*finishes Suckin A Dick **crushes It Against My Forehead Like A Beer Can

i want a ‘you’ve been dating my brother, but he clearly doesn’t appreciate you, so ive come to save the day even though i’m entirely sure i’d be worse for you’ kind of plot.

RED DEAD REDEMPTION II ᨖ

hey this is your captain speaking. can everyone hold on real tight for a sec. i want to try something

     he shakes his head, chest still lightly heaving under the rush of adrenaline. in just a couple short strides, joel passes by hope to stand between her & the runner banging on the other side of door. getting here just in time to lock the bastard up was a streak of LUCK hasn't slipped by joel.

           ❝ didn't have time to look for much of anythin', ❞ joel replies in a tight, graveled tone.

     joel slowly turns, his gaze hard & troubled when they reach hope's. ❝ that was a STUPID goddamn thing you just did. what woulda happened if i didn't get here in time ? ❞

❝  yeah  .  .  .  𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒉  -  'm  okay  .  ❞

her  heart  still  pounds  wildly  in  her  chest  ,  matching  pace  with  the  𝑭𝑳𝑼𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹  of  hummingbird  wings  .  weapon  is  still  raised  in  active  defense  ,  the  shot  infected  lying  crumpled  at  her  feet  .  she  looks  over  to  joel  -  her  shoulders  falling  in  relief  at  his  presence  ,  a  sighed  breath  leaving  panting  lips  .

❝  scared  the  hell  out  of  me  ,  though  ,  ❞  hope  adds  ,  pushing  back  her  fringe  which  sticks  to  the  𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒕  drenched  surface  of  her  forehead  .  ❝  find  anythin'  useful  ?  ❞

♡ for some memes or perhaps a starter

     surprise flickers over arthur's face immediately, attention shooting back over in time to watch the way hope's eyes expand. her fingertips brushing over plush, pink lips as if it would help REIN in what she just said. but it was in the air now - hanging in much the way cigar smoke does. heavy, thick, intrusive.

     arthur blinks once, twice, shifting in his seat on the third. he had an inkling about how hope might've felt about this whole thing - he ain't like dutch, but arthur's come to know miss hope baxter a little by now. knows when she's being truthful & when she's trying to spare his feelings. when she's genuine or teasing.

     ❝ so you don't wanna marry this guy, ❞ arthur says bluntly. reinforcing what she just admitted by mistake. not allowing it to be shuffled under the rug in a way hope will want to do.

     he spins the whiskey in his glass, mouth tight & jaw set. a small temptation rises in arthur's gut to point out that, CONTRARY to her question about doing anything else with his life, he ain't the one being pushed into a marriage. he had the freedom to marry for love, if love ever found him.

            ( it did. long ago. & it was these same damn expectations that kept her from him. )

     arthur lets out a long, IMPATIENT sigh. ❝ if you don't wanna get married, then don't ! what - daddy won't be happy ? seems to me you should put 'urself first. ❞

❝  --  no  !  ❞  hope  lets  out  a  small  half-hearted  laugh  compulsively  ,  to  match  his  energy  more  than  anything  else  .  she  continues  ,  ❝  i  mean  ,  not  unless  you  wanted  to  be  somethin'  𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒚  .  ❞  she  tilts  her  head  to  the  side  in  evaluation  of  his  reaction  ,  brows  furrowing  together  .  it  surprises  her  how  quickly  he  dismisses  the  idea  that  he  might  ever  have  been  anything  else  in  life  .  he's  smart  ,  much  smarter  than  he  gives  himself  any  credit  for  anyway  .  he's  got  plenty  of  skills  applicable  to  careers  outside  of  gunslinging  &  playing  muscle  for  the  van  der  linde  gang  .  she's  seen  it  .  .  .  but  he  really  doesn't  ,  does  he  ?  that  thought  weighs  down  her  sweet  smile  -  noticeably  drooping  into  a  pout  .

as  he  surveys  the  room  ,  hope  takes  the  opportunity  to  briefly  study  his  features  -  she  notes  his  scars  ,  the  lines  around  his  eyes  ,  their  color  .  she  wonders  what  those  eyes  have  seen  ;  she  wonders  how  they  see  𝑯𝑬𝑹  .

