#Gail Wines

[evilhorse]

Er. I may have been drinking.

(Red Sonja/Tarzan #3)

[semperamans]

I just saw the Bikeriders and...I can't stop thinking about Benny with a baby. Him holding them in his strong, muscular arms, letting them play with his curls and sleep on his chest...it's driving me crazy.

sobbin' :(

the fourth of july dawns hot and muggy which, in the city would be fuckin' miserable, but at the lakehouse there's a nice little breeze rufflin' your hair and caraessing your sun-warmed cheeks. it's become a vandal tradition; celebratin' the holiday together, wading through the waves, nappin' on the beach, dodgin' errant fireworks from the overly-giddy boys. there's always a steady stream of chatter in the air, the sound of wet feet plodding down the pier followed by the inevitable thwack of a bare belly on the murky green ripples. the air smells like woodsmoke, like grilled hot dogs and melting tan lotion. it's a family vacation where there are more games of badminton being played than poker n'beers flow, but the guys are much more contained. it's a heart-warming sight to see; these big broad bikers with their tattoos and burly beards smiling so fondly at the little ones who dash about. in the core group, there's only a few youngins: cockroach's son, johnny's girls, and of course, gail and brucie's three year old little lady. she's a hoot to be around. this little chunk, with the critical gaze she inherited from her father, has captured the hearts of you all, but no one more so than benny. uncle benny is always tossin' her into the air and blowin' raspberries in her neck which makes her positively cackle. uncle benny blew up her pool float and slathered sunscreen on her little arms. she sat on your lap during dinner, but wanted uncle benny to spoon her ice cream for dessert. n'now uncle benny is clutchin' her, holding her tight to his chest as he hums the song on the radio and listens intently to the conversation being held by brucie and johnny. it's precious. so cute that your heart is melting and not from the heat :( her smooshy cheek presses into his chest, tired eyes struggling to stay open :( you keep watching, heart twanging as her little hand reaches up, fingers fiddling with the curls at the base of his neck and then she's out. sound asleep. cradled in the protective sinew of benny's arms and he seems to know. his blue eyes flick down, small smile tugging the corner of his mouth as he presses a kiss to the top of her head and continues rockin'.

"he's gonna be a great daddy," gail says, passing the now half-empty bottle of wine to you. he will. you just know it. your sweet benny. he's told you over and over that he can't wait for that day to come because "i love you, an' i'd love to have a little you runnin' 'round." and now you're thinkin' that day should be sooner rather than later.

[bookcub]

Chappell Roan Book Rec

like many other, I am currently obsessed with The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess so here are a few book recs based on the songs!!

(you can message me for questions about content warnings!)

Femininomon

A Guest in the House by E. M. Carroll (horror graphic novel)

What happens when you marry a mediocre liar and there's a ghost you are definitely attracted to in the house (that might be his dead wife)?

Relevant lyric: Stuck in the suburbs, you're folding his laundry/Got what you wanted so stop feeling sorry

Bonus Rec: Romancing the Inventor by Gail Carriger (adult steampunk romance)

Red Wine Supernova

Satisfaction Guaranteed by Karelia Stenz-Waters (adult romance)

Imagine inheriting a sex toy shop with a enchanting stranger who you feel incredibly connected to. . .

Relevant lyric: I heard you like magic/I got a wand and a rabbit

Bonus Rec: Sunstone by Stjepan Šejić (adult romance graphic novel)

After Midnight

Ash by Malinda Lo (YA fantasy)

I had to choose a queer Cinderella for this one, especially one whose mother warns her away from the forest at night.

Relevant lyric: This is what I wanted, this is what I like/I've been a good, good girl for a long time now

Bonus Rec: A Restless Truth by Freya Marske (adult historical fantasy, sequel)

Coffee

The Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec (adult fantasy)

When your ex is the trickster god Loki and you have prophetic futures, you know you can never just have coffee.

Relevant lyric: Here come the excuses that fuel the illusions/But I'd rather feel something than nothing at all,

Bonus Rec: Seven Days in June by Tia Williams (adult contemporary)

Casual

The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi (adult gothic)

Remember that toxic homoerotic best friend you had a child? Who believed in magic and was also the most manipulative person you've ever met? It never was a casual relationship, was it?

Relevant lyric: Hate that I let this drag on so long, you can go to hell

Bonus Rec: Ben and Beatriz by Katalina Gamarra (adult romance)

Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl

A Spindle Splintered/A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow (adult fantasy)

Entering the fairy tale multiverse always leads to the strangest (and funnest) relationships (platonic and romantic) of your life.

Relevant lyrics: We're leaving the planet and you can't come

Bonus Rec: Cash Degado is Living the Dream by Tehlor Kay Mejia (adult contemporary)

HOT TO GO!

The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz (graphic novel)

What if I dressed up as a count to inherit my father's fortune and you were a princess and we both liked grilled cheese???

Relevant lyric: I could be the one, or your new addiction/ It's all in my head but I want non-fiction

Bonus Rec: Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert

My Kink is Karma

Mrs. Martin's Incomparable Adventure by Courtney Milan (adult historical romance)

She said, let's destroy my terrible nephew's life, and how could you say no to such a romantic proposal?

Relevant lyric: Wishing you the best, in the worst way

Bonus Rec: Girl Serpent Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust (YA fantasy)

Picture You

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall (adult historical romance)

Oops, I faked my death and reinvented myself and you were way more distraught than I thought you would be. . .

Relevant lyric: Do you picture me like I picture you?/Am I in the frame from your point of view?

Kaleidoscope

The Scapegracers by H. A. Clarke (YA urban fantasy)

What if we formed a coven and what if we were all a little in love with each other?

Relevant lyric: And love is a kaleidoscope/How it works we'll never know

Bonus Rec: The Girls I've Been by Tess Sharpe (YA thriller)

Pink Pony Club

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang (graphic novel)

He was a drag queen, she was a seamstress, can I make it anymore obvious?

Relevant Lyric: And I heard that there's a special place/Where boys and girls can all be queens every single day

Bonus Rec: Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo (YA historical)

Naked in Manhattan

Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail by Ashley Herring Blake (adult romance)

Isn't it romantic, designing a house with someone with your entirely opposite tastes?

Relevant lyric: Boys suck and girls I've never tried

Bonus Rec: Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust (YA fantasy)

California

Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers (adult contemporary)

If a PhD can't save you, maybe a drunken marriage in Vegas can?

Relevant lyric: Cause I was never told that I wasn't gonna get/The things I want the most

Guilty Pleasure

Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner (adult romance)

Fake dating your boss? 0/10 recommended. . . right?

Relevant lyric: I want this like a cigarette/Can we drag it out and never quit?

Bonus Rec: That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming (adult fantasy romance)

Bonus:

Good Luck, Babe

Sorry, Bro by Taleen Voskuni (adult contemporary)

Relevant lyric: You'd have to stop the world just to stop the feeling

Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie (YA contemporary)

[simplymelnaie-blog]

Risk //Benny cross // Part 2

The glow from the scattered neon lights and streetlights lit the sidewalks as you made your way to the bar, your heels making the familiar click on the concrete. The night air was refreshing and you felt a since of calm wash over you. You'd been stressed about the date all week and now that it was over with you could relax.

