#I didn’t realise that it was Wednesday until after I posted this

[disappointed-time-traveller]

Apple redesign WIPs!

[samkerrworshipper]

narcotics | arsenal x reader

summary: reader has a drug problem.. her arsenal teammates help her to realise and overcome it

warnings: mentions of drugs use and abuse

this was so tough to write for me and hit home sooo fucking hard buttt also very fulfilling so i hope you enjoy

You’d never intended for it to get this bad.

Injury, surgery, recovery, drugs.

So many drugs.

That was what happened when you had major surgery, when you were an athlete, they showered you with every single kind of drug that they could, to distract from the pain and to try and start the recovery process as soon as possible. It was good, especially post surgery when you felt absolutely no pain, it was great, and it allowed you to be a lot more mobile after the operation than you would have been if you hadn't been medicated.

It was good, being pain free was so incredibly good.

That was all you could focus on, your whole recovery revolved around being pain free, tearing your tricep was a pain in the ass, but as far as football was regarded, you were hopeful to return to the pitch as soon as possible.

You didn’t need your arm to kick a football or play on the pitch, so the whole entire focus of your recovery was to make the pain bearable so you could return to the field as soon as possible.

For this reason, the doctors just kept refilling your scripts, handing you bottles and bottles upon pills, it was their job to get you back on the field to help Arsenal redeem themselves from the fall from the champions league.

You were back on the pitch in three weeks, which was almost psychotic considering that your tricep scars were still bandaged and covered in gauze.

It was procedural for you, you fell into a routine of relying on the drugs to get you through a game, to take off the edge of the pain that originated in your arm.

It was fine, it was good.

For months, the doctors filled the bottles for you, they kept filling them, past the point of where you medically needed them anymore, it was just routine for you, just a part of your day.

You woke up, and you took pills with your morning protein shake and breakfast, then you car pooled to London Colney with Beth and Viv. Once you arrived at training you ate a protein bar, which you consumed another set of pills with. Then typically as a team there would be a morning gym session, after gym there was lunch, where you would consume another set of pills. Then there was training, afterwards before recovery you inhaled another set of pills.

It didn’t really worry you, you needed the pills, they were the reason you were able to play, they were the only thing that was keeping you on the pitch.

It felt that way to you at least, even if you were months past the injury, it just felt like you needed them, that without them you would be hopeless.

So, even as the weeks passed by you continued your routine, but as every day passed by it was clear that your teammates were becoming more aware of your reliance, the concern and questions becoming far more frequent.

You insisted that you were fine, that it was the doctor's orders, even if the doctor had told you months ago that you needed to eventually wean yourself off the pills.

He was the same doctor though who continued to fill your scripts and hand you pills like they were candies.

Eventually you would stop, you would, some time, it was just something to get you through the day, something to make it easier for you to deal with everything that was happening in your life.

The first time the word addiction was thrown at you was in the most abnormal situation.

You were sitting in the locker rooms, early on a wednesday morning the likes of Katie, Jen, Beth and Alessia surrounding you as you all casually joked around.

It was all common conversation, trivial basic stuff, until Katie pivoted towards you, her whole body turning in your direction as she sent a question your way.

“Y/n, is there any history of addiction in your family?”

It’s spoken so casually, and for whatever reason you’re the only person in the group taking a double take over what she’d just asked you.

Everybody else was just kind of waiting for your answer, all eyes on you as they watched on carefully.

“No, why?”

Katie just nods her head, her eyes not leaving you and the curiosity in them.

“Just curious, Less and I were talking earlier about it, one of her cousins struggled with it majorly after having surgery, just interesting to think about, it’s just a really tough topic.”

It was blatantly obvious that there was an underlying message underneath her words, at the time though you had been completely oblivious to it.

“Yeah, well I couldn’t give any info on that, both of my parents were in the army and were as clean as whistles, my two brothers were the same, and as far as my aunts and uncles go I’m fairly certain they’ve never touched any drugs beyond paracetamol and tylenol.”

Your words are measured, calculated, trying to decrypt the overarching question lying beneath the surface of Katie’s random spiel.

“It’s definitely interesting to think about, considering how many surgeries our team has encountered in the last little while.”

Katie is digging around, for something, but you aren’t quite sure what.

“I’m not the one to ask about it, Viv and Beth are the ones who have been doing all the research.”

Katie seems to get the message that you don’t want to talk, but you can’t ignore the way she continues to look at you with a mixture of concern and annoyance whilst you tugged on your uniform and trainers.

When you thought her eyes had slipped from you, you turned into your locker, taking a sip of water before pulling two pills from your bag and slipping them past your lips as discreetly as you could.

You thought you were discreet, but when you turned back around to head out of the rooms and into the gym, and realised that all of your teammates' eyes were on you, you realised that this whole ordeal had become quite the spectacle.

You ignored the on looking eyes, especially those of Katie and Beth’s, which were practically burning holes through your body.

You avoided their eye contact, knowing that if you met their eyes it would give them a space to confront you, something which you were looking to avoid for as long as possible.

You somehow managed to make it into the gym without any further troubles, but when you did make it inside the gym you were met with some similar looks from your teammates and captains who were already occupying the space.

You got straight into your program, your mind reeling about how exactly your teammates had come to the point of pretty much accusing you of addiction.

You weren’t addicted.

You just needed the pills to take the edge off, there was nothing wrong with knowing your body's limit. Sure, you’d been told it was safest to start weaning off them after about a month on them, but you needed them, you needed them to be the same you, the old you, the pre-injury you.

You weren’t an addict, addicts were frantic and uncontrolled and definitely couldn’t play football.

The gym plan for you was fairly simple, a lot of tricep exercises and some upper body work that you finished off fairly quickly, within the hour you were heading back to the locker rooms, to grab your jumper and some pills before heading off to the lunch room to see what the chefs had cooked up today.

Kim, Leah, Katie, Viv, Beth and Jen were all sitting inside the rooms, the six of them hushedly talking between themselves. You did your best to ignore them, beelining straight towards your locker, throwing on your hoodie first before reaching into the pocket in your bag where you’d left the container early.

You felt around, confused for a few seconds when you didn’t immediately feel it.

You shoved your hand deep into the pocket, again your fingers touched nothing but the mesh of the inside pocket in your bag. At this stage, your hands begin to shake, you pull your hand out of the empty pocket, maybe you put them somewhere else.

You begin to rifle through your bag, searching incessantly for the one pill bottle that you need so desperately.

It’s not in your bag, three searches confirm that.

Maybe it’s fallen into your locker somewhere?

You pull out your things from the cube, searching desperately for your sweet relief.

This can’t seriously be happening, how the fuck could you have possibly lost them?

“Kid, what are you looking for?”

You ignore Beth’s question, continuing to toss your locker, even though it’s blatantly obvious that they aren’t hiding anywhere, they’re gone.

“Kid, what’s wrong?”

You pivot on your heel to address Beth, but your eyes are glued to Leah’s hands, or more so what Leah has resting in her hands.

The little orange bottle, the sacred fucking bottle.

“This whatcha looking for?”

You try your very hardest not to slip up, not to give it away too much, not when it’s very likely that whatever this is, it’s a test.

“Why have you got my pills?”

You decide to pivot with a question, it seems like the best decision.

“Why are you still on pills?”

Leah’s words are cut throat, they hit you hard.

“Because of my surgery.”

It’s an ominous answer, maybe it’ll save you from the vice captain's anger, maybe it won’t.

“You had surgery four months ago.”

Leah’s words, whilst they are a statement, hold questioning behind them.

“I don’t see how anything between my doctor and myself matters to you, he’s given me a script for medication, one that I use.”

It’s definitely the wrong thing to say, Leah looks offended, Kim looks like she’s about to kill you, Beth and Viv just look sad, Katie and Jen look like they don’t really know what to say.

“It’s not our fucking business? You should have been off pills three months ago, it’s my blood business to know when my teammates are continuing to take drugs way past the point of it being logical.”

Kim’s voice is angry, but not the kind of anger where it’s directed at you, it’s more the kind of angry where she clearly wants answers that you aren’t giving her.

“I don’t know what you want me to tell you, my doctors fill my scripts, beyond that it’s none of your business what I take and don’t take to get through sessions.”

Kim’s face scrunches up, Leah’s looks similar, it’s funny to you sometimes how similarly they captain.

“You haven’t had any complications, you should have been completely pain free months ago, why do you still need pills? Why do you need them so frequently? Don’t think that we all haven’t realised how often you are taking them, you’re going through them like a bag of candies, it’s not healthy.”

Kim’s right, it leaves you a little bit gobsmacked and takes you a little bit to recover from what she’s saying to you.

“I’m playing well, am I not? Beyond how I am playing on the pitch it’s none of your fucking business.”

When you think about it, swearing at Kim was possibly the stupidest thing you could have done, but you suppose there isn’t any coming back from it now.

“It’s not my fucking business? Beyond being your captain I give a shit about your health and mental wellbeing, so when I see one of my best mates and teammates looking like they are fucking addicted then I am allowed to ask questions, questions that you are going to answer or else we will be having a very different conversation, one that includes Jonas and the medical staff and I promise you that it will end with a very different result.”

Kim’s words hit you right in the chest, you force yourself to take a seat, looking at the six women and taking in the guilty look across both Viv, Katie, Beth and Jen’s faces.

“You guys fucking ratted on me, for nothing? I’m not fucking addicted, people who are addicted are frantic and stupid and fucking unhinged. Do you think if I had a pill addiction that I’d be able to play, do you think I’d be able to do half the things we do if I had an addiction, I just need them to get me through the day, to get me through the work outs.”

Your justification is weak, you know that, but you still believe in what you are saying, you don’t have a problem.

Kim’s face deflates, it looks like whatever she is about to say is going to be a lot more emotional and heavy then you are prepared for.

“Kid, you have a problem. How you manage to do it all baffles me, truly, you should not need pills to be getting you through the day, not when you are in recovery, not when your tricep is almost fully healed, Beth and Katie told me about it because they are genuinely worried, I am too. We’re all here for you, whatever you need.”

You shake your head, you don’t need help, you don’t need support, what you need is your fucking pills back.

“Can I have my fucking pills back?”

Leah shoves the bottle into her pocket, you know that you aren’t getting them back but it was worth a try.

“Are you fucking serious?”

It’s apparently Katie’s turn to be the bad cop.

“They fucking belong to me.”

Katie looks absolutely fuming, if it wasn’t for the whole situation you were in you would probably laugh about it.

“Not anymore they don’t, you’ve lost that fucking priviledge. This is how it’s going to go from now on. You’re going to move in with Beth and Viv for now, Lia’s searching your apartment as we speak, you’re done with pills, no more, you’re cut off. You’re going to get a fucking handle on your life and all of this shit or else you’ll be benched and sent to rehab or wherever Jonas thinks is the best place for you to sort out your fucking addiction, because that’s what this is. You can’t survive four hours without slipping some pills, that is seriously fucking concerning and all of us are so fucking worried about you. If you want to continue playing then there are going to be a whole set of rules and conditions because this can’t keep going, it’s unsafe.”

All the other women nod along with Katie’s words, you realised that you are definitely fucked.

“I’m a fucking adult, you guys have no right to be doing this to me, I don’t have a fucking problem.”

Katie rolls her eyes, standing up from her seat to walk over to you.

“Kid I am so sorry none of us realised earlier, maybe if we had it wouldn’t have been so bad, but you have to understand how bad it is, you should not be reliant on drugs that are prescribed to a person after a serious surgery, your attached. Not all addicts are frantic, you definitely aren’t, but that doesn’t change the fact that you have a problem and if you don’t stop it now, you never will. We all want to help you, however you need.”

You don’t really know what to do, everything Katie is saying hits you so hard, you can’t help but let tears fall, they’re wrong, you don’t have a problem, you need the pills, how are you supposed to be okay without them?

“Please, just give me the pills, I’ll do whatever you want, please, I need them, I’ll do anything please just give them back.”

Katie wraps you up in her arms, so tight that you worry about your ability to breathe, it makes everything stop for a few seconds, you forget about the pills, forget about how much internal pain you are struggling with.

“You know I can’t do that kid. How about we get you home? I don’t think you're in the mindset to train, Viv and Beth will leave with you, they’ll take you back to theirs whilst we finish up here for the day and then we’ll all have a chat about it later, okay?”

You pull yourself out of Katie’s arms, your face in a deep frown.

“You don’t understand, I fucking need them, I can’t live without them, what am I supposed to do without them? This is fucking crazy how am I supposed to play when you’re all forcing me to go cold turkey on the one thing that I rely on most.”

Katie’s hands move to your shoulders, planting themselves down firmly on you.

“No you don’t. It’s going to be a hard adjustment but it’s for the best. If we’re right and you are addicted, you’ll go through withdrawals, it’ll suck, but we’ll be here for you through it, we’re here to kick you in the ass but pick you up when you are hurting, we’re here for whatever you need.”

In a split second decision you lunge forward and directly at Leah, the blonde doesn’t expect it, and definitely doesn’t expect you to reach right for the pocket that you’d previously seen Leah push the pills in.

You don’t really know what your plans where for once you’d managed to obtain the bottle, but you knew one thing, you needed those pills and Leah was standing in the way of that.

Within seconds Jen and Kim’s arms were linked around yours, pulling your desperate form off of Leah.

“Please-Fuck please just give them to me, I’ll do whatever you need, please, I need them. I don’t need you guys, you guys don’t give a shit about me, I’m fine, I don’t want our help, just give me the drugs and leave me be, I’ll be fine, I’m always fine, I don’t need you guys. J-Just give me the pills and I’ll leave, I’ll never bother you guys again. ”

Kim managed to tug you completely away from Leah, whilst the older woman is significantly smaller than you, she was far stronger and you stood absolutely no chance against her.

You ragdolled in an attempt to make it harder for Kim, she replied to that by dragging your limp body up onto a seat, resting both of her hands on your soldiers just like Katie had, except for the fact that instead of Kim’s face being one of care and genuity, hers was stern and concerned.

“You don’t get to do this. You do not get to push us away because you want a fucking dose of drugs. We are family, family means so much more than some stupid object and the kid who worked her way here through the academy would have told me the exact same eight months ago. I know you have been through a lot, I know this injury has sucked, I know that you are going through a lot but you can’t push family away. We’re going to be here for you when you are at your biggest high and your lowest low, we are here through thick and thin. I can stand for you breaking down at ever minute of everyday if it means that we can help you, you can hurt us all as much as you want and we will continue to come back because whilst you might think that you are breaking us, you aren’t.”

Kim’s words just send tears running down your face and sobs coming out of your mouth.

Everything from the last hour is barreling directly at you, the realisation that maybe you aren’t as fine as you’ve been telling yourself, even if it feels wrong, you know what they are telling you makes sense, it hurts way more admitting that to yourself though.

