ᝰ
the fire was low, but the glow of it painted the walls with a soft orange flicker. the house was quiet, save for the soft scrape of metal on wood and the occasional pop from the fireplace. joel sat at the table, glasses halfway down his nose, sleeves pushed up, and a small block of wood cradled in his calloused hands. his knife scraped slow, methodical strokes along the curve of what looked like the beginnings of a fox, delicate ears just forming, the snout notched into shape. he looked like he belonged there. not just in the room, but in the moment. hands busy, mouth set, the steady rhythm of his work filling the silence like he needed it more than rest.
you hovered in the doorway for a moment. there was something magnetic about watching him when he didn’t know you were, how quiet he became, how precise. you couldn’t explain it, but something in you twisted a little when you saw him like this. it didn’t help that your brain was already a little fried from the day. you’d been restless all afternoon, bouncing between tasks around town, trying to distract yourself with anything that wasn't the thought of his hands. now you were back. and the ache was worse. he didn’t look up when you stepped in, but you could tell by the subtle shift in his shoulders that he knew you were there.
“you’ve been out there awhile,” he said, voice low and even, not pausing in his carving.
“wasn’t that long,” you murmured, stepping closer. “you eat anything?”
joel snorted softly. “ate somethin’ earlier. left some stew if you’re hungry.”
you walked around him, slow and quiet, letting your fingertips brush the edge of the table. you watched him work a little longer, the careful drag of his knife, the tension in his forearm, the way his brow furrowed when he focused. his glasses slid further down, and he huffed, pushing them back with the side of his wrist.
“i’m not really hungry,” you said, voice lower now.
he hummed in acknowledgment, not looking up.
you stepped between him and the table, gently nudging one of his knees open with yours. that finally earned you a glance. a small, knowing one.
“what’re you doin’?” he asked, not irritated, just suspicious.
you didn’t answer. you just moved closer and lowered yourself into his lap, straddling his thigh like it was muscle memory.
joel made a small sound in his throat. “jesus,” he muttered, setting the carving knife down with care but not taking his hands off you. “you’re gonna make me slice my damn thumb open one of these days, sneakin’ up on me like that.”
“you looked busy,” you said softly, your arms sliding around his shoulders. “didn’t wanna interrupt the great artist at work.”
he shook his head, his hands found your hips, grounding you, holding you still, but not pushing you away.
he muttered something you couldn't make out, setting the knife down with more care than necessary. “that what we’re doin’ now?”
“you’re not gonna make me beg, are you?” you said, your voice low as you slid your hands up the front of his shirt, thumbs brushing the space just under his collarbones. “been wound up all day.”
joel leaned back slightly to look at you over the top of his glasses. his eyes dragged over your face, then lower—assessing. thinking. his hands landed heavy on your hips, grounding.
he exhaled, slow and controlled, like he was weighing his options. like he was pretending you didn’t already have him wrapped around your finger.
“you’re actin’ real needy tonight,” he said, voice dropping a little lower. his hands were still on your hips, thumbs idly brushing the hem of your shirt like he was debating whether to tug you closer or keep you there and burn slow.
“been thinking about you all day,” you admitted, quiet against his skin. “you didn’t even notice how pretty you looked this morning. all frown and flannel and your fuckin hands…”
“mm,” he rumbled, mouth twitching. “that what’s got you worked up?”
you didn’t answer. you just shifted slightly in his lap, pressing down a little harder on his thigh, watching the way his jaw tightened when you did.
joel’s hands flexed, gripping your waist a little firmer now. “you come in here sittin’ on my leg like that,” he said lowly, eyes flicking to your mouth, “and you expect me to finish my carvin’?”
“i expected you to tell me how bad you missed me while i was gone,” you teased.
his brows lifted. “i see you every day.”
you leaned in closer. “doesn’t mean you don’t miss me.”
joel leaned back, gave you that quiet, unreadable look.
his hands slid down to the backs of your thighs, squeezing once before he pulled you closer, flush against him. the fox on the table forgotten, the knife untouched. his mouth brushed your cheek, soft and rough.
but you had him here, grounded. his hands, his warmth, the slow way he let himself have you.