You didn't mind that it was dark, as you often worked the closing shift at the diner. In the summer, you would usually take the opportunity to walk home, that is unless one of the guys would get word and conveniently ride past and offer a ride. Of course you would take it, but only to avoid an argument with your uncle. Despite being twenty-three Johnny was still protective to a fault. You knew he meant well, but it sometimes felt suffocating.

After Gail drove off, leaving you standing in front of the restaurant Ray greeted you like a perfect gentleman. He held the door open for you, pulled your chair out and even ordered the food.

He talked a lot about his family and his schooling. He had recently graduated from Havard with a degree in business, just like his brother and father before him. 

His father was well known businessman in Chicago and decided to raise his kids outside of the city, settling here in the sleepy town many years ago. By the time the food had come you had learned that when he was in town, he would hang around the country club or golf. 

You cringed as you continued to walk, thinking back to when had asked you the first real question all night.

"Anyways, what's your family like Maggie?"

You nearly choked on your food.

"How much time do you have?" You joked, laughing slightly and then stifling it when you noticed he wasn't laughing. You swallowed the bite and took a sip of your wine.

"Well" You breathed, nervously playing with the hem of your dress under the table. "I never knew my father, not really, he left when I was little"

"My mother raised me on her own," Ray nodded quietly, intently listening so you continued, "But she died when I was around 15 so I moved in with my uncle and his wife"

You decided many years ago, that this version was much easier to tell. It was the short and simple. Nothing too hard to digest.

"Oh" He said quietly. And when you looked over at him he was staring at you with wide eyes, blank look on his face.

"I'm sorry," You laughed awkwardly, picking up your glass and taking another sip, "I didn't mean to-"

"No, I'm sorry I didn't know" He interrupted, reaching out and grabbing your hand that was sitting on the tablecloth. It was comforting gesture, but it took you by surprise.

"Oh please, no that was so long ago," You sighed, taking your necklace between the fingers of your free hand and moving it back and forth on the chain, "Enough about me, what was it you said your father did again?"

When the two of you walked out of the restaurant the sun was down and the streetlights were lighting the sidewalks. Ray held your hand while the two of you walked to his car and even offered to drive you home, but you lied and told him you were meeting a friend down the street for a late movie. 

"I'd like to do this again" He said, pulling your hand closer to him and leaning forward to kiss you. 

You didn't mind, in fact you were hoping he would kiss you. You were worried about halfway through the dinner that he didn't like you after all, especially after the sudden trauma dumping. 

"I would like that" 

You smiled to yourself you turned the block, feeling the ghost of his lips on yours. It made you giddy to think that a guy with such class would be interested in you.

"Hey there baby"

You were brought out your thoughts as you passed by an alley. A bald man stepped out into the light of the streetlight, holding a brown sack with some sort of liquor in it. You ignored him and kept walking, cursing yourself for making eye contest with him in the first place.

At this time of night there was always drunks hanging around the alleys or out front of the closed stores. You knew better than to acknowledge it.

In the distance, the Stoplight Bar sign was glowing bright above the door and an assortment of bikes were parked out front and along the side.

"What’s a pretty girl like you doing out here all alone?”

You could hear the voice behind you and the footsteps that followed, the man was close behind. You quickened your pace slightly as to not be obvious and tightened your grip on your purse. You kept your eyes trained on the sign as it got closer. The sound of heels along the empty street matched your heart thumping hard in your chest.

"Hey bitch, I'm talkin' to ya"

You tried to ignore the panic that grew in your chest. You were used to being cat-called occasionally or men getting too friendly, you were a woman after all. Those were easy to ignore, but not when you were alone in the dark and the man was hot on your heels.

You were close enough to the bar now to see a handful of guys out by the bikes smoking, you couldn't tell who they were. But you felt an ease seeing the familiar Vandals logo on the leathers and smelling the smoke.

You had just felt the ghost of the man's fingers grabbing for your arm as you reached for the door and hurried inside.

The bar was busy as always on a Friday night. There was a haze of smoke that made the low light seem to glow. Your pace never changed, as you made a beeline for the back of the bar, pushing through the crowd of bodies and finally coming into view of your uncle.

Johnny had a specific table near the back of the bar where he could be found every night. Usually, Brucie and Cal could be found sitting with him while the other guys played pool or socialized.

Benny was playing pool when he noticed you walking in. He couldn't miss that yellow dress anywhere. He clocked your panicked look and quick steps toward the back, he also clocked the bald guy walking in after you, hot on your heels. He couldn't ignore the way the guy kept his eyes on you as he walked to the bar and took a seat on the stool.

Benny took a long drag of his cigarette before setting his stick down.

"Where ya been?" Johnny sat up in his chair when he saw you. Cockroach, Cal and Brucie were sitting at the table, smoking and nursing their beers.

Your throat was completely dry and you reached out and grabbed a beer from the table, taking a quick drink. You tried to steady your breathing and heart rate.

Just as you were about to speak, a hand came up and touched your side, you nearly jumped out of your skin. It was Corky who showed himself to you with a lopsided tipsy smile, “We barely recognized you"

Johnny was standing up from his seat now, coming over and standing in front of you. “What’s wrong?”

You hid slightly beside Corky as you glanced back and scanned the room, looking to see if the man had followed you in.

"I was walking, and this guy started following me, tried to grab me on my way in here."

"What guy? Is he in here?”

There was a bald guy at the bar, sipping a beer and looking around toward the back. You knew it was him but hesitated for a minute to say anything. You hated fights and you knew that’s how this would end. The thought was pushed to the back of your mind as you thought how if he got the chance outside, he would not have spared you.

"The bald guy at the bar" You say quickly, and Johnny makes a motion with his head to the guys still sitting. They all stand up and start to disappear into the crowd, leaving you alone. You took a seat in Johnnys chair against the wall and took a breath, face in your hands.

Back at the bar, while you were talking with Johnny, Benny had made his way over and leaned up against the counter, elbows resting against the sticky wood. He stared at the bald guy, unabashedly, until the guy finally looked over at him. "You lookin' for someone?"

"Just having a drink man" He said, taking a sip from his beer and scanning the room again. It was clear who he was looking for. When the guy looked back at Benny and saw he was still staring at him, he got a hard look on his face, "You got a problem kid?" 

"Yeah, I do" Benny took another drag of his cigarette before reaching over and dropping it in the guys full beer bottle. The guy stood up abruptly at the blatant disrespect and cocked his arm back. Benny was grabbing a beer bottle to the right of him and bringing it down on the guys head before he ever had a chance to swing. The empty glass shattered upon impact.

The commotion caught everyone's attention and even though they weren't sure the context of the fight they cheered and hollered. The guy collected himself faster than Benny would've thought and jumped up, managing to land a hard punch on Bennys mouth.

