#this dude kept talking about how this is a problem between husband and wife like a lunatic as if that would excuse him from the violence
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khaopybara · 2 months ago
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❝I'm begging you, Pleng. Stay with me. I said let go.❞
SONYA SARANPHAT as PLENG SADABPIN and LOOKMHEE PUNYAPAT as WAN WANWIYA episode 4 of AFFAIR
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princesssarcastia · 9 months ago
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Alright, let's talk about Sarah Kazansky
Obviously, from a Doyalist perspective, she's Iceman's wife, and those kids running around out back are his grandkids, and the heteronormativity of it all is deeply boring and disgusting to me. You can't really make this movie after all this time and be unaware of the barely-under-tones in Iceman and Maverick's relationship in the original, and all the fan response to it over the years. The decision to give Iceman a wife and an unnamed number of offspring is a decisive way for them to try and shut down any discussion of a gay connection or relationship between Iceman and Maverick. And from that perspective, I hate it! Buncha fuckin' cowards. But then, we knew that already.
Luckily, I can sit over here with a bunch of Watsonian perspectives and rub my queer little hands all over this situation, which is how i've written like 20k+ words of fic about it in the last year
We know very, very little about Sarah Kazansky except:
She's happy/excited to see Maverick, and clearly cares about him
Maverick is happy excited to see Sarah, and clearly cares about her
Maverick can read her like a book, and knows without words or even that much time to look that her husband/his wingman is dying again and this time they can't stop it
We can also infer from this that she really loves Iceman, even if we never see them interact
That's it! And frankly we have all done so much more with so much less than that. Which I plan to keep doing.
Alright. Onward:
For Maverick to open the door and immediately be confronted with a sign that Ice is sick and imminently dying...oh, man. The pain on his face is exquisite.
Iceman is dying. He's dying! Soon!
But he doesn't want to talk about that. Genuine emotions about his own mortality? Maverick's genuine emotions about Iceman's mortality? Nah. Iceman isn't here to talk about that. He's here to solve all of Maverick's other emotional problems, instead.
Maverick gives in, because, you know, Iceman is dying.
And immediately pours out his entire fucking soul to Iceman until he starts crying.
"It's time to let go," Iceman says, to the man who has let go of exactly zero things ever, in his entire life. He's not wrong, but let's be realistic here, my dude, you don't have a lot of time left here.
The way that's also kind of the solution to the big elephant in the room they're Not Talking About....ugh. Yeah, I'm dying, yeah, it sucks, but by god I'm not gonna let you haunt yourself with my memory the way you did with your dad and with Goose. If you loved me let me go.
Maverick: "I don't know how." oh god. i'm crying. maverick is crying. iceman would probably be crying too if it wouldn't be so painful.
"The only reason I'm here is you." FUCK. Iceman spending an inordinate amount of time keeping Maverick in the navy, in the air—sure, it's because he thinks Maverick is helpful for the Navy, but let's be honest, the reason Iceman thinks Maverick is so helpful is because he loves him. He loves him so much.
Also the way Bradley is this gaping, bleeding wound for Maverick even after all this time? Fuck, that's his kid. He loves Bradley so much. Not that I don't enjoy slash fic as much as the next, but textually, That Is His Son And He Loves Him So Much. i wouldn't love this movie like I do without the very strong bonds of familial love running through it
that hug is imprinted in my fucking brain
As much as Iceman is here to try and solve Maverick's emotional problems, Maverick is here to help enable Iceman's. They're embracing for what might be the very last time! It's devastating! It's okay for this to be devastating!
But in order to be physically capable of letting him go, Iceman needs it to be not-devastating. He needs this to end on a high note, on an inside joke they've kept going for 30 years, that's only funny because of how much they don't mean it.
And Maverick indulges him. Because what else is there left to do, for the man who's defined his entire life as much as his son has?
Sobbing
alright. top gun maverick re-watch liveblog time
block 'liveblog' if you don't want it all over your dash for the next few hours <3
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sca-nerd · 3 years ago
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Matilda
Can we talk about Matilda of Canossa? She’s also known as Matilda of Tuscany, and she is one of my FAVORITE examples of how women kicked ass in the Middle Ages. So I’m going to talk about her for a second. The Iron Shield of the Papacy.
In her life, Matilda...
Inherited the House of Canossa and all of its land, money, and influence when her older brother and sister died.
Checked out of a marriage with her stepbrother and took herself off to another city ENTIRELY because she didn’t like the dude, and no one was going to make her stay.
When her husband tried to claim stuff that she had inherited, she went to the estate that her husband had, and managed to get them to declare it in HER name instead.
Hubby ended up being assassinated. It wasn’t her doing, but she also didn’t cry into any pillows over it. 
King Henry IV was her second cousin. She supported Pope Gregory VII and the reform that he wanted to do. This was a problem.
Henry IV and Pope Greg did NOT get along, and Pope Greg even excommunicated Hank and a bunch of Bishops for dragging Greg during a synod at Worms (yes, Worms).
Hank made a pilgrimage to Canossa where Greg was hanging with Matilda so that he could apologize, and Matilda made him wait outside in the snow for three days before he could see the Pope. Greg forgave Hank and welcomed him back to the Church.
Then excommunicated him again.
Hank and the Bishops tried to assassinate Greg, and Matilda’s armies were like NOPE.
Hank tried to claim some of her land was HIS to overlord, but she had been through this already and knew what to do. She gave it all to the Pope.
Hank was kind of mad about this and kept picking fights. She had a whole lot of victories, but not enough.
Matilda captured a Bishop during a battle. A whole ass Bishop. Like in chess.
Hank got overconfident and tried to siege Canossa, but failed and people began to question his manhood. Which is fair, because Matilda took the man’s eldest son AND his wife.
Hank’s oldest son, Conrad, and a bunch of German princes decided they liked Matilda better, and she helped him escape when his Dad imprisoned him and got him declared King of Italy and even arranged his marriage with the daughter of the King of Sicily.
Hank’s wife, that he had imprisoned in a Monastery, was able to escape with Matilda’s help and she even had her testify to the Council of Piacenza about what a jerk Hank was.
In her 40’s, Matilda entered a political marriage with a dude 25 years her junior (he was between 15 and 17), and they ended up separating because what could they possibly have in common?
With the help of the First Crusades, she was able to finally restore Pope Urban II to Rome.
People burned down a castle when they thought she had died, and then learned that she was still alive.
She is one of only six women buried in the Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City.
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oitommothetease · 3 years ago
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Invisible String (6/?)
Pairing:  Bucky Barnes x Female reader (Modern AU)
Description: James Buchanan Barnes, the owner of the most expensive-looking club in town and your new apartment. He was a dick and you hated him. What could possibly go wrong when you, the new girl in town, start bartending at his club to pursue your dreams?
Word Count: 2.1k words
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Bucky couldn't recall the last time he had a genuine conversation with someone who wasn't his best mates, Sam and Steve. He enjoyed your company and as much as he hated to let his guard down, he wanted to do just that with you. You were everything that Bucky thought he would find repulsive, but he couldn’t help but be attracted towards you. And for the first time he wanted more, he didn't want a one-night stand or a fling with you, he wanted to know you. He admired your courage and bravery, but mostly he admired you. You, with all your stupid yet funny jokes and spontaneity; he liked you more than he would like to admit.
But there was this thing that you were his employee and one meal doesn't count as a date. It was just a meal. But yet, Bucky wanted it to be more. He had never been so intrigued by another person, but it was also clear that you didn't reciprocate his interest. And Bucky would have all of his 206 bones crushed out rather than giving his heart to someone only for it to be not requited. 
So, when you walked into the club the next day, pretending as if nothing had changed, Bucky knew where your relationship lay with him, and he was content with it. Okay, he wasn't content with it, but he knew he couldn't force something that wasn't there. He would choose to be in your life as your boss, acquaintance, or maybe even a friend if he's lucky enough than to not be in your life at all. 
***
When you got settled behind the counter, your mood wasn't that great. It could be because you weren't drunk this time, or maybe because you enjoyed your meal with your boss a little too much for your liking. You wouldn't call it a date, but it sure as hell was a lot better than all the dates or meals you've had with people.
Your good mood was definitely not because of the fact that your mother called only to inform you that this family friend's son is not going to wait around long, and you should at least find a stable job if you can't find a suitable boyfriend. Then she started boasting about your sister and her amazing profession and how she and her husband save lives every day. And you might have had enough of her bullshit and lied that you indeed have a stable job and relationship. None of which is true. 
Bartending only pays the bills, and you haven't had a relationship in years and none of them were serious. You always ran away from any sort of commitment because you knew you would eventually have to introduce your partner to your family and nobody deserves to see that circus, and you told yourself that you're doing a favor to those previous partners by leaving them or as your friends like to call ghosting them. In your defense, dealing with you and your family is more horrific than any scary movie. 
Well, until now because tomorrow your sister and her family are coming to meet your partner and take you back to your parents' place for the weekend. The only problem is that you lied to them about your job and your partner. The worst part is that both of them are pretty non-existent.
"Hey, How are you feeling? " Peter asked you, noticing how you still weren't paying attention to the customer in front of you. 
“Great, not drunk, if that's what you're wondering.” 
“I'm fine," you retorted, glancing at the concerned look Peter was giving you. You quickly took the customer's order and proceeded to make the drink. 
"The last time you said you were fine, you threatened to kill a dude," Pietro interjected, enjoying the faux disbelief that landed on your face. You looked over to Wanda for help, but she just chuckled at her brother's antics.
The rest of the night at work went by as it usually did. Pietro making a sarcastic remark here and there, Wanda countering her brother with a snarky response, you were laughing your ass off watching the duo and Peter awkwardly tried to suppress his amusement. In a weird custom, these three coworkers were the only thing that felt normal. 
By the time you were done, it was mostly you left like always, with the addition of security guards that James added since Rumlow. You wanted to talk to him, especially after the wonderful not date you had, but the situation with him was not under your control anymore and it released from your grasp which scared the shit out of you. If James and you had met under different circumstances, then you would have tried to date him, but with him being your boss and the whole Rumlow thing made everything so complicated, and you didn't have time for any sort of relationship complication in your life. At least that's what you kept telling yourself.
When you were done with your shift and were about to leave, a very familiar voice called for you. You've been trying to ignore him all day and just when you thought you've succeeded, he catches up to you. 
The thing that scared you with James was that you felt safe, too safe with him. You were scared that you were going to become dependent on him for your security, and you hated that. You always despised women who weren't anything except their husband's wife, as if their whole identity was being a man's property. Furthermore, you knew the only thing to be blamed here was patriarchy and men, but you decided that you weren't going to be someone's property, you were going to be your own person. 
And you rebelled a lot to reach here, dyed your hair blue just because your mom told you not to, pursued your dream just because your dad told you to follow a secure nine to four job, left ex-partners because they told you what to and what not to wear. And some part of you knew that James wasn't like that. He wouldn't exploit you and your weaknesses. 
But what you didn't realize was that these were merely excuses that your brain mustered up because you were too scared to be dumped. A long time ago, you decided that it is better to leave than be left. And James — well, James made you feel things that you didn't want to chase. You feared commitment and abandonment too much to go after a guy. 
Your thoughts were brought to a halt when he held your wrist gently and called your name again. Reluctantly, you turned around, pretending to be surprised as if you didn't see him. 
He obviously caught on to you. "Why are you ignoring me?" 
"What?" You scoffed in feign disbelief, taking your hand away from his grasp and setting it on his shoulder. "Why would I ignore you, bud?"
Bud? What the fuck? , both of you thought at the same time.
Carefully, he eyed your hand and then you, "Okay, come on, I'll drop you home."
"No, James, it's fine, I can go on my own." 
"Yes, yes, you are an independent, strong woman but come on," He teased, but you didn't seem to pick up the glint of mischief in his eyes. 
You heard that as a taunt, a taunt your father has told you an ample number of times, that you indeed can never be anything on your own if you don't have a man beside you. While you were lost in your thoughts, James was moving towards his car, assuming that you were following him.
 "But I am," you argued. 
Your voice sounded distant to him, he turned around and walked towards you. "You are what?" 
"I am strong and independent."
"Yes, you are," he agreed as a matter of factly because it was the truth. He had never met someone so strong who would leave behind their whole life to pursue their dreams. He, being the mob boss, and filthy rich couldn't do the same, and he may not tell you this, but he admired you so much. 
Once you got the assurance you needed, you started walking towards his car. "Are you coming or not?" and he followed you. 
Of course, you knew you were strong, but your life had not been going as smoothly as you anticipated. You're stuck in writer's block, your family interference and lack of trust in you hurts like a bitch. You were somewhat crushing on your boss, and you blurted random embarrassing stuff in front of him without thinking. You know, normal crush things. 
When you reached the apartment, he insisted on dropping you to your floor. The car ride was spent in peaceful silence, but the time spent in the elevator was everything but that. No, the fifteen seconds were spent in James fidgeting beside you because he wanted to say something but didn't know how to. 
After you unlocked your door, he finally spoke up. "Um, I was just wondering whether, you know, - I had fun last night and I don't have smooth conversations with people - um, I don't know, I'd like to go out with you again," he didn't finish, but your eyebrows shot up to your forehead and he quickly backpedaled. " Not as a date, if that's what you want. It could be a meal shared between you and your boss. Not that I'm implying that you are obligated to go with me just because I'm your boss. I'm asking this as a stranger, well, not as a stranger but as a friend, I think."
"James,” you spoke softly, and he could feel the denial coming his way.” I had fun too, but you're my boss. This is highly unprofessional."
He signed in defeat and looked at you one last time. There was so much he wanted to say, he wanted to tell you that he enjoyed your company more than he should. He wanted to tell you that he liked you. He wanted to tell you that he wanted to see where this thing would lead with you, but he knew better than that. At the end of the day, you were his employee and if you were to get involved with him in any form, it would only end in your tarnished reputation. So, he nodded, not trusting himself enough to speak much after the clear rejection. "I understand."
"Y/N! “
Both of you turned towards the source of the voice and frowned. He frowned because he was confused, whereas you, oh, you weren't confused, you were furious at the person standing there and at yourself for forgetting about their arrival.
 "Hi, Carol. I thought you were coming tomorrow," you stated, faking a smile, and everyone in the area could see your distressed attempt at looking excited.
 Well, everyone except your sister because she shrieked with happiness and ran towards you to throw her arms around you. Her husband followed behind and gave you and James an awkward smile.
 "I just couldn't wait to meet my baby sister and we'll take you guys back for the weekend."
You guys, James and you thought at the same time. James looked at the side of your face for an explanation, and you kept looking forward at your sister, avoiding his gaze.
Fuck, you forgot about that. How can you forget about that? You mentally cursed yourself and didn't say anything because you didn't know what to do. 
Your sister picked your silence as her cue to talk and pointed her index finger at James, who was standing beside you now. "Is this him?"
Your sister looked at you, expecting an answer, your brother-in-law looked at you with something called, please hurry up, I just want to go back to the hotel. James looked at you with bewilderment. 
You sighed and took your boss's hand in yours, who also happens to be the most dangerous person in the town. He complied, holding on to you tightly, running his thumb on the back of your hand in a soothing manner. It felt like the most obvious thing as if your hand was made to be held by him. The thought sent a pleasant shiver down your spine, but you were too stubborn to accept it.
"Yes," you finalized. "This is James, my boyfriend."
TAGS: @bananapipedreams @akkinda10 @rivers-rambles21 @emmabarnes @goodcleanfunsis @valsworldofcreativity @boofy1998 @marvel-3407​ @priii​
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ragnarssons · 2 years ago
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PERJURY. Possibly multiple counts too?! And yet there are still people who think she's telling the gospel truth 🤦‍♀️
I mean, just at the top of my head, let's make a list of everything Amber Heard lied about that are just simply out there: - the posters on her walls?? cuz her mother sure tells a different story - maybe even her father being an abuser cuz, it's just out now and even on the stand she either talks about it or don't?? - anything where she states that her father is a good person, since yknow, the dude is a known animal abuser and runs dog fighting rings (idc it's a personal judgement here, but if you run illegal dog fighting rings, you're a garbage human being and i hope dogs eat you one day) - her dogs being smuggled into Australia - donating money to charities, including dying children - "i have been a good wife" or whatever, cuz you know, cheating on your husband while he's on the other side of the world, with several people in his own penthouse isn't being a good wife - lied about not doing cocaine ever and not having any problem with alcohol when we have proof that she did cocaine (and more drugs) and when she's VERY DRUNK in several of the audio tapes that were admitted to court - not to mention, a shitton of pictures of her with bottles of wine on her own social medias account - obviously lied about using Milani's councealer during her marriage, since it wasn't even created while she was with JD. - lying about Arnica (and not Amica) cuz it doesn't fix a broken nose within 24hours or less (actually it doesn't fix broken noses at all) - "i was not sick during coachella" when her own "bff" testifies that she threw up during the entirety of coachella because she was so drunk and full of drugs - "i didn't even own a car when i was with jd!" vs "i was financially independant during the entirety of this marriage" like it's either one or the other yknow... - "the cop who arrested me for domestic violence in 2009 was homophobic" *shrugs* cue that same cop being a lesbian, openly pro-lgbt activist, but whatevs - her fake activism for BLM when it was trendy By the way, there is no "possible" multiple counts, it's A FACT. It's out there, just by reading the disparities between the UK file and the VA file. Or between the 2016 file, the 2020 file in UK and the 2022 file from today. These DO NOT add up. The stories in it kept changing. Over and over again, for six years. She has FOUR different accounts, told ON THE STAND of how Johnny Depp lost his finger. Like?? And that's without mentioning all the things she said, then her sorry ass loser freeloaders friends said differently. She can't keep up with her own lies, so keeping up with her friends (ex-friends) lies is even harder, yknow!
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blackmissfrizzle · 4 years ago
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Wild Child
Characters: Miguel Galindo x black!reader
Summary: Miguel can’t control his free spirited wife.
Warnings: Its filthy. I tried to put some plot in it but its barely there lol.
WC: 4.1K
A/N: I hit a couple of birds with this one stone. First its a request from @darlingcherrybomb-Can I have 11 & 15 w/ Miguel Galindo plz??? thank you :) and this is also my submission for my 2K Follower Celebration and Bad Bitch Challenge. The song I’m using is Hood Rat Shit. Also shoutout to @starrynite7114​ for indulging me!
Prompts are bolded
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When Miguel Galindo started dating you no one really batted an eye. They simply thought the businessman/cartel boss was going through a mid-life crisis and wanted some young pretty thing on his arm. But when he slipped that engagement ring on your finger and made an honest woman out of you, everyone had questions. You were Santo Padre’s resident wild child.
If it wasn’t the Mayans causing trouble, then it was you. Growing up the Reyes family was your next-door neighbors and that instantly made EZ and Angel your best friends. Even as a child Angel was charismatic and that easily made you look up to him. Everything he did, you tried to do. That earned you the nickname, Angelita. If you could’ve joined the club, you would’ve.
So how you ended up married to Miguel was a mystery. Sure, you cleaned up nice and despite your wild ways you had a respectable job, but you still were considered as riff raff, nothing but a damn troublemaker.
Where everyone saw a crazy party girl, Miguel saw an independent uninhibited woman. Someone unafraid to speak their mind and can hold their own in this cutthroat world. Someone who could handle all of him. Someone who humbled him and made him enjoy the simpler things in life.
Although, he loved you, you were a fucking headache. Your free spirit didn’t sit well with the confines of his lifestyle. Any chance you got you ditched the bodyguards. Upscale lounges? Nah, you loved the dive bars. There’s a Mayans party? You’re there. Dress like you’re a powerful businessman’s wife? Nope can do. You were allergic to designer and preferred jeans and leggings.  Being driven around town? No thank you, you were a speed demon. As you and your friends love to say, “You’re ain’t nothing but a hoodrat hoodrat, hoochie mama.”
Like tonight, he specifically told you he didn’t want you hanging out at the clubhouse because he heard some rumblings of trouble with another MC. But of course, you didn’t listen. It was EZ’s patch party and you were gonna celebrate with your boys.
“Run me my money, Medina!” You folded your hand in the ‘gimme’ motion.
“Aren’t you already rich?” He asked, slapping the twenties in your hand.
Angel busted out laughing and nudged Medina with his shoulder. “We told you not to play her. I told you she’s vicious. Don’t ever fall for the puppy dog eyes.”
Everyone joined in at Medina’s lost. At this point most Mayans in the Santo Padre charter and other charters knew not to play pool with you or at least not to underestimate you, so finding someone not privy to to your skills was delightful.
Throughout the night, your goal was to set EZ up with Gabby and not just for a one-night stand. He desperately needed someone else to focus on instead of Emily. Currently, you were outside at a table with your crew: Coco, Gilly, EZ, and Angel.
“Just go talk to her.” You urged your best friend.
“Yeah, for some crazy ass reason she likes you.” Angel slapped the back of his brother’s head.
Tracing your finger along his arm, you pointed out the evidence. “It’s this damn vein that always making an appearance.”
Coco sat back in amazement. “That shit really turn y’all on? Simple stuff like that? One time I had a chick obsessed with my fingers. She got turned on whenever I held a cig. I thought she was into some freaky ass shit.” The whole table erupted into laughter. For Coco to be so experienced, he was clueless.
Taking his hand in yours, you began tracing his fingers and inspecting. “Oh ok, I see you Coco Cruz. These shits are veiny, long, and thick as fuck. Yeah, homegirl was obsessed!”
“But why, chiquita?” Coco flicked you on the nose.
“Do you not finger bitches, Cruz? These are prefect candidates for fingering. Like dude, when I see, Miguel’s fingers wrapped around a glass, I get all wet and tingly inside.”
If you were paying attention, then you would’ve noticed how quiet all the guys gotten. It wasn’t until Coco slyly slipped his hand out of your grasp that you felt a presence. “He’s behind me, isn’t he?”
“Yup, Angelita!” Angel hooked his arm around your neck and ruffled your hair. A gesture that didn’t bother Miguel. He understood the familial dynamic you had with the Reyes brothers.
“Hey babe!” You smiled at him like you didn’t just disobeyed him by showing up at this party.
Miguel gave you a small smirk. It was his way of telling you he was pissed off, but he wasn’t going to show it in front of company. “Sweetheart,” he kissed you on top of your head. “I’m going to talk to Obispo and then we’re leaving.” His tone told you there was no room for arguments.
Miguel left you to go to talk to Bishop and give you some time to tell your friends goodbye. Marcus stood by you as he watched boss leave. “Angelita, do you ever stay out of trouble?” He patted your back and kissed your temple.
