#BACK. PACK. WHERE. HE KEEPS HIS. APPLESAUCE.

[francesderwent]

“how’s married life going” well dinner took way longer to roast than we thought it would so while we waited we sat on the couch under a blanket and watched the old monster factory spore videos and I laughed so hard I cried so. it’s nice

[dreaming-of-lu]

I'm on day four post wisdom tooth extraction, and minimal solid food sucks. Do you think Hyrule would be able to heal my mouth, because I'm basically living off of yogurt, cottage cheese, and tomato soup. 😭

Sending good vibes your way!

"Dis honeshly shucks," you really hated this. After your wisdom teeth removal, coming out of the anesthesia was embarrassing enough when one of your boyfriend's friends had recorded the entirety of your 'drunken' state where you swore the sky was coming down and thought that Legend was an actual lizard. Your boyfriend thought it was adorable; however, you don't share the same view; but you let him have it. What makes things worse, though, is you are being reduced to soft food.

You are "lovingly forced" by your doctor to eat nothing but soft food consisting of yogurt, mashed potatoes, tomato soup, applesauce, and all that is considered fluid-like. To not upset your still-healing mouth, Hyrule was strict about and on the dot about not wanting to have you deal with an infection nor rip open the stitches after all that was said and done. He made himself your designated home nurse, checking up on you and distracting you from the pain with ice packs when he couldn't use his magic on some days.

"I know, plum, just one more week, and you'll be able to eat solid food again." Hyrule placed his hands against your cheeks, watching with a faint smile as you sighed happily into them, nuzzling while pressing a tiny kiss on his palm.

"It feelsh like torchture," you whine, "I wants it to hurry up!"

"As much as I would love to heal them completely, I rather not just to be safe, and besides, you got me keeping them cool right now." Hyrule hums and presses a kiss against your nose.

"I know," you faux pout, "I'm schpoiled rotten by chu." Resting your forehead against his own, noses brushing back and forth in sweet harmony.

"You're the only one I spoil," Hyrule giggles, cheeks becoming flush and his ears flapping a little.

"Damn 'ight, I'm de only one to be schpoiled. The schame goes for chu."

"I feel so loved."

"De schame can be schaid by me."

[total-drama-takes-takes-2]

tta episode 7

“Last time on Total Takes Action: the teams split off to perform a thrilling crime-drama challenge in a courtroom themed episode! Joner and Sha-Mod got stuck with the boring work, which ultimately led to their downfall when Peter delivered the goods and solved an exciting murder case. Even more shocking, Max returned from peanut gallery purgatory, reuniting with his girlfriend and sending the very charitable Joner packing. Will Scary kill Max before he gets the chance to compete? Will Michela kill Scary first? Find out now, on Total! Takes! Action!”

Fren flips his flowing hair over his shoulder and sits across from Peter at one of the tables in the craft services tent. He glows in the warm wash of beige lighting sifting through the fabric of the walls, and smiles into the sun, waiting for his daily compliment. 

When nothing happens, he clears his throat. “Good morning, everyone,”

Still, nothing. He coughs again, louder, and Peter looks up from his applesauce. “Sorry- did you say something?”

Fren sighs. “Never mind,”

---

FREN: “Okay, maybe all this attention I’ve been getting online is getting to my head. I got so used to Joner and Sha-Mod flocking over me like moths to a flame, and let’s be honest- Peter just isn’t the same,”

---

Peter blinks. “Did I do something wrong?”

“Forget it,”

“Cause I’m not sure if I-”

Fren pouts, crossing his arms. “These earrings are new,” he turns his head to the side to show them off. They’re made from smoothed red bottle glass and wire. “I made them myself.”

“Oh, wow, that���s pretty!” Peter says. “I made bracelets sometimes, but they’re usually-”

“It’s just that every morning, my fans always greet me with a ton of nice messages, and it’s hard being separated from them!” he sighs dramatically, placing a hand over his heart. “Where am I supposed to find the courage to keep slaying? And why is everyone ignoring me today!”

“I don’t think they’re ignoring you so much as…” Peter points across the table. Fren looks in the direction he’s indicating to and sees Scruffy, Sha-Mod, and O hovering around Max and Michela. 

Scruffy jots down some notes as the two speak casually, having been reunited in the challenge prior. Max is seated comfortably on Michela’s lap while O and Sha-Mod Aw over them. Fren blinks. 

“Yeah, I’m going to…” Peter stands and walks over to their side of the table, sitting beside Scruffy. 

Scary quickly takes his place, sitting across from Fren with a grimace. “Nasty, isn’t it? They’re just flaunting it all over!”

“What?” Fren asks, looking back to her. 

“Nothing. Pretzels?” they pull a bag out of their labcoat and slide it across the table with a wicked grin. Fren nervously accepts the gift. “And just between us friends, I would break up that alliance before it breaks you.”

And without another word, she slinks away. 

“Alright, actors! Meet me on the manor set in five for your costume fittings!”

The campers look at each other. 

---

“Today’s challenge is actually one of the ones from the original Total Drama Action-”

Scruffy pumps their fist. “YES!”

“...But, with a twist!”

“NO!”

---

SCRUFFY: “I’ve actually been coping really well lately. As long as I don’t think about anything that’s happened, is happening, or will happen, I’m fine!”

---

Chris beams. “Today’s challenge is a period drama- in the original season, we did cavemen- today, we’ll be taking a more modern approach- the 1800s!”

Scary taps her chin while Scruffy groans. 

---

SCARY: “The 19th century was a big period of scientific growth and achievement. People finally started disregarding the archaic structure of religion, and embracing the cold, unforgiving nature of the universe. Finally, something that suits me!”

---

Chris paces back and forth in front of the large doors to a beautiful manor set. “Today’s challenge is also special for another reason: hidden somewhere on the set is an immunity idol. Whoever finds it wins immunity tonight, winning duo or not,” he grins as the campers gasp. “Likewise, we have a few extra rules for today.”

Chef walks through the lined-up contestants, handing everyone a plastic-wrapped piece of clothing. “For the first part of the challenge, you'll need proper attire,”

Scary pulls the plastic wrap off the dress. “You cannot be serious,”

“Like the plague- which in this era is yellow fever!”

Michela turns to Max as she pulls the wrapping off the early 1800s dress she was given. “Is any of this period-accurate?”

He shrugs. “I don’t care, I’m just happy to be wearing something normal,”

O squints at him. “You consider a 3-piece suit normal?”

“You don’t?”

Chris opens the large doors of the manor and invites everyone inside. 

---

Once everyone’s dressed in their costumes, they gather in the parlor for further instruction. A few look around at the eerily detailed interior. Chris adjusts a cheap monocle on his eye and grins. 

“Every good Victorian movie is full of romance, drama, and mystery. Today’s challenge will be combining all three! As some of you might’ve noticed, we had this mansion airlifted by a helicopter squad straight from England! Legend has it this old, creepy, decrepit, British nightmare is haunted by the former owner- your goal today is to capture the ghost of Mr. Edward Englishman and return him to me. But before that…”

Chris leads the competitors to another set of doors, and throws them open to reveal a massive ballroom. “You ready to merge?"

Sha-Mod coughs. "Isn't the merge tomorrow?"

"We're fast tracking this bit. The first leg of your challenge is a spin on musical chairs- I’ll call it, “musical 19th century ballroom dancing,” the rules are simple: four of you will make an inner circle and four of you will make an outer. Whenever Chef plays,” Chris points to the corner of the room, where Chef is setting up a cello. “You’ll do your best impression of a classy dance. When the music stops, whoever you’re standing across from will become your partner for the rest of the challenge.”

The competitors look at each other nervously and shift into their respective circles. Michela waves from the inner and Max waves back from the outer. Chef stretches, tunes his cello, and begins playing. 

The campers awkwardly start to move around in their circles. Michela holds hands with O and Fren as they try to move in a graceful motion, though Scary refuses to touch anyone. Peter does an Irish jig and Scruffy moves around in a way that makes it look like a rat crawled up their pant leg. Max just walks around plainly. 

Chris wipes away a crocodile tear. “Nothing warms my heart like seeing teens humiliate themselves on international TV,”

Sha-Mod coughs and trips. 

“Alright! I’ve had enough,” Chef stops playing and stands, walking away with his cello. “No one appreciates art anymore.”

“Let’s see,” Chris studies the circle, walking around to see who’s closest to who. “Sha-Mod and O, Fren and Scruffy, Peter and Michela, aaaaand Scary and Max.”

“WHAT?!” Max, Scary, and Michela all shout at once. 

Chris chuckles. “Hey, I don’t make the rules,”

“Yes you do!” Max snaps. 

“Whatever. Take your team or take the carpet of shame, doesn’t affect me,” he shrugs and grins wickedly, walking away. 

Michela sighs, clearly disappointed, but tries to smile for Peter anyway. He looks a little uncomfortable. 

---

PETER: “Scary is really… well… scary. But I’d take her if it meant making Michela happier. It’s just so unfair to her!”

---

“Alright,” Chris passes through the crowd of pairs, now dressed normally, handing out plastic magnifying glasses and flashlights. “Your challenge is pretty simple: no one leaves the mansion until the ghost is captured. Understood?”

Fren raises a hand. “What if we have to go to the restroom?”

“I believe there are some chamber pots in the upstairs bedrooms,”

Everyone winces. 

“Ready? Go!”

The teams split off in different directions, most wandering aimlessly. Max and Scary begin to head in opposite directions before noticing they’re not accompanied by their partner. 

“Hey!” they shout in unison. 

“Where are you going?” Scary hisses, putting his hands on his hips and leaning down for emphasis. 

Max glares. “To the master bedroom, duh. Everyone knows that spirits in death are attached to mementos of their life. We might find some clues,”

Scary snorts. “You actually believe in that bull? Newsflash, Egon, ghosts aren’t real. The hadron collider proved that years ago,”

Max blushes and looks away angrily. “I meant in literature. I don't believe in ghosts,”

“Whatever, brainiac. Let’s go find the library- Chris probably hid some corny scavenger hunt clues in there,”

---

Scruffy and Fren walk through a decrepit hallway, watching a pair of spiders scuttle away from the glow of the flashlight. 

“This reminds me a lot of when I explored the Winchester Mystery House and got locked in overnight,” Fren says, stepping over a plastic skull on the ground. Scruffy blinks. 

“That show about the two brothers?”

Fren stares back. 

---

FREN: “One thing I’m beginning to notice is Scruffy only seems to know things… about Total Drama. Trying to have a conversation with them about anything else is like asking a toddler to explain particle physics,”

---

Scruffy whips around. “Did you hear that?”

“Um. No?”

“Exactly! It’s way too quiet- Chris has to be planning something. Gosh, this is almost exactly like that one episode of Revenge of the Island where Zoey-”

Fren puts in a pair of earbuds and walks along merrily. 

---

Max leans back in a library chair, his hands resting on his lap and his head tilted up. He sighs dramatically as Scary tears book from book from the wall. 

“What are you even looking for?”

“You know,” Scary gestures vaguely. “One of those hidden door thingies from the movies.”

Max starts to say something, but gives in and closes his mouth. “Lost cause,”

The doors to the library open and Peter and Michela fall in with a huff, quickly closing the door behind them. They pant as they stand, wiping cobwebs off their clothing. 

“Dear?” Max sits up straight. “What happened?”

Michela vaguely gestures around for a moment before catching her breath. “Secret door,”

Scary turns and gives Max a smirk. 

---

Sha-Mod coughs weakly as O digs through the kitchen, tearing open cabinets and looking for a weapon. 

“It’s a ghost, dude. Last time I’ll say it,” Sha-Mod says, crossing his arms. “A blade is gonna go through it like nothing.”

“It’s not a ghost, it’s an actor in a costume. And knowing Chris, it’s probably a bear actor,” O pulls a rolling pin from the cabinet. “Ghosts aren’t real. But some psychologists believe that certain places can carry emotional weight to them.”

“Like the communal bathrooms,”

“Exactly,”

The doors swing open and Scruffy and Fren walk in, shining their lights in the other pairing’s eyes. O and Sha-Mod wince. 

“Oops, sorry,” Scruffy angles away the beam. “You guys find anything yet?”

“No. We’ve been in here looking for “weapons”,” Sha-Mod air quotes. Even the Lightning picture looks annoyed. 

O taps the rolling pin against his palm. “Better safe than sorry. Besides, how are we going to catch this thing? No nets, no traps, no handcuffs-”

“What’re you gonna do?” Fren asks, raising an eyebrow. “Knock it out?”

O shrugs. “If it comes down to it,”

“Woah,” Scruffy says. “Hardcore for a softie like you.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Protecting your mental wellbeing isn’t just about communication,”

“Some therapist,” Sha-Mod mutters. 

A distant screaming catches everyone’s attention and they all peer out into the hall to see the commotion. Nothing. 

---

In the library, Scary throws the last book off the shelf. “That is IT! I’m done with this show!”

She screams again and kicks a pile of novels over, narrowly missing Max as he wipes the grime off of Michela’s face with his sleeve. “Watch it!”

“You watch it, you little pimple!”

“Hey,” Michela says, putting herself between them. “Let’s not start anything we might regret later.”

Scary’s eyes narrow. “I don’t feel petty emotions like ‘shame’,”

“Of course you don't,” she rolls her eyes.  

“You two are in such deep [censored] now that the merge is on, you know that?” Scary scoffs. “Unfortunately, people actually like you. Shortstack on the other hand…” she smiles. Max glares at her. 

“Let’s not get too hasty,” Michela says coldly. “No one is voting for Max. Right, Peter?”

Peter quivers in the corner. Scary turns in his direction and gives him a wide smile, inching ever so close until she’s right in his face. “Yeahhh. Right, Peter? Wouldn’t want an alliance to sweep you out, huh? Cause you know you’ll be the first one to go- the strongest always pick out the weakest,”

Peter shakes his head. “I- I don’t want to get involved,”

Michela gives him a pleading look, but he shakes his head. Scary smiles and creeps back to her place by the empty shelves. “Good teammate you have there. Now,” they turn back to the shelves. “How on Darwin’s green earth did you two simpletons get into the passage?”

Michela sighs and shrugs. “I don’t know, we kind of just-”

The floor opens up beneath her and she screams as she falls down a chute. Scary’s eye twitches. 

---

Chris smiles from the control room, pressing buttons on a control panel at random while Chef watches beside him. He takes a sip of coffee. “I love my job,”

Chef rolls his eyes. 

---

Michela lands somewhere dark with a dull thud and groans. For a few moments, all is quiet- then, another schwoop and the sound of someone landing on their feet. 

Scary coughs. “God, what is this? Asbestos City?”

Michela groans. 

A sharp whining from within Scary’s lab coat catches her attention and she pulls out her Geiger counter, and then gasps. “What on earth-”

The Geiger Counter is off the charts, zapping and zipping all over. Scary bangs the side a few times. “Of course it’s broken. Great!”

Michela stays face-down in the dirt of the tunnel. “Sounds like it’s working to me,”

“No,” he shakes his head. “The radiation level it’s reading would undo our atoms instantly. Our flesh would be falling off the bodies.”

“Promise?”

Scary sighs and puts the counter away. It continues emitting a high pitched shriek, but she ignores it, grabbing Michela’s boot and dragging her along the tunnel. 

“Where’s Max?” Michela asks. 

“...Busy,”

---

Up at the surface, Max tries to pry Peter out of the chute opening (where Scary had jammed him minutes prior) with a shovel. 

---

Scruffy and Fren tiptoe through a decrepit wine-cellar, swatting away spiders and moving nervously. 

“Is it just me… or is this place kinda scary?” Fren whispers. 

“I thought you got locked in one of these places overnight?”

“Oh… yeah, I did, but-” he hesitates. “Didn’t you train for a challenge like this or something?”

“Um… not really,” Scruffy admits. “But in my defense, I-”

The two stop in their tracks when they hear the sound of something being dragged across the ground. Scruffy drops the flashlight in surprise and it rolls across the uneven ground, disappearing. Fren trembles. 

The dragging sound comes closer, and the two see a shadowy figure pulling a body across the basement. They scream in fear and dash upstairs. 

“What was that?” Michela asks, still being dragged along. 

Scary wipes their nose on their lab coat sleeve. “Who cares?”

---

“Ugh, that’s it!” Max tosses the shovel aside, collapsing back on the same cushy armchair as before. “I can’t take it anymore. My arms are killing me.”

“I miss Michela,” Peter sighs. 

"That makes two of us,"

The doors to the library open and O and Sha-Mod walk in, the former holding his rolling pin with a collider over his head. 

“I’m not even gonna ask,” Max grumbles, kicking the shovel across the floor. 

“Aw, what! They have shovels?” O drops the rolling pin and picks up the rusty tool.

“As if a shovel is going to do any good against a spirit of the undead!” Sha-Mod crosses his arms. 

Max holds up a finger unenthusiastically. “Actually, that shovel is iron. Ghosts are sensitive to iron and salt,”

They both stare at him for a few minutes. O grins at Sha-Mod. Peter coughs loudly, and the two notice him for the first time. 

“How’d you get stuck in the floor? Are you a ghost?” Sha-Mod asks, crouching down. “Sha-ception…”

“Scary stuffed me here to keep the entrance blocked so Max couldn’t follow her,” Peter mutters miserably. “Max gave up on getting me out.”

“Shame on you! Can’t you see he’s half-ghost now?” Sha-Mod puts his hands on his hips. The Lightning pic stares at Max with a disapproving glint. “C’mon, O, let’s get some butter.”

O nods, swinging around the shovel, and follows Sha-Mod back out. Max stretches and begins casually walking to the door. 

“Hey, where’re you-”

“They’ve got it covered. I’m getting into that passage,”

---

Scary huffs, exhausted after dragging Michela for what feels like kilometers. 

“Are you going to walk any time soon?”

“Hm?” Michela looks up from the ground. “Why? So you can use me as ghost bait?”

“Ghosts aren’t real,” Scary grumbles. They stop in their tracks, though, when they see some light off in the distance. “What the…”

She drops Michela’s boot and walks closer to investigate. The latter sits up and brushes off her skirt, then stands and begins walking in a different direction. Scary studies the glowing pool of light on the floor up ahead. 