Everyone who knew Benny knew that he loved fights. This sucker never stood a chance once Benny got that look in his eye and lunged at him.

"Enough" Johnnys voice bellowed above the music. Benny stopped immediately, standing up straight with the guys shirt balled up in his fist and his other hand cocked back, mid punch. "Cockroach, Corky, get him out of here"

The two followed suit, grabbing the guy and hauling him away all but throwing him out of the bar doors. Benny wiped at his mouth and saw the blood smear on the back on his hand. A smile grew across his face as he made eye contact with Johnny.

"You're fuckin' crazy kid" Johnny chuckled, throwing his arm over Bennys shoulder and guiding him to the back to the table, boots crunching on the broken glass. 

The bar came back to life as soon as Johnny and Benny were walking away, most people in the bar were used to brawls breaking out. The room filled with loud voices and the sound of the billiard balls smacking each other on the pool table in the corner. 

You still had your head resting in your hands when you heard the bar resume, you knew whatever they did was done. When you did look up you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Johnny and Benny were chuckling about something and when they got to the table you could see blood dripping from Bennys lip. It was surely split open, or at least it was bleeding enough to be. When Benny saw her staring, he gave a lopsided bloody smile.

You immediately pulled the chair out beside you and started gathering some of the napkins from the table, "Sit down"

Johnny laughed, dropping his arm and muttering something about getting him a drink, before heading back to the bar. Benny did as he was told, coming around the table and swiftly turning the chair to sit backwards on it. He straddled it, crossing his arms on the back of the chair and leaning toward you.

You huffed, taking one of the napkins and dabbing at his bottom lip, he had no reaction so you continued.

"You okay?" He asked after a minute of watching you silently, resting his chin on his folded arms. He saw a slight pout come across your lips.

"You're the one bleeding" You said simply, moving to a clean part of the napkin and dabbing the blood again. You could feel his eyes staring at you, combing over your expression so you sighed and answered honestly, "I'm fine"

"I saw you come in with him following you” He said after you moved the napkin away from his lips again.

"Typical Benny," You sighed, scooting your chair a little closer to him and held the napkin to his bottom lip again, "Swing first, ask questions never"

Benny wanted to say that he didn't need to ask questions when he saw you upset, but instead kept his mouth shut. It was a fact that both of you had known at this point.

You sometimes found it infuriating and even had a couple of times when you thought life would be easier if you hated Benny Cross but it was impossible. Especially since you had been mesmerized by him ever since you met him.

"You're gonna have a swollen lip" You said after a moment, pulling the napkin away and dabbing his lip a couple more times, satisfied when the bleeding was slowing. You tossed the bloody napkins on the table and crossed your arms across your chest and leaning back against the chair with a huff.

Benny didn't care. He would've just let it bleed but he knew if he didn't let you check it out, you would’ve been more pissed. At this point in your life you were used to cleaning up his injuries from fights or wrecks.

He once showed up to your house at 2 am with a knife wound to his side from a bar fight that got ugly. You had no idea what to do but he refused to go to the hospital. The guys joked you should become a nurse with the experience you had under your belt at this point. 

He was still staring at you when Johnny brought back an arm full of beers and dropped them down on the table before sitting on the other side. He saw your arms crossed and the sour expression on your face, "What's your problem?"

"I don't like all the fightin'" You said simply as you picked up the beer and took a swig, deciding to finally look Benny in the eyes as you sat it back down on the table.

It was an annoyed, accusatory look, but you couldn't hold it for long, not when Benny smirked at you. “You know I like to get punched"

You uncrossed your arms and leaned forward toward Benny grabbing a handful of his messy blonde locks and shaking it softly, "Well maybe I should start punching you then, get it out of your system"

"You're probably the only one in town that could get away with it" Wahoo said suddenly joining the conversation and sitting down next to Johnny at the table, followed by Corky and Cockroach.

"You look different" Cockroach said, standing beside the table with his cigarette hanging from his lips.

Corky nodded, bumping him with his shoulder and drunkenly pointing his finger out at you. "I was just thinkin' that man"

You rolled your eyes, taking a look at the men around you, scoffing, "Would ya lay off? Can't a girl wear a nice dress or do something different with her hair every once in a while?"

"Ohhhhh" Corky and Wahoo had their hands up in fake surrender. Teasing you was one of their favorite pastimes. "Miss Margaret has an attitude tonight fellas"

You despised being called Margaret but you allowed the guys a free pass every now and then. It was typically reserved for Johnny and Betty, the only parental figures you had left.

"Maybe if you boys had yourself a lady, you wouldn't be so shocked"

This made the table erupt with laughter and you took it as a win, grabbing your beer again and taking another sip proudly. The group hung around, talking for a while before the guys started to disperse throughout the bar.

"I don't want you walkin' around down here at dark no more" Johnny said suddenly, taking a drag of his cigarette, "not unless you got someone with ya"

You had her elbows propped up on the table and was resting your chin in the palm of your hand absentmindedly swirling the beer left in your bottle. You thought for a minute, “I can’t give up my night shift at the diner, that’s when I make the best tips”

Benny was still sitting backward on the chair, looking down at his cigarette as he flicked the ashes into the glass tray. His tan arms flexing when he moved.

"Well," Johnny took a sip of his beer and looked off toward the juke box, "I'll figure it out"

"It’s fine, nothing happened and I know th-"

"What would you've done if you were 3 or 4 blocks from the bar?" Johnny said a little bit louder, clearly growing agitated at the thought and leaning up on the table, "What if the guys aren't around? You’re just like your mother, never thinkin’ about these things”

You knew he was going to pull that card, it was his most famous line when something went wrong in your life. You were going to respond, feeling liquid courage from the beer but when you opened your mouth, Benny's gruff voice was replacing it.

"Let's go play some pool"

He had stood up from his chair and was standing up beside you, looking down at you. You took at him, then back at Johnny. He took another drink and wiped at his mouth. It was clear he had been drinking all night and there was no point in fighting with him.

Benny waits for you to stand and grab your purse before leading the way to pool table in the corner by the front door.

"You didn't have to do that" You say once Benny stops. There was currently an intense game going on and by the looks of it, the table wasn’t going to be free for some time.

You follow Benny as he makes his way to the wall and leans against it. The two of you stare at colored pool balls on the green material.

"You shouldn't fight with him" He said simply looking over at you cooly, his arms crossed over his chest, tattoos and biceps on full display, "Doesn't do any good"

"You always take his side" You sighed, the skin of your arm brushing his as you scooted closer to him watching as one of the players made a hit and satisfying crack of the balls hitting rang out.

Benny shook his head and chuckled at your accusation. He glanced over at you. "He's right it's not safe to be walkin' around by yourself"

"I'm not a teenager anymore, he can't just tell me what I can and cannot do" You complain, having to talk louder with the juke box next to where the table was.

