#✩⡱ genny answers

[saintsenara]

Asking for trouble here but I’m in an excellent mood after seeing Mogg lose. Who are the characters voting for yesterday? Well, at least those characters who know what a genny lec is because the Wizarding World doesn’t seem to have any concept of party politics. Where’s the fringe group always banging on about the bloated civil service and getting disproportionate column space in The Prophet? Hermione’s a Lib Dem. Cokeworth went for Boris after a century voting Labour, but Snape wouldn’t have done. Lord Voldemort has definitely cast a vote at least once for the Communist Party of Britain, if only for the bants.

we're going to do this for the parties in the superior part of the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland:

harry - social democratic and labour party

ron - same

hermione - alliance

dumbledore - traditional unionist voice [fawkes is orange, after all]

snape - sinn féin

lord voldemort - saoradh

[deadpanwalking]

[leslieseveride]

my day of death will be the day tim brings lucy home for a family dinner date with his sister, and to meet his nephews because it’s the first time he’s introduced them to someone since his divorce.

[aprofessionalwithoutstandards]

Swordvan related question: Do you think the team gets like, super invested in their drama? Like they have an argument or something and the others kinda split up to bug them about it (Spy poking fun at Sniper over his lover's quarrel, Pyro over dramatically agonizing over the fact that their two besties are fighting, Engie, Medic and Demo talking it out over beers like a gossip circle) etc?

Idk im just bored and i know u like swordvan so i thought I'd ask u about it lol

YESSS WAITTT I LOVE THIS! I keep forgetting abt the TEAM possibilities with TEAM Fortress 2 but like thinking abt how they interact with each other is soooo much fun. I'm so obsessed w all the scenarios u suggested I would love to do something w these someday if u don't mind ahgjkhaja

[gennianydots]

Hi, what's your 30 favorite Asian BL characters from dramas or series you've watched? (unless you don't have that many)

Thanks.

30?!

Nonnie? Are you okay? Reblog if you’re okay. 30 is a lot! Alright. I’m going to try my best. Just for YOU. And because I love you so much, I have also given you my reasons WHY.

I also created parameters for myself, so this is the MEN. If you want to find out my top 30 WOMEN from Asian BL's/QL's, just ask!

1. Pran from Bad Buddy

He’s my son, my baby, the absolute love of my life. I would marry this man in a heartbeat, if he were not already betrothed to Pat.

2. Pat from Bad Buddy

He’s such a green flags guy, my clueless baby with horny-for-Pran-only/would-kill/die-for-him vibes. Don’t forget the man got shot!

3. Tinn from My School President

Need I say more? No. Tinn is goofy and cheesy and literally the best. He loves Gun so much he is willing to risk his school presidency just to get the chance to date Gun. I love him!

4. Gun from My School President

Is he smart? No. Is he clueless? Yes. Does he have a heart of gold and strong ambition? YES. He’s my full heart, empty-mind, music-loving, can’t-lose dork and he’s a close contender for #3 behind Tinn, an even bigger dork.

5. Tiw from My School President/Our Skyy 2

Oh boy. Mark Pakin is him, he is Mark Pakin- I loved him so much. I love his willingness to stay by his friend through high school crushes and that we got to see him dating Por in Our Skyy 2. Big feels. 😍

6. Heart and LiMing from Moonlight Chicken

You cannot make me choose. These two stole the whole show and gave zero fucks about it.

7. Kurosawa Yuichi from Cherry Magic JP

This man stole my heart in the first several minutes of the show. Love his attentive nature and softness.

8. Jang Jae Young from Semantic Error

This chaos gremlin motherfucker is my favorite. He pined HARD for his underclassmen and I adore him for it.

9. Wei Wuxian from Mo Dao Zu Shi/The Untamed

I haven’t seen the Untamed but have watched the animated series and read the story for Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation. I don’t think I’d be here if I hadn’t first fallen in love with this Bisexual Disaster. A true KING.

10. King from Bed Friend

Speaking of KINGS, King is the ultimate Green-Flags Doe-Eyes Fabio of my dreams.

11. Tinn’s Dad from My School President

The most Dad to ever Dad - ever.