“Iridescent- bioluminescent properties- viscous- blue…” Scary mutters to themselves, taking mental notes. The Geiger Counter in their coat shrieks and they take it out. The reading is off the charts. Scary’s eyes narrow. “Chris!”

---

Chris sips from his coffee in the control room again and smiles. "Yeah, we mayyyy have tampered a little with the Geiger Counter to trick Scary into believing that ectoplasm is the real deal,"

Chef grins and holds up a bucket of glow-in-the-dark glue.

---

Michela walks through the tunnel alone, retracing the trail of Scary’s footsteps and her own body dragging through the dirt before she loses track of the path. She sighs and looks around the dark, grimy underground tunnel. 

She crosses her arms, an annoyed expression on her face, and leans against the wall. Before she can get in another huff, a crevice in the wall behind her quivers and she turns, ducking just in time for a nest of bats to fly out. 

Michela covers her head and grimaces as the creatures of the night soar over her, narrowly missing her hair. As they fly out, something pops out of the crevice and into the dirt with a dull thud. 

“What the…” she picks up a wooden statue resembling Chris's face, chiseled to unreal perfection. “Oh…” she smiles. “This is too good.”

---

Scruffy and Fren continue running down the tunnel, screaming and waving their arms around. As they run, they bump into each other and tumble down a darkened slope, rolling to the bottom and landing in a muddy pit with a plop. 

They both groan and sit up, rubbing their heads. As they try to regain their composure, a shadow is cast over them. Fren and Scruffy gasp in terror and hug each other, screaming again. 

The figure walks down the slope and comes into the light. It coughs and steps forward, holding a cane. 

An elderly man in a three piece suit and monocle stands before them, checking the time on a pocket watch. 

“GHOST!” Scruffy and Fren shriek. 

The man gasps and turns. “Where!”

They both point at him. “Ghost!”

He looks a bit confused at their accusing fingers for a moment, and then chuckles. “Goodness, no, I’m no ghost. Not yet, at least. My name is Edward Englishman. I’m the owner of this estate. I’m afraid I got a bit lost in these tunnels,” he smiles warmly and checks his pocket watch. “It’s been… quite some time now, yes. Would you colorful fellows happen to know a way out?” 

---

Chris stands in the parlor of the mansion, hands behind his back and an expectant smile on his face as Scruffy and Fren track mud into the room, Edward behind them. He grumbles about his poor carpets as Chris chuckles. 

“Scruffy and Fren have won the challenge- and immunity from today’s elimination,”

The other campers descend from the stairs or come out of the halls, looking between each other. Peter is covered in butter from the waist-down. Scary smiles upon seeing Edward, almost as if she’s relaxing. She turns to Max with a big grin. “Told you. Ghosts aren’t real… so you won’t be coming back after getting cut off this time,” she makes a slicing motion across her neck. 

He glares and looks away, though his expression shifts to be a little nervous. Michela notices the exchange and pulls him aside. “Max,” she says, opening her parka and handing him the immunity idol. “Say you found it in the tunnels when you went looking for me.”

His eyes widen. “I can’t-”

“Looks like we have an additional immune player,” Chris pops in between the two. “Max is safe from elimination tonight!”

Scary scowls. 

“See you all very soon!”

---

“Wow- just wow- what an exciting episode! I know I had fun,” Chris grins. “Scruffy, Fren, and Max all have immunity. The rest of you… not so much. Let’s see,”

“O,”

He tosses O a Gilded Chris, and he gracefully catches it. 

“Sha-Mod, Peter,”

Scary and Michela look between each other, the latter a bit nervous, the former smiling confidently. 

“Scary- no one likes you- Michael, with Max back, you two are a big-time threat,” Chris says. He picks up a fancy, wax-embossed letter. “And the last Gilded Chris�� 

Goes to…

Scary. You’re safe. Sorry, Michael,”

She sighs, but doesn’t seem too disappointed. Max stares in guilty shock before looking down at his shoes- nonetheless, Michela steps in and they kiss one last time before she heads off. 

“Scary- I’ll see you soon!” she yells, waving as she boards the limo. Scary rolls her eyes. 

“Wow- thrilling,” Chris chuckles. “Who will actually be joining Michela next? And who will be winning the next exciting episode of Total! Takes! Action!”

[nokingsonlyfooles]

OK, Finish the Feed (adorable birds are a good place to stop) and Plug the Thing!

NEW STORY UPDATE!

Wow! 248 instalments of a thing? What a large thing! Someone must care very much about this thing, to keep adding so much to it! Or they're a total lunatic, and really, isn't that worth clicking too?

Heck, I dunno. Oh well. Soldier On returns with another six-pack! You can get the whole thing early at Ko-Fi!

Or wait for it to trickle out week-by-week, in an ersatz communal experience that does not include enough vocal people to form an actual community. Yet! Still lookin' for readers!

Current known readers: 3 (hi!), 1st Goalpost: 10?

Current supporters: 1 (hi Kith!), 1st Goalpost: 5?

And here's a sample from this week's instalment, under the cut!

Maggie and Hyacinth put Erik back on the bed, mostly free of the bag. He could have kicked it away easily, but he seemed a bit stunned. He was still talking, “Alice, if this is a sex thing I’m sure I’ve only hit my head a little and I’ll be fine in… No-no-no, what’s wrong with my eye? This isn’t what’s wrong with my eye!” He had a hand on it, feeling the edges of the metal socket with two fingers. “Is this a prank?”

“If it’s a prank, you’re the one playing it,” Hyacinth said. “That isn’t your eye, that’s Erik’s eye. Please don’t screw with me, I’ve had a long day. Do you honestly…”

“Who the hell is Erik? Is he the help?”

She took him by the shoulders and shook him. “David, please get your nose out of your past and come back to the present. You have been dead for thirty-five…”

“Thirty-seven,” Ann and Maggie said, on top of each other.

“Thirty-seven-years,” said Hyacinth, “and this is not you!”

“Alice, if you are trying to get me committed out of spite, it is not going to work,” he said. “I have far too much money and this cell will not hold me.”

“You have no money,” said Hyacinth, “and your ‘cell’ is another man’s body in a shitty Prokovian hotel! Barnaby and I fed you a bowl of painkillers in applesauce and you are dead! Do you remember that? Look for it!”

“I…” He wobbled and clutched a hand to Erik’s chest. “Um. Yes. Rather. Thank you,” he sketched a little bow, “um, for the assist, ah…” He glanced around. “Are we bringing people back to life now?”

“No, just you,” Hyacinth said sourly.

He beamed. “I deserve it!”

“I don’t think humanity does, but nobody bothered to ask me,” Hyacinth muttered.

He stood. “Are the press here?”

Maggie snatched him and spun him around, “Get out of my boyfriend, you twit!”

“Don’t kill me! I didn’t hurt him! It wasn’t my idea!”

“What?” she said.

“What?” he said. Trembling, he pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and dabbed his brow. “I don’t like this, oh gods, I don’t like this…” He startled at the sight of just how much makeup had come off on the white cloth, folded it and tucked it away, self-consciously. “Hyacinth, if I took some goddamn designer drug or something you would tell me, wouldn’t you?” He peered at her. “Is that you? You seem…”

“Old?” she said.

“Honestly, I’ve always pictured you about this age, but aren’t you shorter?”

“No, you’re taller.”

“What?”

“He is fucking with us!” Maggie snarled. She swiped at him, and he staggered and fell back on the bed. “You told us! He does this sort of thing! He’s…”

“He does,” Hyacinth said, “and he would, but I don’t think he is.”

He’d kicked off both shoes and was standing again, measuring Hyacinth with a hand against his chest. “You weren’t even this size when I found you. Stop slouching, dear child, or I shall put you in a corset.”

“I am not slouching,” she snapped. “Look up what happened five minutes ago and reorient yourself with reality, please.”

“You hauled me up four storeys in a laundry bag,” he replied. He shook Erik’s head again. “All right, where is Gray hiding? I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but I’ve had just about enough of it.”

“He is dead,” Hyacinth said.

“Don’t be stupid.” The god brushed her away and peeked under the bed, then strode to the closet.

Mordecai put out a hand to stop him, but he was too uncertain to manage anything save a single, quiet, “Wait…”

There was a full-length mirror inside of the closet door. David regarded Erik’s reflection, frowning, and wiped off a bit more of the makeup with the handkerchief. He leaned on the door frame and smiled, touching a finger to the glass. “Well, hello, handsome.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Maggie said.

“No you’re not,” said Hyacinth. “The motherfucker’s immortal.”

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[max--phillips]

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[not-your-fucking-kacchan]

Hi you really don’t have to do this…… anyway I’ve been told I act like near from death note so could you do a mha x child male reader where the reader acts like near from death note like he pulls out toys in the middle of class stacks cups at lunch and is very quiet and stuff oh yeah could you make it class 1-A + Aizawa maybe other teachers in there too sorry if it’s too specific

Ofc! I haven't gotten that far into death note yet so I had to watch a Near compilation on YouTube, so I hope I got a good enough grasp of him in that time lol

Also I'm describing you as antisocial rather than shy, because near didn't strike me as the shy stuttering pushover type, and seemed just withdrawn or disinterested, and I also high-key headcanon izuku may have ADHD. I will not elaborate <3.

Masterlist<3

𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬 1𝐀 𝐱 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐞!𝐀𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥!𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐬

It draws a few sets of eyes every time you pull out a pack of tarot cards or dice to play with in the middle of class, but noone really got distracted as long as you were quiet enough. Though, a few times you've knocked over a power ranger or transformer doll while taking notes and drawn the classes attention.

During break on your second week of school, you find yourself approached by the 'bakusquad'. Kirishima introduces himself politely and mina stares in awe at your tarot collection, but Bakugou looks livid.

He doesn't expect you to meet his glare directly with an unamused stare, and he's a second away from lunging at you and taking it as a challenge before Kaminari and Kirishima simultaneously bonk him in the head.

"Dude you don't even know him, give him a chance!"

You can't stop yourself from raising an eyebrow at the statement, figuring that these two must be the perfect balance for Bakugou's... Overbearing personality.

The next thing that catches your attention is the green haired boy that joins into the conversation, quietly asking you a question with a cute tilt of his head. "Have you maybe got ADHD? I've just seen a few of the signs on you- It's perfectly okay if you do! You won't be looked at differently!"

You already like this one, he's so precious.

Your eyes look straight into his as he studies you, and it's very intriguing to watch the gears turn in his head while he figures you out like some sort of puzzle. You could definitely get along with him. "No, I don't believe so."

He seems a little surprised by your words, but then again, you very well may have ADHD. You were never allowed to get tested for it, because your parents refused. Without a diagnosis, they can pretend there's nothing "wrong" with you.

He studies your eyes, figuring that you may have an irregular sleep schedule from the dark circles under your eyes, and that your eyes seem to be very sensitive to light because of how wide your pupils are. It's almost unnerving, to be honest. Your eyes look almost fully black.

Over the next few days you're scolded a few times by Aizawa Sensei for being too loud when knocking over your dice or your robots, but he never once asked you to put them away. All he asked in return was for you to be a little more active in the lessons.

"You get to keep your toys as long as you answer questions and participate a little more. Does that sound fair?" You nodded, slowly backing away to walk back to your desk and wait for break to finish, but from then on, you start drawing attention to yourself.

At first the attention is unwanted, and as you sit Criss cross applesauce on your chair, playing with your tarot cards, Izuku comes to sit next to you, starting to ramble about a random hero that you don't know anything about. He's very easy to get used to, however, and you quickly become what some would call friends.

Everyone's a little creeped out by your social awkwardness, and the fact that you never seem to talk, until they start to include you more, and you're forced to make new friends.

That doesn't mean you don't have trouble opening up though, and during lunch you sit in silence with your new friends as they chatter and smile at you, stacking cups that Izuku gave you to help you focus on something other than the amount classmates you have crowding you.

It takes a few more months for even Izuku to pry anything even remotely emotional from you, and even then it only shows in the waver of your voice, but he's proud nonetheless.

He would escort you around school because he didn't want you to be alone, and after a while your newfound closeness with Izuku branches out as mina comes to join the two of you.

She gives you an absolutely radiant smile as she grabs your hand, izuku taking hold of your other side for them to both drag you away to some part of the school you're not familiar with. The warmth of their hands in yours leaves you in shock, though, and your mind blanks a little when you feel the greenette squeeze it reassuringly, a tiny, pale blush creeping into your cheeks. This feeling, it was something you wanted to feel every day. It's so warm and comforting.

[prismabird]

AHahaha oh no

Me: *trying to figure out my astronomy homework, desperately trying to focus on my textbook*

My brain: 🎵backPACK for his APPLESAUCE! BackPACK where he keeps his APPLESAUCE!🎵

Me: Please no, let me study....

My brain: 🎵JAA'MS GOT THE APPLESAUCE THAT YOU CRAVE!!!!🎵

Me: *sigh* 🎵everybody catch this juicy jaa'm wave...🎵

[voiceless-terror]

Inseparable (TMA)

For the @tma-valentines-exchange and @theotpauthor

Characters: Jonathan Sims/Martin Blackwood

Rating: Teen

Warnings: Some Bullying, Canon-Typical Martin’s Mother and Jon’s Grandmother

Summary:  Jonathan Sims and Martin Blackwood meet as children. Some things change, others do not.

As expected, he’s going to have to eat lunch alone.

Martin surveys the school yard, the teacher behind him smiling with encouragement. It’s nice that they let them go outside, sitting alone at a table in the cafeteria seemed far more intimidating than finding a tree or a bush he could hide behind. He’s getting better at making himself small.

It’s a bright, warm day and the sun beats down on his face, he’s going to need a shady spot. He spies a tree on the far edge of the grounds; it’s tall and thick, a perfect place to hide away. He trudges down the slight incline, his bagged lunch held tight in his fist. Maybe if he asks nicely his mum will get him a lunchbox. But this’ll do for now. He’s about to sit down in a small nook of roots when a disgruntled voice pipes up from behind the tree.

“Hey!”

Martin can barely see the boy’s scowling face but he recognizes him from class: Jonathan Sims. He’s a scrawny kid almost half his size, but that doesn’t make him any less intimidating. Jon always raises his hand in class and interrupts others when they have the wrong answer. The other students snicker but Jon pays them no mind, more interested in getting out all the information stored in his head. Martin admires his confidence, but still. He’s a bit scary.

“This is my tree,” he sniffs, patting the ground as if planting a flag. “This is where I eat. Alone.” 

Martin feels his face burning from more than just the sun. There’s tears forming behind his eyes but he tries desperately to hold them back, the last thing he needs is a reputation as the class crybaby. 

“I’m s-sorry.” He scrambles up, casting his eyes down to the ground if only to avoid Jon’s glare. “I’ll- I’ll find somewhere else, sorry to bother.” A brief scan of the school yard reveals there really is nowhere else, unless he wants to sit in the dirt or out in the sun where everyone can see. Maybe he should find an empty classroom, or a closet or even a bathroom, just to be out of sight. But he doesn’t think the teacher will let him, and she keeps looking over. She probably just saw his rejection, and he really doesn’t want her to come over and embarrass him further. Jonathan Sims already seems to hate him.

“You can stay.” The voice interrupts his internal panic, and he looks over to find Jon studiously avoiding his gaze, staring hard at a neighboring bush. Martin wonders what caused his sudden change of heart. “But you have to sit on the other side. And don’t talk to me.”

He hurries to sit down, afraid the other boy will take it back. “Y-Yes, thank you-”

“I said don’t talk to me!”

Martin closes his mouth, cutting off the ‘sorry’ that’s already spilling from his lips. With one final glare Jon swivels back around, dropping out of sight.

Martin sighs with relief and begins to dig out his soggy peanut butter sandwich. He packed it this morning with the meager supplies in their kitchen; Mum forgot to get the groceries again, he’d have to remind her. She’s been forgetting a lot lately; the move has been hard on the both of them, but especially her. Ever since his father left they’d been moving from town to town, wherever his mum could find work. She’s working at a doctor’s office now, and hence the move to their very small flat a few blocks from school. Once again, he’s the new kid.

And of course no one talks to him. Why would they? Mum always says he’s rubbish with people, that he should try to be more outgoing. It’s not his fault his glasses are too big and his clothes are ill-fitting and he’s awkwardly taller than ‘any seven year old has the right to be’ (his mum’s words). Whenever he opens his mouth, all that comes out is a high-pitched stutter. No, better to be quiet and stay out of everyone’s way. That’s easier. That’s how his Mum likes it at home, why change it up here?

But it doesn’t make it hurt any less. His teachers are nice enough and no one’s bothered him yet. As long as he continues to keep his head down and do his homework, he’ll be fine. Who needs friends, anyway?

And he’s got a spot to eat now. Jon sits on the other side of the tree, just out of sight, saying nothing. But Martin still feels a little less lonely with him here, like they have some sort of silent truce. Jon doesn’t seem to have any friends; in fact, Martin thinks he actually has enemies. People shove him in the hallway when they’re standing in line, throw paper balls at him in class, whisper insults audibly behind his back. But Jon never reacts other than a tensing of his shoulders and a pointed look the other way. Martin wishes he could be like that.

Jon lets him sit there for the rest of the week. Martin itches to talk to him, but decides it's easier to keep his promise. Mum likes it when he’s quiet so she doesn’t have to hear his ‘inane chatter.’ Jon probably wants the same.

The next day it rains. He doesn’t know where Jon goes when he can’t sit at his tree. Martin decides to eat at the very end of a lunch table where a few other quiet kids sit. No one talks to him. He’s getting used to it.

It’s too muddy to sit outside for the next few days. No matter where he looks, he can’t find Jon. The teacher doesn’t seem to care much about Jon’s whereabouts. Martin’s heard the word ‘handful’ muttered as the teachers gather in the common space. They just let him do what he wants.

But the next Monday, there he is. Sitting at the tree, a book in hand, his lunch box conspicuously absent. It’s bright yellow with a cat on it; it looks ancient, beat up and scratched as it is. But it’s not there. Martin sits at his usual spot, fidgeting with his lunch bag. I wonder if he’s hungry. He hears the crinkle of the library book, the turn of a page. Before he can second guess himself, he gets up and steps to the forbidden other side of the tree.