You held your chin as if you were in deep thought. “Mmm, nope. Its too much fun not to.”
“We should’ve nicknamed you little Diabla.” Gilly joked.
“Screw you, Gilly!”
“No, that’s your husband’s job and by the way you’ll be walking like Bambi for the next week will be proof enough.” You slapped Angel upside the head, but the only further his laughing. They all loved to tease you when you got in trouble with Miguel.
You didn’t have time to quip back, because Miguel came back done with his conversation with Bishop and from the looks of it, Bishop got some bad news. Hopefully, none of it had anything to do with you.
When you got in the car the partition was already rolled up, a big red flag that you were in trouble. “Sooooo, what did you talk to Bishop about? He looked upset.”
Miguel cut his eyes to you before he looked back out the window. “That other MC was on the way to the clubhouse to shoot up the place. I handled it when I was on the way. Just dumb luck we stumbled onto them.”
“Wowwww,” you blew a raspberry and widen your eyes as saucers. You hated when he was right, it knocked down all your objections. “Lucky that you were on the way then, huh?” You gave him a nervous smile and scratched the back of your head.
“Lucky?” He repeated the word with venom. “You could’ve died!”
“But I didn’t!”
“You disobeyed me!”
It was true, you didn’t listen, but everything worked out in the end. “I know but-”
One of Miguel’s hand grasped your throat hard enough to make breathing a little harder, but not enough to hurt you. He pressed his face against to the side of yours, harshly breathing against your ear. “No buts- you deliberately disobeyed me and if it wasn’t for me coming to get your bratty ass, you would’ve been dead!”
“Miguel, I’m sorry.”
With his other hand, Miguel shoved his hand down your pants. “Oh, you’re about to be sorry, mi vida. I’ll show you what these fingers can do.” His fingers pushed your panties to the side and explored all your wetness. “Shit! You’re loving this, you dirty little slut. I bet if I wanted to, you’d let me finger you in front of all your little Mayan friends.”
You began riding his fingers as he fucked into you. It was too much not to move. Miguel was an expert in your pleasure and knew how to set you off in minutes if that’s what he wanted, and it appeared he wanted you to suffer. “Miguel, pleaseeeeee.” You pleaded with him, grabbing onto his wrist for support.
“Hmm, please what, querida?” He licked the side of your face then pulled your earlobe in between his teeth. “Dime que quieres. (Tell me what you want.)”
“I want to cum. Please Miguel.” You pecked at his lips giving him the chance to devour your lips. “If you want to cum, you’re gonna have to do it yourself.” Miguel murmured against your lips.
Miguel kept his fingers still as you rolled your hips. It wasn’t the same as him pumping his fingers in and out, but you knew there was one way you could get him to participate once again. Keeping your eyes on Miguel, you wet your fingers and let them find your clit. Not even one rub in and Miguel had his hand around your wrist. “Who told you that you could touch what’s mine?”
You bent down and whispered by his ear. “If it was yours, I would be cumming by now.”
Miguel growled and began furiously fingering you and rubbing your clit with his thumb. “Fucking brat! I better not hear any crying from you tonight talking about its too much. You’re taking everything I’m giving you.”
He wasn’t taking it easy on you anymore. Miguel pumped into you as fast as he could while suckling kisses along your shoulder up to his neck. “Te amo, mi vida. But if you ever do something that stupid again, I won’t have any problems locking your ass up.”
Your lips met Miguel’s for a searing kiss. “I love you too, Miguel.”
Taking some of your hair, Miguel moved it to the other side and kissed your neck. “Now cum all over my fingers.”
Your body immediately responded to Miguel’s command, making you leak onto the seat. That sight almost made Miguel unhinged, but he contained himself. The things he had planned for you couldn’t be executed in the back of a car. So, he allowed you to rest until you got back home, where he could teach you a lesson or two about obedience.
--
The thing about certain lessons with you was that they weren’t long-lasting. There was something that always drew you back to your rebellious ways. Tonight, was girl’s night and you were on your way out the door when you heard Miguel’s voice. “Go change.”
You stopped in your tracks and looked back at your husband sitting with Marcus and Nestor. “Excuse me?” Nestor rubbed his hand over his face and Marcus lowly chuckled. Looks like it was about to be an interesting night in the Galindo household.
Miguel put down the report he was reading and focused his eyes on you. “I said go change, mi amor.”
You knew this was a risqué outfit, but you thought if you walked fast enough, Miguel wouldn’t notice. “What’s wrong with this?” You asked, pretending like you damn well didn’t know what was wrong.
The chair scraped against the floor as Miguel backed out of the chair. He surrounded you as a predator inspecting his prey. A lion chomping at the bits to get to his meal. “You are not wearing that out. I will rip it off you. Now go change or you won’t see your friends until the next girls’ night.” He pulled the strap of your top, letting it slap against your skin. As you turned to go up the stairs, Miguel smacked your ass for his victory. It wasn’t very often that he easily won your compliance.
When you came back down, Miguel was much more appeased with your outfit. A simple flowy black tank top replaced the corset bodysuit you had on earlier. He genuinely wished you a good time as you left. Miguel knew that with a couple of drinks in you, you would be primed for some nasty sex later. Little did he know that you had your original top in your purse and had plans to ditch the bodyguards.
A little later that night, Miguel, Nestor, and Marcus went out to a restaurant to take a break from the tedious work. Nestor excused himself from the table when he got a call from the security team. Miguel flagged the waitress down when he saw Nestor pinched the bridge of his nose. It was the same thing he did when he heard you were up to no good. “She ditched the bodyguards?”
Nestor pulled out his phone to show Miguel a video. “Yeah and is having the time of her life.” Miguel grimaced as he fixed his suit jacket. “Let’s go get my wife before I have to fill my church pew.”
The lounge you and your girls went to was nice at first, but after the first round of expensive watered-down drinks all of you were ready to go. Especially, since the music wasn’t danceable to. It was $2 everything at one of your old haunts, so that’s where you went. They had the best mix of current and old hits, having everyone vibing.
With all the drinks being $2 and very strong, you were easily drunk enough not to have a care in the world. Unsurprisingly though you were the most coherent (drinking with bikers would do that to you). So, you knew that you shouldn’t have gotten on top of the bar, but you couldn’t give one flying fuck. What was Miguel gonna do? Put you on his church pew? Please, one bash of these eyelashes and you’d be out of trouble.
The dj began playing a set of Megan thee Stallion and you were in your zone. You and your friends were providing entertainment as y’all screamed the lyrics out.
I want to do it ‘cause it’s fun
It’s fun to bad things
(Hood rat shit)
Drive into a car (Ahh)
Didi you know you could perhaps kill somebody?
(Mwah)
Yes, but I wanted to do hood rat stuff with my friends.
Instantly, you and your friends got into your Megan squats and twerked just like the song told y’all. Its been so long since you did it that you almost got scared that your knees would buckle.
Hood rat shit (Huh) with my hood rat friends
(Ayy)
Everywhere we go (Ayy) we be drinking Hen
(Ayy)
Shake that ass, shake that ass, bitch, bounce that shit (Ayy, yeah)
If you weren’t so caught up, you would’ve felt the air in the room change. You would’ve felt the oxygen leave the room, making it harder to breath. You would’ve stopped making random people drive the boat while they had a great view of your cleavage due to your corset bodysuit that you secretly changed back into.
It wasn’t until you felt that overwhelming presence that you noticed your husband next to you. He rested his elbow on the bar and held his chin in his hand smiling up at you. “Oh, hi honey. Funny seeing you here.” You greeted him. Miguel couldn’t reach your hand, so he started rubbing on your ankle. “No, its funny seeing you here in that,” he nodded at your corset. “What happened to your other shirt?” There was no good answer, so instead you bent down and rapped the lyrics to Miguel, playfully having your fingers in his face.
You ain’t from my hood (Huh)
What you doing round here? (Hey)
Asking all them questions (Huh)
You must be the Feds (Ayy)
Better get from round here
Before you wind up dead (Yeah)
The corner of Miguel’s mouth quirked up as he patiently waited for the song to be over. Despite how mad he was, he enjoyed seeing you have fun with just the simple things. And it wasn’t from youthfulness, but from a good heart. That’s what made him love you. The only things you needed was your friends, family, and good times, and you reminded him that was important.  
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“Terminada?”
“Yup,” you took his offered hand and jumped down from the bar. He draped your leather jacket over your shoulders and zipped it up. “Really?” Your eyes dipped down to your chest. Miguel cupped your cheek before he kissed it. “Yes, really. Now let’s leave before I have to shoot someone for ogling you too long.” Quickly, you exited the bar. There was no need for anyone to die because of you.
On the way back to your house, Miguel didn’t reveal how pissed he was. He just kept a possessive hand on your denim clad thigh and discussed his plans for the week. He didn’t go into gory detail, but just enough to prepare you for how busy he would be. That was practically a warning. With him being pissed about your activities tonight and pair that with his busy schedule, let’s just say your glad you’ve been focused on your flexibility and stamina.
Finally, at home, the both of you told Nestor and Marcus good night. You headed for your room, but Miguel gripped the back of your neck tightly and steered you to the playroom down the hall. Miguel specifically used this room when he planned to fuck you for hours. Dear lord, this was gonna be a long night.
You knew better than to speak as he sets up the room. Standing stark still you watched as he lit candles, turned on the fairy lights, and set the LED lights a mix of blue and purple. Miguel loved how the blue hue reflected off your brown skin. It highlighted every single thing he loved about you.
When he was finished setting the ambiance, Miguel circled around you until he was standing directly behind you. He said nothing as his hands went to the button of your jeans. His warm breath caressed your neck like a hug, his hands setting fire to your skin as he pulled down your jeans.
A yelp escaped your lips when you felt Miguel’s teeth scrape against your ass. Done with what you were for sure knew were gonna leave marks, Miguel ran his nose along your ass until he reached the crook of your neck. He dug his fingers into your ass while his teeth dug into your shoulder. The pain was welcoming, making you quiver all over.
“Hands behind your back.” Miguel ordered. Soon, you felt the cuffs around your wrists and then the sensation was felt around your ankles as well. “Stay here.” He whispered against your ear.
You watched Miguel swagger to what you called the ‘sex couch’, it was curved to accommodate your bodies, specifically for adult activities. He sat down, legs all wide and inviting while he loosened his collar. Crooking his fingers, he told you to come here.
The heels you were wearing made you the perfect height that Miguel’s face was directly at your navel. He pressed a light kiss there, then he reached up to your shoulders to push you down on your knees.
Unzipping his pants, he pulled out his cock and you were instantly hypnotized. Honestly, Miguel should just whip it out all the time when he wants you to do something. You’ll listen to him…momentarily.
“Aren’t you gonna take off your clothes?” You inquired.
Miguel wrapped his hand around your hair. “No, at least one of us needs to know how to dress. Now, suck my dick. It ain’t gonna suck itself.” Out of nowhere, he pulled out a cigar, lit it and began smoking it, his way of dismissing you.
There was no way you were gonna tease him. From the tension in his body you knew he would snap at any moment. Your mouth engulfed his length, only getting a couple of bobs in until Miguel roughly pushed your head into his crotch and pummeling your mouth with his cock. All of him took up the room in your throat, but it didn’t bother you. You loved that it was you making those moans come out of Miguel’s mouth.
He granted you a little reprieve and let you up for some air. He took one more puff of his cigar before putting it out. His hands went to your corset to pull your breasts out and for a moment he fondles them with interest until he slapped them and twisted the nipples. “Dressed like a fucking whore! Letting everyone see your tits. I should’ve fucked you right on that bar. No one would’ve stopped me.” Miguel’s hand was now around your throat and he pulled you towards his face. “Would you have let me fucked you there? Hmm, be my little whore?”
“Yes daddy! Whatever you want to do to me, you can.”
His other hand found your hair again. “Huh, you’re giving me permission? I know I can do whatever the fuck I want to you because you’re mines. The only one who seems not know this is you. Can’t follow simple fucking instructions. Is it that hard to listen to me?”
“No.”
“Then why don’t you listen?”
The brat in you just had to jump out, you smiled up at him like a madwoman before responding. “Because it’s fun and I enjoy doing hood rat shit.”
Miguel finally snapped. With unknown strength he ripped your bodysuit off your body and threw you onto your stomach on the couch, securing your ankle cuffs to the locks on the couch. Miguel didn’t bother to take off his clothes, you could feel the fabric of his Armani slacks as he pushed into you.
Even though it was about Miguel’s pleasure, it was about yours as well. Every one of his thrust got you closer to your end, but you wanted more. You wanted to touch your husband, you wanted your lips to leave the same marks he was leaving, you wanted to look him in the eye as he called you a slut, whore, and everything in between. “Daddy turn me around. I want to look at you.” You pleaded.
Miguel hips stuttered a bit, he couldn’t believe what his ears just heard. Leaning forward, his clothed chest was against your naked back. “Did you just give me an order? You think you can just get what you want?”
He couldn’t see your doe eyes, but he could hear the sickeningly sweet babied tone you use on him whenever you want something. “Yes, because I’m your baby girl.”
“Be careful what you wish for, baby girl.” Miguel flipped you over, his hand flew to your throat as he thrusted into you. He loved how you tightened around him when his hand found its permeant place on your neck. “So, fucking responsive to me. Tell me how much you love this cock.”
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“I love it so much, daddy. I wish you could be in me every minute of the day” you gasped in between thrusts.
Miguel hovered over you and smoothed your hair. “How sweet, kitten.” He mocked you, then spat in your mouth and smeared it over your face, before shoving four of his fingers in your mouth. He chuckled at how your eyes widen. “What? I thought you wanted to look at me?”
You tried to say something, but your words were muffled by his fingers. “Hmm, what was that whore?” Miguel took his fingers out so he could hear you clearly. “Can I cum, daddy? Pretty please.”
Miguel couldn’t deny you anymore. “Since you asked so nicely, you can.” His thumb reached for you clit and rubbed on it until your legs were shaking and your eyes were rolling to the back of your head, but Miguel wanted your eyes on him. He grabbed the back of your neck and rested your forehead on his. “Look at me when you cum!” Once your eyes connected, Miguel reached his own orgasm and coated your walls with white hot cum.
In an instant, Miguel released the cuffs and carried you to the bed while giving you reassuring kisses and declarations of love. Despite your protests, he left to go get the both of you some water and towels to clean up. While he was gone you reached out for your phone that Miguel conveniently placed for you.
You: Sorry, guys I won’t be able to make it to our ride tomorrow. Raincheck?
Angel: I told y’all! I knew Galindo was gonna fuck her up for that outfit.
Coco: Damn! He broke you off that bad?
You: No, he broke me off that good!
Gilly: EARMUFFS!
You: Blame Dumbass #1 and Dumbass #2. Now am I gonna get a raincheck?
EZ: Yes, you will, Angelita. GN.
Knowing that the guys weren’t going to be mad at the fact that you weren’t going tomorrow, you silenced your phone, ignoring whatever argument they would no doubt get into. Instead you waited for your husband to return to continue breaking you off for the rest of the night.
Tagging: @starrynite7114​ @marvelmaree​ @thickemadame​ @woahitslucyylu​ @ifoundmyhappythought​ @chaneajoyyy​ @angrythingstarlight​ @sadeyesgf​ @teakturn​ @dearsamcrobae​ @strawberrywritings​
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wiypt-writes · 4 years ago
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Riding High
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Chapter 12- ILY
Chapter Summary: Its Christmas…and we reach the end of a stressful year for Frank…but as he looks back he realises, it ain’t all been that bad.
Chapter Warnings: Bad Language words. Talks of SMUT but nothing major
Chapter Pairings:  Frank Adler x OFC Fliss Gallagher
Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Fliss Gallagher and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.
Riding High Masterlist // Main Masterlist
Chapter 11
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Frank looked up as Fliss walked into her parent’s kitchen and his mouth dropped open. She was dressed in a gorgeous long legged strapless jumpsuit along which the neckline was embellished with lace flowers which spread down the sheer sleeves. Her long hair was styled in loose curls and she’d done something to her make up that made her cheek bones stand out even more. Her eyelids were adorned with a deep green that shimmered and made her dark eyes pop and she had a clear gloss on her plump lips. Fuck, she looked stunning. But as he watched, he saw her face fall and she bit her lip.
“Is it…is it not ok?” She asked shyly “I can change…I mean…”
“Don’t you dare.” He said sternly, stepping forward, his hands falling to her hips “Honey, you look amazing.”
Her face lit up and she smiled at him, shyly “I wasn’t sure how posh to go or…”
“Lissy…” He chuckled “Stop it.”
“Sorry.” She wrinkled her nose as she stepped back slightly and looked him up and down, taking in his dark jeans, boots and light denim button down. “You look pretty good too Sailor.” she smiled, running her hands up his chest to his shoulder and he noticed then she was also wearing her Pandora. He smiled back, his eyes also spotting that her neck was bare and then had the perfect idea for a final Christmas Gift he had been struggling to come up with. With a soft smile he leaned down, taking in that she was slightly taller than usual thanks to her heels and he pressed a gentle kiss to her mouth.
“Get a room…” Bill shot as he walked into the kitchen, Mary in tow.
“Bore off.” Fliss shot back, looking at her dad as he sent her a grin before he did a double take.
“Wow, you look cracking Titch.”
“Thanks” she smiled
“You ready to go?”
“Sure you don’t mind dropping us?” Frank turned to look at Bill “It’s no problem to get a cab.”
“It’s no bother at all, besides, I need to collect the Thai anyway.” Bill waved him off.
“You’re getting Thai?” Frank raised an eyebrow and glanced at Mary “Funny that just so happens to be your favourite…”
She shrugged “Verity asked what I wanted for dinner.”
Frank sighed and looked at Bill “You spoil her.”
Bill shrugged “And?”
Frank rolled his eyes a soft smile playing on his face. The way that Bill and Verity had welcomed Mary, and him for that matter, into their lives still amazed him. Whilst he and Fliss had only been officially together four weeks or so now, they’d opened their doors to him the day they had met pretty much back in August and he was eternally grateful. Mary got a sense of family, something he had wanted her to have all her life. It had even been brought up at the Court Hearing earlier that week where the paperwork had been signed awarding him legal guardianship status, the woman from the Child services department commenting in the court room that Mary had been gushing about Bill, Verity and Fliss, and seemed extremely settled.
Frank was simply relieved all of it was more or less over.
The last two weeks had been stressful as Greg had been handling the main discussions with the state for him and when they’d sat down one night to go over the notes for the settlement they had proposed, Greg told Frank that 2 major conditions would be set. Firstly that he found a home to allow Mary a room of her own and secondly that she was given access to a higher, more challenging form of education. After a bit of discussion with Mary, who had insisted she didn’t want to go to a posh school, Greg had done a little research into previous cases and come up with a suggestion that Child Services agreed with. They would provide a scholarship grant that would allow Mary to attend a number of University classes a few days a week and then her normal school the rest. It was a middle ground, giving Mary the mental stimulation she needed but also allowing her to be a normal kid. It was agreed she would return to normal school when term started in January and the arrangements would be made with the University to start there when their term picked up the middle of the same month. Frank had insisted that she wouldn’t be taking any exams or anything like that, just doing the work, keeping herself occupied. The judge had accepted the proposal, giving Frank 6 months to find alternative living arrangements, and had then awarded the Guardianship temporarily with the instruction it be awarded permanently upon a review in 6 months. So whilst not 100% complete, it was almost there, and Frank knew that as long as he did what they said, there would be no problem. The other good thing was nothing had legally been awarded to Evelyn, after she had remained completely absent from the proceedings. Which meant that if she did reach out, Frank would have total control over where and how often contact took place. Which suited him fine as he could ensure it was on Mary’s terms completely.
“Hey…you ok?” Fliss asked, rubbing his arm. He jerked round, realising he had been completely elsewhere and gave her a smile.
“Yeah, sorry, was just thinking.”
“Did it hurt?” Mary asked and Frank shot her a look as Fliss and Bill laughed as Mary left with the drink she had come in to the kitchen for.
Frank followed her into the living room as she perched on the large sofa next to Verity, the pair of them looking at something on the laptop.
“Behave.” Frank looked at Mary. “Go to bed when V and Bill tell you, no back chat or arguing…”
She saluted him and V looked up smiling. “Stop fussing Frank, she’s never any trouble.”
Frank nodded and then headed out to Bill’s Range Rover catching Fliss up.
“You do realise she’s gonna be up until midnight, pigging out on junk and watching movies right?” Fliss said as he reached her side, looping an arm round her waist.
“Yup.” Frank said “But she’s staying over there and not in the Annex, which means she’ll wake them up at stupid AM in the morning after no sleep and not us so I don’t much care…”
A little while later Frank guided her into Bongos Beach Bar and over to a booth at the far side. Fliss smiled as she recognised Greg, and Frank introduced her to his wife Zara, then his friend Jake and his fiancée Lisa. Finally she smiled at Simon who then excused himself heading off to meet his date at the door.
“Date?” Frank raised an eyebrow
“Yeah he’s been seeing her for about three weeks.” Zara supplied “He invited her tonight…”
“Huh, must be serious.” Frank mused and Jake looked at him.
“Could say the same about you.” He teased and Frank shoved him on the shoulder.
“Prick.”
Jake laughed and then raised his hand “They’re here now.”
Frank turned to see Simon making his way over towards them with a familiar brunette in tow.
Oh for fucks sake…
“Bonnie…” Fliss smiled at her as the woman stilled when she saw her and Frank.  
“You know each other?” Simon asked, frowning slightly.
“Yeah, errr…” Frank began, wondering how the hell he was going to get out of this when Fliss spoke up.
“Bonnie is, was, still is I suppose, Mary’s teacher.”
Bonnie shot her a grateful look and Fliss simply smiled as Simon made a noise of comprehension.
"I should have twigged!” Simon smiled, as they all took a seat at the booth. Zara handed out a few glasses of prosecco from the bottle that sat on the table to Bonnie and Fliss who both thanked her, the men grabbing a beer from the bucket.
“Thank you.” Frank whispered into Fliss’ ear as she turned to look at him. “I didn’t know he was seeing her, or that she was gonna be here, I promise…”
Fliss frowned and shrugged “It’s fine.” she said, almost as if she was puzzled as to why he was apologising. The confusion on his face must have shown as she smiled and lay her hand on his knee. “Frank, I don’t have a problem with Bonnie. I still think it was a stupid thing to do but…” she shrugged.
He smiled at her and dropped a kiss to her cheek. “You’re fucking amazing you know that?”
