#[ plus i'm too much of a chicken to reach out to new people so there's also that ]

[heychucklenuts]

after I saw a headcanon about the mercs as Uber drivers; how about the mercs (plus ms. Pauling) but they are Airbnb hosts?

Miss Pauling and the Mercs as Air BNB Hosts

Coming from someone with a very limited idea of what an Airbnb host does, had to research a bit. I get the gist of it but still.

The very idea of this is frightening to me but in the best ways possible. I also like to think if they were put into this situation, it was a Mann Co. ordinance to say the company isn't as bad as people think it is, so there's more people coming to Teufort, and also to make the Mann Brothers even more money. (If that is even possible.) I also like to consider this something where they either fully understand what they're supposed to be doing or they completely wing it, no real in-betweens.

Miss Pauling

Probably one of the more responsible ones in terms of being a host, making sure to greet people staying and give them a little tour of the place, and overall just ensure they have a pleasant experience. She's very keen on keeping up with property maintenance, and once the people staying leave she'll do her rounds of the place to make sure there's no damage, or that nobody left anything behind. Maintenance is usually taken care of by Engie, and general house decoration is done by herself, or by Heavy since he can reach up higher. Pictures are done by Sniper since he has the best ability to capture the spirit of a place, and she makes sure they get paid for their help. But of course, she still has a job to carry out for The Administrator, so sometimes she'll use the Airbnb to trap people who need to be "taken care of", so to speak. Any bodies are disposed of appropriately, and blood and other gorey materials are promptly cleaned up, staging the scene to make it seem like they just canceled their reservations. Though, belongings of the missing individuals sometimes end up in thrift stores or antique shops.

Scout

He treats his time as a host more as him being a host for MTV Cribs, he doesn't understand that hosting means he has to take on more of a professional role. So, to a lot of people, Jeremy the Host is more like a party house owner than anything. He stocks up, he lets people drink, party, and he even gets involved in it quite a bit, leading to him skateboarding into a ditch in the middle of Teufort. This leads to issues when the parties get to be a bit too much though, leading to him either having to kick people out, or end up having to spend a good chunk of the money he made on repairing holes in the wall, or trying to figure out how to install a new toilet because the one he had magically disappeared. He gets scolded constantly for allowing such reckless things to happen, but his only rebuttal is "Hey, I'm makin' us money, ain't I? So quit worryin'." If people come just to stay there and not party, he awkwardly tries to make small talk, or something. Again, not understanding that it's people using the space for there own purposes, not something where the host is having a sleepover. But, he's just trying to make sure everyone is comfortable, even if he is obnoxiously awkward about it. The weirdest thing he does is stock the fridge with Bonk! in all kinds of flavors, and he'll also have at least one bucket of chicken in there, nice and cold for the guests.

Soldier

Probably the lowest rated experience within all the mercs because of his insistence of patriotism and MREs. He truly makes you feel like you're in army boot camp, having rules such as waking up at 5am (he says 0500 hours of course), doing exercise, training, and having rations for meals. Actually, he doesn't make you feel like you're in army boot camp, he just runs the Airbnb as one. And it's weird, because if he advertises it as an Airbnb, he get's horrible reviews. But if he advertises it as "Sergeant Doe's Boot Camp", he gets a lot more positive feedback from random people who decide to go visit. It almost becomes like an attraction for Teufort, and instead of being a tourist trap and labeled thusly, it's more of something painfully fun for people to go participate in. Of course while people think it's just fun and games, Soldier thinks it's just real life, no nonsense stuff. It also gives him an opportunity to fulfill his desire to want to be in this position, even if he's tried to be this way with the mercs. (As in, he's tried to be the sergeant of or leader of the mercenaries, not really to any avail.) People also go there for the added on mini-raccoon sanctuary, and the chance to be able to have raccoons wandering around the house. (Even if the contracts disclose there's a 72% chance of getting infected with rabies, people still go, and still pet the raccoons.) Plus if you get through an entire stay with Soldier, he will reward you with something. (Sometimes it's a bottle of water from Teufort, sometimes it's a rocket.)

Pyro

To Pyro, this meant new friends, and potentially a sleepover. And with Pyrovision, we know what they saw isn't what the guests saw. The place is decorated like Pyroland, or at least similarly to it. Very cutesy, almost like it was meant to be a place for families to stay. What scares people off is when they start to bring up fire, and also just how much fire-related paraphernalia is left out in the open. Blowtorches, matches, lighters, you name it. To some this is scary, to others its cool. And this seems like some of the only activity you find within the place, outside of the random Spy head they accidentally leave around who starts to insult you. Their presence as a host is either regarded as very sweet or very frightening, with very few in-betweens. They've gotten scolded a few times over for nearly burning the place down, but to them it's just adding more fun things to the place. To them, what they're doing is okay, and there's nothing wrong with it. In their view everyone is happy. The only saving grace with this is perhaps Engineer being by their side a lot, helping with the place, and undoing any damage they do. And also trying to get stuff in for the people staying there, such as a TV and other things to occupy themselves, and food that isn't just sweets and candies.

Demoman

Another one of the more popular hosts, namely due to the luxurious living conditions, and the only payment necessary to stay being alcohol. Buy him a pack of beer? You stay there for free. If you don't, you can just fork over enough money to pay for some alcohol. Given his insurmountable wealth, he provides one of the best experiences, even if he's found drunkenly wandering the halls of the place. Regardless of that, it's furnished, it's fancy, and you even get fancy foods to eat in the fridge, again, no charge. So if anyone is flocking to an Airbnb, it's the one he's a host of. He isn't demanding or anything along those lines, and if you choose to, he can (drunkenly) tell you about his family's history, and how he got to where he is. His presence makes the stay a bit more comforting, as it starts to feel like you have a friend you can talk to at any time you want. There really aren't any downsides to him, he's fair, and you get a cozy place to stay. Well, okay there's a couple downsides. You may have to deal with Eyelander's crap, and depending on the time of year you may have to bare witness to Demoman's eye coming to try and kill him. But 99% of the year you're golden to not have to deal with that.

Heavy

Heavy would be a polite host, probably would make a surplus of Sandviches, and has print-outs of the recipe for people to take home with them. He's kind and is willing to show people around, and introduce them to some of the books he's providing, his only rules are to make sure to be quiet after a certain point of time so that it's not noisy. He does enforce the noise cut off when it gets close to midnight, and is pretty strict about it too. "You are to go to sleep, not be rambunctious." Though he doesn't care if you stay up late, he just says that so you aren't disturbing other people. Like Sniper, Engineer, and Demoman, he is considered to be one of the favorites among the mercs being forced to host. He's considered to be fair and sweet amongst the people who are hosted, and a lot of them will recommend him to people who are thinking of staying in Teufort. He also randomly leaves out books about mini-gun care, and will sometimes talk to people about Sasha, correcting them when they think Sasha is some sort of significant other to him. As in thinking she is either a lover or possibly a child of his, which he has to clarify she is a gun, but he does say she has has her own thoughts and feelings. More in a joking sense, but he still loves to tell people about her.

Engineer

Definitely one of the favorite hosts. Sweet and kind man, makes the place he's in charge of look nice and cozy. Him and Sniper both would win for having the homiest places, and in Engie's case he's definitely have the vintage sense of style that has wood panel walls and such. It's cozy, and he tries to make sure all the spots in the house are cozy enough for the people staying, even going out of his way to maybe get some stuff to better suit people's comfort needs. He does regular maintenance, keeping up with the place every day on the dot. Any leaks, breaks, or cracks, they get fixed in minutes. Any complaints get answered, and he tries to assess the situation to the best of his abilities. And he tries to make small talk so long as the people he's hosting are cool with it, understanding some people wanna just be left alone. Funny enough he does keep in contact with some of the people he hosted after they leave, sometimes inviting them back for a little get together for free. Usually it's for a campfire or maybe a barbecue. He's definitely putting up the better front for the Mann Co. sponsored Airbnb's, and is one of the pillars ensuring the whole thing doesn't come crashing down.

Medic

The question is more why did anyone let this man be in charge of an Airbnb. To him this was the perfect opportunity to get free patients, which ends up making him the worst rated host. Reports of people waking up with multiple tongues, seeing in ultraviolet, and in some cases they wake feeling the need to breathe through water, rather than breathe pure oxygen. Countless instances of this have caused people to consider him frightening, and say that they never want to have him as a host or a doctor the rest of their lives. (To which he retorts, "Ha! As if you have control over that, Dummkopf!") He waits until people are asleep to be able to do these surgeries, and while sometimes they just happen in the bed, sometimes they are transported to his lab, especially if he needs special access to something, or if he needs a specific type of organ he doesn't carry on himself. The place is... not even fully normal, almost looking more like a doctor's office than anything. The rooms also aren't that appealing, looking more like medical rooms. Definitely not a fun place to stay, unless you're into that stuff, or you just really like medical horror. The only slightly nice thing is the flock of doves that randomly shows up... that is until you see Archimedes with blood on his feathers.

Sniper

He tries his best as a host. Tries to make the place look nice and homey, which he does a great job of. His aesthetic is one of rusticity and antiquated nature, so he'd probably make the Airbnb look a bit like his childhood home in Australia. As a host he's a bit quiet, not exactly keen on being around so many people (especially given his occupation), so he just gives the basic rules and says "make too big a mess and ya get to either clean it, or pay for it", which can be a bit threatening even if unintentional. He's one of the few mercs to make the place feel like a home, so it becomes very popular with older tourists, and people with kids, so it feels more like you're just staying at a grandparents house. He's not demanding, just wants you to respect the place and not break anything. (Especially since his mom's probably insisted on knitting a few tapestries for the place.) He himself is barely there, trying to focus on his normal day to day life without it somehow crashing with this weird attempt to not make Mann Co. look like a criminal organization. If he is there, it's usually for a little bit after people have gone to sleep/when he's waking up (so around 3am), and all he's really doing is making sure everything is in order, and maybe taking the time to do his laundry or take a shower. The people staying do know he does this, and he kinda brings it up beforehand. If they aren't comfy with it, he won't enter. But, he isn't there for long before he's back out the door, going to take on whatever jobs the day has.

Spy

Decadence behold this man as he is an Airbnb host. Quite similarly to Demoman he hosts in nothing more than luxury. More for himself, but, he provides it to others, albeit at a cost. See, this is his own abode, his own lounge. He does not want others to tamper with it, so he makes strict rules as to not go into certain areas. No going into the smoking room, the lounge, or a certain bedroom. Go in there, and you will either be kicked out or threatened. He does this for obvious reasons, he is a ladies man, after all, and he wouldn't want to end up disturbing the guests. ...Moreso he doesn't want them to disturb him. He doesn't even like having to be a host, finding it to be a waste of time. He tolerates it so that he may get paid, but that's about it. Despite being a man of mystery, he tends to loom throughout the place. He's wiped clean any proof of who he is as a person, but there's always a lingering fear he has forgotten something. A picture, a medical document, so on. That would be the end for him. Plus, he's particular about his things. So as much as he wants to try to trust anyone, he finds himself suspicious, and needing to make sure everything is in order by the end. If you decide to steal something of his, consider there to be a bounty on your head. His possessions are not cheap.

[jazzthatonewriterchick]

Lovers & Friends (18+ Fic)

Pairing: Keigo Takami x Black!Fem!Reader (Friends to Lovers)

Synopsis: In which you and Keigo have begun to realize the strange new feelings you both have for each other after one drunken night at a close friend’s wedding that ends with you in his bed, but because of your longtime friendship and committed relationships with other people, you’re more than happy to forget that night even happened and keep your mutual feelings in the dark…for now, at least. 

Story Warnings: Smutty Smut; 18+ (MINORS GET AWAY); Cheating/Infidelity; Mating; Light Degradation; Spanking; Exhibitionism; Multiple Positions; Creampie; Unprotected PIV Sex; Facials; Scent Play; Marking; Spitting; Deepthroating; Cunnilingus; Begging; Edgeplay; Power Play; Daddy Kink; Some Angst; Hurt/Comfort; Mild Violence

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters mentioned in this fic (except for Rei and Haruko). However, as this is my writing, I do not give permission for my work to be reposted on any other sites that are not from my own accounts. Thank you!

Writer's Note: SMUTTY SMUT BELOW. And I start my new big girl job on Monday. I'm shitting myself. More than anything, I'm scared I'm not gonna have much time to write my fic shit, BUT I'll try to make time for it cuz I love it & y'all so much!! AND GO TOUCH GRASS. -Jazz

Chapters: One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen. Sixteen. Seventeen. Eighteen. Nineteen. Twenty. Bonus Chapter.

Read on AO3 here!

************

Chapter Seven: Taking A Dip.

The pool area is empty except for you and Keigo, leaving an infinity pool and its appetizing, blue water ready for the taking. 

The city of downtown Musutafu glitters like dozens of diamonds stretching into the distance as you look out from the top of the building. The night air is warm and the sky is clear. You can see every star and constellation from here.

Keigo stands beside you, his arms behind his head and a hooded look in his eyes where you can tell he’s drunk. But, of course, he is to have agreed to have come with you to do this. 

“Looks like we got the whole place to ourselves,” he states before turning to you expectantly. “So what’s up? You gonna strip or what?”

You look down at the water, hesitant now. “Uh…”

That’s all you can muster. Your brain is too foggy from the alcohol and dancing to say anything else. Plus, the confidence you felt oozing out of you before is gone now, replaced with a feeling of uncertainty. What were you thinking, coming up here? Are you that desperate to get over Rei? 

‘Or are you that determined to get Keigo alone?’ a sly voice in your head teases. 

You push the thought away along with the strange feeling that bloomed inside of you seeing him pummel that asshole in the club. So protective he is…so dominant. Nothing like you’ve ever seen out of Rei. 

“O-On second thought, I think I might just dip my feet in,” you softly stutter as you take a step away from the pool. Keigo scowls at you, confused. “What? You dragged me all the way up here just to chicken out?”

After a beat of silence and you not budging, he rolls his golden eyes. “Suit yourself, but I’m gettin’ in. After that chaotic scene, Daddy needs to relax.” 

He begins to strip without another word your way, acting as if you’re not even there and he’s instead standing in the privacy of his bedroom. He toes off his shoes and socks as he unbuttons his top, one button after the other. He then slowly peels it off, revealing his impressive upper torso and muscular back where his red wings sprout from his shoulder muscles.

You also see some healed scars etched into his tanned skin, including the burn scars he obtained from Dabi, all of them testaments of his strength and courage. He then reaches for his slacks and turns to you, a smirk playing on his lips. “Watch if you want to,” he chuckles cheekily. “You know I don’t mind.” 

“Ew,” you scoff, but flush despite yourself. Your eyes continue to slyly and shamelessly indulge in your friend’s gorgeous body when he pulls down his pants, revealing his muscular calves, bite-worthy thighs, and firm ass in his Armani briefs. 

'Label whore,’ you think, your eyes still planted on his backside. You can see why so many ladies flock to him like birds. He truly is a beautiful man. 

He slowly sits down on the edge of the pool before dipping his feet in. Then he slides down the rest of the way into the water until you just see his head. “Ah,” he sighs in pleasure. “Damn, that feels good on my wings.” 

He turns to you, the blue water illuminating his skin and handsome face. “You sure you don’t wanna get in, baby bird? The water feels amazing.” He places his feet on the wall and kicks himself out where he begins swimming backwards, smiling giddily as he does so. He looks so happy. Why can’t you feel that happy right now too? 

“Well…” Nerves you’ve never felt before flood inside of you at the thought of stripping down in front of your friend. Why do you feel so weird about this? Keigo is your friend! He saw you naked back in middle school which became the start of your friendship. Nothing has changed. 

��Right,’ you think, trying to calm yourself. ‘Nothing has changed.’ 

Keigo is waiting for you, a warm smile playing on his lips. “Alright,” you sigh defeatedly. “But turn around and look the other way.”

Keigo looks confused but does as you say regardless. Once he is facing away from you, you strip yourself of your dress and heels with quivering fingers, doing your best to calm yourself by taking deep breaths. You chalk it up to the alcohol making you feel so off. 

Finally, you stand near the edge of the pool in just your bra and panties. You walk over to the steps and descend down into the water, hissing slightly as the cool water hits your skin. When you’re finally in the pool with Keigo, you realize just what he was talking about. The water is soothing on your tired muscles, easing you into relaxation.

“Oh,” you sigh, pleasantly surprised. “That does feel good.” 

“Right?” he chuckles, watching you. “They must’ve put some kind of massage oil in this water.”

You hum in agreement and hold your arms out in front of you as you bring your legs up and tip backward. You begin to float on your back in the water, now staring up at the starry sky above.

You hear the splashes of Keigo moving around in the water as he begins to float too, suddenly ending up beside you. His fingers brush against your shoulder as he does, sending sparks down your arm that you ignore. 

For a while, you two just float together, side by side, like two lily pads in a pond. “You remember when we used to do this?” you randomly ask as a childhood memory pops into your head. “All those boring ass summers at the city pool.” 

A light, reminiscent laugh leaves Keigo’s lips. “Do I?” he chuckles. “And Dabi would be so scared to get in ‘cause he was so sure he’d lose his quirk if he touched the water.” 

You laugh too, remembering those days in high school when you four used to jump the fence (except for you so Keigo would have to physically pick you up and fly you over the fence) to take a dip in the city pool. Echoes of your, Keigo, and Rumi’s laughter at Dabi’s fear of the water fill your head. When you’d laugh, Dabi would usually use his quirk to turn the water into ice, cackling when you three would scramble for safety out of the pool. 

Those days were so carefree and simple. You didn’t have to constantly worry about money, relationships, or survival. You didn't have to ponder over whether you would ever get married and have a family of your own. You didn’t ever have to wonder if you were truly happy. Suddenly, you don’t feel too content now. 

“Hawks?” you randomly ask, filling the silence with your voice. 

“Hm?” he hums in response. 

You stare up at the sky, questioning whether you should ask this forbidden question or not. But the alcohol gets to you. “How do you think Fatgum and Haruko did it?” you wonder aloud. “They’ve been together for six years and I’m sure they’ve had problems, but how do you think they managed to make it all the way to the altar? How did they know it was right for them?”

Keigo is silent for a moment, processing your loaded question. “I don’t know,” he finally answers. “I guess they just found that they fit. Sometimes you think you’ve met a person that fits into your life, like a puzzle piece. But then you find that they don’t just quite match up.” 

His fingers brush your arm, not but accident this time, and you shiver. “Other times, you’ll find people in your life that you know deep down that fit. That doesn’t mean you have to end up with them romantically though. Sometimes they’re just good friends or people you can trust.” 

His words bring tears to your eyes. He’s so right, and you feel so gutted over it. “I thought Rei was my piece,” you sigh wistfully. “He had a place in my puzzle that I thought was right. But we just weren’t right enough to fit in each other’s lives.”

The tears begin to well in your eye sockets, making the sky blur above you, and suddenly, you’re crying. It is soft and subtle, but enough to flip Keigo right into comfort mode. 

“Hey,” he softly says, moving to stand upright in the water. He helps you too, taking your arms and helping you place your legs back in the water. Once your lower torso is back in the water, he tilts your chin up to meet his eyes. You see nothing but concern and the utmost care in those golden orbs.

He opens his arms for you for an embrace you can’t resist in your hurt, drunk state. “Come here,” he coos. You fall into his body, wrapping your arms around him as he does to do. 

He holds you tight, making you feel every ripple of his muscles. Even in the water, he stands a head taller than you so he has the advantage to putting his chin on your head. You softly sob into the crook of his shoulder, letting all of the emotions you’re feeling tumble down.

“You don’t need someone to complete you, Y/N,” he whispers. "Especially someone like Rei. You deserve so much more as intelligent, kind, and amazing as you are.” 

He squeezes you to him, the pressure making you feel present. Real. “And you know you’ll always fit with me, Dabi, and Rumi,” he fiercely states. "Always.” You know that he means it; that it’s a promise. 

“Thank you,” you softly sob as gratitude for him washes over you. You pull away from him, wiping at your tears. “God, I’m a mess,” you sniffle, looking away from him. You don’t need him to see you like this––so broken. Keigo takes your wrists into his hands, prying them away from your wet face. 

“C’mon, look at me,” he whispers. 

You do so and you instantly regret it. Because now you don’t see the concern of a friend in his eyes. You see something more. Something deeper. It’s intimate and sensual, his golden irises appearing like sunken treasure to you now as they glide over your face, taking in every single imperfection. He looks at you like you’re the most beautiful thing he has ever seen, and he makes sure you know that.

“How is it you look so beautiful even when you cry?” He wonders aloud. 

You get the feeling that he is talking to himself more than you, but your body still reacts all the same. You become hot despite the cool, crisp water on your skin and your heart hammers against your chest as fast as a hummingbird’s wings.

“Keigo,” you whisper, because that’s the only word you can think to say. The air has suddenly shifted to something more charged so you struggle to breathe. It feels like your lungs are being squeezed the more time that ticks by and the closer Keigo gets to you. 

You don't even realize that he is leaning in until his lips are on yours. They are pillowy-soft and smooth. They move slowly and carefully against yours as if afraid you’ll bolt or shove him away, though the kiss is still passionate. You can feel every ounce of tenderness and intimacy in this one little act. Instantly, all of the sadness and guilt you felt earlier dissipates. All from Keigo’s lips. 

It ends faster than it began and horror crosses Keigo’s face when he realizes what he just did. What just transpired between you. “Shit,” he swears. “I-I’m sorry. Fuck, I’m so sorry, Y/N. I didn’t…”

The rest of his sentence dies in his throat as you slowly lean in again and press another small, innocent kiss to his pillow-soft lips. 

You only peck his lips one, tentatively so, wanting to try it out again to make sure those fluttery feelings you felt from the first one are still there. They are. This leads you to lean in again and kiss him deeper, passion exploding between you. Your arms find his neck and his find your waist, his fingers running up and down your spine and across your waist.

‘No,’ your head thinks. ‘Stop it. Push him away. You shouldn’t be doing this. He’s your best friend!’ 

But your heart and your body say something different. You know you need this and you’re helpless to stop, especially when Keigo runs his tongue across your bottom lip.

You grant him access to your mouth by parting your lips a bit, allowing him inside. You feel his tongue begin to swirl with yours, the taste of tequila and champagne heavy on his tongue. You softly moan at the taste and feeling of his hands on you, never traveling farther than your back.

But you want them further. You want them everywhere. It’s so, so wrong to be feeling this way, but it also feels…right.Like you and him are meant to do this. 