Jon barely deigns to look up from his book, instead focusing more intently on the pages. Martin shuffles on his feet and fights the urge to run away before clearing his throat.

Jon looks up. “What?” he snaps, clearly irritated at the interruption.

“S-Sorry, I just saw you had no l-lunch and I-” he fumbles around in the bag until he finds what he’s looking for and offers it out to Jon with a shaking hand. “I thought you might be hungry.”

Jon stares at the applesauce like it's bound to leap out and bite him. He looks back up at Martin with a suspiciously gaze, and he fights the urge to swallow nervously. Jon’s eyes are so large, even hidden behind glasses and it’s hard to meet his stare head-on.

“Fine.” A small hand reaches up and snatches it from Martin before he can so much as blink. Jon rips open the lid like a man starving and instead of asking for a spoon, opts to slurp at it like it's some sort of milkshake.

Martin stares at him open-mouthed as Jon scrunches his face in distaste and complains. “Ugh. Who gets applesauce without cinnamon?” He finishes it anyway and hands the crumpled plastic back to Martin in under a minute. He takes it, stupefied, as Jon picks up his book and goes back to reading, once again ignoring Martin. Well then.

Martin feels like he’s approached a feral cat and come back without a scratch. He takes his usual spot on the other side, mechanically biting into a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and wonders if he can convince his mum to buy the good kind of applesauce when he hears the words, barely audible.

“Thank you.” It’s the softest he’s ever heard Jon’s voice go.

“You’re welcome,” he replies, equally as quiet. Jon says nothing else, but Martin will take this as a win.

read more on ao3

[wave0fg00dvibes]

Baby - Spencer Reid x Reader

Request: Spencer’s daughter tries to tell him that she’s “not a baby anymore.” He doesn’t take it too well.

A/N: I’M FREAKING BACK, BABY! It has been so long and I’m so very sorry. Here is some tooth-rotting fluff for y’all because I love you. I actually wrote this for the lovely @thekatherinewinchester​ as a part of @imagining-in-the-margins fic swap, and it was SO fun to write. It also really helped me to have a deadline. I think I’m going to try to do that more often!

Please leave feedback if you have any! Lots and lots and LOTS of love, as always.

Category: FLUFF

Content Warning: None

Word Count: 1.7K

------------------------

The first time our daughter attempted to assert her independence, she had just turned 6 years old.

A morning routine with two young children was often chaotic, to say the least. However, the first day of school was always a special one. For some reason, something about this particular September morning made me extra grateful and reflective, even among the disarray. 

1 ½ year old Grayson sat in his highchair, babbling nonstop. Though he had only just started eating his applesauce, it completely covered his face and arms. Before I knew it, he was using his spoon to fling the food onto the floor. 

Was that an issue on the top of my priority list right now? Nope.

Ava sat at the kitchen table, swinging her legs and eating her cereal with the enthusiasm of an excited 1st grader. Her polka dot dress and matching headband were neatly and meticulously adjusted, revealing the hidden nerves within her initial excitement.

The small TV on the counter was tuned into the local news, though no one ever really listened. Even if anyone wanted to pay attention, Grayson’s babbling would probably drown it out anyway. It was mostly just background noise. But, selfishly, I liked to know the state the world was in before my husband left our home each morning to go make it better, safer. I liked to at least have some idea of what he was going to encounter, even if it meant certain days were filled with anxiety and worry. 

Dealing with the unease and stress was a small price to pay for the unceasing love and immeasurable happiness.

To be honest, I never imagined a world where I’d be simultaneously getting our children ready for the day and scrambling eggs for Spencer as he slept in after a long night of work. I never imagined his severe, draining job would let us have even a sliver of happy domesticity. But, as I scraped the last of the eggs onto his now-full plate, I reflected on how lucky the universe had deemed us. This shouldn’t be a reality, and yet, I couldn't imagine our life together any differently.

“Mama?” The voice of my sweet girl snapped me out of my reflective moment. 

“What is it, Ava?” I asked, momentarily pausing my motions. She turned around in her chair to face me, eagerness lighting up her small face.

“I’m really excited to go back to school.”

I couldn’t help but smile. She truly was her father’s daughter in every capacity.

“I’m so glad! You’re going to have an amazing day!”

Her bright, golden eyes sparkled, and she turned back to finish her cereal.

Spencer would definitely be up soon. There was no way he was going to miss the sendoff of his favorite girl on her first day of 1st grade.

There wasn’t a single doubt in my mind that Ava was going to blow all of her teachers away. I insisted on keeping her in kindergarten for her first year of school so she could make friends and get used to that type of social environment, but now that she was starting more difficult content, I knew all bets were off. She was absolutely going to skip grades, make breakthroughs, and undoubtedly change the world. 

But, thankfully, that was a conversation for another day, and one Spencer was undoubtedly going to have to help me through.

At that very moment, my sweet husband rushed into the kitchen, fastening his tie as he jogged. Even in his disheveled haste, the elation in his face and pep in his clumsy steps revealed that he was just as excited about this day as Ava, if not more.

Grayson babbled in the happiest tone he could muster at the sight of his daddy, and I couldn’t help but smile right along with him.

“Good morning, buddy!” Spencer smiled, crouching to meet Grayson’s eye level and pinch his chubby, applesauce covered cheek.

The tiny gesture took me back to a time when Spencer’s cares and worries were much different. Back then, he would never have thought to voluntarily reach for the grubby face of an infant, no matter how cute. But, six years and two kids later, this was a beautiful reminder of how much we had both changed, and how lucky we were to grow together and not apart. 

However, in true Spencer Reid fashion, as soon as he was done making silly faces at our son,  he padded over the sink to rid his hands of the sticky, grimy applesauce.

Everything may be different now, but some things never change. 

As I packed Ava’s lunch, I felt his eyes on me from behind. Before I knew it, he lightly turned me away from my task and wrapped his arms completely around me, leaning down to rest his head on my shoulder.

“Thank you.” He softly whispered.

Forgetting the rush of the morning for a moment, I let myself sink into the embrace. For though our lives plowed forward at seemingly a million miles an hour, moments like these kept me grounded, sane. 

“For what?” I asked.

“The extra sleep. The food. The babies. Everything.” 

The case they returned from last night must have been a nasty one. Spencer was a very affectionate person, but something about this profession felt heavier. 

Nevertheless, even after so many years, he still had the ability to make my heart skip a beat.

I pulled back from the hug to smile up at him, running my hands up his arms to get lost in his hair. His eyes reflected utter joy and gratitude, despite the fact that he had undoubtedly seen some horrifying things for the past few days. 

“I love you so much.” The words flew out before I could stop them. Of course, I meant them with my whole heart, the phrase just seemed so mundane compared to my ever-growing, aching love for him. 

The love in his eyes and sparkle in his smile told me he knew. He always knew.

He pressed a slow, firm kiss to my lips, hands coming to rest gently on my hips as we slowly swayed together. 

“I love you too.” He whispered, and before I could fully savor it, the restless world started turning again. 

Stealing moments with him would forever make my heart sing, but today needed to be about our sweet girl and nothing else. After all, according to her the first day of 1st grade marks the “beginning of the true educational journey.” Lord knows we couldn’t miss a second of that.

Spencer quickly walked over to the plate I had ready for him, setting it across from Ava at the table and kissing her head as he passed.

“Good morning, baby! Are you excited for your first day?”

Ava was silent. I felt the air in the room change as she put down her spoon and looked up at him, features completely serious. Somehow, I knew what was coming before she even opened her mouth, and Spencer was not going to like it.

“Daddy. I am not a baby.”

As expected, Spencer choked on the small piece of egg he had just attempted to swallow. In spite of the sad punch of the reality that my sweet girl was growing up, I nearly snorted, covering my mouth with my hand so as to not offend her.

Spencer looked absolutely dumbfounded.

“But, you are technically my baby-” He attempted to explain.

Ava was not having it. She took a deep breath, pushing her bowl of lucky charms aside so she could fold her hands in front of herself on the table. 

“The term ‘baby’ is applied to infants from birth to the age of 1, and then sometimes to toddlers from ages 1 to 4. I am 6 now, daddy, so technically I have already let you get away with it for an extra year.”

Oh, my girl. What a little firecracker she was. No one in the entire world besides her could silence Dr. Spencer Reid with one sentence.

Spencer sat there at a loss for words, fork still in hand, clearly trying to formulate a coherent sentence. 

“But…”

The school bus pulled up in front of our house with impeccable timing. 

“Ava honey, the bus is here!” I gladly interrupted, shoving the lunchbox into her backpack and zipping it up.

Her poor father. I had never seen his jaw drop for so long before. 

But, as always, there was no time to unpack in the current moment. That would have to be a later conversation. 

Ava excitedly got down from the table, running to put her dishes in the sink before grabbing her backpack and putting it on with complete elation. I lifted Grayson from the highchair, quickly wiping off his applesauce-covered face with the ratty old t-shirt of Spencer’s I was wearing. By that time, Spencer had slightly snapped out of his trance in order to help Ava put on her sparkly converse shoes and matching coat. 

The four of us were greeted by the autumn breeze as we stepped out onto the front porch. Spencer and I instinctively bent down to simultaneously kiss her cheeks, and she hugged our necks with the fervor of all the love in the world. She gave Grayson a small cheek kiss as well before turning away to start her new educational adventure.

“Have the best day, sweet girl!” I yelled after her as she sprinted down the driveway to the bus. She waved in reply. Though I couldn't have been prouder of her, I couldn’t help but notice the new missing piece of my heart that seemingly got on the school bus with her. 

It was at that moment that I realized Spencer hadn’t said a single word since his baby proclaimed otherwise. He still looked like he had seen a ghost.

“You alright there, old man?” I playfully nudged him with my shoulder, bouncing Grayson on my hip. 

“But she… she is my baby…”

I smiled, knowingly, trying to hide the small pain that struck my heart at the thought of Ava growing up. There were no words I could say that would calm his racing heart in the moment. So, I held our smallest baby a little bit tighter and leaned up to lightly brush my lips against Spencer’s.

“I know. Me too.”

[skztalkergo]

stray kids reaction: you got your wisdom teeth removed

chan

lowkey traumatized but he’s the nation’s father so he’s gonna step up to the plate or die trying

waves away the nurse with the wheelchair while you’re still half-conscious and carries you to the car himself

drives you to his place and tucks you into bed and stalks around the dorm yelling at people who are louder than his newly-instated appropriate decibel level

also yells at anyone attempting to record you and your loopy behavior

religious about your medication, you will not miss a dose, even if he does get kinda squirrely when you request the codeine

brings his work home for once and sits in bed next to you on his laptop until he’s deemed you Safe To Leave Alone

addresses you by dumb things like “hey there superstar” or “that’s my brave girl!”

minho

has had his phone out and recording since the moment the nurse came to get him from the waiting room

the 20 minute long, deeply unflattering y/n crack compilation will be available for viewing before you’re back to eating solid foods

that being said, he’s surprisingly helpful and blows off practice because he refuses to leave you alone for the first 24 hours post-op

threatens to tape your hands together if you don’t stop poking at the stitches

spoon-feeds you applesauce and does not hesitate to scream “HERE COMES THE AIRPLANE” even though you’ve been lucid for several hours at this point

changbin

another videographer, but considers this to be a boyfriend privilege and will not hesitate to fight anyone else with a phone in your vicinity

really stressed and fails to conceal it, resulting in you comforting him before the surgery

afterwards, though, he goes into full Mom Mode, going so far as to call both his mom and your mom to gauge appropriate steps (he doesn’t trust the internet)

will attempt to cook for you, but if it falls through he’ll badger chan or minho until they make you soup (and he’ll pretend he made it, and you’ll pretend you believe him because you love him <33)

hyunjin

kind of helpless but does not hesitate to baby the actual heck out of you

A Level 10 Fusser

he changes the pillow arrangement of the sickbed he’s made you so often that you yell at him because it keeps waking you up

can’t cook, so he boils chicken broth and stands over you menacingly because you are legally obligated to drink the entire mug

also force-feeds you healthy things like mashed up avocados and mangoes and doesn’t listen when you tell him you just want to consume Spaghetti-O’s

squishes your swollen cheeks and won’t shut up about how cute they are

brings kkami over to comfort you, but then gets jealous when you cuddle kkami instead of him

jisung

also kind of clueless, but puts his whole heart behind it

sits next to you in bed while you nap and memorizes the entire WebMD page on dry socket, so that when you wake up he’s there with ice packs and tea bags and salt water and a billion other things to try

tells you that you shouldn’t talk to speed up the recovery process, but forgets his own rule 10 seconds later and gets confused when you won’t answer his questions

freaks the heck out when you start bleeding again a few hours after the surgery and has you halfway to the car before you tell him to just help you put some gauze on it and wait it out

pets your hair and sings you to sleep

felix

Stage 5 Clinger

assumes personal responsibility for your recovery and is probably more invested in the process than you are

not afraid to get his hands dirty and do the un-glamorous things like change your bloody gauze and carry you to the bathroom when you’re still loopy

stress bakes while you’re asleep but bakes the cookies half as long as normal so they’re kind of mushy and you can still eat them

canned soup is his vibe but he’ll put cilantro or something on top so he feels like he did something

sleeps wound around you like a little boa constrictor and isn’t mad if you drool on him

seungmin

medical philosophy is that you should let nature take its course, so he’s not really a coddler

more of the type to put you in bed with a stuffed animal and pat you on the head and then go sit in the living room where he can hear you call if you need him

good to have around if you’re nervous before the surgery, because he’s extremely calm and has the power to rationally talk you down from all your irrational fears about complications

will cook simple foods for you until you’re better

super good about remembering when you have to take your meds, and won’t go to sleep before you in case you’re in pain

jeongin

also vaguely traumatized, he has less than half an idea what to do but he refuses to leave you alone

even if it means getting chan or hyunjin involved, he is going to treat this as a learning chapter on his Road To Ultimate Boyfriend

holds your hand in the car the whole way to the doctor’s, and buys you flowers afterwards even if you’re too loopy to appreciate them

sets up camp wherever you are, complete with his laptop that is playing your favorite movie on loop and a list of internet-approved soft foods

keeps a meticulous list of all your medications so he can remind you when to take them, and dresses you in his oversized hoodies because it makes him feel better more than it makes you feel better

[whump-town]

Red Fish, Blue Fish

This is for @genevievedarcygranger (i'm sorry you deserve better than whatever this is)

Hank chilling with Hotch but it's sad bc I don't know how to do happy

On Thursday Hank sits out on his front porch with his banana mushed in his right hand and his sippy cup in the other. He waits, as he does every Thursday, for the sound of Hotch’s old Jeep to pull into the driveway. The car doesn’t look like anything he’d drive but it’s one of the last things he has of Haley’s - the Jeep they bought together in Seattle. Her dream car. He drives it now for practicality and because as he gets older silly things make him sentimental. And he just loves this old car.

And Hank loves it even more.

Hank grows agitated - a deep feeling in his stomach making him just as upset as the mashed banana he now wants off his hands. Savannah steps out on the porch with him, having left knowing he’d stay put because he’d never miss Hotch pulling in for anything. She’s got a wash rag and drags the warmed cloth over his face and hands. Taking what’s left of the banana and tossing it into the grass for a bird to eat.

“Come on,” Savannah picks him up. “We gotta get you dressed.” Hank goes even if he’s a little confused. Every Tuesday and Thursday for as long as Hank can remember he’s spent the work day at Hotch’s. Occasionally, (if Hotch has a doctor’s appointment and when Jack has breaks from college) that planning gets mixed up and Hank doesn’t take it well. They come rarely because over the last three years Hotch just doesn’t schedule appointments for those days and Jack is nearly twenty-one and spends his breaks doing other things. Not hanging with his dad.

Hank realizes Hotch isn’t coming when Savannah starts to draw him a bath. He fights her even though he typically loves baths. “No mama,” he tries to push himself out of her arms. He wants to go back to the porch. Hotch can’t come unless Hank is down there to watch for him. “No mama no!” He cries when she’s triumphant and places him down in the tub. “Hops,” he reminds her with fat tears rolling his cheeks. “Hops comin’ mama. Hops.”

She washes the rest of the banana off of him, sighing, and trying not to get upset herself. “Hops isn’t coming baby.” He hadn’t come last week either but Hank had been too distracted by Uncle Spence making a surprise visit to notice. Which was entirely the point of Spencer coming on Hotch’s normally scheduled days. Savannah knew she wouldn’t be as lucky this week. Hank had noticed, he’d realized how long it had been since Hotch came around. And she’d still let him think Hotch was coming this morning. She needed the hour to gather herself, to call Derek, and be certain. To reassure herself of what’s happening.

Hank stops fighting her. His little shoulders drop and he sniffles pitfully as he lets her wash his body back off. “Not comin’?” he mumbles. Hotch always comes. He picks Hank up from DayCare early and they go to the park for ice cream. All it takes is one phone call and, even with other plans, Hotch will diverge his path to get Hank. How many lunches has Hank been to? Eating a banana muffin, seated on the ground, and leaning against Hotch’s leg while he and Emily talk over coffee in some dusty cafe’s bookstore. How many prestigious academy lectures? Laying on the floor and coloring while Hotch guest speaks in one of Reid’s classes.

Savannah stops and looks at her son. His little eyes are full of far too much sorrow for someone so small and typically full of such overwhelming joy. She wipes one of his tears and frowns when he sniffles, rubbing his nose with the back of his chubby fist. “We’re going to Hops’ house,” she tells him, “but you can’t see Hops. Not today, okay?” She cups his cheek, “Hops is sick.”

He didn’t tell anyone. Not Emily the Tuesday after he found out over their weekly coffee. He couldn’t. Not with Hank sitting in her lap and struggling to identify words he recognizes from One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. Not when he’d dropped Hank off knowing the treatment plan he agreed to would probably mean he’d eventually be too sick to take Hank every week. But he couldn’t say it out loud and make it true.

Last Monday he arranged for Dave to pick him up from the hospital after the surgery the oncologist thought would be minimal and a successful measure to get the cancer out of his body. With its success chemo could eradicate the rest and Hotch would manage to get through the whole mess without anyone having known a thing - the best alternative, in his opinion.