“Yep…” she popped the p, grinning at him as she took a drink from her champagne glass.
Fliss kept up with the conversation, but she soon realised that as nice as they were, Zara and Lisa were just not her type of people. With both their husbands having well paid jobs, as a lawyer and a bank manager, both were stay at home mums with a lot of money to spend and time on their hands. Plus they clearly spent a lot of time together so a lot of the chatter they made between themselves, leaving Fliss to simply listen.
At one point she glanced at Bonnie who was sat, nervously twisting her fingers together before she excused herself and headed over to the bathroom. Fliss gave it a few seconds before she too did the same, Frank moving so she could squeeze past him, hands falling to her hips as she went.
“Hey…” Fliss looked at Bonnie who was stood leaning on a sink. “You ok?”
“Yeah, I err, well, I don’t know about you but I feel a little out of place. I mean they’re nice enough but…“
"Kinda feels like we’re outsiders.” Fliss nodded finishing the sentence for her.
Bonnie snorted “I feel like they’re judging me a little. Like I’m a teacher…who has to work, and it’s not a great job…”
“Dude, I shovel shit for a living and Frank’s a grease monkey.” Fliss shot causing Bonnie to snort. “It’s not that at all, they’re just friends and we’re…well…”
 “Strangers…” Bonnie nodded.
“Exactly.” Fliss shrugged “Trust me, I’ve done the whole awkward social circle thing before, this…well, this is actually kinda nice in comparison. I met some real ass hats when I was with my ex. These guys are ok”
Bonnie smiled and then she grinned cheekily "Wanna go do tequila?”
“Fuck, yes.” Fliss nodded and they left the bathroom giggling, heading straight to the bar. Bonnie placed her order and slid a note over the bar as they both settled on a stool. Fliss glanced round to the booth where Frank was sat talking to the rest of his friends before she turned back to Bonnie who slid her a shot over. Without a word they both had their salt, downed the shot, then bit into the lemon, both grimacing and laughing as Fliss ordered another two and asked Bonnie what long drink she wanted. Turns out she was also a gin and tonic woman.
“I’m glad you and Frank ended up together.” Bonnie smiled at her. “It’s nice.”
“Thanks.” Fliss grinned. “Kinda crept up on me a little, you know? I wasn’t looking for anything but...”
“I’m glad me and him didn’t ruin it.” Bonnie said gently “That entire night was a huge mistake…I could tell the day after he regretted it.”
Fliss shrugged “Well we all do dumb shit.”
“Say that again.” Bonnie mumbled as their second shots arrived along with their gin.
“You know when he told me he’d told you it was a mistake I went mad at him.” Fliss snorted “I mean, talk about a shitty thing to say.”
“Oh that’s not the half of it, he-…” Bonnie trailed off and shook her head as she took a drink of her gin. “Forget it, doesn’t matter.”
“What?” Fliss pressed.
“Nope.” Bonnie shook her head firmly.
“You can’t just say that and not tell me!“ Fliss whined as Bonnie downed her shot, before she sighed
“He called me by your name, twice.”
Fliss choked on her gin, her eyes wide “What, when you…”
Bonnie nodded.
“Ok, so I feel like I should be apologising…” Fliss snorted, “Not sure what for but…” Bonnie chuckled as Fliss shook her head and continued “How did you not rip his cock off…I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m very glad you didn’t but…”
Bonnie laughed loudly as Fliss sprinkled more salt onto her hand “It’s not a big deal, he was mortified when I told him.”
“So he should be…” Fliss shook her head, as she picked up her tequila.
She turned to look at Frank who was now looking round the bar, questioningly. He spotted her at the bar and raised an eyebrow and she met him with a look of her own. “I’m dating an ass hole.” she said, turning back to Bonnie “He’s cute though.”
There was a pause before they both laughed, and Bonnie gestured to the empty glasses. Fliss shrugged and Bonnie, with a grin, ordered another 2 shots.
****
 “So, how’s the new job Frank?” Simon looked at him and Frank smiled, taking a pull from his bottle.
“I don’t start until January.” he swallowed his drink, “But yeah, looking forward to it. Full time wage, benefits…what’s not to like?”
“And a boss.” Greg said, and Frank laughed.
“Well, be kinda nice not to have to think about where the next job is coming from.” he shrugged, “I still get to do what I enjoy but less stress…”
Greg, Simon and Jake all exchanged a look which Frank didn’t miss. He gave a sigh. “What?”
“Nothing…”  Jake smirked “Just watching you finally growing up is bringing a tear to my eye. I mean, you brought a girl to our Christmas gathering, the first one ever…in the history of the Circle of Truth holding Christmas gatherings…”
“Yeah, I imagine this is what it’s like waving your kid off to university.” Simon nodded.
Frank raised his middle finger at them all, causing them to laugh.
“We’re only joking.” Simon winked at him. “In all seriousness, it’s nice to see.”
Frank shook his head “You make it sounds like I’m some kind of utter disaster case…”
They all paused and once again looked at each other. “Oh fuck you.” Frank snorted as they all laughed again.
Anyone seen the ladies?” Greg looiked around suddenly.
“Oh, I think Zara and Lisa are on the dance floor…” Jake nodded.
 Frank glanced round the bar, looking and saw that indeed they were but there was no sign of Fliss. Or Bonnie for that matter. Fliss had gone to the bathroom a while back but surely it couldn’t be that long to pee, even if you were a girl.
“Oh, looks like our girls are getting on…” Simon jerked his head to the bar. Frank turned in his seat and glanced over and saw Fliss laugh at something Bonnie said, before she licked a line of salt off her hand, downed the shot, and bit into the lemon. He couldn’t decide if he was relieved or a little weirded out at how cool Fliss was around the woman he’d almost ruined his chances with her over, but as he watched her cutting loose, talking to Bonnie, the two women locked in a very friendly exchange he felt his chest warm. Fliss had openly admitted to him not long back she was a little lonely, her own friends being in England and the ones she had in Boston, well, they’d not really been her friends, more his. He supposed it was nice to see her with someone like that, even if it as one of his one night conquests. As he watched Fliss spluttered on her drink and looked at Bonnie, another exchange was had before Fliss picked up her next tequila and looked at him. He raised a questioning eyebrow but all she did was smirk and turn back to Bonnie. With a slight shrug he turned to Simon.
“Wanna join em?”
Simon nodded “Yeah, why not.
They excused themselves from the booth and headed over. Fliss smiled as Frank slid an arm round her waist and dropped a kiss to her neck, before Simon grinned and nodded as he added another 2 tequilas to their order.
Several more shots and gins later Fliss was drunk. So was Frank. Which was the reason the two of them had ended up on the outside beach dancefloor, dancing to some random Christmas shit. It was also the reason Frank’s denim button down was now un-done revealing his white sleeveless which he had on underneath, giving Fliss a perfect view of that collar bone tattoo she loved so much. It hadn’t surprised her in the slightest when he had explained where the words were from, being a man of philosophy and all that. She also loved the reason behind his Taurus tattoo, it being Mary’s zodiac sign. Basically her sailor underneath all his bravado was a huge sentimental sap. A huge, sentimental sap whose hands were once again now cupping her ass as they swayed together to the music. Fliss had long given up reaching around to restore them to the bottom of her back and simply smirked to herself slightly as she looked round the dancefloor and out across the dark ocean
“Still not right.” she murmured.
“What?”
“This…” she made an elaborate gesture with her arm and hit a guy next to her. “Whoops…sorry.” she grimaced as Frank snorted, the guy simply shrugged and carried on his way. “I mean…no snow at Christmas…”
“Yeah but, you’re outside, on a Christmas dancefloor, on the beach” he shrugged “I mean it’s kinda cool…”
“Suppose…” she shrugged, and then she paused, and Frank watched as a gorgeous grin spread across her face whilst she cocked her head to the music. It had just morphed into Fairy Tale of New York and she let out a whoop “I fucking love this one!”
There was a loud cheer from someone and suddenly the two of them were squashed together as Simon and Bonnie appeared, followed by the rest of the group and they found themselves in a circle,  arms tangled around shoulders, the girls singing the girls part and the boys singing the boys part. At one point someone dressed as Santa muscled into the middle of the group, simply giving a loud cheer before he exited and moved elsewhere, causing Fliss to snort hysterically, hanging onto Frank’s arm as she did. As the song ended, everyone belting out the last line the group descended into giggles and Frank just watched his girl. Her cheeks were flushed, hair was slightly frizzier now thanks to the humid outdoor air and she was absolutely the wrong side of wasted but god did he love that woman.
Oh.
He loved her.
Frank Adler, one time self-proclaimed bachelor, king of the Friday night fucks was in love. When did that happen?
As he watched her lean in and say something to Greg who burst out laughing he realised he couldn’t pin point it. It had crept up on him, like a slow burn, a deep fire in the very core of his belly. And damned did that fire feel hot.
Frank reached for his girl and pulled her away from Greg. She stumbled slightly into his arms and she looked up at him, giggling a little and he cut her off with a deep kiss. And before he could stop himself, he blurted it out, right there in the middle of a temporary beach dancefloor
“I love you.”
 If anyone else in the group had heard they were tactful enough to all turn away, pretending not to, but there’s no way they could have missed Fliss when she pulled back, a look of shock on her face which morphed into a grin and she pointed at Frank
“Youuuu loooooveeee meeee!” she sang and Frank felt himself blush.
“Yeah, do you hafta announce it to the entire of South Pass?” his Boston accent dripped off his tongue.
“Youuuu loooooooveeee meeee!” she said again and he groaned, pulling her closer. She leaned up so she could whisper into his ear, and damned the touch of her lips against his ear aroused him far more than was appropriate for the middle of a public dance floor.
“Wanna know a secret Sailor?” she asked. He turned his head to look at her and she smirked at him “I love you too.”
Well fuck.
Despite the fact they were both trashed, they both knew this wasn’t just a heat of the moment thing. Both felt it, both knew that whatever it was they had was different, special, a part of them now and Frank felt himself mimicking the stupid smile on her face. He leaned down to kiss her again, and her hands tangled into his hair, the feel of her delicate nails on his scalp sent hot pokers to his belly and his already half growing arousal was, well, aroused even more.
“And that’s even though you’re an asshole who calls someone else’s name during sex.” she pulled away. With a groan Frank hung his head as her arms linked around his neck, his hands locking behind her back.
“You know about that?” He asked with a little hiccup. “She told you?”
“Yup.” Fliss narrowed her eyes “And FYI you do that to me I’ll cut your balls off and feed them to Thor.”
“Harsh but fair.” Frank conceded after a short pause.  She grinned and leaned up to kiss him again before she pulled away.
“Can we go now ‘cause I’m kinda horny.”
Ok, so Drunk Fliss was another Fliss to add to his list of favourite Flisses. Along with Sassy, shy, stern, sleepy, just fucked, just woken up…basically all the Flisses
“Nope.” He teased “I’m good here.”
“Really?” She asked, pressing closer to him, tilting a little and he grunted as her hip bone pressed into his groin “Sure about that?”
“Yup.” He managed to squeak out.
“That must be a spanner in your pocket then. Or a screwdriver, or some other form of pointy tool…” She was hardly able to finish the sentence she was laughing that much.
“Yeah, those…damned pointy tools…” He shook his head as he leaned down to kiss her. It was sloppy, open mouthed, full of tongue and absolutely filthy and left the pair of them in a bit of a daze. Frank pulled away and looked around, taking a deep breath “Ok, we can go now.”
Somehow they made it home in one piece. It took Fliss three attempts to get the key in the lock, the pair of them giggling like a couple of school kids, before she finally managed it and Frank leaned over and pushed the door open. Fliss stumbled slightly and Frank caught her, laughing.
“Shhh” He said.
“What for?” She asked, kicking off her shoes.
He paused for a moment and then shrugged “Actually I don’t know…”
“Idiot…” She sniggered, pushing his undone shirt down his arms before pulling at the bottom of his sleeveless underneath. He moved so she could pull it over his head and as her fingers started to undo the button at the top of his jeans he reached round and gently found the zipper on her jumpsuit, sliding it down, his fingers gently skimming her back as they backed to the couch. Fliss fell over the arm with a thud, Frank following, before the momentum tripped him and he rolled onto the floor, pulling her with him, landing with a thud on his back. She fell on top of him, her elbow catching him in the ribs and he gave a loud huff, before she laughed and leaned over kissing him. His hands tangled into her hair, keeping her head angled perfectly, the kiss searing, leaving them breathless. Fliss pulled back and he brushed her hair back with both his hands, smiling softly at her.
“I meant what I said you know.” He looked at her
“Remind me again what that was.” She teased.
“I…” he leaned up and pecked her lips “love…” another peck “you.”
“Tell me when you’re sober.” she sassed back and gave a squeal as he whipped her over so she was on her back on the rug by the coffee table, framed between his strong arms and legs.
“In vino veritas.” He quipped and she propped herself up on her elbows, the front of her jumpsuit fell forward slightly and Frank blatantly stole a look down it at her lacy strapless bra, giving a groan.
 “Yeah, and in vino a load of non-sensitas too…” She grinned and he gave a snort, as he dipped his head.
“Shut up.” he mumbled, his lips pressing onto hers again.
 *****
 Frank groaned, blinking against the light that was streaming in through the crack in the curtains. Jesus Christ his head hurt. Rolling over he was met with a face full of hair and he blew it out of the way, smoothing down Fliss’s wild locks which were splayed all over the pillow. Gently sliding an arm under her neck he dropped the other one round her bare waist and pulled her into him, her back pressing to his chest as he snuggled close, screwing his eyes closed against the painful daylight.
“What year is it?” Fliss groaned and Frank chuckled slightly.
“Feeling rough, baby?”
“Rough?” She croaked “I feel like I have a smurf in my head with a pick axe. This is all your fault.”
“My fault?“
“Yes you let me drink tequila with Bonnie.”
“Ok, first off I didn’t know you were doing that until I saw you at the bar…”
“Yeah, and then you and Simon joined in…
“…and second off, you’re a grown ass woman. You make your own decisions.”
She groaned again and then stilled “Fuck, we had sex last night…”
“Wow.” Frank laughed. “Way to ruin my pride, Sweetheart…”
“No I mean…” she shuffled onto her back and looked at him. “Did we…use…“
Franks eyes went wide. "Oh, erm…”
No, no they hadn’t… fuck, fuck, fuck.
“I mean, come on, surely, we’ll be fine right?” he asked, “I mean, one time…what are the chances of…”
“No, it’s not that I’m worried about.” she shook her head “I’m on the pill…I just..” she trailed of
Frank propped himself up on his elbow as he cottoned on to what she was saying “Are you being serious?” he snorted.
“Well I don’t know where you’ve been!” she shrugged indignantly “well, ok, maybe I know some of where you’ve been, but…”
Frank snorted and shook his head “What do you take me for?”
“An ex ho?” she shot back immediately.
He fell onto his back laughing “If you must know I’ve never had unprotected sex with a one night stand in my life. And the other week I went and got tested, just for you. And I’m clean so…”
“That’s so romantic. ” she grinned at him.
“Well I try.” he raised an eyebrow.
“Still love me?” she quipped and he turned his head to look at her.
“Fraid so.”
“Too bad.” she teased, shuffling over to him “Coz that means you’re stuck with me…”
“Oh no…” he said sarcastically as he turned onto his side, glancing down at her bare breasts “How will I ever cope?”
“Sure you’ll think of a way.” she arched an eyebrow before she suddenly went green. “Oh shit…” she mumbled, before she shot out of the bed and into the bathroom.
Frank listened to her barfing and snorted a laugh before he swung himself out of bed, glad to find his boxers on the floor by his feet. Although where the rest of his clothes where he had no idea. He knocked on the bathroom door.
“You ok?”
He heard the toilet flush and she emerged, wrapped in a robe and looked at him. “I’m never drinking tequila again. Ever.”
Frank had to hand it to his girl, despite her raging hangover she still managed to teach four classes of kids that day, and made it through to nine that evening before she completely crashed on the sofa, falling asleep as the three of them sat in the apartment living room watching The Grinch, Mary’s choice. As the film finished at little after ten, Mary, who was lounging on Frank’s lap looked over to where Fliss lay, her head resting on the other arm of the couch, her feet nestled under his thigh, and nudged Frank.
“I know.” He smiled softly “Leave her be.”
Mary grinned and reached up to run her hand through his beard “you love Fliss.”
He looked at her for a second, eyebrow raised “What makes you say that?”
 “Roberta.” she shrugged.
Frank snorted. “Well, she’s not wrong.”
“Did you tell her yet?” Mary looked at him.
“Yeah.”
“What did she say?”
“That she loves me too.”
Mary grinned “Lissy and Frank, sitting in a tree…”
He rolled his eyes as she chanted off the rest of the ridiculous rhyme and then looked at her. “You finished?”
“Yup.”
“Good, bed time.”
“Awww Frank….”
“No arguments. Bill told me what time you stayed up till last night.”
“Grass.” she narrowed her eyes.
“Yeah, you better believe it. Go on, wash your face, clean your teeth.”
“Shower?”
“Quit stalling Stack you had one when you got back from the stables…”
With a groan she pushed herself off his knee and he stood up as she headed into the bathroom. He pulled a fresh pair of pyjamas out of the clean pile of laundry he needed to sort that was on the chair at the back of the room and lay them on his bed before he moved over and knelt down by Fliss’ head.
“Honey,” he said gently, pushing her hair back off her face, “Lissy…“
She made a noise as she wrinkled her nose, and he smiled as she blinked and looked at him.
“Oh, shit. Sorry…” she yawned as she realised she’d fallen asleep. “What time is it?“
“Not too late.” He smiled “Just about to put Mary to bed. You staying here or…”
“Yeah if that’s okay?”
“Course it is.” he smiled and dropped a kiss to her lips before she sat up running her hand through her hair as she blinked, yawning again.
“Fuck I’m so tired.” She stood up, stretched and then smiled as Mary came back into the room. The girl shot Frank a filthy look and stalked past him into his room. “Ok, wow…”
“She doesn’t want to go to bed.” he shrugged, “moody little madam.”
Fliss laughed as she headed into the bathroom. Frank sat down on the sofa and a little while later, Mary emerged and shot straight for her bed.
“Can I at least read?” she looked at him.
“Ten minutes, tops, whilst I do the dishes…”
She grinned and he turned off the TV and headed into the kitchen, clearing away the remains of their takeaway, stowing the left overs in the fridge for lunch the day after.
In the bathroom Fliss was busy groaning to herself as she realised she’d come on. She knew she was due, but still, this was a pain in the ass. Sorting herself out, she washed her hands and walked into the kitchen. Frank looked up and raised his eyebrow, misinterpreting the look on her face.
“You been sick again?” he asked.
“No… ” She shook her head as she bit her lip. “Look, Frankie, I think I’m go home…”
“Why?” He frowned.
“I errr…” She flushed “I forgot…I…” she trailed off and his frown deepened as her hand moved instinctively to her stomach before a look of realisation crossed his features.
“Oh…” He nodded. “Well, ok, if you’re more comfortable going home then that’s up to you.” He dropped a kiss to her head and she looked at him, confusion flooding her brain.
“You don’t want me to go?”
“Why would I want you to go?” he frowned.
“Because…” she looked at him, unable to voice what she was getting at. Another memory flooded her mind, one of John screaming at her for the sheets being marked, she was jerked back to the here and now as Frank closed the distance between them, tipping her head up to look at him.
“Lissy, talk to me…”
“Sorry, I err…” she rubbed at her head “He used to make me sleep in a separate room.”
“Are you for real?” Frank blurted out, and she could see the anger flooding his system. “Seriously?”
She visibly recoiled a little at his tone and Frank cursed himself as she looked at him, eyes wide as she began to apologise.
 “Hey.” He said gently, reaching out to her. “Stop. You’ve nothing to be sorry for I shouldn’t have shouted I just….” He took a deep breath.
“That’s fucked up.”
She looked back up at him, her eyes now had a fierce spark. “You think that’s fucked up? When he was trying to get me pregnant, every month he’d stop me taking pain killers when I came on. Told me it was my own fault for not managing to conceive.”
“Jesus Liss…” Frank shook his head, as she shrugged, her head turning to the side. “Baby…”
“Don’t” she shrugged “I don’t wanna talk about it anymore.”
“Ok.” he nodded. “Look. If you wanna stay then it’s up to you. Whatever you wanna do.”
“I do.” She nodded, smiling softly.
“Good.” He dropped a kiss to her forehead before he moved away from her and reached over, filling the kettle.
“What are you doing?” She asked from behind him.
“Making you a tea.” He shrugged “Used to help Diane…”
“Thanks…” she smiled after a short pause.
“You got everything you need or you need to go the store?”
“I’m good. Ex Girl Scout, always prepared…”
Frank gave a laugh.
“Think I might take another shower though, if that’s…”
“You don’t need to ask.” He looked at her. “You’re my girlfried. I want you to feel like you’re at home when you’re here.”
At that she gave him a soft smile as she moved over and wrapped her arms round his waist, nuzzling into his chest. He gently rubbed at her back, before she leaned up, kissed him and headed out. The kettle boiled and he leaned on the side, dropping his head slightly. What kind of fucked up asshole did that to his own wife? To a wife he was supposed to love and protect no less. It broke his heart to think anyone could be so callous, so mentally and physically abusive to someone so soft, so gentle, so damned amazing….he looked up as he saw her making her way into the bathroom, bag in hand and she smiled at him, shutting the door.
Once he’d made them both a hot drink and grabbed the Advil, he made his way through to his room, placing one mug on the bedside table on the side he slept on and then another on the sill behind Fliss’ side and leaned on the doorframe, looking at Mary. She was still reading.
“Please just the end of this chapter.” she held up the Harry Potter book. Frank took a deep breath, then decided fuck it. She’d fall asleep at some point, there was no school.
“Lights off after that. I’ll be out to check.” he instructed as he dropped a kiss to her head. “Night Stack.”
“Night Frank.”
Back in his room he stripped off, tossing his t-shirt into the hamper before folding his jeans and dropping them on his dresser. He settled on the bed, stretching his legs out as he kicked the duvet down and flicked on the small TV, flipping through the channels looking for something to watch. Grinning when he found an episode of Family Guy, he turned the volume down low and had been watching for about five minutes when he heard Fliss talking to Mary who mentioned something about the book before he heard her bid her good night, and as Fliss opened the door he saw Mary’s light flip off.
He smiled at his girl who had her hair pulled back in a braid and was dressed in a pair of bed shorts and a tight camisole type top, her shoulders bare, long legs stretched as she dropped onto the bed besides him.