12. Pi from Fish Upon the Sky

An autistic son of mine. Phuwin made me laugh when I needed it the most. This show was a disaster but I loved this character!

13. Yok from Not Me

First crushed it in this role and he made Yok incredibly sexy the amazing, diverse character we see on screen.

14. Porsche from KinnPorsche

I joined the BL fandom with the KP group! I love when Porsche throws himself off the boat to get away from Kinn, peeing in the Koi pond, the sacrifices he made to protect Chay and every moment before and after.

15. Kinn from KinnPorsche

Daddy. I don’t think I need to say anything else. 😈

16. Gao Shi De and Zhou Shu Yi from We Best Love

Holy hell, these men can act! They both really won me over in season 2, but I rooted for these boyfriends throughout the whole thing.

17. Akk and Ayan from The Eclipse

I can’t separate these two, either. I really loved First/Khaotung in these roles too. I can't picture anyone else who would have done them justice.

18. Team from Between Us

I just realized recently how much I enjoyed Between Us, and Team is so cute in this - I can't explain, I just like him a lot.

19. Win from Between Us

Team's boyfriend was also a highlight of Between Us for me.

20. Tsuge Masato from Cherry Magic JP

He made me laugh a lot. I loved him as the neurotic friend.

21. Gun from A Boss and a Babe

I love Force, Actually? He did a good job with playing an older role, even though he is younger than Book IRL.

22. Longtae from Tale of Thousand Stars

It was so CUTE seeing baby Khaotung in this role, and I cheered every time he was on screen. (I enjoyed Longtae more than Tian or Phupha - though I do think Mix did an excellent job as Tian the teacher).

23. Jedi from The Warp Effect

Does this count? It’s a very gay show. I say it counts. Again, a Mark Pakin role that he crushed.

24. Bosston from Until We Meet Again/Between Us

We are sticking with Green Flags only guys here. It was a tiny role but I loved it.

25. Klabkluen from Star and Sky: Star in My Mind

Have you seen Joong PINE over Dunk? He's the best PINER I've ever seen. This was mostly a fluff watch but I enjoyed Joong's performance.

26. Dew from 609 Bedtime Story

Well, this show was all over the place. I thoroughly enjoy time shenanigans in my shows so I stuck with it to the end, even if it ultimately made no sense. I have always thought Fluke Natouch was very talented though, and I found his performance here better than in Until We Meet Again, or Between Us. (He just "P'Dean"-ed all over the place and was too much of a blushing maiden for me).

27. Khondiao from Cutie Pie

I liked him better than the mains. 🤷‍♀️

28. Kim from KinnPorsche

My sad little meow-meow who ghosts a child. Also it's Jeff.

29. Ki Tae from Our Dating Sim

This show was so cute. I am a big fan of characters who pine for a long time before their crush finds out.

30. Payu from Love in the Air

Lots of controversy here as many folks didn't enjoy this show. I say credit where credit is due, Payu is the bisexual hottie I was looking for. The chemistry between Payu and Rain was also off the charts.

Thanks for reading!! Again, if you want my top 30 females you will have to ask me! Thank you to all the gif-makers who made the gifs I stole for this post. You are the true heroes of my heart. Muah Muah!

[ryusaidate]

gen still thinks date is date, do you think that saito has to bullshit his way through a conversation with him

*guy who has been given the chance to rant about something only barely related to your question voice* Well,

people do a lot of silly funny "does date seem more murder-y to you lately" jokes and the jokes are funny! but on an actual canon level, on the very short list of things saito is actually good at, lying is near the very top. he acted as shoko for an entire year, aiballs can't detect shit, and date who has known boss for 6 years at this point describes his impression of her as 'perfect' there are many things to make fun of him for but this is not one of them (this is me advocating for more american psycho 'mergers and acquisitions'-type jokes /j)

the only way he fucks up is if his pure hatred for date outweighs his self preservation instinct (oh my god he would get So fucking upset when he notices himself using date's speech patterns unintentionally lmao)

all this to say: it'd be normal and they'd talk normally.

↑↑↑ normal regular guy kaname date!

