fuck her into the mattress he was certain the feeling of her wrapped around him would finish him off in five minutes max.

That wouldn’t be acceptable.

So he made his plan and wasted no time in executing it; moving to kiss down her body, unable to resist leaving a mark perfectly between her breasts as he traveled lower. Soon his top half was laying on the bed between her legs while his lower half kneeled on the floor.

God, he was happy to get to see her fully like this; up close and with no obstructions in his way. His hands traveled up and down her smooth legs as he spread her legs even further and pulled her even closer to him.

‘Fuck.’ (Y/N) gasped at being suddenly manhandled, her hand quickly covering her mouth.

‘Bad move.’ Ivar teased before he placed a firm but not painful smack on (Y/N)’s left asscheek in warning.

The sound that came out of her was a mix between a gasp, a moan and a cry.

‘Let me hear you.’ he reminded, his breath hot against the sensitive skin of her inner thighs before placing a kiss right where they both wanted.

(Y/N)’s hand gripped at the sheets as Ivar worked over her expertly with his tongue, and she let every noise flow freely from her mouth. Her moans pleading as she writhed weakly under Ivar’s firm hold, that kept her hips pinned to the mattress.

‘That feels amazing.’ she sighed in pleasure.

Ivar was getting drunk on her. Drunk on her taste, the sounds she made, the faces she made and the way she felt in his arms. He was so hard he felt like he might actually burst, he desperately wanted to reach down and give himself some relief but he was unable to stop himself pleasing her.

‘More, Ivar…’ (Y/N) whined as she moved her right hand to take firm hold of his hair.

Time was meaningless, he feasted on her and enjoyed every sound she made above him and still he wanted more. With one last kiss on her clit he pulled back and slid his middle and fore fingers inside her.

She gasped as her back arched but Ivar kept her still, his free hand pinning her hips down as she adjusted. He started slow, just moving his fingers in small searching circles until he felt that special spot that made her soft gasp become a loud sudden cry.

She looked down at him, her eyes wide in surprise and dark with lust and silent pleading.

‘Right there?’ he asked as he rubbed there again, relishing in the cry she let out before she nodded.

‘Right there.’ (Y/N) confirmed before Ivar began to thrust his fingers into her tightness, hitting her spot each time. The pleasure was practically assaulting her in forceful waves and she was a mess beneath Ivar’s influence.

She felt amazing around his fingers; wet, warm and clenching desperately around him. Ivar prayed he wouldn’t succumb to his own pleasure from the feeling of just entering her, but the way he felt her pussy grip wantonly around his fingers he didn’t have much faith in himself.

It was (Y/N)’s birthday and he was determined to show her a good time so with that thought grounding him he increased his efforts and declared mentally that he wouldn’t stop until he felt her cum.

He looked back up as (Y/N)’s breath hitched and her voice became higher and higher until she was simply whining and gasping for air when she had to breathe.

‘Fuck please! Please please please’ she begged as her hips began to rock into him in need.

Ivar hadn’t realized until then that he had released his hold on her hips in order to grip his aching cock, however he certainly noticed the relief. He groaned at the feeling, but he never slowed the pace of his fingers and soon she was holding onto his forearm and looking at him with wide eyes.

‘I’m gonna cum!’ she gasped, her voice almost panicked as her grip tightened on his arm.

‘That’s the point Doll.’ he teased his voice low and feral before he placed his lips back onto her clit, all the while his fingers never slowed.

He could fucking hear it; how wet she was, how she sucked his fingers back in whenever they pulled away; she was practically dripping around his fingers.

‘Fuck!’ he growled as looked down to see the mess he’d made of her.

And then he realized there was nothing practical about it, (Y/N) was actually dripping wet, the droplets flowing into his palm and down his wrist. She was beginning to twitch against his lips and he knew he only needed to go a little longer and she would crumble.

‘No I’m seriously…’ she tried to warn him desperately but her words cut off as she clamped her eyes shut and her hips bucked wildly into his hand as more liquid gold shot out in small bursts. Ivar felt her legs cross behind the back of his head and pull him back into her.

Ivar could only do his best to hold his breath and work her through it with his tongue as she rode out her orgasm’s shockwaves.

At last her body relaxed and he was able to sit up fully and assess the scene beneath him, the sheets were drenched under her, she was wet and shining around his soaked fingers as she panted.

She removed her hand from his hair and covered her fully flushed face.

‘I’m sorry.’ she said, the words muffled but clear as she peaked through her fingers.