“You okay?” he asked, dropping a kiss to her shoulder as she reached round for the drink. She paused as she saw the Advil and then picked it up, smiling at him as she turned to face him.
“Yeah.” she assured him as he kissed the bridge of her nose. She tossed down two pain killers and sipped her drink, her legs bent in front of her as they sat in a comfortable silence, watching the TV, both laughing softly at the show. Eventually she placed the mug down and snuggled closer to him. He reached down for the duvet and pulled it up round their legs as her head lay on his chest, his arm falling round her, fingers lightly brushing down the back of her neck, shoulder and then up again. It was an action he knew she found comforting, and he was proven right as little over fifteen minutes later he looked down to find her fast asleep.
With a soft smile he turned off the TV and gently moved her so that they were both lay flat and she gave a soft hum of contentment and snuggled into him closer. With a yawn he pressed a kiss to her head and closed his eyes.
The rest of the two weeks remaining to Christmas was spent in a whirl of tree-decorating, paper-chain making, shopping and eating more crap than Fliss had thought humanly possible. Steve and his wife Sian arrived on the 22nd and Verity cooked a huge family dinner where Mary was introduced to their twin boys. Frank watched her with interest, they were both her age and he was pleasantly surprised to see she actually seemed to mingle with them quite well. Steve was also noticeably warmer towards him too, which was a relief, and Frank was more than happy to take him out for a beer with Bill one evening whilst the women stayed at home and wrapped presents whilst drinking copious amounts of champagne. A Gallagher tradition Frank was informed, a tradition he eagerly told Bill he could fully get on board with, especially when Fliss had offered to wrap Mary’s presents as well.
 By the time Christmas Eve rolled round Frank noticed that Fliss was ridiculously excited and was happy to admit it was because she was looking forward to spending it with him and her family. When Verity had invited him to join them for Christmas dinner he’d been reticent to accept at first, not because he didn’t want to, but because he didn’t want to put her out. When she’d told him she’d be more offended if he refused he’d relented and made the mistake of telling Mary who hadn’t let the subject drop for the last two weeks. Fliss joined them in their traditional Christmas Eve celebration with Roberta, where they exchanged gifts, Roberta made up with the chunky silver bangle Fliss had spotted in a shop and the photo frame which Mary had made one evening with Bill by glue-gunning sea shells onto a plain wooden one she had gotten from Target. Once they were done, they packed Fliss’ jeep up and headed off to the annex. After watching “Elf” in the cinema room with the rest of the family,  wearing her new Christmas Pyjamas (another Gallagher tradition that all the kids in the family got new ones to sleep in on Christmas Eve)  they three of them headed back over to the annex and Mary shot up to bed with no fuss at all, leaving Frank and Fliss to enjoy the rest of their evening which they spent making out like a pair of horny teenagers on the couch until they’d ended up fucking like a pair of horny teenagers on the couch too.
Christmas morning Fliss cracked open an eye and grinned as she sat up, listening to Mary who was calling from the spare room, before she started to sing We Wish You A Merry Christmas, which was punctuated by barks from Thor. Besides her Frank gave a groan and she nudged him.
“Wake up scrooge.”
“Fuck off.” he mumbled.
She laughed and nudged him again before she climbed out of bed, wearing his T-shirt and pulled a pair of denim shorts on “I reckon you got about two minutes before Mary barrels through the door…”
"Fucking Christmas…” Frank scoffed, but Fliss caught the smile on his face as he swung his legs out of bed and stretched, the muscles on his back rippling as he did so. Standing up Fliss watched as he moved, his ass looking pretty damned fine in his boxers as he headed to the bathroom, banging on the spare room door as he did. Fliss heard it fly open and a few minutes later Mary came shooting into her room and bounced on the bed, a half-eaten chocolate Santa in her hand which she had unwrapped from her Stocking. Thor followed, taking up position on the foot of the bed and Fliss hugged Mary, grinning. She loved Christmas, she always had done as a kid. Granted, it hadn’t always been fun with he-who-shall-not-be-named, but the last two since leaving him she’d gotten that childish excitement back, and today was no exception.
“So, I just stand here do I?” Frank asked as he leaned on the doorway, gesturing to the now full bed. Fliss grinned at him and shrugged.
“We’re not staying here.” Mary looked at him “We got presents to open downstairs…”
“Hmmm not sure we do.” Frank teased as he pulled a shirt from his bag in the corner of the room “I mean, does Santa know you’re here and not at the apartment?”
Mary rolled her eyes “I haven’t believed in Santa since I was five, Frank.”
“What?” Fliss looked horrified “I still believe and I’m like thirty three!” Mary gave her a scathing look. Fliss shrugged. “What can I say, I believe in Christmas magic”
“I did…” Mary shrugged “Until he didn’t bring me a puppy.”
“He doesn’t do live animals.” Fliss reasoned.
“Or a piano.”
“Too big to fit on the sleigh.”
“Or an algebra book I wanted.”
“Yeah, why the hell would he bring you maths books?” Fliss snorted “That’s school work.”
“I like it. "she shrugged, before she shoved the rest of her chocolate in her mouth and jumped up, bouncing on the bed. "Come on! Get up!”
Thor looked up giving a huff as Frank told her to stop bouncing. She flopped down and looked at him, folding her arms and Fliss laughed.
“Ok, let’s go!”
The two of them raced down the stairs, Frank following as Mary burst into the living room to see her presents piled by the sofa, and her eyes immediately went to the large wooden box which wasn’t wrapped that had her name painted on the side, and a large painted white pony on the top, resembling Monty. She moved to it and opened it, giving a squeal as she began to pull out the various grooming products that Fliss had bought her to make her own little pony box.  As Mary began to hastily rip the wrapping paper off the rest of the pile of gifts, Frank moved to the tree and pulled out two boxes. One large, one small.
“Merry Christmas baby girl.” he said, dropping a kiss to Fliss mouth. She grinned and sat down on the couch, opening the little box first. Inside was a silver necklace a pendant in the shape of a Daisy which Fliss beamed at.
“I love daisies!” she smiled at him “They remind me of home.”
“I know.” he smiled as she looked at it again before she moved to the next box. This was the one Frank was excited about. They’d cost him a small fortune but, turns out when you don’t spend every Friday night in Ferg’s you actually saved a fair bit of dough. Who knew?
“Oh my God…” she whispered as she cleared the paper away from the contents and glanced down at the tan Cowboy boots. She took a deep breath as she picked one out of the box to examine the detailing on the leather before her eyes widened as she saw her name ‘Lissy’ stitched on the top.
“Do you like them?” he asked softly, although he could tell from her reaction that was a stupid question.
“Frankie…” she looked at him with tears in her eyes, God this man really did listen to every damned word she said.  “I can’t…” she leaned over and gave him a kiss. “Thank you…”
He smiled as she slipped them on and stood up, giving Mary a twirl. There was something about her wearing them along with denim shorts that Frank wasn’t ashamed to admit he found a little arousing.
Frank laughed when he got his presents from Fliss, a new Paul Smith shirt, a Red Sox Cap and a new Samsung Smartphone as she informed him his Nokia had gone out of fashion in 2009. Which was before Mary was born, she pointed out. But it was the gifts they both got from Mary that surprised and reduced them to tears of laughter.
Fliss held up the cowboy hat, grinning from ear to ear as she slipped it on whilst Frank held the white Navy Captain’s hat up and shook his head. “Where on Earth did you get these?” he asked, laughing.
“Bill helped me.” Mary shrugged, looking up from where she was now jamming a pink Ariat baseball cap which she had just unwrapped on her head.
“Remind me to thank him later!” Frank rolled his eyes as Fliss snatched the hat from him and stuck it on his head.
“Mary, get in…” she patted Frank’s knee and Mary hopped up, as Fliss held her phone away from them, snapping a selfie of the three of them. Frank watched her as she smiled, inspecting it and he had to admit it was a pretty good snap. All of them were smiling, all wearing some form of head gear, and for the first time in as long time he realised he was enjoying Christmas morning because HE was having a good time, not just Mary. To him it normally meant a fuck load of expense and the fact another year was rapidly drawing to a close. But he was more than happy to draw a close on 2017. Not simply to shut the door on a mentally draining court fight, but also because he was looking forward to the future. He was starting a new job, would be in the market for a new home and moving through all of those changes with his girl by his side excited him instead of filling him with dread.
As Mary slid off his knee to examine another present he turned to Fliss who grinned, knocking his hat off his head.
“Merry Christmas cowgirl.” he grinned,
She smiled, leaning over to kiss him “Merry Christmas Sailor!”
**** One Shot- Whamaggeddon Chapter 13
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casmybelovedass · 4 years ago
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The Destiel Folder: Season 7
[Season 4; Season 5; Season 6]
This season is mostly Dean being a depressed bi who can't cope with his crush's death.
This is, in my opinion, the season where Dean actually starts realizing he might for real think of Cas as something more.
Episode 1:
Cas is basically gone, both Bobby and Sam (almost) are ready to compel to whatever he says, but Dean still tries to get him to come back. "You can turn this around. Please!" (3:13) Denial
Dean has no idea how to deal with God!Castiel, but desperate to find him, and getting emotional "I don't even know what book to hit for this." "Then figure it out!" (5:47) Anger
As we have said many times already, angels don't have a sex, Castiel is not a man, and as he states, he is "utterly indifferent to sexual orientation" (8:03), and so is Chuck, God himself, who has admitted having had both girlfriends and boyfriends.
Dean turns off the news the moment he hears a woman describe Cas as "young and sexy", while doing that jaw clentch thing of his (10:14) ... huh... [and this doesn't really matter, but after this we immediately see Dean in a purple flannel. PURPLE! Go Bi!Dean]
"He's not a guy, he's a God [...] Cas is never coming back. He's lied to us, he's used us, he's cracked your gourd like it was nothing. No more talk. We've spent enough on him." (11:09) Dean trying to jump to the 5th stage of grief. Yeah, no baby that's not how it works
Dean tries so hard to convince himself that Cas's gone so he can kill him, but can't really. "Just kill him now!" and struggles hard to hold Castiel's glare. And as soon as Death offers a second option to killing him, Dean takes it. Bargening
"Dean, look, I know you think Cas is gone." "That's because he is." (31:22) Again with trying to jump to acceptance. Not doing great, Dean. In fact, "Yeah, you know how I'm gonna deal? I'm gonna stuff my pie hole, I'm gonna drink, and I'm gonna watch some asian cartoon porn. And act like the world's about to explode, because it is." (32:17) There it is. Depression.
[Remember this: Dean has no shame in watching porn in front of his brother. Wait a few seasons and see]
Just moments earlier, Dean was all "That's not Cas, Cas is dead" and shit, and now he goes "What? You need something else?" worried-husband-mode the moment Cas asks for help (34:50). Also#MARRIED (35:16)
Bobby: "Where's Sam? It's go time." Dean: *looks back at Cas worried* (37:12)
MUST HELP HUSBAND (38:06) look at Dean's eyes!!! They're like 'It's okay, it's okay. You've got this.' "I'm sorry, Dean." Cas chose these words to be his last, thinking he was going to die. LOOK AT DEAN (38:21) ICWAW this would MEAN SOMETHING ELSE
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"CAS! [...] Is he breathing? ... Maybe angels don't need to breathe." says the one who was going around saying Cas was gone for good. "He's gone, Dean." "... damn it... *tears up* Cas, you child... Why didn't you listen to me." #MARRIED (39:15) Then he goes "CAS?!" as soon as he starts breathing again. ICWAW, we would SCREAM "LOVE" in this scene
"Imma find some way to redeem myself to you *looks at Dean straight in the eyes*" "*looks at Cas up and down*... Alright, well, one thing at the time, come on. Let's get you out of here." "I mean it, Dean." *eye love-making* "... Okay." (40:30) ICWAW, oooohhh, the meanings this scene would have...
Dean's face when the Leviathans tell him Cas is dead. Again. (41:18)
Episode 2:
Dean looking at the Leviathans occupying Cas' body. The HATE (1:44)
"... okay... so he's gone. *shakes while tearing up* [...] Dumb son of a bitch..." (5:14) Here we go again... I'm fine, shut up
Dean picks up, washes, folds and keeps Cas' coat (5:23) SWEET
"You just lost one of the best friends you've ever had." this hurts me. "... I'm fine, really." (12:11)
"You asked me how I was doing? Well, not good." (38:54)
Episode 5:
Dean progressively drinks more as his nightmares get worse and he misses Cas more and more. 3 times we see him drink, only in the first 12 minutes.
Sam can tell Dean feels like shit, and bet one of those reasons is Cas "Like it or not, the stuff you don't talk about, it doesn't just go away. It builds up." (39:33) Yeah, and not only problems or grief... even love
Episode 7:
Not a destiel moment, but Dean totally got hit on by the waiter. LOL (7:30)
And again. What is it with men in this town and Dean. "We're looking for a necklace." "Romantic. *looks at Dean*" (12:17). Is it an energy reading thing or something? Can they feel the bi energy?
"The Campbell brothers. [...] They weren't actually brothers. That was a cover for their, uhm... alternative life style." (22:40) Huh... I guess calling your lover "brother" runs in the family
"Ever since Cas... I'm having a hard time trusting anybody." (40:44) ouch
Episode 9:
Dean is drunk/high on Leviathan juice, and the first thing he thinks and blabbers about, is Cas (19:48) "I don't even care anymore." Oooohh ICWAW... the possibilities for this scene
Episode 12:
Dean totally checked out that man in uniform. FIGHT ME (16:27)
Episode 13:
"You're head's not in it, man. When Cas died, you were wobbly, but now-" "Now what!!" (39:35) as soon as Sam mentions Cas' death, Dean gets snappy
Episode 17:
Dean keeps getting snappy whenever Sam mentions Cas
"OH my God the love of my life is alive!" (13:02-13:06)
Dean's face when Daphne touches Cas (13:25), and when he calls her his wife (13:41)
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AND HIS FUCKING FACE TRYING NOT TO TEAR UP BECAUSE CAS DOESN'T REMEMBER ANYTHING ABOUT HIM (14:16)
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You mean to tell me that ICWAW this wouldn't be seen as a mini desperation moment from a man seeing his lover in this situation? Yeah, I don't think so
"What if you were some sort of... I don't know, bad guy." "I... I don't feel like a bad person." Dean's face is like "Damn right you aren't" (16:50)
"He betrayed you, this dude. He was your friend?" Dean looking at him... can't even answer the question (19:59)
Dean says Cas' betrayal is something he cant get over like everything else. And that he doesn't know why. "It doesn't matter why." "Of course it matters!" (20:25)
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Dean gets visibly uneasy about Meg being so close to Cas (25:34) jealous boyfriend is jealous
Dean doesn't want Cas to remember, afraid he'll leave again (32:18)
"I've known you for years!" (32:34) poor baby. Also "You're an angel." "Uhm, I'm sorry? Is that a flirtation?" DEAN'S FACE (32:42)
Dean doesn't want Cas to be hurt by his own memories and past actions (33:00)
"You used to fight together. Bestest friends, actually." Yeah, look at that reaction. Let's see how he reacts to being called his boyfriend later on (33:09)
#MARRIED!!! I'll just leave this. No comment (33:41)
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As Cas regains his memories, only 2 of the ones we see are not of Dean. And the only one we hear is the "I'm sorry, Dean." . That is what matters to Cas (and this looks like a slash video. Kudos to the editors) "I remember you... I remember everything." Yeah, no-homo save (34:35)
Not even an hour earlier, Dean was ranting about Cas betraying him, how he couldn't forget and forgive him, and now he is saying Cas did "the best you could at the time", but Cas actually feels guilt and doesn't want Dean to defend him, but Dean does anyway (36:53)
"We didn't part as friends, Dean." "*looks at Cas up and down*... So what?" "I deserved to die." the look on Dean's face (37:18)
Dean gives Cas his trench coat back. The trench coat he kept, folded and all the the truck, for weeks. And that's not even Baby. So he moved the coat, to always have it with him (37:26). I'm not crying, shut up
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Also, here, have a deleted scene that breaks my heart
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AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Episode 20:
Let us all appreciate that one time Dean helped a lesbian flirt with a dude (24:27-25:03)
Episode 21:
Dean is devastated about Cas' mental state, that he did that to himself to save Sam. Look at his eyes in this scene (16:08). Also, Dean still resents Cas for the whole 'New God' crap, but it feels like the real reason is the fact that he left (19:18)
"Cas! Don't make me pull this car over!" "Are you angry? Why are you angry? *puppy eyes*" "... No I-I'm..." #MARRIED (27:28)
Cas says he won't fight anymore, but as soon as Dean's in trouble, he FLIPS
"The angels... they don't care... I think maybe they don't have the equipment to care." (31:49) Touchy much, Dean?, are you trying to convince yourself about that? It feels like he's making excuses to not let himself feel anything for Cas. "It seems like when they try, it just... breaks them apart." ... OK, fuck everything, ICWAW this would totally be seen as romantic angsty reference to Cas
Cas is so lost in his guilt for what he has caused. He looks like a baby, and it gets worse when it comes to Dean
"Why should we give you anything? After everything you have taken from us? The very touch of you curropts. When Castiel first laid a hand on you in Hell, he was lost!" (36:50) okay damn, ICWAW all of this would seem as if they were talking about a love relationship between the two and you can't tell me otherwise
'HURT HUSBAND-MUST PROTECT MODE' (37:17)
"The bone of a righteous mortal and the blood of a fallen angel" ... shut up, I'm dying over these clues (39:11)
"What are you gonna do, Cas?" Dean's eyes are begging him to stay. ICWAW, we would point that out without a shadow of a doubt (39:40)
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Episode 23:
"Dude... on my car. He showed up naked... covered in bees!" ... come on, ICWAW this would be a HUGE deal (5:10)
"Go ask him. He was your boyfriend first." (8:51) LISTEN HERE. I study psychology, and one of the first things they teach you is that jokes are based on the truth. HOW MANY OF THESE JOKES WERE MADE?! HUH??!! (plus all the "Dick" jokes Sam made) Also Dean's reaction with the jaw clentch... just saying
Cas keeps stating he doesn't want to fight, but again, Dean's in trouble? FIGHT MODE
"*soft shoulder touch, puppy eyes, serves Dean a sandwich*" ... SOFT #MARRIED COUPLE (18:27)
"You got anything to say on the topic of dicks?" you'd like that, wouldn't you, Dean? (26:42)
Cas is afraid he will do something to cause Dean more trouble. Let's remember he chose what he believed were his last words to be "I'm sorry, Dean.", but as we know, Dean deals with feelings by showing anger... Cas gets upset and copes by playing twister... pathetic. "I can't help. [...] I destroyed everything and I will destroy everything again!" for a moment, Cas is lucid, and expresses his fear, but as soon as Dean gets angry with him, Cas gows back to hide in his world of crazy (26:47)
"I'm not good luck, Dean." "... You know what? [...] I'd rather have you. Cursed or not." Look at Cas' soft little smile as it grows. ICWAW, this would be read as another confession (32:38)
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"I'll go with you." SOFT
SEE??! The MOMENT Dick threatens Dean, Cas goes full Angel of the Lord on his ass. MUST PROTECT HUSBAND (36:52) and the utter shock on Dean's face is priceless
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And here comes PurGAYtory
[Season 8>>]
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razorblade180 · 4 years ago
Text
interdimensional dads 5 (Finale)
Orange, Blue, and Purple all make a drum roll on the table as they stare at Red, who is sipping coffee and trying not to laugh at the lunacy that is quite literally, himself.
Jaune: Y’all dome?
*drum roll stops*
Jaune:Yep, your turn. You have to be the buffest for a reason right?
Jaune:And look like you’ve seen shit?
Jaune:We’ve all been through shit. We’re us!
Jaune:Yeah, but you’re you.
Jaune:How- I’m not arguing with that one. Okay, my turn. Since you brought it up, we, I gained weight for a little bit and eventually got back into a workout routine. I might’ve went a little overboard but no one complains.
Jaune:Alright, now we can back this story up and start from wherever you like.
Jaune:Aight, I guess I start with my universe beating Salem. By that point, Ruby and I had been together for awhile. I think we were always together to a degree ever since RNJR formed. We obviously didn’t actually say anything but the time we spent felt different. At least for me it did. Maybe mourning Pyrrha had something to do with it but by the time Yang and Weiss showed up at Haven, Ruby and I were definitely on “friendly terms”
Jaune:Aaaaayyyyeeee!
Jaune:You two are too much. Haha, let him continue.
Jaune:We were trying to keep it lowkey but I’m sure everyone knew. Back to Salem, that was insane. If you were to tell me I’d help save the world when I was only 19 then I’d laugh.
Jaune:Wait...19? I was twenty.
Jaune:Same.
Jaune: I was 21! Are you saying Ruby beat Salem at 17!? That’s insane! Which one of us has the strongest versions of our friends? I never thought about it until now.
They all got silent and thought about it for a moment. That was a very good question.
Jaune:Ummm mysterious voice? Do you have an answer to that?
[Each person varies, but a majority is between Orange and Red. For example, Orange has the strongest Blake, while Red has the strongest Sun.]
Jaune:What about in terms of team RWBY?
[The feats in all universes make that a close race. Red, Orange, and Blue have extremely powerful Yangs that would most likely in a brutal draw. Collectively, the strongest team RWBY would be a tie between Red and Orange]
Jaune:Makes sense, my worlds peaceful.
Jaune:And mine doesn’t have any organized threat against it, just the dangers of living in a world trying to grasp the concept magic and gods again.
Jaune:Well we might not have a concrete answer but I’m sure my wife beats your Ruby. After beating Salem we continued traveling the world to thin out grimm threats, just the two of us. Not that the others didn’t want to but they needed a moment to breathe. Ruby and I however, we were kinda on a high of being the heroes we always dreamed of.
Jaune:Your victory lap was more adventure? Yeah you’re definitely built different from me. My Ruby went on missions but even she took a minute just to breathe. It was a very short minute, but the minute none the less.
[Comparing the two is like comparing an lone apex wolf to a jaguar.]
Jaune:Well then....all of that sounds scary.
Jaune:It wasn’t long before we got a house together. Built it actually, in Vacou. It’s a nice little spot over looking the town and another one in the distance. When Ruby was 19 she had really gotten into her stride and was only getting started. Also, I married her. I had known for awhile that she was the one so why wait? I wanted to go on all of her adventures and create new ones with her.