Benny listened as he always did even when it was about Johnny. A lot of the times he was the middleman between you two. It was the role he had taken on not long after you’d met. He could always see where you were both coming from, tried to stay neutral as much as possible.

There was a mirror hanging on the wall opposite of the one you were leaned on. It was dirty and old, but it was clear enough to make out the stark difference between you and Benny.

Benny with wearing his black cut off shirt and grease stained jeans. His hands still had stains on them from earlier in the shop. You thought about how you could see where the guys were coming from now with their comments. Your dress was vibrant in the dark bar and completely different from your usually attire.

"How was your date?" He asked, instead of continuing the conversation about Johnny.

You cursed under her breath and turned to where you could stare directly at him, propping your right shoulder against the wall you were sharing. You brought your fingers to your necklace, grabbing the pendant and moving it side to side on the chain absentmindedly, "I didn't go on a date"

Benny gave you look, looking you up and down before looking back at the pool table, "I can still tell when you're lying"

"So what?" You said suddenly, scoffing and dropping the necklace. "Maybe I did"

Benny looked down and laughed, amused by your defensive reaction. You pushed yourself off the wall, moving to stand in front of him and put your hands on your hips.

"And how was it?" Benny asked again, trying his best to hide his amusement. 

You bit at the inside of your cheek, scanning his face, trying to read his expression. "It was nice."

"It was nice" Benny echoed back at you, adjusting his back on the wall and smirking at you.

"Yeah, it was real nice" You added, crossing your arms over your chest to mirror his stance.

"Nice guy huh?" Benny asked, causally.

"A real gentleman"

"Oh really" Benny said, raising his eyebrows with an expression of fake impressed, "and then he let you walk downtown in the dark?"

You could've said that you lied to him about how far you’d be walking, or that you were embarrassed to have him drop you off at a biker bar. But instead, you looked down at the sticky floor, taking the tip of your pretty white heel and tapping it against his dirty biker boots.

Benny thought he might have really pissed you off but after a minute you looked at him with your big blue eyes and cracked a smile, dimples appearing, "You're such an ass"

He surveyed the room behind you and when he saw a drunk guy stumbling by, he reached out and pulled you closer to him in quick motion.

You barely noticed, too busy yawning and looking up at the clock on the wall. It was nearly midnight and you felt the events of the day piling up and thought about how exhausted you were. 

Your voice comes out quiet and he has to lean in to hear over the music, "You feel like giving me a ride home?"

"Sure" he replies, his voice easy and relaxed. 

The summer night air was cool and crisp, a refreshing change from the smoky atmosphere inside the bar. The sky was clear, with a smattering of stars visible in the blackness. You took a deep breath, savoring the fresh air as you approached Benny's motorcycle, which was parked right outside the bar's front doors.

He easily slides onto the bike seat and kicks the engine to life with a smooth, experienced movement. The bike rumbles underneath him as he shifts his weight and puts the kickstand up with the heel of his boots. 

You places a hand on his shoulder and about to lift yourself up and over the seat but stop suddenly, letting out a giggle, "This should be interesting in a dress" 

"I won't look"

Your arms snake around his waist once your fully sat on the seat behind him. The bike takes off down the street, the wind rushes all around. The streetlights pass overhead in a bright blur, and you can't help but close your eyes, letting the cool air and the rumble of the engine wash over you. You lean against Benny's back, feeling the firm muscles of his torso against your cheek as you rest your head against him, hair flying wildly in the night air.

You’d ridden on the back of all the guys bikes over the years but felt the most comfortable with Benny, despite his reputation of recklessness. You knew when you were on the back of his bike that he wouldn't try anything crazy. It was a good way of keeping him out of trouble, sitting on the back of that bike.

The ride comes to an end, and Benny parks the bike in front of your house. He leaves the engine idling and keeps it steady, allowing you to slide off the back seat. As you climb off the bike, the dress rides up slightly, revealing a brief flash of skin but he keeps his word and still doesn't look until you come towards the front of the bike.

"You be careful" You warn, digging through the purse for your keys. When you finally fish them out of the bag and look at Benny you see he’s staring at you.

“You know I hate that” You say simply, reaching out and pushing at his shoulder.

"Go on, I'm not leaving until you're inside," He says, a smile playing on his lips. You make a note that when he smiles a faint line of blood appears from the split in his lip.

You nod and start walking up the porch and towards the front door. He waits until you’re inside and the light by the window comes on before he drives off. From inside you hear his bike's engine fading into the distance as he disappears into the night.

[martiandmichelle]

This poor guy should have checked the battery in his camera before he came over for a photograph me/fuck me day. (Photo from a few years ago.)

And so this is Christmas. . .

It's a bit presumptuous to call something you've been doing for 4 years a "tradition" but it seems that way here at Marchelle. All of us 40+ ladies from Studio M will gather in the great room of the main house at 4:00 am and, for about 90 minutes, we'll all sit together over coffee, hot tea (my choice), hot chocolate, mimosas, and mulled wine just to enjoy each other's company - a room full of laughter. Then, around 5:30, Gail and Maria will disappear into the kitchen (with a few helpers) and make us all the Mother of all English breakfasts - with a southern twist: scrambled and fried eggs, bacon, sausage, beans, fried toast, baked tomatoes, (we'll skip the kippers), sauteed mushrooms, grits, pancakes with blueberries and raspberries, pastries, etc. We'll all feast together and revel in the sweet wine of friendship.

At Christmas, traditions can start anytime and any place for traditions are where the heart finds peace. Even now, as I woke before most of the other ladies (except Maria and Gail) and sit sipping hot tea with my dog Saks in my lap at 3:00 am with my wife Roxy and daughter Michelle with me, I realize how blessed I am through good times and hard times. And it's worth a few tears of happiness and memories and joy.

I wish I could somehow make you understand how important all of YOU are to me and to us. Together we share fantasies, visions, heartfelt desires, and, really, friendship and love. Oh, and lust, too! You're more important to us than you can ever realize.

Whatever your beliefs, traditions, and dreams may you find peace this special time of year. And whether you'll be spending time with family, friends, pets, or even by yourself, we all wish you joy and pray you know just how important you are to us - and to the world.

Love,

Marti (and the rest of Marchelle/Studio M)

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Inside Climate News:

In recent years, gas stoves have been an unlikely front in the nation’s culture wars, occupying space at the center of a debate over public health, consumer protection and the commercial interests of manufacturers. Now, Norton is among the environmental advocates who wonder if a pair of recent developments around the public’s understanding of the harms of gas stoves might be the start of a broader shift to expand the use of electrical ranges.

On Monday, lawmakers in the California Assembly advanced a bill that would require any gas stoves sold in the state to bear a warning label indicating that stoves and ovens in use “can release nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and benzene inside homes at rates that lead to concentrations exceeding the standards of the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and the United States Environmental Protection Agency for outdoor air quality.” 

The label would also note that breathing those pollutants “can exacerbate preexisting respiratory illnesses and increase the risk of developing leukemia and asthma, especially in children. To help reduce the risk of breathing harmful gases, allow ventilation in the area and turn on a vent hood when gas-powered stoves and ranges are in use.”