Keigo pulls away from the kiss, saliva dangling between your tongues, to duck down to your neck. His lips latch onto your throat and collarbone, peppering your skin in kisses and slight nibbles that have you gasping and softly moaning into his ear. Your best friend is kissing your neck. This is insane. He begins to reach for your bra strap, his fingers tickling your spine, but you’re cognitive enough to realize where you are. 

“Keigo,” you whimper. “Not here.” He peels himself away from you and fixes his eyes on you, his stare intense and unyielding. “Are you sure?” he asks. You know that he's asking if you’re sure about doing this. About crossing this fragile line between friends and not-friends. 

You know that you’re drunk. You know you’re not thinking clearly. You know you should say no and stop this from happening. But the idea of spending tonight alone is worse than death for you right now. “Yes,” you hear yourself whisper breathlessly. “Just take me, Kei. I don’t care. Just please take me.” You grip his shoulders in desperation, peering up at him through your lashes. 

He doesn’t need any more confirmation. Instantly, his hand is in yours and he’s helping you swim towards the pool steps to gather your clothes. You don’t quite remember putting them on. You don’t even really remember walking towards the elevator to go down to the hotel lobby. You’re only aware of Keigo and the hotel clerk’s voices being a mumble while your arms are looped around his waist and your head is leaning on his shoulder.

At some point though, you and Keigo go up to a hotel room. When he uses the key given to him by the clerk to get in, you’re taken aback by how beautiful it is. The living room area is spacious with beige floors, white, plush furniture, a flat-screen, a minibar, and a kitchenette. The scent of lavender and clean sheets hits your nose as you walk in, shivering slightly from the AC. 

As soon as you’re inside the room and the door shuts, Keigo is on you. He wraps his arms around your waist, pulling himself flush against you where you feel his hard-on pressing into your back. You gasp softly at the feeling, realization hitting you: your best friend is hard for you. He’s turned on by you.

His lips find your neck, pressing soft, wet kisses along it. You moan as his lips press everywhere he can reach––the back of your neck; your shoulders; behind your ears. “Keigo,” you softly moan. 

“Tell me what’s goin’ on in that head,” he says, sounding absolutely in need of you. His hands grip your hips, pulling you tight against him. “Tell me you don’t want this now and I’ll stop.”

But you don’t want him to. All rational thinking has flown out the window for tonight. You loop an arm around the back of his neck, turning your head to messily kiss him. “I want this,” you whisper against his pillowy-soft lips. “I need this, Kei. Please just fuck me.” 

Keigo doesn’t need any more confirmation. He turns you around by your hips and scoops you up, forcing you to wrap your legs tight around him. You moan into your feverish kiss as you feel his bulge press against your panty-covered pussy, still wet from the pool and your arousal that is quickly taking over you.

You wrap your arms tight around his neck so you’re wrapped around him like a koala bear, your body pressed flush against his. His hands cup your ass as he walks through the hotel room to the bedroom which has a single king-sized bed, a private bathroom, and a flatscreen. 

You don’t have enough time to admire the decor or how big the bed is when Keigo places you onto the cool, navy blue comforter covering it. The fabric smells of fresh cotton and feels soft against your skin. You relax into the mattress, your arms at the top of your head and your legs opened, your knees bent.

You stare up at Keigo who stands at the foot of the bed, admiring you. His eyes shine in the darkness like molten gold, making you tremble. You’re not sure if it’s out of anticipation or anxiety. But when he touches you, just one hand sliding up your thigh, one thing is for sure: you feel safe under his touch. 

Keigo continues to slide his hand up your thigh until he reaches the hem of your dress. His eyes tick to yours, a question in them: Okay? 

You nod, afraid to speak and ruin the magic you feel in this room tonight. With his other hand, he begins to peel your dress up your body, revealing your damp panties and bra.

“Fuck,” he whispers, mostly to himself. “You’re so beautiful.” You flush at his compliment. Though he has given you many compliments before, this one feels different. It’s way more intimate and sensual, especially in this context. 

He positions himself on top of you, using one hand to keep himself upright and not crush you. With his other hand, he begins to pull the front of your bra down to reveal your breasts and hardened nipples. You lean up to help him, unhooking your bra from the back and letting it fall away from your chest. 

You shiver under his gaze, relishing the way he stares at you in complete awe. He looks at you as if he has dreamed of your breasts for years now. Wordlessly, he presses his hand to one and latches his lips on the other, twirling his tongue around your hard, brown nipple.

A moan escapes your lips at the feeling of his wet tongue and skillful hand playing with your breasts. You lay back down, relaxing as his ministrations continue. He soon alternates between your breasts, soft moans emitting from his mouth as he sucks on your nipples. You feel him nip and tuck at your skin, no doubt trying to give you hickeys. He even tugs and tweaks at your nipples, sending tiny parks of pain through your body that make you gush. 

When he does it the first time, just by pinching one of your nipples between his thumb and index finger, you can’t help the loud moan that pours from your chest. “Fuck, Keigo,” you gasp, tossing your head back. “Do that again!”

He does so, making you gasp. Your hands find his hair, your fingers threading through his blonde locks. 

“You like that?” he asks, his hot breath fanning across your naked breasts.

You nod, a whimper leaving your lips which makes him chuckle. He continues to knead one of your gorgeous titties with one hand while his mouth works one of your nipples, sending waves of pleasure throughout your body. Your pussy trembles and gushes in your panties, begging for some relief and attention. He must be reading your thoughts too because you suddenly feel his free hand creep down between your thighs to stroke your pussy through your panties. 

“Fuck!” you cry out, your thighs clenching around his hand. He continues to stroke you up and down, his fingers sliding against your clit that jumps and quivers at his touch. It’s unbearable. You need to feel his fingers on you. You need direct contact.

“Keigo,” you whine. He peeks his eyes up at you from your chest, still sucking away at your nipples. “Just pull them to the side,” you huff, nodding down at your underwear. “Please…I need you.” 

Understanding what you’re craving, Keigo pops your nipple out of his mouth, his eyes flashing with lust. Without a single word, he peels your panties to the side with one hand and begins to gently play with your pussy. He slides his fingers along your slit for a few moments, getting you used to his touch, before dipping his fingers between your soaked pussy lips. You toss your head back and moan at the feeling of his fingers playing with you, feeling released.

“You’re so wet, mama,” he whispers, staring down at his fingers stroking your cunt. “All of this for me. Me.” He says it like he can’t believe it. 

You whimper, opening your legs more for him. He begins to slide his fingers along your clit, not going under the hood. Your moans grow louder as he rubs your clit with his index and middle fingers while his thumb continues to slide along your slit, just dipping very lightly into your pussy.

You notice how closely he pays attention to your responses, both verbal and physical. With every change in your breathing pattern, every moan, whimper, and gasp, every twitch of your body, he does what you wordlessly tell him. You’ve never had someone pay such close attention to you and what you need. 

His tempo and pressure begin to get you close to cumming, so you place a hand on his wrist, stopping him. He looks up at you in confusion, wondering why you stopped him. You lean in and press a pleading kiss to his lips, emitting a moan from him.

Your tongue licks his bottom lip, asking for entrance. He grants it to you, parting his lips to allow your tongue to swirl with his. The kiss is wet, sloppy, and messy. Just the way you like it.

Keigo’s deep moans travel straight to your pussy, making it gush around his fingers that continue to slowly and lazily rub you. When you pull away, a string of saliva hangs between your bottom lips. You immediately go for his crotch, touching his hardened dick hiding beneath his pants. He stares at you longingly, eyes lust-blown. 

“I need you too,” you moan, begging him with your eyes and your touch. “I wanna touch you.”

You’ve never wanted to touch someone more. Without a reply, Keigo positions himself on his back, his head against the pillows. His golden eyes beckon you forward along with his cock that pulses inside of his briefs.

Unable to stop yourself, you slowly crawl over to him, loving the way he watches you. He doesn't take his eyes off of you for an instant. To him, nothing matters but you. 

Once near him, you turn around and climb on top of him, letting him help you by positioning his hands on your hips. You lean forward so your ass and naked pussy are in his face, both of your holes on display for him. The hungered groan that escapes his lips makes you smile to yourself. You love feeling desired like this. You feel his hot breath and soft lips fan over your ass as he begins kissing your asscheeks, his hands massaging the globes of fat to his liking. 

When you finally pull down his boxers, you can hardly believe your eyes. His cock is the most beautiful one you’ve ever seen. Thick; veiny; tan; curves slightly upward. It protrudes from a thick nest of trimmed, blonde curls that are darker than the hair on his head which trails up to his toned stomach and abs. “You’re perfect,” you whisper aloud, entranced by how gorgeous of a dick he is packing. 

“Thanks,” he chuckles, his breathing fanning against your pussy. “But actions speak louder than words, baby.”

He then goes back to devouring your pussy, running his tongue up and down your slit. You give him the same treatment by licking your hand and stroking his cock, up and down, up and down. You let him get used to the feeling of your hand on him, and you get used to the feeling of his cock in your hand. He feels so heavy and soft, all smooth, warm skin in your palm that you watch stretch across his shaft. 

His soft moans into your pussy at the feeling of your soft, little hand stroking him and the vibrations his moans cause push you to move things further. You open your mouth wide and wrap your lips around his cock. You moan at the same as he does when your cock sinks into your hot, wet mouth. He feels so warm, hard, and stiff in your mouth.

And he tastes heavenly! 

Though the pre-cum that bubbles from his cock head is salty, it somehow tastes good to you. You love his dick in your mouth. You show him how much by sucking on him in time with your hand, stroking whatever you can’t fit in your mouth. 

You feel Keigo grip your ass tighter as your tongue slides against his shaft and your cheeks hollow, making your mouth even tighter of a hole for him. “Fuck, baby,” he groans, his breath fanning against your clit. “Your mouth feels amazing.” 

You hum appreciatively around his cock, continuing to suck on him, imagining him stretching out your cunt the same way he's stretching out your mouth until your jaw begins to ache. 

You have a reason to pop off his dick and take a break when you feel his finger begin to caress your slit in replacement of his tongue. You moan in response to the way the soft pad of his finger brushes against your sensitive pussy lips and dips ever so slightly into your entrance. 

As he does this, you feel his tongue begin to bathe your asscheeks, licking at the globes of fat until it trails down to gently lap at your asshole. Your mouth falls open, reacting to the pleasure, but also the fact that Keigo likes to eat ass. Rei never did this for you!

But then again, you never thought to try this either. You’re honestly shocked at how nice it feels combined with his finger lightly fucking your pussy. 

“Fuck, Kei!” you moan, your head dropping down from the utter pleasure coursing through your body. Keigo hums from behind you, his face stuffed between your ass that he’s gripping for dear life. He pulls away and you feel the trail of saliva he has left behind along your asscrack.

“This okay?” he huskily asks. “You like my tongue here?” His finger continues to pet your pussy, his knuckles nudging at your clit. “Yes,” you whimper. “Yes, please, just keep going. Whatever you’re doing feels amazing.” 

He chuckles lightly from underneath you and spits on your pussy before slurping it back up, sucking on your lips as he does. Your moans and wails bounce off the hotel walls as he continues to eat your cunt and your asshole, his lips, fingers, and tongue working magic on your body.

You’ve ever had someone treat your body so well and pay such close attention to your reactions to whatever they do next. It feels good to be taken care of in such a way. 

You want to make him feel the same way, so you take him back into your mouth and you don’t stop. You sink lower onto his dock, pushing him deep, deep, deep into your throat until you’re gagging along his dick and spit is dripping down his balls. His shuddering moans and huffs into your holes make you take him deeper, your throat stroking his cock oh-so-well.

You’re completely filled by him, wondering if your pussy will feel the same way with him finally snuggly inside of you. Taking things one step further, you take one hand and lightly begin to stroke one of his wings splayed out along the bed. 

“Shit!” Keigo hisses. You feel his body tremble underneath yours the more you stroke his feathers. You know how sensitive his wings are.

One time, Keigo described an interesting experience at a spa where the masseuse was way too good with her fingers, started massaging his wings, and he came all over himself. It was a very embarrassing moment, to say the least, but he put in a good word to the masseuse’s boss to make up for it. Though the story was hilarious, you always were curious as to how he would react to your touch.

You get your answer now, listening to him moan and feeling his hips grind up into you, his cock nudging against your tits for relief. Your fingertips play with each silky, soft, crimson feather, stroking up and down each part of his beautiful wing and enjoying his body’s responses. 

“Jesus, Y/N,” he says shudderingly. “You tryin’ to make me cum like this or what?”

You giggle at his impatience. “Sorry. Lemme help you out.” While you’re still playing with his feathers, you wrap your mouth around his cock once more while you stroke the bottom half with the other. You are put to work, using your mouth and hands to please him while he pleases you.

When he starts to thrust this cock into your throat in time with your head-bobbing, he nearly loses it. “Fuck, Y/N!” he growls. “If you keep doin’ that, I’m gonna cum down your throat.” 

You nod eagerly onto his cock before popping off of it, your mouth coated in pre and spit. “Do it,” you plea. “Cum in my mouth. I want you to.” You go to suck him off again, but he stops you by laying a hand on your shoulder. “No,” he says determinedly. “I need to be looking at your face if I’m gonna do that.” 

Something in his tone makes your pussy gush and ache for the same thing. You stop touching him and lean up onto your knees, right above his hard, throbbing cock.

“Let me get you inside of me first then,” you purr. You feel Keigo tense underneath you, obviously not thinking you wanted intercourse. You look back at him with a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry; I’m on the pill.”

You shift your hips as his hands grasp your hips, helping you keep steady while you hover above him. “Go ahead, babe,” he breathlessly says. “I’m all yours. I’m whatever you want me to be.” 

He takes his cock into his hand and aligns it with your entrance, never moving even an inch. He lets you take complete control of this. “I’m your man tonight, baby,” he whispers. “If you want me.”

Those words nearly drive you insane. Once you’re ready, to come down onto his cock, only taking the tip first. You both gasp at the same time as soon as he’s snuggly inside of you despite it only being the head.

It’s a stretch and it takes a few breaths to take him, but Keigo is patient and plays with your clit in the process. His fingers definitely help, making your cunt slipperier enough to take him inch after inch. With each one you sink down on, you rise back up onto your knees until you’re slowly bouncing on his dick. 

You felt your pussy accommodating to his girth, your walls stretching around him. You’ve never felt so full before. He’s so thick that he fills up every inch of your pussy, making him feel a lot bigger each time you move back down to take him.

Keigo keeps his hands on your hips, moaning every time your pussy comes down along his cock. “Goddamn, you’re takin’ me so good,” he groans. “You’re so wet…so tight…so…f-fuck.” 

It’s starting to feel better for you too, so much so that you start bouncing a little faster than before. Soon, the sound of skin smacking against skin begins to echo throughout the room as your ass slams against his pelvis and your pussy sinks down onto his cock, again and again.

You’re fucking your best friend. You’re having sex with your best friend…and it feels so damn amazing.

“God, Kei!” you cry out, tossing your head back. Your moans become louder as his fingers continue to rub your clit, his circles becoming quicker. “You feel so good! I could cum just like this!” 

“Go ahead,” he urges. “Cum all over me if you wanna. You deserve it.”

You feel him sit up, his front against your back, forcing you to sit down fully on his cock.

“You need it,” he growls into your ear. You damn near scream in pleasure when he leans you forward by placing a hand on your back and begins to rail you, his hips slamming against your ass. 

With each thrust it bounces and jiggles, hypnotizing Keigo and causing him to give your cheek one loud smack. The only sounds echoing in the room are of the bedsprings bouncing, skin slapping against skin, the lewd squelching of his cock plunging into your pussy, and your moans quickly reaching a crescendo as your orgasm begins to rise.

You can’t stop it. It rushes over you like a tidal wave, causing the knot in your core to finally snap.

“Fuck, I’m cumming!” you shout. “I’m gonna…I’m gonna…”

And you do. Your body trembles and a long, drawn moan of release leaves your lips as you cream all over Keigo’s cock. Pleasure courses through your body for one single moment until it starts to fade, leaving you feeling totally satisfied. 

You can hardly believe it: you came for your best friend, all over his dick. And it felt amazing. Keigo holds you in his arms, his thrusts pausing and his cock still hard inside of you. He wipes your hair from your brow and presses a kiss to your forehead. “Still want another?” he asks against your temple.

You feel his cock throb insistently inside of you, drawing a weak moan out of you. You turn your head to brush your lips against his, his cologne invading your senses. “You didn’t cum yet,” you purr. “So hell yes.” 

In a blink of an eye, you find yourself on your back, falling victim to Keigo’s ungodly speed, his dick still inside of you. A giggle escapes your lips that is quickly swallowed by his lips when he swoops down to kiss you.

He wastes no time hiking your legs over his shoulders and proceeding to rail you like the world is ending. His speed is quicker than before, his grip on your hips hard and possessive. “Is this okay?” he asks, worry in his crimson eyes. “I’m not hurting you?” 

You vigorously shake your head against the pillow underneath you. “Don’t stop,” you whimper. “Please don't stop, Keigo!”

Your hands trail up to grasp his shoulders and your ankles lock around his waist, your heels digging into his ass. “Fuck me,” you plea, staring deep into his eyes. “Please, baby.”

Baby. Like he’s your baby. Like he’s yours. 

The pet name seems to affect Keigo deeply because he completely changes before your eyes. His eyes grow a darker crimson, like the purest blood, and his wings curl around you, shielding you from the outside world.

Before you can ask what’s happening, he begins to fuck you harder, faster, rougher. He is almost feral in the way he fucks you into the mattress, grappling at your tits that bounce every time he thrusts his hips forward and smacks at the meat of your thighs. 

“Fuck, Kei!” you shout, your eyes going wide at how deep and fast he’s fucking you. “Your hand!”

Keigo slows his roll for a moment, staring down at you in confusion. “Huh?” he huffs, still bumping his hips into yours. 

You’re so drunk off the alcohol you consumed earlier and the pleasure that you just blurt what you want: “Put your hand around my throat,” you plea. “Please.”

His eyes widen an inch, looking shocked at your request. But he doesn’t refuse it either. 

One hand reaches down to wrap around your throat, his fingers squeezing your neck. It’s not enough to make you uncomfortable, but it’s just enough to make your mouth fall open and your airwaves feel constricted. He begins to fuck you up against the bed again and it suddenly feels way more intense than before.

“You like that, mama?” he growls. “You like my hand around that throat? You wanna get choked while I fuck you?” 

You pitifully whine in response, unable to speak with his hand grasping your throat and his dick stroking your insides. His cock turns your pussy into wet, gummy mush as it glides against your G-spot and his pelvis nudges against your sensitive clit. It’s all too much. You’re going dizzy from the pleasure. You’re seeing stars. It’s unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before. 

Keigo leans down to press his forehead to yours, the intimacy of it somehow making the fucking session even more intense. “You wanna cum?” he teasingly asks. “You wanna cum with me?”

He squeezes his hand around your throat a little more, constricting your breath. You wordlessly nod, sobs of pleasure escaping you as your pussy tightens around his cock again. You can tell this orgasm is going to be a big, exhausting one.

“Make me cum!” you beg, gripping his shoulders tighter. “Please make me cum, Keigo!” 

He doesn’t need to be told twice. He plunges his cock into you at a breakneck pace with his mouth latched onto yours, your tongues swishing together. He pulls away with a groan and stares down at you, his gorgeous face contorted in pleasure.

“I'm gonna cum,” he whispers. “I want you to cum with me too. Give it to me, baby.”

He sits up and speeds up his hips, fucking you up against the bed and causing the headboard to knock against the wall. “Cum for me, Y/N,” he demands. “Cum on this dick. Do it for me, baby girl.” 

You toss your head back and cum with a loud, long moan of his name, sparks of pleasure exploding in your body. It triggers his own orgasm almost instantly. He stills his hips and grips your body to his as his cock spurts rope after rope of cum deep inside of you, filling your pussy up.

“Fuck!” he growls into your ear, panting heavily into your ear. You weakly whine as you feel him cum inside of you, the wet, warm feeling overwhelming you. Aftershocks begin to course through your body, causing you to buck your hips against Keigo. He grips you to him as if he's afraid of letting go, making you feel every ripple of his muscles against yours. 

“It’s okay,” he coos into your ear. “It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you now.” He begins to stroke the back of your hair as the aftershocks begin to fade, leaving you exhausted and sleepy from two great orgasms.

“I’ve got you,” he says again, lower this time, as if he’s saying it to himself. He continues to say this like a mantra, but you barely hear it. It becomes a lullaby to you, slowly dragging you further and further towards sleep. 

And some point during the aftercare, you pass out and Keigo wraps his soft-like-silk wings around you as he settles next to you. He presses a kiss to your forehead, lingering there for a moment. “Goodnight, Y/N,” he whispers.

Then sleep comes for him too. 

[skinni-girls-eat-books]

Sunday, April 14th, 2024! Pt 2 (one day NC 🥳)

10:03am: I went back and reread some posts from earlier in the week and remembered that I was doing really good! I think last night was a one off and a little step backwards, but nothing that can't be overcome again. Things happen. People disappoint us and let us down, doesn't mean we have to become hard and cold to the world.

I'm gonna stay positive and know that

1) fake positivity does turn into real positivity after a while 2) positivity attracts people, friends and that's what I would like.

Stay positive! Definitely still process your trauma, but there's so much good in life! Like that awesome feeling when you have a good day with someone new ❤️ I guess I understand wanting to start fresh with someone because it's exciting! Plus be confident knowing that you were never the problem and omg there's so many guys out there that want a chance with you, honestly things will probably get better with age.

Don't be like the boss, a whole ass pharmacist going back n forth with someone beneath him, petty drama, stress and emotional turmoil. I don't want that life, it's bad for your physical body. When I think about the positive feelings I've been having for about the past two weeks, the tension lifts from my body. I have so much to look forward to. And I can't control anyone else's actions, I can only control my actions and my emotions and how I react to things.

This door closing is just opening up a bunch new ones :) and what one man won't do, another man will ❤️ let's work on me so I can find my forever guy ❤️

I love you

6:53pm: Got home from work and I'm bleeding like crazy. Longest month of my life. New homie sounded like he was gonna come over but I think he chickened out? Lmao that's crazy 😂 Had a nice day at work, ranted to the boss and it helped me a lot. He told me to make a pros and cons list and I said that con side would look crazy 🤣 he said he does the same thing and it helps him, also he said the no contact thing is helping him a lot PLUS this man is wildin OUT like every night is a bachelor party or something and I want to be like him haha. So crazy tho he's just like yeah and then I might get back with his gf after a few months like ???? Guys are insane lmao.