Kim removes her arms from your shoulders, reaching for your torso and bringing you into another big hug, it’s suffocatingly painful and you swear that your skin prickles with the contact.

“I’m sorry, fuck, I’m sorry.”

You don’t know what you are sorry for, which probably makes the apology pointless, but it feels like it needs to be said, like you need to make some kind of attempt to recognise your wrongdoing.

“It’s okay kid, we’ve got you, it’s going to be okay, we’re all here for you, let’s get you back to Beth’s, hmm? I think you could do with a good nap and a proper feed. You’ve been working yourself to the bone, it’s time to let yourself rest. Take it from me, this whole routine you have for yourself, the over working, the pills, it’s only so long before you completely burn yourself out and trust a woman who’s been there, that is the last possible thing you could want, especially considering you are so young.”

Kim’s opinion and words are gospel to you, being another midfielder ever since you’d become a part of the arsenal senior team you hung onto every single word that she spoke, so having the Kim Little calling you family, it was something else completely.

“Please, just take me home.”

Kim nods, pulling back from you to reach into your locker to grab your bag before handing it over to Beth who gives you a little smile, it doesn’t quite reach her eyes though, that’s how you know that whatever is happening, it’s not good at all.

You try your hardest to wipe away the tears with the sleeve of your hoodie, but it’s a losing battle, the salty liquid continuing to flow freely down your cheeks.

Viv replaces Kim, her arm flinging itself over your shoulders and shielding you from the outside world.

Without much fuss the couple pulls you out of the locker rooms and as quickly as they can towards the car park and back to the same car you’d arrived in this morning, this time though it’s so much harder, it feels nearly impossible, especially knowing that instead of the normal routine that entails the couple dropping you back to your apartment, this time you are going back to theirs.

Normally, you’re very happy to participate in a dinner or game night with the duet, but you know what going back to Viv and Beth’s means, it means accountability, change, pain, things you aren’t really sure if you’re ready for.

Viv makes the decision to slide into the back seat with you, a constant comfort as you try to navigate exactly what has just happened.

The ride to Viv’s and Beth’s is a blur, Viv drags you out of the backseat and into the elevator, then into their apartment.

You're too lost to do much more than let Viv lead you to the couch dropping Myle into your lap, who is apparently more than happy to cuddle up under the blanket that Beth throws at you.

All you can think about is what your teammates had to say. About the nights where you’d doubled up on pills to mask the mental pain of all the pressure you were taking on of leading a midfield without Kim, about how you felt like you would cripple up and break if you went a day without your pills, about how for the last few months the highlights of your day has been the pills in the bottle instead of the people around you, about how you’ve been finding more happiness in drugs instead of the life you are living, about how your whole life revolves around pain meds which you didn’t even need anymore.

Addicted wasn’t a word you had ever used in a sentence with you and drugs before, but now, it’s all that you can think about.

Addiction.

It had never been a possibility for you, how could you be addicted? Nobody you knew had ever had problems with pills, you’d done countless injuries including pain meds and never had a problem. No injury you’d ever done had such a negative reception though, the fans were fuming, your teammates were stressed, you were pressured. You needed to recover, for the good of everybody, pain meds were the way to get through that so you’d taken them, to fix all of the problems.

That was the reasoning your brain was using, it wasn’t perfect, but it made enough sense.

Beth sat down next to you and you felt at peace enough to meet her eyes.

They were calmer than before, you felt similarly, calmer, less like you were at war with yourself.

“I was so stupid that I didn’t even realise, I thought I was doing fine, I was so fucking stupid.”

Beth takes a deep gulp of air before she says anything, it’s hard to watch somebody who you’ve come to care about so dearly look like they are struggling so heavily to communicate with you.

“You’re not stupid. It’s not your fault. A lot of people enabled this to keep happening and you couldn’t have known better, what matters most is we are here for you now, the sooner before the later.”

You nod along to Beth, bringing a asleep Myle up to your chest and clutching onto him, the puppy is so soft, a big contrast to how you feel at the moment.

“I didn’t want to let everyone down.”

Beth sighs an oh so familiar sigh, the same sigh you heard every single time someone out of the acl crew mentioned how they felt like they were a burden or a problem or like they were letting the team down.

“You could never let any of us down, not really, sure we’re all very worried about you, but shit happens, life fucking happens. Every single day we all struggle, every person on this world, life is a bitch and the worst part is that we have people holding us accountable for it every single day. Fans, social media, teammates, we don’t get a break, even when we need it the very most. As teammates, it's our job to love you no matter what anybody is saying, you are different to every single human on earth, you have different needs, you don’t have to try to be someone you aren’t, we love you best when you try not to. Do not think for a moment that you will ever disappoint us, sure we can be angry and annoyed and disappointed with your actions but never you directly. We all love you no matter what, just be whoever you need to, not who you think everyone needs you too.”

You don’t know what to say, so you chose to say silent for a few seconds, really observing what Beth has just said, the complete honesty behind her words.

“I want to do better for you guys Beth, I don’t want to be reliant on drugs that I don’t need, I just don’t know how to live without them.”

Beth nods, her eyes all glazed and watery.

“Then we’ll help you, we’ll do whatever is necessary to help you, just let us in, let us be there for you.”

[overtrred28]

Gnomeo and Juliet | alanna kennedy x reader

Summary; Two players steal each other's hearts and keep it from everyone because they know how controversial their relationship could be to their club’s rivalry. OR Y/N and Alanna soft launching their relationship over time until they decide to share it. *Features social media posts.*

Pairings; Alanna Kennedy x Manchester United reader

Words; 2.2k

Warnings; swearing (i think that's it)

A/N; i literally love alanna so much and don't think there are enough posts about her so naturally i write one. i just thought this was cute and different from a chealse v arsenal rivalry (though i really love those). enjoy and please give it some love and feedback xx

Lioness star Y/N Y/L/N set to leave her club of four years, Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C, and join Manchester United W.F.C on a two year contract at the beginning of the 2023/2024 season. 

You had really valued your time at Brighton, starting your senior career there and blossoming into a strong forward for both the club and the England Senior Women’s team, better known as The Lionesses. 

But when the offer from Manchester United came in at the end of last season, you knew it was the right move. Leaving the team you had come to know and love was tough to say the least but the adventure before you sounded a lot more exciting. So during the break before pre-season began, you made the move to Manchester and took a few days to settle into your new home and surroundings. 

Manchester was very different from Brighton; no beach and much bigger city life, but it was a good different. You had found that everything in Manchester was so much closer, and in great reach of your new club and housing. 

You had officially settled into your new home, very quickly making it feel just like your last one, then decided to go exploring through the city. The first thing a person would normally do would probably be going shopping or searching for a new café to become the regular, but you had spotted the Manchester Art Gallery and decided to go in. 

It was quiet, as expected for midday on a Wednesday when most people were at work, but you found it peaceful. It was a break from the regular hustle and bustle of your regular life as a professional footballer. 

It wasn’t until a particular painting caught your eyes that you realised someone else was in there, because you quite literally walked into them. 

“Shit. I’m so sorry.” You apologised quickly to the taller person, picking up their phone you had knocked out of their hand, from the floor. “Here…” Your voice trailed off as you met bright blue eyes while handing them their phone.

“It’s all good, thank you.” The woman met your eyes and she also felt the world pause around her, you were no longer in the gallery but just in a moment of time with each other. 

“Sorry the painting distracted me.” You snapped out of your trance and nodded to the painting on the wall; the story of Romeo and Juliet portrayed on a large canvas. 

“Well it is quite captivating.” Alanna spoke, still looking at you, now at the side of your face as you looked at the painting. 

“It is.” Your eyes fell back to hers and realised she was still staring at you, a slight blush rose to your cheeks, both smiling at each other. “Hi.” You extended your hand out, indicating a handshake. 

“Hi.” She laughed at your chivalry for a second before shaking your hand. “Nice to meet you.” She spoke softly in the quiet gallery.

“You too.” You smiled up at her, quite literally encapsulated by her. 

That was three weeks ago before you decided to get coffee after finishing a self led tour of the gallery, then the conversation kept going and you ended up at dinner together, continuing to learn about one another until the night ended. 

What you didn’t seem to bring up was that you both knew who each other were, but there was a mutual agreement that it didn’t matter. You weren’t professional footballers who had gone up against multiple times in the past at both national and club level, you were just two people who met and wanted to get to know each other. 

Now you were both deep into pre pre-season, you at Man United, her at Man City, and there wasn’t as much time to meet up for fun dates every night, now relying on text messages and late night calls before bed to catch up. 

The first kiss took a while to get to, but boy was it worth it. 

You had both decided to keep whatever this was between the two of you, soaking in the quiet moments shared in one anothers apartments and over long phone calls. It was still labelled a friendship, you both knew you wanted more, both scared of what the other might say if you revealed your feelings. But when you both had a free long weekend, you decided to take Alanna down to Brighton and show her your old home, soaking in the last of the warm weather before winter began to creep in. 

It was the best decision you could have made, relishing in being able to spend time together away from your normal lives. You had rented a small air bnb right near the beach, enjoying the solitude together as you cooked together and watched the sun rise and set each day by the ocean. 

It was on the second night after dinner that she finally made her move, unable to swallow the feelings bubbling inside her. You sat on the beach alone as you waited for Alanna to join, wrapping your arms around yourself to shelter from the cool breeze. 

A blanket had been wrapped around your shoulders and a warm body nuzzled into your side, a small smile on your face as you rested your head on her shoulder, Alanna looking down at you as you watched the waves crash. No words were said for what felt like ages, the only sounds being the waves and the seagulls heading off to bed. 

“Y/N.” Alanna suddenly spoke, a thick Aussie accent breaking the silence. 

“Hmmm.” You hummed in response, keeping your head in its place. 

“I want more than this.” Her statement made you move your head, turning it to meet her blue eyes. 

“More?” You spoke softly. 

“More.” She nodded with a small smile before she moved her hands from her legs, twisting to cup your face before moving closer. You thought she was going to kiss you straight away but her forehead came to rest on yours, both closing your eyes as you basked in the silence. 

“Just kiss me already.” You breathed out and she smiled before closing the gap, joining your lips in a strong kiss. Her hands cupped your face, yours held her waist before trailing up to meet her face. It was passionate but soft, saying so much without any words and your heart grew. 

y/n.y/l/n.. just posted a story

alannakennedy just posted a story

Since you were both heavily in the public eye, it was an easy decision for you both to keep this new found relationship to yourselves, not wanting to receive any unwanted attention from the media, fans and even your own teammates. 

You were able to keep it that way for a while, without you guys being on the same national team or at the same club keeping this secret relationship a secret was quite easy. And since no one thought you would even know each other personally, there were no fans sifting through evidence to put two and two together. Of course though, you both wanted to show each other off, you were so happy and so was Alanna, so maybe a soft launch would be best until you decided to go fully public. 

It started small.

y/n.y/l/n.. just posted a story

alannakennedy made a post

alanna kennedy almost as good as home

y/n.y/l/n.. made a post

y/n.y/l/n.. felt like a fairy tale

alannakennedy just posted a story

Your teammates began to ask about the secretive posts, hammering you about it in the locker rooms at training, Alanna's friends and teammates doing the same.

“When are you going to tell us more about these mystery posts?” Mary had asked Alanna while she was tying her boots before training. Alanna paused for a second before sitting up and looking up at the other Australian. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Alanna simply shrugged with a straight face before standing up and walking away. 

“Oi mate.” Ella Toone had caught your attention as you walked out to the carpark after a late friday night training session. You paused and turned around, waiting for her to catch up, instantly wrapping an arm around your shoulder as she met you. 

“What’s up?” You turned to her as you walked towards your cars.

“Few of us are going round Zelly’s to watch a movie, you in?” She asked with hopeful eyes. 

“Sorry love, got plans.” You apologised, knowing you had a certain blonde already waiting for you at your apartment.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with a possible mystery woman you refuse to tell us about, would it?” Ella asks with a suggestive smirk, nudging your shoulder as you remain stoic. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You simply shrugged and patted her shoulder as you let go of her, walking to your car door. “Goodnight Tooney.” You waved before getting in and racing home to Alanna, preparing for your own movie night of Gnomeo and Juliet and a weekend spent in each other's arms.

The day had come, the one you and Alanna refused to talk about until the night before.. It was the Manchester derby day. The day every City and United fan had waited for and the one you and Alanna dreaded. 

y/n.y/l/n.. made a post

y/n.y/l/n.. Derby day. Let's bring it on home red's! ❤️

alannakennedy made a post

alannakennedy The day we've all be waiting for. Come on blue! 💙

Sure you had come up against each other in the past at both club and national level, but you had yet to do it since being in a relationship together. So it was going to be different this time; harder. You both decided it would be best for your teams if you didn't interact with one another from the moment you joined your teams for the match, and until that final whistle blew.

The plan was going well during the first half of the match; Alanna had started with City in the defensive line and you were sitting on the bench waiting to get subbed on. Katie Zelem had secured the United side a goal through a penalty early on, but City fired back and took the lead 2-1 at halftime. 

You got subbed on for Nikita Parris at the very beginning of half time, taking her place as the left forward and a strong striker. Though this became a slight issue because of who was currently defending the City goal and in charge of blocking your shots at goal; your very own girlfriend. But in that moment you had to act like you didn’t know who she was on a personal level, right now you were just opposing players who both wanted their teams to win. 

It was hard for you both to act like that, stealing glances on the pitch, brushing past each other ever so slightly without anyone noticing too much. You had both been able to get away with this secret relationship so far because you’ve haven’t had to be in the same place yet, but maybe it was time for that to change. 

The final whistle blew and City had won 3-1, your side not being able to score any further goals despite your best efforts. You looked around at all your teammates, defeated looks all over as City celebrated together before exchanging handshakes with the other team. 

You and Alanna had purposefully left each other till last, waiting until you could be alone with each other in a busy and full stadium. You had finally found the blonde Australian and began walking towards her and she finally locked eyes with you. Seconds before you had very different expressions, one filled with happiness and one filled with disappointment. But as soon as you got closer the one expression you both shared was one filled with love, and your heart melted as she brought you straight into a hug rather than a friendly handshake. 

Her hands wrapped around your waist as her slightly taller frame leant down, your hands found their way around her neck before you buried your head in her neck. An instant feeling of warmth and security flowed through both of your bodies as you hugged, Alanna pressing a soft kiss to your neck as she buried her own face in your shoulder. 

Confused looks fell to both sets of teams at the interaction, at first because of the more than friendly hug and second because of the familiarity they could sense between the two of you. 

“I’m so proud of you.” You murmured, still holding tight around Alanna’s neck. 

“You played so well, it was a tough game.” She spoke back instantly, squeezing your waist before slowly pulling back to look at you. You smiled at her as you exited the hug, genuinely happy for her but still very upset your own team couldn’t secure the win like they wanted. 