But his heart never does well under the stress of anesthesia.

“Sick?” Hank repeats and he turns this over in his head. Sick. He knows what to do. He nods his head, “o’tay. Gonna help?”

Savannah stops and refrains from the truth which is that there’s nothing they can do. This is all Hotch and the doctors. They’re only going over to his house - you know, she doesn't even know why they’re going over there. Dave and Emily have taken up a semi-permanent residence. Garcia’s bringing food and with Garcia comes Reid because he won’t say no to food. Derek’s over to put up a bar in the shower and he’ll be sucked into staying for dinner and wants her there so he doesn’t have to be alone. With all their normal babysitters there, Hank has to come as well.

With a hesitant nod, Savannah agrees. “Yeah, baby, we’re gonna help.”

Hank packs a bag to keep himself entertained under the helpful guide of his mother. He refuses the books she wants him to take and informs her moodily that he wants Hops’ books and not trucks. He can’t read the books at Hotch’s house but Savannah caves and decides that’s a problem for later. With his little bag on his back, he leads Savannah to the bathroom. Asks for the bandaids - stickers, he calls them - under the understanding that ouchies and fevers are the same as whatever is wrong with Hops and a bandaid will help. Savannah lets him take three. They’re just bandaids and it’s not a big deal.

His bandaids in one hand and his sippy cup in the other, Hank lets his mother put him in the car seat with no complaint. He’s forgotten his mother’s statement about not seeing Hotch and grows eager, excited as they take the familiar turns to get to Hotch’s house.

Derek meets them outside, his tension apparent to Savannah. He’s upset and she gets out, leaving Hank in the car out of earshot while they talk softly outside. Derek wipes his eyes of the tears trying to boil over, frustrated with himself for being upset and Savannah rubs his arm. Comforting him where he almost wishes she’d pressure him to pull himself together. She pulls him into a hug, holding him for a moment while he struggles to get a hold of his emotions. He’s scared and it hurts to see Hotch like this but he can’t and he won’t leave the team here alone. It isn’t fair and they could all use a little of Hank’s magic right now.

But Hank could care less about any of them.

He wants one person and one person only.

“Hank!”

Hank Morgan has had four-years to understand what everyone else around him leans blindly into. There is no need to knock, no shout in warning as he runs for the door of his favorite person in the whole world. His father can’t understand it, no one really can, but Hank loves Hotch. And after two weeks of missed Thursdays with no playing in the garden and napping to the sound of nature documentaries voiced by people with weird accents Hank is eager. He’s blind, he’s desperate and despite his father’s tone of voice he still fully expects to throw the front door open and find Hotch.

“Hank -” Derek tries to grab his son by the shoulders and stop his rapid pace towards the house. But even on baby legs the second he’s placed down on the ground, he’s running. Derek needs to give him a warning for what lies ahead but Hanks is on a roll with his excitement leading the pack. He slips right past his dad giving an excited little shout as he goes. It takes him a second to get up the steps, his legs too short to just run straight up them.

But Hotch isn’t standing at the front door.

Uncle Dave meets him instead on the other side of the door and cocks an eyebrow that’s humorous and light despite the way that the dimly lit living room strangles any chance at a good mood. “Where are you running off to short stack?” He’s not given a chance to answer as he’s lifted up, smothered in affections that he only pays half a mind.

Hank lets them kiss at his face. He limply goes into Spencer’s arms and just holds still while the genius squeezes the life out of him. Not even a single comment when Penelope has to brush tears from her eyes to accept him into her arms. He goes from person to person, answering their silly questions and sitting still with the understanding that he’ll end up with who he wants. He gets to Emily though and there is no Hops sitting beside her. No grumbling Hank has grown accustomed to hearing when the two of them are in the same room.

“Want Hops,” he tells Emily softly because if anyone can tell him where to find his rogue friend it’s Emily. In the way that he knows his mom is always with his dad, that Uncle Spence and Penny arrive in the same car, he knows that, typically, where Emily is there will eventually be a Hotch.

Emily smiles - a smile where her sadness is far better hidden than any of the others - and takes on a teasing tone. “Silly old Hops is taking a nap, ” she tells him with a shake of her head. She redirects him, hopes to distract him. “So, why don’t we go get a snack instead? Penny brought cookies and I think Hops has popsicles.” She kisses his forehead and stands, pulling him along with her. “What’re you thinking? Red popsicle?”

Hank turns over her shoulder, looking in the direction of the living room. He spots Hotch’s room, the door closed and the lights off. There he is, Hank knows. He’s in his room.

“Look—” Emily squeezes him, jerks his attention to the open freezer. “You want a squeeze?” She points to the box of GoGo squeez applesauce. The ones Hotch always keeps on hand for Hank. Typically, he can’t refuse them but Hank isn’t bothered with them. Emily sighs, “alright. Here, let me put you down. We’ll see what he has in the cabinets.” The second that Hank is on the ground he’s walking away. Leaving Emily in the kitchen trying to decide if these smiling gummies are half as good as they look.

Hank goes back to Hotch’s office, fingers trailing down the wall as he goes. He’s heading for the books he knows are for him on the lower shelf. He does take a moment to touch the covers of some of the larger books, ones he can only barely reach. Hotch steers him away from them but Hank likes their deep colors and their golden designs. It only makes him more curious as to what lies inside them. Mostly, he just wants to understand. That curiosity he has to know everything he can about the people around him. How his dad works with a hammer - he’s so strong it’s crazy. What Uncle Dave does with all the foods he puts in the pots and how it ends up tasting so good. And, more than anything else, what’s in these damn books.

Hank has his own shelf full of books that were once Jack’s and others that are a collection of books Hank has left here and ones that Hotch buys him when they go to bookstores. Hank decides on Dr. Seus a yellow book with fish - he has a hard time with the color yellow and as he pulls it down to take it to Hotch he’s excited to inform Hotch on it’s color. Though, he thinks it’s green.

It’s not hard to manage to get back to Hotch’s room, no one’s paying him any attention. Penelope is crying again and Savannah is rubbing Derek’s back, all of them listening to Dave talk somberly. They’re odd, Hank thinks, but that’s okay.

He pushes Hotch’s bedroom door open and is disheartened to find it so dark. No matter how many times Derek assures him there’s nothing in the dark and no matter how many times he’s taken a nap in this very room… he’s scared. Hesitantly, Hank steps into the dark back still close to safety. “Hops?” he asks softly. He can see something move on the bed, the hiss of something softly trailing through the room. Something beeps and it makes him jump and Hank bolts for the side of the bed. Running blindly to the side he thinks Hotch is at.

“Hops,” Hank frantically sweeps his arm over the side. He’s just a little too small to make it up the side by himself but he tries frantically. “Up Hops.”

Hotch coughs, squinting into the dark. He’d heard the door open - removed from himself in a distinctly drugged kind of way. In the back of his mind, the seemingly only alert part of him, assumed it was Dave back with more pills to swallow. Tiny fingers grab his wrist and Hank’s pleading, his fear, cuts through the fog idly. Hotch is pleasantly surprised to find Hank - afterall, he’d been more alert this morning enough to try and fight Dave over his typical day. Dave had been right though, Hotch isn’t well enough to watch after a toddler. Hank hits his side and the world brightens, pulled to focus by sharp pain that steals his breath.

“Please,” Hank cries. “Hops?”

Hotch can’t pull himself upright but he can vaguely make out Hank by his side. Little fingers holding onto the blanket. “Easy, ” Hotch whispers. He offers Hank his hand, grunting when the toddler quickly attaches himself to it. He’s sniffling, still crying as he grunts and struggles to climb up the side of Hotch's bed. His legs are a little too short but he makes up for it with determination. “Almost there, ” Hotch praises, moving his hand and giving the back of Hank’s pants a little pull to get him the rest of the way up.

Hank melts straight into him. Pushing his face into Hotch’s side and holding him, both arms around Hotch’s chest and holding tight. Hotch places his hand on Hank's back, rubbing it until his little sobs die down. “What are you crying for?” Hotch holds him close, ignoring the dull ache across his chest. After being stuck in this room, drugged and laying in the dark, he needs all the help he can get. He needs Hank with all his little questions and his snacks.

Hank calms down, sniffling sadly as he pops back up and rubs at his eyes. He looks down at Hotch, taking in this new situation. There’s a tube snaking around him and Hank can’t tell where it goes in or if it does but he frowns because he knows it must hurt and he doesn’t like that. Even the canal running Hotch’s nose. Gently Hank leans forward and touches it, frowning. “Hurts?”

Hotch shakes his head, “no. It doesn’t hurt.”

With a grunt, Hank adamantly accepts this. Hotch doesn’t lie so Hank trusts him but… it looks like it hurts. Hank leans against Hotch’s chest, curled up facing him. “You takin’ nap?” Hank asks.

Hotch nods his head, “something like that…” He keeps one hand on Hank, keeping the boy from getting too excited and rolling off the bed. Hank settles down close to him, scooting as close as he can. Half sitting on Hotch’s left side facing him. Hotch reaches up, ignoring the pull of his muscles, to place his palm to Hank’s face. “You gonna lay down with me?”

Hank grins and shakes his head. “Nuh-uh!” He pulls out his book, setting it down on Hotch’s chest. He scoots himself along the side of the bed, all clumsy baby movements, until he can move Hotch’s arm around him and lean against Hotch’s side. Putting his back against Hotch and laying his head on Hotch’s shoulder. Pulling his hand around him and into his lap. “Read?” he asks, cracking the book open and showing Hotch the page.

He hasn’t got a lot of energy, feels himself slipping with the simple strain of talking and watching Hank move in the dark of the room. He’s ashamed to admit, to even think, that he can’t sit up and hunt down his reading glasses and get through a simple children's book. Not even with Hank twisting around to look up at him like that. “You know the words, buddy.” Hotch has read it to him so many times and Derek even more. He gets a kick out of saying the words before them, and knows what each page says. “Why don't you read it to me?”

Hank frowns, looking at the book, and back at Hotch. He wants to read the book but he doesn’t know how. “You’ll help?”

Hotch smiles and nods, “of course I will.”

Hank settles back down and opens the book. The room isn’t really bright enough but Hank can see the page well enough. He skips the first page. There are big words and not enough pictures. “One fish,” Hank touches each fish as he goes. “Two fishes. Red fish and blue fish.” He looks back to Hotch and he nods, he’s right. “Black fish and blue fish and old fish and baby fish and green--”

“Yellow,” Hotch corrects softly. It’s not important that he’s getting the words wrong so much as the color. “It’s a yellow fish, see?”

Hank nods and repeats after Hotch. “Yellow fish and fish with a car.” He flips the page and lays his head down on Hotch’s side, curling up closer. He sits up, “can I have blankets?”

Hotch nods and Hank cheers softly and sits up. It takes him a moment but he scurries down beside Hotch, tugging the blanket up around him. “Comfortable,” Hotch asks and Hank frowns, trying to figure that out. It takes him another moment and Hank knows what it is - he sits up and pulls Hotch’s arm around him. Letting him lean back and he nods. It makes Hotch laugh a little, smirking. “Good.”

Hank lays his head back down on Hotch’s side and opens the book.

Derek finds them ten minutes later. Hank is just looking at the pictures, humming softly to himself as he traces the fish with his finger. Hotch is asleep, breathing not sounding any better than it had before but the room feels brighter. Things not so dense.

"I wondered where you ran off to," Derek whispers as he steps in.

Hank looks up from his book, "found Hops."

Derek nods, "yeah, I see that." He won't move Hank just yet. It's as calm as Hotch has been since he came home and Hank is being good. It keeps both trouble makers out of everyone's hair. "Will you watch him for me?" Derek asks playfully. "Seems like you're doing a good job."

Hank nods, attention going back to his book. "Yeah, I'm watchin'."

Derek leans over the bed and kisses Hank's head. Stopping for a moment and just looking at Hotch. His face pale and his breathing still not right.

"Hops is okay, daddy."

Derek clears his throat and nods. As he's walking out he hears Hank start the book over. His soft voice reading out, "one fish, two fish--"

[xxreader-writerxx]

OMG ur requests are open! Okay...so can u do a Harry Potter×fem!reader where Harry is readers best friend. She is maintaining a secret diary and Harry once finds it hidden *u put the place*. He thinks to tease u and flips the pages finding his name over pages to Find out u have been in love with him. HE ISNT SURE WHAT HE FEELS THO. He kinda likes u as well but maybe he wants to keep u safe or something. Or maybe he fancies Ginny and prefers u as his best friend.

I would keep it ur amazing imagination and ur talented writing.

PLEAAAASEEE CAN U DO THIS ONE!?

Also.. stay safe,stay happy!

Don't Read Diaries- Or Do.

Word count: 1k

Harry Potter x Fem Reader

Warnings: Angsty, Manipulation (Ginny's doing), Miscommunication, (Happy Ending), mini food fight. (tell me if I missed anything)

A/n: Omg first Request! This was pretty fun to write... I might've slipped an Easter Egg of myself in it- What I'm a narcissist/j I love Ginny to death I just made her mean to add plot convenience

Y/N= Your Name L/N= Your Last Name Y/H= Your House

Requests! Open!

(I'll write about anyone from Harry Potter! I'm desperate for ideas lol)

I walk out to the school courtyard, bag in hand searching for a place to sit. I see Harry, Hermione, and Ron laughing on one of the benches. Hermione sees me and waves me over. "Hey guys!" I greet and Harry pulls me in for a side hug. "Your out of Snape's class finally." He laughs and I feel my face warm from how close we are.

***

We spent the day roaming the castle and now, here I am, in the library writing in my diary. I'm doodling Harry's name like some sappy teen romcom but for some reason its therapeutic after a long day. I hear rustling behind me and I shove the diary into the hidden compartment quickly.

"Oh hey Y/n/n." Ginny greets smiling. "Hey Gin." I laugh out, flustered from the fear of getting caught. "Watcha up to?" She asks and I grab a book quickly. "Looking for a book to study. Luckily I just found it." I lie and she looks at the book I'm holding. "What does 'The History of Pygmy Puffs' have to do with any of your classes?" She asks and I start packing it in my bag quickly. "Pop quiz ya know how those go." I breathe.

Harry's POV:

I'm doing homework in my dorm when I hear someone banging on the door. I open it to find Ginny holding a book looking like she's about to burst. "What?" I ask and she giggles. "You won't believe... what I found." She coughs out. She hands me the book and I flip through it. "T-this is Y/n's handwriting..." I stutter and she nods looking like she heard the funniest joke. "A-And this is her writing my name all over the pages..." I continue, a blush forming on my cheeks.

"Well it might not be your name." She says quickly. "Well who else has a H in their name that she knows? That's age appropriate of course." I ask and she thinks. "Well it doesn't have to be a name.... It could be Hufflepuff! Like that one guy Perri in Hufflepuff!" She states and I look at it confused. "Who would do that?" I ask and she shrugs. "I did hear her talking about a guy named Perri a few days ago!" She states and I look at the book upset.

"Take this back. You shouldn't take her things." I tell her angrily. "What's wrong?" She asks and I shrug. "Dunno. Can you bring it back now? I don't want her to get scared that her stuffs gone." I say and she shrugs leaving.

Y/n's POV:

I go to breakfast and see my friend group. I go to sit next to Harry but he moves in the way. "Can you sit with someone else today? I'm saving this seat for someone." He mutters and Hermione hits his arm. "Harry!" She gasps. He shrugs it off, staring at his plate. I nod slowly, backing away. "Yeah no problem. See you in class..." I mumble, walking over to another part of the table.

"Hey Y/n!" I hear Ginny chirp. I wave sadly. "What's wrong?" She asks and I groan, plucking my food sadly. "I think Harry's mad at me..." I whisper and she puts her hand on mine. "No! No... He's just processing." She tells me and I perk up confused. "Processing what?" I ask and her eyes widen. "Y-You don't know? I'd think he'd talk to you about it." She tells me and I cock my head. "He... Found your diary..." She says, looking bashful. "Oh..." I say quietly, holding back my tears.

For some reason I get angry. Why didn't he talk to me? Is it so bad I might fancy him? I get up, walking over angrily. "HEY POTTER." I half-yell, getting a small group of peoples attention. "Yes?" He asks annoyed and I grab his goblet of pumpkin juice. "Next time reject the girl instead of acting as if she did something wrong." I say after pouring juice over his head. He gets up angrily and grabs Ron's juice, having Ron whine with his mouth full. "Excuse me?" He asks. "You heard me." I answer defiantly.

"Aren't you going to stop this!?" Ron asks the three older years nearby, two being his older twin brothers. "Nope." Becca, Fred, and George respond. "This is too entertaining Ronniekins." Becca states, leaning back as the twins nod.

He pours his glass over my head and I gasp. "Well you shouldn't write in your diary so confusing and reject you? That's not my job! It's Perri's from Hufflepuff. Who writes like that?!" He spits back and I furrow my eyebrows. I grab a hard boiled egg and crack it over his head. "Well you shouldn't have read my diary! And who the bloody hell is Perri!?" I yell back.

He looks over at Ginny who looks horrified. "Your crush in Hufflepuff! The one I confused for myself." He replies, pouring his now cold oatmeal on my head. "What the bloody hell do you mean?! You're my crush Harry fricking Potter!" I yell back, pouring an unwilling Ron's applesauce on his head. "You like me!?" He asks and I nod angrily. "You like me?" He asks and I nod again. "Well why didn't you bloody say that?!" He asks, pulling me in for a messy kiss, I could taste the applesauce dripping from his hair that seeped down to his lips in the kiss. His hands tangled in my oatmeal-covered hair as I hold his face lightly.

We finally separate and I giggle. "What?" He asks smiling a goofy smile. "Perri from Hufflepuff? Are you an idiot Harry Potter?" I ask and he chuckles, placing his forehead against mine. "Only for you." He whispers and I feel my face heat up. He wipes his finger across my cheek and tastes the oatmeal. "I think you owe me a breakfast.... I think there's a good place at Hogsmeade." He tells me and I bite my lip. "Can I invite my friend Perri?" I ask and he laughs, throwing his head back.

"You owe me a breakfast too ya know." A very sad Ron states, Hermione smacking his arm in response. "Sorry Ronnie..." I giggle.