Jaune:Aaaaawwwww
Jaune:Things were like walking on sunshine. All of Remnant knew about Ruby Rose, the huntress that saved the world with her friends. Then at 21, I got her pregnant. *scratches head*
Jaune:I know that scratch. That’s the “My bad” scratch!
Jaune:Okay, it wasn’t exactly planned. I was thrilled when I found out since I did want kids with her. I learned a month after she knew though because she wasn’t sure what to think at first. Ruby was perfectly happy being the hero, she hadn’t even hit her prime yet technically. When she told me though, it was after she had talked about it with Tai and thought about it. I think she might’ve been happier than me.
Jaune:My Ruby would give anything to have a kid.
Jaune:Mine would give anything for her husband back...
The mood suddenly got a little less cheery with that statement.
Jaune:Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring the mood down.
Jaune:It’s fine...this next part....isn’t happy. It’s the reason I fell out of shape, and partly the reason why I look like I’ve gone through shit.
Jaune:Oh....no...
Jaune:You lost the baby?
Jaune:Yeah but uhhh, not the way you’re thinking. The pregnancy was fine, the birth was a little rough but it was fine. A little baby boy, Dustin Arc-Rose. I saw him for about five minutes and then he was stolen, by Neo and Cinder. I must’ve ran the fastest I’ve ever had that day. Faster than even Ruby can move on a good day, and yet they got away. Yang, Weiss, and I stood on the roof of that hospital and watched the airship fade into the sunset. I must’ve stayed up there for hours, screaming. Yang and Weiss kept it together for my sake but not by much.
Jaune:Dude I am....I am so sorry that you went through that.
Jaune:We showed mercy to Cinder the day we beat Salem. It came back to bite us. Things fell apart after that. I shutdown, the others felt guilty, especially Yang. As for Ruby, she broke a little. She looked longer than anyone else for a lead and drowned herself in work for about a year. In that time we didn’t talk, I never knew where she was, if she’d come back. Tai ended up taking me to live with him and unfortunately, time wasn’t gonna wait for anyone. Lives had to be lived, Yang and Blake still had to get married. It just didn’t happen with Ruby.
Jaune:How did you even find the strength to keep going after that?
Jaune:In my world, Yang is my closet friend. Thick as thieves, the two of us always try to pick each other up. She never hesitated to be by my sad whenever I asked. I don’t think I could’ve made it without her since Ruby was gone. One day however, the two of them showed up out of the blue. Ozpin had decided to confront Ruby. For once I was glad he meddling in our lives. He got her to start moving on and come back to me. That day I realized how special my friends are. Most people would’ve looked down on me for failing, not going after Ruby, breaking down, but not them. They wanted me back on my feet for my own sake. Just like they wanted for her. I’m really blessed.
Jaune:That’s good. Friendships that you want to live for, I’m glad we wall have that in common.
Jaune:Yeah. Ruby and I took some time to be together after that. No work, no leads, just healing. In that year she was gone, Ruby had become a juggernaut in the huntsman community. Even got a nickname, The Storyteller. Keeping up with someone like that meant getting back into shape. Those months we spent together gave us a slither of the joy we had missed. Eventually, thanks to Yang having her child, we found the courage to try having another one. Her name is Carmine and she’s my gorgeous daughter. We even have another son much later named Garnet.
The other three Jaune’s clap happily.
Jaune:Yeah, that’s definitely a lot of shit to go through.
Jaune:Hats off to ya.
Jaune:How’s Carmine?
Jaune:*puts head on the table* Uuuugggghhh!
Jaune:Yeah, that’s sound you make when you have a headstrong daughter. Who does she take after?
Jaune:That’s just it, she doesn’t really. Not in personality anyways. Carmine is a bit weird socially. She can be pretty blunt, making her sound rude. She doesn’t mind having friends but at the same time keeps them at arms reach. She says they would slow her down. Not to mention her and Ruby’s vision of what a huntress should be doesn’t match up perfectly so they end up butting heads on occasion. Still, Carmine is sweet if you know how to talk to her and understand her words.
Jaune:She gifted?
Jaune:*inhales*....Carmine is genius in battle. We taught her ourselves and sent her to regular school so she gained a bit of social skills. No one outside of selected few knows she has silver eyes. Carmine wears red contacts typically. New types of grimm pop up regularly so Cinder is obviously alive and well. Can’t be too careful.
Jaune:Sounds stressful. I’d rather deal with cult and my world’s grimm problem than Cinder. How old is Carmine?
Jaune: She’s 17 and more impressive than Ruby was at that age if I’m being honest. Though I’m not sure if that’s a good thing. We’ve done our best to give her a normal childhood as much as possible. I think what we gave was an odd mix of normal and insanity.
Jaune:Honestly, same.
Jaune:What do you mean Carmine is more impressive? Ruby was awesome since day zero at Beacon.
Jaune:Silver eye use, age five.
......
Red took a sip of his coffee while everyone tried to wrap that around their head.
Jaune:Since a young age, I knew Carmine was special. She has a difficult time showing up but she loves the Remnant we’re trying to build and the people in it that want to do good. I’ve seen her look out over cities before and I could feel the immense desire she had to preserve it. That girl has a strength I don’t think I could take credit for. That stern look, height, hair, and guitar skills though, That’s me. The tipsy of her hair are red though. She’s like a half ripe strawberry, hahaha.
Jaune:Sounds like an incredible girl. Must be pretty popular.
Jaune:If she could come off a bit nicer she would! I’d give up Pumpkin Pete’s for life if this kid could learn to work well with others. I’m glad people like her cousin and a couple of others that can deal with her. It’s not all bad. They know to bring out the normal teenager with her.
Jaune:Is she like Ruby and panics at rats?
Jaune:No, but she can’t deal with spiders. We have grimm spiders that are actually terrifying and that ruined normal spiders with her too.
Jaune:Grimm spiders? How big? A boot size?
Jaune:SUV....one spun her in a web. It was really bad.
Jaune:Fuuuuuuck that! I’d hate spiders too!
Jaune:Yeah but she has fun. Ballet, sleep, horses, etc. You just have to get her to work up to it.
Jaune:What about your son?
Jaune:Garnet? He’s five, has fat cheeks, and is probably eating some dry cereal right about now. He’s Ruby’s little teddy bear and is chillin. He’s probably the only thing that makes Carmine a big softie at the drop of a hat.
Jaune:Sounds like you’re doing pretty well for yourself? That’s good.
Jaune:We have struggles but we make things work somehow.
Jaune:I still can’t believe Cinder killed your kid. I don’t think I’d ever recover.
Jaune:Lost....we lost a kid. Killed wouldn’t be the right word. Dustin...just isn’t....it’s complicated. I don’t wanna talk about it.
Jaune:Sorry.
Jaune:It’s fine. That aside, I think most things life throws at us, we’ll handle just fine.
Jaune:What do you think Carmine is up to right now?
Jaune:Good question. I don’t think she’s on any mission or working with local authorities currently. If it’s morning then she’s in the garden. Playing with Garnet if it’s the afternoon so he’ll tired out. If it’s night time then.....
xxxx
“STAY AWAY!!!” A man screamed, shooting four bullets down a dark alley in the middle of the night. His target, a pair of shimmering red eyes that patiently stalked him from the shadows as he sprinted away. Each bullet seem to go right by his target so he continued running for his life, making a sharp right turn around a corner.
“You know eventually I’m going to catch you right?” Carmine said as she walked. “I’d rather you not make this longer than it has to be Tommy. We could be done by now if you just spoke to me.”
The only response the girl received was the sound of footsteps getting further away and a chain link fence being shook. Carmine sighed and looked around her before picking up a trash lid. She hurled it against a wall to her left and that was ahead in front of her, making it bounce off towards the right. The hunk of metal made its way around the corner with a whack! Followed by a heavy thump that hit the ground. Carmine continued walking until she turned the corner and found her target on the ground. He was rubbing his back in pain and groaning.
“Come on, I know I didn’t hit you that hard. The new head of crime orginization wouldn’t go down so-”
Suddenly the brute lunged at her, revealing a previously concealed dagger. Carmine was quick to react however, and grabbed his wrist before the blade could make contact with her exposed stomach. Carmine then twisted his hand down word and forced his entire arm slam down to the groun; the blade pierced the ground at her feet. Thick yellow liquid secreted from blade and soaked the ground.
Tommy felt his stomach dropped as he looked up to see the young girl staring down at him unimpressed. He went to reach for the knife but Carmine placed her boot on his hand, hard.
“Gah!”
“See? Now that’s what I was expecting. Too bad you’re not so good with knives. I guess you figured you didn’t have to be when it had Deathstalker venom in it huh? Now... let’s talk.”
Carmine rubbed her foot into the ground, causing Tommy to grit his teeth in pain.
“Stop!” He pleaded. “You’ll break it!”
“It won’t break if you talk fast enough. Tell me what I want to hear. A month ago you weren’t in charge. A tubby guy was and he always kept crates of his equipment in a warehouse outside of town. Then someone apparently shows up to have a meeting, tubby is enraged and kicks them out. Now he’s dead and you’re in charge, moving all of his stuff after you had a meeting. Are you getting the picture I’m painting?”
Tommy’s face goes pale. He starts struggling harder to free himself but it’s not working. Carmine can see the man start to sweat as if he got caught in the rain.
“Now I know what you’re thinking, if you tell me who obviously threatened you to move the crates, then they’ll kill you. But that’s the thing about the future Tommy...”
Carmine lifts her foot and swings it right into his face. She watches Tommy hold is face in pain before rolling him over and putting her knee on his back. Carmine grabs the knife and spooks him by stabbing it beside his face.
“It happens later. Focus on the present. Focus on what I could do to you right now and how to prevent that. Then you can think about your future.” Carmine said, not an ounce of playfulness in her voice.
“I....I....w-well I-”
“Before you try lying to me, I know how Deathstalker venom works. Only the babies are venomous and those are extremely hard to find here. Admittedly I don’t know you well but I know your men. They don’t have the patience or brains to find any here, because there aren’t many. So you either got the venom for this knife by being very diligent, going to a different continent, or someone got you the critters.”
Carmine leaned in close, barely away from his ear. “Or should I say made you some, instead of gathering them? Tommy, where is Cinder Fall?”
Tommy felt like he could vomit at any second. He couldn’t let intel leak. He sold his soul to a witch and now he has to live with it. “I....I can’t say.” He whispered, his lip trembling.
“I see. The fear is too much for you. Should’ve chose a different line of work. Maybe you’ll change your tune if you learn to fear me more?” Carmine grabbed the knife. “This won’t kill you but I doubt it’ll feel good either.”
Carmine lifted the knife and held is hand in place. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. She tried asking nicely. “Sorry....”
“CARMINE!” A loud voice echoed through the alleyways and made the people in it freeze. Tommy tilted his head up and got goosebumps. On the roof was a person everyone knew and criminals wish to avoid. Ruby Rose, he hadn’t seen her in person before. The woman’s cloak covered the area as she jumped down gracefully.
With no noise, her heels hit the ground and stood before the pinned man. Her piercing silver eyes borrowed into him and her long hair blew out of her face by the alley draft. Tommy’s back freed of Carmine’s knee and the young girl raised him to his feet. While Ruby’s expression was calm and oddly inviting, Carmine still looked at the man annoyed. Time was valuable and he was wasting hers. He might’ve escaped the knife but now he was stuck between two women that could all but erase him.
“Y...You’re Ruby Ro-”
“I had this under control by the way.” Carmine cut him off. “Don’t see why you intervened.
“You had him terrified and about to wet his pants. That’s a bit much don’t you think?” Ruby put her hands on her hips and shook her head. “No need to be so intense.”
Carmine mimicked her mother’s gesture. “And we care about the state of people like him why? Lackeys and gang bangers with too much ego have no right to be coddled when they’re rotting the city away from the underbelly. People like that might as well disappear.”
“Carmine that’s not how....” Ruby let out a long sigh and looked at Tommy. He was clearly trying his best to remain calm. “Sorry about her. You know teenagers, always intense in one way or another.” She let out an embarrassed chuckle.
Tommy flinched again when suddenly a burst of red petals spun around him. Next thing he knew, handcuffs were on him and his back was against the fence he tried to climb earlier. The pair of red and silver eyes stared him down from just out of the shadows. Yet he could still see Ruby’s more positive demeanor.
“I’m going to jail?” He groaned.
Ruby stepped towards him. “Depends, Tommy.” She reached out and grabbed his shoulder. “The thing is if you go to jail and I bring you in, Cinder will no doubt send someone to try and kill you. Truthfully, it’s not a bad outcome, for me. I’ll just attack your killer and get more info out of them then you most likely.”
“But...you’d stop them before they kill me, right?”
Ruby shrugged, “I can only go so fast. Who knows what could happen, Tommy. Can you take that chance, knowing you will be at the mercy of circumstances around you for gods know how long?”
“N...no” Tommy gulped.
“I mean I could let you run away right now like nothing happened, but any more meetings with Cinder would be absolute hell on your nerves because there’s no way you can keep this from her. What’s worse, you could fuck up and give us information accidentally overtime and then she’d really be mad because we’ll keep an eye on you as long as you’re doing things we don’t like; an unwilling pawn for both sides until someone knocks you off the board. How does that sound to you?” Ruby’s grip got a little tighter.
“Pr...Pretty bad-
“PRETTY BAD!?” Ruby shouted. “Tommy, you will not come out of this well. You’ll probably be dead within the month if I let you leave right now. So my question is what are you gonna do to save your own skin? Because I know what I would ask for in your situation.”
“What’s that?” He asked, almost desperate for his freedom
“I would spill my guts out to the hero because they would at least try to keep you safe if you behaved. Tell me what you know and I will personally take somewhere where you’ll have a fresh start with a new name, a new life that isn’t Illegal. You’ll still sleep with one eye open just to watch your own back but you also know there’s someone who is actively stopping the person who’d want you dead in the first place. Get off the chessboard Tommy. It sucks to be an expendable pawn.”
Tommy could feel her hand trembling. Was she...nervous? No, she was sympathetic. The way Ruby looked at him wasn’t to scare him. She was stating facts and didn’t want him being another statistic. This was the huntress everyone talked about. The one that gives lifelines and creates new endings where they shouldn’t be possible. The was Ruby Rose, the storyteller.
xxxx
Ruby holds up an envelope to the light before facing Carmine, the sound of waves rocking a boat behind them with Tommy in it. Ruby was a woman of her word. She’d take him somewhere safe.
“Here” she held out the envelop for Carmine. “Take it home, no need for me to lug it across the sea.” She waited for Carmine to say something, anything. The girl only nodded and took the thin piece of paper.
Carmine started to walk off but heard Ruby take a step towards her before stopping. She looked back to see her mother frowning, an expression they were both sharing. Ruby looked at her daughter with her emotions clear as day. It was weird to be eye level with her. Without heels, Ruby would be looking up. Carmine had gotten so big the last few years. It was hard not see her as still little.
“I...I know we don’t agree on certain things, and I also know you feel like I helicopter over you. I don’t do it because I don’t trust you or anything like that. Fact of the matter is...I’m your mother. If I can find a way to solve a problem without you doing something drastic, even if you’re willing to do it, then I’m gonna step in. Just because you’re willing to make the tough calls, doesn’t mean I won’t try to keep them away from you. They weigh people down and I don’t want that for you. You’re my daughter, I love you...”
Ruby always hated their fights. It’s why they don’t do missions together. No matter how strong Carmine is, she’ll always be Jaune and Ruby’s little girl. Truthfully, she didn’t hate it at all. Carmine hated arguing too, if not more.
“I get it mom, I do. Perhaps...I was a tad hasty tonight. Thanks for...showing up.” Carmine scratched her head in embarrassment. Since when did talking to her own mom get so rough. “I love you too.” There, she said it.
Ruby gave her daughter a gentle smile and opened her arms, hoping for a hug. She knew she might be getting a bit too mushy right now but unexpectedly, Carmine walked over and embraced it without question. Ruby wasn’t about to complain. Any affection was welcomed at all times when it came from Carmine. Ruby finally let her go and got one more look at her daughter. Time sure does fly.
“My beautiful girl. I saw the trash lid truck by the way, that was pretty badass.”
Carmine playfully rolled her eyes and opened the evelope. Ruby watched the girl read over the paper several times before handing it back. “Got it.”
Ruby’s eyebrows perked up in surprise. A shocked smile came soon after. “You’re-”
“Of course.” Carmine cut her off. She put her hands together and made a glowing red rose form between them. She placed the thing right behind her mother’s ear and smiled. “See you at home?”
“Yeah, I should be back before morning.”
“Good, I’ll have breakfast waiting for you then.” Ruby watch her daughter start to walk off before Carmine slowly blew away into red and yellowish rose petals.
“My oh my, that daughter of mine.” Ruby chuckled. “I can’t wait.”
xxxx
“Done.” Carmine said, rewriting the information down as she layed on the couch. On top of her was her adorable baby brother, fast asleep like he should be. She reached for a candle that lit the room and blew it out. All in all, not a bad night in the slightest. One step closer to their goal. One step closer to the end.
Part 4
Wanna start Rosebud < Part one is a click away.
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meetmeinthematinee · 4 years ago
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Anything But Red: Serve and Service Part 2  John Wick x Fem!Reader
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A/N: A ridiculously long time ago I got a request from @cynic-spirit​ for a pt 2 to Serve and Service. I hope that you enjoy this long, long, long awaited story even though I did change things a teeny bit from your request. 
Warnings: Mentions of alcohol, a guy too forward on hitting on someone, mild swears? Do I need to warn for fluff? It’s just fluff mostly. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Shit.” You muttered as you leaned forward and pressed your fingers into your forehead.
“You’re doing it again.”
“Doing what again, John?”
“Your super worried but suffer in silence thing.” John said as he gently pulled you back against the chair and worked his fingers into the tense muscles of your shoulders. You relaxed into his touch and let out a sigh.
“I thought that was YOUR thing.”
“Suppose so. It’s your thing too.” John said pointedly.
His hands stilled their soothing motions and you finally relented. 
“The barback just quit. Without notice.”
“Steve?” 
“Mmhmm. I don’t even know what we’re going to do. It's Saturday for fucks sake. I mean--I…”
“You mean you wish you had a really strong guy that takes direction well and can work tonight?” John said as he resumed working each and every knot out of your shoulders. 
“Exactly. Wait. What?”
“I’m saying I’m happy to help out in the restaurant tonight.” He leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to your temple. 
-------------------------------------------
John wiped the bar down. The cloth slid along the polished wood surface in his large hand. It was hard to not get caught up in watching him move. The way his rolled up shirt sleeves allowed you to see his forearms flexing as he lifted the trays of clean glasses. The way his shirt drew tight across his muscled back as he slid the wine glasses into the rack above the bar. The bulge of his biceps as he heaved the beer kegs into place. Your attention was always split twenty different ways when you were in the restaurant but your eyes were always drawn back to him tonight.
In the turnover between the 2nd and 3rd seatings of the night you had time to check in with him out in the alley where he’d asked you out all those years ago. “I think you might be the best barback we’ve ever had.” 
“It’s because I want to impress the boss.”
“Oh--she’s impressed. And grateful. Very grateful.” You said as you worked your hands into his back pockets. 
He shrugged and smiled sheepishly. John never knew what to do with your compliments but that never stopped you from giving them freely. 
He leaned down and kissed you. Capturing your lower lip softly between his teeth and humming lowly before letting you go again.
“Alright. We better get back in there.”
“Yes, chef!” He answered as he held the door open for you.
You made your way through the buzzing dining room, stopping at a few tables to say hello to some familiar faces before you checked in with your front of house staff. This time of the evening was your favourite. The worst of the rush was behind you and on a good night the kitchen had settled into a comfortable rhythm. After the host ran over the state of the bookings with you you migrated over to the bar. 
“How’s working the bar with John?” You asked Janice. You always could trust her judgement -- she’d been less than thrilled with the work ethic of your last barback and had said as much -- but before you even had a chance to let him go he’d quit on you.
“I’m not just saying this because you’re married to him -- I’d be overjoyed if you could find someone who works like he does.” She said with a wide smile. 
“That’s a tall order.” You replied. “But I found you--so I think it’s doable. I’m hoping he’s ok with filling in until I find someone.”
You both looked down to the other end of the bar where John was busily prepping lemons and limes for garnish. 
“Looks like he might be ok with that.” Janice said before she got back to work making the next round of orders for a table. 
You were making your way back to the kitchen when someone got your attention. 
“‘Scuse me -- you’re the chef here right?” A blond middle aged man said, grabbing you by the wrist as you made your way past him at the bar. You steeled yourself for what you knew was coming and smiled politely at him while gently attempting to pull out of his grasp. “Yes, this is my restaurant.” 
“You should let go of her buddy.” John said without looking up from where he was slicing citrus across from the man.
“Oh, yeah sorry.” He said as he dropped his hand from your wrist. 
“He’s a bit rude, hmm? Anyway.” You semi-tuned out the man in front of you and your eyes kept drifting over to John. 
“I wouldn’t say he’s rude. He’s new. A great hire I think.”
“A woman like you doesn’t need to have someone speak on your behalf.”
You smiled cooly. “I don’t think that was his intent.”
“Anyways, I was going to say a gorgeous woman like you should have a night off once in a while. I’d like to help you unwind sometime.”
You inwardly cringed. Thinking and there it is to yourself. This happened every once in a while and you always hated it.
“Usually I save my time off for my husband.”
“I don’t see a ring.” The man answered, his ruddy face showing exactly how many glasses of wine he’d had. 
You glanced again at John and his mouth was drawn into a tight line, one palm planted firmly on the burnished wood of the bar. 
“I’m a chef. I don’t wear it when I’m working. Is there anything else I can get you?”
“Aside from you?” 
You rolled your eyes. “Yes, aside from me.”
“Maybe another glass of red.”
“One red.” You called to Janice and she grimaced when she saw who you were pointing at. 
“Enjoy the rest of your night. I have to go.” You said as you walked away.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Hey, mouthy.”
“Excuse me?” John said.
“Is she really married? I feel like that’s a line. She seemed really into me.”
“You think so?” 
“Definitely.” The man said before he took a big swig of his wine. 
“Then you should go for it. I mean, I’m new here--I don’t know much about her personal life. Give it a shot.” John said as he ignored the laugh coming from behind him. 
“Why’s she laughing?” The blond asked about Janice who was pressing the back of her hand to her mouth. Trying and failing to suppress her laughter.
“Beats me. Women, you know?” John said with a shrug.
“Fair enough.” 
“Do you want me to ask her to come back? Any man would be lucky to be with her. Happy to help a guy out.”