“You should go celebrate.” You nodded to the City team who gathered in the middle, preparing for their post-match huddle, your team doing the same further down on the pitch, all players still watching the interaction with lost eyes.

“I’ll find you after and we’ll go home together.” Alanna nodded to you, looking down to your now interlocked hands, a small laugh leaving her lips. “This is going to be everywhere tonight.” She looked back up at you as a small smile grew on your face. 

“Definitely.” You laughed too. “Are you okay with that?” You raised a brow at her. 

“Yeah. I’m ready to show off my girl.” She winked playfully at you, now both of you laughing, shaking your head at her before playfully pushing her shoulder and walking over to your team. 

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y/n.y/l/n.. the gnomeo to my juliet

tagged @alannakennedy

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alannakennedy my girl in red

tagged @y/n.y/l/n

THE END

[jaegeraether]

Sunsets and footballers (Part 81)

Lucy Bronze x Reader (64) / Alexia Putellas x Character (37) & Jordan Nobbs x Leah Williamson (18)

Masterlist (other parts here)

((3.9k))

Due to popular demand, I'm going to post a chapter bi-weekly, every Thursday and Sunday night until we hit Part 100!

YFN POV

“I love you, little one,” she heard Lucy whispering into her ear between soft kisses to the cheek. “I love you. I love you.”

YFN was far too tired to have woken up to it, of course. She’d had surgery the day before and now she had all of Wednesday to herself to get some well-needed rest after the chaos.

She woke around 11am, groaning due to the pain. “Luce..” she mumbled into her pillow, barely knowing where she was.

No response.

“Luce…” she said again, louder.

Again, nothing. She rolled tenderly and just far enough to see that Lucy’s side of the bed was empty.

“Lucy?” She called, louder. If she were anywhere, it would be the kitchen, surely.

Silence.

She turned back to her side and sat up, seeing a piece of paper on her bedside table with tablets and some water.

Good morning, little one,

I’m at training until 5pm today. Sarina let me have a little sleep in to be with you.

Please take your medication as soon as you wake and text me. I’ll reply when I can.

Jordan and Leah will be over later today around 3pm.

Please don’t cook or go out... just order whatever you need and rest.

I love you, my girl.

Love, Luce xx

YFN couldn’t help the little smile creeping across her face at the fact that she’d signed off with the nickname she used for her. Christ, she’d forgotten about training.

She took her painkillers and downed them with the water before texting Lucy that she was awake. She knew she wouldn’t be able to reply most of the day but would probably get permission to sneak a text or two given the circumstances.

Once she felt ready enough, she pushed herself out of bed and willed herself to move against the pain. She couldn’t go far and wasn’t allowed to put pressure on her knee just yet, and so she slid straight into the wheelchair by the bed and used that to get around. Although she wanted a shower, she knew she had to wait until later when Lucy could help her move.

She checked to see if Narla was fed first before managing to settle herself on the couch in the spot that practically had an indent of her ass and elevated her braced leg. She couldn’t even put her hair up and had to settle for it down and frustrating her. It took all of 2 minutes for her to realise just how much Lucy did for her, and how much she appreciated her.

YFN decided to use her free alone time to get some work done. She’d managed to get herself to the stage of having delegated quite a lot and organised her teams so well that they all went about their jobs, with her as an escalation point. She’d moved her original team up into supervisorial positions and they spoke directly with her the most. She replied to emails, overwhelmed with brands asking when the next event was, as they had gotten new clients and were eager to mingle amongst the football stars. Then she checked on the rosters for upcoming games and look at the progress of editing that her team had made with the videos from the Lumos event. She was excited that she’d be able to start uploading them, as the promo photos had been out for two days.

She used her spare time to create a roster of when they’d release the promos and content for each player, timing it with events or games. There was so much to publish, that it was quite difficult to not clutter too much. They had the content – now they needed to use it as effectively as possible.

She decided that the best interview to start with would be her favourite of the day – her interview with Alexia and Chiquito, paired with Lucy and Narla. She’d originally put the pair together because she knew that Alexia didn’t like speaking English and Lucy could not only speak both languages, but they were friends, and she’d help her comfort-wise and language-wise.

That had been one of the only times that day that YFN had seen Alexia actually smiling. She paused the video where Alexia and Lucy were cutely smiling at each other and it warmed her heart to see.

Her mind shifted to Ridley as she wondered on her. She was back, and it had made her so happy that she’d cried in her arms. She’d visited her and Lucy in the hospital the day before and given her a much-needed, long-lasting  hug. They hadn’t been able to speak much, as YFN had been so out of it on drugs, though she did make a promise to her to speak about it soon. That had been enough for her, and still was. She had just wanted her best friend back.

She remembered their conversation recently where she’d admitted to Ridley that she had wanted her to stay around more, because she loved and missed her. They were such a big part of each other’s lives, and always would be. Linked by history and trauma, and a bond that she’d never had with anyone else. She’d been so happy when she’d agreed to stay around.

“From now on, I’ll be here as long as you want me around, okay?” That’s what she’d said as she kissed her hair.

And then… the heartbreak. The 3am wake up to her absolutely torn. On her knees. Begging her to let her go.  “Please. I need to go, Blue.”

YFN knew why she was there. Usually, it was just a text or a call, or a brief hug and kiss before she disappeared. This time it was an apology. She said she’d be there – but she needed to go. And YFN understood that with every fibre of her being. And so, she’d let her. Because in her eyes, she wasn’t breaking a promise. She knew that Ridley would always be ‘right here’ and that one simple message would have her come running.

Because they loved each other.

She sighed, her eyes focussing back on the screen and away from where her mind had drifted to Ridley.

She’d started several segments within the ever-expanding content machine of Lumos. The first; her couch interviews which she would continue over the next few weeks as she continued to heal. The second; her pet interviews from the event. The third; her podcasts.

They would be the three largest segments that Lumos would undertake – and were presented by her, as requested by Catherine. It was the reason she hired her. For her mind, her questions, her interviewing techniques. Her ability to make players feel calm and comfortable and actually heard instead of led different directions with questions which soul purpose was to pry out information. Not at Lumos. Not in her interviews. She’d never let that happen.

The first interview from her couch segment she’d posted was Lucy’s as she immediately gained popularity from how flirty Lucy had been. The second had been Alexia’s as she rode the wave of publicity that Mark had created. The first podcast she’d released yesterday, containing her co-hosts, Jill and Alex along with their first guests, Leah and Bunny Shaw. She pondered on the pet interviews and her decision to post Alexia and Lucy’s first. Would it be too much to post them again? They were two of the most popular women in women’s football.

After consulting with her team and Catherine for a little while – she’d made the decision to post that as the first for that segment anyways, as it would come across as a strong start to Lumos content. Both segments were a completely different style, environment, and line of questioning. The couch was much more in depth and real, whereas the pet interviews were fun and enjoyable.

As soon as she posted her first of that segment, the doorbell rang and she looked at the time, smiling. Her friends were here.

JORDAN POV

Jordan wanted to stay in bed with that delicious warmth of Leah forever. She woke and shuffled her hoody off, rolling over to cuddle into her neck. Leah groaned as she woke slowly, tightening her grip, her fingers beginning to stroke unconsciously. They stayed like that a while. Slowly waking up by the feel, the sound and the warmth of each other.

Ever so naturally, things evolved. Leah’s stroking became larger, and under the back of Jordan’s shirt. Jordan wriggled into Leah as she pressed her lips to her neck and soon enough, they were moaning themselves awake as they enjoyed the feel of each other.

Jordan’s back tingled at the feel of Leah’s hands and suddenly she was horny. She found Leah’s thigh and hooked her leg over, using it as friction to move and grind against.

“Fuck,” Leah gasped as she felt her move against her. “Don’t stop, Jord. Take what you want.”

Jordan ground against her thigh harder as her body shivered at the feel of Leah everywhere. Her hand found that famous blonde hair of Leah’s and pulled her head back, just far enough that Jordan could properly bite into her neck.

She felt Leah shuddering beneath her.

“Fuck. Yes.”

Leah gripped the back of her head to keep her on her neck as her other hand made its way up the front of Jordan’s shirt to grab her breast as if it was hers. Like it used to be. Like she wanted it to be again. Her thumb found her nipple and played there as Jordan sucked the spot she’d just bitten. There would be a hickey, and usually Leah didn’t like this, but not today. She didn’t know if Jordan was testing her or not, but she didn’t care. She wanted all of her, all the time. She wasn’t ashamed to have a hickey from her. Hell, she wouldn’t even try to cover it.

A bark from below the bed had them both freeze. Jordan pulled away slightly to look down at Blu, her eyes now fully open.

She turned back to Leah who was very much excited. Horny. Her hair a mess and her pupils dilated. Regardless of her state, she was honest with her words.

“We… should be careful. Not until you’re ready, Jord.”

Jordan knew Leah would have stopped, but would she herself have gone through with it? Would she cry again?

She nodded. “I’m almost ready, Lea… almost.”

Leah smiled gently. “I know. Take all the time you need. I’m just happy to wake up next to you.”

Jordan let herself smile back as she pressed a kiss to her lips.

“Can I show you around Birmingham today?”

Of course, Leah had been to Birmingham, though the idea of a day wandering the city together was something she could never refuse.

“Only if I can buy you breakfast.”

“Deal.”

Jordan washed her excitement away with a morning shower, letting her fingers trace over her nipple where Leah had just been. Without thinking about it, her fingers kept playing while her other hand found her clit and began to tease. Thinking about Leah while touching herself was not insanity – though there was a good argument to say that it was as she was just a wall away.

Regardless, she didn’t know if she was ready, and needed to get her excitement out to avoid being a horny mess during the day.

Bracing her head against the tiled wall, she worked her clit and her nipple, eventually coming with a gaspy moan against the echoing acoustics of the room.

Jordan was in her room, staring at her closet and wondering what to wear when she hear Leah enter.

“Did you touch yourself in the shower?” Leah asked.

Jordan spun to her, barely catching her falling towel. “What?”

“You heard me,” the England captain said, stepping forwards.

“I…”

Shit, she’d heard the echoes.

“Yes.”

Leah’s eyes flashed like Jordan had never seen before, and she stepped forwards.

“Were you thinking about me?”

Jordan had to crane her neck back just to look at her.

“Y…yes.”

Leah tilted her head up slightly further with one finger on her chin. “Good.”

They spent the first half of the day in Birmingham, Jordan excitedly showing Leah all of her favourite spots around town, including her breakfast spot. Leah insisted on paying, and Jordan repaid the kindness by reaching out to entwine her fingers with Leah’s as they strode through her local park. Blu happily pranced next to them, Leah holding his leash as Jordan had agreed to. She knew how much she missed him. Missed this. And she felt the exact same.

She just wondered when she would know she was ready for sex with her again.

Lucy had called in the morning, just before she’d left for training, and had asked their activities for the day. She was worried about YFN being alone and almost immobile. Jordan felt like she hadn’t spent nearly enough time with her friend, and so around midday they had the car packed and headed off for their drive to London. A drive that they’d both done far too often as of late.

They dropped her clothes and belongings at Leah’s apartment before arriving at Lucy and YFN’s just after 3pm.

Leah knocked on the door.

A pause. “Come in!”

Blu ran in ahead of them, presumably to find his friend Narla, and the two made their way into the apartment to find YFN on the couch, looking much less tired than she had the past few days.

“Oh, I missed you!” Jordan exclaimed as she bounded over for a gentle hug. “Wow, someone needs a shower.”

“I know!” She sighed, exasperated as Leah hugged her hello also. “I can’t really do it by myself. Lucy will be home in a few hours. I’m sorry.”

“We can help?”

YFN paused. “I… uh…”

“You can be naked or have your underwear on,” Jordan shrugged to show it wasn’t a big issue. “Doesn’t bother us.”

She caught Leah’s look of happiness flash from the corner of her eye as she said ‘us’.

“I guess it would be nice to be all fresh for when Lucy comes home..”

“Exactly!”

The couple helped her into her wheelchair and towards the larger bathroom, rather than the ensuite. They gently helped her remove her clothes down to her underwear and bag her braced leg.

“Can this come off?” Leah asked, gesturing to the sling.

YFN nodded, a little embarrassed but happy to finally be able to clean herself.

Leah removed her sling as carefully as she could, looking at the new bandage and bruises on her collarbone. “How did it go?” She murmured, distracting her.

“Really well... he’s happy with it. I just need to be extra gentle so it doesn’t fail again.”

She nodded. “No more fighting people, mate.”

“Hey – that was very one-sided.”

“I know… I’m just… I’ll be happy when he’s out of the picture.”

YFN didn’t reply until Leah looked her in the eyes. She gave a small, knowing smile. “Me too.”

Once she was under the water, balancing on one leg, Leah left and Jordan stayed to make sure she didn't fall. She distracted her by talking about Leah and their heated morning, and then their day in Birmingham.

“I’m really happy for you, Dory,” she said, genuinely. That’s one of the things Jordan loved about her the most. She was always so genuine and loved when people were happy. “Do you know when you’ll be ready to…”

Jordan sighed as she turned so YFN could wash under her underwear. “I’m not sure… soon? I thought I was ready when I slept with her last time and look how that turned out.”

“You didn’t have closure, it’s completely understandable.”

“I just don’t want to make that mistake again and have us back at ground zero.”

“Oh, you won’t, trust me. You’re levels beyond that already. You just need to talk and communicate. And when you do eventually sleep with her again, go very, very slowly. Slow enough that you’re knowing how you feel at every step rather than bottling it in like last time, okay?”

Jordan nodded and turned back to turn the shower off. “How are you always right?”

“I honestly don’t know how it hasn’t annoyed Lucy just yet,” she laughed, letting Jordan help her from the shower.

“Not much annoys her, I think.”

“Except people chewing or breathing loud. If that’s around – she goes wild.”

“How come I never knew that?” Jordan wondered aloud.

“Because it’s the wonderful, wacky mind of Lucy and barely she can keep up with it?”

Jordan laughed. “Nail. Head.”

YFN POV

The couple insisted on making food seeing as YFN hadn’t eaten and Lucy was going to be hungry when she came home. YFN grimaced at the chaos and lack of coordination that was Leah and Dory in the kitchen, trying to work out how to make a roast. It was interesting to watch, though. They were patient with each other. Kind to each other. Just happy that they were together, even if it was all going to shit cooking wise.

Lucy stepped through the door just before five and immediately looked nervous at the sight of the kitchen and the pair in it. She shared a look with YFN who gave an amused, nervous grin in return.

“Oh, Lucy’s back!”

They greeted her, and then she was immediately by YFN’s side, holding her and breathing her in.

“Christ,” she groaned. “You feel so good. Wait. Did you shower?” She pulled back.

“Yes, Luce,” she chuckled. “The girls helped me.”

Lucy froze, her lips turning downwards. YFN touched them, pondering over them before leaning forwards to gently brush her lips on Lucy’s.