The measure, which moved the state Senate, could be considered for passage later this year.

“Just running a stove for a few minutes with poor ventilation can lead to indoor concentrations of nitrogen dioxide that exceed the EPA’s air standard for outdoors,” Gail Pellerin, the California assembly member who introduced the bill, said in an interview Wednesday. “You’re sitting there in the house drinking a glass of wine, making dinner, and you’re just inhaling a toxic level of these gases. So, we need a label to make sure people are informed.”

Pellerin’s proposal moved forward in the legislature just days after a group of Stanford researchers announced the findings of a peer-reviewed study that builds on earlier examinations of the public health toll of exposure to nitrogen dioxide pollution from gas and propane stoves.

[salientseraph]

Me and my friend gail call these two the "wine wives" She's romancing shadowheart and I'm romancing Astarion, and we like to think that they both relax with a bottle of wine at the end of the day and gossip with one another. Shart is borrowing one of tavs shirts as a nightgown and Astarion has washed the pomade out of his hair, so they're both fully unwinding!

[lemonmangosorbet]

Red Wine Supernova

Summary:

And here Gail was, a week later, in the lesbian bar with her best friend that she had a hopeless crush on. And instead of just explaining that, she’d instead been talked into going out to find another woman to have casual sex with, and in all honesty, Gail didn’t do casual sex.

aka the 'bloodweave but make it yuri' fic that no one asked for, set in a 90s modern au

-

Read more on AO3 HERE (18+ only and please check the fic tags)

Reblogs are appreciated ❤️

[murphymakestherules]

revenge - for the single-word fic prompt!

The grey- faced Keeper who calls herself Gail ran her hand over her sleeping partner's dark braid, gentle and affectionate to keep from disturbing the Midlander 's rest while her mind spun. It was a relief to hear that he was of a mind with her- what was it he'd said? Revenge doesn't put the wine back in a broken bottle? Something of the sort anyway. And she'd seen the truth of it her whole life.

She contrasted the attitude against her adopted family, sighing quietly at the evidence that even with the people who chose her, she still didn't quite...fit. Putting a fear of retribution in someone seemed such a wasteful way to manage things. Certainly some people would be deterred from acting against a vengeful group or individual, but many people also have something that means more to them than their own health or life. More efficient, to her mind, to arrange reasons for someone to want the same things she does than for them to fear crossing her.

'No,' she thought, settling herself for her vigil, 'revenge doesn't accomplish anything useful. There are better ways to spend my time.'

[mikaela-granger]

The Long Wait (Season 3) Chapter 7

El Cucuy

Fandom: Grimm

Pairing: Sean Renard/OFC

The Long Wait Masterlist

A/N: Lorelei and her friends start packing while Nick and Hank investigate a series of brutal murders.

Things seemed to be working out for Lorelei. Gail had called her back the next day, letting her know that she good to work from home for the next couple of months. The big bosses were still deciding about paid maternity leave; however, Gail said it sounded like they were leaning towards it. Lorelei had also heard back from her college friends, who were eager to help out. Melody put her hand up to be Molly’s dog walker; she had to drive past Lorelei’s building to get to school anyway. Lorelei also had plans to have the others come over the next Saturday to have what had been designated a ‘Packing Party’. They’d bring the packing material as long as Lorelei supplied the food. Lorelei had emailed her professors, who were understanding of her situation and as they weren’t learning any new course material, gave the ok for her to miss class. Sean was happy to hear that Lorelei would be taking it easy and that the people in her life were helping.

One night Lorelei headed over to Monroe’s and Rosalee’s to have dinner with the gang. She let them know about her health issues and there was a consensus that Lorelei should focus more on her health and less on wesen related stuff. Lorelei also shared the news that the baby was a girl which was a cause for celebration. As evening progressed, the conversation shifted towards a case Nick and Hank were working on. They were trying to figure out what had brutally killed two robbers. And of course, photos ended up getting passed around.

“No dog did this.” Juliette commented while looking at the photos.

“How can you tell?” Hank asked.

“Usually when a dog or coyote or wolf bites down and attacks, it’ll shake the victim, and you’d see more tearing in the wounds.”

“Who wants my caprese?” Rosale asked, coming over with the caprese salad she had made.

“Me.” Nick answered, and Rosalee dished some onto his plate.

“Definitely not a blutbad.” Monroe added, handing some photos back to Hank, while accepting the others from Juliette. “FYI, too much general mangling. We’re more of a throat first, ask questions later wesen.” He started looking through the ones Juliette had handed to it. “Plus, yeah, there’s no signs of going after the legs first to cripple the prey.” Hank gave him a look. “Sorry, victim. Which is what a canine would do, so yeah, you’re probably right. We’re dealing with a wesen and a powerful one.”

 “You don’t know what kind of wesen you’re dealing with?” Rosalee asked as she handed Monroe the bottle of wine.

“It’s sort of part hundjäger part dämonfeuer.” Nick answered.

Lorelei saw Rosalee and Monroe exchanged a look. “Sounds like a…”

“Höllentier.” Monroe finished for Rosalee, filling her glass up.

“Exactly what I was thinking.” Rosalee confirmed. “Biggish eyes, snoutish, broodish, neanderthal, ass, basically a jerkwad.”

“That’s him.” Hank confirmed.

Monroe nodded. “Because a höllentier, could definitely do that.” He said, gesturing to the photos.

“What does höllentier mean?” Juliette asked. “Is it German?”

“Basically, it means beast from hell.” Monroe replied, after considering it for a moment. “They actually have a really ancient lineage, all the way back to the Egyptians.”

Rosalee looked at Nick. “How did he react to you?”

“He didn’t seem to care all that much.” Nick said, before taking a sip of his wine.

“Definitely a höllentier then.” Rosalee said, exchanging another look with Monroe.

Lorelei had finished eating and reached forward to place her plate on the coffee table in front of her, before leaning back as Juliette asked Nick “This wesen wasn’t afraid of you?”

Nick wrapped his arm around her shoulder and sat back. “He didn’t appear to be.”

“Your basic höllentier’s too stupid to know what to be afraid of. Which is why the Egyptians used to entomb them with their pharaoh’s.” Monroe told them with a slight chuckle. “They thought it was a promotion, til, you know, they buried them alive.”

“Uh, can somebody you please pass the…uh, what do you call them?” Hank asked.

“The artichokes or the edamame tabbouleh?” Rosalee asked him.

“Uh, both.” Hank replied.

“So, where is the höllentier now?” Juliette asked as she handed both bowls over to Hank.

Hank took the bowls from Juliette. “Ah, we’ve got him locked up.”

Monroe laughed. “Hey, you put a farrow in there with him, he’ll stay forever.” He did get a bit of a weird look from the rest, although Rosalee did laugh as well. Lorelei rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying.”