Weirdest thing I have thought about today is how prude he* is. 🤔 I really don't have to explain myself but like, he has the two biggest ho friends I've ever seen and acts like I'm just supposed to be some untouchable angel is WACK. Tbh I wouldn't get back together with him for that alone, it's a major rift in our morals. He thinks he/ his friends can just do whatever but then judges girls for doing the same? Icky, double standard ass mf 🤢 this man belongs in the looney bin after last night. Weird ass said he hopes the guy I end up with has wack dick and he hopes nobody is better than him 🤣 who tf says that

I literally had to lie to this man on facetime so he wouldn't have a meltdown if I told him what I really did, getting piped in our bed by a great guy 😂 crazyyyyy flex bro, but yeah keep doing it in y'all's parents house 🥴 literally just gave me icky goosebumps thinking about that.

Who cares lol I'm glad that part of my life is over. I'm tired of looking stupid tbh. Hesitant to do a # days no contact tracker on here because ik it can be counterintuitive to think about him technically, but shit I already think about him anyway, so I think it'll be a good idea to *try* and if it sucks I'll stop.

1:10am: Going to sleep now, didn't do anything after work today but that's ok :) had yogurt and cereal for dinner and both cats are on my bed ❤️ Spent too much time on my phone but it's ok, too. I think I'm gonna do a beginning of the day and end of the day, then I can kinda track triggers that make me want to reach out to him. Ik it's stress but also ik this will help. Distractions are great, but I want better distractions than just being on my phone lol.

Goals for tomorrow: Last OSCE! Study for exam! Study MOA! I know you hate it but that doesn't matter right now, you gotta grind before you party 🎉 Study for Jesse McCartney ❤️ He doesn't want you to fail your exam 😂

Goodnight, I love you so much I hope you had a good Sunday. I'm listening to crime podcasts while I fall asleep, something I couldn't do with you here lol. Perks of being a bachelorette 🤪 Hella peaceful and everything is easy going.

Day 1 NC complete! ❤️🥳

[gabbagepatch]

Gonna try to act like I'm normal for a sec and talk about my experience getting accommodations for my hearing loss this semester.

I've had severe tinnitus since January after a mild COVID infection. The accompanying symptoms are unilateral hearing loss, episodes of intense vertigo, degradation of my balance, and of course constant tinnitus. This illness is a bit of a chicken or the egg scenario, and these symptoms can vary heavily day-to-day.

As someone who used a wheelchair and cane for approximately two years from 2016-2018 I was already familiar to the rigmarole of getting accommodations from an educational institution. I've also had experience with chronic pain so I was more prepared than some others for a sudden illness that impacts my daily life.

Once I realized that the first-line treatment wasn't successful I got to work immediately with my college's disability office. I am not the bitch who's gonna wait to get the stuff I need. I care too much about my education to suffer needlessly when I know this illness isn't going away for a while.

I cannot stress this enough! Do not wait for it to get worse, you do not need to deny yourself accommodations because it isn't "as bad as it could be" yet! Worst case scenario is that you get accommodations and didn't need them as long as you thought.

I visited the website and was very disappointed that the resources were confusing and limited. It seemed to me that there was an unstated assumption that the person needing the forms was a new student, so the things I needed were buried in new student paperwork that didn't apply to me. It also was not easy to find their policies on applications submitted outside of enrollment, and I was applying mid-semester. I called the line for the disability office, but the number was either outdated or they were closed at 1pm on a Wednesday. I was very frustrated initially. This might just be me but I'm of the opinion that important resources like this should be easy to find regardless of circumstance and that the people you need to reach for questions should be available during normal hours, but whatevs.

I ended up emailing the head of the disability office informing her of a lack of phone response, a small blurb about my situation, and the questions I was looking for answers to. Despite my issues with the website she called me within the hour of my email. If this lovely woman could call me immediately after I sent an email why couldn't I reach someone over the phone? I thought that was weird, but she was super helpful nonetheless so I can't be too annoyed. She explained the process and it was actually pretty simple, but you'd never know it from their webpage.

For me, my college required my primary care provider to fill out a short form, one page front and back. It had simple questions about what abilities were affected and how severely; plus a simple consent portion authorizing my school to receive that medical information. I recommend filling this out before the appointment with your provider, because it saves time. I filled out the legal portion but didn't do the assessment ahead of time. It worked out because during this appointment my hearing turned out to be worse than I thought, so hearing impairment was rated "severe" and not "moderate" as I had assumed. Afterwards it was easy to scan and email to the disability office. My school's email system is secure so I was not worried about sending such things over email, but use your best judgement.

I had thoughts that I was "jumping the gun" a little, but was able to push that aside. It's basically impossible to avoid self-doubt as someone with a disability or illness. The world is full of inspiration porn and there will always be people who judge you for not trying hard enough. The idea that accommodations should be a last resort after tireless effort to "overcome" your disability is total bullshit, but you didn't need me to tell you that.

There was also a small worry that it would be read as manipulative or arrogant to request accommodations so soon after my illness began. I also had to push this aside. Many abled people expect accommodations to be requested meekly, and look down on those who are confident in their own limitations. Often being too sure of yourself and your needs is taken as a sign you're taking advantage of the institution. Once again, total bullshit. You don't owe anyone a performance of shame and apprehension.

Back to the process. Once she received the paperwork everything was basically out of my hands. My professors were notified of the accommodations I requested and I was able to begin implementing them smoothly during class. Of course my accommodations are not as involved as others may be. I requested to record my lectures and sit in areas best suited to my hearing, these are generally very easy for professors to accommodate. My balance issues are another matter, but I'm not in classes that require lifting or bending so it hasn't come up.

I have to say my experience with college if much better than public school so far. I think it's a lot easier for k-12 to get away with shitty behavior than college professors, but that's just my personal experience. I got a lot of grief for my past disability in school than now. The day before I was pulled out of public school the school nurse told me she "didn't have time for this" when I nearly passed out! I think the semi-professional setting/attitude of college encourages a more "HR friendly" response to stuff like this, but I've heard enough horror stories to know that no institution is immune to ableism.

Overall I'm pretty happy with my experience so far, and I feel like my college is doing a pretty good job in my case. I'm just happy that my education doesn't seem like it's going to be another stressor. I've got enough on my plate dealing with appointments, PT, and tests so I really appreciate that my college was responsive and understanding.

[crossed--fates]

[ I really wanna get back to rping on this blog but most of my rp partners are gone, RIP ]

[nagipops]

hii I love your blogs sooo much you're really talented (I just needed to say it sorry) so straight to the point, I already made 2 requests to you and I really enjoyed your writing so I would like to make another again. As I'm clueless about what to request I'll just ask for random hcs for konoha 11, idk if it's too much but if so then you can do with Neji (I love him so much), Kakashi and Naruto. Thank you in advance and sorry anything ^^

RANDOM KONOHA 11 HEADCANONS!

FEATURING: naruto, sakura, shikamaru, ino, choji, neji, rock lee, tenten, kiba, hinata, and shino

WARNINGS: mentions alcohol, drugs, food, bugs, and the tiniest nsfw mention if you get the joke. hehe

A/N: AHHHH ANONN this seriously made my day, im so so glad you enjoy my work!! 💖

NARUTO

you know how we all have “the chair”, where we throw all of our dirty clothes onto?

yeah, imagine that, but from the seat to the fricking ceiling

its just a GINORMOUS MOUND of clothes, you wonder how he even goes through that many clothes so quickly???

definitely shoves it under his bed whenever guests come over (somehow)

holds chopsticks really weirdly. but it works.

asked tenten to put his hair into space buns to mimic his sexy jutsu and went around flirting with the village

jiraiya was so proud of him T-T

comes up with the WORST pickup lines

they’re so bad, its almost charming. almost

has gone AWOL multiple times, disappearing from everywhere, just everywhere

it scared you a little, so you searched the entire village for him

you finally found him sitting on the ledge of a cliff, gazing out at the vast sea

concerned and panicked, you cried out to ask him what was wrong

he turned to you with a crestfallen, devastated look on his face and said,

“i bought shrimp ramen instead of chicken ramen.”

you’ve never searched for him after his disappearance ever again.

SAKURA

100% makes origami shurikens and chucks them at you

they are deathly precise and deathly sharp. seriously, how are these not illegal weapons yet???

writes threatening motivational notes to herself on the mirror

“u got this!” “make sure to smack naruto today!” “ino sucks!”

her backpack would always be way too high up on her back. idk why but. it would

does her hair all nice and pretty before she goes out but once she arrives to her destination SHE KEEP. TAKING. IT OUT. and redoing it over and over and over again

like it’s impossible to make eye contact with her because she’s holding a bobby pin between her teeth while braiding her hair

her guilty pleasure would be hostess treats

ding dongs are her favorite. don’t ask me how i know, i just know.

eats the yellow starbursts just to spite naruto and all her haters

loves small lap dogs, she think’s they’re so cute and cuddly

but she especially loves chihuahuas

they’re so feisty and naruto HATES them, so of course she had to go and get one for herself

dresses the poor dog up in little bonnets and jackets and ties its tiny fuzzy hairs into pigtails

she and the chihuahua are not that much unlike <3

SHIKAMARU

this man is a god at shogi but he absolutely SUCKSSSS at cup pong.

is this an ick? idk. but he is absolute trash at this game.

it gets even worse when he’s got a couple drinks in him

tries to calculate the velocity and acceleration and angle and shit but his shot is always a good two feet off BYE 😭

just mutters an “aw, shit” before awaiting his turn again

hates checkers, loves chess

“checkers is for WUSSIES” - shikamaru nara

i said this in another post, but he is Very Good at whistling

like that’s his hidden talent

can copy any tune with the perfect pitch and rhythm

speaking of, he can do really cool tricks with his tongue

like making a four leaf clover, touching the bridge of his nose with it, flipping it upside down, you name it

he has slanted, scrawled handwriting, to the point where it’s almost illegible

wbk he cheats in school SO OFTEN. but he never gets caught. he’s not stupid, he just couldn’t care less about his classes.

thinks weed and e-cigs are stupid, cigarettes are where it’s at

you just can’t replicate the feeling of taking a drag from a cig after a long, tiring day

plus he looks hella cool while doing it B)

INO

teaches the boyz™️ how to braid their hair

like they all gather in a circle around this feisty fashionista and fail attempt to braid their hair

sakura was just fuming in the sidelines

“OI, INO-PIG, THAT’S A DUTCH BRAID, NOT A FRENCH BRAID!!”

yeah, ino 🙄

the only one that can actually do it is neji because a) this man is talented af and b) he’s got the long hairrr

ino probably envies his thick, sleek hair because hE’S a bOy

also asks everyone for their blood type and zodiac signs and tells them if they’re compatible with her or not

and definitely judges you for your sign 😣

“oh, you’re a gemini? hmm, what a shame...”

makes bouquets for her favorite people and kin assigns everyone a flower

only assigns the pretty nice ones to the people she likes (sorry sakura, you’re out of luck)

one of her favorite hobbies is crafting! she’s really good with details and small things so she loves making those miniature dollhouses and stuff

also really good at watercoloring. especially painting flowers and landscapes

also i feel like she would be really good at playing any instrument because of her skilled hands

can play a badass flute solo. period.

CHOJI

would honestly rather die than get anywhere NEAR an asparagus

he just thinks they’re so gross and bitter and NOT SALTY

he always eats his yakiniku a little bit undercooked because he’s way too impatient to wait for it to cook fully. who do you think he is??

whenever he cloud gazes with shikamaru, when asked what he thinks a cloud looks like, he just says some sort of food

“oi, choji, what does that one look like to you?”

“a... yakiniku grill... with... pineapple rings on it! ooh, and a wagyu steak right there!”

he thinks pringles are an abomination to society. where’s the crisp? where’s the grease? where’s the saltiness?!!!

asks ino to teach him how to do his hair all fancy and the two of them devote an entire day learning different hairstyles

it’s his new favorite thing to do now :D

he really likes crayons!!!!

like he’ll write with them, draw with them, color with them, do everything with them

he’s even tried to eat them. he said they tasted good.

definitely had the 128 crayon pack WITH THE BUILT-IN SHARPENER, and everyone thought he was the coolest kid in town

he ate it UP, he even scored some bbq dates with the ladies

i also feel like he loves basketball, and he has a MEAN slam dunk

like his vertical isn’t that high, but the man can REACH

he loves when people laugh at him when he challenges them to a 1v1 and then proceeds to absolutely destroy them <3

NEJI

he seems like a cucumber kind of guy.

just cucumber

like i feel like he puts it in everything; soba, salads, sandwiches, his face, yeah

it’s mellow and cool, just like him!

speaking of, i feel like he lives for spa days and facials

it just lets him be alone in his little cucumber scented world for an hour or two and he gets damn clear skin from it as well

seriously he has PERFECT skin. flawless. not a single blemish. his cheeks feel like baby butts they’re so smooth.

i feel like he’d be a god at solving rubik’s cubes, don’t ask me why

like if anyone scrambled theirs on accident they would just take it to neji and he’d solve it in the blink of an eye

CAT PERSON!!! loves the little meow meows

who are we kidding, neji basically is a cat; agile, aloof, does silly things without trying to, very cute

he just feels akin to the little fuzzballs and he thinks petting cats are extremely therapeutic. good for the soul

he is a golf man. he would take his juniors golfing and everyone thinks he’s uncool. cmon neji let them go to the skate park at least T-T

also very good at karaoke, definitely surprised everyone once he got a few drinks in him since he started serenading you

LIGHTWEIGHT!!! do not get more than one shot of alcohol in him. he will go berserk.

i also feel like he’d really love photography; not taking pictures of people, but of nature

he loves taking a quiet stroll through a pretty forest and snapping pictures of all the unique flora and fauna

it’s so serene ︶ ‿ ︶

ROCK LEE

100% milly rocks everywhere

gai got in on it too once he asked what lee was doing

“is that what all the youthful cool kids do these days!”

they also dab together. a lot

DO NOT BE SEEN WITH THESE TWO!!! you are not associated with them.

definitely is the one breakdancing in the middle of the dance circle at a high school party

he’s mad skilled at it too

headspins and windmills galore

challenged naruto to a dance-off and completely OBLITERATED him

lee then asked if naruto wanted a rematch, this time with one hand tied behind lee’s back

naruto obliged, and he STILL lost

RIP naruto and his fangirls, they all scrambled to lee afterwards T-T

i feel like his favorite subject is science

not the boring physics equations and laws and theories but the fun EXPERIMENTS

definitely has singed all of his hair off one time and he went to gai blubbering to help him grow back his precious hair

but he loves experimenting with different combinations and chemicals to get different reactions each time

created a potent love potion and carried it around with him all day one day

and it was actually working

girls were flocking to him left and right, staring at his lips and his face

he was so abashed at the sudden attention

heck, it even worked on sakura

“oi, lee-san!”

“hehe, yes, sakura-san?”

her eyes shifted downwards to his lips and his heart thumped harder

“hey... lee-san?”

“what is it?”

“you have something on your lip. we’ve been trying to tell you all day but you just winked and blew kisses at us.”

legend has it lee has still not recovered to this day.

TENTEN

has THE prettiest handwriting. and she can write SUPER fast

it’s like a superpower

like she transcribed five pages of a report in less than two minutes with perfect handwriting

naruto is so jealous.

she is also super good at origami! those diligent, accurate hands aren’t just for throwing things

taught sakura how to make shurikens but does NOT endorse any violent uses of them

she can replicate all of her weapons with paper and they can actually function, it’s so cool

made paper kunai knives one day and the wholeee village wanted to get their hands on them

i feel like she’d listen to mitski. idk i just get those vibes

LOVES BIG DOGS!! especially fluffy wuffy samoyeds

like man’s best friend?? no, GIRL’S BEST FRIEND!!

hugs and cuddles and squishes all the big dogs

she thinks small dogs are spawns of satan

sakura and her have definitely quarreled over this

but at the end of the day, all dogs are adorable fur babies, so she lets it slide :,)

KIBA

kiba always looks SO GOOD in photos you take of him, candid or not

like you could just whip out a camera and snap a photo of him at any given moment and he would look perfect

you framed a picture of him yelling at akamaru for peeing inside the house

it’s pure artwork

i feel like he tries to swagger around with his hands shoved in his pockets but it fails MISERABLY and the girls are wondering if he broke his leg or something 😭

kiba just walk normally. for the love of god please just walk normally.

he tries to slump back in his chair really low but one time he slouched way too low so he slipped off of his chair and onto the ground LMFAOOOO

he just wallowed there... in shame...

also.. he LOVES when the girls put makeup on him!!

he tries to act like he hates it. but it secretly gives him so much confidence

not to mention the girls hyping him up are a huge ego boost

okay the inside of his jacket hood is the warmest. thing. EVER!!!

seriously, no wonder this dude is so happy-go-lucky all the time, he’s living in literal heaven 24/7

it’s like you’re sleeping on a cloud inside a warm, cozy bed during a cold winter morning

10/10 would recommend letting him give you his sweatshirt when you’re chillin with a hair tie ❤️

HINATA

always smells like lavender soap. always

also has the cutest pencil pouches with little puppy faces and kawaii things

oH and she has those mini yoobi highlighters, she thinks they’re so cute (and functional!)

everyone flocks to her to try them out and marvel at the cute tiny highlighters

and they try to steal them from her but she doesn’t even stop them because she’s too timid to 😭

naruto goes BALLISTIC over them

she lets him have all of them <3

tennis girl!!! tennis girl.

all of her opponents always underestimate her because she’s so timid and shy and quiet

but she has a KILLER serve

and then she takes her opponents to the slaughterhouse with a complete shutout ;)

she’s really athletic believe it or not, she can beat most of the boys in a mile run and she has incredible endurance

i feel like she really loves velvet scrunchies

she just thinks they’re so pretty and they keep her hair soft so they’re cute and functional

also takes the PRETTIEST notes!!

color codes, dividers, headers, you name it, it’s all super readable too its insane

everyone asks her for her notes, not to study but just to appreciate the pure artwork that it is ^w^

SHINO

shino is SO easy to prank

“how do you catch an eyemaster?” *cue naruto and kiba snickering*

“eyemaster bait. that is because—”

even when everyone’s laughing their asses off, he still continues to explain his answer since he does NOT GET THE JOKE

tried his hand at writing haikus

here’s his best one so far:

“Bugs are amazing. That is because they are bugs. Bugs are very nice.” - Shino Aburame

VERY proud of it, since it took him weeks to perfect

praise it, pls

had one of those ant farms and bug-catching kits as a kid

and he would fill the kit TO THE BRIM. LIKE IT WAS HEAVY BECAUSE THERE WERE SO MANY BUGS.

he loves the little chitters of the different bugs

he had jars of different bugs all lined up on a wall shelf in his room

collects silkworms off of trees and sticks them into his pockets (no i definitely did not do this as a kid...)

HELP I FEEL LIKE he would record a timelapse of his ant farm growing and upload it to youtube with a movie maker title screen that says

“my ants”

if you enjoyed this post, likes and reblogs are much appreciated :) feel free to request here, and make sure to read the rules first! have a lovely day everyone <3

[alatismeni-theitsa]

Do you have any sort of, words of encouragement, for a Greek-American who is struggling to learn Greek? My family is pretty connected to our heritage but I was never taught to speak Greek. I am an adult now, and I know I'm at an incredible disadvantage trying to learn a new language. The most discouraging thing is when I try to pronounce a word with a sound that isn't really in English (like γ) and I KNOW I am not saying it right, but no matter how hard I try I can't pronounce it correctly.

Hello! I'm very sorry for delaying this answer for some days, but as we see here, Zeus was fucked this week 😅

I will pin my answer so you can see it when you return, and the rest will be under the cut.

I believe there are MANY reasons for hope in this situation. Of course it feels very discouraging that you don't know the language already and you might feel left behind in this process. Plus, learning a new language is not an easy thing to learn. But worry not!

You are grown, and that means you can learn a language better and with more consistency and discipline. Have trust in your skills as an adult. What is more, you have grown up around Greek speakers and you will pick up certain things faster.

You are not alone in feeling this way. Most of the world has to learn a second language (and a third, as it's usual for many) and that would be the language most dominant in the wider area. Almost every person in the West who is not an English speaker has to learn English and learn it well, otherwise we feel embarrassed every time we try and form a sentence. For example, we apologize to each other about our accents in English German and French, even though we speak Greek.

Surely there are some differences between your situation and ours, but I mentioned this to show you that most people will be very understanding with accents because they have the same struggle. I mean, I'm not going to make fun of someone for having an accent in Greek when I sound like a demented chicken in German, despite taking years of lessons 😵 I have more confidence in my English but even now that I'm writing to you in this language I have to quadruple-check my sentences and phrasing. The amount of times I apologized in advance for my accent to English speakers is higher than my credit.

I relayed your situation to other Greek speakers and non-English speakers, and ALL agreed the accent is not anything they would pay attention to and told me to write you that you shouldn't feel bad about that. I did that because I knew they would have words of encouragement for you. And it turns out they believe exactly what I'm writing in this answer.

Accents are natural. You cannot expect not to have an accent when you have been speaking a different language all your life. Beating yourself up for having difficulty with the Greek pronunciation is like beating yourself up for something normal like walking or laughing when hearing something funny. You lack practice with the pronunciation due to circumstances beyond your control. You are doing what you can to change that, and every small win is worth celebrating!

I found this post the other day:

The notes? The likes?

And NO disagreements in the comments and reblogs for OP’s statement! Look how many thousands are supportive in this! (And that’s a small fraction of people who understand accents are natural.) And some of the responses:

Sure, some mention they have met native speakers who made it more difficult to feel comfortable with their accent and phrasing. But those people are assholes in general, and not the people you want to surround yourself with. If a relative expresses disgust about your accent remind them you didn’t have any control of how much and how well you were taught Greek when you were a kid, and then tell them that if they are a true friend and relative to you, they should support you in your journey. And even if you had some control and chose not to learn, you are learning now. So they should leave their resentment behind because, honestly, what do they have to lose from you learning the language better??

For the embarrassment you feel for yourself: you wouldn't make fun of a Greek for having trouble with the “r”, "s", “ch”, and possibly the "h" when speaking English, so extend that kindness to yourself when you speak Greek. Not to mention that with enough practice and time you can nail the accent!

Worst case scenario, if the accent never leaves, that's no problem whatsoever. Anyone who thinks badly of you for your accent is probably a PoS and they don't deserve your time. No matter where you are from, if they make you feel bad for having an accent in Greek, block them from your mind forever.

But chances are that (from experience) if anyone laughs with how you said something, I guarantee they are not laughing at you but because of how strange the sound or phrasing was. The person doesn't think badly of you because of this. Making mistakes of any kind when learning a language is very natural and it's something everyone must accept. If you are not willing to make mistakes and expose your language vulnerabilities to people who know the language better, might as well not try improving at all.