[xpeachesncream]

a drabble for miss perfectly wrong about y/n surprising tae after coming back from a trip with the gang? and like he can't keep his hands away cause he just misses y/n so much 🥺 super fluffy please? take your time with it also! thanks love, xo 💜

perfectly wrong | drabble [7]: when two long weeks apart finally comes to an end.

word count: 1.7k

warnings: not much besides cussing, implied sexual content, tried to make this as fluffy as possible! i hope you enjoy 🥺

Just a few more hours.

You hurriedly gathered your things and packed them into the trunk of your car, speeding off to Taehyung's apartment. It had been a very, very long two weeks, spent all by your lonesome. Taehyung had gone off to Japan with Jimin and Namjoon, another one of their plans that they had solidified awhile ago. The time difference wasn't so bad, but you were honestly so tired of waiting up just to hear from him, or pulling yourself together so you wouldn't go to sleep too early. Part of you really wanted him to enjoy his trip, away from his phone and other distractions since you knew he had been looking forward to it for a really long time. But, you couldn't help it. You just missed the fuck out of him and you needed him to come back asap.

And for the record, Taehyung did enjoy his trip. He had a lot of fucking fun, roaming around and meeting new people. He's even had his fair share of women trying to get up on him at the night clubs/bars, but he wasn't having it whatsoever. He'd easily block himself or shove his friends in the way because they weren't you and those moments made him miss your presence even more. He always wanted you around him, and it's times like that that made him wish he could touch you, hug you, kiss you, show you off. Bask in these moments with you. But, he knew he had time - you both had forever to go, and he was only looking forward to the days where he could travel with you and bring you everywhere with him.

With that being said, he couldn't wait to fucking see you and just hug you. Feel you against his body. He really, really missed you. But he hates knowing he has to wait another day or so because you had told him you left the city to attend some culinary & food convention with Jin. The specific details, he had no idea. He just knew you weren't around and it bummed him the hell out. He didn't press on for more details, moreso because he was just tired from the flight and from the trip itself.

[start flashback of phone call]

"You're finally coming home!"

"I know." He chuckles. "But you're leaving? What time will you be back?"

"I'm sorry, baby. I totally forgot about the convention. I'll be back tomorrow evening."

"Tomorrow evening?" He sighs and pouts over the phone. "But, I really miss you."

"Aw." You chuckle. "I really miss you, too. I told Jin I'd go since his friend bailed out."

"It's alright, you should accompany hyung." He says softly.

"Cheer up, okay? Have fun for the rest of your time there, I promise it won't be long before we see each other."

[end flashback of phone call]

Tae, Jimin and Namjoon all get picked up by one of their other friends and they head straight to dinner before heading home.

"Taehyungie, where's Y/N?"

"She's with Jin hyung at some culinary convention in the next town over." He pokes his food.

"Aw, look who misses her." Namjoon teased.

"Fuck off, it's been two weeks." Taehyung pouts, not even giving one damn about how he looks in front of his friends right now.

"Taehyungie is in looooove." His other friend teased. "Isn't that some shit? Never thought I'd be saying that any time soon."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Tae shakes his head and rolls his eyes. They can call it whatever the fuck they want, but you were his baby and he was the happiest he had ever been. Of course he loved you. Of course he missed you. Seeing you and feeling your touch is the one thing that pushes him through his days.

Taehyung isn't really in a rush to get home knowing he'd come home to an empty, lonely space, but he was also yearning for his bed. As he's making his way up to his apartment, he digs out his phone to give you a call, hoping maybe you would have came back early. But, he gets no response and the loneliness further kicks in.

Damn, he just wanted his girlfriend. Was that too much to ask for?!

He unlocks the door, sighing heavily at the dark, cold, empty living room. He rolls his luggage in, gently pushing it aside against the wall before throwing off his long puffer jacket and grabbing a cold water bottle. He takes a few gulps before he's just standing there, admiring your photo as his lock screen. Lord, was he in love.

When he slowly opens the door to his room, his eyes widen and his jaw drops. You, in the flesh, were sitting on his bed all cutely, legs criss-crossed applesauce with your arms up in a V shape. A small "Welcome Home" banner draped the headboard, with a few balloons scattered across the ceiling and plastic tea lights scattered around you on the bed.

"Ohhhhh, shit." He says, chuckling to himself since he doesn't know how to act with how surprised he is.

"Welcome home, love!" You giggle as you hop off the bed, straight into his arms. He hugged you tightly, the scent of your hair filling his nose. He's so fucking happy right now, he could honestly cry. He holds you close to swing you around once, causing you to squeal into his chest before he puts you down.

"Baby." Is all he says when you pull away to look at him. He gently caresses your cheek, smiling from ear to ear before kissing you on the lips. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too."

"I thought you were gonna be gone."

"No. I tricked ya." You pull away to walk towards the bed, but he gently grabs your wrist to pull you back to him. His hands are feeling up your entire body before they rest on your cheeks to cup them as he's planting a kiss on your forehead and nose. "Why don't you get into comfier clothes so we can cuddle?" You giggle. He silently nods and makes his way to his closet to grab some clothes he can change into, but before he could make his way to the bathroom, he's back to holding you close and kissing your cheek. "Babe." You softly squeal.

"I'm sorry, I just haven't gotten to do this for awhile." He chuckles before running off to the bathroom to get changed and washed up.  Next thing you know, he's waddling over to the bed and tossing his arms around you, tightly holding you. He smells of baby powder, which honestly is the cutest thing. Every move you make, he tries to be right there - needing to touch you, hold you, play with your fingers, anything.

"You're a baby." You playfully joked. "What is up with you?"

"Mmmm." He whines as he sits up against the headboard and pulls you close by throwing his arm around your shoulder. He gently lifts your chin to meet your lips, slowly kissing you and taking you in. You wrap your arm around his torso, your leg draped over his to be as close as possible. "My pretty girl." He smiles down at you, completely smitten and in love with all your unique features. "I had fun on the trip but I really wished you were there."

"Yeah? Tell me all about it."

"We walked so fucking much. Ate so much." He tapped his tummy. "The food was so good though."

"Sounds like." You poked his tummy, feeling him flex his abs every time your finger made contact.

"I think I came home with more things for you than myself." You smiled. You didn't even ask him to buy you anything. The fact that he was still thinking about you and buying things for you on a trip he had been excited to experience for himself - what did you do to deserve Taehyung? You had no idea. It hadn't been an easy ride but you wouldn't have it any other way.

"Seriously?" You chuckled.

"Yeah. I found a lot of things I thought you'd like. I even got you a reusable bag with Shiba Inu's printed all over it." He wiggled his eyebrows, knowing how much you bag on him for not buying reusable bags to use for groceries or other things.

"You're so cute." His hands are caressing your arm, laying another gentle kiss on the side of your mouth.

"We took the train everywhere, visited Namjoon's friends off in the countryside and stayed there for two days. Got really fucking wasted, Jimin was outside yacking."

"Poor guy."

"He's alive, right?" You laugh, playfully hitting him on the chest. "Went to the club and bars with Namjoon's friends. It was a good time."

"Lots of ladies flocking you, ey?"

"Yeah but what does that matter if it isn't my lady right here?" He gently boops your nose. You follow suit and boop the mole on his nose, one of your favorite things to do since it became one of the many features you loved about Taehyung. "We did a lot of shopping. Took a lot of pictures. Jimin will probably upload our pics and videos to a drive and I can share it with you once it's up." You nod. "I wanna share these things with you if you can't be there physically with me."

"It sounds like you had a really good time though, and I'm happy you did."

"I did. But," He looks down at you, his finger tracing your jawline. "I wanna do these things with you."

"We will. Once school is over." You chuckle.

"I really mean it." He says, ever so seriously [sweetly]. "I wanna take you to places you've never been to before, or places we've never been to before. I wanna be the person that takes you there." His plump lips softly press against your forehead. "I can't wait to be able to do that. I can't wait to wake up in a new place with you, have good fucking sex in a hotel room, roam around, take pictures of you, videos of you." You giggled. "I just.. can't wait to do everything with you, love."

"Sounds just like my type of trip."

"I couldn't agree more." He chuckled before swooping you into his arms to bring you out into the living room. "K, come on. I need to show you what I got you." He says happily.

[naughtyneganjdm]

The Savior - Chapter 35 (End)

Summary: Negan and Y/N settle into a life of peace and happiness while being together with their family after all the obstacles they overcame to be together.

Characters: Negan, Reader (OC), Asher, Sherry, etc.

Warnings: Swearing & Fluff

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11995341/chapters/70485267

Notes: This is the ending of the story. I just want to thank everyone so much for reading it. I have such a hard time saying goodbye to things and truthfully this was my favorite Negan that I wrote. So ending this was incredibly hard for me. I hope you enjoyed this story. I also want to thank @queenwinterz​ @abadamn​ & @insertneganhere​ for helping me create a name for a character in this. 

Three Years Later

Stretching out in the comfort of her bed, Y/N let out a big yawn and felt the rays of the sunshine filtering through the blinds that covered the windows to her bedroom with Negan. It felt like for the first time in a very long time she was able to have a very solid night of sleep where she woke up feeling completely refreshed.

An uncontrollable smile pressed in over her lips when she thought about life. If someone would have asked her years ago if she would have seen herself actually waking up happy…she would have told them they were crazy, but Y/N appreciated life. She loved the people in her life and cherished every moment she had.  

Slowly rolling onto her side, she expected to find Negan beside her, but let out a confused breath when she discovered him missing from his spot. Reaching out she caressed her hand in over the side of his bed. The bed beside her was cold and told her that he had been gone for a while. How did she sleep through that? These days with having a toddler, it was pretty hard for her to sleep through anything.

Looking over her shoulder at the clock on her side of the bed, she could see that it was hours after she would normally wake up and a shocked breath fell from her throat. Sitting up in bed, she pulled the sheets with her and reached for her phone. How did she sleep through all of her alarms like this?

Looking through her phone she saw that her alarms were turned off and assumed that meant that Negan turned them off for her while she was sleeping. She must have really been out cold for her not to notice that.

“Shit,” she cussed to herself, getting up from the bed and getting her clothes on for the day. She did it rather quickly knowing there were so many things she had to get done before going to class today.

When she made it downstairs, she heard laughing and giggling in the kitchen making a smile immediately develop over her face. Heading toward the kitchen, she stopped in the entrance way to see Negan feeding their daughter her breakfast at the table. Negan was making silly sounds and doing dramatic faces in order to get her to eat her food. The overdramatic motions made Y/N laugh and it drew both Negan and her daughter’s attention to her.

“Good morning mama,” Negan boasted with an over-the-top, happy smile, “Charlie and I were wondering when you were going to wake up.”

“Morning mama,” Charlie waved to Y/N from her seat before reaching for the spoon that Negan had been using to feed her. Charlie raised the spoon up to Negan and giggled when Negan groaned. “Eat.”

“Charlotte Rose, daddy is not hungry. This is your food,” Negan responded with a snort when she lifted the spoon up further and he opened his mouth to accept the applesauce that she was offering him. “Mmm…that’s good.”

“More,” Charlie got another spoonful and Negan let out a small huff as she raised it to his lips again and he took another bite. “Good daddy.”

“Thank you, sweetheart,” Negan snickered when Y/N moved into the kitchen to press a loving kiss over Charlie’s temple before moving to Negan to lean in to meet his lips in a tender caress. The sound of Negan humming was heard when she pulled away and a big smile flooded Negan’s face. “Good morning to you too.”

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Y/N questioned while moving toward the fridge to get things ready for everyone’s lunch today. Opening the fridge, she saw that there were already things on the shelves packed and she looked over her shoulder at Negan who was watching her. “You already made the lunches.”

“Well I am a good daddy sweetheart. I know how to make lunch for my girls and my little man,” Negan reminded her with a bit of a shrug. A gasp fell from Negan’s throat when he felt the splash of some of the applesauce across the side of his face making Y/N snort when she realized Charlie flung her food at Negan. “Charlie.”

“Oops,” Charlie’s smile looked almost exactly like Negan’s when he was getting in trouble. Her dimples sucked in and her bright green hazel-eyes were extremely mischievous.

“Oops? Oops?” Negan laughed watching his daughter burst out in laughter and reached out to begin to tickle at her sides. Y/N couldn’t help but laugh while she watched the two of them playing together. The way Negan could make their daughter laugh with such delight made Y/N realize every day why she fell in love with Negan over and over again. Charlie’s laughter grew when Negan started to pepper kisses over her face and Charlie grabbed a tight hold of Negan’s hair. “I’m gonna get you.”

“No…daddy…no…” she continued to giggle and Negan pulled back enough to stare out at her with an amused expression. After a minute she reached out to him again clearly wanting him to tickle her again making him laugh out loud.

“Oh, so you actually like that, huh?” Negan repeated his earlier movements in pressing kisses over his daughter’s face while tickling her and he absolutely loved waking up every day to be with his kids and wife. It was the little moments like these that were special to him and he never knew he could love something like he did his children. The giggles from his daughter and Y/N filled the air making Negan honestly the happiest man on Earth. “I love you so much baby girl.”

“I love you,” Charlie’s little voice filled the air and Y/N watched her daughter cup the sides of Negan’s face to play with the short beard over his face. Stilling himself, Negan allowed his daughter to look over his face and he always found himself impressed with how perceptive she was of everything.

“You are so beautiful,” Negan muttered in awe of his daughter making her smile widely. “Mommy and daddy are so lucky to have you.”

“Thank you,” Charlie responded with a tiny laugh. Reaching for her spoon, she handed it back to Negan to continue to feed her breakfast to her. “Hungry.”

“Daddy looks hungry too,” Y/N grabbed a napkin and moved in beside Negan. Sliding her palm in underneath his chiseled jaw, she made him look up at her while she wiped the applesauce from his face. “He needs to be not so messy when he eats.”

“Daddy’s messy,” Charlie muttered making Negan snort when she said it. “Very messy.”

“Daddy is the cleanest one in the house,” he grunted, reaching out to tickle at Y/N’s ribs and she stumbled back away from him with a laugh. “I think mommy is ticklish Charlie. What about you?”

“Very!” Charlie nodded with an amused breath, reaching for the spoon to try and get Negan to feed her again. “Please?”

“Aw, anything for you baby girl. You are so sweet,” Negan pressed a big kiss against Charlie’s cheek and it caused her to giggle when he did it. “You remind me so much of your mama. You know that? You’re so sweet and adorable.”

“But she reminds me so much of you when she’s cranky,” Y/N spoke up with a smile and Negan released an amused breath. “Pretty sure the reason she keeps saying the s-word is because of you.”

“Oh, undoubtedly. It’s my kid, she’s going to swear,” Negan agreed with her before making a silly noise when he went to feed Charlie again. “Although, I do think when she’s grumpy there is a little bit of you in there.”

“The cute bit?” she teased and Negan laughed at her response.

“Yes, the cute bit,” Negan shrugged his shoulders, accepting defeat in that situation because Y/N got one of up on him with that.

“I’m going to gather all my work for classes,” Y/N stepped forward to press another kiss over Charlie’s forehead before moving back. “I left it all over the desk last night after I was done working.”

“Honey,” Negan called out when she headed for the entrance of the kitchen to go pick up her things for her classes. When she gave him her attention again, Negan nodded toward the corner of the room to show that her bag was already sitting on the chair. “I already put everything away for you this morning.”

“Wow,” she paused finding herself confused at what to do now that Negan had everything done. “What am I supposed to do? You’ve done it all by letting me sleep in.”

“Relax,” Negan suggested nodding his head to the seat that was across from him by Charlie at the table. “Daddy and Charlie let mama sleep so she could relax for once. That was the whole point. I was going to let you sleep until you had to be ready for classes. Daddy can handle lots of things you know. He likes taking care of his family.”

“You’re incredible,” Y/N moved in beside Negan to brush her fingers through his thick hair. Lowering, she pressed a kiss over his head and moved to the seat that was beside Charlie. “What would we do without you?”

“Now that’s a situation I never want to imagine,” Negan made a gasping noise when he brought the spoon to Charlie’s mouth again. “Isn’t that right baby?”

“Right,” Charlie repeated what Negan said and Y/N found herself smiling over how innocent their daughter was. She’d probably go with whatever Negan said. She was definitely a daddy’s little girl and that was obvious. When Negan brought another spoonful of food to her lips, she happily accepted. “Thank you, daddy.”

“You’re welcome baby girl,” Negan winked and continued to scoop together the rest of her breakfast. “With the plans for today honey, I’m going to take her to practice with me and then when you are done with classes, you will come and pick her up, right?”

“Absolutely,” Y/N reached out to brush her fingers through Charlie’s hair, admiring her daughter’s dimples when she smiled and looked back at Negan. “Are you sure they are okay with you bringing her to work? We could always find someone to watch her on the days I have classes.”

“Are you kidding me? Everyone loves her,” Negan responded with an overdramatic sound while setting the spoon in the empty bowl after they finished up the applesauce. Negan reached out to grab at Charlie’s hands, wiggling them while he played with her. “They just think she’s the cutest, don’t they?”

“Well, they aren’t wrong,” Y/N stated watching Negan playing with their daughter and she felt like the luckiest woman alive. He was so good with their children and it made her happy seeing him interacting with them. It was clear that the thing Negan loved the most in the world was being a father. “She is the cutest.”

“That is absolutely the truth,” Negan reached out to pull Charlie into his arms and Y/N scoot forward to play with Charlie.

“I just don’t want you to get in trouble for bringing her to work,” she muttered while Negan bounced Charlie on his knee and Y/N played with Charlie’s hands.

“Are you kidding me? She’s like a magnet to everyone I work with. On the days I do bring her people are coming to see her and bringing her things,” Negan informed her, the bridge of his nose wrinkling when he thought about all the times he had brought Charlie with him in the past. “They fucking love her. Well except some of the boys. When daddy gets mad that they are doing bad, Charlie does a killer spot on impression of her father angry. She may not be able to say what I’m saying, but the glare…that glare gets their asses in gear.”

“Negan,” Y/N raised her eyes to his and couldn’t help laughing. Negan never pretended to try to be someone else with his mouth, but she really couldn’t judge him. He was an incredible man and she couldn’t have asked for a better husband or father to her children.