A couple of nights later, Sean and Lorelei were getting ready for bed. Well, Sean was, Lorelei was starting at him in surprise, unable to believe what he had just told her. “You’re telling me a tiny, 77-year-old Hispanic woman is responsible for those brutal murders? She’s El Cucuy?”

Sean nodded, spitting out the toothpaste in his mouth. “We were just as surprised.”

“And you had to let her go?” Lorelei asked him, as he rinsed his mouth out and dried it on his towel. She returned to brushing her own teeth.

“Yeah. She was right. No one would believe us. The DA’s not going to press charges against a senior citizen for four homicides. Especially ones as brutal as these ones were.” Sean said, as Lorelei finished up with her teeth and they returned to the bedroom.

“That is true. It’s just crazy though. And she has no remorse?”

“Not even a little.”

Lorelei walked to her side of the bed, pulling the covers down before sliding in. “And you mentioned she appears to be moving on.”

Sean joined her in bed. “Yeah, said she had done what she came here to do. She’ll be someone else’s problem.”

Lorelei leaned over to turn off the overhead light. As she settled back Sean pulled Lorelei towards him and laid back, allowing her to rest her head against his shoulder, her hand resting on his chest and their legs entangled.

“Your friends are still coming tomorrow for that, what did you call it? A packing party?”

“That’s what Melody called it. And yeah. I have no doubt it will become a competition to see who can pack the most. Katie and her cousin Daniel are pretty competitive. They can and will turn anything into a competition.”

“And you’ll be taking it easy?”

“I will be. We’ll probably also move what we can upstairs. I’d like to be moved in by next week. Then I can spend my summer vacation relaxing as much as possible.”

“I do like that plan.” Sean told her, pressing a kiss to the crown on her head. “Now, sleep, you have a long day tomorrow.”

Surprisingly, with the exception of some of her clothes, kitchen stuff, Molly and Daisy’s stuff, and her school stuff, Lorelei’s friends were able to move almost everything up to Sean’s apartment in one day. As expected, Katie and Daniel had turned it into a competition. They had definitely packed more than the others. Katie had also brought over all the stuff the eisbibers had left at her parents and Uncle Bud’s house. Sean arrived at Lorelei’s apartment to find her in the living room, going through the gifts, talking note of who gave what so she could send out thank you cards.

“What’s all this?” He asked as he joined Lorelei on the couch.

“Presents from the eisbibers. Lots of baby related stuff, gift cards, and look at this.” Lorelei held up a beautiful hand made quilt. “Nick and Juliette received one similar last year.”

Sean admired the quilt. “It certainly is beautiful.” He said. “How did your packing party go?”

“Really well, almost everything is packed and sitting upstairs, waiting to be unpacked. I only have a few more things to go.”

“And you took it easy?”

“I did. Even if I wanted to do anything, my friends wouldn’t let me. I got questioned when I got up to go to the bathroom.”

“I’m glad your friends are looking out for you.”

Lorelei smiled, sinking back into the couch cushions. “They are. They’re good friends. Drive me nuts sometimes, but still good.”

Sean smiled. “What do you feel like for dinner?”

Lorelei thought about it for a moment. “You know what I’m really craving. Lasagna, but not just any lasagna, the one from Giovanni’s. Ooh, and the mozzarella sticks. And their cannoli’s.”

Sean tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Alright. I’ll go get dinner. Why don’t you have a nice relaxing bath.”

“I like that plan.”

Next Part

Taglist: @zoexme, @nu1freakshow, @star-yawnznn, @bella250

Banner by @cafekitsune

[veronica-lawson-phd]

Hey so I don't know how they got it, but Gail drank an entire bottle of wine. She's safe at the apartment, but would you mind doing a wellness check in the morning?

@calaverage

Goodness! I'd be happy to.

[burlveneer-music]

My WVUD playlist, 1/11/2024

(Filling in on Java Time)

Vic Mars - The Obelisk Belbury Poly - The Path Peter Gabriel - Road to Joy (Bright-Side Mix) David Bowie - Lady Grinning Soul David Bowie - Cat People (Putting Out Fire) David Bowie - Loving the Alien (Single Remix) -M- & Gail Ann Dorsey - Space Oddity Metropolitan Jazz Octet - Changes (feat. Paul Marinaro) Filharmonie Brno, Dennis Russell Davies, Angélique Kidjo & Christian Schmitt - Philip Glass, Symphony No. 12 "Lodger": IV. Boys Keep Swinging Imany - Take Me to Church Dolly Parton - Wrecking Ball (feat. Miley Cyrus) Trevor Horn - Personal Jesus (feat. Iggy Pop & Lambrini Girls) Juliana Hatfield - Can't Get It Out of My Head Michele Thomas - Can't Find My Way Home Sleaford Mods - West End Girls The Fusion Syndicate - The Bottle (feat. Bootsy Collins, Brian Jackson, Carmine Appice & Fernando Perdomo) The Feelies - Sweet Jane The Gold Needles - Village Green Preservation Society Simple Minds - Colours Fly and Catherine Wheel (Live From Paisley Abbey) ABC - Poison Arrow (Live) Joni Mitchell - Help Me (feat. Celisse) (Live at the Newport Folk Festival, 7/24/2022) Brendan Perry - Sarabande (Live at The ICA) Scott Walker - Big Louise April Wine - Electric Jewels April Wine - Tonite Is a Wonderful Time to Fall In Love (Live) April Wine - Roller (Live 1982) Crack the Sky - Lady in the Lake Ana Frango Elétrico - Boy of Stranger Things

[jnjlen-ou-skinjbir]

archibald for the ask thing!!! :-D

La Passe-Miroir/The Mirror Visitor ask game: give me a character's name and I will give you three headcanons + an AU! one for them

Archibald

1 - Contrary to popular belief, he doesn't drink that much alcohol, and prefers champagne/a good wine over liquor. drugs are his poison of choice

2 - I can't explain why, but imo he isn't straight (not a lot of characters in the LPM/TMV universe I headcanon as straight tbh)

3 - He is definitely somebody who cares a lot for the people he loves, but without showing how much he actually loves them (except Victoria) : When he was creating shortcuts between the Arks during the time skip, he always came back with something for the folks he loves (a plushie/toy for Victoria, booze/tobacco/other for Gail and Fox, jewellery/trinkets for Berenilde and his sisters)

AU! - This how he would dress if the books took place nowadays:

[jewfrogs]

3, 11 and 17 for the book asks?

3. what were your top five books of the year?

based on stars, my best rated (5) were the darker face of the earth by rita dove, when my brother was an aztec by natalie diaz, and little thieves by margaret owen; the runners up (4.75) include: ovid at fifteen by christopher bursk, suspiciously sweet by samantha sorelle, how to sell a haunted house by grady hendrix, ella minnow pea by mark dunn, when we were birds by ayanna lloyd banwo, she tries her tongue, her silence softly breaks by marlene nourbese philips, and the ballad of songbirds and snakes by suzanne collins

11. what was your favorite book that has been out for a while, but you just now read?

we have always lived in the castle by shirley jackson. lives up to the hype

17. did any books surprise you with how good they were?

lots and lots! little thieves was a pleasant surprise especially; i was not anticipating writing that satisfying in a YA novel. i also reread many (many) of my childhood delights in the process of clearing my shelves and the two princesses of bamarre by gail carson levine? holds up impeccably. arguably has aged like fine wine for me what with the epic poetry

[goldenponcho]

You Can Lead a Castellan to Water…

A shorter chapter, but I think it’s cut off at the right spot, as there will probably be a time jump of a couple weeks in the next chapter.