If anyone corrects you, they are not doing it out of pity. The majority of Greeks do it because they are very happy you speak the language and want you to be even more fluent. Like, they are doing it as an act of backing you up, they are feeling like they are giving you that extra XP to reach the next level! Others - like me - get that rush of happiness when they get to share their language with others 😁

I remember a guy on Tiktok who was learning Greek and ordered a coffee "without sugar" in a Greek cafe but instead of saying σκέτο ("without") he said σκατά ("shit"). I mean damn that was funny! I remember it weeks after I saw the video of him telling that story and it always cracks me up. Do I still appreciate him the same as before and follow him? Absolutely! He just had an unfortunate - and funny - incident, not something that lessened his integrity as a person.

From tiktok again: An American girl wanted to pronounce γύρος correctly when ordering it, and she was mumbling to herself on camera: “yeero, yeero, yeero!!” When her time to order came she shouted “May I have a gairow? FUUUUCKK FUUCK FUCK I SAID IT WRONG” 🤣

Another example is Athena from the Bachelor 2! She has given some gems throughout the show because she doesn't know the language that well, but everyone still loves her because she spreads positivity and is so cute!! If we, as viewers, disliked her it would be because of her character, not because she doesn't know the language well. And if some of the other girls in the show don’t take her seriously is because she laughs too much and mentions feta too often, not due to her Greek level of literacy. Athena, even when she is hurting someone else’s feelings, is always so genuine and you just can’t be mad at her!

I really can’t stretch enough how people laugh at the mishap, not the person! Please don’t feel discouraged if you ever see a Greek laughing with the pronunciation of an English speaker when it comes to Greek words (which I have done as well) because we never laugh at the speakers. We don’t even know them! We might laugh at one mistake but then instantly want to become this individual’s friends because we think they are amazing (see the three examples I mentioned above, the sugar guy, the gyro girl and Athena). Because that’s the normal thing to do; laugh at fun stuff and not judge people for their small mishaps. (In a casual setting, and not to an uncomfortable degree ofc!)

There are so many things to a person other than their accent and the accent becomes old news really fast. What remains is how the presence of a person makes you feel and if they are a good individual. If an English speaking friend says yatakai instead of γατάκι that opens the way for sooo many jokes! Greeks will laugh, do some YATAKAAIIII screams - ninja style, and then continue being friends with that person!

Greeks makes these mistakes as well... A Greek once said "arrive arrive" (φτάνει φτάνει) instead of "enough" when an English speaker was filling his glass. A Lower English degree caught fire that day 🤣 I have many bad examples of Greeks’ mistakes in English but I can’t remember a lot. But I’ve seen many videos of Greeks mocking themselves for how they sound in English. You can take a look at Tsipras’ (our former prime minister) mistakes on youtube if you are feeling brave 😂 (Ο Τσίπρας μιλάει Αγγλικά)

So, own your possible mistakes, laugh at them and move on because everyone makes them and we better have some good while we are struggling!

(( For the record, we are not making fun of Tsipras because of his accent, but because 1) he doesn’t know γρι English and yet he rarely brought a translator with him in international meetings with world leaders, 2) he could absolutely not hold a conversation with negotiating or discussing 3) he didn’t take steps to improve or fix the situation (like bring a translator). 4) Instead, he chose to torment us all with mind-numbing hours of reading English texts and making other world leaders struggle to explain to him what they meant for the nth time and meetings move at a snail pace.))

Alright, now that I cringed with the memory of Tsipras speaking English, I’ll go though the recommendations for improving the Greek pronunciation.

1) Go to my resources for learning Greek (#learn greek) where I have many videos where you can hear the sounds individually or withing other words very clearly. Easy Greek on youtube has excellent videos about pronunciation!

2) Seek practice as much as possible. Some Greeks switch to English when they hear an English accent to make the conversation smoother for the other person. If Greek speakers insist on talking with you in English tell them that you would wish to speak in Greek. I've seen that people often mirror the accent of the native speaker when they speak to one, so this might work for you as well with hours of practice. If no Greek speakers are available to you now, you can find Greek Americans online – or go to their festivals – and start talking to them.

3) Listen to Greek podcasts, songs and shows. (In my blog you’ll find them at #greek youtuber #podcast #greek tv #greek movie #short film #greek music). You know when you hear a catchy foreign song and then it’s stuck in your head and you say all the words perfectly without even knowing what it means? Well, this helps with pronunciation!

4) If you had Spanish in school or have Spanish friends mimicking the Spanish accent might help you. (Our accents are extremely close! The Spanish are the best at Greek pronunciation, and vice versa!)

5) Find sounds in your native language that sound close to the sounds you want to say in Greek. In German lessons I had trouble with “ch” in certain words because I made it sound like χ and it was horrible. My Greek teacher told me to remember how χ sounds in χήνα (it sounds a bit flatter) and make that sound when I encountered “ch”. It worked actually!

To people who have English as their native language I often suggest they remember the sound of w for γ because, although not used the same in the word, at times they have the same intensity. Γ is pronounced more “to the front” of the mouth, so if you can bring that sound forward in your mouth you’ll be very close, if not accurate, to γ. (But don’t bring it too much forward, sometimes it can sound like a “y”, unless you are saying a word where γ sounds like “y”).

Greeks pronounce σ more closely to “sh” than to “s”, so you also might want to keep that in mind since σ often distinguishes the Greek accent in English for me :p

That’s all! If you have more questions or want to tell me anything else about your experience with learning Greek, feel free to send another ask or a DM!

[rpmemesbyarat]

RP meme from Scream Queens Ep 10 "Thanksgiving"

Listen. I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but I don't think I can bone you right now.

My wanger is way stressed out.

I've killed for our love.

I just gave her a little push.

You and I can pick up right where we left off.

You can bring me home for Thanksgiving and introduce me to my future in-laws.

What did you do with the body?

I put it in the meat locker. It's where we've been putting all the dead bodies.

I need to see the body.

Look, we can have a three-way with the body.

I'll show you the body, but not so you can have sex with it.

I'll show it to you so that you and I will share a dangerous secret that will strengthen our relationship and bring us closer together.

I don't understand how this keeps happening!

Is this meat locker, like, a wormhole to an alternate universe or something?

She'll probably stop at nothing until she gets her revenge by murdering you.

No one wants to spend a room service Thanksgiving alone.

Are you going to talk at all?

You shouldn't be mad at me.

We're the sane ones.

Now, I know you've got other plans today, and for alibi's sake we need to protect your cover, but I am not letting you leave on an empty stomach.

Is that what quail is? I thought they were bigger.

You know what I was picturing? Pheasant.

Time to slice off those breasts.

I feel like this holiday is all about family, and, well, as you know, I gave up on my real family a long time ago.

I mean, at this point, the closest thing I have to family is. . . you.

I understand that Thanksgiving is supposed to be about family and being together and thanking God that we were born rich in America and not in Uganda or Venezuela or any of those other African countries.

You're late. The game's just about to start.

What do you think would happen if those instructions were incorrect?

This family's fortune is built on being right on time.

There's nothing better than sitting together as a family, watching the game. Laughing, smiling, just enjoying the warmth of each other's company. That's what it's all about today. Togetherness.

I hate defrosted food.

Why is it called Italian Style Chicken Cacciatore? All chicken cacciatore is Italian style.

This is not what Thanksgiving is supposed to be.

A bunch of my sort-of friends have been killed and no one has asked me about it.

Oh. And I'm starting a new family tradition. It involves me never coming to any family occasions ever again.

Would you stop with the screaming?

It's more like a stay of execution until no one is looking.

I've never cooked before, but that should be fine, since I usually just pretend to eat.

Well, I can cook and eat for the both of us.

So we've decided to have an orphans Thanksgiving all together.

I mean, I guess you could come over here if you wanted.

And this year I'm so thankful for the lax indecency laws in Eastern Europe that inundate our Internet with millions of hours of hard-core porn.

You know, ever since I was a little boy, I knew what God wanted me to do and that was make money off the backs of creative people.

I am so thankful that he, for whatever reason, has not murdered me yet.

You have such a vast future ahead of you.

You'll meet so many new and different women. So many wonderful women to go out with and break up with and move on from.

You should be thankful that this table is too long for me to reach across and strangle you, bitch!

What are you doing here? How are you alive?

When I woke up and regained consciousness, I felt better than ever.

The only thing you're carrying is water weight, you bloated little tramp.

I have a little game to play that's gonna make the time fly right by.

No, I've never killed anyone as far as I know.

Okay, there is no evidence at all that mass murder is genetic.

I would say that is more than a little suspicious.

I have bathroom shame issues. I always wait until everyone is asleep and then I sneak down to poop in the little powder room downstairs.

I mean, don't we all agree that those babies are the killers?

That seems like an unnecessarily complicated cover story.

I think we have plenty here to go to the police.

What, are you drunk?

You know, the one time I call you for a little advice, you're hammered.

I suppose we should discuss the matter of payment.

I'm asking you to name your price.

Are you propositioning me?

No, I'm asking how much money it'll take to make you go away.

My family is super-gross rich.

That outfit screams desperation.

I am, however, willing to write you a check for $50,000 if you will leave now and never come back.

It's a lot of money for a family like yours.

What is the best part about Thanksgiving?

Tastes like Henry VIII just barfed in my mouth.

Well, I don't want to sound like a dick here, but have you ever considered maybe you should leave?

I brought some of my famous eight-meat stuffing. It's beef, venison, alligator, buffalo, rabbit, goat, rattlesnake and Spam. I cut all of the meats super thin, so that you're guaranteed every meat in every bite.

I thought you said you were leaving forever or something like that?

Have you ever even cracked open a book?

You did say just the other day that the only way to live is to play the long game.

I really hope you can come up with something better than that.

I can prove that you're the only person in this room we know for a fact is a murderer.

I saw you in the coffee shop the other day, reading one of your old Playgirl magazines.

Okay, look, there's just some stuff that doesn't add up.

Look, I've gone through all the suspects in my mind, and I can explain away all my suspicions for everyone except you.

Can we just talk this out, so you can help me see that I'm wrong?

I mean, it would fit in with your whole hard worker, let's find out the truth, never take no for an answer, awful personality.

Anything to redeem your beloved dead mother.

I can't rest when the killer's still out there, so I stayed behind to do some more research.

You're skinny and pretty, so that's a plus, but it's highly competitive, so you'd better be rich, too.

You know how at the beginning of the year, I was always secretly following you so I could just keep an eye on you, make sure you were safe?

I heard you talking to someone, but I couldn't hear what it was about.

Thank you for letting me talk about this, talk this out, and hear your side of the story.

Um, homely, ugly.

Gold digger! Not welcome.

No, no, too chunky to wear that outfit.

I'm fairly certain this board game's been tampered with.

And while my motivations were airtight and my conscience clear, still, I'm sorry.

I mean, no one deserves to be spoken to like that, particularly not by what is, without a doubt, the most awful family in America.

I've honestly seen more tasteful decor at a Sizzler.

And you, sir, give the kind, hard-working, deeply moral people who work in such a wonderful industry as Hollywood a bad name.

I am walking out that door and never speaking to you again.

How could such a stud evolve from a boy who was so clearly a douche?

Oh, please, look, I-I was so bombed at that party. I mean, I remember I puked while I was making out with some girl, but there is no way that I could've found my way back down there 20 minutes later, let alone 20 years.

This is really embarrassing, um, but I started the paleo diet, because I'm back on the dating scene now, and I-I wanted to lose some weight.

I never saw a body down there.

I-I was a bit of a man slut back in the day, and it was the '90s, so nobody wore condoms.

I'm obligated to take it to the police.

What are you gonna do with the money?

didn't take the money, idiot.

Okay, first of all, I experienced extreme emotional trauma this evening, and second, I'm the one delegating tasks, thank you very much.

I couldn't find any matches.

I was sharpening this knife.

You haven't eaten yet, have you? I knew it!

You've come back. You've chosen me over your awful family.

First of all, my family is awesome. How dare you?

So, without further ado, dinner is served.

[dreaminpeaches]

“Ladies, Gentlemen, Enbies...HER--I mean Him? Or them?-- whatever, anyways here's the first part of my daydream paracosm, Humble Pie. I was really happy I was able to come up with the first part in a somewhat cohort manner. Part 2 is also going to follow this sometime soon, but after that its probably just gonna be short shorts, text exchanges, and or drabbles, but that first part’s finally a thing! And that’s cool”

“Also just reminder that this paracosm is set in a mix timeline, like people have flip phones, cassette tapes, but still also have stuff like gamer chairs, and slang like sus/lit exist, so I hope that doesn’t bother you..oof”

“Also I wrote this from my Remarkable, then convert it to text, and did some proof reading, but my handwriting is still can only be read by chickens and my dyslexia ninja has sneak 100 accuracy so..yeah

Word count: 6,115

TW: mention of Bullying, DeadBeat dad, Smoking, Drinking, Swearing (only for comedy’s sake tho’), Dissociation, Guilt (but don’t worry there’s still A LOT of fluff in this piece, tho)

Link to Alternate version on my off-site daydream blog: Humble pie part 1

=================================================================

"Okay, here we go" Beau said, taking one last drag of his cigarette, and taking in one last look at the panoramic view of the town below, Newbury, his hometown, he was away for a year because of college which he dropped out of. Well, "dropout" made it seemed like he had a choice, more like he flunked out, there were' 'reasons that 'made college impossible for Beau, reasons that he couldn't get into or more like reasons he didn't want to get into, these were the some reasons that turned what was suppose to be a 5 hour drive into an 8 hour one, making him stop ever so often to the nearest park, overlook, or clearing to get out, smoke and or take a short walk. These stops were so frequent by the time he reached his hometown’s overlook he was on his last stick, hard to believe he started the trip w/ a full box.

He dropped the last of the remains of the cig on the ground and stomped out the glow ember with his dark brown rounded toed boot, watching the embers glow go out made him feel similar in a way.

Beau took one more last look at the small town below blanketed by the dark, light sky. He looked around. the overlook, bring back memories of. late night make outs, sneak outs and general teenaged shenanigans.

Beau remembers once on a night he was really buzzed, a rare event for him, drinking with his buddies, rather it was the buzz from the beer, or he was just 'riding the 'high off scoring the winning goal for the team, or general teen hormones. He felt invincible, so invincible he stood up on the ledge and proclaimed himself as king of the world

A moment Beau looks back at and shakes his head as if to try to erase the memory from his mind like an etch n’ sketch, suddenly he got a bad taste in his mouth or maybe that's just the cigarettes "King of world….yeah, right" Beau said pulling up the collar of his jacket and shrugging his hands into his pockets, and headed back into the car.

It was getting late and there was no use in stalling any longer, might as well continue to the inevitable. Stalling may be that’s the feeling that's been following him the whole time, stalling the fact that he would have to return to his hometown a failure after being touted and praised for being a star athlete , and getting into a ivy league school, a feat his mom was really proud since she herself couldn't go to college because of having Beau at such a young age, and having to deal with a bunch of other “BS” as Beau would put it.

Beau really wanted to make her proud by becoming a famous football player and make tons of money so she wouldn't ever have to worry about bills n 'stuff and live in the malibu dream house she dreamed of living in since she was a kid, a dream she would talk about to her children like it was fairytale during when time got real tough.Even though she sounded upbeat over the phone about the news, Beau knew his mom was an expert when it came to masking her disappointment and skill that was pretty integral with dealing Beau's birth father. He just hopes she's not too disappointed

As the twilight sky grew more dark the street lights flickered on. Familiar and nostalgic landmarks and structures rolled by as Beau drove by with one hand gripping the wheel while the other hand hung casually out of the rolled down window. the nighttime breeze gentle, tossing his cart dirty blond hair mullet. The 'murmur of punk music lighty playing from the car's speaker, that was playing louder earlier but the volume's quickly depleted because blasting punk 'music at night in a small town is pretty serious offensive a risk, a younger Beau would play around with, but now being older he knows better.

Driving into his old neighborhood, seemingly not much has changed, but what do you expect from a small town? The old neighborhood consisted of typical signatures of most middle upper class .. neighborhoods, Christmas ' decorations long over due to be taken down, manicured lawns, next to slightly less manicured lawns. Some lawns adored w/ gnomes and flamingos, a step up from the lawns of homes in his childhood neighborhood whose homes had what one could consider a lawn but just barely, Beau and his brother were lucky enough to have a sizable back yard and a tree house.

His family's lawn had a bunch of outdoor toys laid about on their lawn: a nerf gun, a pink tricycle, a tiled dyed color bouncy ball and an empty container of mega bubble wand. Beau drove up in the driveway being careful to not accidentally run over any of the toys in the yard.

He eject the mixtape from the player and put it into his jacket chest pocket. Beau leaned over and rummaged through the glove compartment fishing out a small travel can of axe's body spray and another small spray can of mouthwash, he used both to cover the scent of cigarette smoke, a smell his mother was highly sensitive to. He popped in a stick of spearmint for extra measure before getting out of the car and going to the trunk to retrieve his suitcase. Beau only had one suitcase since all the stuff really needed and cared about conveniently fitted in one suitcase.

Beau propped up his suitcase as he closed the trunk, the car beeped and blinked as he pressed the lock button. He headed up the pathway to the front door, his heart beating louder and louder with each step leading up to the front door.

Beau took a deep breath, Pulling himself together. "Okay" He said under his breath as his hand slowly reach for the knob but before he could even get a good grip, the door swung open, Beau's eyes raced up to see the thinning hair of a middle aged man, Beau eyes lowered a bit more to see the mustached clad face of the man the hair belonged to. "Hey, Big Boss! '' the mustache man said with a grin. The man was Beau's stepfather, David.

"Hello, David, I-I mean Dad." Beau awkwardly greeted his stepdad, trying his best not to show discomfort at his step dad's “nickname" for him.

"Ha, ha that's okay, son!”David laughed, giving Beau a hefty pat on the back.

"Here, let me get your bags." David said, reaching for Beau's suitcase, looking behind Beau expecting more bags

“You only brought one bag?" he questioned, looking curiously.

'--I like to be efficient" Beau muttered with a shrug and a side glance. "HAHA you and me both, Big B" David chuckled playful elbowing Beau, who gave a half-smile and a small chuckle--well, more like a slight nose huff

"Hey, honey Big B is home!" David shouted as Beau closed the front door.

His mother came rushing from the bedroom in her rose pink robe w/a barbie in insignia on the front with matching fuzzy slippers, her sandy blond hair still damp from the shower.

"My little boy, oh!" she said, warping Beau in a tight motherly embrace. "Welcome home!" Beau's mother pulled back for a second, cupping her son's face in her hands “you’re still so handsome"

"Wait..." Beau gently removed his mom's hands from his face "Are you okay, mom?" He asked his considerate brown eyes searching his mother's teal eyes for any sign of distress.

"Of course, sweetie," his mom beamed. "I have all of my loved ones under one roof. What's more to ask?"

it's just that I didn't- Y-you know." Beau said with downcast eyes

"Oh, that" his mom said wide eyes and then shaking her head in dismissed

"Don't worry about not finishing college, I mean just look at me"

“But You just seemed so proud that I got in, I just didn't want to let you down"

“Sweetie, it's fine," his mom said, gently guiding his head up with her hand to look at him "I was not proud that-You were becoming the smart, sweet kind young man, I always knew you were, but now. I'm just happy that you’re here and I get to see you go. on the journey myself!" Beau chuckled tightly and blushed at his mom's admiration.

"Plus, Your mom's not the only one who is happy to have You home!” David said, gesturing towards the hallway. Beau looked to see a small figure peeking from the corner, the figure quickly disappeared followed by an overflow of giggles.

A smile slowly creeped across Beau's face, he slowly kneeled down. " "Gasp * Is that my little care bear?"

From the shadows totted out, a little girl dressed in a blue care bear patterned nightgown, her blonde hair tied up in pigtails, she grasped a love-a-lot bear in one arm while her other arm was open as she raced towards Beau, also with arms wide open for a hug "Bo-Bo"

"Hey, care bear!" Beau cooed as he picked up his little sister "Wow, You've gotten so big since the last time I saw you!

"Carrie's been asking when you were coming since you told us you were coming home "David stated

"Really?"

"Yep!'' Carrie nodded proudly "You still have the love-a lot bear I won at grad night". Beau vividly remembers winning Love A Lot and his friends making fun of him, but Carrie really appreciated it more than he thought.

"Yeah, she takes it with her everywhere!" mom emphasized “Thank god, the kindergarten has a security blanket policy!

"Aww..." Beau said fondly looking at Carrie, who had her head resting on his shoulder, still grasping love a lot.

Beau thought for a moment and looked around "wait, where Dev?"

"Oh" mom said putting her hand on her head with a semi sigh "He's been going through... things"

"Teenager things: David specified "He's the big one three now.. "

“Don't worry, I can talk to him!”Beau said, confidently, slowly nodding his head

. Carrie lets out a small yawn "Aw, you sleepy, care bear?" Beau asked as Carrie rubbed her eyes

"It's past her bedtime, but she really wanted to see you," Mom said, stroking Carrie's hair. "Is someone ready for the sleep shuttle'?" Beau asked Carrie, looking at her in her sleepy hazel eyes, she nodded in response

"Alright, Here we go!" Beau held Carrie in both hands placing his arms out in front of him, he kneeled down and started counting down. "3…..2...1. Blast off!"

Beau shot Carrie in the as he stood back up. As he moved towards Carrie's bedroom, he moved all around side to side, up and down while making spaceship sounds, Carrie was giggling all the way through.

"Incoming! "Beau shouted as he swooshed Carrie round a few more times before landing her swiftly on the bed.

"Huston, the eagle. has landed!." Beau said, holding his ear as if he had an earpiece "Not eagle! Bear!" Carrie stated holding up her care bear "correction, the "BEAR" has landed!" Beau correcting himself, bringing a huge smile to her face as she nuzzled her care bear

"Okay, night, right, care bear" Beau said patting carries head

"Wait!" Carrie said holding on to her brother's arm "Is Bo-Bo still gonna be here in the Morning?""Of course, I'm not going anywhere at least for a while.." "Beau said, kneeling down to Carrie's eye level.

"Okay, I like having Bo-Bo around:'' Carrie said "and I like being around" Beau said, "see you in the morning, care bear" Beau gives Carrie a good night kiss on the forehead.

She settles into bed as Beau closes the door. Beau grinned to himself, feeling lucky to have such a cute sister. He remembers when Devin was that little, speaking of Dev. Beau apphoraced Dev's bedroom door. The door was caution tape, Don't enter signs, with a please knock before entering sign.