as  arthur  refocuses  ,  leaning  in  that  little  bit  closer  ,  she  draws  in  a  quick  sharp  breath  -  gaze  flickering  toward  his  lips  for  a  single  beat  .  while  she  tries  to  keep  her  expression  neutral  ,  kicking  herself  internally  for  being  so  easily  𝒇𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅  -  she  can't  hide  the  flush  that  blooms  across  her  freckles  like  wildflowers  .

her  attention  successfully  captured  ,  she  listens  to  what  he  says  intently  -  heart  dropping  to  &  shattering  on  the  filthy  floor  .  it  takes  her  a  moment  to  process  it  all  ,  first  the  briefly  flippant  description  of  his  parents  ,  then  .  .  .  'even  worse  man  than  me  .  .  .'  that  admission  alone  floors  her  into  momentary  silence  ,  a  rarity  for  her  &  an  𝑰𝑴𝑷𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑺𝑰𝑽𝑬  feat  on  arthur's  part.

before  she  can  come  up  with  something  𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚  apologetic  to  say  ,  he  has  already  moved  onto  his  question  -  further  throwing  her  off  .

❝  i  .  .  .  me  ?  ❞  she  blinks  up  at  him  ,  still  recalibrating  from  the  sheer  mental  whiplash  .  her  sufficiently  inebriated  mind  struggling  to  keep  up  .  ❝  uh  .  .  .  hm  ,❞  she  scrambles  blindly  for  something  ,  𝑨𝑵𝒀𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑮  to  say -  &  so  the  truth  spills  out with an incredulous giggle .  ❝  well  i  wouldn't  be  getting  married  ,  that's  for  sure  .  .  .  ❞  the  moment  she  hears  herself  azure  eyes  blow  wide  ,  lips  flatting  into  a  thin  line  ,  fingers  pressing  loosely  to  her  lips  in  shock  .

❝  -  i  don't  know  why  i  said  that  ,  ❞  maybe  the  drinks  were  a  𝒃𝒂𝒅  𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒂  after  all  .  .  .

     a smirk pulls on joel's lips at her response - of course, he didn't believe a word of what she said. hope asking for sugar was like joel asking to borrow a tool. such a clear & BLATANT excuse that's so easily debunked but warms joel's face all the same.

                ❝ well, i reckon we can SCROUNGE somethin' together for ya. ❞

     subconsciously, joel leans his hand against the doorframe while the other comes to rest on his hip. while hope's unexpected arrival was definitely welcome ( he's so glad sarah's at school ), it means he didn't have much of a chance to pick up the house a bit. there's too much evidence laying around the house of joel's ARDUOUS work hours & sarah's soccer team hanging out after practice.

     he shifts his weight from one foot to the other. ❝ you, uh - ya need it right now ? ❞

𝒃𝒈𝟑 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒕𝒔 ( accepting ! )

@quastari said : ❝ let me guess - you need something . ❞ from pre outbreak joel

❝  𝒖𝒉  .  .  .  ❞

even  from  where  she  hovers  behind  his  screen  door  ,  her  caught-red-handed  sheepish  smile  can  be  easily  detected  .  mischief  𝑺𝑷𝑨𝑹𝑲𝑳𝑬𝑺  within  her  blue  sky  gaze  ,  hinting  at  an  ulterior  motive  joel  has  already  astutely  picked  up  on  . 

❝  would  you  believe  me  if  i  said  i  came  over  to  borrow  a  cup  of  sugar  ?  ❞  is  her  deceptively  innocent  reply  .

of  course  ,  we  all  know  that baker  extraordinaire  hope  baxter  would  never  be  caught  with  any  less  than  3  full  bags  of  sugar  stored  within  her  perpetually  well  stocked  pantry  .  it  seems  she's  come  to  visit  his  residence  seeking  another  kind  of  𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔  -  should  he  be  receptive  .  they  haven't  exactly  labeled  whatever  they  are  to  each  other  just yet  ,  it's  all  still  so  new  &  delicate  .

❝  just  lookin'  for  a  little  𝑺𝑶𝑼𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑵  𝑯𝑶𝑺𝑷𝑰𝑻𝑨𝑳𝑰𝑻𝒀  ,  that's  all  .  ❞

“The only wrinkly monster who harasses MY family is ME!”

Kaidan I Citadel DLC