“you done carving?” you whispered.
joel nodded slowly, almost like he didn’t trust himself to speak.
“good,” you whispered, brushing your nose against his. “’cause i need you worse than that fox does.” his glasses were crooked. you reached up and pulled them off, setting them aside. his eyes were darker now, heavier.
ᝰ
a/n: i wrote this at like 1am after watching the s2 premiere so it's ass but seeing him in those glasses... meow...
don't get your banana too close to me
。⋆𖦹.✧˚──
you’ve been walking for hours.
the snow crunches under your boots, soft and stubborn. it’s early, not quite morning, not quite night. that weird blue hour where the trees blur together and everything looks like a painting. ellie’s a few feet ahead of you, rifle slung over her shoulder, her other hand jammed in her pocket. she’s humming something under her breath, low and tuneless. probably doesn’t even know she’s doing it.
you’d followed her out this morning for patrol. well, you offered. she didn’t say no, just raised her eyebrows and said, “hope you’re not squeamish." you’re not. mostly.
but now, hours in, no infected in sight, she’s kneeling in the snow next to a fallen log, flipping through her beat up sketchbook. her gloves are hanging out of her pocket, her fingers red from the cold as she shades something in with a pencil. you awkwardly hover behind her, “what’re you drawing?” you ask, voice soft like it might break something.
ellie glances up at you, a smudge of graphite on her cheekbone. she shrugs. “just saw a rabbit earlier. figured i’d get it down before i forgot.”
you lean over her shoulder, watching the strokes of her pencil. the sketch is rough but careful, ellie’s kind of careful. like she’s scared of getting it wrong but doesn’t wanna show it.
“you’re really good,” you say.
she makes a face like she doesn’t believe you. “sure.”
you chew your lip, glancing at the empty space on the corner of the page. “can i… try?”
ellie blinks. “seriously?”
“yeah.” you shrug, trying to act casual. “i used to doodle stuff. nothing good.”
she hesitates, like she’s about to make a joke. then she just passes the sketchbook to you and says, “don’t fuck it up.” but her tone is warm and teasing. safe.
you sit down next to her on the log, your thighs brushing, the cold seeping through your jeans. the pencil’s warm from her hand. you look at the blank corner and freeze up a little.
“shit,” you mutter. “how do you even start?”
ellie leans in, her shoulder pressed to yours. “just find the shape first. don’t think about the details.”
you glance at her, and she’s already looking at you, her mouth half quirked up in this lopsided grin that makes your stomach do something annoying.
you try to draw a bird. you saw one earlier—a little brown thing that darted through the trees like it had somewhere important to be. your lines are shaky, clumsy. your rabbit looks more like a lumpy sock. you scowl. ellie snorts.
“okay, rude,” you say.
“what? i didn’t say anything.”
you nudge her with your elbow and she laughs, low and scratchy. “nah, it’s not that bad,” she adds. “here, lemme…”
she takes the pencil from you and lightly draws over your lines, fixing the shape, softening the angles. her hand rests over yours, steady and sure, and you swear you forget how to breathe for a second.
you look up at her. she’s close. too close. but you don’t move.
“see?” she murmurs. “not bad.”
you nod, eyes still on her, and for a second, the snow stops falling and the cold doesn’t matter and the whole world feels quiet.
ellie blinks down at you. her voice, when she speaks, is barely above a whisper.
“you, uh… ever come out here just to hang?”
you smile. “maybe i will.”
she grins, it looked crooked and nervous, but it was cute.
you stay like that for a while. shoulders touching, breath clouding in the cold, sketchbook balanced between you. maybe the hunt wasn’t the point after all.
UNCHARTED
𓂃 ࣪˖༉‧₊˚.
NATHAN DRAKE
toast kisses — fluff, drabble.
𓂃 ࣪˖༉‧₊˚.
