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the way his eyes track says otherwise, but the sarcasm at the tip of her tongue won't allow her to fold. it never does. "oh, is this how you get paid? using some gaslighting mind tricks on your patients to get them to reschedule visit after visit?" because for a fleeting second, she was close to confirming his observation, but like he says, the banter is too fun for her to just give in. she's compelled to match his lean with an arched brow. "next time i'll come around here with a jogging suit on like i just finished a rocky balboa workout. y'know, just to prove you wrong."

michael chuckled, his gaze dropping briefly to her hand on her hip before meeting her eyes with a sly grin. "control my thoughts? oh, i’ve got plenty of control, bonnie. it’s you who seems to be struggling—you’re practically begging me to admit you’re irresistible," which she is but he would leave that part out. he leaned in slightly, his voice lowering to a teasing drawl. "but hey, if fishing for validation is your thing, who am i to ruin your fun? consider me... entertained."

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yea, the way her voice raises wasn't suspicious, at all. he counters by turtling his neck back, mock confusion drawing up his forehead. "uh huh. i bet you did." he's not convinced. not in the slightest. he's aware of how his failures seem to trail back to rose and there's an inkling of him that can assume why, but he's never fully indulged in it until the moment she brings up switching strategies. like a game — better yet, her game. he steps closer, eyeing her over. "what are you trying to say, rose? we form a fake relationship together? get me whoever i want just like that?"

" nothing! " her tone a decibel higher. she doesn't take him as a complete idiot. she's fairly certain that he would eventually catch on the things she has been doing. in his failed attempts for a relationship, she has been the common denominator. "i talked to her once just to see what she likes and relay that message to you. i think we're doing this wrong. you know, girls find guys more attractive if they're in a relationship. it makes them more...desirable. why don't we switch strategies?"

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a smile brims, one erik doesn't realize how wide it's grown, but he feels satisfied in knowing after all this time he still knows how to make beau laugh. his dramatics always had a habit of doing that, even when he was being sorely serious. "i don't think about much, beau, but i do regret leaving without a trace. i think i always will." scorned by what used to be his own reflection, if he had gone against what he thought was true to the other man no longer being alive, these years apart wouldn't have existed. guilt etches into his furrowed brows, smoothing his hand down from beau's cheek, to his elbow, not allowing their proximity to stretch. "i didn't like what i became. a swindler, a killer. always forced to take in order to survive. i couldn't stand myself, and if i thought that, i couldn't bear the thought of you looking at me the same." honesty becomes him. "i was scared."

Not only the familiar voice, but also the way he answered felt like home. It was as if Beau was wrapped in a cozy, warm blanket that protected him from the cold of reality. Beau shook his head slightly, a hint of a grin on his lips, followed by a slight snort. He had always appreciated Erik's jokes back then. After all, they hadn't been living in the easiest of times. "I remember it very well." How could he forget? Whenever Erik had been in pain, a part of Beau had also gone through the same. He sighed again and raised his hand. "I had almost given up hope of ever seeing you again." As Beau leaned his cheek against the other vampire's cold hand, his fingers gently touched the back of Erik's hand. "You suddenly disappeared. I went looking for you. What happened?"

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it dawns somewhat as a relief that he accepted her wager. getting rid of that bracelet was considerably the last attachment to a soured phase in her life. "you ever think about turning to google? they say if you don't cheat then you aren't trying." take it from someone who uses it when she gets stuck on a daily wordle. yesenia offers an amused grin, "i'll take the cash." eyes aimlessly wander around the shop as he starts punching numbers, a creature to her own habits. always looking for something to buy. a scoff emits. "uh, no, actually. my ex-husband thought it was though. next thing you know, the jewelry turns into bribery and i'm left with a fortune to pawn off." she uses fortune loosely, for the sake of not opening that can of worms any further. "i prefer a medium ribeye paired with merlot most days."

jensen  hardly  had  a  serious  bone  in  his  body.  only  when  it  came  to  making  sure  his  deals  were  equal  on  both  sides  or  for  when  his  boxer  is  trained  properly.  "  f  -  y  -  i,  i  save  those  for  crossword  puzzles.  the  hints  are  sneaky  as  hell.  "  he  complained  in  the  note  of  humor.  "  yeah  i  can  do  that  for  you.  will  that  be  cash  or  card?  "  jensen  inquired  while  he  waled  to  the  other  end  of  the  counter  to  reach  the  screen  on  his  computer.  setting  the  format  of  the  sale,  he  gave  her  a  short  glance  before  clearing  his  throat,  "  so  kay?  is  that  a  favorite  of  yours?  "

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relief seeps like a psionic wave; ren can feel talia's where her fingertips rested, but what she witnesses is a woman who's been left to suffer the consequences of the unknown, and frankly, deal with ren's bullshit. "yea, i know." a bitter bite to her clenched jaw. "but i don't think i ever gave you an out, talia. if you don't want ... this anymore —" because she can't compel herself to say me or us, "i understand."