[calbun]

what does genny like to do in his spare time? is he a board games type of guy or does he just doomscroll on social media or wha

when theres no one for him to play with/torment, he tries his damndest to entertain himself with the character sprites at his disposal, putting on little "puppet shows" for himself.

he runs out of ideas eventually. it gets lonely and boring, despite the level of influence he has over his world to do whatever he wants. it doesnt mean anything to him unless theres someone to share it with.

......

.......

......so yes he probably does doomscroll social media. (IN his head btw bear in mind hes a digital being and his world is also himself)

i bet he trolls comment sections. what a sad beast

[strawberrystepmom]

DISSSSS UUUUU?????

......perhaps.

[rindousfavoritewife]

AWH GENNY I LOVE YOU!

[unskilledpoint]

Kill genny

No.

[agentmmayy]

The fact that Chenford apparently get together/officially try to give things a try in an episode titled ‘The Collar’ is giving me a lot of thoughts™️ even though I know that in law enforcement ‘collar’ means something completely different.

anon do NOT get me started on this show + collars

i'll start anyway and preface this by the fact that i am thinking about writing a BDSM au with chenford

BESIDES the fact; in the show SO MANY CHARACTERS (mainly women characters and even in the crossover episodes) wear necklaces with small circles. these are commonly known as 'karma' circles, but they are also a way for subs who are in d/s relationships to wear their collar in public in a subtle way

so yes i am Thinking Thots about chenford getting together in an episode titled "the collar" thank you very much your brain is huge and sexy <3

[saintsenara]

woo, george galloway haters unite! It feels like every day I find out about a new terrible and harmful opinion of his. i'm british-ukrainian so my deep and personal hatred of him stems from his pro-russia stance, but in general, that guy is an absolute stain on uk politics (and also islamophobic as shit, regardless of the platform he won the by-election on)

neil kinnock having the time of his life on the bbc after galloway lost... legitimately heartwarming.

[firstdegreefangirl]

🌹

She’d almost written Rob’s last name – her married name – but something about it didn’t feel right.

send me a "🌹" to see one random sentence of a random WIP i'm working on!

[genni-draws]

Hi how are you? I hope everything is going alright, I'm sorry if I'm being annoying i just wanted to ask you if you could help me rb my post please? My life has been very rough lately recovering is not easy and I need serious help right now reason why I'm desperate sending you a message 😞 sorry for bothering you and thanks, a rb helps a ton

Done, sorry I took so long to answer you.

[gennianydots]

I lovd the idea of a m9 atla au, and cabbage seller Veth is galaxy brained, and also i see your earth kingdom Caduceus, and I raise you swamp bender Cadueces?

Okay, ummm Yes.

Swamp bender Cad? Love that for him. Using the “decay and life is sacred and all around us” ideals in a swamp? That’s really kinda perfect for him. Which makes him technically a water bender…

Another thought: former fire nation soldier Caleb secretly surrounding himself with as many water benders as he can (Jester, Caduceus, Beau - maybe - the blue she wears is also very water tribe-ish) so he has damage control if/when he lights shit on fire because he hates his fire-bending (like Jeong Jeong, who says it only brings destruction) due to his (very traumatic) backstory hurting innocents for the fire lord during the war…

🫶🏻

[fluentmoviequoter]

A Home to Thrive In

Pairing: Tim Bradford x fem!neighbor!reader

Summary: You still live next door to Tim Bradford's mother, and when he visits for the first time in years, you have to decide if you're willing to let go of the idea of him you fell in love with.

Warnings: spoilers/rewrite for 4x09 "Breakdown", angst, arguments, discussion of past abuse, r is Tim's childhood friend, fluff and comfort

Word Count: 3.5k+ words

A/N: It's late. This may be terrible. I will reassess tomorrow.

Masterlist Directory | Tim Bradford Masterlist | Request Info

“Have you talked to Mom recently?” Genny asks. When Tim doesn’t answer, she sighs and murmurs, “Don’t know why I thought you would.”

“Isn’t it bad enough that you’re dragging me back into the Tom Bradford-centric world I’ve been trying to outrun since we were kids? Now you want me to tell Mom about everything that’s happened,” Tim argues. “I’m already working on a murder case that Dad hid for decades. I don’t need more family drama right now, Genny."

“She worries about you, Tim. Just wants to be part of your life again.”