At first Beau did think about knocking but then thought "I could be a respectful older brother respect the sign or I could have fun and be a little shit. He pondered about it for a minute then-"yeah, I'm gonna be a little shit.”

Beau took a card out his wallet and wedged it in between the door to jimmied the lock. He peeked through the door to see Dev playing a video game on the tv. "you little..." Beau said under his breath, before bombastically opening the door "Hey there, squirt!" Beau said, shoving the door open

"Didn't you read the sign?!" Dev said as he turned around in his gamer chair in both shock-and annoyance

"Wow, that's a pretty warm welcome to give your older brother you haven't seen in a year!" Beau snarked, pretending to look hurt'' "Nice to see you too!"

"Oh my god!" Dev said, rolling his eyes and turning his chair back to tv, bringing his attention back to the game.

"and here I thought you were working on a project or homework or some school shit!" Beau continued "but no, you're just sitting here playing one of your little nerd games"

"Oh my god, can't you just leave!" Dev groaned as he hunching closer to the tv.

"You couldn't at least say "Hi" " Beau said now standing right behind Dev gamer chair

Dev raised and waved his hand half-heartedly and flatly said "hi"

"Well, damn I feel loved," Beau said sarcastically. "aren't you at least gonna look at me?" shaking the gaming chair a bit to gain an ounce of his little brother’s attention.

“ I saw you "Kool aid man" into my room. Is that enough?" Dev said still focusing on the game Beau sighed, then got an idea "Dev! Dev! I think there's something wrong with my heart I think I gonna-ugh!" He said staggering forward a bit before falling in Dev's lap, knocking out the game controller out of Dev's hands.

"Come on! I was in the middle of battle!" Dev whined looking at his brother playing dead

"Get off of me!" Dev go armed as he tried to push beau off with no luck

"Come on, Beau!" He gored in frustration “I know you're not dead! I can still feel your heartbeat..."

Get up!" Beau remained still, Dev rolled his eyes; he knew the exact words to get his brother off his back or in this case lap.

"Big brother, can you please get off of me n Dev utter begrudgingly "Aw, you haven't call me ‘Big brother’ in years" Beau chimed with a smile, finally getting up "I'm still kind of hurt, that you cared about your gaming progress than the well being for your one and only big brother"

"You were still breathing, I could literally see you inhaling and exhaling." Dev clarified rubbing his forehead

"Touche, I guess" Beau said he then directed Dev's chair in front his bed," now that I have your attention"

"Okay, I guess I should say sorry since you couldn't and say "hi" to me because you were too busy saving some elf princess, or some anime chick with huge melons"

"I-H-Hey I don't even play those types of games!" Dev argued blushing

" .-sure you "don't'." Beau taunted with a wink, Dev goanned "Anyways, Anyways you don't have to say "hi",; but you could at least not talk to me"

Beau suggested, shrugging. "I guess" Dev mumbled kind of sinking into his chair "cool, so how's life?" Beau started, trying to start a diagoul "okay"

"How's school?"

"Okay"

"How’re your friends?"

"Okay"

"Got a girlfriend?"'

"NO”

"Got a boyfriend?"

N-NO"

"Got any crushes"

“….NO…..."

"joined any clubs or any other after school junk?"

" ..... NO..."

"Are you just gonna answer all my questions in one word?"

Dev fell quiet, and shifted his gaze from his brother

“Okay, that's it!" Beau huffed, he picked up Dev and hoasted him over his shoulder "Hey! put me down!" Dev-shouted , beating his fists on Beau's back "Not until you talk to me like an actual person, and one worded answers aren't gonna cut it, squirt!"

"MOM! Dad!"

"Mom and Dav-Dad are fast asleep, and you know they both sleep like rocks!" Beau stated'' the only person you'll wake up is Carrie, and You don't want to wake little care bear, now do YOU?"

Dev fell Quiet again, "You know I can hold you like this for hours, you aren't really that heavy, or you can just end this and talk to me" Beau suggested ending the suggestion with a sigh and started to stomp his foot impatiently..

Dev continued the silent treatment for a bit until letting out a meek "Okay...I'll try" .

Hey, three words, that's a start!" Beau cheekly commented,He sat Dev back down in his green gamer chair.

"Okay, do over!" Beau said casually sitting across from Dev and his bed. "so, how's school going?" "F-fine” Beau gave Dev a intense look, reminding Dev of his word count “N-no, I mean it's just weird" Dev stuttered choosing his words carefully, Dev fiddled with his hoodie sleeves.

"and it's weird because..." Beau initiated, gesturing his hand toward encouraging Dev to continue "It's weird because.... I don't know, Middle school is way different than 'elementary school, I mean I knew that from tv, but middle school isn't like tv."

"It's okay, nothing like tv, that thing lies” Beau softly chuckled to himself and continued “I remember thinking Pogo sticks were the SHIT-cuz 'of people and cartoons on tv made it look so easy"

"I finally got enough money for one-- you were like little you probably don’t remember this-- but I was SO HYPED, I wanted mom to watch me. I took one hop, fell on my ass, and never hopped on that bitch again. I was pissed, I think mom was trying to her best not to laugh but I was so pissed I think I didn’t notice until now. I chucked the pogo stick in the garage, and I never looked at that bitch again”

Dev let out a stiff laugh, the defensive wall Dev put was slowly breaking

"Oh WAIT WAIT!” Beau said taking a moment to correct himself “ That WASN’T the last time the last time I looked that bitch, I fished it out of garage years later, only cuz’ I need some money for Madden. So, I did look at that bitch one more time, but only to sell that bitch.”

Dev let out a more audible laugh, but quickly caught himself and recollected, returned to his disillusioned teenage state.

"Anyway, The teacher's are kind of weird, like a lot of them hate my guts already, except for the coaches who are super nice to me." Dev explained, kind of looking away from his brother

"Weird, why do you think that is?" Beau asked whole hearty

"Because I'm related to you, Numb skull!" Dev blunted , groaning putting his hand on his forehead

"Oh damn, I guess that's my fault." Beau realized, rubbing the back of his neck "My bad. that my awesomeness is just lengardy"

Dev shook his head and rolled his eyes "It's not awesome to live in YOUR shadow!" Dev sulked, sinking back into his chair, his hands covering his face.

"You don't have to follow in my awesomeness, I know I'm a hard act to follow." Beau boasted teastingly so"You just gotta make your own awesomeness."

"What does that even mean?" Dev questioned, moving his hands down, allowing his eyes to peek through his fingers, trying not to given the urge to roll his eyes

"It's like my awesomeness comes from my boyish charm and good looks..." Beau claimed, striking an award winning smile, The urge not to roll his eyes was becoming even hard for Dev, but he still had to try and respect Beau "But your awesomeness could come from being good at games, or computers shit or math or robots or something--I don't know something real nerdy"

"I guess, you're right" Dev mumbled and shrugged,lifting himself up back into a sitting position rather than almost spilling out of his chair.

"Its not a guess, its science!" Beau declared proudly, tapping his temple with his index finger

"No,that's not science!" Dev arguing his brother's stupidity, flatly shaking his head in disagreement

"See, there you go using your nerd awesomeness" Beau pointed out with a wink "Keep that up and you'll go from Beau's lil bro, to just ‘Dev’ in no time." Beau playful tousled Devs mop dirty blonde hair

"I mean.." Dev continued batting his brother's hand away, "I was also thinking of joining the video game club or the robotics club at school."

"There you go another nerdy thing that to add to your own awesomeness" Beau said

"Yeah...." Dev continued ignoring his brother's comment' “Some of my friends are thinking about joining, and it would be a nice place to go away from mom and dad."

"I had sick memories of hanging out with the team, we got into some wild shit." Beau said laughing to himself, fondly reminiscing "But I'm sure you and you geek squad could have "wild" times too, like making an anime robot 'weify." or whatever those called or finding a new math formula or something"

Dev fell quiet for another moment, Beau always seems like he’s in between being supportive and subtly roasting him, Dev then uttered "um... I think I kind of have a crush... on a girl..."

"AYE, let's go! "Beau exclaimed, clapping and shaking Dev's chair for a bit before bouncing back on the bed'' Come on, don't leave me hanging, what's her name? "Have you talked to her vet? Have you asked her out? Have-"

"Calm down!" Dev demanded "I said I had a crush, I didn't say we’re going out.'"

"Oh, so you haven’t talked to her, huh?”

"No, I-I don't even know her name" Dev huffed, he let his arms slip into his oversize sleeves and covered his sleeves with his face in frustration.

"You know you could just ask, not the chick, like just ask around"

"I can't do that because if I do, people will find out I like her and if she finds out, I would just have to stop going to school!”

"Okay, let’s just pretend you DO have the balls to talk to this girl, what's the worst that could happen?" Beau suggested

"She finds out that I like her, thinks I'm weird and never wants to talk to me again or even look at me!” Dev muffled through his sleeved covered face

"You really think she can sus that out all in one go!" Beau said "I mean she is a middle Schooler unless she's like a young nancy drew, she is not going to chew you up and spit out like that." Beau explained "speaking of which''

Beau paused for a moment to spit out his gum into the trash can "Score!"

"Anyways, have you done anything weird to her or around her?"

"No, I mean I look at her in the hallways before and in between class, but I don't like-- stalk her or anything too weird." Dev mumbled, moving his sleeves from his face, but his head was still targeted down at his fingers fiddling with a tag on his black shorts

"So, then what's the fear?" Beau inquired, resting his chin on the heel of his palm

Dev thought for a moment, his eyes shifting looking for an answer." I-I guess I just don't know how to talk to her."

"Well, fuck, that's easy" Beau chuckled “Just talk about school shit, or just say "hi"

"Is it really that easy?"

"Yeah, if you have the balls for it" Beau reiterated "Think about it like this, the dudes you play in your little nerd games have to fight a dragon, a demon or some anime witch with huge melons to talk to the girl they like and they er brave enough to do all of that wacky shit. But you’re lucky, you don't have a dragon for real in your way to keep you talking from your crush. The dragon's just in your head! If those hero dudes can fight dragons they actually can see, doesn't that mean you can fight a dragon you don't even see."

"That was a really lame and kind of confusing metaphor" Dev sassed " But I guess understand what your trying to say"

"Exactly" Beau said nodding confidentiality

"Can we talk about mom and dad?" Dev asked sheepishly, looking up at his brother, (well as much as he could with his shaggy bangs in the way), his fingers now toying with his hoodie strings

"Did something happen?"

"No, I mean yeah, I mean it's just weird" Dev said "Mom and dad are starting to get more annoying but I don't know if they were always like that or they like charged"

"No, parents don't really change-usually” Beau explained “It's just that being a teenager makes you hypersensitive to a bunch of shit and makes you wanna be alone more. Parents, the good ones like spending time with their kids and they actually want quality time n' shit and that's where they start to get annoying".

“"Oh okay,” Dev nodded.'' It's just weird because sometimes I feel like I hate them, but I don't want to. I think I just really want to be alone more like you said but I don't want to shut them out, I just want them to get that." Dev-fiddles with the strings of his green hoodie

"Yeah, I think they do in a weird old people kind of way. Believe it or not they were teenagers to even if that was back in the stone age n' shit" Beau joke"

Dev let out an actual laugh, a sign to Beau that he's little bro was being less of a moody teenager

"Anyway, even with that said mom and david-I mean dad aren't mind readers, it would be cool if you give them a heads up, you don't have to tell them all about what's going on in your little teen nerd brain but at least something simple like something weird or funny that happened at school, or asking for help on homework or a project for class or some shit like that, I'm pretty sure Dav-dad would love that.."

"I guess I could try". Dev said slightly nodding his head "But Carrie is kind of weird too!

"How can Carrie be weird, she's 5.” Beau scoffed "she doesn't do anything weird really"

Dev added" it's just sometimes she's regular cute and other times she's annoyingly cute if that makes sense"

"I mean like kind of get what you're saying but "Beau shrugged gesturing his hand toward prompting Dev to continue

"Like I still look out for her because she little, but because she's little that means I have to do dumb stuff like look for monsters under her bed or do that sleep shuttle thing you do, but I can't really do it because my arms give out halfway through and she's heavier than she looks."

"Well, little brothers and sisters are annoying, it's kind of their job, trust me I know from experience" Beau: put his hand on Dev's knee, Dev tried to Swat at it but Beau quickly put his hand back with a smirk.

"But like with mom and da-David just cuz she's annoying doesn't mean You can’t look out for her n stuff"

"I guess, its because lately, it seems like'' Dev paused 'for a beat, his hands hard gripping the strings of his hoodie, before continuing" I don't know mom and dad have been paying more attention to her than me"

A mischievous smile creeps across his face. "AW does someone miss being the baby?"'

"Oh, fuck! I knew you 'er gonna say that!" Dev blurted out, feeling really exposed, he pulled his hoodie strings allowing his head to be consumed by his hoodie, all but his nose.

"Hey! language,” Beau said, surprised at his little brother's reaction those harsh words coming out of the mouth of small boy sporting a Yoshi hoodie

"You cuss' all the time!" Dev huffed pulling his hoodie back down, then crossing his arm definitely

"Yeah, but I'm older than you, and if mom and David--DAD hear you curse they’er gonna know you got it from me and won't get off my ass about it!"

Dev stared at his brother, simmering in frustration in failing to coming up w/a good come back or a flaw in his brother's logic, He let out a heavy sigh and resumed "Anyways, it's NOT like I miss being the baby, I just miss being able to hold their attention without Carrie coming in and stealing them anyway, I don't know its weird"

"Wait, did you just say that you wanted to be alone and away from mom and David-fuck. I'm not even gonna try more-he's asleep anyways." giving up any attempt to make the word "Dad" same with the name "David"

"Yeah, I know that's what makes it weird!" Dev admitted, he sulked back deeper into his chair and let out a groan.

"You know Carrie's not awake all the time, maybe you can talk to mom and David, when she goes down for her nap, hell, I could just take her to the park for a day." Beau offered

"You'd really do that for me?" Dev peeped, quickly lifting himself up in a sitting position, surprised at his brother kind offer

"Yeah, anything to make you less of a weird angsty shut in, with a bunch of cringy keep out signs and keep out tape!" Beau gestured towards the door

"Actually, I got that caution tape from a real crime scene" Dev clarified, with a smug smile

"Really?" Beau taking a longer closer look at the door

"No, thick head, I found it in a dumpster next to party city!"

"You go dumpster diving?" Beau said, raising an eyebrow

"I have a life outside of YOU!" Dev stated proudly

"Okay, and on that... Weird garbage goblin flex, sibling bonding time is over." Beau said getting up from the bed and heading for the door

"Actually, one more thing..." Beau said quickly, turning around, rushing towards Dev, putting him into a headlock.

"Did ya miss me? Come on, tell me that you missed me!" Beau taunted as he gave his brother a long and through noogie "Ouch, Ow, Ow, Okay, okay, I missed You. Geez:" Dev pleaded trying to struggle out of his brother's grip

"That's what I wanted to hear!" Beau said with a smirk, letting 'Dev go.

"Ugh! my hair" Dev fumed , gawking at his even more messy mop of hair.

"Like you care about appearances" Beau chuckled" mop top nerd!"

"Mullet-hair metal meathead!"

"Ouch, that was pretty good" Beau teased pretending to look hurt "Garbage Goblin"

"You already-"Dev started but was cut off by Beau closing the door

"Too late, the door is closed, I can't hear you, which means I win!" Beau said through the door, laughing at his brother's muffled fury of frustration.

Beau grinned relishing in the absolute confusion of his younger brother, but that good vibe quickly faded once he arrived at the door to his old bedroom. He just stood there and stared at the door for a bit, he could feel the icky stew of the emotions from bubbling back up again.

He flexed his hand a few times as if this was the first time he's ever pored a door, Beau's hand reached for the door handle before retracted as if the knob was red hot.

Beau sheepishly looked around as if somebody was watching him, no one was but it sure did feel like it. He considered sleeping on the couch, but that would be weird, since it seemed like his step dad put his luggage in his room. so, eventually he would have to go into his room anyway.

Beau took a deep breath. "Come on, it's just a door, dude!" He told himself Beau's hand rested on the door knob, he took another deep, his hand gained a stronger grip, and he slowly pushed the door open, Beau carefully entered the room as he closed the door behind him. Looking around the room was plaster with posters of football players and a few pinups of doe-eye, sensual women in swimsuits and other scantily clad outfits.

Athletic medals, trophies and awards displayed proudly on his bookshelf that lacked any actual books, those trophies stood next to pictures of Beau with his teammates, all illuminated by the moon's dull pale blue light. These relics of what felt like a bygone era used to fill Beau with so much pride and joy but looking at them now just leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

He could barely even recognize himself in those photos. This whole room felt like a shrine or more like a tomb to someone who no longer exists.

Looking at all this stuff just made the icky feelings from before rise up to the back of his throat making the bad taste linger even longer.

Beau couldn't really pin what-these feelings were, so he shifted his focus on just getting some sleep

As he thought, Beau's step dad put his luggage on his bed. He opened his bag and quickly changed into a white tank top and some grey sweatpants. He fished out the mix tape from his jean jacket and put into the gray clucky music player on his nightstand. Beau turns the music up loud enough for him to hear but not loud enough for disturb anyone else. Heavy metal music (ironally) helped him sleep on hard nights.

Beau laid in bed focusing on the one spot in his room that wasn't decorated with high school memorabilia. Focusing on that spot was way better than focusing on the icky feelings from earlier. All he needed to was focus on sleep just sleep, Beau closed his eyes and tried to focus on just sleep.

The next time Beau opened his eyes, he was back in the hallway of his highschool. Beau looked around confused why he was back here but before he could really sus out the situation, his thoughts were interrupted by a loud thud. He followed the sound of the thud that led to a scene of a bespectacled student being shoved up against the lockers. The student's face contorted by fear.

"P-please, d-don't hurt me. "the student uttered, the words quivering as it left his lips.

"Aww, look at him, guys." a familiar voice said, Beau couldn't see whom the voice belonged to. There was a strange mist in the hallway that obscured the person's face.-

"He's scared." the voice said mockly, the person nodded towards a group of people whose faces were also obscured by the mist, they laughed in response

“Don't worry, little buddy, I'm not gonna hurt ya:" the person taunted as he tightened his grip on the student and shoved his body up against the failing student. "As long as you don't squeal" .

"You squeal, and I'll fry you like the pig you are, got it. Swine?"

"I-I p-promise I W-won't. J-just please let me go!" the student begged

Beau was disturbed by scene happening before him, but along with the feel of disgust came a feeling of familiarity, like he's been there before

Just then the fog lift to reveal the face of a younger version of Beau dawned in his red “New Burny High school” letterman jacket. He was smirking relish in the fear he was inflicting on the poor student.

Older Beau slowly back up, almost stumbling as he was coming to the realization of the origin of all those icky feelings from before

"I don't know, do we trust him, guys?" Younger beau asked cocking his head back to his teammates, who shook their head in disagreement "The Boys and I don't seem very sure of that, I think I'm gonna have to test your loyalty !" Younger Beau winded up his arm for a punch, But before his fist could make an impact.

Beau found himself back in his room in a cold sweat, hyperventilating as quickly rose from his bed. His room, still illuminated by the moonlight, with the metal mix tape softly playing in the background. He looked at his hand as if they were lethal weapons. How could I do such a thing?

[wellbafineline]

official

(1.7k) / feedback! / other writings!

a.n. hiii, this is my first full length fic, no one asked for this but this is the concept that i’ve been daydreaming about so here you go :) hope you enjoy and feedback is always appreciated <3 

how you and harry make things official

You'd been ‘seeing’ Harry for about 3 months, he’d been introduced to you by your mutual friends in London. The only thing was, you weren't really together, not as far as you were concerned at least. Your and Harry's relationship was seemingly casual, you hooked up, slept over at each other's places, ordered take out and watched shitty reality tv every Friday night while complaining about your shitty weeks at work (after hearing about her for three months he’d began to really hate Rachel from your office) and most other things people in relationships did. Just you guys did it without the labels and strings. 

And you'd had no problem with that at first, you understood. He was busy, wasn't always around, or had the most reliable schedule. But as you approached 4 months of whatever you and Harry had going on, you started to get more questions from both of your friends about the more intimate and logistical details of your relationship. You had begun to get pretty good at getting around them or changing the subject, but that didn't mean the nagging feeling in your gut went away when they asked.

//

That's exactly what's happening currently, you’d gone out with your two best friends to a bar in the city. They’d been begging for a catch up for a week, but you'd been at Harry's for the week because he wanted ‘all the time he could get’ before he had to go to LA for a couple of weeks to put finishing touches on his album. 

But now you were all squished together into a tiny booth in the corner of the bar, and you were listening to your friend Lindsey complain about the new project she was doing in work and how it was way below her pay grade when Destiny jumps in when she’s finished turning herself to face you 

‘So, how’s your boyfriend’ she asked you. Knowing she emphasized the ‘boyfriend’ to get you to spill if you and Harry made it official yet you sighed.

‘He's not my boyfriend, you know that, no strings’ 

‘Yeah I know that, but I also know you’re delusional. You just spent a week straight at his house and you're both not seeing other people so… what's the harm in labeling it.’ she trailed off ‘do you want that with him?’ Lindsey asks when you don't start talking

‘Of course, I want that, at least think I do, just what we've got going on is good, y’know, there's no pressure on it and it's easy’ you sigh ‘plus he’s Harry and there's a lot more that comes with being in a relationship with him than just anyone else’

‘So find someone else, no drama, sorted,’ Lindsey says  ‘no-i- that's not what I meant, just meant it'll be harder’ ‘have to ask yourself if this is what you want, you two can't go on like this forever’ she explains ‘And if it is, talk to him, now backing out this time, ‘cause you said you were gonna talk to him about this like a month ago too.’ 

‘I know, and i will, promise this time, but he's gone for a couple of weeks anyway don't want to do it over facetime so it'll have to wait till he's home’

//

After your meet up with Lindsey and Destiny you spent a lot more time than you probably should've thinking about what to do, about you, about harry and about your relationship with harry, if you can even call it that. 

He gets back from LA on Friday now, it was your plan to go over to his house, order take out, watch a film or help him unpack like you two always do when he gets back from long periods away because he ‘missed you the most and needs to see you asap.’

But this time you were going to talk to him, no chickening out.

//

You’d agreed to meet Harry at his place on Friday, you finished work around 3pm and he wasn't going to be home till at least 7 maybe 8pm. But you went over anyway letting yourself in with a key he gave you about a month ago saying ‘f’ emergencies love, or when your flat mate’s getting on your fuckin’ nerves’. 