“I still had my underwear on,” she whispered into her lips, even though she didn’t need to. The kitchen was loud enough that they had their privacy.

Lucy made an unsure noise and YFN kissed her, dragging away that overthinking.

“It was friendly help, Luce. I promise. Now go and shower please, you’re stinky and I’m not in a position to escape..”

“Well, we can’t have that now, can we?” The footballer grinned and left for her shower.

Dinner ended up being surprisingly okay and edible. They all sat and laughed, talking about their days and what was happening over the coming ones. Lucy’s family were arriving tomorrow, and the couple seemed eager to join. They’d known Lucy her entire life, so of course they knew her family well too. They’d also both be at the game on Friday, organising to take YFN to watch.

“Oh, and in other news,” she announced spontaneously. “Riddles is back..”

“What?!”

ALEXIA POV

Ridley lowered her head and Alexia’s heart sunk at that. “Is there any hope for us?”

“Yes... Don’t run away again. Move forwards with me, together. I need you to be here for me, like I am for you. I need security. Don’t leave again. Fight for me. Fight for us.” Suddenly Ridley raised her head with almost mad determination in her eyes. And then… those dark eyes lowered to her lips. Fuck. Was she.. was she… about to….

Ridley cupped her face with one hand, drawing her down and reaching up as they met in the middle. Their lips met with passion and need.

Fuck. The way her lips moved. The way she tasted. Alexia tilted her head and her tongue began to brush her lips when… just as quickly as it started, it stopped. Ridley pulled away by sliding her head down, Alexia’s lips brushing along her cheek until Ridley pulled back. Her lips were a plusher shade of red now. That just made her even sexier.

“It’s all your choice from now on, Lex.”

Only if she knew that in her head, there was no choice to be made.

“I’ll stay…” she whispered.

“But not for long… I have to be back…”

“I know. Just a few more nights to be with Blue for her surgery. And then back to Spain.”

“And then back to Spain,” she nodded. “Okay.”

What the fuck was she doing? Alexia was usually so strong and independent. Now she was putty in her hands. And she loved it, because she knew Ridley was too.

Ridley’s fingers expertly unclasped her from her seat and collected her things.

“My bag and Chiquito…”

Alexia bolted upright, her breathing ragged. She looked around, disoriented until she realised where she was.

In her apartment, in Barcelona.

She looked at the time, 8am. To Alexia, that was a sleep in. Especially as her body was so used to waking up early for training.

A warm softness moved against her and she looked down to see Chiquito half awake, as if he’d been woken by Alexia’s dream also.

“Good morning,” she murmured as she let her fingers stroke through that soft, grey fur of his. He rolled slightly and stretched himself out in a way that had her stroking his belly. She smiled.

Alexia took her morning just to herself and Chiquito. He’d explored around last night, though he was still curiously finding new things, new smells or items of interest. She let him explore his new world as she took her shower to wake up and went to the kitchen to make her breakfast. As she did so, she felt herself feeling… a little out of place. As if her apartment wasn’t her home anymore. She hoped it was just because she’d been away for a few days, and tried to shrug it off, thinking it would go away. Instead – her mind moved to Ridley.

Ridley in her dream. Ridley on the plane. Kneeling in front of her. She’d never wanted to touch somebody so badly in her life.

She’d come back… but would she stay? Could she learn to love herself? And how would she prove that she’s not going anywh-

Alexia’s phone rang, and she’d been so in her head that she flinched. Putting the spatula down, she picked it up for the first time that day and softened at the name on the screen.

Ridley calling…

She didn’t even hesitate to answer.

“Hola,” she murmured.

“Bon dia, la Reina.” Ridley replied in Catalan. “I was hoping you’d be awake..”

“I’m making breakfast,” she hummed happily at the sound of her voice.

“Mmn. Did you make enough for me?”

Alexia laughed and gave her the same cheekiness back. “Oh, yes. More than enough. I’ll express post it straight away.”

“Or you could just invite me. Save the shipping costs.”

She rolled her eyes, very aware that she couldn’t get herself to stop smiling. “Okay then, when’s the quickest you can get here?”

“Faster than you will believe. I don’t believe that was an invite though, Lex. Use your words.”

She paused as if she were thinking about it before she spoke softly. “Ridley…”

“Yes, Alexia?”

“Would you like to join me for breakfast?”

Alexia heard a happy hum from the other end of the phone. “How unexpected. I’d love to. Now unlock the door, please.”

Alexia froze – her eyes widening as she spun towards the small hall leading to her front door. She gave a breathy laugh. “You… are very funny.”

“And very much going to prove to you that I’m here to stay, Lex.”

Part of Alexia thought it was a joke. Ridley would do something like that. The other part knew she wouldn’t mess with her promise. She began walking towards the door, the phone still to her ear as she unlocked it and hesitantly opened it.

[amakumos]

CUPID’S CORNER — ten ; bob, the cat

because he’s a little shit, nishimura riki sends a totally embarrassing confession about you to “cupid’s corner”, a twitter account that posts anonymous confessions from decelis academy students. but when that joke confession suddenly makes a bunch of people confess to you on cupid’s corner (for real this time!) riki finds that he’s jealous — and oh… he can’t believe it took him a fake confession to realise that he’s crazily in love with you.

Riki is indeed waiting for you outside your chemistry classroom.

Your best friend looks at you with a bright grin. “Come on, let’s go!”

“Riki, I have after-school practice,” you say, as he drags you along with him. Riki shakes his head. “You only have after-school practice on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It’s a Thursday.”

You didn’t know that Riki knew your schedule.

But, going to a cat cafe wouldn’t be the worst — you’re making sure that Riki’s going to pay. It was his idea anyways, so he might as well pay for it. “Fine.” you say.

You can’t really say no to Riki anyways.

“Have you found out who the volleyball anon is?” you ask Riki, as you two make your way to the cat cafe. You don’t notice how Riki clenches his jaw a little at the mention of your anonymous secret admirer — he’s jealous.

“No,” Riki replies.

“Damn,” you say. “What do you think about it, though? The whole… confessions thing.”

After Taki had helped him realise that Riki’s actually jealous because he’s in love with you, Riki can’t give an unbiased opinion about your secret admirer.

“I think my confession inspired them,” Riki jokes. It’s the only thing he can say without making things awkward between you two. You scoff, nudging him with your elbow. “Sure it did, ‘Ki.”

“You know nothing tops my confession,” he teases you, and you roll your eyes. “Yeah. It made me really emotional,” you joke. “I’m so happy that you still love me even though I crapped my pants in 5th grade P.E. Where can I find a man like you?”

Gosh, he knows you’re joking, and your tone is laced with sarcasm — but why does it make Riki’s heart skip a beat?

Taki’s told him that Riki’s been keeping his feelings for you inside for a very long time. So long, that even Riki himself didn’t realise it until he started getting jealous. Riki doesn’t know when he started liking you, he just knew somewhere down the line… feelings that were purely platonic turned into something a little bit more.

And yes, he’s terribly jealous because of that secret admirer of yours, but he reminds himself that the secret admirer doesn’t spend as much time with you compared to Riki himself. Jokes on you, volleyball anon, he thinks.

The cat cafe isn’t far from Decelis, so you and Riki get there relatively quickly. He holds the door open for you, waiting for you to enter before he does. “Wow, what a gentleman.” you joke.

“Yeah, I’m trying to impress you.” he replies.

Words that Riki would usually say to you without much thinking now seem like playful flirting. Was this always how he communicated with you?

“Oh, really?”

Riki tries to stay composed. Don’t blush, don’t look nervous. It’s just you.

“Yeah. Is it working?”

He takes a small glance at you to see your reaction to his words. Personally, Riki thinks that he’s really good at reading you — but now he doesn’t know what that smile on your lips means.

“I don’t know. You tell me,” you reply, as you walk up to the counter, Riki trailing behind you. “You’re paying, by the way, since this was your idea.”

“Okay,” he hums, fishing his wallet out of his pocket. “Entry for two?” the girl at the counter says, and Riki nods.

“Yup. Just head on in, grab a seat.” she says. Riki turns to look at you, and he notices that you’re distracted by the cute cat that seems to be looking right at you. “Oh, before I forget. Is there anything you’d like to drink?”

“She’ll have an iced latte… I’ll grab a iced americano, thanks.” Riki says to her, giving the girl the money, which she puts in the register. “Your drinks will be ready soon.”

“Riki! This one’s so cute,” you say, beckoning him over. Riki thanks the girl at the counter before heading over to you, and you look at him with a bright smile. “Look,” you say, motioning to the cat that you’ve been looking at for the past few minutes.

“It is really cute.”

The cat seems to like you too, and you smile as you play with the cat. Riki’s heart does a flip at the sight of your smile. He likes it when you’re happy.

“You should name the cat,” he suggests. “I’ll name it… Bob.” you say, and Riki raises an eyebrow. “You’re naming the cat Bob?”

“It’s a cute name!” you say, and Riki stifles a giggle. “This cat isn’t a Bob. It’s more like a… Jamie.”

“It’s totally a Bob, Riki.”

“It’s not.”

“It likes me more than you, so I’m going to call it Bob.” you say, as you pet the cat. Riki chuckles, shaking his head. “Whatever you say, I guess.”

“Are you talking about this cat? His name is Truffles.” the girl says, returning with your drinks. She hands you the iced latte, and hands Riki the iced americano.

“Truffles. Mmm… Bob suits him better.” you hum as she leaves. “Truffles is a good one, (Name).” Riki tells you, petting another cat that has curled up next to him.

“Let’s see what Bob says, then. Bob, do you like the name Bob?” you ask the cat, and the cat doesn’t seem to show any dislike towards the name — you see that as a yes.

“He likes it.”

“He just looked at you. That doesn’t count as a yes, (Name).” Riki says to you, picking up the cat and placing it in his lap.

“Cute.” you say, seeing Riki gently pet the cat. “Thanks. I know,” Riki says, as you roll your eyes. “The cat, Riki.”

“Oh, so you don’t think I’m cute?”

You’re not quite sure how to respond to that. Riki takes your silence as an answer, and he looks at you with a cheeky grin.

“So you do. It’s okay, (Name). You don’t have to be embarrassed about being right.”

You playfully roll your eyes, nudging Riki with your elbow. “I didn’t agree.”

“You didn’t say anything, so I’m taking it as a yes.”

Little does Riki know that your silence was indeed an answer, and it’s the one that he’s secretly hoping for.

ten － bob, the cat! previous ☆ next ♡ masterlist

author's note. me when i want what they have. whos going to tell me that theyre trying to impress me. kms .

CUPID'S CORNER! a riki smau. genre: smau, crack, fluff, idol au pairing: non-idol! riki x non-idol! reader warnings: swearing, ignore timestamps taglist is CLOSED!

[prefer-to-be-vilified]

What I really want to see in S2 is Wednesday’s friends getting so fed up with Wednesday randomly dropping to the ground during her visions that they start catching her instead of dealing with her being semi-constantly cranky and half concussed.

Enid’s definitely the best at it. I mean they’re roomies and best friends and gay for each other, so they’re together most of the time as is. Combine that with Enid’s wolf reflexes and she almost knows Wednesday’s going to drop before her eyes have began rolling into her head and has an arm out ready to catch and hold her there until she regains consciousness. Enid’s gotten so accustomed to this part of their relationship that she doesn’t even look up from whatever’s she doing anymore.

Eugene’s terrible at it, he normally just screams and flails his arms around while Wednesday has already face planted into the honey they were in the middle of harvesting.

Bianca, Divina and Kent are surprisingly good at it. Not as good as Enid and it’s normally a last minute dash to grab whichever part of her is closest to them but it prevents the worst of it. There was also the time Wednesday had a vision and fell into the lake before anyone was able to stop her and all three of them didn’t hesitate to jump in and fish her out because waking up deep underwater with no idea where you are would be terrifying even for Wednesday.

Yoko as a vampire is perfectly capable of catching her no matter how fast she drops. But elects not to in most occasions because she finds it funny. However if Wednesday’s about to experience a particularly hard fall or is about hit something that could really hurt her and Enid’s not there to stop it she will grab her by the back of her shirt to slow her fall.

Most of the time Ajax is too high to even notice Wednesday isn’t in front of him anymore and is in fact on the ground. One time she fell into him and he panicked, pushed her off and ran away because he thought she was attacking him.

Post Tyler redemption ark (probably be more than 1 season before they’re friends again but whatever) he’ll catch her out of reflex when she drops close to him before screaming and dropping her again after he sees the way Enid’s glaring/low-key growling at him which only causes Enid to start yelling. Wednesday gained consciousness and left 30 minutes ago but they didn’t realise because they were too busy arguing. They may have both forgiven him for the S1 drama but Enid and Tyler will always be the messiest of frienemies you can’t change my mind.

Also I really want to see Morticia watch Enid catch Wednesday without even flinching. Because she’d be so smug about it and Wednesday would be so mad.

[stellewriites]

it’s wip wednesday and i haven’t done one in a long time (writing has been,,,, difficult) SO!! heres the first little bit to that gym bro johnny post i talked about before

mdni, this is gonna be johnny x fat!reader

you winced at your computer screen as you read over the messages once more.

> who am i speaking to? i’d like to be able to make a complaint

you hesitated for a second, wondering if you’d get away with giving a coworker’s name, specifically claire, the coworker that always gave you shit on shift. but as much as the thought tickled you, you knew management would only figure out it was you when they realised claire wasn’t in today.

you sent back your name and apologised again hoping he didn’t really want to send in a complaint for your slip up. you needed this job and it’d been hard enough to get it despite being over-qualified.

you knew you were a sort of diversity hire for the gym, every other worker there looked like they modelled for gymshark and liked to run a couple miles every morning before breakfast; whereas you cringed just at the idea of the friction burn it’d inevitably cause between your thick thighs after the first five minutes.

the rest of the staff were nice enough, friendly; though a few of them couldn’t help but throw comments your way about your weight. it was something you’d had to develop a thick skin to after the first month working there, spending your lunch breaks or journeys home in tears, your self confidence the lowest it’d been since high school.

once you’d figured out how to let their shit roll off your back like water on a duck, it all became a hell of a lot easier again. though your confidence had taken a hit you were still recovering from. your current dry spell in the bedroom hadn’t helped.

you worked behind the welcome desk, admin primarily but you covered the IT side of things too, what little there was of it.

the local gym had started to gain a bit of traction online on social media after a couple of posts went viral and the owners had decided to exploit the opportunity and create workout clothes with the gym’s name and logo on it. the regulars seemed to like it and people online had started buying when you’d posted that they’d get 20% off their next order if they posted online wearing and using the gym-wear.

it was all going great; you organised the orders and got them sent out on time, arranged any returns or customer service questions without a hitch.

or you did until today.

you’d just been taken back when you saw the photo the customer - tav141 - had sent in. you’d typed without thinking and now? now you might lose your job because that customer looked like he was about five seconds away from busting the seams on his workout vest.