“I’m only speaking the truth,” Negan reminded her with a cock of his head before leaning down to press a kiss against the side of Charlie’s cheek. “I just put her in the toddler carrier that straps to my chest and she likes the front row seat. Baby girl is going to be heavily into sports. She already is.”

“I think she’s just into whatever her daddy likes, isn’t that right?” Y/N spoke in a higher voice while talking to Charlie and she could hear Charlie laugh.

“Yeah,” Charlie squealed with delight when both her parents kissed at her cheeks making her fall back into Negan’s chest while he held onto her. “I love you.”

“We love you too sweetheart,” Y/N answered, reaching out to stroke over the side of Charlie’s face. Thinking back to when she was pregnant, Y/N had been so scared and worried about how life was going to be, but it was all for nothing in the end. There was no reason for her to really worry. They made everything work and it was easier than she ever pictured it being. They were happy. All of them and it was everything she could have hoped for and more.

“Oh, you also don’t have to pick Asher up after school today. Sherry is getting him so she can take him to lunch,” Negan informed her and Y/N let out a saddened breath. “What?”

“Well if I would have known that, I would have woken up to see him Negan,” she frowned at the news he gave her and he snickered. “Seriously. I would have rather seen Asher this morning to say goodbye. I feel bad now.”

“Baby, he’s going to be with us after dinner,” Negan pointed out, amused with her disappointment in not getting to say goodbye to Asher when Negan took him to school this morning. “You were so exhausted. You worked all night on your work for your classes. The kids and I could see it. Asher especially could see it. When I suggested us letting you sleep in, he was behind it. Sometimes you need to get some rest babe so you can continue to be the best mama possible to these rascals.”

“I just feel bad waking up late,” she sighed, brushing Charlie’s hair out of her face. “I worry it makes me a bad mother.”

“Well daddy woke you up early during the middle of the night, so if you want to blame him…that’s fine,” a wicked smirk pressed in over Negan’s features and she rolled her eyes at his comment. It made her cheeks flush over and Negan snorted when she reacted to his bluntness. “Seriously babe, it’s okay. You need to sleep sometimes too.”

“I know, I just like to see the kids every morning,” she informed him and Negan reached out with his right hand after securely wrapping his arm around Charlie to keep her safe. Stroking the side of Y/N’s face, Negan was in awe of his wife and how sweet she was. “I want them to know I love them.”

“They both know. If they didn’t, the thousand times a day you tell them probably reminds them,” Negan grinned, his eyes hooked on hers while thinking about their family. “If there is one thing these kids know, it’s that they are loved. There is never going to be a doubt in that.”

“Alright. So, I’ll get my classes done and come pick up Charlie,” Y/N lowered her gaze to see that Charlie was tracing her fingers over Negan’s arm where his tattoos were. Tilting her head to the side, Y/N saw that she was playing with the rose tattoo that he had on his arm. Originally it was dedicated to Y/N, but after they had their daughter and decided to name her Charlotte Rose, Negan added her name in there too. After having Charlie, Negan had gotten multiple tattoos in dedication to their daughter as well as a few on his body for Asher. It was odd, but his way of expressing his love was through his tattoos and at first when Y/N was young, she didn’t get it, but now she thought it was sweet. By now she had a few herself, but never got something quite as extensive as Negan did. “After that Charlie and I will get dinner ready for when you get home after practice.”

“Sounds good baby,” Negan slowly stood from the chair and pulled Charlie with him. “We’ll miss you.”

“Mmm, I always miss the both of you when I’m not with you,” she hummed when Negan leaned down enough to meet her lips in a kiss. Drawing out the kiss, she reached for Charlie from Negan’s arms and pulled her daughter close to her chest. “Just one suggestion before you go to work sweetheart…”

“What’s that?” Negan’s eyebrow arched in curiosity as she lowered her finger to point at Negan’s shirt that he was wearing.

“She didn’t just get your face with the applesauce,” Y/N finally spotted the food that their daughter had managed to splatter across Negan’s shirt. “You should probably get that.”

“Oh,” Negan reached for the bottom of his shirt and pulled the material from his slender body. “Thanks for telling me that before we took Honey and Bear for a walk.”

“What? You don’t want the dogs knocking you over?” Y/N heard one of the collars jangle from the living room when Negan had said the dogs’ names.

“Hey there Bear,” Negan lowered down to his knees when one of their German Shepherds came into the kitchen to be with them. Kneeling down, Negan reached to pet over the dog’s ears and leaned in to press a big kiss over its head. “You have no idea how ridiculous I feel saying honey bear all the time. I wish Asher would have come up with something not so…”

“Sweet?” Y/N cut Negan off mid-sentence and she felt Charlie reaching her hands out toward Bear. Lowering down with Negan, Y/N let Charlie stand on her feet before Charlie moved across to wrap her arms around their dog to give it a hug. They were very lucky that they had two incredibly good dogs that Negan seemed to also train amazingly. Before the baby was born, Asher had begged for a dog so naturally when they had gone to pick one out, they had come back with two when the owner mentioned people not wanting the runt. Bear was that runt. Negan was always one for a sob story, but it was nice to have two loving dogs that were ridiculously protective and loving of their children. “I think he heard you call me that once and he got the idea from you.”

“Yeah, but it should be something like Maximus and Apollo,” Negan rambled waving his hand in the air while the other still pet Bear. “But nah, every morning I’m standing at the back door calling for Honey Bear when we have two German Shepherds.”

“I like it,” Charlie lifted her head to give her father a pout. “Bear and Honey.”

“You tell him,” Y/N playfully cheered on her daughter while reaching out to wrap her arms around Charlie’s little waist. “Where is Honey?”

“I imagine sleeping on the couch,” Negan popped his head out of the kitchen to look on the couch to see their other dog’s head immediately lift when Negan saw it laying on the couch. “Yup, eating up the couch space. You lazy goof.”

Following Negan out of the kitchen and toward the laundry room with Charlie in Y/N’s arm, Y/N knew even though they had gotten used to this schedule it was always hard for her to leave Charlie to go to classes. Sighing, she leaned against the doorframe and felt Bear sit at her side while Negan searched for a shirt from the dryer.

“I hate leaving you guys,” she muttered hearing Charlie talking to the dog in words that she couldn’t quite put together yet, but it was cute hearing her interact with Bear out of excitement.

“Of course we hate being apart, but mama has to finish her classes so she can be happy and do the things she has always wanted while the family is here to back her with everything she does,” Negan lifted his head enough to give her a bright smile. “And we’re all very proud of you.”

“Aw, you’re sweet,” she sighed while he pulled a quick t-shirt on. “I love you; you know that?”

“Mmmm…the feeling is mutual sweetheart,” Negan hummed and moved in to give her another kiss before reaching for Charlie from her arms. “Baby girl and I need to walk the pups before I go to work and you need to get ready for class.”

“I know,” Y/N frowned while giving her daughter one last kiss goodbye. “I will see the both of you in a bit. I love you both.”

“We love you too mama,” Negan winked and followed her through the house while she gathered her things. When she left, Negan and Charlie stood at the door waving goodbye to her. She felt like the luckiest woman in the world having a family she loved and they loved her too.

Never in her life did she think she would be this happy and love someone as much as she did, but she did. Life was good and she was happier than she could have pictured herself being.

----

After finishing her classes, Y/N moved through the hallways of the college that both her and Negan were at. Since Negan was a professor at the college, it only made sense that she would take classes there as well which turned out helping them in the long run. It was easier to run a family like that. Being in the same place at once always made things easier for them. It was also nice being in school here because while she had friends, no one really gave a shit that she was married to the coach. Then again, here…people didn’t know them so they weren’t caught up in the drama of it.

When people back home had found out that they were married, they heard about the rumors that people had thrown around, but they didn’t care. They were gone and threw everyone from that point in their life out of it. Other than Simon of course. He had always been in their corner and always would be. Negan had made Simon the godfather to Charlie and Simon took the title seriously. Often, he would make trips with his family to come and see them so he was one person they welcomed back with open arms.

At one point when Charlie was born, Y/N’s mother had contacted her to try to ask to meet Charlie. It had led to her mother coming out with Y/N’s father unexpectedly to meet Charlie. Of course, it led to a huge lecture from her parents and her father got very lippy. Negan could only take so much of it before interjecting himself and since that day she had never seen her father again, but it was something she was completely okay with. She still allowed her mother to come and see Charlie, but her father wasn’t allowed at the house for obvious reasons and Y/N’s mother learned to accept them. While her father was a complete asshole that she had written out of her life, Y/N decided to give her mother a chance much like Negan had done with his.

Getting outside of the school, Y/N headed toward the baseball diamond and could see the team practicing. Surveying the area, she looked for Negan and could see that he was standing behind the fence. Watching from where she was, Y/N could see that Negan was talking to Charlie while holding her in one of his arms. They both were wearing a baseball cap for the college and it made her smile. It was clear that Negan was talking to Charlie about what was happening on the field while he pointed to things and it strangely seemed like Charlie was in fact listening to him while he talked to her.

Cherishing the sight for a moment, she just loved seeing Negan with the kids. Taking her time to watch them together was an incredible thing for her to remember. The bond Negan had with their children truly warned her to the core. After some time, she moved toward Negan with Charlie where they were behind home plate. Once Charlie saw Y/N, Charlie immediately reached her hands out to her and Negan looked over his shoulder to see Y/N approaching.

“Mama,” Charlie boasted hopping to Y/N’s arms from Negan’s grasp and Y/N let out a surprised gasp. “Hi.”

“Hello gorgeous,” Y/N steadied her daughter in her arms as Negan closed the distance between them to press a kiss over her lips. “Did you have a fun time with daddy today?”

“Yeah,” Charlie pointed toward the field where they were practicing. “They look good.”

“Oh, is that so?” an amused breath fell from Y/N’s throat knowing that she was likely repeating something that Negan told her. “You think they’ll win a lot of games this year?”

“Oh yeah!” Charlie boasted, her green-hazel eyes full of excitement. “Lots.”

“Let’s hope so,” Negan let out a long groan, dropping down to one of the seats behind the home plate and he was surveying all of the players closely. Moving in beside him, Y/N took a seat with Charlie in her lap. “They are pushing themselves well, but you never know how they will do.”

“They have a coach like you, I’m sure the fellas are going to do great,” Y/N insisted looking out at the baseball diamond. There was music in the background and Charlie had managed to wiggle out of her arms to stand on her feet to dance to the music while she watched the players as well. It made both Negan and Y/N laugh. “She is so cute.”

“She really fucking is. How did we make something so perfect?” Negan leaned his head in closer to Y/N’s so he could rest his head against hers. Their daughter was intensely watching his team like he had taught her to do when she was with him. “I mean she’s part you so that makes sense, but me…?”

“Oh hush,” she swatted at Negan’s chest hearing him snort when she did it.

“We should have another one,” Negan blurt out and he heard Y/N laugh making him turn to her with furrowed eyebrows.

“I’m sorry, I would love to have a bigger family with you in the future, but right now that’s a big no,” she laughed to herself and Negan let out a disappointed breath. “It’s not against you honey. We have Asher and Charlie. I’m going to school, you’re working…we just don’t have time for that right now.”

“I know, but picture having a little boy. Look at how fucking cute Charlie is,” Negan reasoned, looking to their daughter with a big smile. “I mean the idea has to appeal to you, right?”

“Yes. Yes, it does. When I’m done with my classes and have had a job for a while,” Y/N insisted with a hesitant sound. “Trust me Negan, I want to have a huge family with you. You’re a great father, so having more children sounds great…just better for when I’m older.”

“Yeah, we’ll see,” Negan grumbled and she nudged him with her elbow. “What?”

“I’m serious Negan, I need to at least finish school,” she grunted and Negan shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t you ever need sleep too?”

“The idea of having beautiful babies and getting no sleep is something I eagerly look forward to,” Negan nodded toward their daughter, his smile expanding over his handsome features. “Totally worth it.”

“Well, yeah. When you put it like that, they are worth all of it,” she confessed knowing that Negan was right. Things had been hard, but she wouldn’t give up a second of being with them. She loved her family and it made life feel worth it.

“So, don’t blame me if I want more,” Negan snickered leaning across to press a teasing kiss against her cheek, “my family just makes me happy.”

“You make me happy,” she hummed in approval, turning her face just enough to meet him in a quick kiss.

“Daddy!” Charlie exclaimed when the song changed and she looked over her shoulder at him. Her eyes were big with excitement and she turned to him, reaching her arms out toward him.

“What’s up baby girl?” Negan saw her bobbing her head to the music and Negan snickered.

“Dance,” Charlie requested and Y/N knew that Negan would dance with Y/N every morning. It was something that he had started from the moment she was a born and it always seemed to put her at ease when she was little, but now that she had grown a bit, it seemed to be one of her favorite things to do with Negan. “Please.”

“You wanna dance?” Negan blurted out and Charlie excitedly nodded. While Y/N wasn’t sure that Negan would want to do that considering he was at work, she realized she was wrong in doubting him when he swiftly got up from the seat and picked Charlie up in his arms. They twisted and turned while dancing together and Charlie’s laughter was like music to her ears while Negan did what she requested. “If my baby girl wants to dance…daddy will always find time to dance for her.”

After the song was over, Negan swung Charlie in his arms before playfully handing her over to Y/N, “Daddy has to go do some work sweetheart. I love you.”

“We stay?” Charlie looked back at Y/N confirming that she could watch Negan with the team.

“If that’s okay with daddy,” Y/N could see how happy Negan was at the idea of his daughter still wanting to be there with him.

“Of course it’s fine if you are alright with it mama,” Negan held his hand in the air and Y/N got comfortable in her seat with Charlie after nodding. Of course, if Charlie wanted to stay and watch Negan with the team, she was going to let her. “I’ll be back in a few girls.”

It was cute how Charlie stood behind the gate watching Negan working with the boys on the team. Often Charlie would get excited and point to Negan making Y/N giggle with her reaction to seeing her daddy doing his job.

Between watching Negan and dancing to certain songs that she liked, Charlie seemed to be having one heck of a good time there. Originally, they were going to leave when Y/N picked her up, but it was clear that Charlie liked where they were right then and there.

When practice was over, they had headed home and made a dinner together as a family. They were very open with always teaching and showing Charlie things. They were doing their best to make her aware of most things and they were already so happy with the things that she knew.

After dinner, they were all sitting together on the couch watching a comedic film. Bear was sleeping on Negan’s hip while Charlie was curled up against Negan sleeping. Honey was laying in Y/N’s lap and it was always like this. Everyone always liked to cuddle and be together which was something Y/N would definitely not complain about. It was very sweet and she loved how close they were.

The sound of the doorbell ringing was heard and Charlie let out an excited breath when she shifted awake in Negan’s arms. A tired yawn fell from Charlie’s mouth as she stretched out and pointed toward the door.

“Asher!” she called out and quickly wiggled herself off the couch toward the door. A worried Honey hopped off Y/N and followed Charlie into the foyer. Y/N and Negan were quick to follow and Negan rapidly picked Charlie up in his arms. “It’s Asher.”

Opening the door, Y/N saw Asher and Sherry at the door. Immediately upon seeing Charlie, a smile spread over Asher’s face and he swiftly moved into the home reaching for her from Negan. Carefully, Negan handed Charlie to Asher and watched as Charlie cuddled in against Asher.

“I miss you,” Charlie squeaked holding tightly to her big brother. It made Y/N immediately swoon over how fast and easily Asher was able to take to Charlie after she was born. They were the best of friends and it was moments like this that proved that.

“How was dinner?” Negan looked back over his shoulder Sherry noticing that she was still standing in the doorway just outside watching them. “You have a good time?”

“Yeah, I mean…I think so?” Sherry looked beyond Negan toward Asher who gave a small nod. “What do you think bud?”

“It was nice,” Asher answered, carefully setting Charlie down on the floor while reaching for her hand. “Can I show Charlie one of the drawings I made for her while I was in school today?”

“Of course you can buddy. Just go to the table. We’re going to have some ice-cream. I got some of your favorite today,” Negan gave a wink and looked back to Shery while she stood awkwardly at the door. “I’m glad to see you’re coming around more often to see him Sherry.”

“Well, I’m glad to see him. He’s turning out to be quite the little man,” Sherry answered folding her arms out in front of her chest.

“Sherry, do you want to join us for ice-cream?” Y/N offered behind Negan and it made Negan look back over his shoulder at Y/N with a surprised expression. “There is plenty for you to do that.”

“I couldn’t impose,” Sherry denied the offer and Negan let out a hesitant breath before shrugging his shoulders.

“Come on,” Negan waved her into the home and she reluctantly followed them into the home while heading toward the kitchen.

After Negan had pulled the stunt he did over two years ago with Asher, it was surprising how smoothly things had gone with Asher and Sherry. Y/N didn’t question it, but Negan did in fact know certain people that made certain results disappear and he did know the kind of lawyers he talked about to Sherry. While Negan was lying and she knew that, no one else did. It was something that no one would ever be able to know because it was something that Negan and Y/N agreed to never talk of again. Asher was Negan’s son, no matter what they both knew to be true.

There was only one point when they had become worried. Even though Negan had come into a positive test that Y/N knew was manufactured, Dwight was still convinced that he was Asher’s father. Somehow, he had convinced Sherry to do a DNA test with his own DNA and Sherry had done it. When Sherry had told Negan about Asher, she was convinced that Negan or Dwight was Asher’s father. Obviously, Negan was going to do whatever he had to in order to make sure he kept Asher, but surprisingly enough…Dwight had gotten the test back and it was negative. It was something that Negan didn’t even have to change because it was legit. So, while Y/N and Negan both knew that neither Dwight nor Negan was truly Asher’s real father, they kept it to themselves. When Dwight found out that he wasn’t the father, he just came to terms with fact Negan was clearly Asher’s father which made everything easier.

At first, Sherry had a hard time coming to the terms that Negan had set for her to get partial custody of Asher. Eventually, she was able to get her shit together without having Asher in her life and became desperate to see her son every so often.

“How’s work Sherry?” Negan spoke up when he headed for the freezer to pull out the ice-cream that Asher liked. “I know you were subbing at the high school out here.”