“You’d do that?”
“Yeah, no problem.”
John headed back toward the kitchen. A wicked grin on his face as soon as his back was turned to the semi-drunk louse.
He came back with a folded napkin and set it down on the bar in front of the man. 
“What’s it say?”
“I don’t read things not meant for me.”
“Huh. You know, you’re not a bad guy. Sorry I called you rude earlier.”
“Don’t mention it.” John said as he went back to putting away glasses. 
“Looks like I was right! See ya later!” 
“Later.” 
Janice never brought up what happened to the man for the rest of the night. They were hit by a sudden rush of customers and everyone was too busy to wonder about where that awful man had gone to. 
You came out for one last round of checking in on customers and stopped at the bar when you saw the creepy man from before was gone. “Uh, thank god that guy’s gone. He was way too handsy and way too creepy.” You said to Janice--who suddenly broke into laughter.
Your host came through on their way to leave for the night. 
“Are you talking about that weird blond man?” They asked.
“Yeah -- he was hitting on Chef here right in front of John.”
“Oh. OH! That makes so much sense now. That dude came back and tried to get in again and he was ranting and raving about being tricked and falling into the alleyway. He just seemed really drunk so I refused him entry.”
All eyes turned to John who was quietly wiping down the bar. 
“John?” You asked cautiously.
“Hmm?”
“Did you toss that man into the alley?”
“No. But I did write a note that suggested you’d be waiting for him through the door by the washroom....”
Janice slapped John on the arm. “YOU DIDN’T! I wouldn’t have pegged you as the jealous type.” 
“Listen, I’m not going to let some creep stay here and bother everyone, let alone my wife. I heard the way he was bothering you all night and then he escalated things to getting handsy. I didn’t want there to be a big scene. I just…...helped him out the door a little.”
“Well, next time maybe just let me know when you’re going to help someone out the back door again so I don’t bear the brunt of that messiness, John.” The host said with an exasperated but amused sigh. 
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Soon it was just you and John. He was straightening up the bar, making sure everything was clean and ready to go for tomorrow. You fished around in your pocket, frantically as always, before your fingers closed on the familiar smooth, cool metal. You carefully slid the ring back onto your finger. 
“Do you want a drink before we head upstairs?” John asked with a gentle grin. His eyes scanned down and caught the way the light glinted off your wedding band. He never tired of seeing that on you. The sign that you were a matched set. 
You shook your head. “Nah, I’d rather head upstairs and unwind with something on the couch with you.”
“What do you want to drink?” He asked as he guided you to the exit with his hand on your lower back.
“I think….anything but red.”
------------------------------------xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-------------------------------
Thanks for reading!
Next up I have a Bill & Ted fic on the burner and I have another long, long, long ago request I’m chipping away at. My requests are closed so even though it’s incredibly flattering to be asked to write something I’m not able to take on any right now. 
I’m also forgoing the whole taglist thing now -- not because I don’t love you my ever generous and kind readers--but because they don’t even work half the time. 
Hope that you’re all holding up as ok as you can be during this incredibly bonkers time. 
xoxo
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scarpool-gmk · 3 years ago
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4
Title: Godly Marine: Killed Author: Scarpool Fandom(s): NCIS, Percy Jackson & the Olympians Pairing(s): Gen Rating: PG/K+ Summary: Chapter 4 (5/13) — Staff Sergeant Michael Kahale, Marine Corps Mechanic and Son of Athena, was murdered. Annabeth Chase is determined to find out who did it and why. She, along with Percy Jackson, Grover Underwood, and Clarisse La Rue, infiltrate NCIS where they team up with NCIS Agents Leroy Gibbs, Anthony DiNozzo, Timothy McGee, and Ziva David. Complete Genre: Fanfiction, Mystery, Drama, Humour, General, Action Warnings:  N/A
Clarisse didn't think much of the place. It was just like any other bar, gross yet comfortable. Still, she hadn't survived her life by judging by appearance alone.
"Do you smell anything?" she asked Grover.
The satyr discreetly smelled the air. He made a face. "Alcohol, greasy food, some of these guys haven't taken a shower in a while, and the dumpster seems to have seen some unpleasant stuff. Maybe a slight whiff of monster, but that could just be from everything else."
Clarisse grunted. "Can't be too careful."
They walked up to the bar, and the bartender walked over. "Welcome to the Drowsy Owl," he said, and gave them a quick look over, "If you want to drink, I'll need to see ID."
"We're not here for a drink, Mr. Sachs," Clarisse said. She showed her badge. She had to admit, she loved doing that. Not that she'd ever say it out loud. "NCIS. Agent Clarisse La Rue, Grover Underwood."
"Navy? What can I help you with?"
Clarisse showed a photo of Michael in uniform. "Do you recognize this dude?"
"Yeah, heh- knew that haircut wasn't by choice. He came in here quite a lot during the past week or so."
"Did he come with someone or meet with anyone?"
The man shook his head. "No. He kept to himself. Always ordered quickly and quietly. Actually, he never got a drink either. Seemed to really want to keep to himself."
Clarisse nodded in understanding.
"Um," Grover started, "we have to ask, but…"
Clarisse sighed. "He paid in cash, right?"
The barkeep thought for a second. "Yeah. Every time."
"Do you know the validity of the cash he gave?"
"Oh, of course," Mr. Sachs said in realization, "Well, it was mostly tens and twenties, but I always check. Seemed good to me."
Clarisse could accept that. "I'll take your word for it." She handed him her card. "If you think of anything else, please call."
As she turned to go, she stopped when a familiar face walked by her.
"Mrs. Kahale," Clarisse exclaimed.
The woman turned, "Yes?"
"NCIS. You met with our partners earlier today."
"Oh, more agents," the woman smiled politely, "How nice to meet more of you."
"Really? Nice?" Clarisse snarked, "That's not what I heard."
Mrs. Kahale's smile wavered. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means I want to know why you aren't with your family. Why are you here, a place that your stepson visited nearly every day for the time he was here, a stepson you don't seem to care much about?"
Grover coughed behind her.
"That boy was nothing but trouble," Mrs. Kahale seethed. "No, I'm not upset about his death, and you won't catch me mourning for him. But my husband is extremely upset, and I would never do anything to hurt him. So, if you are suggesting that I killed the boy or was involved, then you really don't deserve that badge.
"As for why I'm here, there is nothing to it. Why can't I be here? I never saw Michael in this place, so it's all purely coincidence.
"That's all I have to say. Now, if you'll excuse me. I have many things still to do today." With that said, she stormed out.
Clarisse turned back to the barkeep. "That woman, does she come here often?"
"Yeah," the man said, "in fact, she's been coming here for a couple of months. Always meets up with some guys."
"Guys?" Grover repeated, "She's married..."
The bartender shrugged. "She doesn't arrive with them. Doesn't leave with them either."
"What kind of guys?" Clarisse inquired.
"Wide variety, but the most often is this younger-looking dude. He works at some fast food place; doughnuts I think it was."
"Do you have a description of him or a video even? Did you manage to hear what they were talking about?"
Mr. Sachs shook his head. "Sorry. Don't have cameras here. Didn't get a good look at his face either. And I don't get into anybody's business as it would potentially affect mine. Sorry I can't help you more."
"No problem," Clarisse reassured. "Have a nice day."
"You too."
They finally left the place.
"I don't think it was a good idea to anger Mrs. Kahale, Clarisse," Grover admonished.
"I don't like it," Clarisse scowled, "Michael hangs out for over a week in the bar his stepmother also hangs out in?"
"Well…" Grover hesitated but gathered himself. "We don't have anything to prove, well, anything. Besides, it could just be a coincidence like she said."
"I don't believe in coincidences." Clarisse had made too many mistakes believing in coincidences. "And you shouldn't either."
She trudged to the car. "It should be a rule."
-Ανναβετη-
"Come on, Wise Girl," Percy said as he drove the car in front of the Kahale residence, "Just because Ziva may say something about the knife in the house, doesn't mean Gibbs will think that both it and Michael's are suspicious. She wasn't even aware of it before I brought it up."
"Gibbs is a smart guy, Percy," Annabeth argued. "I just hope that all the stuff Chiron and I did is enough."
"Stop worrying. It's fine. There's no way you didn't think of anything."
Annabeth gave him a look.
"And if you did, which I doubt," Percy said, "we'll just deal with it as it comes up."
Annabeth sighed and knocked on the front door. Sure, they've been chased by cops before, but these were federal agents, federal agents that Annabeth and her friends were impersonating. Percy had no idea what he was getting into, and if she was being honest with herself, neither did Annabeth. The quicker she finished this investigation, the better.
The door opened to reveal a middle-aged man that Annabeth recognized as Jonathan Kahale.
"Good afternoon! How may I-" He stopped abruptly when his eyes locked with Annabeth's. He looked at her in shock, his face visibly paling. Annabeth suddenly felt very self-conscious.
Percy cleared his throat. "Mr. Kahale," he addressed, taking over for Annabeth, "We are NSCI-"
"NCIS," Annabeth automatically corrected, shaking the awkwardness away, "I am Special Agent Anne Lima, and this is my partner, Percy Jackson. I believe you were told of our coming."
"Ah, yes," Mr. Kahale cleared his throat a couple times, "Of course. Please, lead the way."
"Is your wife not coming, Mr. Kahale?" Annabeth asked as the man closed his door.
"No. She is out."
Annabeth opted to drive, if only that it gave her something to do while she was in the car with Michael's father.
"Where is this NCIS building?" Mr. Kahale asked.
"In D.C.," Annabeth answered.
Percy shot a smile at the backseat. "It's not too far. We'll have you back home real quick, Mr. Kahale."
The man nodded, falling silent. Annabeth nor Percy picked up conversation, and an uncomfortable silence settled in.
The man's deathly stillness was such a contrast to Percy's constant fidgeting. He looked lost in thought, which was always a bad idea for a demigod. Annabeth was unused to having someone without ADHD ride with her. It was kind of eerie.
After fifteen minutes, which felt like an hour, Mr. Kahale seemed to have the courage to speak up again.
"So, you two are," Mr. Kahale hesitated, and tapped his tongue on his lips a few times, "demigods?"
Percy froze in the middle of playing with the air conditioning vent.
Annabeth glanced in the rearview mirror to see the older man staring right back at her. "Why would you say that?" Annabeth asked.
"I will never forget what Michael's mother looked like," he said seriously.
Annabeth looked at the road. Oh.
"And, erm, when you misplaced the letters of the agency, Mr. Jackson was it? It alludes to your dyslexia. Also, how when you drive, Miss Lima, you tend to only read the symbols. When you had to change lanes, you did not see the construction signs that told that the right lane was right turn only. You only swapped at the last second when you saw the street arrows. And, you keep drumming your hands on the wheel, constantly moving them around. And although the consistent checking of your side and rear-view mirrors is a great driving practice, it's more likely due to your ADHD. Not that your driving is bad…."
Annabeth grit her teeth as the man kept talking. His nervous rambling wouldn't be so bad if only it wasn't critiquing her driving skills! Percy seemed to notice that things were going downhill and interrupted the man.
"So, did you ever meet up with Michael while he was here?"
"I didn't even know he was here," Mr. Kahale gloomed, "How long was he here?"
"Just under a week."
"Oh, I see." Mr. Kahale slumped further into his seat.
Annabeth felt for him. Michael was her brother, but he was one of many, and she had grown up with the tragedy of heroes she called siblings and friends. But for Mr. Kahale, Michael was his son, and the only tie he probably had left to the goddess he loved.
"I am sorry for your loss," Annabeth said.
Mr. Kahale looked up at her. "Do you know if he was happy at the camp?" He asked.
Annabeth nodded. "I believe so. He got along well with everyone. I only knew him for a year before he left for the Marines, but he always kept in contact and visited."
"It must have been really nice for him to be around family and people who could relate with him about his world."
"Michael was determined not to be held down by the divine world," Annabeth said, "And, although he may have been surrounded by all of the demigods, nothing beats true family."
She would know. No matter how bad things got between her and her family, they were always there. They were the stability in her crazy life. She remembered when her father came rushing in to save the day with his WWI plane. Then again, they could, if they needed to, be just as crazy.
Annabeth parked the car, and before getting out, she turned to look at Mr. Kahale. "Not everyone is a demigod or are even aware of our world," she warned.
"I won't say anything," Mr. Kahale promised.
Annabeth and Percy led him into the federal building. They made their way through check-in. For some reason, Percy insisted on waiting for them on the main floor. Annabeth and Mr. Kahale went into the elevator, going down to autopsy.
The elevator doors shut. Annabeth willed herself not to be affected by this man, as she noticed him staring at her, again. "Michael always looked like me," he finally said, "But you…" he took a breath. Annabeth realized that his hands were shaking. Were they doing that the entire time? "You have such a striking resemblance…" He finished.
Annabeth gave a light, breathy laugh. "Yes. You have no idea how much trouble it has cost me."
"I'm sorry," he said, "You know, I always knew this was a possibility. Michael told me the average age of demigods, but he was safe at camp, and when he joined the force, he was just a mechanic. I always told him to be careful. To be safe." He wiped his eyes. "But, I never understood the weight of the exact danger."
The doors opened up, and Annabeth led him into autopsy. Dr. Mallard had swapped out of his scrubs and was looking very professional in his bow tie.
It was a quick procedure, and they were able to leave quickly.
"It's not your fault, Mr. Kahale. You still have a family. Go be with them." Annabeth said before watching as Percy took him.
She pulled herself together. She needed to see Abby. Where did she say she was going to be again? The garage? She headed off in that general direction, and she was right.
Well, she was pretty sure. She found a pair of legs sticking out of a hole in the battered sports car, but she didn't think anyone else would wear those shoes.
"Abby?" Annabeth called out.
"Agent Lima?" A voice in the car responded. The legs started to swing around, as Abby attempted to escape.
"Yes," Annabeth affirmed, "Are you okay? Do you need help?"
"No," Abby said, "I'm fine. Perfectly-OW!-fine."
Annabeth took that to mean 'No' and started to haul Abby out of the hole by her legs. Except, this concept was a bit harder to carry out than Annabeth had thought.
"Stop kicking," Annabeth ordered, dodging what would have led to a broken nose.
"Sorry-Hey! Don't pull on the boots, man!"
"Gods, stop twisting! Just wiggle a bit."
"Wait, don't pull so fast! Just-just-"
"Okay. Here we go."
Annabeth finally lugged the lab rat out. Annabeth took a step back to catch her breath. Abby leaned on the car to do the same.
"What were you doing?" Annabeth blew out.
"Searching for any DNA samples," Abby panted, "Fingerprints, blood, spit, hair, nail clippings, sp-"
"Nail clippings?" Annabeth repeated.
Abby gave her a look. "You would be surprised where I've found nail clippings."
Deciding she didn't want the full list, Annabeth turned to the surrounding onlookers. "What are you looking at? Get back to work."
Abby looked on in amusement at the sudden scrambling of the NCIS personnel.
"Do you have anything, Abby?" Annabeth asked.
"Well, I am still working on the car. It's a shame, such a nice car."
"What about the phone?" Annabeth queried.
"Where's Gibbs?" Abby asked, obviously avoiding the question.
Annabeth wanted to roll her eyes. Seriously? They were still on this?
"He went to Michael's apartment with Agent McGee."
"Oh…"
"Abby, you got the phone to work, didn't you?"
Abby sighed in defeat. "Yeah, I was able to get all the list of contacts he kept on the phone. It was definitely a burner. He only made one call with it, which was to this number. The contact name listed was Annabeth Chase. Unfortunately, the number he called is also unregistered."
"Alright. Thank you, Abby."
"Yep," Abby said, already crawling back into the hole from whence she came. Not exactly the best idea, but Annabeth resolved to come back later to see if Abby needed rescuing again. Now, she had a call to make.
-Τιμοτηψ-
"Now, you sure you boys don't need anything?" the bumbling landlady asked for about the fifth time as she led them to apartment Sergeant Kahale rented out.
"No, we're fine," Tim repeated, not missing a beat.
"Alright, then. Well, here we are."
Tim couldn't completely keep in the sigh of relief as they came up to the room.
"This is his room?" Gibbs made sure.
The lady nodded. "Yeah. You guys want-"
"We are perfectly fine, ma'am," Tim interrupted.
"Alright. I'll be in the lobby if you need me. Don't forget to return the key when you leave."
"Jeez," Tim exclaimed when the woman was out of earshot. "If I was staying here, I would do my best to not be in for most of the day either."
"Ah, she's not that bad, McGee," Gibbs lightly scolded, fiddling with the key.
"Well, at least let's hope she's not knocking…woah…"
"'Woah' is right," Gibbs agreed as he entered the room. Tim followed a bit more carefully. He didn't want to disrupt the network of link analysis that littered the room.
It was writing. And lots of it. The wall was layered with notecards, post-it notes, and even pinned up napkins covered in scrawls. The table reminded Tim of his school days when he was writing his thesis for his Master's Degree.
Tim was used to a visual plot having more images, like photographs. The only thing that came close was a map, littered in more post-it notes, rubber bands, tacks, and thread.
"Landlady is not going to be happy about the holes he made," Tim commented.
Gibbs hummed in agreement.
"What are we looking at here, Boss?"
"I don't completely know," Gibbs said quietly, "Most of it isn't in English."
Tim went closer and realized that Gibbs was right. "It looks like Greek to me." He felt rather than saw the deadpan look his boss gave him. "No, I'm being serious. I recognize these characters from the Greek alphabet."
"Is it a code?" Gibbs asked.
"I assume so," McGee said, "Wouldn't know why the Staff Sergeant would know Greek." McGee started to rewrite each Greek letter with the English equivalent. "Although, it's not really good as a code, as anyone can just type it in a trans…" McGee trailed off. Okay, so maybe he was wrong.
"What, McGee?"
"It doesn't translate into anything when I turn the letters into the Latin equivalent. I'm going to have to look at them later, maybe enlist Abby's help."
Gibbs nodded, "Do what you have to. I need to know what he was on to." Gibbs tapped one of the post-it notes. Tim was grateful that it was in English, but immediately wished it weren't after reading it.
"Boss," Tim said in shock, "this… this just got way more serious."
"Could have always been this big, McGee," Gibbs told him, "It's just that we're finding that out now."
"If he was after the Sinaloa Cartel, then this case just got a whole lot bigger," Tim said.
Gibbs said nothing to that and kept observing the Sergeant's laid out thought process. He was pretty sure he heard Gibbs mutter something about doughnuts-wouldn't that be nice- as Tim ventured deeper into the apartment. He was pleasantly surprised that Kahale kept the place nice and tidy. Gibbs's phone started to ring.
"Yeah, what have you got, Abbs?"
Okay. Nice job, I'll let Tony and Ziva know."
Alright, well, who did he call?"
Thanks, Abby." Gibbs ended the call and immediately set into making another one.
As Gibbs waited, McGee figured this would be a good time to let him know what he found.
"Boss," Tim said, catching Gibbs's attention. "I've got his duffle and his gun, standard issue. He didn't take it with him. He's got some clothes in the drawers, nothing fancy but obvious that he was going to stay here for a while. I've got nothing other than that."
Gibbs nodded in approval.
It was obvious that the main focus was whatever it was that apparently had a connection to Mexican drug cartels.
Tim looked around in helplessness as Gibbs calmly waited for Tony or Ziva to pick up. He wished he could act so calm like Gibbs, but the idea of getting involved in the Mexican drug war made him really nervous. It may be wishful thinking, but McGee truly hoped Gibbs would let the DEA handle this.
-Αντώνης-
"No, Tony!" Ziva cried in frustration, "We are not getting into this."
"I am just saying," Tony pressed. "What if-"
"There is no 'what if,' Tony," Ziva interrupted. "It would be a solid 'No.'"
Tony sighed as he drove into the rental car area. Ziva was no fun.
Ziva chuffed. "Fine."
Oh! Hold that thought.
"You wouldn't get past the second date."
Tony parked the car and looked at his partner. "A lot could happen in two dates."
"She would only go on the second for the food," Ziva taunted and slammed the door.
Tony winced. Ouch. He stroked the dashboard, apologizing for Ziva's rough behavior, before joining Ziva outside.
"Now, don't go growling at the man," Tony said, referring to the businessman, "I've had enough of that."
Ziva chuckled, "Yes, as you told me."
"Well, it made a better story than what happened with you and Jackson- which am I the only one curious if Gibbs thinks of his father because of that?"
"Oh, come on, Tony. It is a simple, common name. I'm sure it hasn't even crossed Gibb's mind."
"Gibbs is a man with some deep-reaching thoughts," Tony informed, "You can never know what goes on in the deep abyss of the Gind."
"The Gind?" Ziva questioned.
"Gibbs's mind. 'The Gind,'" Tony explained. "I was thinking about 'Mibbs,' but that didn't-"
"Oh, stop!" Ziva demanded. "Just- just keep that to yourself. Honestly, who thinks of stuff like this?"
Tony was about to retort, but Ziva waved her hands in front of his face to stop him.
"No! Don't speak! Marko Tarsibo!" Ziva called.
There was some ruffling in the office before the man swaggered out. "Ah, agents! How good of you to stop by, again. Is the case sorting out?"
"We are making progress," Ziva answered.
"Oh, I am sorry," Mr. Tarsibo said, "But I do not believe we have been introduced. An Agent La Rue accompanied Agent DiNozzo before."
"Ziva David," Ziva said, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Tarsibo."
"Please, call me Marko."
Well, wasn't he just delightful?
"We are going to need to see the video recordings of the time Michael Kahale was here," Tony said. He smiled. "Marko."
Something passed over the man's face. "Ah." He said. "I see. Unfortunately, policy does make me ask to see a warrant."
"If you insist," Tony said, "We can easily obtain one."
"We will also need to see video recordings of previous weeks," Ziva said.
Tony shot a questioning glance at her but played along. "We are trying to follow a couple of leads."
"Ahem," Mr. Tarsibo coughed, "Of course. That would be no problem. However, again, I will need to have a warrant."
"Alright then," Tony said, "We will be back with that for you."
He and Ziva made their way out.
"Boss isn't going to be happy about this," Tony groaned. He hated getting warrants.
"That's true," Ziva said.
Tony gave her a worried look. "Why did you ask for old video recordings?"
"I believe Agent La Rue's gut feeling was dot on."
"Spot," Tony corrected.
"What?"
"It's 'spot on,'" Tony educated, "not 'dot on.'"
"Oh, whatever!" Ziva rolled her eyes.
Hey! Not whatever! This was very important knowledge!