[gumnut-logic]

WIP Wednesday 2

A little more of this…

I actually have more, but it isn’t polished enough and I have to go back to work until 8pm, so here is a little anyway.

-o-o-o-

He was faced with the split second realisation that he was going to fall and there was nothing he could do about it. Gravity took over and he was going down.

Except he wasn’t the fastest moving person in the house.

“Woah! I’ve got you!” Two familiar and strong arms wrapped around him, preventing yet another collision with something harder than his body parts.

After all, that was how he ended up with the broken foot in the first place.

“I’ve got you.” The repetition was as reassuring as it was annoying. “Are you okay?’

Virgil looked up at his brother. The rain was coming down hard now and Scott’s hair was beginning to drip into his eyes. Worried eyes, damnit.

“I’m f-“ The ‘ine’ was stolen by a sudden clap of thunder. What the hell?

Scott shook his head and lifting Virgil’s arm around his shoulder, hurried him into the safety of the residential villa.

Stepping out of the rain was a relief. Tropical rain was a species all of its own, heavy, sudden, and determined.

“Sorry, guys, I should have used an airhorn.” John’s voice bounced down from orbit with exasperation.

Virgil grunted at that, not entirely in disagreement, but not willing to give in, or to use the brain cells required for a comprehensible response.

“Or perhaps alerted us earlier.” Scott’s voice was disapproving.

Virgil sighed. Scott was still in post ‘brother trying to get himself killed’ alert mode. “It was a little rain.” He was pointedly ignoring the waterfall on the glass windows. “It wasn’t going to kill me. John’s busy. Let him have a life.”

“He’s right, Virgil. I should have woken you earlier. Or alerted Scott earlier.”

“What?” He really didn’t have the energy for an argument. “Whatever. I’m going to bed. Thanks for the save.” He pulled away gently from his big brother and stepped in the direction of his rooms.

Only to lose his balance again nearly land on his face.

-o-o-o-

TBC

[avatarskywalker78]

It's Work in Progress Wednesday and I've been trying to make a dent in my WIP list!! I completed and uploaded the Wario centric one yesterday and I've been trying to make some headway into the others using the advice from the WIP clearout post. The first extract is from my 'Alex & Daniel' wip - where Daniel Sousa offers to look after an eight-year-old Alex Thompson for the day, and is a little apprehensive about it.

Daniel would like to say that he didn’t know how he’d been talked into this, but that would be a lie – he’d been talked into it because the Thompsons were practically family and had asked for this favour, and because Peggy was too busy at SHIELD to help look after Alex for the day, so it had been left up to him.

It wasn’t like he hadn’t had to look after children before, of course, but still, he couldn’t help but be a little nervous – he’d only looked after Alex a handful of times and those had been when she was very small, not the bouncy eight-year-old who’d be coming to stay for a few hours, and there was always a worry about having to look after someone else’s child. Especially the granddaughter of one of his closest friends. Plus, he wasn’t exactly getting any younger here, so he wouldn’t be able to keep up as much as he might’ve done back in the day – and he already felt exhausted as Sophia parked the car and Alex came running over with a speed he envied. “Uncle Daniel!” She rushed towards him and for a second he feared she was about to leap at him and expect him to catch her because that really would send him crashing to the floor— She didn’t. She did, however, knock the wind out of him and almost bowl him over with the force of the resulting hug. “Oof.” “Sorry!” She jumped back, apologetic. “I didn’t hurt you, did I? Mom says I get too overexcited sometimes.” “I’m fine.” He assured her as he got his breath back, Sophia coming over and looking faintly amused. “Nothing wrong with a hug, kiddo, you just gotta be a little careful - you could’ve knocked me flying.” “Sorry.” She hugged him gentler this time. “I’ve just been looking forward to this for ages.” “I got that.” He said with a laugh, returning the hug. “It’s great to see you too, Alex.”

I have identified a couple of the main blocks; not only have I not watched the source material for a few years, but...I also don't have a clear plan for the fic!! Which isn't helpful, but now I know I can work on it - I've already found both seasons so a rewatch will be a great help (and not just for this one).

Another one I've been working on is...the Sad Westhallen Fic!! Which might not be as sad as it originally was - Barry's still dead but the bulk of the fic is going to be his friends and family sharing all the good memories they have and celebrating his life - but, of course, Eddie and Iris are still dealing with the loss, compounded by the fact their twins have basically no memories of their dad.

It wasn't meant to be like this. Days after Eddie had been freed from captivity, days after Barry, Oliver, and Teams Flash and Arrow brought down Eobard and called in Rip Hunter to see justice served, that had been when he'd finally start to believe - at least a little - that maybe, maybe things would get better. It had been far from easy, of course - Eddie and Iris's relationship was...not on hold, exactly, but any talk of marriage was shelved for the time being until he got the help he needed, which had made sense, of course, but...part of him had worried that she'd choose Barry in the end after all, because the other man was kind and brave and unflinching, someone who would treat Iris right and all Eddie had ever, ever wanted was for Iris to be happy. And if Barry was the one to make her happy... Who was he to stand in the way of that? Course, this had been a symptom of his depression, and once he'd started going to therapy he'd realised how spectacularly untrue it was. Iris and Barry were nothing but supportive the whole time and Iris assured him that she still loved him and always would. She wasn't going anywhere - and neither was Barry. This had made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside - and he'd finally had to admit that yes, he was in love with Barry too, and had been for some time.

This one needs a rewatch too, so it'll either be this or Agent Carter that I rewatch after I finished OUAT S1.

Tagging (let me know if you want to be added or removed): @shrinkthisviolet @starstruckpurpledragon @dream-beyond-the-fantasy @daughter-of-melpomene

[umbracirrus]

WIP Wednesday!!! 💛

I come with not one, but two snippets today! Both are wider scenes that I've posted a handful of lines from throughout this week (screaming about Elyse and Balgruuf not kissing but it's a slow burn so no kissing yet, and the last lines tag game from this morning), and both have something in common...

Elyse and her sweet tooth.

Tagging everyone who tagged me in that last lines game whilst I was sleeping last night hehe, so that means @thequeenofthewinter, @throughtrialbyfire, @pitiable-arisen, and @oblivions-dawn. No obligations of course 💛

Seeking the Sun snippet (chapter 3)

As a weak campfire began to flicker with light in the small camp they had cleared of bandits, Elyse couldn’t help but sit in the grass by the fire and stare up at the aurora which blanketed the skies. She hadn’t even been in Skyrim for a week, and in that time had been almost executed and survived a dragon attack... But she hadn’t been able to look up at the night sky and take it all in until that moment.

“A spectacle like no other,” is what her mother used to say. “I always liked to believe that the aurora is our ancestors in Sovngarde gazing down at us. Watching as we live up to their legacies. Perhaps I have been shunned for following my own path as opposed to the one that had been set out before me, but I don’t regret it for a second. Besides... I know for certain that our ancestors would be proud of you, El, and that’s all I could ever ask for.”

She had to quickly bring her sleeve up to her face to wipe away the tears building in the corners of her eyes, the snapping of a branch under the foot of one of her current companions bringing her back to reality. Her mother had done it no justice in her descriptions of the night sky in Skyrim, and if her beliefs were true... Then perhaps Ingja was up there and watching over her at that very moment.

“There isn’t much, but it looks as though those bandits had caught some salmon to eat... I gathered some snowberries too, if fish isn’t to your taste,” Ralof sighed as he took a seat beside her, a wooden plate clattering into the grass before him with the food in question. “Hadvar is refusing to take the stick out of his backside to sit down and eat, which means all the more for-“

A tut came from behind her as Hadvar approached the fire, his decision to stand at the opposite side to Ralof possibly bring an unconscious one, but quite notable to Elyse. Those two quite obviously knew each other since before the arrests at the border.

“If I get seen in the company of a Stormcloak by any survivors from the Imperial Legion-“ There was an edge to his voice, one which almost sounded fearful, “-then both she and I are dead.”

“Helgen is already little more than ashes. Do you honestly believe that any soldiers are going to be coming up the road now? They’re no doubt in Falkreath, Riverwood, or dead.”

“... If Riverwood hasn’t also been attacked by the dragon, that is.”

There was a tension in the air which made Elyse squirm as she reached out to take a small handful of the berries which Ralof had gathered, her eyes flicking between the pair. Ralof’s fists were clenching at the fabric of his trousers, whereas Hadvar’s throat silently bobbed before he slowly sat down and closed his eyes.

After a few moments had passed, she began to eat the snowberries and found herself quite disappointed that they didn’t taste quite as sweet as a Cyrodilic strawberry... yet at the same time incredibly relieved. It was the first thing she had ate since crossing the border beyond a stale piece of bread taken from the storage room in Helgen’s keep during their escape from the dragon, and it had been growing harder and harder to ignore the pangs in her stomach.

She reached the last berry all too soon, though she certainly wasn’t expecting a quiet chuckle from Hadvar at the grumble she let out at that realisation.

“You must’ve needed that.”

The Perfect Storm snippet (chapter 18)

There was something which Balgruuf found rather enjoyable about the simple act of roaming the streets of the city as time passed and the evening slowly transitioned into night, with little more than idle conversation about anything and everything to keep them entertained. Elyse would on occasion have something catch her eye, most often little pieces of jewellery or old-looking books, though didn't actually buy anything. Whenever he asked why she didn't want to indulge, even if just for one night, she would simply smile at him and say that good company was all that she needed for the night to be memorable, not a souvenir. That books and jewellery could be bought at any time, unlike a chance to unwind.

Before long, he started to become aware of the time, and let out a deep breath. It was dark by that point, with the faint glow of candles and lanterns across the streets keeping the city lit even as night took Whiterun firmly into its grasp.

"Elyse… I must apologise, but I have something which I need to do before I return to Dragonsreach, so I am going to have to leave now," he stated, placing a hand on her shoulder and stopping her in her tracks as they strolled around the festival.

Turning to face him, he saw a clear dismay – possibly even hurt - across her features. She had clearly been enjoying herself, he had never quite seen her so lively before spending time with her that evening even if most of what they did was just walking and chatting. “Already?”

“I’m afraid so,” he sighed, bringing his hand up to “Though do feel free to stay here for longer, the festivities are set to continue into the early hours..."

Elyse’s face shifted to an expression that came across much more neutral than it had done moments earlier, before she nodded. “Fair enough... Do you have plans or something?”

“You could say so... I have something which I need to purchase before I return to Dragonsreach, and festival or no, I have business to attend to in the morning. A growing pile of paperwork that I have neglected after spending much of my time on audiences, arranging all of this, and...” He trailed off, pursing his lips together as he made a quiet but frustrated hum. Thankfully, she didn’t pry about what had gone unspoken, having been a first-hand witness to what he was referring to.

Elyse quietly wrapped her coat around herself more tightly as a particularly frigid gust of wind cut through the streets, before the smile which she had previously held returned to her face. “If you have the chance, you really should stop by the stall selling those tarts before heading back. The fact that almost nobody seemed to be buying them when I got mine was an absolute travesty."

He raised an eyebrow. "That sounds rather dramatic for tarts."

"It's hardly dramatic enough! You can’t deny that they were delicious."

He couldn’t help but shake his head and chuckle at her exclamation, not exactly in agreement with her opinion – still feeling that grainy yet syrupy texture from the fruit filling in his mouth - but finding her enthusiasm almost endearing.

In spite of his need to leave, they remained stood there for a further few moments, a comfortable quiet having settled between them. It was only broken by a distant cheer from the marketplace.

"So... see you next year then?"

Balgruuf stared at Elyse with dumbfounded confusion, taking in little more than the grin plastered across her face, before letting out an amused snort when he realised what she meant. "Yes, Elyse. I will see you next year. Enjoy your night."

After he had turned around and began to walk in the direction that they had originally come from, the strangest feeling began to creep in. One which made his gut feel as though it were twisting and churning, something which was wholly uncomfortable… He could only assume that it was that sickly tart hitting his stomach.

[blushyeleven]

Okay so! I’m gonna be working on tkl tober fics rn! Also this fic is heavily inspired by @matchacowbee with her South Park fic, so make sure to go follow her and check out her amazing art work 🫶

This story is based on if Jenna ever found my tumblr account!

Warnings: tickles, light sweating

Characters: Lee!jenna Ortega, ler!melissa Barerra

A/n: I absolutely hate this😭

𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒔 (𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒚𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏?)

It was an early afternoon on the set of scream 6 and Jenna was sat in her trailer. On her break as she wasn’t needed for anymore scenes for a couple of hours. So she just decided to get her laptop out and scroll aimlessly through the internet. Jenna always thought it was funny to scroll their media posts about her, she offended giggled at the fanfics, some of them were really cute and well structured and the others were.. interesting, so she decided not to read those ones. She found it so interesting about how everybody across the globe could interpret her in different ways and write it in a fanfiction. She liked to read some of them in her free time. Not because she was big headed but because she enjoyed seeing what her fans would write her and she appreciated them a lot. Jenna liked to read some of the.. more out there ones. She liked to see people’s creativity and what fandoms they were in and put her in.

She Usually scrolled through fanfiction sites but she decided to skip Wattpad because of the majority of them were smut. So she usually scrolled through fanfiction.net or the new app she discovered. Tumblr. She typed up “Jenna ortega fan fiction” and her eyes with met with an array of stories all concluding her. She skim read a few and found some really enjoyable stories. Stories about her dating the reader, about her character wednesday being a detective or just interesting story lines in general. She spent around 15 minutes reading a few stories before she found an account holder that piqued her curiousity.

“Blushyeleven” she found this account after seeing a post “new jenna fic out tmrw!!” That was posted yesterday. So she clicked on the account and read the bio. “Jennas gf” she saw the name of their header was and she giggled, continuing to read their bio and she stopped at “tk reader/writer” she raised an eyebrow “tk? What’s that?” She thought to herself and she scrolled a little down their account and found the fic that they posted today so Jenna read the description of it. Again, she stopped when she saw something that made her eye brows raise in confusion “warnings: tickles” she giggled again but just brushed it off and decided to read the story anyway. mindlessly reading through the paragraphs. She didn’t understand where the story was going until she saw a sentence that made her stop in her tracks and her face react with a piercing blush. “Jenna then reached over and started tickling your sides making you squeal and fall Into helpless laughter” what the… she just nervously chucked and continued reading it, she quickly came to realise the whole story was about her.. tickling somebody?.. she snickered at the idea and felt herself become flustered. Try as she might, she couldn’t keep the silly smile plastered across her face. She just couldn’t get over the whole ordeal. Tickling?. A fanfic about her.. tickling somebody. She wasn’t weirded out, she actually found it quite amusing.

Jennas curiosity was bubbling, so she decided to scroll through the account to see what other kind of posts she could find. She saw a few more fics which again.. had her tickling somebody or somebody tickling her. Even her characters had fanfics based on tickling. She just scrolled, carefully reading each post, seeming as all of them were about her. She then stopped again when she read the title “Jenna ortega tkl headcanons!”. Jenna wasnt unfamiliar with headcannons, she was use to seeing them about her characters.. but these ones were obviously different. They were assumptions and guesses about Jenna based on the recurring theme of the account.. tickling. she was absolutely dying from embarrassment, . Curiosity killed the cat, after all, even if the cause of death was embarrassment.

She was about to start reading them until she was abruptly stopped by a quick, soft knock on her trailer door. She adverted her eyes away from her computer and got up to the door to see her older co-star. Melissa. she wasn’t needed for any scenes for a while either. So she came up with the idea to accompany jenna.. with whatever she was doing. “Heyyy!!” Jenna smiled, welcoming her in. “Hey! You good?” Melissa said, stepping inside her trailer seeing jenna looked a little.. flustered? “Oh yeah! Sorry.. I’m all good!” She walked through her trailer to sit back on her desk chair. “Okay okay.. so.. what you up to?” Melissa asked after seeing jennas laptop open on a website she didn’t recognise. “Oh- well.. funny story actually..” Jenna trailed of.. giggling slightly. “I was just searching and reading stories of myself untill I found this account..” she told Melissa and watched as her eyebrow quirked slightly. “Well.. what’s on this account then?” She questioned, already assuming the worst. “It’s.. it’s a whole account about me.. and tickles..” Jenna said rather flushed and nervously chuckling. Melissa’s let out a loud laugh, obviously not expecting that “pffft, what?!” She stated and watched jennas cheeks fade into a bold pink. “yeahhh..” Jenna couldn’t help but smile as Melissa was clearly shocked.. yet puzzled and clearly intrigued. “Let me see!” She said almost immediately and got of jennas bed to stand by jennas wooden desk. Jenna spun her chair back around to her laptop, her screen still on the headcanons.

“Jenna ortega tkl headcanons” Melissa read. The older girl wasnt always caught up with the new online slang and the words that fandoms would use, so Jenna often had to fill her in and explain to her certain words.. and because of jenna, Melissa vaguely knew what a headcannon was. “Oh! This is the.. one were they guess things.. right?” Melissa asked to which jenna nodded. Mellisa had the biggest smile on her face, thinking how ridiculously hilarious this was and how unusual the account was itself. Under the big, bold, italic title was a list of text, small sentences. She then saw the first sentence which made her snicker “because of jennas height I recon it’s easy to pin her”.. again jenna nervously chuckled at this, her face splashed with crimson red. Melissa turned to see jennas reaction and smirked, reading the next one. “As much as she tries to hide it.. the poor girl cannot handle being teased” Melissa reads again; she sees jenna looking down, away from the laptop screen. Her whole face, chin to forehead, smeared in a vibrant blush. Melissa was clearly enjoying how entertaining this was. She couldn’t even believe what she was reading, although she found it hysterical. Her eyes then were met with the next line of text. “I think jennas worst spot is her ribs but she’s also very ticklish on her stomach” to this, jennas eyes widened slightly and melissa turned her head to see her surprised yet flustered reaction. Melissa let out a flurry of giggles “wait.. is that true?!” She asked, with a stretching, mischievous smile prominent on her face. Jennas eyes met Melissas for a Split second and then looked back at the floor, her blush increasing in intensity before finally speaking with a rather quite voice. “n-no..” was all she could manage to say. Her co-workers smile turned into a smirk, obviously seeing through her poor attempt at lying. “Oh? Are you sure?… I think it might beee…” Melissa’s tone was extremely teasing and playful. The 5’1 actress had no comment or reponse, she just looked anywhere but at Melissa.

“Well you know I’ve gotta test it now!” Melissa giggled before reaching out her hand to quickly scribble at jennas ribs for a few seconds and pulling her hands away for a short moment when she heard jennas ear-splitting squeal. “Melissa! Dohont!!” Jenna put her hands out, infront of her ribs. The older girls eyes widened at jennas reaction. Clearly not expecting it to be that bad. “Fucking hell jenna!” Melissa giggled in shock. She then decided to re-place her fingers again, spidering the black-painted acrylics across jennas sides and near her stomach. Shortly after, jenna burst out into high-pitched, child like laughter. “BAHAHA MEHELISSA!!” Jenna then just effortlessly attempted to push at Melissa’s hands that was now zooming around jennas stomach. Her hands were to quick for Jenna to keep up with, changing spots every few seconds so Jenna couldn’t get use to the feeling. Melissa was loving this. She never would have thought that Jenna was this ticklish. She then leant down so it was easier to reach shorter girl, using both her hands to scribble at both of her sides. Jenna just leant back on her chair, her head tilted back slightly. Overflowing with ticklish laughter. “AHAHAHHAHA FUHUCKK!!” Although, as much as she would complain or protest, she couldn’t wipe the smile that was beaming on her face. She also couldn’t help but kick her legs slightly, swinging them back and forth as she tried to cover her stomach with her arms. Melissa just took the opportunity to hastily move her evil, nimble fingers to jennas ribs. Speedily scratching at them, causing Jenna to burst out into explosive laughter. “BAHAHHAHAHAH NOHOHOHO!!” Jenna squeaked and shrieked through helpess laughter as Melissa left no sign of stopping or giving up. “Wow jenna, that headcanon was right after all!!” She teased, seeing jenna clench her eyes shut as the laughter freely poured out of her mouth.

Melissa’s fingers them crawled back to jennas stomach, clawing at it mercilessly. “AAHHAH MEHELISSAA!!!” Jenna shrieked to which her co-star snickered and mimiced her “jehehennaaa!!” She said, sarcasm and playfulness dripping from her voice.. and to that Jenna again just blushed and didn’t say anything back, she just let herself give into the laugter and the endless amount of tickles she was receiving. Melissa decided she had a few more spots she wanted to try out on jenna before she let up. “AHAHAHHAHA I CAHAHAHNTTT!!” Was jennas reaction when the dreaded fingers moved into her armpits. “BAHAHHAHAHAH NAHAHAHAH!!” Jenna was trying to focus on calming her laughter down but all her brain would focus on was the ticklish sensation coursing through her body. Melissa kept her fingers in jennas underarms even if it was proving to me difficult after Jenna had squeezed her arms to her sides. Trapping Melisa’s fingers in her armpits. Notheless she still found a way to wiggle and squirm her fingers in jennas armpits. Keeping jennas giggles a high frequency and volume. “HAHAHAHHAHA IHITS SOHOO BAHAHADDD!” Jenna complained. “Well yeah it will be! Your like.. super ticklish!” Melisa stated. “SHUHUT UHUP!!” Jenna bursted out with, finally, a comeback after all this time of staying silent at the little teasy, snarky comments that were thrown her way. Although, as if Melissa would let her off easily for that. Instead she quirked a brow and moved her hands back to jennas ribs. Eagerly wiggling her fingers in the spaces between. “PFFTT FUHUCK!! BAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAH” jenna was practically screaming with laughter. The noise echoing of the trailer walls and probably heard all the way from set. Mellisa kept digging and wiggling her fingers into jennas ribs and also decided to scribble Into them aswell. “AHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAH- NAHAHAHAH- SHIHIT- I- BAHAHHAHA….”

Jennas laughter then went silent, with a few squeaks and gasps for air. Followed by her eyes watering slightly.. and that’s when Melissa let up. Removing her hands. Looking at jenna in the giggly puddle she had become. Jenna then desperately tried to recollect her breathe as she wiped the water from her eyes with her sleeve. The short actress just took big gasps of air while her whole face was a vivid and distinct shade of red. “f-..fuck you..” jenna joked, seeing Melissa giggle. “I was just testing out the headcanon!.. that account is actually hilarious” the older girl smiled down at jenna as she nodded and then took a gulp of her water bottle.

After her and Melissa spent what felt like hours together they were eventually called into set to which nobody mentioned jennas echoed laughter. Instead they just gave her small smirks every now and again.

[saltmannequin]

New Girl (Pt. 2)

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

wc: 3.7k

warnings: discussions of drug addiction (cocaine), allusions to abuse, angst, marijuana use, reader's mom clearly has some issues she needs to work through

a/n: thank you for all the support on the first part of this fic! i hope you love this part and i will be posting part three soon <3

------

Your first week in Hawkins had passed quickly and it was fair to say that it didn’t prove as disappointing as you had thought it would. Most of your week you spent with your newfound friends: Eddie, Robin, Steve and Nancy. You had met up four times that week, all listening to music, watching movies and swapping stories. Somehow Robin always ended up on the floor. It was fun, and you were surprisingly happy to be in Hawkins.

It was now Wednesday evening and you were sunk into your favourite neighbor's couch, joint hanging from your lips. Eddie paced around somewhat too nervously for your liking.

“Dude, mellow out. They’re only thirty minutes late. ’M sure they’re fine. Steve probably just can’t get his hair to sit right or something. They’re just running late.” You spoke out suddenly, drowning out the incessant thud thud thud from Eddie’s socked feet on the floorboards of the trailer.

“But what if they just bail?” Your heart ached a little, wondering why he didn’t want to be alone with you. Were you too annoying? Did he only talk to you ‘cause the others liked you? It was that moment that you realised that you had developed a small crush on the fluffy-haired metalhead moving in front of you.

Sure, you thought Eddie was cute the moment you first saw him, but being someone who rarely ever dated, you never viewed him in a romantic way. Until of course, Robin started pointing out little things when you sat together with Nancy at lunch. Things you had never noticed before; the way he would make the younger members of Hellfire laugh, how often he held doors open for people, and how he bounced slightly when he walked, it never clicked until that moment, that uneasy feeling of anticipation you’d get around him, the way your heart pounded in your chest when he sat a little too close to you. Everything became apparent.

You scoffed lightly, before composing yourself. Eddie couldn’t know you liked him, you didn’t want to embarrass yourself by liking someone that clearly wasn’t interested in you. You turned your slight frown into a playful smile. “Can't handle hanging with me alone, Munson?”

He froze slightly and straightened his back before resuming his pacing, which had now slowed into a tired walk across both sides of his small living space. “No..s’just I like when we hang as a group..that’s all.” He darted his eyes to you for a split second that you could have sworn it almost didn’t happen. 

You tried not to be disappointed with his answer, but you were.“ ‘M sure they’ll turn up.” You shot him a smile before placing the joint back between your lips.

-

Another twenty minutes passed, Eddie now sat next to you on the couch with glassy eyes. You had convinced him to at least sit down and smoke some of the joint he had rolled before you smoked all of it, assuring him that one of them would call. You were right.

The shrill ring of the Munson residence’s telephone echoed through the small trailer from the kitchen to the living room. Eddie jumped to attention and scrambled to the phone. Exasperated, he spoke into the receiver.

“Hello?”

“Eddie, hey it’s Steve.”

Eddie’s eyes widened in relief. He turned to look at you for a moment, eyes heavy lidded and focused on the television playing his VHS copy of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He whispered into the receiver aggressively. “Steve what the fuck man! Where are you guys?”

“Sorry dude, but my car broke down about twenty seconds after we started to head over to your place. We can’t make it, Robin and Nance had to walk home.”

Eddie sighed and pinched the gap between his brows. “Okay, man, whatever.”

“What, my absence got your panties in a twist?” Eddie heard Steve chuckle lightly, followed by what sounded like Robin talking in the background before the line went quiet again. Eddie thought nothing of it, too focused on the fact that it would just be you and him tonight.

“Nah, man ‘s just…” He cupped his hand over the transmitter, eyeing you one more time before continuing on, even quieter than normal. “I don’t know how ’m gonna hang with her, I mean.. I can’t just kick her out, that would suck, but I get so nervous around her and I don’t know if ‘m gonna be able to handle hanging out with her without you guys.”

“Why do you get nervous around her, I mean, she’s just a friend, right?.”

“Yeah, ‘course. She’s a great friend! I mean, she’s easy to talk to, and she’s funny to the point where I start crying, she has awesome taste in music compared to you guys, she’s probably the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen and her stories are the best.”

“Munson, wake up. You like her. Maybe even love her, but we all see the way she looks at you, too. You shouldn’t be so worried.” Eddie’s eyes widened as Steve spoke. He heard some shuffling on the other line and what sounded like angry whispering before Steve abruptly spoke again. “I gotta go, just be cool and treat her as if we’re all in the room.”

“Yeah see ya, Harrington.” Eddie hung up the phone with a sigh. ‘We all see the way she looks at you’ rang through his mind over and over and over-

“Everything okay?” You broke his train of thought, eyes peering over at him from the couch. You had put your hair in a messy bun with your left foot raised to rest on the arm of the couch, the other placed on the floor. He stared a little, and you quirked an eyebrow slightly before a small smile spread across your face. “What?”

“N-nothing uh..they’re not coming, something ‘bout Steve’s car broke down so they couldn’t make it.” Eddie shuffled anxiously in his spot, part of him hoping you would leave so that he didn’t have to feel this nervous anymore, the other hoping you’d stay so he could spend more time with you.

“Aw that’s too bad.” You pouted slightly before shrugging your shoulders. “Oh well! More pot for us, right?” You smiled sweetly at him and patted the empty space next to you on the couch. You stiffened as he stayed stuck in place in the kitchen. You figured you were coming on too strong, maybe he wanted you to leave. “Unless you want me to go? I’d totally get it, I mean, I know you’re used to hanging as a group and-”

“No! No, uh, no it’s okay. Stay, you’re right, more pot for us.” He moved quickly, plopping himself down next to you before reaching to roll another joint.

-

A few hours had passed before you left Eddie’s to go back home, ready to fall onto your bed and pass out immediately. You opened the front door quietly, so as to not wake your mother, but that plan was void once you saw the living room lights snap on instantly.

“Oh my god! Mom!” You screamed, clearly startled.

“Where have you been?” She sat on the couch with a book in her hands, her face hard and stern. You knew immediately however you played this, it would end in a fight. She did this when you used to live together, finding any reason to scream at you. Your mother loved you and you knew that, but sometimes if you caught her on a bad day, it wouldn’t feel like love at all. This seemed to be a bad day. 

“ ‘Was just over at Eddie’s place for a while.” You shrugged, standing awkwardly in the doorway.

“Hm. Okay. Well, I was doing some cleaning earlier and wanted to put your laundry in your room but, when I went in there, I found this.” She reached behind her back, pulling out the one object that would make any child with drug fearing parents feel instantly sick. It was an altoids tin that your father had given to you for your eighteenth birthday. It was painted white and he had drawn illustrations of Clementines on it. You knew exactly what was in that tin. Your stash. It was Eddie’s turn to bring the weed that night, so you had left your tin underneath your bed where you kept it.

Your mouth went dry and for a moment you went dizzy. This was going to be a big one.

“Care to explain to me what this is Y/N?” Your mother tapped her index finger against the tin twice. You decided to be honest, hoping that she would appreciate that at the least.

“It’s the tin that I keep my weed in.” You looked at the floor beneath you, hoping it would swallow you whole.

She scoffed audibly and rolled her eyes. “So unashamed about it, too. Disgusting, Y/N.” You didn’t know what to say. You weren’t sorry, you were eighteen now, you paid for it and you never smoked in her home. You knew she was against drugs, and for good reason, but it was just a small amount of pot. You didn’t see the big deal. She spoke again.

“You know, when you came back last week I didn’t expect you to look or act how you do. I was shocked, but I didn’t want to say anything because I know what it’s like to be young and to want to express yourself. I held my tongue when I saw all those piercings and the crazy hair, but I will not be silent about this. You should know how I feel about drugs, especially after what happened with your father.”

You slouched a little as she spoke, feeling deflated after your mother implying that she hated everything about you now. 

“You’re turning into him.” Her words set a fire in your stomach and your nostrils flared. Maybe she wouldn’t be the one to turn this into a fight after all.

“How am I turning into him, mom? It’s not as if you know anything about him now. You’re the one who decided to leave! ��� You choked out, looking at her now.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me! How dare you say that to me? We both went through shit ‘cause of dad, but he was in a bad place, and you never helped. All you did was scream at both of us and make us feel miserable!”

“You’re an addict!”

“It’s pot! How am I an addict?”

“I’m really disappointed in you.”

You exhaled shortly. This was absurd. You knew it was, but she was getting to you, you were close to snapping. 

“You’re not the little girl I raised.” She sighed dejectedly, looking away from you.

You snapped.

“You barely fucking raised me! You haven’t seen me since I was fourteen years old, mom! You left. Sure, you’d call, but how was that ever enough? You missed out on so much. You rarely talk about dad and when you do it’s always something shitty. I only called you to come stay here ‘cause I had nowhere else to go. I don’t care if you think I’m turning into dad ‘cause I’d rather turn into him than you.” Her face fell and she stood up suddenly, lunging at you. Your heart jumped out of your chest and you blindly grabbed the door handle behind you, opening it and slipping out into the night, away from your mother. 

You sighed, grabbing your hair frustratedly before considering your options of places to stay for the night. You knew that you would not be going home tonight. You mulled your options over in your head before stepping off your front porch over to Eddie’s trailer for the second time that night. You felt horrible, asking him if you could stay at his place, but Steve, Nancy and Robin all lived a few minutes drive from the park, and your car was constantly a heatbox in the summer. Eddie was your closest option.

You straightened your back slightly and knocked sheepishly on the door to his trailer. A couple of seconds passed before Eddie swung the door open. He was shirtless and had his hair tied in a loose bun, sweatpants hanging low on his hips. Ink covered parts of his chest and travelled from his arms down past his grey sweatpants. You could have died on the spot.

“Y/N? You forget something?” He looked at you, confused, having only seen you ten minutes prior.

“No, uh…can I stay here tonight? Sorry to put you on the spot, 's just I had a fight with my mom and uh I don’t really wanna be there right now.” You put your hands behind your back and gave him a tight lipped smile with pleading eyes.

He stared at you blankly for a moment before responding. “Sure, no problem.” You sighed in relief as he opened the door further to let you in. “I’d give you the couch but, uh, Wayne sleeps there when he gets home from the plant so you’ll have to sleep in my room if that’s okay with you.” His cheeks flushed slightly as he looked over at you, leaning on the wall next to his front door.

“ ‘S fine. Thank you, I really appreciate it Eddie.”

“No problem.” He coughed lightly before walking to his bedroom, motioning for you to follow. You made sure to leave enough space when you both walked down his cramped hallway, already feeling uncomfortable and guilty that you had barged into his home. 

You stood awkwardly in the middle of his room while taking in the space surrounding you. You had only seen glimpses of Eddie’s bedroom throughout the week, but had never actually entered it. Posters were taped haphazardly to his wall and his bed was made neatly. Books were scattered across the room, some you noticed and some you didn’t. He sifted through his dresser frantically before turning to you, holding two folded items of clothing.

“Here, you can sleep in these, I don’t wear ‘em that often. I’ll uh, give you some privacy while I go get some blankets.” He avoided eye contact with you while handing you a pair of sweatpants that had been cut into shorts and a faded Garfield t-shirt.

You scoffed lightheartedly at the shirt. “Thanks, Eddie.” He nodded at you curtly before walking out of his bedroom and shutting the door behind him. 

-

It had been about 30 minutes since Eddie came back with a shirt on and blankets in his arms to turn into a makeshift bed on the floor. He had insisted that you take his real bed and that he slept on the floor-bed, but after a few minutes of trying to drift off into sleep, your brain kept going back to the fight with your mom. You had invited him to come sit with you and you both got into easy conversation. He had rolled a joint, and you were now passing it between you both, sharing stories and giggling like schoolchildren.

Eddie tapped the joint against the empty mug you were both using as an ashtray before bringing it to his lips and inhaling. “So..” He exhaled. “What’s the deal with your mom..I mean, for as long as I’ve known her she’s been awesome.” 

You sighed before thinking where to begin. “This might be a pretty long story.” You warned. He only stared at you and motioned for you to continue, his glassy eyes watching your expression change as you thought. 

“So.. I used to live with my mom and dad in California. We were super close, but when I was fourteen, my mom left me and my dad and moved here to Hawkins. My dad, I always got along better with him, he was the person that taught me to be myself, he was funny and never got onto me for any choice I made. He supported me, and he was the strongest person I knew. He used to get really sad sometimes, wouldn’t leave his and my mom’s room for days and so his bright idea of dealing with that was to start doing doing drugs. He ended up getting addicted to cocaine and he and my mom started fighting a lot. My mom eventually started taking her stress and anger out on me, it never got physical, but she used to break stuff and scream at me, it really sucked. When she left, my dad tried so hard and ended up getting clean. ‘Guess he figured that if he got better he'd get my mom back, but she never came home. Me and my mom didn’t talk again until she called on my sixteenth birthday, she sounded way happier and that was when I accepted they were both better off without each other.” You sighed, not knowing where to go next.

Eddie stayed as he was, eyes on you and waiting for you to continue. He handed you the joint, and you took it a little too hastily, inhaling deeply. You had never told anyone about this before, but something about him just made you feel safe, like you could speak to him about anything. You exhaled.

“My dad eventually started smoking weed. It helped a lot with his bad days and made him able to function as a person again but didn’t fuck up his moods and body like cocaine did, so it was a win. I had been smoking weed since my mom left, and decided to tell him. He was fine with it, and let me smoke in the house. We used to smoke together and watch his endless collection of Looney Tunes VHS tapes. For my eighteenth birthday he got me a tin to keep my weed in, and after he kicked me out I took it with me. My mom found it and she totally flipped. She had always been against drugs, but since my dad’s addiction I guess she came to despise ‘em. We started fighting, she said some hurtful shit, I said some hurtful shit and then she uh..lunged for me. She’s never done anything like that before and it scared me, so I left.” You took in a sharp breath, tears forming on your waterline before you forced them not to fall. You let out a breath with a tight smile. “Pretty stupid shit, huh?” 

Eddie noticed the way you fixed your posture after talking about the subject, smiling only with your mouth, your eyes not making those little crescent moon shapes they did when you were doubled over with laughter. He knew exactly how you felt.

“I’m so sorry Y/N..parents can be…really shitty.” He reached out and grabbed your hand for a moment. Your heart jumped out of your chest at the sudden touch, and you tried your best not to look too affected by the warmth of his hand radiating into yours. He let go after a while and you handed the joint to him.

“So.. what’s the deal with your parents, huh?” You tilted your head slightly as he chuckled lightly before inhaling deeply and exhaling.

“Well uh..my mom died when I was about three, so I don’t really remember her all that much, but from what Wayne told me, she was awesome. Real cool sense of style, headstrong and kind, real funny, too. My dad was around, but he was always pretty shitty, started taking me to drug deals when I turned nine, even when I didn’t wanna go. He was always drunk, or high and then when I was eleven he got arrested for aggravated assault. Second-degree felony, fifteen years. ‘Lived with Wayne ever since, I was always close with him, ‘used to look after me when my dad was too drunk to, and he’s more of a father than my actual father could ever be.” He avoided eye contact with you. Despite the similarities of your situations, he was still nervous you would eventually see him like everyone else in Hawkins did. 

“Well, shit. I guess that settles my study.” You responded. 

He furrowed his eyebrows. “What study?”

“Kids with shitty parents are always cooler than kids with normal parents.” You peered over at him as he chuckled, his smile wide. He felt relief course through his veins at your lighthearted attempt to regain the playful conversation you once had and blushed slightly at you referring to him as ‘cool’. He felt like an idiot for getting flustered at such a platonic compliment, but he didn’t care. He was totally gone, enamoured by you.

-

Sunlight poured into Eddie’s bedroom, illuminating your sleeping figures. Your face was squished against the warmest pillow you had ever slept on. You yawned, snuggling your face further into Eddie’s pillow until suddenly you felt something on your back. Your eyes widened as you realised that the pillow was, in fact, not a pillow at all but was Eddie’s chest. You were practically laying on him while he had his arm draped around your lower back, the other hanging off the side of the bed. You raised your head slowly, trying to figure out if you should move.

Before you could make your decision, Eddie stirred in his sleep before opening his eyes slightly, feeling the loss of whatever warmth was on his chest moments ago. He peered around his room before noticing your body on top of his and your wide eyes staring out in panic. 

“Well this is really fucking awkward.” You said bluntly. He burst out laughing as you rolled off of him onto your back. You instantly felt dread hit you as you realised you would have to go home to your mother. Covering your face with your hands, you groaned and rolled onto your side. 

As if Eddie knew what you were thinking, he poked you in the back before speaking. “It’s gonna be okay today, I swear. And, hey, if worst comes to worst you can always stay here again. Wayne likes you good enough and I think you’re pretty okay-” you had rolled over at this point and kicked him in the shin. “Ow! Fine, you’re honestly one of the best people I’ve met.” Your heart melted but you didn’t have time to process it as he continued speaking. “As I was saying before you kicked my poor shin, you’re always welcome ‘round here. I’m sure it’s gonna go great.”

“Thank you, Eddie.” Your smile reached your eyes this time.

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TAGLIST

@pinkdaiisies @tayhar811

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[aristocratic-otter]

Thank you to @hushed-chorus, @prettygoododds, @confused-bi-queer, @ivelovedhimthroughworse, @j-nipper-95, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @fatalfangirl, @artsyunderstudy, @palimpsessed, @rimeswithpurple, , @nightimedreamersghost, @dragoneggos, @annabellelux and @ileadacharmedlife for the tags over the last week and a half. I'm working my way slowly and steadily through your posts (and having a lot of fun with it!), but I wanted to post tonight, so I'm switching gears here.

Yay! Summer vacation has begun! To celebrate, here's my first WIP Wednesday in a while.

Segments below the cut

From my COBB (it's so soon, y'all!)

Shepard

We’ve reached the foot of an actual mediaeval looking tower. I stare up at it in awe for several seconds before realising that Simon hasn’t waited for me. I scurry to catch up. He’s mounting the first of what looks to be an endless spiralling staircase. I look around, but there’s no sign of an elevator. No ADA compliance in magedom, I guess. 

Even as I’m thinking that, on one landing, a boy in a wheelchair emerges from one of the many doors. I know it’s rude, but I can’t help but stare when he mutters a few words, waves his wand, and the stairs immediately smooth out to a gentle ramp. 

I guess they don’t need ADA compliance in the World of Mages. 

From my (still unnamed) Age of Sail AU

Simon and the cook spend their days cataloguing what’s left to us and writing out plans and routes on the deck boards with graphite sticks. They seem to think that if we’re lucky, the winds will push us into a shipping lane and another ship will just appear to rescue us.

I think they’re living in a fantasy world. I think we’re stuck here until the ship’s wounds prove too much for it and it falls apart. Or until the next storm tears us apart. Or until we run out of food or water and starve to death. 

Ha! Running out of water when we’re surrounded by leagues of the stuff. It’s what my tutor would call ‘the height of irony.’

Fuck, I never thought I’d miss that pinched old man. But I think if Professor Gerint showed up right now, I might hug him. If he showed up with a boat, at least. 

I try not to spend too much time thinking about how my parents just…left. How they didn’t wait for me to come back from under the deck. How my father didn’t leap up out of the lifeboat, desperate to find me.

How, in the end, my stepmother and the babe she carries were far more important than me.

From Snow Fox, my COTTA

It’s almost anticlimactic how easy it is to free the American officers on their march to Georgia. 

My men and I waited until the British column was passing through a dense part of the wood. Then the men I’d placed at strategic points on either side of (and behind) the line of British troops, fired their guns in the air on my signal (a high whistled ‘fee-bee’, the call of the chickadee). After the column froze, the Brits groping for their guns and looking frantically in ever direction, I rode out to face the commander at the front of the train. 

“Drop your weapons,” I said, mildly. “You’re surrounded.” At those words, my tiny band of men had switched positions by several feet each, and fired again from a new location. The British soldiers were practically cowering now, because each time I spoke, the guns fired again, from a new spot. It sounded like a thousand American soldiers were holding their tiny force in a giant fist, and all I’d need to do is to give a signal, and that fist would crush them. 

An impression we'd carefully planned out ahead of time, given that I’ve less than fifty men, and the British force has more than two hundred. 

The British leader looked at my gun pointed at his head, and listened to the gunfire and screams behind him, and surrendered without a shot fired.

From: To Heal a Broken Mind

Simon looks up and smiles tiredly at me when I approach. “Any luck?” he asks. 

I purse my lips. “Maybe…you’ve got a lesion in your left temporal. It may not mean anything, but it reminds me of something… I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I’m going to review my medical journal back copies tonight. 

Simon nods slowly. He doesn’t look particularly encouraged, but it’s not like there’s anything concrete yet. In silence, but hand in hand (what’s the point of hiding now?), we depart the hospital 

From Westward Son:

“You putting your oar in?” I tease. 

He shrugs and smiles. “Not really. I’m no use when it comes to survival skills, you know that. But…there may be folk who are. That’s what I was going to suggest.”

I’m puzzled. “You were going to suggest that we look for advice outside the train?” I look around at the sheer emptiness around us. Most trains that we’d gotten used to seeing gave up and stayed back at Fort Boise, or even at earlier stops. I’ve not seen anyone but us for days. 

“Not people you can see,” he says, with emphasis. 

“People we can’t see, but could help us,” I scowl. “Do you get a thrill from being mysterious, Shepard Love?”

He laughs. “No. But there are people…well, not precisely people, but beings, at least, in this area.” 

My breath catches. He means the fair folk. “Shepard, that’s too risky,” I say, my voice shrill enough to attract Simon’s eye from where he’s standing several feet away, brushing Agatha’s coat. 