CHLOE FRAZER
don't get attached. — fluff? kinda? one shot.
the suspension of the indus waters treaty by india isn’t just a diplomatic blunder, it’s an existential threat to pakistan. india’s move to weaponize water—an act that blatantly disregards decades of international law and cooperation—is a stark violation of the spirit of the 1960 treaty, which was hailed as one of the few successful examples of cooperation between two deeply divided nations. for pakistan, this treaty was more than a technical agreement; it was a lifeline, ensuring access to the waters that sustain 80% of its irrigated agriculture. india’s threat to disrupt this flow, a reaction born from the latest kashmir violence, is a strategic misstep that doesn’t just endanger pakistan’s economy, but its very survival. the indus river system, which is entirely controlled by india upstream, has been a flashpoint of geopolitical manipulation since partition. the first major attempt to weaponize water occurred in 1948 when india blocked pakistan’s access to the rivers, resulting in the 1960 negotiations. the treaty that followed was a testament to the understanding that even in a region rife with conflict, some issues transcended politics. yet, india’s current approach echoes the cynical unilateralism that has defined its treatment of pakistan since the 1947 partition, where strategic interest always trumped mutual benefit. also, india's suspension of the simla agreement, which was signed after the brutal 1971 war, is a major blow to any remaining avenues of bilateral dialogue. that agreement was a cornerstone of post conflict diplomacy, aimed at fostering peaceful coexistence despite the traumatic legacies of war. india’s withdrawal from this framework further proves the extent to which it’s willing to abandon even the most basic principles of peace and stability in favor of militarized nationalism. pakistan, already facing economic turmoil, is now confronted with an india that seems determined to provoke an escalation at every turn. whether through water, trade, or the military skirmishes at the line of control. meanwhile pakistan has consistently called for dialogue, for diplomacy, and for adherence to international treaties. yet, it finds itself isolated, with india leveraging its military and economic dominance, while pakistan faces the perilous consequences of its own limited geopolitical maneuverability. india’s military first strategy, emboldened by a nuclear arsenal, undermines the possibility of any meaningful de-escalation, putting the entire region on the brink of catastrophe.
to frame this as merely another india-pakistan flare up is to ignore the broader narrative of asymmetry and historical injustice. india, with its economic and military supremacy, seeks to impose a new order that threatens pakistan’s sovereignty at every turn. pakistan’s calls for peace are drowned out by india’s relentless aggression, leaving pakistan with little choice but to stand firm. now, will the world stand by as india reshapes the subcontinent’s geopolitical map at the expense of its smaller neighbor, or will it hold india accountable for actions that risk a wider catastrophe?
DETECTIVE COMICS
𓂃 ࣪˖༉‧₊˚.
SUPERMAN/CLARK KENT
the hero that needs rest. – one shot. fluff.
𓂃 ࣪˖༉‧₊˚.
BATFAMILY MASTERLIST
𓂃 ࣪˖༉‧₊˚.
THE QUESTION/VIC SAGE
Hi! I had this idea and thought you might be the perfect person to bring it to life: a Bucky Barnes x Reader fic where Reader finds an old journal of Bucky’s from his early post Winter Soldier recovery days. She reads it without meaning to at first, but what she finds inside is raw and heartbreaking. stuff he never talks about. Maybe they’ve been growing distant lately, and this gives her a look into just how much he’s been struggling. Would love if it ends with her wanting to comfort him but him not being ready to let her in yet. Quiet, emotional tension, please!
it starts with dust. not metaphorical, just actual dust.
you’re cleaning. or pretending to. rearranging the living room like that’s gonna fix the silence that’s been creeping in between you and bucky like fog under the door. you’ve been feeling it for weeks now. how he’s been moving quieter, speaking less, disappearing into rooms with the kind of stillness that makes it hard to follow. you don’t even remember the last time he touched you without pulling back like his hands burned after.
so, yeah. you’re cleaning. touching all his stuff like you’re trying to find a thread back to him. and then a book falls. black. beat up. spiral bound, barely hanging on. it looks like it’s been shoved there on purpose—stuffed behind old war books and a mug you’re pretty sure he stole from a hotel in zurich. you almost leave it. almost. but then you see the corner of a folded photo sticking out from between the pages. and your name, just a sliver of it, so you sit. floor cold against your legs, journal in your lap, breath a little too tight. you tell yourself you’re just gonna peek. just a glance.
but it’s not that simple. because the first thing you read feels like walking in on someone mid nightmare, mid prayer, mid– something holy and bleeding.