Tim's phone rings, a saving grace, and he excuses himself as he pushes his chair away from the table and leaves his sister.

“Tim,” Lucy greets. “I brought Monica Ochoa back in.”

“The woman who was killed by the gun I found in my dad’s house. Why?”

“Because I knew there was more to her story. You- you couldn’t see past the version that you wanted to see.”

“What’d she say?”

“Your dad… Tim, Monica confessed.”

Tim hangs up on Lucy, walks directly past his sister while ignoring her questions, and gets in his truck to visit his dad. To see if he’ll tell the truth when he has no other choice or if he’s really the terrible man Tim thinks he is.

“You didn’t kill Frank,” Tim states.

Tom sighs before he counters, “Sure I did. Now, come on. Cuff me. Let’s just get this over with.”

“Monica confessed.”

“Leave her out of this.”

“Frank was beating her. She fought back. She shot him. She was terrified, so she ran to you. You came up with the burglary story, helped her stage the house, then you hid the gun in case the cops got too close, and you needed to frame someone else.”

“He was brutal, abusive,” Tom explains. “She deserves a medal for what she did.”

“He was abusive?” Tim repeats.

“What? You think I’m like him? I was nothing like Frank. I taught you what you needed to know, son. You’re a man now because of me.”

“No. I’m who I am in spite of you,” Tim replies. His dad doesn’t speak, and Tim nods as he adds, “Goodbye, Dad. I hope it hurts.”

In the hallway outside his dad’s room, Tim pulls his phone from his pocket and calls Grey.

“Bradford,” Wade greets as the call connects.

“I need to take some personal time,” Tim says instead of a salutation.

“Lord knows you’ve stashed up enough of it. Where are you going?”

“To see someone I should’ve visited a long time ago.”

“You did the right thing, Tim. Take your time and know we’re here for you when you get back.”

Tim ends the call, then texts his sister that he’s taking her advice. He hasn’t been home to his mom’s house in years, and he needs her, needs space from his family and his station, and needs to work through the events of the week on his own. Though he isn’t sure if he’s welcome or if his mother's new home will feel the same as it did fifteen years ago, Tim gets in his truck and drives toward the last place he felt at home.

Your evening walk is refreshing, and the sunset helps you focus on the beauty of the day as you wind down.

“Sweetheart!” your neighbor calls, waving from her porch.

“Mrs. Bradford,” you greet with a smile as you step onto her walkway. “How are you today?”

“Good, good. Talked to Genny earlier, she’s visiting Tim.”

You smile and nod, unwilling to touch the sensitive subject of Tim. Growing up with him, you saw the worst parts of his childhood, home life, and father, but that never added up to you. He ran away from his mother, from love and home just to outrun bad memories. A task you know to be impossible.

“How was your book?” you ask, moving away from Mrs. Bradford’s stressful family life. “Did you finish it last night?”

“I did. You were right, the twist at the end was a shock. I thought the vigilante did it!”

“Interesting,” you muse. “I was torn between him and the builder.”

Mrs. Bradford hums before her oven beeps.

“You take care of that,” you say as you wrap your arms over her shoulders in a quick hug. “We’ll talk about the book and start the sequel on Saturday?”

“Count on it. Have a good night!”

“You too!”

Headlights reflect off your front door as you push it open, but you don’t bother to turn around and see who it is. Two of your neighbors get home around this time, and there aren’t many visitors or tourists in your area. So, when you’re closing the curtains and notice an unfamiliar truck in Mrs. Bradford’s driveway, you decide to watch and ensure everything is okay.

“Tim!” Mrs. Bradford calls excitedly as the driver’s door opens. She rushes out and pulls him into a hug, and from the way he grips her and buries his face against her shoulder like he’s eight again, you know that this isn’t just a sorry I stopped calling, Mom visit. Something happened and that’s the only reason he’s home.

“Welcome home, Tim,” you whisper before you pull the curtains together and put the distance you’re used to back between you and Tim.