"Anyway," Ziva continued, ignoring Tony's mental rant, "He is definitely hiding something. Hopefully, we can find something useful on those tapes."
"Hold up," Tony said, stopping them in the middle of the parkway and bringing out his ringing phone, "It's Gibbs."
"Alright," Ziva consented.
Tony hesitated in answering. "He knows about the warrant. He's displeased."
"He cannot possibly know, Tony," Ziva said. "Now, answer it."
Tony prepared himself.
"Hi, Boss."
"DiNozzo, the car we found at the scene," Gibbs said.
"The beautiful, luxurious, red Maserati," Tony remembered. "What about it, Boss?"
"It was tampered with."
Tony frowned. "How do you mean?"
"The engine was modified so the car couldn't go as fast as it could."
Tony pressed the phone on his ear as the squeal of a car's tires sounded off nearby.
"Which means that our resident car renter tampered with the car that our dead Marine used."
"Bring him in," Gibbs ordered.
"Of cour-"
"Tony!" Ziva yelled. She tackled him, yanking him off the street. "Look out!"
As Tony stumbled and fell backward, he saw a black sports car speed past the spot where they were just standing. It screeched onto the main road and sped off.
Tony looked over Ziva to make sure she was alright. "I think your suspicions were just confirmed," he panted.
"DiNozzo!" The sound of Gibbs's voice came from the phone clutched in Tony's hand. "What's going on?"
Tony grimaced. There was going to be a lot of explaining to do.
"DiNozzo! Answer me!"
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msbellucci · 4 years ago
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i never wanted to befriend this bitch. the moment i stop talking to her, i get all of these texts saying my mans cheating on me and shit..and that my man talks shit about me..and just dumbass texts saying some dumbass shit. bitch its so obvious that its you sending me this shit....okay so this bitch is married to this armenian dude...and he happens to be related to one of my mans closest homies..so they met years ago. 3 years ago i met my mans homies cousin, and his wife. shes latina, so her and i would speak in spanish and she was whatever..she would talk about some way out shit and i would never really believe the shit she would say. because it was always so far fetched way out shit. five mins into my first conversation with her, shes telling me how she was a stripper cuz she had to provide for her son and herself..that she came here alone to this country. its crazy shes been here for like almost 20 years but doesnt have her papers. i know its a dificult process, and it reqiures a lot of money, but yeah..anyways it was a bit weird. she would always brag about having all these businesses. and she would tell me how she was on TV, and how she was a model..and im like girl...like she isnt tht pretty, not to be fucked up but she aint...shes shorter than me..and im 5'5"...models have to be hella tall, skinny, and beautiful..she would brag about how she was hella skinny and it was just weird af how every time her and i would run into one another, she would only talk about how she used to be a model, this tht and the 3rd.. and how she was on TV.. and in my head, im like bitch..you be tellin me the same exact shit everytime i fkn see your ass..like wtf??? do you feel that insecure around me that you gotta tell me some bullshit about you being a fake ass model everytime yu see me? really? -__- please bitch. shut ur dumb asss up. ive always disliked her and her man...her man is on drugs being a psycho causing problems for me. 3 years ago when my man and i were stayin in a hotel, we came out to our car in the morning and he had taken all the air out of our tires and scratched up our car. i was so pissed, i ran up on his wife to fuck her up but my man grabbed me. cuz shes a cop calling ass bitch. so yeah i never trusted those motherfuckers and my man kept giving her husband 2nd chances. and i would get into it with my man over it because i didny fkn like them...i dont forgive easily and i dont give out second chances easily..my mans different he does have a big heart but now he doesnt give a fuck about those ppl and he cut them off and we changed our numbers and im so fucking happy. that pathological ass lying hoe lies on me and my man and its disgusting and weird as fuck to watch cuz we aint never did nothing to this bitch and her family. if anything weve helped them. my man and i went out shopping one night and my man told the bitch, get anything you want...a normal ass girl, like me..would turn the offer down. i would say no thank you i appreciate it but i dont need anything, this bitch started grabbing shit and putting it in the cart and i was disgusted yo..im lowkey glad she did it cuz it shows her true colors. a hoe ass prostitute bitch.. thats what a prostitute does, lets some other dude buy shit for her..i know my man did it out of the kindness of his heart cuz he likes her husband and her kids so we just did it to be nice cuz we know they broke as shit. they couldnt afford their fkn business they rented out no more..theyve been telling us for a week they cant afford it and they gotta leave the spot...so we said, maybe we will pay the rent and open up our own business llike a smoke shop or some shit. my man and i called up our business partners to come down and look at the spot, and they loved it. when they went down, this hoe and her man started to get all fkn territorial sayng "oh this is our business we arent gonna leave it,,blahblahblah" like they flip the script so fkn quick and it was lame af on their end. they looked stupid as fuck. so i blocked the bitch..and my man stopped talking to her husband. we dont kick it with no fake flip flopping ass hoes. anyways. a couple nights before this happened, this dumb hoe asks me and my man "do you really think my husband loves me?" bitch if u gotta ask other ppl if ur own man loves you...then youre not confident in ur relationship, or with urself..and he probably doesnt love you...when she had asked that..i didnt really know how to answer her. my man said "well hes cheated on you...youve caught him in the bathroom of a casino gettin his dick licked on, you caught him in a hotel with 3 naked bitches...when you love someone, you don't cheat on them." thats what my man had told her..and then two nights later..the shit with the business went down..i started to get messages from a weird number saying "oh ur man cheats on u he goes to hotels with hookers and talk shit about you.." HAAHHAHA nice try hoe but my man is always with me...shes so fkn jealous because my man and i have an honest relationship, we are loyal to one another and idk why she cares so much and shes gonna text me dumbass shit..i got more texts from another number, saying simaliar shit, but this time the person texting me was speaking so highly of tht hoe ass bitch saying "oh you should talk to her she is so perfect and has a good character." like bitch you legit just burned urself out...its YOU sending me this dumbass shit..i changed my number..because im done. the 2nd batch of messages i got, my man run upstairs to their apartment and started to kick their door, telling them to open the fuck up..my man almost grabbed her husband by the throat..because theyre just tryna get between me and my man and thats so fkn dumb to be honest..its ridiculous how much of a low life this bitch is...
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valkerymillenia · 4 years ago
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Umbrella Academy
season 2, episode 3
Next!
Again, live blogging and posting my reactions all in one post to avoid spamming.
This post got accidentally deleted yesterday so I had to write or all again (twice!)
Oh, starting with a Klaus and Ben 1960 flashback! Ah, Klaus... You have no shame. Let my baby eat though!
Lol "Chanel". Boy knows his fashion, of course.
And there's Boney M playing!
You can practically read his mind when he sees that diamond. Sugar momma alert! 😆
Damn, loving the black outfit, very sexy.
LEVITATING KLAUS WAS BEN LIFTING HIM UP! Seems that one crack theory on the fandom was right 🤣
Ben's face though 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
These two are the best combo. I love them.
61, Baja, NM. Traveling hippie commune.
Is Klaus still sober? He refuses a joint here so I'm inclined to believe that he is but he isn't acting very sober... Then again that might be an act, just him embracing the hippy life.
CALLED IT!!! BEN FALLS IN LOVE, DOESN'T HE?! I FUCKING CALLED IT IN EP 1!
62, Varanasi, India. The river scene from the promos. Yeah, I called this one too. Klaus is already looking seriously uncomfortable and realizing this is getting out of hand.
63, San Francisco. Poor Klaus is practically suffocating under all the touching and nobody respects his space or his words.
Destiny's Children! 🤣 You are such a 90s kid, Klaus.
Run away, Klaus! Run! Escape the crazies.
Ok, let me paused to write out a thought...
So a lot of people were worried about the cult thing and Klaus's intentions but it's clear he had no malicious intentions at all. He charmed and impressed some people for survival purposes and thrived, he enjoyed the love and attention at first and the cult just grew around around him organically whether he liked it or not, more a hippy cult of personality then a religious sect, but at some point he saw that it had gone too far, the pressure and expectation became too much and he realized he'd bitten more than he can chew.
It's actually rather sad how he just wants to escape but the cultists objectify him to all hell, he has no privacy or personal space. The problem with Klaus is that he doesn't do anything mildly, he always goes too big until he's drowning. Boy is already self-sabotaging and I'm sure he's going to start self-destructing very soon as well.
End of thought. Clicking play again.
Ouch! Poor Diego 😰 Lila, that is not how you cauterize a stab wound...
"what happened?" -your dear daddy stabbed you, dude.
Did she really need to strip him so thoroughly? 😏 Yes, yes, she did.
Well, at least she's not sewing you up, Diego. No needles, yay.
"oh, he isn't dead." "Disappointed?" "To see you? Always 😊" -did I mention I love Five's sass? I did? Well, I do.
Old family friend 😆
"you don't untie him?" "Was I supposed to?" Oh Lila, you're adorable, poor Elliot.
Vanya, that is suspicious as hell, just mow down that weirdo!
Ok, good instincts but too slow.
Run, girl, run!
Got to admit, these Swedes are good battle strategy, they are surrounding her surprisingly well.
Is this were the badass Vanya promo was from? Show me badass Vanya, please.
BADASS VANYA! 💖
Ooooooh, very smart, Five!!!
One of the machines though? What are the others for? I'm curious.
Plano Street Rooming House for Solitary Men? That's real depressing, Luther.
It's the "the end is nigh" guy the same that was screaming with Luther in ep 1?
King Kong! Not sure if cute or rude af...
Ahahahah! Luther literally STUMBLING on "Allison" and then acting like an awkward Steve Rogers when the kids call him out 😆 Boy, when will you realize that your obsession is creepy?
Honestly, ALL the Hargreeves siblings can be divided into two categories- sweet awkward dork or sass king/queen, there is no in-between (but Diego and Klaus get to be both).
Convenient that Vanya would just sit there and wait to be found by Five but ok.
"I have a brother?" -honey, you have five (pun fully intended)
IKEA MAFIA! 😂
Nice crop circle, Vanya.
Five just rolls with the amnesia, huh? Doesn't even question it. Ok, then.
Why is Ruby, notorious mobster, sewing sequins? It's it for the dog? I bet, it's for the dog.
"Hargreeves. She your ex?" *Cue Luther's super awkward fumbling* "S-Sorta...Y-Yeah. Sure." - big boy, this is the point where you realize how creepy your crush on your own sister is, time to reevaluate.
KLAUS AND ALLISON REUNION! THEY ARE SO CUTE! 😭💜
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Honestly, I need more Klaus and Allison interactions. They have so much bff potential.
*le gasp* "oh, you're married?" 😲 -yes, Klaus, you met him.
"dicks, drugs, debutants. My holy trinity" -ok so everything Klaus says should be taken with a grain of salt but does Klaus still do drugs or not? Considering the evolution of his powers with Ben I'd say no, but we aren't seeing other ghosts harassing him so... Hmm, I need confirmation.
"alternative spiritual community" my ass
Ah, Allison falls into the sass queen category.
Allison can have a little PTSD, as a treat. 😢
Those shoes! Hi, Handler.
Those shoes really are her signature by now. Those heels could kill a man.
Handler as a brunette...? She looks good but I like her bleach blonde.
What did she say to make that boy pee himself?? Damn, Handler, no wonder your kid is a mess.
These dudes need to start listening to my girl Allison, instead of following her husband like puppies.
Great speech, girl! ✊
What is up with that sandwich???
Oh wait, it's Ben right? Klaus is using his powers to get Ray out of jail, isn't he?
Yup, of course he is.
Ben being all sassy and cocky about it gives me life.
"high places" - 😆
Poor Ray, you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into.
"family barbecues are about to get reeeeeeeal weird" - I'd actually like to see that.
"leave the pot, dear" - you're such an old man, Five.
"any questions?" Five, if be worried if she DIDN'T have questions after all that.
"asteroid impact" -aww 💜 you really do care for her feelings, Five... But you have to tell her the truth sooner or later.
Harlan likes classical music, huh? Good thing he knows a good violinist.
Harlan and Sissy... 😭 My poor heart.
Ouch! What is wrong with you, Lila? You're right but what is wrong with you?
"I can't believe I got shanked by my own father" - can't you, Diego? Really? After everything else that man did to you and your siblings?
"man to man, that son of bitch wouldn't stand a chance" - yeah, he would, he taught you all you know, boy
Not sure if Lila's story is true or not but... I still have that one theory that she was born on October, 1989...
"I don't understand you!!!" - ahah, poor Diego 🤣
Really? Right in front of Elliot's tuna mold?
Man, Handler is really obsessed with Five...
Oh, Luther, you giant puppy...
This is so AWKWARD!
Bonbons, Luther? Really?
Ok, this small talk is even MORE AWKWARD! It physically hurts to listen to this.
The pain in his face and voice when Luther goes "S-so great" 😭
boy, this is the moment you realize it's time to move on, you're not isolated teenagers in a dysfunctional home anymore, let her be your sister and find love elsewhere.
The sit in!
"seven languages" sassy, sassy, I love her.
YOUNG DAVE!
Oh no... Klaus, no, baby... Oh, this is painful.
Ben, don't be mean, let your brothe have this.
What kind of gay man doesn't know what eggshell is? 😆
"is this considered stalking? 'cause I think you're stalking now" - well, BEN, following your brother 24/7 for 15 years can also be considered stalking
Oh no, Vietnam flashbacks... Poor Klaus 😭😭😭
"Vietnam fling"? Ben, you know it wasn't just a fling! Stop being mean.
Aw, Klaus just wants to save Dave... He's willing to sacrifice their relationship to save Dave's life... 😭😭😭
I know Ben is just worried but he could be less mean...
Damn, this sit in thing is really upsetting...
Why is Ray being weird? Is he suspicious of Luther and Alison's relationship? Or is he just unhappy that Allison kept secrets about her family?
Oh Luther, no... Self-harm by proxy is not going to make you feel better.
Oh, motherfucker! That coffee thing was such an asshole move!
Shit, this scene is so well written, the way something so small is making the whole protest escalate to all hell... The police brutality, the parallels with recent events... Disturbing and brilliant and deeply relevant!
Yes! Rumor that motherfucker, Allison!
Oh no, don't be scared of your wife, Ray! Don't be suspicious!
Poor Allison... 😢
Oh Luther, you dumbass... 😢
Lila going to meet mommy, huh?
Oh, she's still wearing Diego's bracelet. Cute.
I know this scene between Handler and Lila was supposed to be a shocking plot twist but after David Castañeda's interview slip up, I already knew.
Still, an excellent scene and very cool surprise.
Like I said before, I really like Lila, I don't trust her AT ALL but I like her.
...
THIS WAS SUCH AN EMOTIONAL EPISODE... Again.
My god, this show gives me life.
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BFCD Reviews by Nesha: Summertime on Netflix
This is what I’m gonna do... I’ll be doing more structured reviews later and most likely liveblogging suggested stuff and tagging with “Nesha Watches (Insert Title) for all liveblog posts. For this first review, I won’t be as structured, because I didn’t really plan on reviewing, so this is basically all of my comments to friends @chenoahchantel and @daintyurbanprincess that were made whilst I was watching this show suggested to me by @rbaifzau 
It didn’t take me long to be annoyed with the white boy in this show. It doesn’t take much anyways, but one episode in and I’m over him already. This dude saw her at a party, she got pushed into the pool accidentally, he gave her a dry shirt, and two minutes later tried to kiss her… TF..  
Girl, this bout to be IGNANT...
Chile... She was like, "What are you doing?" And he looked surprised. Like whet. And in episode 2 after having seen her thrice and spoken to her once, he telling his best friend, "I'm pretty sure I like her a lot." I HATE stuff like this. Why did I tell old girl I'd watch this and discuss it with her? 😭
But she like him, so like??? 😭
And her daddy, who we haven't seen yet is presumably a rolling stone. Only one negro in this town and the nigga gotta be probably running around on his wife? 🙄 I'm like, OH, so the one Black man in the show gotta be a rolling stone? And even though his wife is also highly irresponsible as a parent, she's sort of made out to be the victim of his dreams. They never portray Black mothers doing things on their own as victims. That woman was messing up left and right and it's all on her husband not being there, when that's only part of the problem.
Also, if she IS the only present parent and made the decision to do that, she should be doing it instead of leaning on Summer all of the time. 
And she got a close friend that have an obvious crush on her but she seems oblivious. I hate dis
This dude reminds me of Max Theriot. He always looked musty to me. 🤣🤣🤣 He look like him breaf stank. Him and Jack Griffo were working on something where they play soldiers and I absolutely said, "He still look like he stank" when I saw him on Instagram…
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This is basically the same mold of dude and it looks moldy and should be tossed out. None for me, thanks.
But, there are moments in this show that's really cracking me up. 🤣🤣🤣 It's like, I feel like I should enjoy it for the messiness of it, but the main characters can be infuriating.
She called him an asshole and he said, "You don't even know me." No duh dipshit. She ain't know you when you tried to kiss her neither. NOR when you was talmbout you like her. 
This girl kissing her friend!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. She's gonna hurt this boy! My Gwad. He finna be discombobulated. 😭😭😭 He all happy today and she don't even see him like that. Lordt.
He walked up and she look uncomfortable AF. Her younger sister is like, "You're being weird." 🤣🤣🤣 Even SHE hip to something. He on the beach talmbout "It's hot today, don't you think?" And took his shirt off. 😭😭😭😭😭😭
I like Summer's friends and feel bad for them because she really didn't treat them kindly. She used Edo whenever she was upset by Ale and then she just completely ditched Sofie on her birthday and didn't even text her or anything. Just had her waiting on her and didn't even apologize. Like, I love that she gets a chance to be human, but being an asshole to the people who you're supposed to be friends with is such an upsetting trope to me.
And the connection between her and Ale is so weird. He comes across as super predatory in the beginning and I don't understand why she liked him in the first place, but also whenever he does something by mistake, she is so angry at him, even though she's been just as inconsiderate when it comes to her friends.
NOW... HE HARASSING HER AT HER JOB. 
WOTTICE DIS HUNNY??? 
Talmbout if she got a boyfriend he'll "take care of him" 😖 After she told him to leave and he said he'd wait for her outside, she asked her coworker, "What do you do to let a guy know you like him back?"
NOW, she went outside and he's there, but her friend showed up to surprise her after work. 🤣 Whoever made this HATES me
He stole a book out her locker and left a card with his phone number. How is this the start of a romance???
OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. FRIEND IS TALKING ABOUT THE KISS...He said it was perfect........
Chile... And she don't even wanna tell their other best friend. Bruh. He said, "What we have doesn't need to be discussed." Summy PLEASE tell this young man...HE TRIED TO KISS HER AGAIN AND SHE SAID, "We just talked about last night's mistake" 😭😭😭
And she done hurt my friend this way, but she worried about Maxface because his mama can't reach him on the phone??? Girl.. go.. girl...
The gag is that she got mad at Ale because she saw him talking to his ex and she had to cover for him at work, but you've now ACTUALLY put your best friend in a bad space. And he ran into her mom and little sister and looked so uncomfortable but kept it short and sweet. These are people he loves. Idk. I feel bad for him and also like she kind of a hypocrite.
That was what REALLY bothered me. I don't expect her to be perfect, by all means. Black girls should be allowed their imperfections and their mistakes, but the fact that she knows what it's like to have the people you love be so absent and that she would treat her friends this way because of one guy who she's only known for a couple of months was disappointing for her character. She could have been written imperfectly without this glaring problem that I don't believe a real person in her position would actually have. 
I think in real life, the girl who raises her sister and basically has to lift her mother up all the time would overextend herself to her friends, but instead, she just leaves them in her dust as soon as she gets some dick. 😭
He is now hanging out with her little sister. 😭😭😭She goes to school with them but she looks tiny. I'm cringing at everything.
BRUH. Like... I can't tell if they're trying to or not, but I wouldn't be surprised because he's cool with the sister too, but they've been friends a while, so I didn't think much of it until Summer hurt him.I thought she liked him earlier, so idk if he is noticing her or I just EXPECT it. 
OAN, this man realized his son had a motorcycle accident on purpose and got mad instead of concerned
At one point, they say he's been riding bikes for 20 years, and whenever his father is mad that he had his accident on purpose (which I'll come back to) he says that he's never made a mistake like that, not even was he was 4, so Ale is AT LEAST 24 and she JUST turned 18. Which is WILD to me, even though at 18 I dated someone who was 23 (he was possessive and abusive, so I have a real suspicion of age gaps). 
But, aside from that - she gets mad at him any time she sees him with his ex when It is perfectly fine to speak with your ex and whenever she did see them together, it was always innocent and she didn't give him a chance to explain.
But then, when he does something questionable, like whenever he tried to kiss her the first day they met, or whenever he came to her job to ask her out and she told him to leave but he said he was going to wait outside (toxic AF and presumptuous) she is fine with those things.
Now, back to Ale's accident. I really felt so bad for him whenever we discover he did this on purpose, because his father is mad, when they should be concerned. His mother says, "You could have died" and he agrees...
How did they not notice that meant that this young man was so disappointed with his life as a biker that he was literally suicidal? They just grazed past it and whenever he vanished on them, there wasn't a huge call to find him,even though he'd just admitted to purposefully filling a possibly fatal mistake.
I'm prepared for nothing but disappointment. ALL these people outta there. Ale's best friend is in love with his ex. 😭 IT'S SUMMER'S 18TH BIRTHDAY. MYNIGGA She really stood her other best friend up to go get some dick on a little ass boat
The little sister shot her shot! 😭😭😭 He told her she's like his little sister and she burnt off mad denna muffugga
This child drunk, walking down the street in the middle of the night without her glasses...
OMG AS I WAS TYPING THAT SHE GOT HIT BY A DAMN CAR
I was really upset by these things coming to light, and also whenever Blue gets hit by a car, because all of the reviews that I've seen on this site have been that it's a cute love story with likable characters, but nobody mentions the problematic content, the dark portions of the story that can be triggering - like suicide and alcohol incidents and literally seeing a young Black girl be hit and run by a car??? 
I wasn't prepared for that shit in a "cute love story." I think that this story is less cute and more dark than people have made it out to be, and that's one of my problems with it. It isn't marketed as a dramatic coming of age story. It's marketed as a romantic comedy, when it is more serious than that and has a lot of issues that should be considered.
The lesbian best friend is in love with her too??????????????????? I. Hate. This.
My favorite person in this whole thing is the lesbian in the background, Irene. And also Dario.