Chapter 7: Bad Religion

If the spread at breakfast had been a feast, dinner was an absolute banquet. The two were served a Cornish hen each in addition to a hearty beef stew, which Gail found to have a quite satisfying spiciness. There was rice and a dish of roasted vegetables, and interspersed between were many of the fruits and pastries that had been served at breakefast.

And Gail indulged. It was unbelievable in hindsight just how much she was able to pack down, and Ramon took notice. He watched in…actual admiration, if he were honest, as she demolished the hen and inhaled the stew. And that was in between bites of rice and vegetables AND while carrying on conversation. Where was it all going? This woman was NOT human. He refused to believe it.

“I didn’t realize I was so hungry!” She cleaned a wing to the bone in a single bite, “I guess I never did finish my sandwich at lunch.”

Ramon gave a barely audible mumble of acknowledgement as he took a timid slurp from his stew. He picked at his meal while watching her consume hers, and, after a few moments of consideration, he narrowed his eyes with an upward twitch of his mouth, “Oh, I had nearly forgotten to ask! How is your bite. Is it healing nicely?”

He knew the answer to this. He had seen the unbandaged arm, a pink, slightly raised scar there that now looked months old in not even two days.

Gail looked at him with wide eyes, a cheek full of chicken, before swallowing to answer, “It’s heeling alright,” she fidgeted with the end of her skirt that covered the healing wound, “Definitely leaving a scar but…eh! Not a big deal.”

“Curious…” Ramon raised a brow, spoon hovering near smirking lips, “A scar after less than forty-eight hours. Unusual, do you not think?”

She attempted not to emote, but the subtle grimace was caught by her host, “Sure, I guess. I’ve always healed fast. Just lucky, I guess.” She turned to her glass of wine, taking a suspiciously long sip.

“Lucky…” Ramon nodded pensively, “GIFTED, I would say. Blessed beyond that of the average…HUMAN BEING.”

She covered her guilt with a playful smile, “What? You sayin’ I’m some kind of alien?”

Ramon shrugged, lifting his knife to cut a slice from his hen, ��Perhaps YOU should tell ME.”

She shrugged, “I have an efficient immune system. What’s to tell?”

White teeth flashed from behind dark lips, “Efficient immune system? Come, now, Gail, you are more scientifically minded than I. And even I am perfectly aware how impossible it would be for someone to recover so quickly from an injury like that. UNLESS…that someone is something more than human.”

Gail’s eyes were on her nearly cleared plate, flashing quickly between it and her dinner companion for a split second, before remaining on him, pursing her lips together and holding her hands out with a shrug, “I don’t know what to tell you… I mean…I AM adopted. Maybe my parents landed themselves a changeling?”

Ramon’s bright gold gaze penetrated into her for several long seconds as he raised his wine to his lips, swirling the glass while inhaling its scent, sipping slowly, letting it sit on his tongue, and finally swallowing.

Gail shook off the awkwardness of his accusing stare by attempting to change the subject, “Oh! Speaking of my parents, did you look into getting ahold of a phone for me to talk to my mother?”

He gave her a look that told her this conversation was certainly not over before raising himself with a nod, “Arrangements have been made for you to attempt to speak with her tonight.”

She nodded, taking the response as a win for now, and exhaled slowly, relieved that she wouldn’t leave her family hanging for much longer, “Thanks. I’ll be surprised if they haven’t already got a search party looking for me…”

Ramon’s eyes did, however, remain curious. “You said you were adopted…”

She straightened in her chair and nodded, “I was. Didn’t know my biological parents for very long. They, uh…went missing. I was almost five. Only just barely remember them.”

Ramon nodded, his stern expression softening slightly, and Gail noticed his face twitch with an emotion she couldn’t quite place. She remembered what Luis had told her.

“What-um…I-I mean you don’t have to say, obviously, if you don’t wanna tell me, but, uh, what…what happened to YOUR parents?”

His expression didn’t change, as if he had anticipated the question, and he seemed to be staring pensively, “A heartbreaking story…” he glanced briefly toward her, “…but I wouldn’t want to further sadden the conversation…”

“Sometimes it’s good to talk about sad things.”

He tilted his head.

“But like I said…” she gave a light scrunch of her shoulders, “…you don’t have to if you don’t want.”

There was another long silence, and just as she thought he had decided against it, he proceeded. “My mother died when I was twelve,” he tapped a blue fingernail against his glass. “She was struck with an unknown illness…at least, that’s what my father and the doctor told me. It all happened very suddenly. She began vomiting one night at dinner and hardly stopped until three days later when she passed.”

Gail bit the inside of her jaw at the thought of such an agonizing death, “…fuckin’ sucks…” she mumbled to herself before speaking up, “…I’m sorry.”

Ramon nodded, the pensiveness remaining until there was a sudden flash in his eyes as he perked slightly, “Then at fifteen, I shot my father in the chest for poisoning my mother with powdered castor beans.”

Gail’s eyes flew wide as he openly admitted what she was certain she’d have to dig for. “Holy shit…seriously? You think your dad did it?”

His now angry eyes seamed dark save for the golden glow of his irises, “Think? I KNEW he had done it!” he hissed, his delicate jaw clenching, “I saw the grounds left in her wine glass after she had dropped it. I had known what had happened to her from the start, but my father and the doctor insisted it was an internal bacterial infection. It was Isidro and Pesanta that found a castor bean, still intact, on the duvet in my parent’s chambers.” He nearly shook with rage, the disgust seeping through his voice, “He killed my mother for saving from the brink of death the son he had ALWAYS despised!”

Gail was leaned forward, any concern for table etiquette thrown out the window as her arms rested on either side of her plate, glass, and cutlery, “…damn…I thought I’d had it rough…” she raised her eyebrows, “So…you almost died?”

Ramon nodded again, “I was sick for two years straight. Bed-ridden for almost eight months. The doctor believed it was caused by a heart deformity that had accompanied my…small stature…at birth. By age eleven, I was at death’s door…but my sainted mother saved me,” there was now a softness in his eyes, as the hint of a reminiscent smile played at his lips, “She saw Lord Saddler’s holy power, and it is because of them that I live today!”

Her brows knit as Gail took this in. A small, sick little boy, unloved by his father… Perhaps there were other sides to the story, but that didn’t change the fact that he had been a vulnerable little kid with a mother desperate to save her child.

“Wow,” she sat back in her chair with an exhale, “I mean…I guess I would’a killed my dad too, if he had done all that.”