You kneel by your front door to tie your shoes. Then you untie them and loop the laces differently. Knowing that Tim Bradford is next door makes you hesitate to go outside. Yet, you don’t want to let him impact your life more than he already has. It wouldn’t be surprising to learn that his mother already told him about your downward spiral, how you fell apart when he left without so much as a word. As a kid, you fell in love with Tim Bradford, and you stayed in love with the idea of him in high school. Then, when he disappeared without a word or trace, and you only found out that he was a cop for the LAPD through his sister, you decided that the idea of him was as good as you would ever get.

“You can do this,” you tell yourself as you stand and lay your hand on the doorknob. “It’s just the man who has occupied your every thought for years. Just walk by.”

The magnitude of your mistake hits you in full force when you’re nearly past Mrs. Bradford’s fence. Tim says your name and your heart clenches at the realization that you remembered his voice so well. Years of hearing it in your dreams will preserve your memory like that.

“Tim,” you reply, swallowing as you face him. “I didn’t know you were coming home.”

“It wasn’t exactly the plan. Genny showed up and everything just kind of blew up in my face.”

Kind of like what you put me through, you think. Rather than saying it, you nod sympathetically.

“Did my mom… did she tell you about my dad?”

“Tim, your mom tells me a lot. But no one close to your mom has brought him up in years.”

“Wish my sister had gotten that message,” Tim scoffs.

“I hope you enjoy the time with your mom,” you interrupt. “But I’ve got to get going.”

“Right,” Tim agrees. “I’ll see you around.”

You nod but feel your chest tighten as you hope he’s wrong. Losing Tim Bradford again is not an option, so you refuse to let him closer than he needs to be.

“I didn’t know she moved with you, still lived next door,” Tim muses as his mother ushers him inside for breakfast.

“You don’t know much,” she points out, not unkindly but not untrue. “She knows more than you. I’ve told her everything Genny passed along. You were so close as kids.”

“Yeah,” Tim agrees before he trails off. He remembers being friends, but not the kind of friends that would ask about each other. “I don’t think she wants to talk to me.”

“Well, you can hardly blame her.”

“What does that mean?”

Tim’s mother looks at him and presses her lips together. He has her eyes, but he doesn’t have her understanding or the intuition about people she tried to instill in him when his father wasn’t trying to teach him to be a man.

“If you can’t see it, Tim, it’s too late to explain it. She’s coming over for lunch and our duet book club tomorrow. You have thirty hours to read the book if you want to participate.”

“Thank you for letting me come home, Mom.”

She lays her hand on Tim’s shoulder and promises, “You’re always welcome here, Timothy.”

You knock on Mrs. Bradford’s door while Tim’s truck is gone. With one of her signature ceramic loaf pans in your hands, filled with your favorite cookies, you wait for the door to open to return her dish and offer some goodies.

“Sorry to…” you begin as the door opens. “Oh, Tim. Sorry, your truck was gone so I assumed your mom would be here.”

“She borrowed my truck to do something that she refused to have help for. Come on in.”

Tim opens the door for you, and for reasons beyond your comprehension, you accept his invitation and walk inside. After you set the pan on the counter, you turn around to leave, but Tim is leaning against the table and watching you.

“Enjoying your time off?” you question, wringing your fingers together behind your back.

“I am. Especially after the last case I worked on,” Tim answers. “My mom hasn’t told me much about you.”

You hum and look at your feet as you reply, “Not much to tell.”

“She seems to tell you a lot.”

“Look, Tim, I’m just trying to respect your boundaries. She told me that your dad was involved in something, a murder, but it’s not my business.”

“Frank Ochoa,” Tim interjects.

You furrow your brows as you ask, “Monica’s husband? But that was a robbery.”

Tim tilts his head to the side as he says, “My dad admitted to killing him. He was protecting Monica.”

You pull your bottom lip between your teeth and nod.

“But you knew that, didn’t you?”

“What?”

Tim stands from the table, his crossed arms falling to his sides. “You knew something and didn’t tell anybody, didn’t you?”

“Tim, I-“

“Look, I’ve been lied to by too many people this week. You still have the same tell you did in elementary school. What did you know?”

You clench your jaw and step to the right to go around Tim, but he moves to block you, and rather than running into his chest, you retreat further into Mrs. Bradford’s kitchen.

“This case – the people there – have been lied to, we’ve been wrong, there’s been no justice for decades. And you’ve known something the whole time? How can you live with that?”