Truthfully you didn’t know what you were going to do at Harry's for 4-ish hours alone but you figured it was better than sitting anxiously at home or at your desk at work. At least it gave you time to think, make a plan of action, because as you'd realised sometime in the past two weeks, there was a very real chance that this was all Harry wanted, that this is where you’d end. Because there was no way you could lay it all out for him just to go back to glorified friends with benefits. 

Leaving your coat and work bag at the door when you arrived, you make your way to his kitchen to make some tea before getting comfortable on the couch in the living room, appreciating what you assume is the calm before the storm. 

//

At around 7pm, exactly when he promised, you hear a car pull up the driveway and what can only be Harry's heavy footsteps in the hallway. ‘Love, you here, got taken away on the way home’ he called out as you got up to go meet him in the kitchen. 

‘Mm, missed you’ you reached up to peck his cheek ‘but I missed this more’ as you started taking the containers out of the take out bag ‘but I missed this more’ 

‘Heyyy!, not true and you know it.’ 

‘Yeah, keep telling yourself that.’ 

‘C’mon, jus’ shut up and eat.’ 

//

You’d been like this for a few hours. He was laying on the couch with you on top of him. Your head on his chest, with the tv playing in the background. Harry was drifting off to sleep, jetlag finally catching up to him but you were wide awake. Sighing a bit too loudly and moving to get up you suddenly felt a pair of hands gripping to your waist.

‘Where y’ goin’ love’ Harry murmurs, his eyes still closed. ‘Just to get some water, go back asleep.’ You answered him but he didn't let go of you leaving you sat in his lap with you looking up at you from his position laying down.

‘Are y’ alright, seem, um, stiff’ He questioned, you could tell he knew something was off and he was harry so he probably wouldn't give up till you told him, so now or never you thought. No chickening out. 

‘um, Harry, I've, um, been meaning to talk to you about this for a while’ You started, pausing after to properly think of how to do this, you hadn't thought it’d go like this in your head. You thought it’d be in his kitchen maybe bedroom but definitely not when you were basically straddling him on the couch.

His voice interrupted your thoughts, prompting you to carry on ‘C’mon spit it out love, what's wrong.’ 

‘Nothings wrong, well I don't think anything wrong, i- just. Harry what are we?’ You finally just ripped the bandage off, thinking there was no point to really skip around it.

‘Oh, well,’ he paused. ‘We're us.’

‘No, H, I mean are we like, together’ 

‘Where's this comin’ from love’ as he started to stroke your thigh feeling that you were starting to back away from him, as much as you could at least.

‘Just, y’know, friends, people, are asking. We've been doing this for a while, H, bound to come up at some point’

‘Well, what do you want to do about it then, have t’ tell me, not a mind reader love.’ He chuckled.

‘Are we together, or I don't know can we be.’ After everything you’d done together, he still seems to make you nervous, both butterflies from being giddy and deathly terrified of his answer.

His reaction to that was not what you expected at all his face erupted into one of the biggest smiles you've ever seen him wear. ‘Like boyfriend and girlfriend?’ He grins at you

‘Yeah, I guess, yeah like boyfriend and girlfriend.’ You’d moved back to lay on him, and now your face was buried in his neck, even with the smile on his face the still small chance that this was the end was still eating at your nerves. 

Harry sat up suddenly, with you now sitting in his lap he tightened his arms around your waist almost as if he knew you'd try to squirm out of his grasp, and tried to coax you to look at him.

‘Y’ askin me yo be ya boyfriend, babe?’ he's got a shit-eating grin on his face now and that's exactly the reaction you needed for the weight of rejection to be lifted off of you. 

‘Guess I am, what's your answer.’ 

‘No no no, never actually asked me did ya can’t answer if y’ don't ask’ 

‘You're really making me do this h?’ You stared and raised your eyebrows at him.

‘Yeah, c’mon love thought there was somethin’ you wanted to ask me.’ You could tell he was enjoying this, and you tried to completely let your guard down and play along.

‘Okay, will you, Harry Styles, do me the honour of being my boyfriend?’ your voice was dripping with sarcasm but you both knew what you were asking was sincere.

‘Thought you’d never ask babe’ he said while his hand cupped your jaw moving your face to finally kiss you. 

As you pulled away he was smiling at you, bigger than you’d seen him smile for a while. ‘Think I'm gonna be good at this boyfriend thing, don't you?’

‘Yeah I do’ you sighed as he lay back on the couch where you guys were sitting. You had your arms wrapped around his waist as he was tracing up and down your back. You really couldn’t remember what you were so nervous about 3 hours ago.

[estrxlar]

The Ghost Of You

02 - Growth

Chapters songs:

Peach Fuzz: Tyler The Creator

Nice Boys: TEMPOREX

Money: The Drums

— Y. L. Perspective

I walk into the lunchroom empty-handed and nervous. Like the idiotic person I am, I had forgotten my bento on the bus and surely couldn't depend on any of the students to possibly find it and give it back to me.

And so, I begin searching for my fellow third-year friends. It was hard due to the countless students looking for their friends to discuss a simple ten-day break, which I didn't get why it was such a big deal. But it wasn't like I could relate in any way, I had three measly friends who spent every hour of the day with me.

Suddenly, an underclassman boy decided to run across my path hastily, causing me to trip over his shoes, and fall onto the ground.

"What're you doing on the floor, Y/n?" A strong hand reaches to my face, waiting for approval to lift me. His blonde hair shuffles between his free hand.

"Thanks, Toruku," I say, pleased I found 1/3.

He pulled me up and assembled a smile onto his pale face. "No problem. Mind helping me find Giki and Hikishi?" He asks as I dust off my fingers. "The bell is bound to ring soon, so we'll be able to get lunch then. But not if we don't find them."

"Yeah, that's what I've been doing for the past five minutes," I say, with a slightly worried tone. I wasn't trying to spend my entire lunch looking for a place for us to sit. "How about we split up? I'll find us a table, and you find them?"

"No need. We're already here!" Says my black-haired friend, Giki, who stood next to Hikishi.

"Finally, now can we go eat? I wanna catch the lunch line before it gets full." Before another voice calls for me. I sharply turn around, ready for the confrontation.

"Yes?— oh!" My eyes widen at Suga, who plastered a worried expression onto his face.

"Sorry to interrupt you, it's just, you left your lunch on the bus. I came to return it to you." He explains, holding his hand out for me to take the item. It looked just as before; a little scraped and worn out, but still the same.

"..really? Wow, thank you." I take it back, looking back up at him. "It means a lot. I was about to die of hunger. Plus, I've had that since middle school."

"Y-Yeah! Of course. I couldn't just leave it there." Sugawara brushes his hands together, still mumbling something to me. But my eyes were focused on the box, feeling the warmth of his hands that still lingered. "But it's no problem!"

Then, I had remembered the entire reason I rushed out of the bus. Bearing another moment around him after sleeping on him would have killed me. "Listen, about this morning. I'm really sorry, I was really tired this morning. I never meant to invade your space or anything—"

"Oh, about that!" He suddenly interrupted, eager to go into the conversation. "There's no need to apologize for it. I'm actually kind of used to it, since I go on a lot of road trips with the volleyball team, we get pretty tired after games. Not that it relates or anything! But you seemed pretty embarrassed. I wish we could have talked more."

"I'm sorry, I really am. I was just in a rush, it's not something you should stress about." I explain to Sugawara, as he shifts from one foot to the other.

"Of course, if you'd like to talk more then... I guess we could. It has been quite a while, I'm still a bit curious to learn more about you." He replies, looking down in a bashful way. It surprised me such a social, popular, and beautiful guy like Sugawara would want to talk to me out of all people.

"...I don't mind. Although, it confuses me why you'd want to." I laugh, placing my hands into the pockets of my uniform.

"Why wouldn't I? We used to be good friends!" He smiles at me brightly, as he continues. "Besides that, I'm interested in what you do. Music, I mean—"

"Ahem!" Toruku interrupts with the clearing of his throat, leaning over my shoulders while side eying me. "If you don't mind, could we go eat now? We've all had a long day."

"Oh!" Suga is brought out of his concentration on our conversation. "Sorry! How inconsiderate of me to keep your friend stuck talking to me!"

My hand gently pushes away his face, and my eyes look back at Suga's. "If my buddies don't mind, we can teach you all about that." I turn to the three students that stood behind me wide-eyed. "It's okay, right?"

They straightforwardly shrug, meanwhile, Toruku looks grim. "Yeah, it's fine."

"A-Are you sure? I feel like I'd be intruding on something!" Sugawara says, worried my friends wouldn't be very accepting of him. But truth was, we saw each other more than we saw our parents, so thirty minutes with an additional person wouldn't be too much of a problem.

"It's alright," Giki says, meanwhile we walk towards an empty table near the stage. Sugawara's feet stutter, contemplating whether or not to go along with a couple of social rejects.

"If you don't want to, that's fine too. Just don't hold us up." I grin, looking over my shoulder at his confused look. "Hurry, Sugawara!"

"Oh, alright then," he mumbles, following the rest of us.

After stealing ourselves, I let out a big yawn, opening what sat in my bento: white rice, pickled vegetables, and soba that I had microwaved this morning. "You're not having anything, Suga?" I question him, while the rest of my friends open their bentos as well.

"Oh, no thanks. I usually eat after school." He returned. But as if he were in mute, I start shuffling around my book bag to find something I might have. Finally, I find a simple orange: not too old and not too new.

"Here, eat this." I toss it to him, and he quickly catches it. "I keep extra good in case I get hungry. Plus, don't you do volleyball? You've gotta way to be strong!" I say in a raspy voice, mimicking a coach or older adult.

He giggles, and thanks me for the small gesture. Even if I'd just started talking to him again, it felt as if I was comfortable around him already, just like before.

"You do volleyball?" Toruku questions him, placing his feet onto the table. He laid back with his arms behind his head, and the collar of his uniform unbuttoned. He was trying to prove something to him.

"Sensei Tamaki is gonna yell at you again.." I sing, placing a lump of rice into my mouth. The rest of them agree, and Suga just giggles while peeling his orange.

Suga nods at him, giving him a light smile. "Yes, I'm a setter. I coordinate the attacks and basically everything else."

"Oh..?" Giki, Hikishi, and blondie all utter confused at the new term. Thankfully, I had the slightest experience in volleyball, which meant I could explain to them.

"Being a setter means you're like the control tower of the team. Like Giki; without her drums, there wouldn't be a steady beat to a song. Or take Hikishi; the base is what makes a base tune. That's the best I can explain in your language." I explain, looking to Suga for any corrections.

"That's right, yeah. How'd you know?" He leans on his arm.

"I may not look like it but I used to play back in middle school. But really, I just played because of my friend group. All of them were the athlete type." I reply to him, meanwhile eating before loudly being interrupted.

"TORUKU AIZAWA!" The expected teacher yells at him, pulling many people's attention. "I WILL NOT START WITH YOU THIS SCHOOL YEAR! FEET OFF THE TABLE..!"

"Okay, okay!" He rolls his eyes, placing them back onto the floor, and crosses his arms. "That old hag.."

Suga laughs softly. His hand crept around the fruit, peeling it as he discussed more. The only thing that was embarrassing was that his words spoke about me. "So, I've heard Y/n is really talented. You know, I would have figured that out if she wasn't so introverted as a first-year."

Hikishi makes a small noise of agreement, before sealing their food, and responding. "Oh, yes. Y/n his her vocal skills from us for quite a while before we brought her out of her shell. Not only that, but she's really good at guitar. Ever heard her?"

Sugawara shakes his head, looking back at me. "No, but I'd love to hear! I understand she's quite angelic."

"I— Uhm, no!" I smile sarcastically, leaning over the table to stuff a piece of chicken in Hikishi's mouth. "Now you be quiet!"

Sugas head perks up, as he begins, "So are you guys signed? Better yet, do you have a band name?" He questions, leaning on his hand while he talks.

"Grimlace." Giki responds, resting her head on her folded arms. Why was he so invested in this conversation? Hell if I knew.

Still, it seemed they had no problem with meeting Sugawara. Well, except for Toruku. But he was always suspicious of any boy I was comfortable with that wasn't him.

While he discussed with my cremates about different subjects on music, I quietly ate my food, observing Sugawara while he had absolutely no idea.

When he was fifteen, I remember loathing the first few moments around him. He'd only ever talk and have energy inside him, like a living Red Bull bottle with an extra shot of caffeine. Of course, the next few times I saw him I'd already gotten used to him and his tiny crush on me. His aura was what inspired me to rebuild myself. Sad thing was that when I was done grieving, he had just begun.

I heard that one of his parents had passed away and that it was a big impact on him. I couldn't even imagine losing one of my parents, even if they hardly even raised me. How I wish I could go back to last year, and find him again, meanwhile searching for the old him. But it seemed that the agony that weighed his kind soul was light, and once again, I met fifteen-year-old Sugawara and that bright smile of his.

—

"It was fun talking to you all. It's not always that I get to converse with such a different group than what I've known." Sugawara mentions as he stands up from the lunch chair, along with the rest of us. "You all must know Karasuno isn't a very divergent school."

"Ah yes, we're aware," Toruku says, slinging his shoulder bag where it belongs. "It was nice talking to you as well, but we've outta get going now. Have a good one, Sugawara!"

"Hey," I say, drawing his attention back towards me. "I might stay a little bit late after school. If—..if you've got practice today maybe you can help me get back to the neighborhood." I silently prayed he didn't catch my stutter. "It'll be pretty dark, wouldn't want me to get lost, now would you?"

Shortly after, he replies, "Why, of course. Although, practice usually ends around five to six. Mind if I swing by once it's done, that way I can wait for you?"

Hikishi quickly swung an arm around my shoulder, and smiles at the grey-haired boy."That would be great! Maybe our Y/n can play a little something for you since you're so invested in her. Isn't that right, Y/n— ow!" He yelps at the harsh pinch of my fingers on his face. I sharply turn once more, bowing to Suga.

"Thank you. We'll be in music room 3007. Though I doubt I'll make a fool out of myself and perform for you," I say, as a small laugh leaves my lips. "I'll see you then."

"Got it, have yourself a good day."

"Yeah, you as well."

—-

Hello folks! Thanks for coming back to read. I really appreciate it! Please vote for my chapters, I work very hard on them and would love some love :) make sure to get good rest and drink lots of water. Love you♥️♥️

- Sugawara's beauty mark☆

[saharamae21]

All of My Wrongs - Chapter One

Pairing: Topper x OC and Rafe x OC

Summary: As her first day in the OBX comes to a close, she finds herself getting to know one of the two boys. She begins to analyze him and articulate certian feelings and she likes the dynamic they have going on. Yet, she’s still cautious. She doesn’t want to just dive into the first friendships she’s ever had.

Word Count: 2.7K

A/N: Sorry if these first chapters come off as boring. Its going to be a slow moving fic in order for me to really build connections with the characters. I really like it though and I hope you do too... Let me know what you think! I really want some feedback on this...

___________________________________________________

I sat on the edge of Toppers bed and stared at the two boys in front of me. They put off extremely different auras. Topper was softer, less guarded than Rafe. However, he was much sadder in a way. He seemed troubled and anxious all the time. Rafe just seems frustrated with the world. He had tense muscles and rage in his veins. Both of them let their flaws surface. They didn’t know how vulnerable that made them. They didn’t know how their flaws could be used against them.

“So, Aurora,” Rafe said. “You never answered me. What’s your story?”

“What do you want to know?” I asked. Rafe took a seat next to me on the bed. He pretended to make a thinking face and if my eyes could roll any harder, they would’ve. He told me to tell them whatever I was willing to. That was so vague, where do I begin? Is this how normal people make friends? By asking vague questions and judging their answers.

“If you’re so interested in her, can you take her back to your house? My mom will kill me if she found out I snuck a girl in,” Topper said. “Especially if that girl isn’t Sarah.”

Topper basically shoved us out of his front door and I sighed. I knew my parents were going to kill me for not being at home in the morning, but Skip did lock me out… I listened to Rafe ask me if I was coming. I scoffed and ran through the rain to his car. I slipped in and shivered a bit. His car was messy and filled with fast food wrappers. My nose wrinkled at the smell of gym clothes in the backseat. He apologized upon seeing the look on my face and told me that he wasn’t expecting company tonight. He laughed and asked if I was hungry. I felt my nose wrinkle up a little bit and wondered if he was going to offer me a leftover, but instead we pulled into a McDonald’s. I hadn’t even noticed I was hungry until he mentioned something, but I also didn’t have any money.

“What do you want?” he asked. He glanced over at me and I told him I was fine. He continued to ask and told me it was on him. He didn’t seem like the handout type though and I couldn’t figure out if I wanted to be indebted to him or not. Finally, I gave in and told him I would take a mcnugget meal. “Was that so hard, buttercup?”

I rolled my eyes at his sarcastic tone and reached for the bag. He easily pulled it away before I could grab it though. This was a game to him. I could tell by the way his eyes stared at me. I felt my stomach rumble and crossed my arms over my chest. I didn’t like the fact that he thought he would toy with me. Usually, I wouldn’t be so irritated, but it was late. I was wet and tired, but more importantly, I was hungry. We pulled into his house and somehow it was even bigger than Topper’s. He snuck me up to his room, which was surprisingly neat compared to his car. I sat down at the desk and waited for him to give me my food, however, he only took out his and unwrapped it.

“Let’s play a game,” he said while taking a bite out of his burger. “You can have your food when you answer some questions for me, fair?”

“What do you want to know?” I asked again. This time he looked at me with intent. He asked me why I moved here and how we had money. It felt almost like a business inquiry more so than the beginning to a friendship. He was curious about my status and trying to figure out if I was a good addition to his inner circle. He was looking at me as if I was an investment. He opened his mouth to ask another question, but I interrupted.

“Are you aware that you give off a Chuck Bass vibe?” I asked. He asked me who that was. I asked him if he had ever seen Gossip Girl and he shook his head. He said it had “girl” in the title and therefore it wasn’t for him. The more I observed him the more I saw it though. The cold exterior that hid his deserve to be accepted or some other insecurity. He was definitely the type to put people down or push people away to cope with his own issues. “Don’t worry about it, Bass. Know this though, I’m no Blair Waldorf.”

He asked me if I gave everyone bad nicknames. I ignored him and asked him if I could have my food yet. He wasn’t done with his questions though. He asked me about why I moved so much. He asked me things that were a little deeper than the general get to know you questions. He wanted to know what I wanted after high school. He asked about my dreams. He asked me what made me insecure. He was trying to find my weaknesses. He was one step behind, because I had already figured out his.

“Rafe, can I please have my food? I'm really hung-” my words were cut off by a sneeze. I shivered as his ceiling fan blew cold air down on me. Even though I was in Topper’s sweatshirt, my shirt underneath and my shorts were soaked and freezing. His expression softened as he tossed me the bag. I opened it up and ate some cold fries. I watched as he rummaged through his drawers. I shoved a chicken nugget in my mouth as a pair of sweatpants smacked me in the face. He told me to change and walked out of the room. I let out a small laugh as I realized he was trying to be nice. I slipped out of my wet clothes and into his sweatpants. I removed my top and bra before sliding Topper’s hoodie back onto my smaller frame. I let out a yawn as I finished up my meal. I looked around and wondered if he had just left me here for the night.

Just as I was about to lay down on the bed in front of me, he waltzed back in with nothing but a towel around his waist. I covered my face, embarrassed, causing him to chuckle at my innocence. He closed himself in his closet to get changed as I tried not to think about his finely painted abs or how his hair looked wet. I had to admit that Rafe was handsome. He came back out in boxers and a t-shirt on. He plopped down on his bed and waited for me to lay down.

“Um… is there like a guest room I should go to?” I asked, nervously.

“You’re not as snarky now,” he pointed out. “Just lay down, I’m not gonna touch you. Well, not unless you want me too.” If I could smack that smirk off of his lips I would. I hesitantly got into bed, my mind swirling with all the thoughts about waking up next to a boy in the morning. I pulled the covers over me and tried to find warmth, but my skin still felt like ice. I shivered a bit and heard him sigh.

“C'mere,” he mumbled, opening his arms up a little bit. I looked at him and he let out another dramatic sigh. “It’s just for body heat. You can push me off whenever you feel like it. I just can't have you getting all sick in my house. It’s not like I’m into you or anything.”

I moved closer and his arms wrapped around me. I smiled knowing that this was his attempt at being nice. My body unconsciously cuddled closer into his chest. I breathed in the sweet smell of his body wash as he held me against him. Everywhere his body touched mine was burning now. It felt like flames against my skin.

“You’re weird…” he mumbled to me with a chuckle. I pushed at him a little bit. “Hey, not in a bad way… Just not in an Outer Banks way.”

“Sorry I don’t fit your standards,” I said sarcastically. I was used to not fitting in. That was nothing new to me, but when he said that, my heart sank more than usual. I wanted to fit in here. I wanted to stay here until I went to college.

“If you want to fit in, you have to come to Midsummers,” he said. I asked him what it was and in all honesty, it sounded like a nightmare. The rich kids and their families getting together to honor people for doing nothing? It sounded like a joke. “Trust me, you’ll hate it. But, if you wanna fit in, I’ll take you. Show you the ropes. You can be my plus one.”

“Okay,” I said, after thinking for a while. I glanced up at him and his eyes were closed. His face was so close to mine though. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried not to think about how I was cuddling with a boy I didn’t even know. I tried not to think about how I just agreed to see him again. Instead, I just kept my eyes closed and drifted off.

The next morning I woke up to the sound of his door opening. My heart leapt out of my chest as his arms tightened around me. He groaned as the light filled his room.

“Dude, were going to be late for our tee-time!” I heard a familiar voice say. “Holy shit, man. Hey Aurora… You coming golfing with us?”

I pushed Rafe off of me and sat up embarrassed. I greeted Topper and tried to ignore the embarrassment burning my checks. I told him I’d rather die than go golfing. He smiled as he looked back and forth between Rafe and I. I rolled my eyes and told him I had to use the bathroom. I walked down the halls when a girl popped out. She looked my age and she stopped in her tracks when she saw my sweatshirt.

“You must be the girl who was with my boyfriend last night,” she said, sizing me up. I let out a laugh as I recognized her from photos in the house. She must be Rafe’s sister and Topper’s girlfriend.

“Actually, I’m the girl who’s accompanying your brother to Midsummers,” I said firmly. I didn’t want her to see me as a threat. I watched as her face flushed with pink and her words then became flustered.