“it’s been 2,190 days since she stopped calling me asset. i still don’t feel like a person.”
the handwriting’s rough. not messy, just tired. you can feel it in the way the letters lean too hard in places, press too deep in others. like he needed to write it down or it would claw its way out some other way.
“i keep dreaming about the way the metal felt when it was first fused to me. like i was being welded shut.”
you shift. knees pulled up now. the room’s gone quiet in that specific way that makes you feel like the walls are listening.
“sometimes i think about running. not because i want to leave, but because i don’t want to rot here. it feels like i’m leaking poison into the lives of people who love me. like i’ll never stop being dangerous.”
you swallow. the last few months fall into place, a soft collapsing. all the nights he stood outside on the fire escape, just watching the sky. the mornings he’d say he was fine but his voice would crack on the i. the way he stopped playing music in the apartment. stopped sitting beside you on the couch. stopped falling asleep beside you, slowly replacing your shared bed with the cold of the guest room. your eyes burn but you keep reading.
“she touches me like i’m breakable. looks at me like i’m something to fix. i don’t know how to be held without feeling like an apology.”
you don’t even realize you’re crying until the page blurs. until the paper soaks a little beneath your fingertips. and you hate that he felt like this. that he couldn’t tell you. that you didn’t see it sooner. that he had to carve this into paper in the middle of the night instead of speaking it out loud to someone who would’ve dropped everything just to hold his face and remind him he's still here. still human. still loved.
there’s one more entry. dated a week ago.
“she asked if i wanted to go out tonight. i told her i was tired. the truth is, i didn’t want to be seen. some days i still feel like a weapon pretending to be a man. and i think if she ever looked too close, she'd see right through me.”
you close the journal. you sit with it in your lap for a long while. the kind of long that makes the afternoon light shift across the floor like slow, golden water. you don’t say anything when you hear the door open. keys hitting the bowl. footsteps slow.
he sees you before he says anything. standing in the doorway to the living room, hand still on the frame, like he’s not sure if he’s allowed in. his eyes drop to the journal in your hands. they stay there. his mouth twitches. not quite a flinch. not quite anything. "you read it," he says, voice low. not accusing. just… accepting. you nod. barely.
he closes his eyes. presses his lips together like he’s swallowing something sharp.
"i didn’t mean for you to see that."
“i know,” you say. voice softer than it’s ever been. “i didn’t mean to find it.”
the silence that follows isn’t empty. it’s full of everything you don’t say. everything he can’t. he walks past you. sits down on the edge of the couch, elbows on his knees, head in his hands. you want to go to him. every cell in your body wants to close the space. to curl up beside him and press your forehead to his shoulder and tell him he’s not too broken to be loved. not too sharp to be touched. but you don’t. you sit down a few feet away. not touching. not even looking directly at him. just… near. a presence. a quiet offering.
“i didn’t know,” you whisper.
his voice cracks when he says, “i didn’t want you to.”
and there it is. the heart of it. he’s not ready. maybe he never will be. but he’s here and so are you.
the room is dim now. soft golden light painting the walls. somewhere down the hall, a floorboard creaks as the house settles around you. the air smells like dust and the last bit of coffee he made this morning.
you don’t speak again. you just sit. two people in the quiet. the kind of quiet that aches and comforts at the same time. maybe this is love, too. not the easy parts. just the staying.
a/n: luv this req. i literally just need to hug him omg... also sorry this is terribly written i was almost blackout drunk when writing it