I was entertained a lot of the times. Just heavily confused because I couldn't figure out what the tone was supposed to be. 😁
In conclusion - it's maybe a dark comedy, not a cute comedy, IS a coming of age about a young Black girl who is kind of an asshole, but Black girls should be free to be assholes too. White dudes do it all the time and are valued characters. The dude is weird AF for chasing around this 17 year old girl and he's in his 20s. Idk if that's normal in Italy. It's nasty to me. Their beginning is young people foolishness and there's not much that we see their relationship built upon, but that happens, yanno. You young, tired and silly and some pushy dude makes his move whenever he see you. Slap some discount sex in a dinghy on it and you have this show. I don't recommend it, but a lot of folk loved it, so I guess it did what it meant to do.
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kaoarika · 4 years ago
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I rarely do written posts in Tumblr anymore because I am still figuring out how this new UI works in general (and there might be still be some bugs about writing posts + leaving them on drafts + publishing them accidentally as well), and tbh, between the past two months have been sorta chaotic and very mentally draining (besides some work I have been doing) and me attempting to think around some of my few active fandoms... well, haven’t had an eureka moment where I sit and write what I think about stuff.
So, let’s talk about some “stuff”.
Some days ago, I accidentally noticed by PURE CHANCE that some of the completed webtoons I was going to “eventually read” in LINE were going to get “locked”/converted  for Daily Pass. I mean, tbf, I knew that they were going to stick to this plan since past October, but it seems they really went full force this month (they only “locked” like a couple of series back then). And it’s exactly how I thought they would do so - popular series that have been already completed, old and recent.
I’m not going to complain about “Daily Pass” because I do have some thoughts about that and the fact they could use another model than just readers farming/buying coins, but, what do you do, especially since lots of these series are PRETTY long (140+ chapters long)?
My complaint does come from that, as a web user, I found this by pure chance, despite them saying they would announce what series would be locked in a 30-day advance notice. Because there’s no apparent indicator in the main page about THIS (The only Notice/News detail you see down below the page is about Canvas creators). Heck, I don’t think they even tell you about it in their mail newsletter, which kinda suck :))).
So, anyway.
I checked and, yes, a couple of VERY old series I was interested in reading were/are going to get locked. Problem, like I mentioned? THEY are pretty long! I know I can binge read as much as I want, but I cannot make miracles like reading over 100 chapters (if one series, try thinking about 2 or 3 -  I WAS NOT GOING TO DO THIS) in less than 12 hours! ESPECIALLY if those series were going to get locked THIS WEEK.
FML.
...anyway crisis was averted when I had to let go some interesting series that I may would get my way to read them (if there is a new buying/rental model they would apply) in the future... BUT I did read stuff I was curious or wanted to read... and mainly old stuff that I was willing to eventually finish one day.
Opinions on those series?
Okay, as brief and spoiler free as possible:
Untouchable: A story about modern-day vampires that instead of drinking blood, they have evolved to absorb the energy of their preys. This one is a romantic series about Sia, a vampire model and this human guy who has a very deep microphobia, and she puts her eyes on him when she realizes that his energy is like none she has tasted before. But, again, dude has microphobia (that is more or less controlled as time goes on).
I stopped reading this one for a while because  I was sorta smelling love triangle from a jealous friend of hers that OBVIOUSLY didn’t want to be looked as “just a friend”, lol. Like “how would this get solved”, kind of thing in your typical romance stuff. But then, last week I retook it... and it wasn’t as bad... but it leaks typical shoujo stuff/problems that become a newer obstacle as time goes on and on (misscomunication, lack of trust, overprotective family ANNOYINGLY hurting their own offspring, sudden deux ex machina...?). So, I think it finished fine... But man, I was so pissed off in how some stuff was managed at the end, lmao. Especially the way a “villain” was redeemed? I know that they say “karma is a b*tch”, but, DUDE KILLED PEOPLE BEFORE!? and you redeem him in a “lol, you will find out how love will make you feel” LIKe, DUDE, WHAT THE HELL. DON’T REDEEM HIM LIKE THAT.
Ghost Wife: I started reading this series in an unofficial manner a long while ago, but I supposed that the first chapters are pretty slow and it didn’t catch me on in the first place. It’s about a girl that starts seeing ghosts/spirits, and there’s this one that becomes WAY too attached to her, that offers her two options: either been eaten/killed or agreeing to be his wife. Given the title of thise series, you might wonder she accepted the second one
My lesson? Should have kept reading. The story picks up when other ghostly creatures are introduced and they start interacting with the main female character and her “ghost husband”, especially since this ghost cannot really imitate human interaction and his solution is “hypnotizing” everyone so he can “normally” fit. And the interaction between those two becomes more gracious and natural. You can feel that she likes being with him, despite the dangers of attracting ghosts that might kill her and all that. Heh.
Other lesson I had is that: the artist isn’t EXACTLY well into action scenes and some other details (but their ghostly creatures’ designs are TERRIFYING), so, I thought “well, I know there are other artists like this in the webcomic/webtoon environment, I shouldnt be too worried about my art once I get done with mine, right?
Also, some details started to make sense later on. And I cried like a baby in some moments, as well. Don’t have too many complaints, though. Perhaps more obvious “falling in love” moments... but then I realized that some actions speak lots better than words.
About Death: And speaking of “crying like a baby”, this one. This is a very old work, and it’s a gem, and it’s short, to top! And HECK, the art was AMAZING. Very touchy, and it makes you think. There’s quite a lot of South Korean webtoons that have made me cry because... they really make you think a LOT about stuff... especially about life and death.
Oh! Holy: Story about a shy and lonely loveable dork that is in love of his childhood friend, and that they eventually find each other in high school. Said childhood friend is idolized in school (but she is... hmmm... a dork as, well). Oh, he sees ghosts. OH, and she dies within the first three chapters accidentally :3. Shenanigans happen.
I HAD A LOT OF FUN WITH THIS ONE. SURE, it’s another shoujo but WAY less dramatic than Untouchable, because this was comedy (so, a rom-com!). And this one made me want more and more to read it. The characters all had an amazing personality, chemistry and their interactions were FUN AS HELL. The author seems to have my my sense of (dumb) humor, and the art was too attractive and knew where it should bright.
I don’t think I have too many complaints about this one. I may have felt unsatisfied in some minor stuff, but everything else felt “okay” to me, in general. 
A couple of things, though: localization and some quality stuff relating to translation in this series. I cannot judge the translation, but I do think it could have handled more quality checking on this one or proofreading, I’m not sure. I know that these (licensed and translated) series come in a weekly basis, but they REALLY need to pay more $$$ to their own staff to not let this stuff happen THAT frequent.
Localization is a bit of an issue I do HAVE though, and it is the same as in “Ghost Wife” and some other recent Korean series they have licensed in the recent past: Why using English-localized names, though? SURE, they retain their original last Korean names... but... why don’t keep their FULL NAMES, I wonder? I mean, weren’t we supposed to be over that kind of stuff already (videogames, JPN anime, manga other foregin stuff)? Is it because marketability? And/or because some names are “puns” that couldn’t easily be translateable in other languages? 
If it’s the latter, I think the same is applied in other regional language localization, like, in Spanish, original English language “Axed” is called “Natacha la del Hacha” and you cannot wonder how it crawls over my skin. I know this series is BUILT ON and is full of puns (as I am following it)... but... “Axelia” is a much more cooler name than “Natacha”... :I or so I THINK? Don’t take me too seriously...
In “Ghost Wife” I get it, you have spiritual creatures... their “human” names are puns of what they really are, and these words MAYBE don’t have too much meaning in English or Spanish or whatever... but... its a bit... glaring... when the main cast has English first names... and then you have a side character called... I dunno, “Soyeon” :I. or Haetae (a creature that didn’t have a human character name...) or, heck, characters that never appear again like... there was this “Damien” dude that for some reason, his name is slipped a couple of times as “Suho” (I wonder, his original name). But, then, you have people named “Liz”, “Drake”, “Sarah”, “Nathan” ????
I suppose that in “Oh! Holy” that might be the case, too. The original Korean name of the series is “오!주예수여” that is translated as “Oh! Lord Jesus”, because Holy in Korean is named “Yesu”. And, *sigh* I think that says enough. The pun STILL works... but :’))
But at the same time, I think my thing with the English localized names in “Oh! Holy” is that they are... blatantly boring and I don’t think they fit their faces. At all. But, maybe that’s me? (I mean, the “ultimate” reaper is called Norman. NORMAN.) Like I said, they still keep their original Korean last names... but... ugh.
(this is coming from someone who gave two of her characters very not obvious Spanish names given that they are Mexican, but I do have some valid cultural and VERY obvious explanations about those...)
Also - I don’t get LINE Webtoon’s selectiveness in this localization decision. Some of the South Korean series they bring, they do KEEP their original full names (see “A Good Day to be a Dog”, “Ghost Teller”, heck, the afforementioned “Untouchable”), but then you have stuff like “Oh! Holy”, “Ghost Wife”, “Scorching Romance”, “Mom, I’m Sorry!” or “Lookism”... ?????
And, this is very blatant annoying because a) K-Pop is HUGELY global mainstream nowadays and you can hear/read fans screaming their NAMES?! And 2) K-dramas are also pretty popular these days??? 
?????? 
*LONG SIGH*
There’s a few series that I want to check out, but I still have some more days for that to happen (heck, even a bit of more than a week). But, it SURE DOES suck that most of the interesting series I had my eyes on all were going to get locked this WEEK. :))))
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neshabeingchildish · 5 years ago
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Happy Pranksgiving
So, this went a little differently once I started typing it out than it was going when it jumped into my mind, but @chenoahchantel told me to share it. So, if it’s bad, she the one who said y’all needed to be subjected to it. It’s corny, but it’s here.
@kiddangers
Charlotte was not looking forward to the holiday season. Well… that wasn't exactly true. She loved the holiday season, but with that meant that her beloved husband and eldest son would be engaged in their favorite year round pastime, but tenfold… pranking for Christmas.
Here's where the problem started… Max loved pranks and was very good at them. At an early age, he determined that he'd teach his kids to be pranksters too. His family was never on board for his habits, so Charlotte supported the goal, but stipulated that they needed to be child level, better yet, age appropriate and comprehension based pranks… SO OF COURSE, they would have a genius kid who could at times go toe to toe with his old man in the pranking world. 
But, it got out of hand. Maximilian, MiniMax, would pull pranks that went totally against Charlotte's stipulation and between the ages of 6 and 9, it was virtually nonstop with her Maxi boys. From the time he was about 6 until now (he's 16) they had prank wars, while the other children shied away from it for fear of being super pranked by their big brother. Little did they know, MiniMax wasn't interested in pranking them. He sought out worthy prey. When he was 9, he scared Charlotte right into labor with twins she had been carrying and almost injured her. 
Max was ready to ban in home pranking. His wife and two of his little ones might have been harmed simply because he let this shared love between himself and his kid go a bit too far. But, Charlotte wouldn't let him ban it completely. That would make two dudes she loved very much very unhappy. What she stipulated this time was that they only pranked each other during the Christmas holidays. And so, a tradition was born.
Each year, they would get more into it. Sometimes MiniMax would induct one or more of 3 of his 4 younger siblings. Sometimes, they were Team Dad. But, they were learning as time went on and had declared at Thanksgiving that the 3 of them planned to enter their own prank into this year's wars. Max was so proud! Charlotte? Terrified. 
The baby had just turned 2 in October. Now, she had a 16 year old who called himself “Prank Savage” vs his adult father “Prank Savant,” and now her 10 year old daughter and 7 year old twins wanted to be involved? Suddenly?
“Are you good to make sure that things don’t get out of hand?” Max wondered. 
Charlotte assessed her surroundings. There was a 2 year old girl on her teet. She had teeth and was being weaned off, but not yet off. But, she could multitask, so she was waving a book around and kept hitting Charlotte upside the head with it while she was helping the twins with a project that looked like it could become unstable at any moment. MiniMax was rushing through the house, gathering things and giving himself a motivational speech and she was receiving an incoming, work related call. “I can’t make any promises,” she said. “Why don’t YOU make sure that things don’t get out of hand?”
“The kids will accuse me of cheating!” He said, wondering how that was not obvious.
So, that was that. She would HAVE to be the person to try to make sure that it didn’t “get out of hand.” If you asked her, these pranks had BEEN out of hand and were, every single year. Last year, MiniMax had set the entire neighborhood’s sprinklers to pour out his own concoction of insta snow whenever Max went to plug in their yard decorations. Everyone’s yard on the block was flooded with this fake snow EXCEPT for theirs and people came over to give Max a piece of their minds about it. 
Max smiled proudly at MiniMax and said, “The pupil surpasses his master.”
“Have I WON Pranksgiving?” MiniMax asked.
“I think I have no choice but to concede this Pranksgiving to you, Son.”
“YES!!!” He cheered.
“What the hell are you people talking about?” The neighbors wondered.
“Oh. And MiniMax? You’re on fix it detail for these people’s stuff.”
“It’s biodegradable. A few days it’ll break down and make your yards look LUSH!” He gave them an OK finger gesture. Then turned to his dad and reminded him, “And as per Pranksgiving earnings, you’re to call me The Maxter.” He patted his father on the chest and moved on with his day.
Max vowed that this year, he would not be calling his own son The Maxter. He was gonna put MiniMax back in his place. But now, other challengers were here. He and MiniMax didn’t usually play fair in this. 
At Midnight, every Black Friday, they both went into beast mode. Pranksgiving was their Christmas. They didn’t even seem to be taking the younger trio seriously and Charlotte was a little bit salty about it, to be perfectly honest.
“What do you kids have in mind for your Pranksgiving?” She wondered. The twins began to speak in their unique twin language, not knowing that she could pick it up sometimes (they’d find out eventually and somehow switch to another secret language. What an adventure that will be for her! But, for right now, they made a decision).
“You hate the pranks, so we know that you aren’t a spy. So, we’ll tell you, BUT, MiniMax is ALWAYS listening for signs or clues to stay ahead of DadMax..” He could just call him Dad… “So,” he glanced around and began to try to use sign language. Charlotte didn’t know a lot of sign language and whenever the twins not only learned it but taught their older sister, she figured out the basics. Nobody was deaf, but  it was a good skill. Their kids often learned things just because they didn’t know them before.
“Okay… That all seems good. I did have a few cracks, but I think I might be able to fill them in. You three need any help with it all?”
“I’m glad that you asked. We seem to be supremely low on the funds for this,” the 10 year old, Phoenix, announced. She smiled brightly, looking just like her dad, but slightly browner and with chubbier cheeks. 
Charlotte said, “Make me a list and I’ll see what I can do.”
The trio did several mini pranks, amateur hour really, and Max and MiniMax would try to cheer for them and tell them that those were all great. The twins would complain in their twin language afterwards and MiniMax would always tell them that whenever he was their age, he wasn’t the Maxter either. “Keep workin’ at it. You’ll come up with something great!” 
Phoenix folded her arms and said, “Don’t condescend them.”
“Condescend to,” he corrected her and booped her on the nose. She turned red, but forced a smile. “Great job, Fearless leader.” He walked off and she was livid.
“Does he think you’re in charge of this prank mission?” Maxavier asked. 
“Surely, he said that in jest, because she’s currently the least intelligent of all of us,” Maxwell said.
Phoenix threw him a look, “He probably said it so that you two could say stuff like that and I could clobber you before we prank them real good!” She stormed off. “Stupid Maxmen!” She went to go see her mom and sister. “Mom… Why wasn’t I named a Max? Did you already know that I wouldn’t be as… great as any of the others?”
“What? You’re awesome. You live with a house FULL of… very unusual boys and basically a crazy man child. Your dad is sweet, but Pranksgiving time is my yearly consideration to quit my wife job,” she joked. Phoenix was sad, though. “Phoenix… We named you after your aunt Phoebe and your dad. He always wanted his first daughter’s name to be hers, but I made him compromise, since he wanted every one of his sons to be a variant of a name that could be shortened to Max. If you want to look at a nonsense name, look no further than MAXAVIER, which I had to haggle him down to from MAXKAVELLI!”
“I’m so surprised that he didn’t try Maxson.”
“He did. I hated it a little more than Maxavier.” She laughed. “You don’t lack greatness, Love. The Maxes are just always trying to prove themselves to their big Max, and well… You’ve always been more independent.”
“Why didn’t you want me to be a Phoebe?”
“Because, there’s already a Phoebe Thunderman and I didn’t want my legacy to be named after her completely. But, Phoenix has Phoe and an X, and the Phoenix is an inspirational creature. That’s why I decorated your nursery the way that I did. You’ll leave your mark on the world, whether or not your brothers realize it.”
“Mom… could you help me with something? I have an idea, but… I don’t know… It’s sneaky and risky. It might hurt the twins, but they think I’m too stupid to give them my ideas.”
“I will support anything that uplifts you, and I’ll handle the boys, too.” Charlotte winked at her. 
.
So it happened. Max was working pretty nonchalantly on his pranking scheme. MiniMax was far more diligent about his. The twins had been “pestering” the two of them with various tricks along the way, and Charlotte was able to speak to the twins about how they made their sister feel with their comments and how to be more accepting of her as sort of a black sheep in the family. (That was one of the ways that Max and Phoenix bonded), but she knew that whatever stories he told of how he didn't fit in with his family for a long time too… It couldn't be like how she felt to be the only person in their home who was… mediocre. 
Even baby sis, Charbonnet, was manifesting powers, so if the baby wasn't a genius, she'd still have more to work with than Nix. At LEAST her dad had that in common with his family as a child. She. Had. Nothing. But his face.
When all was said and done, the twins had been briefed by Charlotte and they didn't think it would work, but one thing was sure..  they'd like to see it.
Max and MiniMax were each in their lairs, ready to execute their pranks. Once a winner was crowned, the family could go back to their holiday celebrations. Max really wanted Charlotte's gingerbread village and family fudge and she wasn't gonna have the peace of mind to make any if they were carrying on… Phoenix came running into his lair, panicked and shaking, "Dad! You have to come out here, QUICK!" 
He rushed out behind her and whenever they got outside, there were picketers and police coming to their house.
"What is happening?" He wondered.
"Maximus Thunderman?" One of the officers said.
"Yes?"
"We have numerous complaints against you and one Maximilian Thunderman for…" She began to read every single prank that he and MiniMax played that affected neighbors or outsiders in some way from like the last five years or so and Max realized that these people were the ones affected. 
"Okay. Okay. Well, I'm sure we can sort it all out…" Max began as Charlotte drove into their driveway with MiniMax and Bonbon in the SUV with her. 
"That's him!" Someone in the crowd said. MiniMax got out and was getting the toddler out of her seat when the crowd got a little rambunctious for the cop. Max got… worried. The twins were cradled closely against their older sis, MiniMax had BonBon in his arms and hesitantly followed Charlotte to where Max was facing the angry mob. 
"Max?" Charlotte said. 
"I've got it, My Everything. Will you take the kids inside?" Max asked.
She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at the younger trio. "Kids?"
"These people are here for MiniMax," the twins said in unison. 
"I'll handle this," Max said, but he looked terrified. Charlotte felt uneasy. This was becoming too much. She loved him. She gave the trio a look, a signaling look as Max tried to speak calmly with the officer about making sure that things won't get out of hand, but that his son was only 16 and while some of his pranks may have been a bother, they were hardly ILLEGAL… 
"Dad…" Phoenix said and pointed at the crowd. 
He looked up at them, ready to defend his family if he had to. But, instead, he saw them tearing away their tops to reveal various red, gold, yellow shirts, all with an image of a phoenix on them and their formation made a red circle with a golden letter "P" in the center. "What's happening?" Max asked, hands still lifted defensively.
"Nix has something to say," Charlotte said.
"Happy Pranksgiving, Dad." 
Max furrowed his eyebrows and the pocket signs were turned around to reveal what looked like a campaign photo of Phoenix, with a funny warlike face and the slogan, "You've just been NIXED." 
MiniMax's lip dropped and he looked at Charlotte. "You helped her?"
"I encouraged her," she corrected. He handed the baby to her and approached Phoenix. She was ready for some kind of declaration that she couldn't have possibly done this without Mom and general negativity,but he smirked, shook his head, very impressed and said, "You may be the Master this year… But now I know to be more careful around you."
"Yeah, but you don't have an entire community willing to help you out because your brother has been so insufferable," she said, smiling. 
He looked at the crowd. "Oh my God, she's right. Her pranks… ANYBODY could be in on them!" He quickly rushed inside to redirect this year's prank for next year, with stipulations applied from this new discovery. 
Charlotte and the twins began to hand out the thank you bags the trio prepared for the crowd and Max finally exhaled. "Nix… I'm so proud of you!" He cheered. She smiled. "I am also terrified. I'm retiring from Pranksgiving. This is between you and your brothers now." He took a deep breath. "I thought those people might harm us," he admitted.
"Well… Mommy said that as long as nobody got hurt, a little fear goes a long way in prank wars. She went into labor once. I think you'll pull through." 
They both laughed and he wrapped an arm around her. "How'd you arrange this?" 
"I went door to door and asked, "Would you like the chance to be a part of something that gets the Maxes back for their holiday shenanigans?" And everyone said yes and made me listen to everything the pranks have done to them. Hours of that for the satisfaction of beating MiniMax was worth it, though. The twins were on logistics. Mom was on 'making sure this doesn't get out of hand,' because I wanted MiniMax in cuffs, but she insisted that would both traumatize a child of color and quite possibly make you seriously injure an officer of the law." She rolled her eyes. "But.. I used my own talents. I used just what I have and I beat you all." She smiled brightly. "I'm not as average as I thought before."
"You never were," he said.
.
Charlotte was grateful to have the pranks settled for another year. Now, she could focus on all the corny stuff that the kids teased her for, but simultaneously lived for. And also some special time with her Santa Baby. "You're amazing, you know that? You saw that Nix was sad about being underestimated and you helped her to gain a victory."
"I swear, all I did was tell the twins that I believed in her idea and tell her to go for it. It was basic parenting. Girl just takes after her dad… at least in the non-scientific ways." She kissed him on the chin. "Makes her so lovable." He smiled. "I DID see myself in her for the first time in a while… when she was venting. I remember being surrounded by boys who didn't seem to notice my value either. And, one of the things I never wanted was to raise sons like that. They could all use a little lesson in seeing her worth." 
"You are so hot when you're an awesome mom to our kids."
"You kidding? You defending this family in the face of an angry mob today almost got us another child."
"Night's still young."
"So is the previous kid!" She laughed and he pulled her close and kissed her. 
"Thank you for putting up with another Pranksgiving."
"It was worth it to see her light up."
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