“How can I live with it?” you repeat incredulously. “How was I – a child, Tim – supposed to go to the police and tell them that I saw Frank beating Monica over and over? They wouldn’t have believed me!”

“You didn’t try!”

“Yes, I did!” you yell. Wiping the single tear that managed to escape in your memories of the only time you tried to help your neighbors, you lose some of your fight.

“Doesn’t seem like you tried very hard,” Tim adds under his breath.

You laugh once and shake your head. “I told the police your dad was beating you, Tim. You know what happened? They came and asked him about it. He denied everything. After they left, he took you out into the backyard and demanded to know who you told. So, see if you can wrap your cop brain about why I was scared to tell on someone else.”

“I didn’t know you-“

“You didn’t know anything, Tim.”

Tim scoffs and argues, “Oh and you know so much about who I am now because of what my sister tells my mom?”

“At least I talk to your mom, Tim,” you snap. Immediately, you regret it. “I’m sorry,” you offer.

“I couldn’t,” Tim defends.

“Did you try?”

Tim’s truck rumbles as his mother returns from the store, and you hold Tim’s stare until the engine shuts off.

“Can I leave now, or do you want to blame me for something else?”

Tim steps back and opens his mouth, but you storm past him before he can say anything else. You return to your house after you hug Mrs. Bradford and tell her about the cookies. The idea of Tim Bradford that you’ve clung to since childhood is growing fuzzy around the edges, and alone in your house, you cry over what he told you today, the mistakes you made, and the loss of the Tim you were born to love.

Someone knocks on your door the following morning, and you stare at it rather than walking toward it.

“Sweetheart, it’s me,” Mrs. Bradford calls.

With a sigh, you stand and invite her in, not caring if she notices your teary eyes or unusual attitude.

“I thought you might want someone to talk to. Somewhere away from my son,” she explains as she leads you to your dining table. “So, I brought food and company. Choose what you want.”

“It’s not just Tim,” you explain. “I mean… he was right, but it’s different.”

“Different than when you fell in love with him?” she guesses.

You look up at her, wide-eyed at her question. She smiles and gestures for you to continue.

“I’ve been dreaming about him coming back, thinking that we could pick up where we left off, but he’s nothing like what I remember.”

“Time will do that,” she soothes, taking your hand over the table.

“It didn’t do it to me.”

“Sweetheart… you didn’t let it. I love you, you know that, but you cling so tightly to the past, to the familiar, that you haven’t allowed yourself to adapt to the beauty of the growth and changes around you. Haven’t even let yourself show the woman you’ve become.”

You lick your lips before sniffling and asking, “What if I don’t like it?”

“But what if you thrive in it?”

Wiping the back of your free hand across your face, you clear your tears and nod. You know that Mrs. Bradford is right, but you also know that there will be pain in the beauty when you choose to move forward.

“Does he hate me?” you whisper.

“Timothy? I don’t think he could ever hate you.”

“He can sure blame me for a lot, though,” you point out with a wet laugh.

“Beating himself up over that at the moment, if you’re wondering. And, when you’re ready to talk to him, maybe you should try getting to know who he is today.”

You nod and pull a homemade candy from her special-made meal. “Thank you.”

“Anytime. Now, are we going to keep crying over silly boys or try to solve a murder mystery on a pioneer plantation?”

Dressed in your favorite outfit, you shift from foot to foot on Mrs. Bradford’s porch as you try to get your courage up. Just as you lift your hand to knock, a throat clears behind you. You spin around quickly, then release a breath and press your hand over your racing heart.

“You could have told me you were back there sooner,” you point out softly.

“I wanted to see where this was going,” Tim answers, closing his tailgate. “Listen, about the other day-“

You raise your hand to silence Tim and shake your hand. “I came over here to talk to you. About more than that. Do you maybe want to go somewhere to do that?”

Tim nods and opens the passenger door of his truck, offering his hand as he helps you in without a word. The drive to the local high school football field is quick but silent, and when you exit the truck and join Tim on the tailgate to watch the sunset, you take a shaky breath.

“I’m sorry you had to go through all of that with your dad, the house, Frank, all that,” you begin. “But I’m sorrier that I didn’t do more back then.”