When hands moved to rest on her hips, Talia practically melted, having craved Ren's touch for the past few weeks, leaning into the contact. Lips parted as a soft sigh left her lips. She could never resist the other woman, stuck in this cycle of having her close and then ripped away again. "I won't ask you to promise..." Because Talia knew she would just end up with a broken heart and she couldn't stand that. @smckehour

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thing is, santo doesn't know. jaw-taut, his silence is almost tangible. he could say something to attempt to alleviate jamie's worries, make it seem like a good thing, or anything a little more fated, but he still considers himself new to this; being a lackey for an entity whose sympathy, he would bet, is nonexistent. "would you rather not be here, then?" he lowers to his level, legs crossed, elbows propped atop his knees as he rests his chin over curled knuckles. "the way i see it, you got a second chance to... hell if i know, help others? just when you think you're alone, you're not." it's a mere wager. "i mean, we somehow found each other, right?"

just throwin' around expressions. jamie smiles, this small tattered thing before pulling his legs up from the floor, his arms wrapping around them to press them tight against his chest. "is that what we were doing?" he feels exhausted all of a sudden, bone deep and blue in color. when did all this rage take root inside him? was it there long before he stepped into that lake? "who said anything about leaving?" he rests his left cheek on his knees, eyes gently closing, "how do we know a mistake wasn't made? that I wasn't supposed to stay there to begin with?" he didn't mention heaven again. jamie knew better.

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open to: anyone. info: jada guidry, 40s, trauma surgeon. any connection could work — coworker, exes, fwb, bff. go wild.

"you're interrupting my me-time. so what do you want now? more money? a check? a car? my soul?"

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STELLA KIDD 6.07 | CHICAGO FIRE

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appreciation for this outfit <3

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having too much fun being a gamer gorl but when i get back i expect more spn & fantasy plotz pls & ty

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THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, S7E4 — I Carry Your Heart With Me

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˗ˏˋ THEO JAMES as Cameron Sullivan in The White Lotus (2022) ˎˊ˗

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GRETA ONIEOGOU via TikTok

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"bullshit. accidents are unintentional." they've always been a stark contrast of one another. even now, her lips retain a thin line, unimpressed with the obvious larking in freya's gaze. "you couldn't even pull the trigger with your own hands. was it the guilt? or were you just hoping for a payday?" the pipeline rumors the order had to come from somewhere and she's never been anything but dutiful to the cause. that puts a bad taste in anyone's mouth. "if you didn't come here to finish your failed job, then i don't know why the hell you came here at all."

"  𝒊𝒕  𝒘𝒂𝒔  𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒚  an  accident  .  honest  .  "     her  hands  raised  in  a  half-hearted  gesture  of  surrender  ,  but  the  glimmer  in  her  eyes  hinted  at  a  mischief  that  was  anything  but  innocent  .  "  and  technically  i  didn't  pull  the  trigger  .  "  she  just  made  the  call  ,  that  caused  the  bullet  to  whiz  by  her  head  .  a  warning  shot  ,  she  preferred  to  call  it  .  "  I  mean  you  aren't  dead  ,  correct  ?  "  words  a  velvet  dagger  ,  wrapped  in  a  smile  .

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erik's memory floods and consumes him with what used to be a simple life. years of normalcy that rotted once he disappeared; when he grew ashamed of the monster he had become. if only he knew his sun, in the form of beau who shines before him, still existed. he drones into his handsome guise and imagines his transition would have been easier, more hopeful. "sometimes i like to believe i own the night." the simper at his mouth is meant to relay he's joking, but still a confirmation. "other times i live as anyone else would during it. i guess worse things could have happened. i could've lived out the rest of my days curing my skin with aloe anytime i went outside... you know how i used to easily blister." he half shrugs, raising a hand to cup the side of beau's cheek, like a buoy meant to anchor the strain he hears from him. "and i wouldn't have been able to finally see you again."

continued from here with @smckehour

This is impossible. It was that one thought that Beau couldn't let go of as he looked into that familiar face. The golden curls were still so perfect that they didn't seem real. The eyes, still as beautiful as Beau remembered. And yet everything was different. His grip was much tighter, much more determined. Or did it just seem that way to Beaufort? It was undeniably a vampire's strength that forced him to let go of the other's wrist. "Erik," Beau's voice was no more than a whisper and his emotions were running wild. There was joy, relief, despair, anger, love, sadness, it was too much to pinpoint each emotion. "Tell me this isn't true. Tell me you're not... not a child of the night." Beau deliberately avoided using the word vampire in public. One could never know if anyone was listening.

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"i'll just take it as another failed side quest, but you still gotta tell me what you said to her." he isn't going to let it go either, not until rose gives him some detail. "or if you ever spoke to her at all. your wingwoman title is about to be revoked."

✱ ( sc. ) one-liner starter for @smckehour.

" that is so horrible. i can't believe they could that to you. "