“Yeah, they gave me a full-time position. Hopefully I can keep it up because I…I honestly like it,” Sherry informed them, her face flushing over when she talked about it. It seemed like she felt a little bummed about it and Y/N reached out to squeeze over her shoulder.

“Well that’s good to hear. I know that Asher sure is happy that you are out here now,” Y/N urged Sherry on knowing that Asher truly was happy to know that his mother was attempting to do better for him. After two years, it was about time and Y/N wasn’t about to discourage her. They wanted Asher to have a relationship with his mother while still having him know his permanent home was with them. “I know he likes these dinners that you guys do.”

“Yeah?” Sherry confirmed and Negan nodded his head while popping open the lid of the ice-cream. “Me too. I like getting to see him. With that school he has learned so much.”

“He’s a smart boy,” Negan responded grabbing bowls for everyone that was there. The sounds of laughter filled the room and they looked to see Charlie with Asher drawing together. Both of them seemed to be beyond amused with whatever they were doing, but it was cute. “Though, I think he’s going to be an artist. Since I’ve given him that art kit, he hasn’t been able to stop drawing.”

“I never knew he liked to draw until recently,” Sherry confessed and nervously moved across the kitchen when they headed for the table with the ice-cream bowls. While they shared dessert with Asher’s mother, Asher talked to her about school and it was nice to at least see them interacting in a calm manner.

“You’re a sweetheart, you know that?” Negan leaned across to whisper in Y/N’s ear. He was sitting in the seat beside her with Charlie in his lap while the two of them shared his ice-cream. Y/N knew he was talking about the offer she made to Sherry, but she wanted Asher to believe he was loved. The more…the merrier, right?

“Here…” Charlie turned in Negan’s lap and reached for the bowl that Negan had. Scooping some of the ice-cream out, she began to feed Negan making Y/N smile. It was cute the bond both Charlie and Negan had. “Mama…here.”

“Mama has her own baby,” Negan snickered while Charlie raised a spoon out for Y/N to take a bite. “I guess we’re all sharing.”

After dessert Sherry had said her goodbyes to Asher and they went back to having a family movie night all together. Charlie was cuddled between them and Asher was laying against Y/N while they were on the couch. With their time together, Y/N had viewed Asher as her son. There was no doubt that she loved this boy as much as any mother could. Charlie and Asher were both her children. So, there was an incredible bond between the both of them as well. When Negan was working, they would always work on art projects together and Asher had become just as close to her as he had done Negan.

When both children had fallen asleep, they had made the decision to get them ready for bed, but when they got upstairs Asher suggested they all sleep together in Negan and Y/N’s bed. Once the idea was out there, Charlie was excited at the idea of it. With both of them desperately wanting it, Negan and Y/N couldn’t tell them no. So, they all got ready for bed.

“Hey ma,” Y/N heard Asher call out when she looked from where she was sitting on the bed with Charlie to see Asher standing beside Negan at the sink. Both of them were brushing their teeth together so Asher was talking with a mouthful. “Do you think I’ll be as tall as dad someday?”

“You’re already super tall dude,” she smirked feeling Charlie leaning further back into her chest while Charlie looked through the book that Y/N had in her hands. “I think you’ll be taller than him.”

“Yeah?” Asher lifted his head to watch Negan continue to brush his teeth and he let out an excited breath. “She thinks I’m going to be taller than you.”

“Even if you are, you’re always going to be my little man,” Negan muttered with a half laugh after he spit out what was in his mouth. “You know that.”

It was cute because Asher did a lot to try and act like Negan. He dressed like him and attempted to have the same mannerisms that Negan did. He started to do it so much that it was starting to become a second nature to him and Y/N found it cute.

“Charlie and I call dibs on the middle,” Asher hopped into the bed making Charlie bounce when he did it and made her giggle. “Do you want to sleep by mom or dad?”

“Uh…” Charlie saw Negan moving over to the bed and she made an expression that showed she was thinking hard about it when Negan laid down on his side of the bed. “Mama.”

Charlie crawled into Y/N’s arms while all of them got comfortable in their bed together and she could hear Negan cracking a joke with Asher while he held him in his arms.

“Hey guys?” Asher spoke up while Charlie reached for his hand to hold while they got comfortable. “I love you and I’m so lucky to have you as my family.”

“Love you too,” Charlie responded before Negan and Y/N could making them immediately smile. “Best big brother.”

“Can she be any cuter?” Asher blurt out making both of them laugh at Asher’s response. Leaning across the bed, Asher pressed a kiss over his little sister’s forehead and sighed.

“We love you too bud,” Negan stretched his hand across both Asher and Charlie to reach for Y/N’s hand. “We’re so incredibly lucky to have the both of you.”

Looking back on how things started, it was amazing that this was what life had become. A life full of happiness. One where every day was spent being a family and loving each other. This was the family that Y/N had always dreamt of, but never thought it was obtainable. Negan, Asher and Charlie were everything to her and she couldn’t imagine having life without them. Everything she had ever wanted was right here in her arms and she felt incredibly blessed to have it all.

“I love all of you so much,” Y/N squeezed her fingers around Negan’s finding the support and warmth she knew she would always have with him. “You’ll never know how much all of you mean to me. I love you with all my heart and I always will.”

----

Tags: @slutlanna976​​​​​  @nubbinrobin​​​​​ @oreostars​​​​​  @fuckthis-and-fuckthat​​​​​ @jennydehavilland​​​​​ @felicity291​​​​ @de-gabyconamor​​​​ @ibelongtonegan​​​​​ @smallsadjellyfish​​​​ @labyrinthofheartagrams​​​​  @msjamesmarch​​​​ @thebeautysurrounds​​​​ @hotfornegan​​​ @redmercysugar​​​ @caprithebunny​​​ @iluvneganandjamie​​​​ @ninamarietwd​​​​ @tuttifuckinfruitty​​​​ @emoryhemsworth​​​​ @a-girl-interupted​​​​ @akumune​​​​ @stoneyggirl​​​​ @darlingmilex​​​​​ @haleygreen23​​

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 17 - With Him

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, how will it go in the end?, 4.8k

@trevor-wilson-covington is the bestie who makes these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16

One finger tapped on the strap of his fanny pack as Alex listened for the right bus stop to be called. If all those months since he’d seen Willie had been long, this past week had been longer. Especially since the news about Caleb had hit hard and every minute in the studio now felt like the band was precariously teetering on the edge of a cliff. He was going to try not to let any of that get in his way today, though. He’d made it to Saturday and Willie was only a few streets away, and he didn’t care what happened for the rest of the day - it was going to be good.

Finally he heard the next stop announced for where he needed to get off and he pulled the cord that told the driver to make a stop. Stepping onto the sidewalk, his heart bounced around in its chamber like the Tazmanian devil from Looney Tunes. He was glad that Willie lived in the basement of the apartment building he occupied because it would’ve been the worst if Alex forgot which room he was in and spent hours frantically knocking doors.

It was hard to tell if he was moving quickly or if his mind was just racing, but in either case, he eventually found himself at the door. For a second, he simply took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, trying to get a visual of Willie immediately pouncing on him the moment the door opened out of his head. It wouldn’t exactly be unwelcome, but Alex was realizing how desperate he was to be with him and was amazed at how it affected his imagination.

Lifting a hand, he made sure he knocked loudly. Soon after, the door opened, and Alex was greeted with shining brown eyes, silky, gorgeous brown hair styled into two braids, and a smile he could make home in. Willie.

“Hey, come on in!” Willie was saying, standing to the side and gesturing for him to enter. Crossing the threshold, Alex gazed at the humble space, taking in the details with heightened interest. “This is mi casa!” He began showing Alex around. “We’ve got the main living space, very cozy. The kitchen to your left, but no dining room so it’s all criss-cross applesauce on the floor - makes it extra chill. Bathroom through the back. The sink and shower handles will sometimes shock you, so don’t mind all the electrical tape.”

It was surprisingly accommodating for a dingy basement, and Willie had already made little additions that spoke volumes about him without words. A king size mattress sat in the corner of the ‘main living space’ on the floor with a small bookshelf beside it. The bookshelf only had a handful of cassette tapes and a Walkman lying on top, with a few sketchbooks on the middle shelf. Next to that, the dresser had a small collection of vintage soda bottles and a camera sitting on its surface. Glow-in-the-dark star stickers covered the ceiling above the bed. Even a couple cat toys could be spotted on the floor. Immediately, Alex approached the area where Willie’s desk sat surrounded by sketches hung on the wall.

“So these are your drawings?” he asked, although the answer was obvious. They were so good. Willie followed him over, the squinty smile still in his eyes.

“Yeah. Some are new. Most of them are attempts to recover what Caleb tore up.”

Alex looked at Willie apologetically, even though the loss of Willie’s previous work wasn’t his fault. Without warning, a pressure on his leg and the sound of loud purring announced Sheldon’s presence. The cat looked up at him and blinked slowly, already begging for attention. Heart melting, Alex bent down to pet him.

“Hey, Sheldon,” he said. “I forgot how cute you were!” He smiled as Sheldon rubbed his head against his hand with more affection that he’d likely seen from any other creature on the planet. Well...maybe there was one other that matched it. Alex had heard about how pets could take on the temperament of their owners, and suspected this was a clear example. “He’s gotten so big since I last saw him.”

“Yeah, he’s supposed to be almost two years old, if Escobar guessed his age right.”

Standing again as Sheldon pattered off, Alex returned his attention to the wall of art, looking at the pieces more closely.

“So which one is your dad?” he mused.

Willie untacked one of them and held it out for Alex to examine. “This one.”

Holding the edges carefully, Alex gazed in amazement at the detail Willie had caught. The edges were certainly less defined, but the scene inside the truck was so easy to visualize that Alex could almost feel the leather of the seats and the windchill from the window. He wasn’t sure what began burning in his chest as he peered down at the image, but it was profound and complex.

“I’ve thought about seeing if I could find him, but I think with my memory it’s kind of impossible,” Willie told him.

“He looks so happy here. I don’t get why you would end up as a foster kid.”

“Yeah, I wondered that too. Maybe he didn’t have a choice?”

Alex looked at Willie’s face, and he could tell half of him was lost in a world of what-ifs and other questions. He was always trying to seem so easy-going, and to an extent he truly was, but he couldn’t hide the constant sense of upheaval that rested on his shoulders. At least, Alex was picking up on it more, now that he knew the things he did. He may have been biased, but he couldn’t imagine anyone not fighting their hardest to keep Willie.

Suddenly his gaze was drawn to the unfinished work on the desk, and recognized it as a portrait of himself.

“Wow.” The word fell out of his mouth.

“Oh,” Willie started with a hint of shyness. “Obviously that one isn’t done, so…” He reached to put it away.

“You got that far off of memory, though,” Alex said. “I’m impressed. And you make me look good.” He offered an encouraging smile. “Maybe some time today I could be a model for you?”

Willie cocked his eyebrow, surprise and playfulness making an adorable combination on his face. It made Alex’s smile grow wider.

“Well, we’ve got a whole day ahead,” Willie said. “Your wish is my command.”

“Okay,” Alex said, leaning onto his back foot casually, one side of his lip curling with intrigue. “Well, I wanna see where you go around here. You seem to have a knack for finding the best spots. We can play it by ear.”

“What’s that one song with the one phrase?” Willie asked. “‘Any way the wind blows?’” He sang shyly, clearly playing down what Alex could tell was a nice voice.

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” Alex smiled. Willie’s job at the record store was at least giving him a good taste in music. “Don’t worry, you’ll know everything about the classics once you hang out with me enough.”

An emotion flashed in Willie’s eyes and after a moment Alex realized what those words were actually saying. He held his gaze, hoping he could communicate his intentions clearly, unlike the last time they’d seen each other. Willie swallowed, and his expression remained excited as he loaded his backpack and led them out the door, board in  hand. Alex followed him, deciding not to question which direction they were going.

First, they made a stop to buy a bunch of apples. In classic Willie fashion, he went to a bodega, and this time he communicated with the cashier in rough Spanish. Alex knew he was showing off, and smirked at the notion that Willie enjoyed impressing him.

“So what do we need these for?” Alex wondered as they left the bodega. “Besides a ton of apples for lunch.”

Willie’s secretive smile made Alex raise an eyebrow.

“It’s a surprise.”

A little while later, they stood before the most unlikely place in all of Los Angeles: a horse barn. Staring at the building as if it loomed fifty feet above him, hands in his pockets, Alex gulped and a lump of dread landed in the pit of his stomach.

“Oh no,” he muttered apprehensively.

“Oh yeah,” Willie said, turning to him with a thrilled grin on his face.

Alex wasn’t exactly afraid of horses...he just had no idea what to do around them and therefore was not sure what to expect from them. Also, he would’ve worn different pants if he’d known this was on the agenda.

“I promise, they’ve got some really chill horses,” Willie tried to ease his nerves. “I’ve gone on this trail enough times. Don’t worry, you’ll know everything about riding once you hang out with me enough.” He winked as he threw back Alex’s line with a sly smile.

Unable to argue, Alex shook his head and used the hand in his pocket to gesture forward, signaling to Willie he was up to the challenge. He watched him practically skip inside and he had to jog to keep up after him. They signed in and then were led to two stalls.

Willie immediately gravitated toward a tall golden-colored mustang stallion with a dark mane, apparently both already familiar and happy to see each other. Alex watched him gently greet and essentially coo at it while comfortably stroking its nose and then feeding it an apple. He longed to have that sort of talent with other creatures, and simultaneously realized that he yearned to receive that same tenderness.

Once the horses were tacked up and one of the instructors had given Alex some brief pointers on how to ride, he found himself following Willie on a trail while mounted on a painted mare. The only philosophy he could adopt out here was to be gentle and not get lost.

“Not so bad, your majesty,” Willie called over to him.

An extremely nervous laugh elicited from Alex’s throat involuntarily, only making Willie laugh in return. Alex rode a little closer so they were nearly side by side on the trail.

“I’ve been here once,” he said. “I think I was about twelve? My mom thought that it would make me change my mind about taking ballet classes. We rode for maybe fifteen minutes before I got so nervous we had to turn back around and go home. Never made it through the full trail.”

“Man, that sucks,” Willie commented. “I didn’t know you did ballet.”

“Yeah, that and a few other types of dance. I was forced to quit a little couple years ago. That’s about when we got serious as a band, so I just found something else to bother my parents with.”

He could see the gears click into place as Willie came to a few conclusions about his parents and gave an emphatic nod.

“Well, I’ve always wanted to learn how to dance. That was the one thing Caleb had promised to teach me. He’s the worst, but he definitely knows how to dance.”

Suddenly, Alex remembered watching Caleb’s movements when he’d served him and the boys at the diner. Of course he could dance; everything had been fluid and smooth. All he could say to that thought was “huh,” at first. Then after a few moments: “I’ll have to teach you one of these days then.”

Willie’s eyes crinkled at the corners, happy at the prospect.

“Yeah, okay! Add that to our to-do list.”

Alex chuckled. They had a to-do list now. He bit his lip as he continued following Willie along the trail. It was a gorgeous day and in this area the sky was so clear compared to further inside the city. Greatly contrasting his experience from years ago, Alex felt himself become much more at ease and felt confident enough to take greater control of his horse. Willie pulled out his camera and snapped a few scenic photos every once in a while.

Eventually, they stopped at an outlook and Alex had to take in an awed breath. The view was clear for miles all around them. Green hills spanned the landscape in every direction with patches of city speckled in between. Even the ocean line was visible from there. How did Willie know how to find these?

“Hey, Alex!” Willie called, lifting his camera. “Say cheese!”

Turning to face him, Alex flashed a genuine smile as Willie captured him atop his horse against the scenery. He was usually pretty camera shy, but this time he really didn’t mind. Keeping memories like this actually felt important to him, unlike the many times he’d been forced to pose with his family at functions he’d also been made to attend. Those occasions had always felt so insincere - less about enjoying the memory and more about trying to prove their status as the polished, functional family everyone aspired to.

He saw Willie dismount for a moment and stretch his legs. Gripping the reins and looking around in uncertainty, Alex realized he’d gotten on before ensuring he could properly get off. Thankfully, Willie noticed and came up to him, hands raised.

“Okay, so just...carefully lift your foot out of the stirrup and swing your leg over toward me,” he instructed. Sucking in a breath hesitantly, Alex did as he said. “Alright, then...here.” Willie offered a hand for Alex to grab so he could slide off with ease. Landing on the ground, he leaned into Willie to gain his balance, and felt a congratulatory pat on his back. It took more restraint than Alex anticipated to not simply wrap his arms around him and sit like that for an indefinite amount of time. They had all day ahead of them; he didn’t need the sudden fear of losing him to derail things out of nowhere.

“Sorry if I look like a wimp about all this,” he said, letting go of his hand.

“Nah, don’t sweat it,” Willie assured him, shaking his head. “This is...this is new.”

His eyes seemed to take Alex in from head to toe and Alex could’ve sworn the charge in the air between them would buzz if they got closer, spark if they made contact. It was almost like that moment in front of Willie’s door the week before. For a few seconds they remained locked in that trance before Willie took hold of the horse’s reins and handed them to Alex.

“Technically this trail could take hours, but I’m guessing this isn’t all you’re interested in today,” he said. “What do you say we stretch our legs a bit and then ride back?”

Looking from the reins in his hand back to Willie, Alex nodded.

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

Opening his backpack, Willie handed him an apple and then bit down into one of his own. Taking a bite, it was one of the most refreshing apples Alex ever eaten. They walked the horses a little ways and tried to get good pictures of the different views around them. Alex asked to try his hand with the camera and get a few good shots of Willie. He didn’t consider himself a photographer, but he doubted when the photos got developed that they would turn out badly. The way Willie smiled made him seem like he was made of sunlight from the inside out.

As they rode back to the barn, Alex kept replaying those moments where he’d refrained from making a move over in his head. This had been strike two. If he continued on like this, he was going to hate himself for the rest of eternity, he was pretty sure. Was it some weird kind of side effect of the whole ‘Willie come back to life’ thing? Watching him affectionately say goodbye to his horse once they were ready to leave, Alex looked at his own horse and raised a tentative hand up to her nose.