“O-Oh! I’m so sorry,” she said. She extended her hand. “I’m Sarah Cameron.” “Aurora Lansing,” I said. What was with everyone and handshakes here? She smiled at me and told me that she had to run, but it was nice to meet me. She seemed nice, but something about her gave me the impression that we wouldn’t get along very well. I went to the bathroom and made my way back to Rafe’s room. The boys were in there, waiting for me. I gulped, knowing that I was about to get my introduction into country club life.

I shifted uncomfortably as I say in the golf cart. My arms were crossed over my chest as I watched them joke around. I could name at least six different places I would rather be than at a golf course. I pulled awkwardly on the short skirt I was given and sighed. I narrowed my eyes on Topper. So, he was dating Rafe’s little sister. She seemed into him from the impression I got this morning, so why was he so worried? Then my eyes shifted to Rafe. I noticed that there were endless pictures of Sarah in the house, but how did that leave any room for him? I just couldn’t quite figure these two out.

“You having fun yet, buttercup?” Rafe asked. He leaned against the cart and swung his club a bit.

“Ha as if, Bass,” I muttered. “Why am I here?”

“So we can bond, obviously,” he said, with a chuckle. He threw his head back when he laughed. It made me smile. “So, do you have plans tomorrow?”

“No…” I said.

“Great, let’s go dress shopping for Midsummers. You're going to need my help. Plus you have to match my suit,” he said. I laughed when Topper yelled over that it was awful. I watched as Rafe’s expression changed. “Hey, buttercup. Can you go get me some water from the clubhouse? Just put it under Ward Cameron’s tab.”

I looked around to see what he saw, but there was nothing there. I nodded and drove off. I parked outside of the building and looked around. This was nothing like what I had ever done before. Usually I would be helping with hurricane relief right now, but instead I was partying with the upper class. It felt a little wrong to be honest. I wondered what my parents would think when I got home. I grabbed a water and told them to put it under Rafe’s dad’s tap. They didn’t even think twice.

On my way back, I was driving down the path when I saw a boy on the ground. I slammed on the breaks and got out, helping him sit up. He was bleeding pretty badly.

“Are you okay? Can you walk?” I asked. He looked at me with a confused glance. He told me he was fine. I wondered why he was being so cold. “Hold on, I’ll go get a first aid kit!”

He stopped me though. He told me that he didn’t need my help. He dismissed me quickly, getting up on his own. He told me he did take handouts and that I should go back to sipping lemonade by the pool. He walked away quickly as I stared at his back, jaw dropped. I was just trying to be nice. I scoffed at the interaction and slipped back onto the cart, trying to find Rafe and Topper again. They were finishing up their hole.

“Took you long enough,” I heard Rafe say. “Did you get lost?”

“No…” I muttered. “There was this boy on the ground. He was really curt with me, but I was just trying to help him…”

Rafe asked me what he looked like. He asked me if he looked like a golfer or a worker. I told him neither. The boy was in everyday clothes. He was in a brownish/red shirt and swim trunks. Rafe sighed and sat down next to me. He told me that I had probably seen a Pogue. He told me about the island rivalry and how they always would pick fights with them. He told me the Kooks were the good guys.

“Us, Kooks, we work hard,” he said. “They’re jealous of us because we have money. Money that we’ve worked our asses off for.”

I didn’t know what to believe, but that boy was so rude to me for no reason. What kind of place was this? He told me not to worry about it or them. I sighed and nodded, watching them finish their round. I tried to push all the thoughts from my head, but I couldn’t.

When it was all over, the boys dropped me off at home. I walked in and was met by my parents. They stared at the outfit I had borrowed from Sarah and told them not to ask. I knew that wasn’t going to stop them though. I told them about how Skipper locked me out of the house and how I made some friends. I left out the part where I stayed the night at Rafe’s, but I filled them in. I told them about the island rivalry and Midsummers. They looked at me with an expression I’ve never seen before.

“It’s nice to see you breaking out of your shell, Rory,” my dad said. He was right. I was breaking out of my shell.

_______________________________________________

Tag List : @outerbankslut​ @jellyfishbeansontoast​ @jiaraendgame​ @bricksatanakinswindow​ @outerbongs​ @kiarascarreras​ @ilovejjmaybank​ @potterheadhollander​ @rudths​ @spilledtee​ @queenieloveswriting​ @multifandomlovess​ @starlightstarkey​ @tomhardybby​ @diverdcwn

[crystalwillow]

I’m All Yours

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Casey Valentine (F!MC)

I started a book on May 19th of this year (2020) that is full of Ethan x Casey one shots and short stories. I love Ethan’s character, and really enjoy his relationship with Casey just as much, I wish to share with the 5 part mini-series I started this book off with.

Before I post the fiction. I feel that it’s only right that I say a massive Thank You to @ethansdique again for letting me use some of her art for the cover of this book. 🥰 

Tagging: @kiteplayschoices @brycelahelalover @obsessedheehee @eleanorbloom @fuseboxmusebox @princesslahela @vibrantlyjaz @kaavyaethanramsey @queencarb @schnitzelbutterfingers @ramseysno1rookie @caseyvalentineramsey @ethanramseyswhore @whippedforethanfreakingramsey

=================================

"... Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow...... I love you too.... Goodnight babe. mwah!" Casey said softly down the phone to her soon to be husband. As she placed her phone to charge on the nightstand there was a light knock at her door, "it's open" she called out. It opened slowly and her bridesmaids filed in one by one. Jackie, Sienna, Aurora and Esme. "Hey. How are you feeling?" Sienna asked as they all sat on the bed around Casey. "Pretty nervous if I'm being honest." she replied with a shaky voice, "Hey. You've got this Valentine." Jackie encouraged as she wrapped her arm around Casey's shoulder, pulling her into a greatly appreciated tight hug. "Late night snack before bed girls?" Aurora asked, Casey sat up and looked at her "What is it?" she asked with narrowed eyes, "Gluten free pizza with all your favourite vegetables plus a sprinkling of diced chicken" Aurora answered. The girls all looked at one and other before rushing out the room and down the stairs "Casey has the best taste for pizza. the first slice is mine!" Aurora and Casey heard Esme shout out as the three other girls raced towards the kitchen. The two left behind, shared a chuckle before following them for a snack and glass of wine before bed.

--- 15 hours later---

Casey paced back and forth nervously in her room at the church waiting for word on her dress from Jackie and Esme, and the arrival of her hair and make-up artist from Aurora and Sienna. "Okay... it's okay Casey. everything will be fine there's a whole 3 hours to go. they'll be here soon, and everything will be fi--" She stops rambling to herself as her biggest fear completely takes over and she flops on the sofa bursting into tears. "Why me!?" she screams through her tears. She and Ethan had been planning this moment for the past 2 years. They had been officially dating for a year when Ethan popped the question one night in the diagnostics room, as they were staying late to finish up some reports. Now 3 years later she's "backstage" at a church for her wedding a wreck because both her dress and make-up artist are stuck in traffic. She was a hyperventilating mess by now, she'd been crying for almost 45 minutes when a knock at the door sounded, followed by a deep soothing voice that was all too familiar. "Casey?? Sweetheart, it's me. Ethan. Look... I know we're keeping things traditional because you're respecting me, but I want to respect you too. I've heard about what's going on so I uh... I'm out here in a t-shirt and jeans if you want to thr-" he's cut off by the door flying open and his soon to be wife running out into his arms and sobbing into his neck. "it's ruined! everything is ruined!" she exclaimed through her tears. "hey! shhhhh, it's alright sweetie, I'm here." he cooed softly as he rubbed soothing circles on Casey's back. Slowly he walked into the room and sat them down on the sofa as he cuddled Casey close. Slowly but surely with the small forehead kisses and whispers of sweet nothings she finely calmed down. "I'm sorry." Casey sniffled after a few moments of silence; Ethan's brow furrowed. "Sorry for what?" He asked, "This. I've messed everythi-" She started to ramble but Ethan stopped her with a finger to her lips "I don't want to hear none of that Valentine, do you understand?" he asked seriously but with the softest look on his face. She nodded. The two spent a few more minutes with each other, cuddling, laughing and sharing sweet kisses until Sienna came back. she gasped as she saw Ethan "The others are coming! quick! out... out!" She panicked urging Ethan out the room "I'll see you in a few Rookie" He smiled at Casey blowing her a kiss before leaving, mere moments before the room came to life with what felt like a million people to prepare her for the moment she had dreamt about her whole life. Marrying the love of her life. Her soulmate. Okay so he's a few years older but that doesn't matter, what matters is their love and respect for each other. The ceremony they're here for to tie them together for eternity.

--- 30 minutes to the ceremony ---

The girls are all inside their room having the finishing touches put to their outfits when there's a frantic knocking at the door. All four bridesmaids rush to answer it. on the other side you hear a frantic voice "Have you girls seen Ethan?!" you zoned out of the conversation as your phone pinged

Ethan: peep out the window :)

Casey: Why?? ...

Ethan: Just... please?

Sighing Casey set her phone down and peeped out the window, only showing her head and neck. As her eyes focused, she saw Ethan doing the same round the corner of the building and smiled wide, giggling to herself. She waved and blushed as Ethan blew her a kiss before disappearing round the corner. "Casey..." A voice sounded out behind her causing her to jump "What are you smiling at missy?" Jackie asked smugly, "oh, nothing. Just two birds who looked very much in love" Casey replied. Jackie, Aurora, Esme and Sienna all gave each other a knowing smile before turning back to Casey and wiggling their eyebrows "What? ..... What're you guys looking at me like tha- OOOOOH. no! stop! get your minds out of the gutter!" she laughed as she threw a pillow at Esme and one at Jackie. "Oi Valentine!" they shouted in unison and the world around the five of them went completely still for a moment "wow. That's the last time I'll hear that as my last name." Casey whispered with a tear coming to her eye but stopped it from falling. *ding ding ding ding ding ding* the bells started to chime signaling the beginning of the wedding. "well...." said Sienna, suppressing a smile as she looked around the room "Let's go and make you a Ramsey!" She cheered and the others joined in as Casey grabbed her bouquet and followed them out.

As Casey stood behind the closed door, the nerves really hit her, "Oh God... I'm doing this. I'm marrying Ethan Ramsey. phew" she rambled nervously "hey! It's going to be fine" Ethan's dad told her soothingly "What if I trip and fall on my face though? I already had one breakdown tod-" She started rambling again but was cut off by the bolt on the other side of the door moving. Letting out a deep breath, she looped her arm through Alan's, and they began walking down the aisle, as Casey walked down towards Ethan he looked down to wipe tears from his eyes. Soon, they were standing opposite each other and exchanging vows. Ethan cleared his throat and looked at Casey with a smile, "Rookie. That's how this whole thing started... you helped me rescue a woman in the reception area on your way to orientation when you didn't need to stop. as that year went on you infuriated me more and more with your persistence to be kind to me when I was, quite frankly, being an asshole to you. But then we... hooked up. I had shut that kind of thing out of my life for years. To be honest, I'd given up on finding "the one" who I would end up marrying. But you came along and changed everything. I... You showed me the feeling of love again that I had blocked out. I feel normal again and I want to thank God for putting you in my life because if it wasn't for you, I believe I would have become a stubborn drunk by now. Thank You for everything you've done and will continue to do. I love you" he finished up and kisses away a tear rolling down Casey's cheek. "you look beautiful" he whispered in her ear.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife." the priest announced after Casey and Ethan exchanged "I do's" and rings. They leave the church to hollering and applause, with bursts of confetti coming from random people. As they reached the steps, Ethan picked Casey up "Ah! Ethan!" she giggled as he carried her to their limo that would take them to their reception and then their new house at the end of the night.

--- At the reception ---

The reception was in full swing as Ethan and Casey sat at their table watching their guests enjoy themselves. Sighing happily Casey looked up at Ethan and kissed his cheek. "I love you Mr. Ramsey" she said, he looked down at her and smiled "I love you too Mrs. Ramsey" he smiled and kissed her lips sweetly. She giggled giddily and hugged him tightly. Ethan's dad approached the table with someone in tow, making Ethan rise to his feet to stand in front of her protectively. "I found this guy outside. He said he knows Casey." Alan stated as Casey looked up and saw Landry who gave a nervous smile and wave "You weren't invited." Casey said coldly as her face turned sour, "I know but we were friends and I wa-" Landry started to explain as Casey moved past Ethan getting into his face "Exactly, WERE  friends. But you decided to try and get my license revoked and almost cost me my job, when I was doing what was right for the patient. She passed away happy! and YOU!" She said raising her voice louder and louder by the minute as she jabbed her finger into his chest and pulled her shoulder out of Ethan's comforting grip, "YOU WERE. PART. OF IT. But you left that part out to save your ass! So, no. We are no longer friends because you are a TWO FACED, BACKSTABBING, MAN-WHORE, WHO NEEDS TO LEAVE MY RECEPTION AND GET OUT OF THIS BUILDING RIGHT NOW. GO!" she shouted as she pointed to the door. "I- okay" Landry said as he turned to leave. Ethan pulled Casey close to his chest, pressing a kiss to her head, "Get rid of him dad. Please, for Casey's sake." He told his father who obliged and escorted Landry out. "Hey. it's okay" Ethan cooed to Casey sweetly as he hugged her tightly as Jackie and everyone else came running over to support her "are you okay Case?" Elijah asked, "I brought you Champagne" Sienna said as she held out the flute to her best friend. Casey took it with a smile and a small "thank you" as she took a sip. "I think we should go dance. All of us. We've come so far together. Aaaaand, I wanna have fun tonight" She smiled as she placed the flute on the table next to Ethan's beer. "Macarena circle?" Bryce suggested, his eyes glistening with mischief "WOOOOO!" everyone cheered and rushed to the dance floor as Bryce went and asked for the song before joining the circle. Together they danced and laughed the night away. Before they knew it, Ethan and Casey were pulling up to their new home they would share for the rest of their lives. "Casey.... honey..." Ethan whispered as he gently woke his new wife up "Hm?" Casey hummed as she sat up looking confused "We're home" Ethan said softly, and Casey responded with a smile. After he had stepped out, Ethan held out his hand to help Casey out of the limo and together they stepped into their new home ready to start the next chapter of their lives together. 

[katedrakeohd]

This is for you @sirbeepsalot ��🥀🌺🌻🌼🌷⚘

I've had a bunch of asks in my inbox forever and need to finally get around to them. I was inspired by @drakeandcamilleofvaltoria and her one shot about Drake meeting Camille at her flower shop. I went in a totally different direction, but hopefully this little story is just as fluffy. 💗

....

Paint me a Picture 🎨🌷🌼

Drake hummed happily to himself as he stepped out of his office. He had just finished a conference call with his fellow council members finalizing the plans for Kate's upcoming baby shower. They had put off the party for the past two months amid fears of the Coronavirus spreading into Cordonia. Kate's due date of March 12th was fast approaching and they had reached the decision to reduce the guest list to under ten people. This suited Drake just fine because he wasn't much of a party person, plus Kate found too much attention and fussing around more tiring than exciting at this point.

Checking his watch, Drake realizes that his call had taken him well into the lunch hour and he was quite hungry. The plush carpet of the stairs muted his footsteps as he descended toward the main hall. He could feel the empty space blanket him in its silence, and he wondered where Kate, Hana and the corgis were.

When he had last seen Kate that morning she had been reorganizing the supplies in the nursery for the fourth time. He had chuckled at her restless nesting and kissed her on the cheek before leaving to make his phone call.

"Go get some fresh air and sunshine, it'll do you good."

Kate sighed, rubbing her aching back. "I guess so. I wonder what Hana's up to this morning."

Drake shrugged, "Send her a text to come get you and take your mind off baby stuff."

"Thanks, I will."

..

As he turned the corner toward the kitchen, Drake could smell toasting bread, and the delicious aroma of chicken soup. His mouth waters and he swallows, breathing deeply as his stomach rumbles. The sound of laughter, clink of plates and drawers opening and closing made him smile. Over the past 8 1/2 months the kitchen staff had become familiar with Kate's unusual cravings at all hours of the day. Early on she had wanted salty snacks, and then halfway through her second trimester her cravings had her wanting sweets, during the last month she had started combining the two in odd ways. It made Drake shake his head in wonder, but he obliged her desires. And if Kate was happy, Drake was happy.

Walking into the kitchen unnoticed, he sees the staff loading up a tray with a platter of sandwiches, and a pitcher of iced tea.

"Good afternoon Ladies," he says, and the laughing chatter amongst the women stops.

"Lovely day indeed, Your Grace." Marie the head cook replies with a smile.

Drake eyes the sandwiches on the platter hungrily. He could imagine sinking his teeth into the golden toasted bread, and hearing the crunch. "Are these for Kate and Hana by any chance?"

"Why yes they are. They're taking lunch in the sunroom. I can add another drinking glass and another plate if you'd like to join them."

Drake nods, "That would be wonderful. How about if I take lunch to them then?"

Claire, the young kitchen helper, protests as she sees Drake reach for the tray. "Oh my goodness, Your Grace, let us do that. You go on ahead and we'll bring lunch to you. "

Drake grabs half of a sandwich, "Well, if you insist. I'll just take this to go then, thanks."

Turning around to leave the kitchen Drake raises the sandwich to his mouth and checks the contents before taking a bite. Lettuce, tomato and a slice of swiss cheese. Not bad, but could use some bacon.

..

In the sunroom the atmosphere is that of a bright summer's day despite the dull late winter landscape outside. Lush greenery, tropical flowers and golden sunshine fill the space and give it a pleasant warmth. Off to one side, chair cushions are clustered together on the tiled floor. At the moment they're serving as lounges for sunbathing, sleeping, corgis; but earlier the cushions had served as a comfy surface for a gentle yoga session for Kate and Hana. Now the two friends were standing at easels and painting, chatting back and forth about what to hang in the nursery.

"So you and Drake still don't know if you're having a boy or a girl right?"

Kate nods, "As much as I want to know now, it's still a mystery. Our doctor knows though."

Hana purses her lips in thought as she dabs some blue on her canvas, "So do you mind if I paint a gender neutral landscape instead of flowers?"

"Not at all. I'm still sticking with flowers though. The ones in here are just too beautiful not to paint. If it doesn't suit the theme of the nursery I'll just hang it somewhere else."

Hana rinses out her brush, setting it aside and selects a different one to line in some happy little trees in a dark brown. "I suppose Drake is hoping that you have a little boy."

"He won't admit it, but of course he does. He's itching to go camping and fishing, to kick a football around, toss a baseball with a son."

With a shrug Kate draws in some green stems on her yellow daffodils, "Of course these are all activities he could do with a daughter as well. I remember tossing around a baseball with my Dad in the backyard."

Opening the door and stepping into the sunroom Drake is met by the wall of heat and fragrant scent of flowers. He immediately feels overdressed as a trickle of sweat runs down his neck. "How do you ladies stand it in here?"

Kate turns away from her painting to look at Drake, "Oh Hi Honey, welcome to summer in March."

Under the shade of her Sun hat, Kate is wearing one of Drake's old denim shirts as a painter's smock, the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. There's a green smudge of paint on her cheek. Drake notices that it appears that she's wearing little else other than flip flops.

"Uh, Kate? Are you naked under my shirt?"

Kate giggles, covering her mouth, putting another smudge of green on her face. "No silly. I'm wearing a bikini top and shorts." She glances down at herself, "I can see it looking that way though."

Hana is wearing a short summer dress, and her own Sun hat. "You look a little warm there Drake. I wouldn't mind if you decided to take off your shirt."

Kate snickers as she goes back to her painting, "Yeah Honey, don't be shy."

Drake clears his throat, loosening his top two buttons and rolling up his sleeves. "I think I'll just open a couple of windows instead."

Kate watches Drake crank open a window, appreciating the flex of the muscles in his forearms. The fresh air blows the fabric of his shirt against his chest, making it stick to the sweat on his skin. She realizes that he isn't wearing a tee underneath. Probably why he was reluctant to remove his shirt in Hana's company. Drake notices her watching him and gives her a wink as he walks across to open another window. "So what are you ladies painting today?"

Kate feels the cool breeze brush the hair off the back of her neck and she shivers with delight. "Thanks honey, I didn't realize just how warm it was getting in here."

Drake does a quick bow with flourish of his hand, "Always pleased to be of service, Your Grace."

Hana giggles, "We're painting flowers and landscapes, to answer your previous question."

Drake settles down on the floor with the corgis, resting his elbow on a cushion and rubbing a belly as one dog happily rolls over. "I have the pleasure of informing you ladies that iced tea and sandwiches are also on the way, for our lunch."

Hana wipes her brow, "Anything with Ice in it would be welcome right now. I first experienced cold tea when we were in Texas for Savannah's wedding. I wasn't sure if I'd like it."

Kate sighs, "Mmm, I love lemony iced tea in the summertime. I miss it from being back home."

Drake's stomach growls again, causing one of the corgis to give him a look and then retreat to a spot in the shade, "Sorry Fluffers, didn't mean to disturb you. Don't worry I'm not hungry enough to eat you, close but no."

"I could go for a big bowl of spaghetti and meatballs right now," Kate says wistfully as she paints a tomato red poppy onto her canvas bouquet.

Drake groans, folding his arms behind his head as he leans back on the cushions and closes his eyes, "Oh stop, you're just making me more hungry."

Kate bites her lip, "Ooh, or pizza. A nice big slice of ole New York thin crust with extra cheese."

"STOP IT!" Drake barks out a laugh, chuckling as he wipes the sweat off his brow. "I ate half a sandwich on my way here, and it's really tasting like another half right about now."

Kate wipes her hands on a rag, "Ooh, what type of sandwich?"

Drake shrugs, "I dunno, there was cheese and some lettuce in there, maybe tomato?"

Kate kicks off her flip flops and walks across the warm floor tiles to stand over Drake, casting a shadow across him, hands on her hips. "And you didn't think to bring the rest of the sandwiches with you?"

Drake cracks an eye open to look up at his wife, his face scrunching up in amusement at her paint smudged face and raised eyebrows. "Hey, I tried to take the tray with me. But I don't think the girls in the kitchen trusted me to get the sandwiches this far without eating a few."

Kate nudges his leg playfully with her foot. "So true. We've all seen how much you like to eat."

Drake growls playfully, reaching out to grab for her ankle but she steps back out of his reach, "Can't help it if I'm a hungry man, c'mere you. I bet you taste like chicken."

"Nah ah, if I get down on those cushions with you I might never get back up. I'm going to wash up my hands and then take a seat over there at the table. Besides I think cannibalism is frowned upon in Cordonia."

Drake smirks at her and rolls over on his stomach, watching her walk away. "Mmm, golden fried chicken. You know how much I'm a breast and leg man."