‘For what? The free drink?’ he smiled as he brought up his dripping hand and licked his fingers.

‘Ivar!’ she gasped as she dropped her hands to stare at him in shock.

She looked amazing, red faced because of him, her naked body on full display for him and her thighs still glistening with the mess they’d made. His cock gave a violent twitch, furious with the need for his own release after being denied for so long.

‘You ready?’ he asked as he climbed up on the bed.

(Y/N) didn’t reply but she adjusted her position to make room for Ivar and that was enough of an answer.

As Ivar positioned himself he sent up one last prayer that he would meet her expectations as he looked down at her face.

She was watching what he was doing in anticipation as she hooked her legs around his waist and placed her hands on his shoulders. Her eyes darted up to him and she pulled him down into another kiss as he pushed in.

The groan that Ivar let out was mixed with (Y/N)’s moan and swallowed in their kiss.

‘God, you are so fucking tight.’ Ivar sighed as he dropped his head to rest on her shoulder as he rested in her warmth.

‘You’re big.’ she responded in a labored breath.

He could hear the teasing in her tone and even as he was fighting to control himself he let out a breathless chuckle. Because of course she would joke with him right now, she was his best friend.

Ivar gave the first thrust, resisting the urge to just drive into her, he didn’t want to be rough with her. Instead he moved slow, spiraling his hips occasionally as he felt her relax around him.

‘You feel so fucking good.’ she said to herself as if it surprised her.

Challenge accepted.

He sat up, shifted his hips and took firm hold of her waist with both hands before he gave a harsher thrust and he knew he’d hit the right spot when she clenched around him and cried out. Ivar bit back a groan at that feeling as he got settled in that position, making sure he’d hit in the same spot each thrust.

The rhythm he set stayed slow and his enjoyment watching her lose her own control under him made controlling himself worth it, but he could feel himself slipping. His thrust became unconsciously quicker and harder and (Y/N)’s volume was increasing.

She moved a hand down between them to play with herself but Ivar promptly pinned both her hands above her head and stopped all movement.

‘Uh uh, why are you touching what’s mine for the night?’

‘Ivar don’t stop.’ she whined as she tried to rock her hips against him.

‘First explain this.’ he tightened his grip on her wrists.

‘Thought we were on the same page, tell me what you need.’ he ordered as he finally began moving again.

‘Harder, I need it harder!’ she pleaded, and Ivar had never been so happy to fulfill a request.

‘Good girl.’ he smiled as he, at last, stopped holding back.

Finally, he began thrusting into her without any inhibitions or restraints and each thrust seemed to hit right where (Y/N) wanted by the way she was moaning and cursing under him. Every second he lasted amazed him; between the feeling of her and the outright sinful noises coming out of her Ivar had no idea how he was pulling this off, but he didn’t stop.

The sounds they made mixed together along with the sound of the bed rocking and Ivar never wanted to stop hearing their symphony.

Soon Ivar found himself at that inevitable crossroad where he had to choose between chasing his own release or pulling out to make it last longer.

(Y/N) made the decision for him.

‘Don’t fucking stop.’ she gasped as her back arched and she began straining against his hold on her wrists.

‘Fuck.’ he cursed as he let go of her hands and dropped his own to take hold of her hips.

With the extra leverage he thrust even deeper into her as he pulled her impossibly closer and oh God he could hear and fucking feel her getting wetter as he fucked her. He had closed his eyes in concentration, but now the noise alone seemed to drive him closer to the edge.

‘Ahh~ harder please!’

Her voice was shaking, high pitched and broken; it caused him to open his eyes and that was the last straw.

(Y/N) was a beautiful masterpiece, she looked lost in pleasure and he could see her fighting to get words out but she couldn’t. She didn’t need to, Ivar recognized that panicked look in her eyes this time.

This time he was more than ready.

Ivar took hold of her ankles and spread them in the air as he fucked into her with all he had in him, and he watched as the show began.

‘Cumming, I’m…fuck!’ she cried as she clenched and began leaking around him.

The feeling was divine and the image life changing, the feeling of her cumming around him was what finished him; with one last grunted curse he pulled out and spilled himself over her stomach.

Breathless pants echoed through the dorm as Ivar collapsed beside (Y/N), both of them utterly exhausted. The silence was as comfortable as always as she curled into his side and he placed his arm around her without a second thought.

‘That was…shit, I can’t even joke about it, that was really fucking good.’ she said at last still panting.

‘Yeah it was.’ Ivar smiled back.

More silence.

‘We could…do it again.’ she suggested.