The mare gazed back, patience gleaming in her eyes. He finally set his hand down on her nose and gently rubbed it up and down, smiling a little to himself. This wasn’t so bad. He could do this - it was just a matter of getting through all the barriers he made for himself in his head. Moving his hands from the horse’s nose, he stroked along her neck, and caught Willie smiling at him from the corner of his eye.

“You wanna try feeding her an apple?” he asked.

Thinking for a few seconds, Alex nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

Pulling one out of his backpack, Willie placed it in Alex’s palm.

“Alright, so hold it out in front of you like this…” He positioned Alex to offer the apple. “And keep your palm flat.”

Alex uncurled his fingers and after sniffing at it a little the mare ate it out of his hand. He could ignore the sensation of her mouth touching him because Willie still had his arm around his shoulder to hold him steady. They looked at each other, and Alex wished he could get a proper shot at Willie’s face at that angle with the camera.

“Looks like you’re gonna get the hang of this,” Willie commended.

Alex looked back up at the horse, a little bit of pride swelling in his chest. “Yeah, I think I will.”

Later, they went to the beach at Alex’s suggestion. He was perched on the surface of a picnic table, posed as if he were looking off into the distance. Willie sketched with great concentration, having taken his hair out of his braids so he could run his hand through it. The late afternoon sun brought out all the best color contrasts in their surroundings - one of the things Alex loved about coming to the beach at this time of day.

“So I have a question,” Alex started, trying not to move too much. His tendency to talk with his hands kept getting him in trouble.

“Shoot,” Willie prompted him, not looking up.

“Did Caleb let you go to school or anything? Or did he provide any sort of education at all?”

Squinting, Willie looked thoughtful for a moment.

“So, after the accident, he told me that I’d had to be taken out of school,” he began, continuing to sketch. “Which makes sense, I guess, if I forgot everything. I remember some basic things, like math wasn’t hard to pick up again. Once I was recovered enough to go places, he just let me go to the public library and find whatever I wanted to read. But he always insisted on not having reminders of who I was before and said it was supposed to be helping me ‘become my own person’. He got rid of things like my school yearbooks and old journals and things. I didn’t think anything of it at first because he’d just called it useless clutter and I believed him. As soon as he decided I was fit enough to work in the diner and help out at the hotel, he told me to forget about school. Anything else I picked up was from watching TV, or listening to the radio, or something. Sometimes I’ll just remember I know something after hearing about it and it’s like it was just always there.”

Listening intently, Alex marveled at the whole thing. The fact that Caleb was not only negligent, but actively discouraging Willie from knowing anything, made him wish he could take down the man’s whole career. However, he figured Willie probably had a lot of his intelligence still untapped. If he’d been able to get away from Caleb and somehow create a life for himself in the span of a few months, Alex wondered what else he was capable of.

“What’s something you remember?” he wondered.

“I guess I used to be really obsessed with space. Just planets and stars and all that. I can spout off facts about Jupiter’s moons and stuff like that. Did you know that the moon Europa has a saltwater ocean under a layer of ice?”

Alex shook his head. “No, I didn’t. That sounds really cool though.” He thought of the stickers on Willie’s ceiling and smirked a little before reassuming his pose.

“I sort of wish I could remember being in school,” Willie was saying. “Everyone else seems to just share all of those memories and understand each other that way.”

Alex saw his brow furrow, and could tell he felt left out. He pondered on his own experience growing up in public school. There was almost no other way he would’ve met Luke, Bobby and Reggie if they hadn’t all attended the same schools. While he could easily critique and complain about it to no end, he knew it was a privilege.

“School is definitely hard,” he told Willie. “But I did get my friends out of it, and I guess that makes up for it. If it’s any consolation, you could just complain about Caleb like he was your horrible English teacher who thought he knew more about the subject of your essay, but you cited all of your sources and they proved him completely wrong.”

Willie laughed. “Why? Did that happen to you?”

Alex bobbed his head from side to side and feigned looking thoughtful . “Maybe.”

“I kind of like reducing him to a loser English teacher. He just sounds petty and sad.”

“That’s high school,” Alex confirmed.

Leaning back from his work for a minute to take it all in, Willie brushed a hand through his hair.

“Here, you wanna take a look at it?” he said. Alex hopped off the table and went to stand over Willie’s shoulder at the drawing and was immediately rendered speechless. The detail was impeccable, but Alex was more impressed by the feeling he got looking at it. Willie had managed to make him appear...handsome, and pensive, and fascinating, like anyone else could look at him and create a million unique ideas of who he was. However, it wasn’t anyone else looking at him, it was Willie, and what he’d captured felt like the truth. Alex couldn’t really explain what that meant, only that it was an honest representation.

“Okay, I know I said the one back at your place made me look good, but this is...this is unreal.”

He could see Willie trying to be modest, but the corners of his lips couldn’t stay down. Funny enough, he appeared even more unable to find words, and simply beamed as he looked back and forth between his sketch and Alex’s face.

A sudden impulse came over Alex, and he kicked off his shoes and pulled his shirt over his head, dropping it on top of Willie’s skateboard and backpack. Willie sat looking flustered for a moment.

“Wanna swim?” Alex nodded toward the waves, bidding Willie to follow. He didn’t wait for him to catch up as he immediately began running into the waves up to his knees. Alex knew his pants would be even more ruined the second he hit the salty water, but he didn’t care. Now the sun was beginning to set and the chill of the waves was refreshing, and he couldn’t express what he felt just then in any other way.

Willie tackled him from behind, climbing onto his back and nearly knocking him over into the shallow tide. Clambering back to his feet, Alex splashed water at him. They began a playful water fight back and forth, until they were both drenched. Eventually, Alex tried to catch hold of both Willie’s hands in an attempt to prevent being splashed anymore. He had the advantage of longer arms, but before he could get a tight hold of the second arm Willie’s leg swept under his and they both fell just as a large wave washed over them.

As the water pulled back, they sat in the sand in a tangle, laughing. All Alex could think of was how pretty Willie was in this light, hair swept back off his face with tendrils resting over his shoulders, sun gleaming in his eyes and constantly shining from the inside out. The laughter died between them and he caught a look in Willie’s eye that made him wonder if he appeared to him to be just as perfect in that moment.

This time his mind and body worked in sync as he lifted a hand and gently pulled Willie into a short, tender kiss. All the self-flagellation from earlier was washed away in one pure moment, and exhilaration moved into its place. It felt soft and sweet, just the way he expected it should. Just as quickly as he’d let go, Willie went in for another one, a little longer and a little deeper. One hand remained caressing his cheek while the other wrapped around his upper back. Alex couldn’t help smiling into another kiss; he was too happy to care about anything else. Hardly a week ago, this had been impossible.

As they let go, their hands came together and they looked into each other's eyes, both releasing a relieved chuckle. Willie looked at the rest of the beach behind them and Alex’s eyes followed, but at this hour there were too few people around and no one paying attention to them. Turning back to Alex, Willie sighed and shook his head with a smile.

“Wow,” was all he said, biting his lip.

“Yeah, I’d definitely do that again,” Alex smirked, until the joy in his chest converted it into a full grin.

A wave washed over them again and they both stood, shaking out their hair and trying to wipe off whatever sand they could. Heading back up the beach, Willie grabbed Alex’s hand so they could make their way up together. The sun was nearly set but Alex was sure it had just gone into his chest, bursting with excitement. Once they reached the picnic table, they gathered their things and Willie offered to carry Alex’s shirt inside his backpack on the way home. Thank goodness there were a few patches of grass so Alex could try to get a little more sand off his feet before putting his shoes back on.

“So how long have you been sitting on that?” Willie teased as he slung his backpack over his shoulder and they left the beach.

“Shut up,” Alex laughed, knowing he was being called out.

“No, really!” Willie bumped his side jokingly. “I want to know!”

Tilting his head back to try to remember, it didn’t take Alex long to give him the answer.

“Since day one,” he told him.

Surprise swept over Willie’s face as he looked at Alex.

“Seriously?” he asked.

Alex nodded.

“Me too.”

It was Alex’s turn to look surprised. Without saying another word, he took Willie’s hand in his and then kissed it before continuing back toward his place. The whole way they talked about all the different things they needed to do together in the future. Riding on more horse trails, dancing lessons, skating lessons, art modeling sessions, going to band practices and gigs, visiting the record store while Willie wasn’t working, etc. They both agreed that the entire day technically counted as a date, and all further plans would as well. Alex was reminded once again that he didn’t have a notebook to write things down in, and vowed to have one for the next time he saw Willie. Once they reached Willie’s door, they had already put their shirts back on and it was completely dark outside.

“Are you free any time next week?” Willie asked, still holding onto Alex’s hand.

“I wish I could say yes, but probably not. And as much as I’d love to give you my number, it’s really not the best idea.”

“Well, I could give you mine,” Willie said.

Alex shot him a confused look. Holding up a finger, Willie dug into his backpack until he found his sketchbook and tore off the corner of a page, quickly scribbling one down and handing it to Alex.

“It’s actually the one for work,” he said. “But if it’s what we can do for now, I’ll do it. Kyle won’t care.”

Looking at it for a minute and then stashing it in his now-dry pocket, Alex took hold of Willie’s chin and went to kiss him again. It was really hard to stop, but they soon broke apart.

“I gotta go,” Alex murmured.

Willie only nodded, squeezing his hand before letting go and slipping his own into his pocket.

“I’ll call you.”

“Okay.”

“Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Once again heading up the short set of stairs to the sidewalk, Alex rubbed his lips together, relishing in the taste of what he and Willie had just done. He couldn’t imagine anything sweeter.

[catrasredemption-moved]

Adora and Catra adopting Finn either as an orphan or abandoned kid like them?

It wasn’t so much that anyone thought Adora or Catra would be any good with children. (They also didn’t think they would be terrible with them; the couple just wasn’t the first choice for taking in an orphan.) But the child’s furry little body and pointed ears had immediately made Scorpia think of Catra, and who would know more about a part-cat person than someone who was one herself?

“I’m not sure this is a great idea,” Adora was slowly saying as Catra peeked into the small room where Bow and Scorpia were sitting with the child, attempting to teach them how to play cards. There was something so profoundly sad in their eyes. Something Catra recognized.

“I’m not either,” Glimmer admitted. “But the Fright Zone is still being rebuilt and there isn��t really anywhere for them to stay right now, and they seem kind of... skittish. It’s just until we find their parents.”

“And if you don’t? If they’re dead, or don’t want them?”

“Then we go from there. But the kid still needs someone in the mean time.”

Catra slipped into the room, leaving Adora and Glimmer to their debate. “Okay, you put down a nine, so that means - oh, hey Catra,” Bow said cheerfully when he saw her approaching the table. The child looked up, ears twitching slightly at the sight of the woman.

“Hey.” Catra sat down across the child, giving them a small smile. “Deal me in.”

“You got it.”

It was a well known fact that everyone hated playing with Catra - she knew all their tells and easily called their bluffs. But Bow wasn’t going to fuss in front of the kid when they were trying to gain their trust.

Catra leaned conspiratorially across the table, grinning. “Okay, so first thing you gotta know - Scorpia’s tail twitches when she’s bluffing. She can’t lie to save her life. And Bow’s left eyebrow goes up when he has a bad hand.”

“It does not!”

“Oh really? How’s your hand this round?”

“It’s great, thank you very much.” But Catra saw his eyebrow twitching. She winked at the kid, who laughed a little.

“The game’s all about being a good liar. Everyone has a tell. The trick is making sure no one knows what yours is. So, who’s starting?”

“I will,” Bow said, picking cards out. “Clockwise around the table.”

“So you’ll go after me,” Catra told the child, who nodded.

“Two threes,” Bow said proudly, putting the cards down.

“End,” Catra said immediately, throwing down an eight. Bow groaned. “Eight is the card that ends the entire round. So back to Bow.”

Bow frowned, looking his cards over. Finally he put two more down. “Two tens.”

“Two kings,” Catra said proudly. Bow groaned. “The only thing that beats a king is a nine or an ace. Got either of those?”

The kid searched their cards, frowning, then slowly put an ace down. “Pass,” Scorpia sighed.

“Nice. Good job, kid.”

The tips of their ears turned red, but they smiled shyly. “Top of the round,” Bow said, putting down a nine with far too much smugness. Catra simply raised an eyebrow and put an ace down. “Oh come on!”

“Pass,” Scorpia said sadly. The child hesitated before slowly putting down an eight.

“You’re a quick learner,” Bow said, grinning. The child’s eyes flicked to Catra, then back to Bow, and they nodded.

They went through this four more times, until Catra and the child were both down to two cards. Scorpia still had most of her hand, thanks to some well played eights blocking her before she even got a turn, and Bow had five cards left. Bow put down a nine; Catra immediately tossed an eight in front of it.

“Aw man,” Scorpia groaned, resting her head on the table. The child giggled, trying to hide their smile behind their cards. Bow looked at his four remaining cards, then at Catra, who was smiling smugly. He put down a king. She threw down her last a card. An ace.

“First out,” she said, leaning back in her chair, arms crossed behind her head. Bow glared at her before turning to the kid.

“Catra’s out of cards, which makes her the winner this round, so she’ll be king next round - er, queen, I guess. You’ll probably be out next, which will make you the richest. Then I’m guessing I’ll be the poorest, and Scorpia will be the beggar.”

“I’m always the beggar.”

Adora was biting her thumbnail, thinking. “I dunno. Catra, what do you - Catra?” She turned, surprised to find her wife was gone. There was laughter coming from the other room; Glimmer grabbed Adora, and they teleported over to peek in. Catra had joined the card game, and was clearly having a good time teaching the kid how to rile up Bow.

“Wow.” Glimmer sounded impressed. “I thought she was the one who’d be terrible with kids.”

"Hey, it’s okay. They’re all jerks.”

Adora paused at the sound of her friend’s voice, then slowly peeked around the corner. Catra was kneeling in front of a small girl nursing red hands and raw knuckles. Adora recognized those wounds - belt across the knuckles. She must have been caught misbehaving.

“You gotta ice them, or they’ll swell and it’ll feel worse. C’mere.”

The girl scooted forward uncertainly, offering her hands to the teen. She winced when Catra put the ice pack on them. “I know, it sucks. What’d you do?”

“F-Force Captain Octavia caught me drawing during class,” the girl whimpered. Catra rolled her eyes.

“She’s the worst, isn’t she? Hey, you know how she has that eyepatch?” The girl nodded. “That’s because of me.”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah. Clawed her eye when I was eight. It was an accident, kind of, but she was trying to grab me so I attacked.” She left out the part where she spent a week in solitary. The girl was looking at Catra like she was a goddess. “What’s your name?”

“Kana.”

“Cool. I’m Catra.”

The girl’s eyes were roaming now, fixing on Catra’s head. She sighed. “You wanna pet me, don’t you?” Kana nodded. “Okay, go ahead.”

“Really?”

“Sure. Just don’t tell anyone else, okay?”

Kana nodded eagerly, standing, one small hand scratching Catra’s ears. Adora watched for a moment with a small smile before turning and going back down in the other direction.

“I’m not surprised,” Adora said with a small smile, nudging the door open and stepping inside. Catra looked up and caught her eye, grinning.

“Hey Adora.”

“Hey. Having fun torturing Bow?”

“Absolutely. Kid and I have beaten him twice so far.”

“You’re helping them cheat, aren’t you?” Bow grumbled. Catra just shrugged, smiling innocently, then looked back to the child.

“We can’t keep calling you kid. You got a name? I wouldn’t leave it up to us, our track record with names is pretty freaking awful. Adora tried to convince me that my name was Catra Applesauce Meow Meow for the longest time.”

“We were four.”

“Catra Applesauce Meow Meow.” Glimmer sounded transfixed by the idea. “How did I not already know that? I need to have known that like five years ago.”

“I’m sorry, what’s your name again? Glimmer?”

“Finn.”

The small voice almost went unnoticed over Glimmer’s annoyed huff. But Catra had good ears. She looked back at the kid, who met her gaze. “Finn, huh? That’s a cool name. Do you like it?” They nodded. “Finn it is, then. Wanna play another round?”

Finn’s eyes flickered to the new arrivals, then back to Catra. “Is it okay?”

“Of course.” Catra leaned across the table as if to convey a secret. “You can watch me beat the queen of Bright Moon and the savior of the universe at a card game. It’s pretty great.”

“Bring it on,” Glimmer said, grabbing a seat. There were no other chairs in the room, so Adora simply nudged Catra and made her move until they were sharing, one of Catra’s legs thrown casually across both of Adora’s.

“Finn, do you know anything about your parents?” Adora asked carefully as Bow dealt the cards again. Finn shook their head. “Well... would you maybe want to stay with us for a bit? Me and Catra, I mean. But we live in the castle.”

Finn’s eyes widened. “You guys live here?” they asked in awe.

“Yup. Possibly not for much longer if Bow’s dads have their way. But then you’d get to live in a giant library.”

“Which is really fun,” Bow added. “Trust me, I grew up there.”

Finn was chewing their lip, eyes on the table. “I... I dunno.”

“You don’t have to decide right now,” Catra assured them. “Just... spend a night or two here and see how you feel.”

The child looked at Catra again. They trusted her. The realization went around the table in shock, save for Adora, who was just smiling. She wasn’t surprised. Catra was easy to trust when she didn’t have her walls up.

And she was trying. * * * * * * * * * * * The bed was empty when Adora awoke, some time around three a.m. She yawned, eyes searching the room for any sign of Catra, and finding none. There was also no Melog, which made her feel slightly better. Wherever Catra was, she wasn’t alone.

And she wasn’t that far, it turned out. Finn had been put in the suite next to theirs; Adora peeked in, and saw Catra asleep on the floor next to the bed, curled up in a blanket nest. Melog had tucked himself into bed with Finn, who was cuddling the alien cat as hard as their slim arms would allow. Something about the sight ignited a warm, fuzzy feeling in Adora’s chest. She slipped into the room and went to join her wife. Catra stirred slightly as Adora settled in next to her.

“Didn’t want to leave them alone?” she guessed in a whisper. Catra shrugged, yawning, and nestled closer to Adora. “Softy.”

“Shut up.”