From Saving Simon Snow:

Simon pulls back so abruptly that I’m dizzy. “Baz,” he says urgently, “do you still hate me?”

It takes me several seconds to recover my wits enough to understand the question. I’m still fighting the urge to pull his gifted mouth and tongue back to my neck when I realise what he’s asked me. 

My mouth opens and closes uselessly for a moment before I sigh. 

“Simon,” I croak, and then pause to clear my throat. “Simon, I never hated you.”

He goes still. “Never?” He stares at me. 

I shake my head. “Never. I pretended to hate you. It was what my family expected of me. What I expected of myself. But I never could quite manage it.”

He scowls a little. “You gave a damned good impression of it.” 

And a tiny tease from Raising Dragons (it's done, y'all! Fristi and I are making some final decisions, but it should post in the next few days!)

“Don’t laugh at me, you arsehole,” I whine. 

“But when will I ever laugh then?” he mocks me. He loves that line. And I love him, so I let him get away with it, every time. 

Tagging, for Sunday (or not, no pressure!):

@angelsfalling16; @bazzybelle, @bookish-bogwitch, @carryonsimoncarryonbaz, @erzbethluna, @frjsti, @fight-surrender, @giishu, @ionlydrinkhotwater, @jbrrring, @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists, @krisrix, @letraspal, @messofthejess, @moments-au-crayon22, @moodandmist, @mostlymaudlin, @nausikaaa, @onepintobean, @prettylightsbigcity, @raenestee, @thehoneyedhufflepuff, @tea-brigade, @theearlgreymage, @twinkle-twinkle-up-above, @upuntil6am, @unfiltered-alice-liddle, @urban-sith, @whogaveyoupermission, @whatevertheweather, @yu-miou, @yeonjunenby, @yellobb-old, and everyone above!

[aintgonnatakethis]

I got top surgery on Wednesday 9th November 2022 and thought I would record the experience here in case it could help anyone. Basically a step by step of the process (with a few problems along the way). I’m happy to answer any questions anyone might have.

The receptionist confirmed who I was, my address, and how to contact my next of kin, then checked I'd had no covid symptoms for the past 30 days and no one in my family had any them in the past 90. We still remain super careful due my grandmother being 91 and my mother being immunocompromised so everything was good.

My ward nurse took me to my private room. I was very pleased about not being on an open ward as I can have odd sleeping patterns. She said my name and then my deadname which after I stiffly corrected her she apologised and pointed to her nametag which said her name was my old one. Ironic and much better than the first thing the medical staff doing being deadnaming me lol

She went through my list of meds with me (quite a few) and gave me a special sponge to use in the shower to disinfect myself and change into a medical gown. Despite the radiator not being on the room was sweltering (in November) so I had to ask them to open my window. Was definitely thankful for the warmth after I got back from surgery as I was very cold then.

A woman with a massive menu came round and asked what I wanted in my post-op sandwich, for dinner that night, and breakfast the next morning, I'm normally an NHS patient (not really sure what the equivalent is in the US, maybe medicare? - but it's basically the underfunded underpaid free healthcare and I was referred to a private hospital because their waiting lists were too long.) With the NHS you get whatever food you get and this place was like a fucking restaurant!

The surgeon then came by to draw lines and dots on my chest, then the anaesthesiologist to go through my meds again. When I told him I had a phobia of needles he said he'd be happy to provide me with laughing gas before he put the canula in. The nurse then fitted me with compression socks, which help prevent blood clots post surgery. They weren't uncomfortable at all, just felt like regular socks but with no toes. I have to wear them for 2 weeks after the surgery.

I waited in my room for two hours so even if you're not staying overnight I'd recommend you bring some form of entertainment. I brought my laptop with some books downloaded onto it and obviously a direct line with home so I could keep them up-to-date.

A new nurse then came in, got me into a dressing gown and took me down to the operating theatre. They didn't undress me until I was unconscious, just rolled down one gown sleeve to put a blood pressure cuff on. The surgeon rubbed a local anaesthetic into the back of my hand and had a bit of trouble finding a vein for the canula (which wasn't unexpected as I have very poor circulation). While he was doing this the nurse held the laughing gas mask over my face, which made me light headed and a bit slurred when I spoke.

There wasn't any slow falling asleep or blur out like on TV when he injected me with the anaesthetic. One moment I had the laughing gas mask on, then I blinked and had an oxygen mask on and was in the recovery room. I didn't realise everything had been done, but my body certainly knew something was up as it almost immediately went into shock.

Would NOT recommend doing that!

Can safely say it was the worst pain I've ever felt, a sharp stabbing sensation across the whole of my chest. The only thing I could think was that if I moved it would be worse so I had to stay as still as possible. It took a dose of Morphine and 3 doses of Fentanyl before the pain lessened. I was too out of it know how long they took between doses but they seemed pretty on it so even though it felt like a long time in that level of pain it probably wasn't. They were insistent on verbal responses from me between doses.

I was wheeled back to my room and have a foggy memory of three nurses clustered around me all quite worried about how blue my fingers were. Things got better from there quickly though, had no nausea or dizziness when a nurse helped me up to go to the bathroom, so had a sandwich and they gave me Tramadol for the residual pain. Ate dinner without a problem (rich peoples' hospitals and their actual food, dude!) and had no constipation from the anaesthetic.

Didn't sleep well but I never do in places that aren't home, and the nurses were coming in every 2-3 hours to check my blood pressure and the drains. In the morning the left drain had a lot more blood coming out than the right so the surgeon decided to keep me in another night. In the end we had 50ml in the right and 300ml in the left and I bled onto the bed quite a bit around the area where the left drain was in. Apparently one side just sometimes bleeds more.

Having the drains out the next day was... an experience. I was still on the Tramadol and the pinch of pain wasn't so bad, but the sliding sensation of a rather long tube coming out of me felt real weird. The background pain dropped a LOT as soon as they were out. Minor leakage around the left wound, but nothing too bad.

Had fresh bandages put on then two nurses wrapped me up in a binder like a burrito. The stiff material of the binder is gonna be right up in your armpits so I'd recommend you do something about any hair you have there before you go. I ran a hair trimmer over both pits.

I can't really offer any advice about if you have a long car ride home. I had a 90 minute drive (as the passenger obvs) and I had black edging into the corners of my vision by the end of it. Standing up before getting into the car was fine, but then not being able to breathe properly plus the movement of the car made me feel very light-headed and nauseous. Went straight to bed when I got home and feel much better since I've woken up. Can do basic movements of putting on a button up shirt, brushing my teeth, etc, but was standing up for twenty minutes to talk to someone and that was enough for me. Have been taking codeine as a painkiller as that's what I take for other issues - have a little burning and aching across my chest (and chafing in my my armpits >.<) but nothing I wouldn't expect from just having had surgery.

[evolutionsbedingt]

Wip Wednesday snippet!

I realised that for the first time in a long while I have something I can post as a snippet on this account so here it is! An excerpt from a My Journey To You fic I have picked up again after accepting my fate and letting it become poly xD

★★★

“Are you trying to protect my virtue, Shangjue?” Yue-zhanglao asks once they’re out of ear shot of the stall and Shangjue can’t for the life of him read his tone. 

“Apologies, xiongzhang, I didn’t realise you were-” Shangjue falters, not quite knowing how to politely say ‘I didn’t realise you were into middle-aged street vendors flirting with you to get your money’. 

Yue-zhanglao hums, nibbling on the rabbit’s ear. “I have taken no vow of chastity. As you well know.”

Shangjue stiffens at the clear jab and he has to bite back a terribly rude response. “This Shangjue apologises for his presumptiveness.”

“I’m well aware of the tactics of street vendors and shop owners,” Yue-zhanglao remarks, seemingly unbothered. “I realise Shangjue-di has done the bulk of purchases for our family so far, but there is indeed a town in our valley and I haven’t been a shaoye of the backhill in a while now.”

Shangjue says nothing, since he has no intention of letting the Elder know that it was Yuanzhi’s plea to protect him that made him act the way he did. He’d never have dared to presume the same naivité if it came to any other of their Elders and he realises now that it was a foolish thing to assume for Yue-zhanglao who had taken the world very much in stride so far.

“Perhaps we should part ways here for now,” Yue-zhanglao says after they’ve wandered aimlessly for a while, Shangjue stewing in the strange mixture of embarrassment and righteous indignation the Elder managed to summon in him. 

Shangjue looks up and startles when he sees Yue-zhanglao is eyeing a street lined with red lanterns. “Yue-zhang-” At Yue-zhanglao’s sharp look Shangjue hastily corrects himself, “Xiongzhang, I do not mind accompanying you.”

“Your betrothed is waiting for you at home,” Yue-zhanglao says with deliberate lightness, his gaze burning into Shangjue. “Give them some face.” 

Shangjue purses his lips and bows sharply. “Then I’ll return to the inn first,” he grinds out between clenched teeth and doesn’t wait for Yue-zhanglao’s response before he turns on his heel and heads off into the opposite direction with no plans to return to the inn until he isn’t at least drunk enough to ignore whatever state Yue-zhanglao is in when he returns. 

o0o

Despite his best attempts to bury his common sense at the bottom of a bottle of wine, Shangjue wakes easily when Yue-zhanglao enters their room late at night. He catches the cloying sweetness of a woman’s perfume, but when Yue-zhanglao lies down, no trace is left of it. Only the scent of the hair oil Yuanzhi had taken to using since returning from Yue manor accompanies the rustle of Yue-zhanglao’s blanket.

“Shang’er?” 

Shangjue doesn’t react to Yue-zhanglao’s whisper and after a moment, he feels a sigh stir the fine hairs at the back of his neck. 

“This Xi apologises for his earlier harsh words,” Yue-zhanglao murmurs. “I should not be annoyed at you for protecting me, nor should I punish you for doing so. I am your Elder, after all, and our Yuanzhi asked you to keep me safe.”

“Sleep, xiongzhang,” Shangjue says after a long moment. “Our journey is far from over and we leave early tomorrow.”

[blackberrysummerblog]

WIP Wednesday!!

Thank you for the tags, @cutestkilla and @palimpsessed! I’m still working away on my fic for erotic gropefest (and thank you too to everyone who liked or reblogged my post from that on Sunday, it was really great to get the encouragement 🥰)

Soooo I’m working on two things other than that, but mostly still my crucible marriage AU, so that’s what I’ll post an excerpt from today. This is still at the garden party reception, after Simon and Baz have, uh, finished up in the mudroom. I almost posted the bit with Mordelia that’s referenced here, but maybe this scene with Fiona has more value. Thanks for reading; tags are under the cut! (Sorry if I tagged anyone who already posted, I continue to be a tumblr fail)

Simon

Baz’s hair is gleaming in the sunlight, and I want to kiss him again until all these people take the hint and leave. I can’t imagine why his dad wanted to throw a party in the first place, except I guess it’s tradition, and tradition seems to have a stranglehold on these old-money families. What a way to live.

Merlin, Baz’s bratty sister is talking to Fiona after all—I’d thought she was just making idle threats. But no, she points right at us, and then—shit, she’s crossing her wrists behind her back. I didn’t think she’d noticed that, but Mordelia doesn’t miss a trick. A slow smile spreads over Fiona’s face as she turns to look at us and takes in my expression. She knows I know that she knows, and she’s going to give us hell over it for sure.

———————————————————————————————————-

As much as I try to avoid her, I end up bang across the table from Fiona while making a pass at the buffet, and I can’t help thinking she’s made sure it happened. “Hello, Simon,” she says loudly, voice dripping with feigned delight. “Haven’t seen much of you today.”

I try to look nonchalant. “I’ve been around.”

Unfortunately, this only gives her the opening she’s been looking for, and Fiona’s not one to leave an opportunity unpounced upon. I swear she and Baz are the spitting image of each other, the way one eyebrow arches nearly to her hairline. “Been tied up, have you?”

“I wasn’t tied up,” I hiss furiously, leaning across the table. So much for playing it cool.

I have my plate in both hands, and Fiona grabs my arm with shocking speed, dragging it forward until I’m forced to either give in or spill my food everywhere. “No rope marks, at least,” she concedes, examining my wrist below my rolled-up cuff. “Honestly, the state of you, Chosen One,” she accuses, smirking. “You’ve gone red as a dragon. It’s no concern of mine what Baz does to you.”

To me. Like I’m a possession to be used as he sees fit. Merlin, I can feel the heat building inside me, the uncontrolled danger of my very existence, and bloody Fiona Pitch is just standing there looking at me with that smug—

There’s an arm around my waist, and then Baz rests his chin on my shoulder and sighs. “Is this hedge witch bothering you, love?” He stands up straight and pulls me closer so he can kiss the mole on my right cheek; I can feel that he’s smiling as he does it, and I relax, leaning into him. I realise then that Fiona is still holding my arm; I’m stuck between them like the filling in a Pitch sandwich. (A Pitchwich.) (Merlin, I hate myself.)

“Your Simon and I are just having a nice little chat, aren’t we, dear?” Fiona purrs. She doesn’t look the least bit sincere.

“For Crowley’s sake, Fi. It’s our reception; could you put your claws away for one day?” Baz sounds exasperated, and not at all intimidated. I’ll have to ask him how he does that—his aunt is well terrifying.

“It’s fine,” I say, and thank magic, my voice doesn’t shake. “I was just getting a snack.”

Baz’s eyes graze over my heaped plate. “For how many mountain trolls?” he teases, stepping back. “Snakes, Snow, I don’t know where you put it.”

Before I can retort, one of the twins grabs Baz’s hand and drags him away, babbling something about a missing lizard—Christ, that’s what this party needs, reptiles on the loose. Fiona hauls me forward again, smiling so innocently that I know she’s about to say something incredibly mean, and she doesn’t disappoint. “I don’t care what he does to you, Snow, but don’t go getting any ideas about reciprocating, do you understand me?” For half a moment, I think she’s talking about what we did in the mudroom, but then I realise she’s still on about what she thinks we did in the mudroom. She doesn’t want me tying up her precious nephew. “You’re not in charge here, Chosen One.”

I yank my arm free at last, spilling some sticky toffee cake onto the white tablecloth, but I don’t care. I still have plenty. “Get stuffed, Fiona.”

That startles a laugh out of her, and honestly sometimes I think Baz’s family might be all right if they didn’t hate my living guts. Still chortling, Fiona wanders off, leaving me to stare sullenly at my depleted stash of cake. There will probably be more if I want some later, I think. Maybe I should go back and grab a couple more pieces, though.

@thewholelemon @raenestee @thehoneyedhufflepuff @captain-aralias @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @letraspal @shrekgogurt @dazed-squid @ileadacharmedlife @ionlydrinkhotwater @sailorblossoms @aristocratic-otter @facewithoutheart @rwithoutaspoon @onepintobean