Tim nods and says, “You were right. They wouldn’t have listened, or it would’ve spooked my dad and made everything worse.”

“I guess we’ll never know.” You look at Tim’s profile and ask, “Are you okay?”

“No,” he admits without hesitation. “My dad was protecting Monica. He never did anything to protect us, but his mistress – broke half a dozen laws for her.”

“I knew that, too,” you whisper. “My mom made me stop sitting by the door after that year, which was probably a good thing. Uhm, are they going to prosecute your dad?”

“No. Not on his death bad. But it doesn’t matter. He’ll get judged soon enough.”

You nod, your eyes still on Tim rather than the pink sunset before you. His eyes have teared up, and everything inside of you begs for you to just let go.

“Tim, you’re nothing like him. You know that, right?”

Tim nods a tiny movement that breaks your heart. This isn’t the Tim you remember, not the Tim from elementary school or the one who was punished for your ill-conceived attempt to help. Most importantly, you realize, this isn’t the Tim you’ve dreamed of loving. Tim Bradford, the man before you, is who you can love, want to love, and desperately, wholly, devastatingly need to love.

With a deep breath, you release everything you’ve been holding onto. Your grip on your dreams, on your memory of Tim and what you thought you wanted, and the moment that trapped you in your position of being terrified to do the wrong thing in your efforts to do good weakens, and you feel like a flower in bloom. Everything seems new, the possibilities are endless, and you’re a new person who isn’t afraid to do right, even when it terrifies you and carries the potential to break your heart.

“Tim,” you whisper.

He turns toward you, drawn by the tone in your voice, and blinks past his tears. You shift on his tailgate and raise your arms toward his shoulders. Tim leans forward and meets you halfway, pulling you into his lap as you collapse into a hug that heals the broken edges of who you are. With Tim’s arms against your back and waist, you feel more at home than ever, and he feels the same. His mother’s house was never the home he was returning to, but a pursuit for this feeling, right in your arms.

“I’m so sorry,” you murmur against his shoulder.

He shakes his head, tightening his grip on you, and this version of you - unafraid, complete in Tim Bradford’s arms - is ready to thrive. You won’t heal overnight; neither of you will, but it’s a start.

His phone buzzes in his pocket, and Tim laughs against your neck before he pulls back gently to retrieve his phone from his pocket.

“My mom,” he tells you. “If you haven’t kissed her yet, what are you waiting for? Another set of wrinkles?”

You fail to stop the laugh that escapes at Mrs. Bradford’s bluntness. Then, you realize how glad you are that he’s reading her text messages.

“Well?” you ask. “Should we kiss or wait for more wrinkles?”

Tim pushes a stray hair out of your face and promises, “None of it was your fault.”

You nod and thank him, then brush your thumbs against his cheeks. “Last time we were on a field together, it was raining. I also wanted you to kiss me then.”

“You never told me.”

“How was I supposed to tell you that, Tim?” you ask. “I… I was caught up in an idea of who we could be, and I was scared to ruin it by doing something new.”

“And now?”

Rather than asking for what you want, you take it as you lean forward and kiss Tim. One of his hands moves to the back of your neck, and the first raindrop feels suspiciously like a teardrop as it runs down your face and onto Tim’s. You laugh as you run toward the truck doors, thunder rumbling as a storm approaches from the west. In the truck with Tim, you find yourself face-to-face with a better version of the dream life you craved in Tim’s absence.

Bonus:

“Get inside, it’s going to start raining again!” Mrs. Bradford calls from the kitchen when she hears the door open. “Don’t need you catching a cold on your time off, Timothy.”

You press your lips together and smile at Tim, who is drenched after offering you his jacket to hold over your head in a poor attempt to stay somewhat dry.

“She’s going to mother you, too,” he points out.

“Hey, I’m used to it,” you reply. “Like it, even.”

“Oh, dear,” Mrs. Bradford murmurs as she appears in the doorway. “Go get dried off and change, Tim.”

After he disappears into his room, Mrs. Bradford offers you a towel and a change of clothes. She smiles as she leans in and says, “Flowers that thrive need plenty of rain to grow, you know.”