“Well…” he looked into his glass as he swirled it again, “…sympathy for a malformed, DEMON child is not abundant in this backward village…”

“I can’t imagine…”she shook her head, “…that’s so fucked…”

“It is indeed…fucked,” he raised his glass to his lips to drain the rest of his wine. “But Lord Saddler was there to help me pick up the pieces. He was and is my salvation…of mind, body, and soul,” golden eyes sparkled as they met hers, “If only you were able to see the way that I can. To feel his grace flowing through your veins. It’s like nothing you’ve ever felt in your life, Gail!”

She held his gaze with a sadness, “I guess that explains a lot,” her eyes fell for a few seconds before returning a concerned look, “But…forcing people to throw away their free will…how can that be right?”

“Las plagas purifies the soul!” His hands pressed tightly to the cravat at his chest, “Is it not to their benefit to save them as quickly as possible?”

Her brows knit slightly in thought, “But…what if you’re WRONG?”

The wrinkles in Ramon’s forehead became more defined in offense, “I have born witness to the full extent of my master’s God-given might. How could I POSSIBLY be wrong?”

Gail looked at her half full glass of wine, “I’ve known powerful people before, believe it or not. Not sure how they stack up against Lord Saddler, but it was enough to appear supernatural, too. People in power, they…they don’t tend to be on the honest side. Usually, there’s something they’re not telling you.”

“My Lord has been NOTHING but transparent with me,” a fist was now balled tightly next to his dessert fork, “He is more a father to me than my own flesh and blood has ever even ATTEMPTED to be! He has given me EVERYTHING! He has given me my LIFE!”

“I understand that!” Gail exhaled slowly, attempting to calm rapidly heating debate, “All I’m saying is…things aren’t usually that black and white. I mean …how can you possibly know FOR SURE that a parasite, even a powerful one, has anything to do with your s-“

“How can YOU know anything about it?!” He was suddenly out of his chair, hands slamming to the table as he crouched over his rattled setting, faced in her direction, “YOU cannot possibly know what I have seen! What I have FELT! Who are YOU to tell ME who is honest or not when you have LIED to me from the BEGINNING and CONTINUE to keep things from me!!”

Ramon felt much larger as Gail felt herself shrink in her chair. Clearly, this conversation could get them nowhere. Not right now. She sucked on her lip, glancing up at him from beneath dark lashes before he huffed a sigh and sat down hard in his chair, continuing his meal in irritation.

Her eyes shifted from her own leftover scraps of food to him and back, opening and closing her mouth a couple of times before finally speaking, “Listen, I…I didn’t mean to upset you…I…” she paused, thinking of how to proceed as Ramon busied himself with tearing the flesh from a drumstick with his teeth.

“I don’t really believe in God…in ANY god really,” she shrugged, “It took a long time for me to come to terms with that. I mean, I did believe in my early childhood, at least, so far as a child has the capacity to understand what “god” means. Then…things happened…a lot of really confusing and complicated things. When my adoptive family came into the picture…who are EXTREMELY religious, by the way. Ya know, I love ‘em with all my heart, but they are…THE stereotypical southern bible-thumpers. By the time they adopted me, I was so screwed up and confused…I tried to believe, I just…couldn’t. I can’t.”

Ramon’s attention was on her now, as he had lowered the half-eaten drumstick back to his plate, but he didn’t interrupt.

She shook her head before raising it to him, “You’ve probably got more hard evidence than most to back you up, though, I WILL give you that…”

He sighed again, looking visibly conflicted, before finally committing to a reply, “It was…difficult for me to believe growing up as well…in the Catholic god particularly. My father especially made every attempt to drill it into my skull, though deep down, he had resided himself to the fact that I was hell-spawn directly OPPOSED to any sort of saintly teaching…WHICH he quickly became quite comfortable in reminding me of after murdering my mother.”

“God or no…” Gail softly interjected, “…no one deserves to hear that. Especially from a parent. Course, that’s completely aside from the fact that it’s complete bullshit, obviously.”

Ramon produced a laughing scoff, “Is it?”

It was said under his breath, and now he was the one to seem to shrink in his chair as if he hadn’t meant to say it out loud. After a few seconds of thought, Gail answered anyway.

“It is.” The statement was calm but firm, “That’s one thing I DO know for sure. And if a god would be so cruel as to create someone in a way that makes it that hard to escape an actual HELL…” her shrug this time was entirely dismissive as she raised her glass, “…then screw ‘em…”

Ramon’s eyes widened a bit at the irreverence as she chugged the rest of her wine, her nose scrunching as she slammed the glass back to the table, only barely lightly enough that it didn’t shatter.

“Now how about that phone call?” Gail smiled, attempting to lighten the mood, “I really hate leaving mom to worry, and she’s probably havin’ a coronary by now.”

The castellan nodded, “Let’s not keep her waiting any longer, then.”

[edgessunflower]

Special welcome party

Pairing: Christian Cage x Fem reader

Description: After being reunited with your friend Christian Cage, you decide to open up on your real feelings for him

You sit backstage in your locker room after your match against Gail Kim winning the TNA women's championship waiting for the reveal of the new person joining the roster as you watch the Dudley boys and team canada. Suddenly cheers and yells backstage could be heard as Christian runs down the ramp feeling your heart burst seeing your longtime friend in the ring eyes widening when you see him in a team canada shirt before throwing Jeff Jarrett off the top rope and performing a 3d through a table with D-Von and Bubba Ray waiting in your locker room until everyone else welcomed and talked to him having an idea leaving a note in his bag along with your spare hotel room key which makes christian smile and his heart race at seeing you again since two years ago when you got injured then joined tna having need a break from WWE and all of the drama and random fights that had broken out before you left, you're brought out of your thoughts by a knock on your door smiling when you open it to see christian closing the door to be pulled in a hug "I've missed you". After sharing a long hug and a few old jokes, you pull out wine and share memories while also telling each other what each of you missed out on in the other's life recently looking at him when he leans towards you caressing your face and tucking a strand of hair behind your ear "Even more beautiful than the day I met you" you close your eyes as he slowly leaned in closer to you until you were in a passionate kiss feeling goosebumps on your body as his hands ran down your body over the white dress you had decided to wear to celebrate with him breathlessly gasping when he slowly stripped you kissing down your body feeling every single thought of him go out the window from the pleasure and the fear of rejection slip away as he thrusts in you holding both your hands kissing your shoulder whispering to you "I love you, so much for as long as I've known you" you shiver lightly as he caresses your face helping wash you after drinking water and eating small snacks since it had only been an hour since you ate earlier while waiting for christian to come to the hotel. A calm smell wakes you up the next morning looking to see it was 10:30 slowly waking up to find a vanilla candle lit across the room walking back in to find christian with breakfast smiling as the two of you eat sharing small sips of the wine since the two of you only had two small sips the night before, you crawl in his lap while watching tv placing soft kisses on his collarbone before sharing a sweet kiss as the two of you enjoy the day off together.