Hana bursts out laughing, "Geez guys get a room."

Continue on to the next part

[dontreadthistrashgarbage]

Pt.3

Seyoon was unpacking all the late night snacks he had gotten onto a blanket at a secluded rooftop. Hearing footsteps he looked up to see Guerin, who looked different than usual. She didn't appear to be wearing any makeup, had her normal stud earrings but had a cute black mask with a white sharp toothy grin. She was dressed in joggers and a sweatshirt with the hood up. He cocked his head at her as she approached.

"I know, I look like shit. But it was late and I'd already gotten ready for bed. You can't expect me to spruce up after that." Guerin guessed at his expression.

"You look fine. Cozy. It's just different. Also you're late." He shrugged and patted the blanket next to him, sitting as he leaned against the wall behind him.

"I got lost..." she grumbled, "I've never been great with directions." She sat down in the spot he indicated, looking over the spread he had brought, "Good grief I thought you just wanted tteokbokki."

Seyoon smiled automatically, "You said you hadn't eaten, and I know how much you like food so I thought I should get some options." Guerin leaned her head in his direction and offered a wry smile under her mask, unable to argue with his logic. "Besides, I got this for us too." He pulled out an additional bag, from which he drew two paper cups, a bottle of soju and two cans of beer.

Guerin raised her eyebrows and sat up straight, "Oh we're drinking too?"

"We have to. It goes well with tteokbokki, fried chicken and jajangmyeon." He shrugged nonchalantly as he began opening everything up and handing Guerin some chopsticks. "Although it's blueberry soju. I thought you might like that."

"How did you figure that?" She asked, sneaking a piece of tteokbokki and pulling her mask to her chin to eat it.

"Well you said before you liked Grapefruit and Plum but I couldnt find it, so I thought blueberry was the next best option." Seyoon shrugged, separating the cups and pouring soju into them, handing one to Guerin and offering his as cheers.

She laughed in response and took her shot, "Honestly I dont know how that train of thought lines up but you aren't wrong." She watched as Seyoon refilled the cups and couldn't keep the grin from her face, "You really went all out for this, it's awesome. Thank you."

He shrugged again, looking up at her and their eyes met briefly before both looked away to select food options, "Food makes things better." He said simply.

"Cheers to that." They both took another shot and then ate in silence for a while.

"So... how are you?" Seyoon asked awkwardly, unsure of how to broach the subject.

"I'm fine, all things considered." Guerin said almost mechanically, "I keep telling people that."

"Okay... but how are you really?" Seyoon asked again, leaning back to look at Guerin. She sighed and set her chopsticks down and didn't speak for a moment.

"Well. What do you know happened?" She asked finally.

"I know you were attacked by that crazy lady. I know you were arrested but you were cleared because of video evidence. I know that she is being charged by the company. But I also know you haven't been with HEET lately." He trailed off.

Guerin reached over for one of the beers. Seyoon cracked it open and put it in her hand, grabbing his as well while she took a sip, leaned back against the wall and looked up at the sky.

"Yeah. We were worried something might happen again. So part of our plan included recording any more altercations that might occur. Self defense laws are tricky and it's usually one person's word against another. Plus as a foreigner, and a big one, we knew some witnesses might not provide unbiased information." She paused and took another sip, "The boys were so brave, they did exactly as they were supposed to. That woman had some gross stuff in that present too. Police said it was unwashed underwear, a vial of blood, another of spit..." she scrunched her nose, "stuff like that."

"Sounds like you guys have the law on your side." Seyoon said, waiting for more information.

Another sip and pause before she spoke, "Yeah, we do. We're able to press charges. The company is suing her. She might see jail time. They even made me go to the hospital to make sure they had a medical report for the court."

"Wait medical report?" Seyoon looked over at her, surprised, "What happened?" Now that she had pulled down her mask and he was looking closely he saw the cut and slight bruising at the corner of her mouth as she smiled dryly and tapped her cheek.

"I let her hit me. I figured if she looked unharmed and I was injured it would go better for us too."

"You're crazy." He sounded almost admiring as he leaned in closer, "Let me see that, does it hurt?"

"It's fine, I've been hit in the face many times, and she's probably the smallest adult that's ever taken a swing at me. It doesnt hurt at all. OW WHY?" She flinched and cried out as he poked the bruising.

His eyes widened and he let out a snort of laughter, "Doesn't hurt at all?"

"You little shit." She laughed and smacked his hand away from her face, "Of course it'll hurt if you press a bruise."

He giggled again, "Sorry. It does look like it hurts a lot. You should maybe stop letting people hit you in the face."

She laughed, "Well it hasn't always been a choice, this one was though."

"So... there's more right?" He asked after their laughter had subsided.

Guerin avoided his eyes by taking a longer drink from her beer, "Yeah. There's been some blowback. Some false stories have gotten out and theres some people that claim I'm making a bad name for HEET or that I was the one who started it, that I instigated a fight or was being rude to a fan. There's quite a lot that demanded I be removed as manager, actually."

"So they caved?" Seyoon asked disbelievingly.

"Well. Kind of?" Guerin sighed, "I've been temporarily removed. Right now with the case going and the false information it's actually less safe for HEET to be around me in case someone tries to target me. So until things are officially able to be released..." she stopped talking abruptly blinking rapidly, trying to hide it with another long gulp of beer. "It's not like I've been fired. I'm grateful for that. Another company would probably have written me off as more trouble than I'm worth. They have me doing other work right now but... I liked my job. I loved my boys, and looking after them." She couldnt hide the tears running down her face now, and didn't bother to try.

Seyoon floundered, watching her face then looking around before seeing napkins and hurriedly handing them to her. She smiled and thanked him, dabbing her cheeks half heartedly before giving up and chugging the rest of her beer through her tears. With an unconvincing smile she looked at Seyoon, "So that's what I mean when I say all things considered. I'm fine."

He didn't saying anything right away, pulling his long shirt sleeve over his hand, he leaned over and dabbed at her face to dry it. She started to pull away, shocked, but he reached out with his other hand and held her in place. "Hold still." She didn't fight back, he was so close and so handsome she couldn't help but feel somewhat transfixed, despite her stomache dropping and heart pounding, all she could do was freeze until he let her go. He picked up his chopsticks, selected a large piece of fried chicken and put it to her mouth, which she accepted without complaint.

"It's okay to be sad when bad things happen. You don't have to lie to everyone." He paused and added quietly as though he wasn't sure he should be saying it, "You don't have to lie to me."

Guerin choked, "Oh my god." She swallowed as soon as she could and laughed, "Are you using lines on me to seem cool? Is this a drama?" She laughed again.

"Yah." He protested, "I was just trying to be supportive."

Guerin laughed again then fed him some tteokbokki, "You're as adorable as a cicada." She said and pinched his cheek.

"I am so much more handsome than some bug." He protested around the food in his mouth.

"Of course you are." She put a shot of soju in his hand, cheersed and downed hers. He followed shortly.

"Thanks though." She glanced at him, "It means a lot."

He playfully shoved her and stole her chopsticks, which started a whole new bickering fit.

Charlie had been working up the nerve all morning to talk to her boss. It was a privilege to be allowed to be so hands on with animals and she didn't want her boss to think she was taking advantage... but it was such a cool opportunity. She had to at least try.

"Byun Minsoo-ssi." She lead off tentatively. The lead vet looked up from her paperwork. Perhaps she looked stern simply from Charlie's point of view but it was just as believable that she was no-nonsense in everyday life as well.

"Yes? Charlie-ssi?"

"I have a friend who is a manager for an idol group, she is friends with a group called A.C.E and I wondered if they could come behind the scenes to meet some of our animals?" Charlie ventured cautiously.

Minsoo paused for a moment before speaking "A.C.E? Your friend knows A.C.E? And they want to come here?" Her attempt to play it cool was poorly hidden and gave Charlie confidence.

"Yes! I'd like to invite my friend Guerin and A.C.E to come and see what we have. I think it would be an excellent opportunity to promote the zoo and educate on the importance of conservation!"

The normally serious Minsoo beamed at Charlie, "That's an excellent idea. Let's get in contact and organize something."

Charlie did a mental fist pump and hustled off to message her friends.

Deciding to keep the visit informal allowed the planning process to go more quickly. Approval from the higher ups and organizing with Beat Interactive took a few days. Guerin has been allowed to come as a personal guest for Charlie and A.C.E who requested she tag along. Guerin, never passing up a chance to visit the zoo, happily accepted. Charlie hoped it could provide her friend with a genuine mood boost. Guerin tended to internalize her negative emotions but Charlie could tell she wasn't her usual self.

"We'll do formal filming in the behind the scenes areas, but then we'll allow you to do your own self cam work throughout the areas of the zoo the public has regular access to." Minseok explained as A.C.E got last second touch ups.

"What animals are we seeing today?" Asked Chan excitedly. They were in the vet and quarantine areas so it was unpredictable what had been planned for them.

"It's a surprise." Charlie said, the most excited A.C.E had ever seen her.

Byun Minsoo would be taking the lead in speaking for the cameras but suggested Charlie stay by to help handle animals and manage the guests. Minsoo might be strict but she was fair, knowing Charlie wanted to do this with her friends she wasn't going to exclude her.

Guerin was hanging back with Minseok as preparations were made. "Noona do you know what we're gonna see?" Chan tried to wheedle from her, pouting slightly. Guerin stared pointedly away from him.

"Don't pull that cute stuff on me, I can't tell you." Of course she knew what animals Charlie was working with, she couldn't let some aegyo spoil the surprise. Chan pouted more and shook his shoulders in a small tantrum.

"Alright that's enough." Minseok stepped in before Guerin could cave, he redirected A.C.E to the main area so they could begin filming. The recording started with a tour of the facilities, showing equipment and how to accommodate all the different animals they had based on type and size. They explained the importance of training animals to participate in their own veterinary care voluntarily then showed them a video example of a mountain lion presenting for a blood draw, and a gorilla opening it's mouth for its teeth to be examined, or a macaque presenting its arm for an insulin injection. Minsoo continued to talk about the research and breeding that the zoo participated and how it was vital for conservation efforts and how it benefitted animals in the wild.

The boys were perfect guests, asking questions and reacting well. They saw a few animals in the quarantine area, new to the zoo and waiting to be introduced to their new homes. The last area they were taken to was for longer term housing for animals that couldnt be in the usual enclosures. A spot had been sectioned, layered with blankets, plushies and other toys. The boys, perplexed, were instructed to go in and sit down with Minsoo while Charlie disappeared momentarily. She returned with an inauspicious crate, facing it away from A.C.E she opened the door and sat with Minsoo, both grinning for the surprise.

Two young tiger cubs tottered they way out, mowing. The trepidation left A.C.E as they all exclaimed in amazement and adoration. Minsoo and Charlie showed A.C.E how to bottle feed them, then let them take turns.

"Their mother was a first time mom, and she wouldnt take care of them." Minsoo explained as the boys cooed sadly, "It's not unusual for that to happen with new mothers even in the wild. But since we are here we made the choice to step in and help raise them." Once the babies were fed they were left to roam and play. One clambered into Jun's lap and fell asleep, the other playing with a toy with Donghun and Byeongkwan. Jun couldn't control his face, his amazement and joy at being chosen as he got everyone's attention and pointed to the sleeping kitten. Seyoon and Chan scooted near him to pet the sleeping animal. Charlie couldn't stop herself from grinning, Guerin knew at least part of it was Jun's reaction and not just the cute tiger cubs.

Once it was time to say goodbye to the kittens, A.C.E did their formal goodbye with them and the filming for behind the scenes ended. The rest of the staff and guests got an opportunity to greet the tigers as well and once Guerin had her turn she flagged down Charlie as the babies were taken back to their enclosure. After a brief talk with Minsoo who let out a restrained laugh and nod, Charlie and Guerin went to a series of smaller tanks on the opposite side of the room, Guerin returning with her hands closed suspiciously.

"We have one more animal for you to meet." Charlie said with a chuckle. Donghun was the only one with the good sense to he suspicious.

"This is one of my favorite animals." Guerin said with a grin, uncovering her hand and showing a large male Madagascar Hissing Cockroach sitting placidly in her hand. All five boys instinctively recoiled, Chan and Jun exclaiming in surprise. A.C.E's reaction elicited chuckles from most of the staff if they werent busy being disgusted themselves.

"It's okay guys. They're harmless!" Guerin said holding it up. Donghun and Jun recovered the fastest, still looking apprehensive and surprised respectively. Chan was behind Jun, leaning around him curiously but still looking fearful. Beyongkwan, eyes wide, didnt move forward so quickly and Seyoon was the furthest away had a very subtle terror that could only be read in his eyes.

"They're really cool, they're called hissing cockroaches cause they hiss!" She gave the cockroach a light pet down it's back which caused it to take two steps forward and hiss quietly as it protested the contact. The boys jumped again. "So insects dont have lungs, they breath through small holes along their body called spiracles. These guys have evolved to force air out of those holes to make a hissing sound that they use to communicate to each other or even predators! Their mouths are too small to bite us so they're harmless!" She was so enthusiastic in the explanation it couldnt help but draw the boys curiosity. She explained how to tell males from females and how most cockroaches are pests at all and how vital they are to the environment. Eventually Donghun worked up the courage first to touch it when offered. Jun became somewhat enamored and greeted the insect before he touched it, but jumped when it hissed before laughing at his own reaction. Chan actually opted to hold it and Byeongkwan even moved forward but Seyoon stayed in the back.

"Come on Hyung!" Chan called to him, looking more closely at the cockroach.

"I'm just looking at stuff over here you guys go on without me." Seyoon said, pretending to examine equipment near him.

"It is kind of cute." Jun admitted, petting it again, still jumping slightly when it hissed.

"On a scale of Seyoon to a Cicada how cute is it?" Donghun joked causing Jun, Chan, Byeongkwan, Guerin and Charlie to laugh.

[blueriverhayes]

[2] Alone (Daryl Dixon)

This is a reminder: this is an AU, so I'm not exactly following the storyline of the show. That's why some characters are alive, others are dead, and they're still at the farm.

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Eva couldn't help but feel nauseated as she followed Rick out of the forest, away from her camp, and closer to his. It had been three years since the epidemic spread, and since then Eva hadn't been able to trust anybody except for herself. She wanted to trust Rick, but she just couldn't.

"I don't think I ever caught your name," Rick said, breaking the silence.

"Evelyn. But I usually go by Eva."

"So, Eva," Rick said, smiling, "you been alone this whole time?"

Eva tried to push down the sick feeling in her stomach as memories of what happened flooded her mind.

"No. I was with my best friend at the beginning. He didn't make it."

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"Eva, get ready! We have to go, now!" Shep yelled from his bedroom. He was packing a duffel bag in his room while Eva sat in the living room of his apartment, her eyes transfixed on the television. She was watching the local news channel, where they were showing live footage of a. . . well, a zombie.

"Evelyn! Now!"

Eva snapped out of her trance and grabbed her suitcase, following Shep out of his apartment building. Outside, it was nothing but widespread panic. Feeling claustrophobic, she grabbed Shep's shirt and closed her eyes, not opening them again until they reached his car.

"The majority of the people are going to try to take the highway out of here. I think we'll have better luck on the backroads, if we can get there," Shep said, maneuvering his car through the crowds of people.

Eva tried to block out the horrifying screams that filled the air, but nothing she did helped. She looked out of her window and watched the people running around, screaming, but when she saw what they were all running from, she couldn't help but let out a scream herself. Right in front of Shep's car was an elderly woman with a metal pipe sticking out of her chest. Eva watched as she stumbled around, grabbing the nearest person and taking a bite out of their arm.

"Eva," Shep said, "Eva, look at me."

Eva slowly turned away from the window and looked at her closest friend. Shep stayed focus on the road, winding in and out of traffic as they made their way closer to the less crowded backroads just outside the city.

"I know you're scared. I am, too. But we can't afford to be, not now. I love you, Eva, and I'll always have your back. But you've gotta calm down, or you'll get one of us killed."

And that's exactly what happened.

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"Sorry to hear that," Rick said, coming to a stop at the edge of the trees. Eva stopped beside him and looked out into the clearing ahead. She could see a large white house with an even bigger barn beside it. The house was surrounded by huge, beautiful fields, and in the middle of one of the fields was an RV and a handful of tents. There were maybe a dozen or so people milling about, laughing amongst one another, when Eva heard something she never thought she would hear again. The sound was coming from inside the house, and Eva watched as a small lady with short hair walked out, holding something in her arms.

"Is that. . . is that a. . ." Eva started, pointing at the woman. Her eyes began to water as the sound of a baby crying continued to fill the air.

"A baby," Rick said, with so much pride in his voice that Eva knew that the baby was his. "Her name's Judith. You wanna see her?"

Eva looked back at Rick and softly nodded her head. She thought she would never see another baby again, and it was almost too much for her. She didn't know something so pure and beautiful could exist in this new world.

Hesitantly, Eva followed Rick as he made his way to the woman holding Judith. She tried to ignore all the stares and looks people were giving her, until she caught sight of Daryl looking her way. He was standing beside a small tent that was pitched away from the others. Eva subconsciously stopped walking and held Daryl's stare for a beat before Rick called.

"This is Eva," Rick whispered in Judith's ear, smiling as Eva walked up to him. The baby gurgled and waved her hands as Eva walked up to her. Rick handed the baby over and Eva hesitantly took her into her arms and began whispering little nothings into her ear.

"Hi, baby," she said, rocking Judith from side to side, "you're so beautiful. You know that? So pretty." Eva almost lost herself in Judith before a boy, maybe thirteen or so, walked up.

"Who's this?" The boy asked Rick.

"This is Eva. Eva, this is my boy, Carl. Eva's thinking about staying here."

Carl looked up at Eva and smiled. "It'll be nice to have some more help with the chores."

Eva smiled down at the boy and handed Judith back to Rick.

"Well, that's if I decide to stay. Still haven't made my mind up yet." Eva looked around the camp again and saw how happy and almost carefree everybody seemed. She missed that feeling.

"Why dont I introduce you to everybody?" Rick asked, walking towards the tents. "Everybody! I got someone I want ya'll to meet!" Within seconds, everybody formed a semi-circle around Eva, Rick, and Carl, and Eva noticed how different everybody seemed. There was that small woman who stood beside a menacing-looking Daryl, an older man with a beard and half a leg missing, an Asain kid standing awfully close to a pretty brunette, and a woman with dreads that had a sword on her back. They all looked so different, but it was obvious that they all shared a close bond.

"Eva, this is Carol, Glenn, Maggie, Beth, Hershel, Michonne, and you've already met Daryl. Everyone, this is Eva. She's considering staying with us," Rick introduced everybody, pointing out who was who, while everybody took their turn saying hello to Eva. Well, everybody except Daryl, who was already making his way back to his isolated tent.

"Nice to meet you, Eva," Carol said with a sweet smile, offering her hand for a shake.

"Nice to meet you, too," Eva took Carol's hand and noticed how calloused it was. "I've never seen a camp with so many people in it. How long have y'all been together?"

"Rick, Daryl, and I have been together since the beginning. We've lost a lot of people, but we met more along the way." Eva saw the look in Carol's eyes and decided not to ask any more questions about her past. "Here, let me help you set up. We don't have another tent, but I can fix something up for you." Carol smiled and led Eva to the RV.

"Aren't you worried?" Eva asked as Carol handed her a stack of blankets.

"Worried about what?"

"Worried that I'll kill you all in your sleep and take everything you have."

Eva was shocked when Carol looked at her and started laughing. "I'd like to see you try," she said, and Eva left it at that. "Here, nobody's claimed this spot. You can stay here for the night."

Eva looked around where her and Carol were standing. She noticed that she was right in the middle of the camp, surrounded by the RV and other tents. So far, the people hadn't given her a reason not to trust them, but she just couldn't shake the bad feeling. And like Shep taught her, better safe than sorry.

"Actually, could I set up over there?" Eva asked, pointing to an empty field that was nearly half a mile away from everybody else.

"Are you worried?" Carol asked, a knowing smile on her face.

"A little."

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After Carol helped Eva set up her makeshift tent, which was just a blanket propped up on a couple sticks, a few people came by and said hello, but other than that she spent the rest of the day alone. Once the sun started going down, she built a small fire and watched as the bigger group sat around their own, sharing a meal. Eva could hear their laughter and voices from her camp, but couldn't make out what they were saying. She could imagine, though. She used to have those same conversations with Shep.

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"I can't believe you ate dog food!" Eva almost couldn't breathe for how hard she was laughing.

"Listen, twenty bucks is twenty bucks. Plus, it was chicken flavor," Shep said, grinning down at Eva.

It had been nearly a month since they left Atlanta, and since then they had only encountered a handful of the dead. Even though Eva was scared out of her mind most of the time, Shep was good at making Eva forget all of it. He was good at making her laugh.

"You're an idiot," Eva sighed, laying her head on Shep's shoulder. It had to have been past midnight, and the fire they made earlier was dying out, but they both couldn't sleep.

"Eva?" Shep said, nearly a whisper, and Eva could sense the change of tone.

"Hm?"

"I'm scared."

Eva sat back up when Shep said this, turning to her side to get a better look at him. Eva knew that Shep had to be scared, but this was the first time that he admitted it since they left Atlanta.

"I'm scared, too. But we've made it this far. And we'll make it to the end. We're going to make it." Eva brushed Shep's shaggy hair out of his eyes and saw that what she said didn't make him feel better.

"Evelyn, I wasn't built for this world. If you weren't with me, I'd already be gone. And if something were to happen to you-" Shep choked on his words, bringing his hands up to cover his face.

"Sheppard!" Eva scolded, "Stop that! Nothing is happening to either of us! You can't think like that. It's just like you said - we can't afford to be scared. We're gonna be alright. We're both going to make it out of this."

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The sound of a twig snapping woke Eva out of her daydream, and she turned around to see Daryl looking down at her.

"You stayin'?" He asked, not meeting her eyes.

"Dunno yet." Eva turned back and looked down at her dwindling fire. Daryl hadn't spoken a word to her since that day in the forest, so she was uneasy with him standing over her like he was. Just as she was about to politely ask him to leave, her stomach growled.

"We got food, ya know," Daryl mumbled, and Eva could sense how uncomfortable he was. She was, too.

"Yeah, I know. Rick gave me some."

"Then you should eat."

Eva just shrugged her shoulders. She didn't want to eat any of the food Rick gave her in case she decided not to stay, and she didn't feel comfortable eating with the group yet. After a few moments of awkward silence, Eva turned around to see if Daryl was still there. He was.

"Do you need anything?" Eva asked, not unkindly.

"Naw." And then he walked away.

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Part 3: