#I just had the vision of the dude drinking out those water fountains as he’s surrounded by thousands of corpses😭😭

[critterishere]

The gluttonous beast refuses to share its meal with the starving man…

[i-need-air]

Hybrid!AU Wolf!Bakugou HCs: NSFW.

Summary: By the title you can already tell what's going on. The long awaited NSFW part of Hybrid!Bakugou. [ 3k words ]

Warnings: NSFW; dom!bakugou, impregnation kink, praise kink, filthy mouthed Baku; also some sub!Bakugou because why not;

Notes: It's important to point put this is a F!Reader. The first 2 parts of the series [sfw] + any ask involving hybrid!bakugou were as gender neutral as possible though. [ Part 1 and Part 2 here, Masterlist here for more ]

× believe it or not, he's a respectful guy

× shy with physical contact at the beginning

× learns incredibly fast though

× feels, listens, smells you, notes what you enjoyed, what you didn't

× you would have to take the first few steps

× lead his hands, put a peace, encourage him and he will surely get the drill

× Bakugou will be eager and curious, and trust me, your moans will drive him insane

× naturally, as you share a bed, one thing will lead to another, soft kisses will turn into a full blown make-out session and his hands will be everywhere on you;

He grunted, grindind his body into you, lips capturing your own in a heated kiss. It just started with a peck after he caressed your features gingerly, catching him in one of those tender moments you oh so loved. He returned it harder, moaning into your mouth. Breath fanned your face when he retreated, his somewhat cloudy eyes made you squirm under his frame and you had to pull him by the shoulders back into you.

From there you lost yourselves into each other. Your touches drove him to the edge and slowly clothes started coming off until you found yourself under an Adonis of a man. He looked mesmerized for a second, drinking you in with a hungry gaze.

Lips clashed, the tension between you, specially in the past few weeks built up and none could take it longer. His calloused hands touched your neck, your shoulders, going further down and making you shiver. He was a little bit rough but you could feel his excitement, both on his face and poking your tights.

Katsuki waited though, slowing down his movements until you whispered "Are you sure about this?" into his ear. A shiver took over him as he lifted his face to yours, lips feathered over your own yet again.

"*Are you?*" his voice just as soft.

"I want you, Katsuki." He had to close his eyes for a second and take a deep breath in at your confession.

"You're fucking perfect." He growled back, the intensity of his words formed a bolt of energy that ran through your whole body. "I just— I've never—"

"We'll take it slow."

× again, he is a fast learner, but needs instructions

× can be a bit selfish at first, this new feeling, this heat driving him insane

× but once he smelled your arousal he almost lost all strength in his body, his mouth watering

× and I bet you almost lost all strength in your body when you saw what he's packing

× big, thick and veiny, curved just enough to know he'd reach the best spots for you

"Fuck, fuck, fuck—" he'd growl out into your ear as you moaned under him, nails clenching his shoulders as he held into the bed-frame. He was going insane, he thought. The feeling of your cunt clenching around his dick erased anything else in his brain and your moans— Delicious. Your smell was intoxicating, addictive.

He'd rail you eagerly, getting drunk in the feeling when he noted you move your hand to rub yourself under him, moans increasing. He'd guide his hand towards yours, breathing heavy, anticipating.

"Show me." He'd order.

× clit, you say, huh?

× the moment he understood you could become undone under him because of that little button, you're a goner

× which takes me to my next point

× he's a giver

× once he does his homework and finds out ways to drive you crazy, he'll demand to go down on you

× will dominate in bed, it's natural in him

× so when he tells you to spread your legs and to be a good girl, mischief in his eyes, heat filled your guts

× to which he almost rolled his eyes into the back of his head because holy shit your scent

× loves having his tongue lapping into your sex; he'd suck, he'd lick and thrive because of your reactions

× just having your tights trembling by his ears as he gripped them to keep you in place made his cock hard

× but what he really loved was knowing he could get you off just with his tongue; he'd even smile into your cunt as you'd moan louder and louder, the only thing left in your vocabulary being his name;

"Katsu—" you'd say, out of breath, back arched as you couldn't focus your vision. You struggled to keep your composture as he licked over your clit brutally, two digits inside of you.

"Look at me when I fuck you with my tongue." He said, stopping and earning a groan from you. With a deep breath you settled back, opening your legs a little bit more, not even realizing you were almost choking him with your tights, not that he really cared. He gave you a grin as you locked eyes and proceeded, slowing his peace and pumping his fingers inside of you.

"Good girl." He growled, not breaking eye contact. He felt it too, the shiver running through your body as you knew you got even wetter, and he got to work, proud of his accomplishment.

And as he sucked slowly and made you see stars, he resumed his brutal rhythm until you were a blabbering mess.

× doesn't mean he does not like to receive

× seeing you between his legs sucking him off is a treat to his eyes

× very much into power-play and dominating; he'd tell you how good you look with his cock in your mouth, very vulgar, loving your reactions;

× he grunts, but isn't very vocal so don't expect loud moans for him unless;;

× spread his legs slightly, suck on the tip, pump his cock, milk it into your mouth and with another hand play with his balls

× his leg will start shaking as he'd throw his head back, and if you suck on them while pumping him he'll let out such sinful growls that will reach your core

× that is when you can amp it up by scratching his tights and he'll cum like a fountain under you

You hollowed your cheeks, tongue running on the tip of his hard dick, watching him try to maintain his self-control. He was stubborn, gritting his teeth and acting tough yet he fisted the sheets, that giving him away.

It was always a pleasure to see him like this but it was never enough for you.

"Look at you, hmm?" He said between his teeth. "Such a good little slut for me." You moaned, taking him deeper in your mouth as you rubbed your legs together. "You love my dick in your mouth, hah?"

Little did he expect for you to start playing with his balls gently, your orbs sparkling while watching him almost choke on his own spit.

"Fuck, baby—" he'd growl, tensing up, almost moving his hips forward to fuck your mouth. You took as much of his hardness as you could and sucked, attentive of his balls and whatever you couldn't take in your mouth you pumped slowly, your cunt getting soaked just by hearing him swear to no end.

"Shit, [Y/N], so fucking good—"

With a last good suck, you kissed his tip them smirked at him, getting a confused and desperate look, begging you to continue, but you just lowered yourself and started licking his balls, his head fell back and the most lewd groan left his mouth.

"God, fuck me—" he said breathless as he started moving his hips upwards, fucking into the hand that still had his cock in a grip. It was a little hard to do so, but you licked in circular motions as he stumbled on his words until you felt them tighten and throb, cue for you to put the tip back in your mouth and await your treat, one last choked moan before he came everywhere.

× fucks you hard, will drill into your body, and you'd think fucking hard means fucking fast but he can still fuck you slowly and shake you to the core

× skin slapping skin can be heard all around the apartment and the dude has stamina

× bioengineered as he is, he will make you cum a few times before he comes too

× when you both have enough experience with each other that's when he realizes making you cum beforehand is the best way to fuck you, so yes, you will cum and you will cum hard

× favorite place to cum into? your mouth, so if you don't really dig it, he's okay with you spitting it out or cumming over your body

× his favorite position is doggy [ no duh ], with your ass up and face down, but don't get me wrong, it doesn't matter as long as he fucks you good and long

× he's also more into longer sessions, quickies are fine but not enough for him;

× might also be into praise-kink yet still with his dominant side on

× of course he has to tell you how good you look stuffed up with his cock, from any position

× marking

× oh, yes, he loves marking you

× before you got this intimate he liked to scent you but now that you're lovers expect to have marks all over you and you better not hide them

× definitely bites, sorry, absolutely not sorry, babe;;

× but nothing, nothing compares to his ruts

× just as wolves, it happens between

× hear me out and prepare yourself

× mating season happens between January and March;;;;; 💀

× it has different stages, yet the most fascinating one to you has to be the first weeks because it shifts his behaviour so much

× he goes from cocky, confident, dominant and territorial to whiny, needy, easily made jealous and kinda submissive

Katsuki started acting weird, something that at first you linked to the time you were apart. Maybe he missed you, who knows? The blond started touching you more, asking you to pet him, giving you blushing side glances and seeking your approval even more than normally. You caught on quickly as you once praised him for his amazing cooking, his chest puffed and cheeks burned without shame, contrary to normality, where he'd try to adorably hide it. He started to be really honest through his body.

The biggest difference was, without doubt in mind, when you got intimate. He'd whine for your touch so much, actual whines, gutural, deep from within would even shock you whenever you decided to tease him.

"Please, baby, please..." he'd beg but wait patiently for you to get on top of him and ride his cock until he couldn't take it any longer. You'd test the waters, of course, starting to praise him for being so good for you and he'd melt in your arms.

"You feel so good inside of me, baby." You'd say, slowly raising and falling over him repeatedly, a much calmer rhythm compared to your normal sessions. His hands would be gentler, just feeling you up and enjoying being taken care of, absolutely enamored with the sight of you.

Even if he was on top, he'd go gentler, whispering how incredible he feels, calling you all sorts of praises.

× when the actual rut finally hits, he turns territorial yet again, and the roughness comes with it

× now you're marked with hickeys and bruises from being manhandled by him

× of course he'd still be careful not to hurt you and if ever crosses any line with you and you'd tell him, he'd whine like a wounded animal

× because he would never want to hurt his mate

× but again, doubt it would ever happen

× although be prepared to have sex everywhere inside the house

× he'd pound on you unexpectedly, knowing to perfection how to touch and where to touch to get you in the perfect mood for him

× sometimes he watches, a filthy promise in his eyes to break you so good, just the way only he knows how

× he is hyper-aware of everything about you, the way you breathe, the way your heart pounds in your chest, the way your pupils dilate, how you clench your tights together, every single thing

× one thing that doesn't change from his pre-rut attitude is the honesty, now more verbal

× his first rut is where he learns just how much his words affect you

You were on the edge, just as the past few weeks. He told you a few nights ago that his mating season came to a high this week, so you suggested taking a week off work to help, and he eagerly agreed but not without teasing you about how much you loved being railed by him.

Sure, he teased, but it was so true and both of you knew. Katsuki was watching you silently from the couch. He spent all morning just watching you, walking without making any sound around you, sizing you up while licking his lips. These past weeks you were all over each other every night and now that you finally took a whole week off, he didn't touch you the first day at all? Strange. You definitely felt something was coming though. You were excited, nervous, you felt his eyes all over your body that left a trail of warm in your body. Acting occupied, as if you really had something to do even if the house was impecable, just so you could calm yourself to no avail.

He felt you and he liked seeing you nervous, anticipating his next move. How fucking amazing you looked, how delicious you smelled, his hunger grew and grew for you, excitement to have you for a full week to pleasure each other...

A growl froze you in place making you drop whatever you had in your hands. You turned slowly towards him only to almost collide with his chest.

A rough hand pulled you into him as he burried his nose in your hair.

"Mine." He grinded into you, hand on your ass. "My fucking mate." He breathed you in. "Mine."

He lifted you up without any struggle, just moving a little to press your back against the wall.

"So fucking perfect." He grinned at you then leaned to kiss your neck. "Fuck, you smell ready for me already..." he'd whine, spreading more your legs to adjust himself between them, tights gripped hard. "My sweet little mate..." he'd bite down the same spot he kissed. "I'm gonna fuck you so good you won't remember your own name." He promised and be sure to not wear many clothes because he'd rip them off you.

× impregnation kink; if you don't want pups right away [ ye, he calls em pups ] it's no problem, but you should definitely consider any sort of birth control, condoms...

× beg him to fill you up and he's done, he'll lose himself into you completely

× praise kink would hit again but this time telling you how sexy you'd look with his pups inside of you

× if you did find a method of birth control early on and you're safe, he's gonna fill you up and then finger you while you still had his cum inside, keeping it there while you rode through another orgasm

× mother-fucking filthy about it too

You were exhausted, your bones felt like jelly as you stood in place in bed, legs now opened for him as he admired his hard work. His cock stood proud as he jerked it off to the sight of you, cunt in his face stuffed with his semen, his fingers pushing any drop that dared to come out back inside.

"You took me so good, baby, look at you stuffed like the slut you are." He said after licking his lips. Precum ran over his hand as he pumped himself, head red and needy and both of you knew it wasn't over. "You're gonna take me one last time, understood?" He moved to your face, placing the fingers that were inside of you on your lips for you to lick, and did not need verbal confirmation since you took them in your mouth and sucked hard. He swore silently then grabbed you by the neck, getting close to your face. "So I've fucked you stupid, hah? Can't even say a word back? Can't fucking tell me how much you want me to break that cunt of yours until you see the stars, baby?" He mocked through a grin.

Even as exhausted as you were, you knew he'd take care of you, so when you finally regained the strength to touch his cheek, just the way you learned he liked, tenderly even when he fucked you like a pornstar, you threw him over the edge again... with a few simple words.

"Fill me up, daddy, give me your pups..." you begged in a whisper, curving your body to meet his, rubbing yourself into him.

The maniacal way his face contorted made you regain all your energy back in an instant.

He'd lift your lower part up and trust into you like a mad beast after opening your pussy up and spreading his cum over it to lube you up.

"I'm— gonna— fill— you— up—" he'd say between hard trusts, watching with lust as your tits bounced and you threw your head back.

The bed was a mess, cum leaked from inside of you, you were covered in hickeys and bite-marks, you begged his name like a broken record. He'd lose himself in the moment, falling into your body, hugging you tightly while rutting into you, reaching both of your releases.

× after the rut he's more laid back, both of you would need some time to just rest

× but he'd be very attentive, much like a prolonged aftercare

× he'd take care of you, do everything for you and even feel bad thinking he might've hurt you, even if it wasn't the case

× will hold you close in silence, enjoying your presence, will kiss your temple and just havung you in his arms

× has considered you as his mate from very early, even before you actually got together as a couple officially but after this, you're bonded together, since mating is very important for his species and as I clarified in the sfw version, wolves [ and wolves hybrids ] mate for life;

× will whisper how much he loves you into your neck as he holds you.

Tags: @bakugous-mamas @tspice283 so sorry to a couple of people that reblogged and asked to be tagged too, I've been searchin but I can't find you 😭😭

[thegeneralguy]

The Champion of Olympus - Zeus´s Zeal

“To your right you can see the ruins of the fabled temple of Zeus, the once deity patron of the city. A statue in his honor was considered a world wonder in the ancient world. Now if you follow me…”

The enthusiastic tour guide waved her little red flag to gather the group of students listening to her. It was a particularly windy summer day when Markie Laur and some of his college classmates were taken on a tour through Greek archeological sites. This excursion was one of the only excuses’ students found in order to participate in this lecture. Markie himself had little to do in a Greek and Roman mythology course, being an engineering major. His two best friends convinced him to join the course so they could do a tour around Europe together. Besides, the free credits were always welcome.

The excursion moved sluggishly through the different ruins in the archeological site. Some students were very interested in the information and keen in on learning more. They engaged in discussion and conversation with the tour guide and their professor. Markie and his friends were none of them. They hung out in the back of the tour. Robert was showing Jordan different bars in Amsterdam on his phone, both plotting enthusiastically how many drugs they would be able to take and how many European girls were they going to take back to their hotel room once they were there. Markie just hung out on the back watching the sites in peace. Although the three 21 year old college students shared the same nerdy nature, Markie was the shyest of the three. He didn´t share the other two´s deliriums of grandeur, nor sexual preference for the matter. His insecure nature made him unsure to come out to the supposedly closest friends he had in college. He was friends with Robert and Jordan out of survival instinct more than true friendship.

Markie and Robert landed in the same dorm room on their freshman year. Jordan was Robert´s hometown neighbor that had the luck of landing in the same college as his best friend. Both were boastful economy majors who tried and failed constantly in on inserting themselves amongst the more popular social circles. Markie was more down to earth than the other two, completely conscious that the combination of his cherub face, short unathletic body and shy personality automatically put him on the bottom layer of the Darwinist ladder that was college life. Robert saw the physical similarities of his roommate as a reason to adopt him into their duo, and so the three of them started hanging out together, playing videogames, making complex plans to get into some fraternity parties and talking about their crushes. Markie just went along with it. Drug use, even though mild was where he drew the line, completely paranoid that he was going to get expelled if caught.

Now the three of them were finishing their sophomore year with cero conquests under their belts, so their trip to Europe was the only hope of Robert and Jordan to get some of the validation they had been craving.

The sun started setting down as the tour started heading towards the information center to compare notes and conclude the visit. The day had gotten increasingly stormy, with dark clouds gathering on the sky and blocking the sunset light. Markie was still on the far back of the group, his gaze scanning the surrounding ruins. He started wondering why the site was so empty, with none other than the little group ahead of him on sight.

“Maybe there´s bad weather coming.”

He thought as a chill crossed his spine. He stopped to take his sweater out of his backpack, completely missing that everyone, including his friends continued advancing down the road until he was left completely alone. Markie put on his oversized college sweatshirt, his body practically drowning in the garment. He looked around searching for his friends, but there was no one on sight. An ominous wind started blowing, moving the grass with an eerie rhythm. The trees rustled next to him, and the faint sound of thunder resonated in the distance.

“Guys? Rob?”

His anxiety started acting out, as he nervously wandered on the dirt road looking for his friends. The path started to disappear slowly, leaving tall luscious grass behind. An unseen force was guiding Markie through the glade. His mind was racing, already making up hundreds of scenarios where he got lost and was never able to return home. He just felt he needed to move forward, and so he did. The breeze around him kept getting stronger, with little droplets of rain being blown straight into his face.

Suddenly Markie found himself right in the middle of the ruins of the temple of Zeus. He recognized them from the tour, being the only part that really caught his attention for some reason. The sound of thunder kept getting stronger, as the air current suddenly started to form a whirlwind around him. The rain had gotten stronger, pouring down furiously and completely drenching him.

Markie started having a panic attack, his breathing getting to the point of hyperventilation. He suddenly felt an incredible pressure on top of him. He looked up to one of the columns and saw a gigantic golden eagle perched on top of it. A bright lightning bolt completely blinded his eyesight for an instant, and when he looked up once again, he was confronted with a vision of the most perfect man he had ever seen.

His gargantuan chest was framed by two sets of enormous shoulders, which were connected to two arms so muscular they must have been around the same girth as Markie´s waist. Powerful legs supported the massive body of the gorgeous man, whose height made him seem double the body size of the little 5´6 college student. The luscious curls of his golden beard fell right in the middle of his chest, as his gorgeous mane of equally beautiful hair framed a face that looked near aesthetic perfection. Features that exuded masculinity, but still kept a supernatural beauty that was only present in the sculptures of antiquity. The man was wearing a white robe tied only on top of one of his shoulders, with big golden bracelets on each of his wrists. The man emitted a light glow from his body, like his whole silhouette was encased in a halo.

“Who—o a—are you? Did I die?”

Asked Markie nervously. His gaze couldn’t find anything else other than the godly fantasy in front of him.

“Silence boy. I´m going to grant you a gift. A gift all mortals would kill for.”

“A gift? Please don´t hurt me. I´m really sorry if I trespassed, I can´t find….”

“I said quiet!”

The man roared with fury. Markie managed to get out a panicked yelp as thunder stroke the ground all around him.

“You really remind me of him. Come and find me when you´re ready. All your questions will be answered. Enjoy it boy, for it will come with a price.”

The man pointed his finger at him. Suddenly Markie felt a jolt of electricity course all across his body. He was afraid he was going to be fried by the stud in front of him. Lighting fell again very close to the man, completely blinding Markie again. When he looked up the storm was gone, and so was the man. He briefly thought he imagined everything, until he felt his soaking wet clothes. He could also still feel the light static effect he felt when the stranger raised his finder towards him. He wondered if his friends had pranked him by sneaking in some hallucinogen into his water bottle when the annoyed voice of his professor grounded him back on reality.

“Mr. Laur, may I remind you that profanation of ancient heritage sites is strictly punished by the law? Come back here this instant. The bus is waiting for us.”

Markie rushed out of the ruins to join his classmates on the bus back into town. He briefly looked back at Zeus´s temple one last time, and thought he saw a big bird fly fast into the sky.

 “Whoa man did you jump into the fountain or something?”

Asked Robert when he saw his roommate entering the bus soaking wet.

“Very funny Rob. It was the rain.”

Answered Markie unenthusiastically as he took the seat behind Robert and Jordan.

“What rain dude, its as dry as Angela´s pussy over there.”

Whispered Jordan giggling whilst nodding in the direction of one of their most conservative classmates. Markie didn´t even reply to his friend´s crude comment, as the bus slowly departed the site towards the hotel. Olympia wasn´t a big city, but his classmates had already made plans in meeting in the small bar next to the hotel to talk about the trip so far and have some drinks. Robert and Jordan kept snorting and laughing from time to time watching some random insta-girl´s page.

“What a pair of losers.”

Thought Markie to himself as he pondered on his friends’ blatant misogyny. He kept staring out the window into the dark void in front of him. His smooth boyish face greeted him back on the black window. He took a moment to really look at himself. Other than the childish rounded cheeks and soft features, he wasn´t so ugly. His dark brown eyes gave him a friendly look, and his teeth were straight and white. He could look much cuter if he put some effort into it. Stop shaving his dark brown hair with an electric razor, paid an actual hairstylist to get him on of those popular haircuts every guy on the internet had and get some actual sunlight in order to improve the corpse looking hue on his skin would get him far. He could finally stop hanging out with those guys.

The sudden confidence rush went away as fast as it came, leaving Markie languishing in self doubt once again.

“Who am I kidding? I´ll never have the confidence to be on my own.”

Crippling social anxiety and low self esteem were the true shackles tying him to a lonely existence, not the way he looked. Confidence could completely change someone´s image of themselves, making him attractive to himself and by inertia to others as well.

The sudden epiphany caused a golden spark to light in on Markie´s eyes, just an instant so he could see it, but not slow enough so he could know if it was real or a product of his imagination. The static feeling was slowly turning into a constant tingling spreading all across his body. A droplet of sweat travelled down his temple as he felt his body heat slowly rising. He took away his sweatshirt only to find his equally wet t-shirt clinging to his thin body, but showing a tiny strip of skin belonging to his lower belly. If it were dry Markie would´ve also noticed a certain tightness on the kid sized garment, his torso gaining an almost imperceptible amount of mass. He still felt as if he was being asphyxiated by his own clothes. His temperature was rising so high that he could almost feel a humidity cloud form all around him coming from his wet clothes.

“Markie! Man you´re really off today.”

Markie was so busy fighting his need to rip his t-shirt off so hard he barely noticed the curious eyes of both of his friends staring at him.

“We need to get you some new clothes. You have to look your best if we´re gonna go hunting man!”

Said Robert enthusiastically as he high fived Jordan. Markie just answered with a nervous laugh as he kept trying not to cause a scene in a moving vehicle.

After what felt like an eternity the bus arrived at the hotel. Markie practically jumped out of his seat and rushed towards the exit. He could also feel his jeans ending a bit above his ankles, and his shoes constricting his feet. The first thing he thought was that the water had shrunken his clothes, but after feeling the sensation spread along the static tingling, he suspected this could be related to that fever dream he had in the ruins.

The professor gathered everyone right outside the bus to plan the rest of the evening. Markie stood there impatiently among his fellow classmates feeling increasing discomfort. The tingling turned to numbness, making him lose sensation on his hands and feet. The only thing he wanted was to get back to his room so he could wash himself and get into fresh clothes. His usual nervous expression started turning into an angry sneer, as his impatience grew along with his discomfort. As soon as the professor dismissed them, Markie rushed straight through the small hotel doors directly to the room he shared with his two friends. He got into the bathroom slamming the door behind him.

He was sweating profusely and his body heat started rising so high an actual steam cloud started forming around him. The numbness in his limbs had turn into an excruciating pain, as cramps travelled all across his body tensing the little muscle mas he had. He felt like he was being electrocuted. He looked into the mirror and was greeted by a bizarre image of himself wearing a little kid´s clothes. The t-shirt looked more like a crop top now, the little sleeves were being strained by two longer arms. His pants were riding halfway up his calves. He managed to kick out the shoes that were also clearly a few sizes too small for his grown feet. Markie did his best not to scream in pain due to the sensations assaulting his body.

The small lightbulb illuminating the bathroom started flickering and a small air current started forming around Markie. A sharp pain in his stomach made him turn to the toilet and throw up the little food he had ingested during the day. Shivers crossed his body as the cramps got stronger. He could see the ligaments in his hands contracting and moving on their own because of the strong muscle spasms. He turned his face back into the bowl and retched loudly clasping his stomach, tears of effort running down his cheeks.

“Markie? Are you alright in there?”

Asked Robert knocking on the bathroom door. He was so distracted by the sensations assaulting his body that he completely missed his friends enter the hotel room. He responded with a quiet “yeah” and made a conscious effort in making it sound as calm as possible. The last thing he wanted was those guys seeing him in his current state.

“I´ll be out in a minute.”

Said Markie as he managed to pull himself back on his feet. The wind in the bathroom had gotten stronger, and Markie could swear he could hear the faint sound of thunder inside the room. He grabbed the edge of the sink and looked into the mirror. His face was completely red, and his hair was dripping sweat as if a cloud was pouring rain on top of him. He looked at himself straight in the eyes, and then it happened. A golden color started to seep out of his pupils, changing the brown hue of his iris. It looked like molten gold was being directly injected into his eyes. Once the new color took completely over, the lightbulb started shining so bright it completely burst after a few seconds. Markie heard the glass shards fall on the ground, and the room was left in complete darkness. The only source of light were his iridescent golden eyes.

He tried to move to the side, but he accidentally stepped on a few glass pieces and slipped on the wet floor. He howled in pain and steadied himself with the bathroom sink. He also didn’t realize his hand moved way too close to the electrical outlets next to the mirror. A faint crackling sound could be heard, and white sparks started jumping out of the outlet.  Suddenly, a lightning bolt shot straight out of the outlet directly into Markie´s hand. He tried to scream, but not a single noise came out of his mouth. The wind started flowing stronger, forming a vortex with the college student straight in the center. Another lightning bolt coming from an electrical outlet on top of the floor flew straight heading for his other hand. Both currents formed two chain lightning shackles that tied the boy in the center of the room.

Markie felt vertigo, as his growth spurt continued on an accelerated pace, putting him over a foot from his original height. His feet grew proportionally to help him stabilize his now towering stature, the skin on his soles hardening and expelling the glass shards he slipped on earlier. The electric shackles started spreading lighting bolts up his arms and into his torso, completely burning the remains of the already ripped small t-shirt. He felt an excruciating pain while his bone structure changed. His clavicle extended, pushing both of his shoulders further to the sides. His ribcage also expanded together with his waist. The remains of his pants started digging painfully into the skin of his hips. Once the bones finished their transformation, the pain started to subside.

Markie stood in the middle of the room completely disoriented. His new height made everything take on different dimensions and the irregular sparks and lightning bolts were illuminating the bathroom in all kinds of bizarre ways. Not to mention the wind throwing all kinds of hygiene supplies all around. His gaze found his reflection in the mirror. He looked like an underfed giant of a man. It was like the little muscle mass he had was distributed evenly across his new size, leaving him practically just bones and skin. He watched the flashy shackles fascinated, as sparks jumped and squirmed in the air before fading into blackness.

Suddenly, he felt the strong static feeling on his wrists, as lightning bolts dug under his skin and spread through his body. He could feel the electrical current inside of him, the pain of the intense cramps returning in major scale. Electricity was contracting every muscle fiber, breaking and healing them very rapidly. New muscle nuclei started forming as well in order to endure the work the chain lightning was putting them through. Markie´s hands were the first to grow. Delicate long fingers filled with strong muscle, as his palms expanded and hardened. Callouses formed to protect them from the heavy labor they were now designed to do. They looked comically large, comparable to big baseball mitts on a small child. The transformation immediately shot right up his forearms, expanding them to incredible size that would put Popeye out of work without question. Strong sinews connected his powerful hands to his elbows, giving them a vice like strength too atop of their intimidating look. His upper arms picked up on the growth too, biceps inflating to the size of a cantaloupe and triceps completely defying gravity jutting so far out the back of his arms it looked like someone had welded big horseshoes on his already enormous arms. The shoulders expanded next, gaining epic proportions comparable to a pumpkin on top of each arm. Markie gritted his teeth in pain as he caught a glimpse of what has happening to him. He looked like a doll that had gotten the arms of a He-Man toy accidentally glued on his lanky torso.

A strong spasm in his chest caused him to fall forwards, the shackles on his arms preventing him from touching the ground. He was scared for a second, he was having a heart attack, as each pectoral muscle twitched and pulsed manipulated by the electric current. His chest started inflating rapidly in all directions, rising high on the top reaching for his chin, and squaring off in the bottom, leaving a big shelf hanging from the distressed student´s upper body. The electric bolts reached for his nipples, hardening them and expanding them until the former tack sized miniatures grew to a more manly dollar coin size.

Markie could feel the electricity running all across his spine, engorging his back so support such a top-heavy body. His traps developed in the upper part, reaching for his ears, and his lats expanded to the sides pushing the gargantuan arms to the sides on a permanent forty-degree angle. His lower back developed strongly to support the heavy muscle on the top. Then he felt as if someone was punching him straight on his stomach, as each individual abdominal muscle popped from his midsection, carving a deep valley in the center of his body, and leaving him with a truly enviable small waist that made the proportions on the upper body look more freakish.

The cramps then travelled down his waist, focusing on his practically non-existent glutes, contracting and twisting them. His ass started to slowly inflate into two pairs of gravity defying boulders, completely ripping the rest of his pants and leaving Markie with his tight white briefs, which looked more like a thong being swallowed by the two monstrous muscles. His manhood was left completely ignored by the electrical current, leaving him practically flat on the front. Each quadricep spasmed and developed deep cut muscle, growing to gigantic proportions in order to move this behemoth of a body around. Calves inflated next leaving him with two powerful football looking muscles ready to propel Markie in whichever direction he wanted. His feet were the last part of his body to change, filling with powerful strength to support the now card-carrying bodybuilder.

As soon as the last part of his body concluded growing, the electrical shackles were absorbed into Markie´s body. He started to emit a faint glow, dimly illuminating the bathroom. His pale skin took on a golden hue. He looked into the mirror once again and he saw his face with two glowing eyes on top of a body that wasn’t his. The miniature storm inside the room also subsided, leaving him quietly staring into the mirror.

“Is that really me?”

Asked Markie to himself whilst touching his powerful chest. He accidentally brushed one of his nipples with his hand, and it caused a small electrical current to travel across his chest. Only this time it wasn´t pain what he felt, but pleasure. Markie had a very prude attitude, barely exploring sex by himself, let alone with somebody else. But this sensation sparked something else in him. An instinct buried so deeply within insecurities, that it had remained imperceptible to him. But something inside his was pushing him to do it again, to finally unleash the real him.

“I can´t believe it. This can´t be real.”

Markie raised an arm and flexed. Powerful muscle twitched and pumped inside of him, his bicep raising higher and higher. He chuckled slightly. A quiet laugh that increased in intensity, as Markie explored and felt every new part of his anatomy. He then took his other nipple between his fingers and pinched it slightly. An even stronger pleasure jolt shot across his body.

The college boy was becoming less and less of a boy the more he touched himself. Confidence was flooding every inch of his being. Someone who looked like a God should behave as a God as well thought Markie, while his slow caresses of his body turned to an intense erotic massage. His hand touched the deep crevices of his abdomen, and slowly found its way to the boy´s less than impressive endowment.

“This simply won´t do.”

Said Markie in a quasi-trance like state. He slowly reached to the electrical outlet again, and focused all of his energy in summoning that spark again. His call was quickly answered, as an intense lightning bolt shot straight towards his hand again.

“Yes. Give me more. More strength. More power.”

Said Markie, his boyish voice taking on a powerful commanding voice. He then took the hand connected with the electricity to his crotch, and grabbed his bulge once again. The electricity then travelled directly into his manhood, shotting bolts of pleasure all over Markie´s body. His mind was filled with images of intimacy, of epic scenes of desire and encyclopedic sexual knowledge.

“Fuck yeah. More.”

He cursed for the first time in his life, while the overwhelming sensation clouded the last of his senses and erased the old Markie from existence, leaving a blank canvas for his new godly persona to take place. His manhood started growing to divine proportions, completely straining the briefs to the point of breaking. White tatters fell to the floor, as his equine endowment raised straight and up, reaching almost a foot in length. Like the rest of his body, the girth proportions adjusted too, leaving him with practically an extra limb on his lower body, as thick as a baby arm. His testicles inflated like water balloons until each was the size of a lemon. The powerful divine seed inside them started seeping it´s essence to the rest of his body, as Markie reached the final step of his transformation.

His neck thickened, and his moans of pleasure started dropping in pitch until his boy-like cadence reached an intimidating deep baritone. He grunted as his mandible contorted and expanded into comic book hero proportions. A cleft formed on his powerful chin, and his teeth grew to fit the new size of his mandible. His lips thinned out giving him a serious look. The baby fat on his cheeks evaporated, leaving sharp angular features behind. His nose remained straight, but grew to accommodate the aesthetic of the new man´s face. His brow expanded and hooded over his eyes, giving him a stern serious look.

His shaved brown hair then started growing on the top, parting sideways and acquiring a thick silky texture, along with a golden tone. The new blonde´s body hair flourished right afterwards. Clear body hair sprouted on his forearms and on top of his hands, but the rest of him remained smooth. The hair in his pits and on his pubic region also changed to a blonde hue, before falling down leaving the new man completely shaved. Changes in the hair follicles were made, as this was a very hairy man that manscaped regularly. Thick stubble then grew on his face, leaving a permanent five o´clock shadow. Finally, a thick mustache and a soul patch formed around his mouth, completing the transformation.

Where once stood a puny college student, now stood a complete god of a man. The former 21 year old looked almost a decade older, not that it would worry him too much because his mind also started changing to accommodate the new bodybuilder. His fears and worries completely evaporated, leaving behind a man that lived in the moment. He ate when he wanted to, he went where he wanted to and he fucked whenever he wanted to. His repulsion for his nickname grew, and he decided to adopt his full name from ow on.  Where there was once a Markie now stood Marcus, the champion of the thunder god Zeus.

He flexed and roared in triumph as one last lightning bolt shot through the outlet reaching him. Veins started popping on his arms and legs, like lightning coursing through a stormy sky. He turned around and opened the bathroom door, stepping into the world for the first time.

“What do you think of this one?”

Said Jordan whilst showing his friend one of the many fedora hats he brought to the trip.

“Who cares? Fedoras aren’t cool anymore man. It´s all over the internet, look it up.”

Answered Robert exasperated of having to go through another wardrobe dilemma. He couldn´t stop thinking about Markie and his weirder than usual attitude these last couple of hours. His roommate had been in the bathroom for a while now, but there was no sound coming from the bathroom ever since Markie answered him, he was fine.

“Do you think Markie is okay in there?”

He asked Jordan, who barely looked up from his suitcase.

“I don´t know. But who cares man? Less dead weight for us when we go for the chicks later.”

“He´s not a dead weight Jordan. I know Markie is shy and kind of weird, but he´s a great guy. Trust me, I know. I live with him.”

“We both know why he´s like that. Not that I have anything against it, but its impressive how he thinks no one realizes the way he looks at those douches from the frat sometimes.”

“He will tell us whenever he´s ready. And even if he´s not it´s okay. He will still be my friend. And I hope yours too Jordan.”

“Come on man. I like gay dudes. Less competition for us. I just don´t want him to ruin our hunt with his angst when we go out to the bar.”

“It´s about time to get going though. I´m gonna ask Markie if we should meet him directly in the bar, if It hasn´t confused him with a child and kidnaped him through the sink.”

Both friends laughed at the reference just as Robert approached the bathroom door once again.

“Markie my man, we´re gonna get going. You can meet us there if you want, but don´t feel rushed take your time. Hope that you´re okay though.”

He said knocking lightly on the door. A faint grumble could be heard on the other side, but Markie didn´t answer. Robert took that as a response, and he turned around to prepare his stuff and go.

Suddenly, the bathroom door opened with such a force it ripped it out of it´s hinges. A blinding light was coming from the bathroom, together with enough steam to turn the small hotel room into a sauna. Robert and Jordan watched completely in shock as the new Marcus stepped out of the bathroom, his whole body enveloped in a golden halo. Both college students looked tiny in comparison to the enormous wall of muscle standing in front of them.

“Who—o a—are you? Whe—ere´s Ma—arkie?”

Managed to squeak Robert nervously while his eyes scanned every mountain and every valley that composed the behemoth´s body.

“It is Marcus now, my friends. Come and bathe in all my glory.”

Said Marcus while raising both of his arms and flexing his latissimus muscles, completely eclipsing the now small in comparison bathroom door. A potent smell started wafting through the air, impregnating the steam with masculine pheromones coming directly from the giant´s underarms. Both Robert and Jordan were put in a trance like state, and approached the shining man.

“Yes. Come to me. I will show you the true meaning of pleasure.”

Deep primal instincts were awoken in both boys. Lust, submission and adoration completely eclipsed the nervous feeling both had. As soon as their hands touched Marcus´s chest, an intense shock of pleasure shot through both of their bodies, travelling directly to their brains completely burning their old personas out of their heads. Both boys had their irises completely drained of color, leaving white mindless eyes behind. Marcus took each one of them by their waists and pulled them close. Their hands started exploring the giant´s body, leaving a trail of sparks jumping off the radiant skin.

He then leaned down to kiss Robert, while Jordan worked his way down licking the sweat off his chest and descending slowly through the cobblestone road on his midsection. His giant manhood was already hard as an iron bar, eager for attention. As soon as Jordan´s mouth made contact with the pulsing member, a strong stream of electricity started inundating his body. The small muscles spasmed and expanded to ridiculous proportions. The small belly he had grown out of eating too many pizza slices and drinking mountain dew evaporated into this air, leaving a hard six pack behind. His chest raised, forming two pillows sticking far out of his chest. His limbs contracted and expanded into heroic proportions, leaving the new man at least a hundred pounds heavier with pure lean mass. He stayed at the same 5´6 height, making the new man a fireplug of a bodybuilder.

He had already kneeled down and was worshipping the godly pole in front of him, savoring the nectar coming from the tip as if he was drinking ambrosia directly from the source. His face cracked and rearranged leaving brutish heavy features, but still holding onto some beauty. Age seeped into his skin and his muscles, seasoning them with the hardness of a more adult male. All his hair fell down, except his eyebrows, leaving the man completely smooth. His skin took on a stronger golden hue than Marcus, without the glow.

Meanwhile Marcus was inserting his large tongue into his former friend´s mouth, completely invading him. Robert´s jaw cracked and rearranged into a sharp square. His cheekbones raised and the fat melted off his face, leaving a shockingly handsome face behind. Unlike his friend, Robert stayed young, his visage devoid of any single imperfection. He slowly grew up a couple of inches, but still remaining far off the height of the god sodomizing his mouth. His body then expanded, muscles piling on top of each other, but also craving themselves deep into his body. His former chubby physique completely shed off any excess fat, leaving him at a single digit body fat percentage. His chest didn´t hang as far as Jordan´s, but it squared off in the bottom as if being carved out of a marble statue by a classical sculptor. His eight pack was accentuated by the sharp Adonis belt pointing downwards. His legs and arms grew muscular, each individual sinew visible thanks to the thin skin on top of them. He had a bit less mass than his kneeling friend, but was way more defined. His body hair also fell down entirely, leaving the new handsome hunk as smooth as his former best friend.

Both new men´s manhood stayed the same size though, which made them seem much smaller on their larger bodies. Marcus then looked at his two new servants. He was completely conscious he was their master and demanded their adoration, but also felt a deep bond to them. He was free to fornicate with whomever he wanted to, but these two were going to be forever bound to him, desperate for his love and addicted to his divine masculinity. As for the two men worshipping their new master, their sole purpose of existing was serving and pleasing this new god among men.

He then ordered the former Jordan to lay on the bed, and pushed the former Robert right next to him. Although it was his sexual debut, Marcus felt as if he had done this for all of eternity. He was ready to claim what was his and become the supreme being he was destined to be.

The students evacuated the hotel in panic, together with their professor and fellow guests. An unusually strong lightning bolt had stricken the small building, completely blowing up an entire corner. Three students were missing. Cries and sirens resonated through the night sky. The professor tried desperately to communicate with the local authorities, completely ignorant that the three students had disappeared forever.

 A car approached the ruins of the temple of Zeus. A giant figure then got out of the vehicle, accompanied by two large silhouettes that stayed behind. Marcus approached the center of the ruins. He was wearing a tight pair of black underpants, unable to find any other fitting clothes. Not that he needed to, his enormous body produced large amounts of heat, and still emitted a low shine highlighting him in the darkness. He had no need to hide. He was a gift to humanity, their savior. Anyone should feel blessed and humbled on his presence.

A lightning bolt fell directly in front of him, but the man stayed completely unfazed. Zeus appeared in front of him, still towering over the new Marcus, but seeming less than a giant next to the behemoth in front of him.

“You turned out very well. I was not mistaken in choosing you Marcus Laur.”

Said Zeus examining his perfect handiwork. He would say he was surprised by how well the job was made, but it was he who had done it, so it was only natural it was perfect. Marcus bowed in front of his creator and said with a respectful, but firm tone.

“Your words are my command my lord. What is it that I should do?”

Zeus´s stern face showed a glimpse of joy.

“I need you to be my envoy on this world, imprinting it with my will, which shall be your own. Humans are sheep, you shall be their shepherd. Come to the base of Mount Olympus. I shall put you through fearsome trials. Fear not though, with my power as your own you shall overcome them without problem.”

He then looked at the two muscular men standing right next to the car.

“I see you already got a taste of your powers. Good. You have two weeks to discover and reach your full potential. Do not fail.”

“Thank you, my lord. I shall not disappoint you.”

Marcus watched as lightning fell again, and Zeus disappeared. The golden eagle was already flying out of sight in the night sky. Zeus was very pleased with himself. He had many things in mind for his new toy. Not ever since meeting Ganymede had he felt an infatuation like this for a mortal, only this time he used his will to turn him into his ideal for true human beauty, and he imbued him with some of his divine power. His desire was going to burn the other competitors out of the way, thought the god of thunder. Marcus would become the Champion of Olympus.

[asavt]

Cookie Run!Promare AU(3) - Operation Rescue

 By Notebook

The smell of disinfectants permeates throughout the entire surgical room, as the cleaners wash away the remains of former Mages. The ashes of these test subjects cling unto the sponges and mops as the cleaners dipped them into their water buckets, turning the once clear water into a murky grey-red. 

Once the room was fully cleaned, the cleaners drained the discolored water into the sink before filling the buckets with fresh water. They gathered their cleaning supplies and headed towards the next surgical room for disinfection. Preparing the room for the next batch of Mages for dissection. 

——————————–

Near the bottom of the facility, where the most valuable Mages are kept, a figure shivers near the corner of their cell. His entire body was covered in bandages due to the plethora of medical tests from the day before. 

The Mage looked around the cold white sterile room he was imprisoned in. Bereft of anything else, save for the bed he slept on. The harsh lights beamed down from the ceiling as the figure stared at the white wall before them. 

He hoped each day that someone might come and saved him from this never-ending nightmare, but alas that day still has not arrived yet. 

It has not arrived in over 3 years. 

The figure continued to stare towards the white wall when the door to their cell slid wide open. A flurry of doctors poured into the room, along with a few guards that followed them into the room. The doctors ordered the guards to take Y-9 to the “sleeping” room. 

The guards picked up the tired Mage and carried them towards the room. The Mage did not fight back against the guards, knowing full well of the consequences for those who do.

“Excuse me. Are you new here?” asked a nurse, who was drinking her 7th cup of coffee. The man nodded his head as he adjusted his glasses. 

From what the nurse observed, the man had brown hair with a light brown highlight, light pink eyes, and a soft smile. He also wore white scrubs along with white with light blue shoes and the tag of which unit he worked at. 

The typical uniform for nurses who worked at the facility.

The man, carrying a thick manila folder, smiled at the veteran nurse before him. “Yes, I am. I was wondering where unit 1 is located? They didn’t give us a map of this place. So… I was just wondering where it is. I have to deliver some important paperwork to the unit’s doctors,” explained the male nurse.

The female nurse gave him a weird look before responding to the new nurse’s question. 

“Sorry, but no one is allowed in that unit except for the nurses and doctors that were assigned to that unit,” explained the irritated nurse. “You just have to deliver the paperwork to the proper secretary and ask them to deliver it for you. That’s just protocol, kid.”

“Ah, I see. And where do I find the proper secretary?”

“Just keep heading straight until you find the fake fountain, then turn right. Then you keep going until you find the sign that says, ‘Unit 1, Main Secretary’. Just go in and give them the paperwork. They will do the rest.”

“Huh, I see. Thank you, Ma'am.”

The young nurse waved the old nurse goodbye before walking past her, heading towards the direction of the fountain. 

The nurse finished her 7th cup of coffee before throwing the soft paper cup into the trash can next to her. While she walked towards the operating room for the next experiment, a sudden chill ran down her spine.

As Tea finally finished the last of the facility’s finances a male nurse, whom Tea never seen before, entered his office while carrying a large manila folder. The nurse looked at the secretary and smiled, which in all honesty creeped Tea out. 

“May I help you?”

“Umm, yes… I need to enter Unit 1 to deliver some important paperwork, but I don’t know how to get there. Can you help me?”

Tea rolled his eyes. Figuring they are new to the facility Tea explained, “Unless you’re assigned to Unit 1, you are not allowed to enter that specific Unit. If you need to deliver some paperwork to the docs over there, just hand me the papers and I’ll fax it over to them.”

“Wait. So, you have access to Unit 1?”

“Yes!” Yelled the very tired secretary. “Now, just give me the folder and be on your way.”

“Alright. Alright.” The male nurse answered as he laid the folder on the table and left the office. 

When Tea picked up the manila folder and opened it to see its contents, a large puff of gas and smoke envelope the entire room. Knocking out the secretary. 

As soon as the male nurse heard a loud thump, he knew the sleeping gas had worked. He waited for a few minutes before entering the office, so as to not get knocked out from the gas. 

The male “nurse” rifled through the secretary’s desk before finding the plethora of keycards for Unit 1 in a secret compartment underneath the desk. 

The “nurse” took the keycards, hid Tea underneath his desk, and left the office.

The “nurse” walked towards the door to Unit 1 and used all the keycards to unlock the doors, thus gaining access to Unit 1.

The male “nurse” quickly entered the Unit and headed towards the elevator that will take him to the lower levels of the facility. The levels where the Mages are kept. 

When the elevator doors finally opened, the “nurse” headed towards the back of the unit. 

The “nurse” smirked a little as small flames appeared from his fists. Disappearing just as quickly.

————————————-

“Alrighty then. Just be a good test subject and it will all be over lickety-split.”

One of the doctors chirps as they put in an IV on Y-9’s arms along with an anesthesia face mask. 

Y-9 knew this day would come, yet he didn’t feel scared nor sad, but rather relieved. It was finally going to be over. 

Just before the anesthesia kicked it, a large explosion shook the entire unit causing the power to shut down. Soon, the backup generator kicked in and the alarm ranged throughout the entire unit.

Before the doctors could realize what was happening, the doors to the operating room flew hide open and flames shot from every direction. The doctors ran for their lives, while Y-9 looked towards the one that stopped the dissection. 

Y-9’s field of vision grew smaller and smaller, as their rescuers picked them up and placed them on a gurney to wheel them to safety.

The last thing they remember was seeing the exit sign before everything went black. 

“Hey. Hey! Can you hear us?”

“I don’t think he can hear us.”

“Is he in a coma?”

“No, he’s just asleep from the anesthesia they gave them.”

“Oh, then-Huh? Boss look! He’s waking up!”

Y-9 slowly opened his eyes to find not the harsh white light of the facility but the warm yellow lights of a warehouse. Y-9 lifted his head and looked around his surroundings.  

He finds himself surrounded by a bunch of people, who were either treating the wounds from those who were rescued from the facility or standing guard around the windows and doors of the warehouse.

Y-9 then looked towards the two people next to his bed. 

“Did…. Did you guys save me?”

“Sort of,” the younger of the two answered. 

“I merely short-circuited their systems, while the boss here did the bulk of the work.”

“Now, don’t sell yourself too short. We couldn’t have saved as Mages as we did without you frying the circuits,” the older one replied to the younger one. 

“No, really it was no big, man.”

“Well, it’s a big deal to me. This is the most Mages we have ever saved, and I think-Oh?”

The older one looked towards Y-9, who had confusion plastered on his face. The older gentlemen smiled at Y-9. 

“I’m so sorry for not introducing ourselves. We are the “Magicians”, a group of Mages dedicated to saving our kind and rising against those oppressing our kind. My name is Espresso, the leader of the “Magicians” and this here is Lemon.“

"What’s up.”

“He is one of the top generals of the "Magicians”, so he helps with these sort of missions.“ 

"Yup. I can use my mana to create electricity. As a result, I can hack almost any computer or fry any system.”

“But he’s better at frying than hacking.”

“Sad, but true,” Lemon said as he puts on his jacket with lightning bolts on them. 

“So, what’s your name?”

“Huh? My… name.”

“Yes,” Lemon responded. “What’s your name?”

Both Espresso and Lemon waited patiently for Y-9 to answer their questions. A few moments digging through buried memories later, Y-9 looks at the boss and the general of the Magicians. He answers:

“Cinnamon. My name is Cinnamon.”

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

CINNA MY SON–

HHHHHH Lovely, absolutly lovely and cool dude!!  come on guys!! you better read this is soo cool!!!

[hollenka99]

The One Where Jackie Takes Each Day As It Comes

Summary: Chapter 1. Jackie may not have a home but he’s meeting some friendly faces.

@bupine @badlypostedeverything

Spotting all the daily newspapers declare it was February 13th 2019 that first morning had been rough. Part of Jackie had wanted to believe it was a really elaborate prank. But the lads wouldn't be able to do something like that. Especially given the state they'd gotten themselves in at Stuart's party. Maybe it hadn't been a bad thing that Jackie decided to go easy on the alcohol. At least he didn't enter the next century completely hammered. Seeing couples out on Valentine's Day causes him to reflect. He spent that day missing Chris, which he had been in two minds about. And Nate. God knows how he'd be able to return home to 1986, if he could at all. Perhaps getting thrown three decades into the future was the thing he needed to sort that mess out internally. The risk of the band going their separate ways because two members broke up sounded more attractive now. Sure beat them disbanding because the drummer disappeared indefinitely or was presumed dead. Yeah, he would split from Chris to be with Nate if he had the chance now. It was the old question niggling in his mind: didn't he deserve to be with the one who made him happier than the other? Not like all that relationship drama mattered much when he had no worldly possessions except for his clothes now. Fuck the shit with those two anyway. He'd rather have Caoimhe in his arms any day. Whatever happens to her with him gone, Jackie hopes she is kept safe and loved. Okay, so maybe he was going to get teary about some things. There was no point exhausting himself with tears regarding all this. How would giving himself a massive headache help matters? It got worse the more he accepted his drastic life change. Dwelling on it all hurt. Bridget, Annette and Spencer must all be adults by now. His friends were in their 50s, like he should be himself. They all must be unrecognisable to him now. Like he said, dwelling on the currently inaccessible past was redundant. Instead, he did his best to find somewhere dry to sleep at night. Days were spent on the lookout for food. At least there was a water fountain near the bus station. It's fine. It's not like this is his first time taking each day as it came. He'll manage, one way or another. It's while Jackie is preoccupied with drinking someone's discarded hot chocolate that a man approaches him. The stranger's curls remind him of how his own hair used to be, prior to its current style. Freckles litter his face too. The smile seems genuine but he's been in this situation before. Jackie decides to cautiously give this stranger the benefit of the doubt. "You know how to play guitar?" American? Canadian? He doesn't know enough about those accents to distinguish them. "...Yes." "Here." The guy holds out his guitar case. "I don't need the change anymore. Got a decent job now and all that." "Thank you but I can't." "You look like you could do with a source of income. Stealing isn't exactly a reliable method of feeding yourself. Which reminds me..." An oat bar is retrieved. Through part of the plastic wrapping, it is visibly crumbling. "I'll admit, not in the best condition. Sorry about that. Still, please take it." Well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth and all that. "Thanks." "No problem. I'm Joel, by the way." He winks, heading a few feet away. "Jackie." The ground crumbles in front of where Joel stood. Straight up vanishes as if it hadn't existed in the first place. It wasn't like Jackie had never met someone with powers before but... it was certainly impressive to see this sort of stuff first hand. The outstretched leg, meant to be taking a step into oblivion, is retracted. There is a pause. Joel turns to face him once more. Still there is continued hesitation. "Listen, I shouldn't be saying this but... things are going to change soon. Just be careful. Anti's about and he likes targeting people who can uh, easily disappear." "Anti?" "There's a killer on the loose and I'd hate to see your face on the news for all the wrong reasons." And like that, Joel hops backwards into the hole. Jackie takes his advice and plays during the day. Playing acoustic guitar simply makes him miss rehearsals with the lads. Guitar wasn't even his instrument. That had been drums. Even so, their type of guitar had been electric. Not much comes from busking. He's rusty, he knows. He continues playing songs he recalls off by heart in the hope of earning a pound here and there. He supposes the public secretly question why he sang nothing but hits from 30 years ago. Days blur. The last time he'd bothered to check the date it had been the 21st. He didn't keep track of how many days ago that was. The wind has been blustery all day. It was for this very reason that Jackie had spent the majority of it as sheltered as he could. He notices a man passing by his spot who seems unaffected by the bad weather. He walks by as if they hadn't been suffering strong winds recently. That's not the only odd thing about the stranger. His choice of fashion is very interesting. His entire outfit is purple apart from the covered half of his face and his gloves. The white mask resembling a cat's face reached the top of his cheeks. To complete the look, the mask extends into triangular ears. Jackie feels the guy hitting his head must hurt even more with those attached. Jackie's presence must have been caught in his peripheral vision. Cat Guy halts and turns to him. Surprise transforms into a warm smile on his face. "Hey, I don't think I've seen you around here before. I'm guessing you haven't been living like this for long?" "About a week or two. Haven't been counting." "Tell me you at least have something to cover yourself with at night." "I try to find somewhere relatively warm. Ish." "Dude, it's February." "Yeah, tell me about it." Cat Guy removes his backpack. From it, he retrieves a water bottle and a blanket. "Good thing I tend to carry some stuff around. Ham or cheese?" "What?" "Sandwich." The stranger presents him with the gifts. Once Jackie takes the blanket and water, the superhero holds out an object encased in tin foil. "I tend to make ham and cheese ones. You're not vegan or a lactose intolerant vegetarian, are you?" "No. I'll uh... take the ham, thanks." "Oh, by the way, what's your name?" He could say John. Or Bartholomew. He doesn't have to say Jackie. Shit, he could say his name was Sean if he wanted, seeing as that was another form of his name. He didn't have to even provide a name that was half true. But eh, fuck it. It's not like this guy will find a Jackie Mann born in Ireland during the late 90s. "Jackie. And what should I call you, Mr Super Cat?" "Super Cat, wow." He laughs. "That's a new one. Well, I'm known as the Magnificent Cat around here. A bunch of people shorten it to Cat." Cat? Yeah, that sounds cool. The superhero carries on with his day a minute or two afterwards. He sees him tossing a sandwich and making brief conversation with the black woman situated on the corner of the street. Mondays and Thursdays rapidly become Jackie's favourite days of the week. Cat always swung by at some point in the day, making sure those living outside had certain necessities like food or some money. He had a habit of apologizing for not being able to give more than £5, as if that was a tiny amount to provide to each homeless person he catered to around the city. They typically talk but it never lasted long before Cat had to carry on with his rounds. Once, the superhero had to excuse himself due to a burglary being reported. Jackie also liked seeing this other guy who kept popping up over the days. They'd first met when Jackie had been performing Billie Jean. Marvin was a really nice, frequently sparing 2 or 3 pounds whenever he passed by Jackie. There were also their conversations. The topic didn't matter. They also varied in length but by far fulfilled his social quota better than Cat's busy schedule could. It was pleasant to have someone to talk to. Either way, he had two people in his corner which was two more than he'd expected. The first week of April is laden with rain. Waking up to a damp blanket sucked but it was hardly like he had anything else to cover himself with. At least it was gradually warming up now. The last thing Jackie wanted was hypothermia, let alone getting sick in general. He must be getting his days mixed up because he thought Cat's last visit was on a Thursday. Yet here he was, walking around as he tended to do. Jackie didn't hear him chatting with anyone else like he'd expected him to. It didn't matter. It was getting fairly late anyway. It wasn't as if Cat was prohibited from strolling around in his costume. Plus, he was under no obligation to be as social as he typically was. Saying hi to him as he passed wouldn't hurt though. "Cat! It's good to have a dry spell in the middle of all this bad weather, huh?" Jackie chuckles. "How are things going?" The superhero halts abruptly at this. It's almost like he didn't expect Jackie to be there. That was a little odd because this was his usual spot. However, he decided to brush it off as Cat having a long day. His theory is further solidified when he doesn't seem as in the mood to talk today. "Hey. Things are good." Cat smiles thoughtfully. "Actually, I've been meaning to show you this new community centre that opened recently. They're letting people sleep there if they want. It's technically within walking distance from here but it's much easier to get there by car. Want me to take you there?" He obliges Cat's generosity. They chat about how foot traffic had significantly dropped in the past few days due to the downpour. Cat points out his black car. He motions to Jackie that he'd be sitting at the back because unfortunately, there was a bunch of clutter in the front. The door is red when he grabs the handle. A couple blinks confirm it is still red. The darkness of the evening must have been confusing his ability to see colours properly. It also may be linked to this headache that's appeared out of nowhere. He really hopes this isn't a sign the rain has negatively affected his health. He'd rather focus on how lovely the interior of Cat's car was. The doors lock internally. He moves his head to direct a remark about it to Cat. Except it's not the superhero at all. There was no costume, only a dark hoodie. The first feature that causes him to stare when Cat faces him were those eyes. Was there even anything other than black in them? The hair too. He's never seen Cat without his mask on but he didn't think it would be dark green. Had Cat looked so pale all those other times? He's not certain. He definitely knows that grin belongs in Hell. "Funny how easily people will follow you if they think you're a friend. Isn't it?"

[promisedangel]

Prodding The Past

This is a request for the winner of the Ko-fi Commission Raffle, @not-a-heathen-potato ! They requested a nice little story about Ralsei trying to learn more about Susie! Enjoy!

Susie grumbled to herself, “Damnit, Kris.” It was still morning, on a Saturday no less. Yet, unlike many of her peers, Susie had been up for hours. She sat in the grasses near the entrance to the school, empty of children and adults. Since yesterday, one promise hung in her mind, ‘Let’s go back there tomorrow, alright?’. With a nod and a smile in response, the promise was set. Susie sighed, maybe she overthought this and arrived too early? Maybe Kris was still asleep? She shrugged and growled in frustration. She was getting impatient.

She stood tall and scoffed, “Tsk, I’m not waiting any longer. They can catch up.” Susie approached the entrance to the school. The door was unlocked, it opened with a simple turn of the knob. She smirked; they forgot to unlock it after she and Kris strolled out of the Dark World. She closed the door behind her and strolled to the back of the school. Her eyes dead set on one particular room; the supply closet linked to the abandoned classroom.

A doubt floated to the surface as she drew closer to the closet. Would she even be able to enter the Dark World without Kris? They’d only gone once, but it was together. Susie remembered many trips to the closet for a snack, yet no Dark World. Or… was the path now open because she and Kris fell into it? She scratched her head. She remembered the extra dark fountain. Maybe it was that. Damn overthinking. She knew she had to stop. Susie reached the closet with ease. She hesitated, her hand just over the knob. She turned back towards the entrance of the school. Part of her wished Kris was there, opening the door. But there was no one. Not an adult, and certainly not Kris. She couldn’t wait any longer. She roughly opened the door to the same darkness she saw before. What was once met with hesitation, she strutted forth confidently. She closed the door behind her. Darkness engulfed her vision. She could spot no walls, nor any nearby items on the floor. Just like before.

She walked. Step by step. She noticed her steps went far longer than the closet would have let her. Was it working? She couldn’t tell in this darkness. She didn’t pause. After what seemed like hours, she could see a low light peak in the distance. Her eyes lit with determination. Her calm strut instantly changed to a swift dash. Slowly but surely, the light grew. It seemed to peek through leaves and branches. She pushed the branches aside and stepped out.

The area was familiar. The luminescent purple grasses and bushes. The pink trees and path. She’d traversed this field just yesterday. The question was, where in this field was she? A quick thought entered her mind; she looked over herself. She was in the same outfit as yesterday. Spiked armbands. The purple sleeveless shirt and black sleeveless overcoat. The lighter purple pants. It was all familiar to her. She paused. No axe. She shrugged; she’d probably see it soon enough.

She began to walk once more. Most of the inhabitants she saw yesterday were docile or far off. Still, Susie kept her guard up as she walked. She rounded a corner to see a hathy and a rudinn. They had their weapons out. A patrol. The pair quickly spotted Susie. The rudinn called out to her in shock, “Hey!” Susie readied herself. Her axe faithfully appeared in her hands. The hathy readied themselves as well. The rudinn took a step back, “W-wait a minute! We’re not your enemies, I swear!” Susie scoffed as she held her axe on her back, “Then why are your weapons out?” The rudinn continued at a break-neck pace, “We were just patrolling! There’s still a lot of Darkners who think the king’s still in power! Prince Lancer ordered us to spread the word of his father’s defeat!” Susie relaxed at Lancer’s name. She smirked, “Oh, so you guys were sent by Lancer? How’s the little evildoer doing?” The hathy replied, “Not any evil at all! He’s… come up with strange new rules and um… the throne room has a lot of holes now…” Susie fully relaxed. Her axe disappeared. She went neutral, “Cool. I’m gonna go see him.” The rudinn replied nervously, “I’m… sorry, Hero Susie. He’s very busy today, with the changing of power and all.” Susie scoffed, “C’mon! It’s been a day! How busy could he be?” The hathy spoke bluntly, “He’s trying to shove all the paperwork he has to do into holes. Rouxls Kaard is currently teaching him the rules of Lancer’s…. well… rule.” Susie muttered under her breath, “Damn teachers.”

The rudinn perked up, “But, we’ve been given instructions from Hero Ralsei!” “What does he want?” “He wanted you and Hero Kris to meet at his home. He said… something about a promise of cake?” Susie snickered. The last words she heard from Ralsei echoed in her mind. She laughed, “That furball wasn’t kidding, huh?” The rudinn gave a look of confusion, “Um… where is… Hero Kris, anyway?” Susie shrugged, “I waited for them, but they never showed. They’re probably not far behind me. Just uh… keep looking! And send ‘em our way when you find them!” The rudinn and hathy stood in attention. They scrambled out a ‘yes, ma’am!’ before they scurried off. Susie stood there silently. Her hand curled into a tight fist for a few moments. She scoffed, “Ma’am, huh? Tsk. Never heard that before.”

———————————————————————————————

Susie trudged through the Dark World westward until she came across the familiar sight of the empty town Ralsei’s castle dwelled. No longer was this town empty, however. A few Darkners seemed to now inhabit, or at least begin to consider inhabiting the empty homes. Once Susie entered the town, she was quickly noticed by the populous. They cried out her name, “Hero Susie!” many of them cried out in jubilation. Some gave a silent bow to her. Yet no one approached, all but one. This young Darkner smiled, “Hero Susie! Prince Ralsei’s been waiting for your and Hero Kris’s arrival!” They raised a brow, “Where is-“ Susie huffed, “Seriously? I have to explain this again? Kris is running late, so I’m here now and they’ll show up later.” She muttered, “I hate repeating myself.” The Darkner gave a nervous laugh, “Is that so? Well, worry not! We’ll be more than happy to let Hero Kris know where to find you and Prince Ralsei!” Susie began to walk once more with a scoff, “Pretty hard to miss the giant castle in the back of town, y’know.” A few chuckles echoed from the crowd, but no more Darkners deigned to stop Susie or speak to her again. Instead, the crowd began to gossip on how they all ‘met’ one of the heroes. Susie tensed as she walked. Heroes… it still felt strange.

The courtyard was as plain as yesterday. The large door now guarded by two heavily armored Darkners, so much so Susie couldn’t make out their details. The two silently opened the doors for her. In front was a dusty hallway, years of neglect and care appeared obvious. The hallway was lined with portraits of various Darkners. Susie didn’t pay any mind to them, instead, she continued down the hallway along the dusty carpet. At the end of the hallway was a fork. A sign was put on the opposing wall. Susie read aloud, “Go left! I’ll be waiting in the garden! If you’re early, the kitchen is just before the garden!” Susie’s stomach growled at the thought of a kitchen. A castle kitchen. Ralsei might have been alone, but the kitchen was have been fully stocked for him to actually survive. Susie continued down the left hallway until a scent caught her attention. Chocolate. Vanilla. Baked goods. The scents emanated from a door on the right side. She creaked the door open and was hit with a wave of heat and the smell of fresh baked goods. She began to drool heavily.

Inside, she saw a large kitchen. Ovens were full of a batch of sugary sweets while another batch sat on cooling racks on a nearby counter. Across the kitchen, Susie saw Ralsei without his hat. He was stirring and mixing something while pleasantly humming to himself. Unaware of her presence. Susie slowly slunk into the kitchen and walked towards the cooling cakes. She dug her claws into one and began to noisily chomp it. After a few bites, she noticed the confection was still piping hot. She yelped out in surprise. Ralsei gasped and finally noticed Susie. He exclaimed in a panic, “Did you eat those?! I just got them out of the oven!” He rushed over to a cabinet and got a glass cup. He quickly dashed to a sink nearby Susie and turned the water on. He began to fill the cup with water, “D-don’t worry! I’ll help!” Susie approached the sink, her mouth still full of cake. She pushed the glass cup out of the water’s flow and stuck her mouth under the sink. Slowly but surely, she drank. The cake in her mouth wetted and cooled. After many large gulps, Susie let out a satisfied ‘ah’ noise and shut off the sink. While Susie was busy with her drink, Ralsei looked over at the cake Susie had dug into. Literally. Large claw marks dug to the bottom of the cake, in the middle of it. Ralsei bemoaned, “I was going to frost all these cakes… at least it was only one…” Susie recovered with a smile, “Yeah! That cake’s not bad, Ralsei!” Ralsei beamed, “I’m glad you remembered my name!” He frowned, “But, you should have said you were here! I could have warned you about the cakes!” Susie shrugged, “What’s the deal? I ate some cake and got some water, no problem.”

Ralsei sighed. He decided to let the subject go. He calmly spoke, “I’m glad you’re here. You’re just much… earlier than I expected.” “Yeah, well, Kris is some ways behind, so I guess you can have all those frosted cakes for them.” Ralsei scratched his cheek, “I was… planning for more than cakes. I was going to make us a good lunch together. I… I remember you said something about ham sandwiches?” Susie’s face lit up, “Dude, you were gonna do all that?!” Ralsei nodded, “It’s the least I can do! You and Kris are great heroes after all… even if it took you a while to embrace it!” Susie scoffed, “C’mon! You're supposed to be one of these heroes, too!” Rasei blushed. He went to grab his hat but found it not on his head. Instead, he put his hands to his cheeks to hide the blush, “I… I mean I suppose… but I… I’m just a prince with no subjects… well… I don’t know. Some Darkners mentioned the possibility of moving to my village…” “Yeah. It’s only been a day and it seems like a lot is starting to change. Lancer’s stuck playing king. The Darkners aren’t picking fights they can’t win.” Ralsei gave a nervous laugh, “Well, Lancer and I have tried our best to spread the word so that you and Kris don’t get attacked. Or any other Lightners that would come here.”

He changed the subject, “Well since Kris is coming later, we can have some cake and wait for them in the garden! Thank goodness I set the table very early! Go ahead and have a seat while I make us something to drink. Um… I guess we can snack on the cake you already tasted." Susie began to walk out of the kitchen, “Go ahead, don’t need to get fancy on my account! I eat stuff like chalk as a snack!” Ralsei stood there bewildered as she left. He quietly asked, “Chalk?” Susie had already left. He had no response. He sighed before he picked up the bowl of near-finished frosting he had been working on.

————————————————————————————

Susie existed the kitchen and turned towards a large, duel-door exit. The doors had some heft, but they were no match for her strength. She opened the doors to a brick path lined with delicately trimmed flowerbeds. Susie paused. She was both impressed and concerned at the scale of this garden. Thick bushes of various flowers lined the walls of the castle. The flowerbeds along the path had gentle colors and were smaller in size. In between, flowers were planted into shapes. Some hearts. Some diamonds. Some spades. And some clubs. As she walked deeper along the path, the garden became more natural, but not untamed. She found herself walking to a small brick area with a table next to a little pond. The table was set for three with plenty of space to put the many treats Ralsei had planned. Susie sat down at the table, slightly uncomfortable at the masses of flowers around her.

A few minutes passed in silence. She heard footsteps approach. Her head turned to see Ralsei lightly jog towards her with a tray. It held a full tea set with three cups. Susie raised a brow as Ralsei set the tray down, “Is that tea?” Ralsei smiled and nodded, “Yes! Tea and cake is always a good combination!” Susie spoke bluntly, “I don’t like tea.” Ralsei gave a worried look, “Oh! I’m sorry! I should have asked! Um… I think I have some coffee around somewhere.” Susie nodded, “Yeah, that’ll do. You uh… sure you don’t need any help?” Ralsei shook his head vigorously with a nervous expression, “Nope! I’m sure I have this all handled!” Susie crossed her arms and replied dryly, “Doesn’t sound like it.” Ralsei sighed and slouched over, defeated, “I… I just wanted to make everyone a nice lunch and… well… have a chance to just talk and relax and… not have to worry about defeating evil and such…” Susie snickered, “You dork.” Ralsei huffed, “I’m serious!” “I know, that’s why it’s funny!” Ralsei stomped off, “I’ll be back with the coffee and cake!” Susie blinked before she rubbed the back of her head, “Guessed I pushed his buttons too hard.” She frowned, “No surprise there.”

Another few minutes passed before Ralsei returned with another tray. This time another pot with one simple cup sat on the tray. Accompanying the coffee was a stack of three plates and the ruined cake with a light layer of frosting. Ralsei set the tray down and smiled. He spoke with a bit of breath to catch, “Th-thanks for waiting so long!” Susie took the cup and pot of coffee. She spoke as she poured herself a cup, “Man, for a prince you got to do everything around here.” Ralsei sat down in the chair across from her with a sigh, “Yeah, but I’m used to being on my own. It’s been this way for a long time.” He chuckled, “I only got this frazzled because I wasn’t expecting you so soon! but, I’m sure Kris can’t be too far behind! Then I can make those sandwiches!” He went to cut the cake, “But, we have this cake in the meantime! And now it had some frosting!” “It was fine without the frosting.” Ralsei cut a piece and plated it in front of Susie, “It’ll be even better with it!” Susie sighed before she tried some of the cake and frosting. The frosting was smooth, not able to chill from it’s rushed preparation. Still, the thin coat did give another bit of flavor that Susie did notice. She spoke, “Well… it didn’t make it worse…” Ralsei frowned, “Well… that works… I didn’t have time to chill it.”

Ralsei was quick to change the topic as he began to eat his own slice of cake, “Um… what’s the Lightner’s world like?” Susie raised a brow, “Wow. That’s a big question out of nowhere.” “You don’t have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable.” Susie took a swig of her coffee. Decent stuff, better than she was used to. She rolled her eyes, “Nah. The only difference is that we have a blue sky and a big yellow orb for light.” Ralsei smiled, “Ah, yes! The fabled ‘sun’ I believe!” “Yep. But, it still gets dark sometimes. Not as dark as here, though.” “That’s so interesting that the Lightner world is capable of such change.” “It’s nothing special. Most just go to sleep when it’s dark.” Ralsei seemed disappointed, “Oh… I see.”

Ralsei adjusted his glasses, “What about you? Do you sleep during the dark?” “Yep. Kris does, too. These are weird questions. Why do you want to know?” “Well, I just want to get to know you two. That’s all.” “Not much to know about me. You’ve seen a lot of what I am.” Ralsei beamed, “Yes! And how you are capable of great change in yourself!” Susie chuckled darkly, “That was only for our adventure. I can’t change.” Ralsei’s expression dropped. He set his cup of tea down and spoke seriously, “Susie. I watched you go from a disinterested hero, to a rambunctious villain, to an earnest heroine! I’m sure you could change anything about your life just as easily.” Susie scoffed, “Like how you all could change how you’re stuck in the dark?” Ralsei frowned, “Well…” Susie smirked and relaxed back in her chair, “Yeah. That’s something you can’t change. There’s some things you just can’t change, y’know.” “From what you said, your world is already capable of so much change. What could you possibly not be able-“ Susie lightly slammed a fist on the table, “Shut up!” Ralsei curled inward with an apologetic face. Susie growled, “Why the hell does a fur ball like you think he has to know everything about me?!” Ralsei replied quietly, “I just wanted to connect with you two more…” A few tears escaped Ralsei’s eyes. Susie gave a distressed look. Her muscles relaxed slightly as Ralsei let loose a few sniffles. He asked, “Why do you have to be so mean? I just wanted to be your friend…”

Susie slunk back into her chair. The two were silent, save for Ralsei’s quiet sobs as he recovered. Susie’s fists tightened for a moment before they relaxed. She sighed, “You really won’t stop prodding.” Ralsei began to wipe away his tears. Susie locked eyes with him with a serious look, “Fine. If it’ll get you to shut up, I’ll talk. But you’ll never say a word of this to Kris or Lancer. Got it?” Ralsei nodded. A small smile shined from behind his hands as they wiped away the last of his tears.

Susie folded her arms on her chest after another drink of coffee. She started slow, “I guess if you want to blame anyone you could blame my parents. They always weren’t the kindest when I was growing up. Actually, they weren’t there much at all. Then, when I was about ten, they got busted for being the ringleaders in a huge multi-town drug ring. Turned out they’ve been doing this since before I was born.” Ralsei’s expression dropped as Susie continued, “So, I was left alone. Went from foster home to foster home. Not many gave me a chance, and when the parents did, the kids or neighbors didn’t. I fought back against their jeers. Sometimes through shouting or intimidation. Other times…” She smirked, “Well, y’know how tough I am.” Ralsei gave a small nod. Susie poured herself another cup of coffee with a frown, “Kept getting in trouble and having to move. Dunno how much longer I got in my current town. I don’t even bother with the names anymore. Much easier to push nameless people away from you.” Susie set her cup down and gave a gaff, “Yeah. Why would anyone want to be my friend anyway? Soon as word spreads about my parents and situation, that’s all they’ll think of me. They all look at me like a bully and a criminal. So… might as well just give ‘em what they want.”

Ralsei shook his head vigorously, “But you don’t have to!” Susie raised a brow as Ralsei professed, “You don’t have to give them what they want! You don’t have to fit the way people look at you!” Susie scoffed, “Easier said than done, fuzzball.” Ralsei’s arm swept the area around him, “Well, what about what you’ve accomplished down here? Everyone here knows you’re a hero! Not a criminal! Me, Kris, Lancer, we’re all you’re friends! And we know you can be whoever you want to be, not what others think of you!”

Susie felt a small knot in her chest. Her mind somehow drifted to her fight with Lancer yesterday. How he distraughtly asked if they were still friends after that fight. How the two bonded as evildoers. How he looked up to her. She paused. Maybe Ralsei had a point. Susie smirked, “Yeah. Maybe I’ll move down here when that town kicks me out. Just disappear, y’know?” Ralsei gave a nervous laugh, “That’s not where I was going with that… but it’s a start. I’m sure there’s something you can do to get other Lightners to change their minds about you.” Ralsei beamed, “You’re headstrong and sometimes you can be a little scary, but I think you’re a nice person, Susie!” Susie downed another cup off coffee before she replied with a smirk, “At least someone believes in me.”

Ralsei looked over towards the garden path, “Hey… it’s been a while since you got here, right?” Susie frowned, “Yeah, why?” Ralsei looked back at Susie with concern, “I… I wonder what’s keeping Kris. This is nice, but I wish they were part of this, too.” “You better keep your mouth shut about what I told you, got it?” Ralsei nodded, “Of course, Susie! I promise!”

[falseroar]

Broken Memories Part 4: Bless the Rains

((I have no explanation for the title of this part. So, here’s a link to the first part of the series, Part 1: Deal with the Devil, and to Part 3: Dude! Bro! instead.))

You took your time at the water fountain, making sure Henry had enough to drink from the spout for dogs before taking a long drink and then splashing the water on your face and the back of your neck. The droplets dripped down your back, the chill far too short in the summer heat but enough to make you feel a little better.

How could you have mistaken Bing for Mark? Sure, they had the exact same face and it wouldn’t have been the first time you mistook one of the egos when they were out of their usual attire (the King of the Squirrels had been politely confused at the time, but the Host sure got a laugh out of that one), but this was different. For that moment, it wasn’t just Bing’s name that you’d forgotten.

Henry leaned against your legs and you knelt down to scratch behind his ears.

“Hey, buddy,” you said softly. “Want some more water?”

Henry looked at you and then went straight for your backpack, sniffing at one corner.

“If you want treats you’re going to have to sit for them,” you said, already fishing one out. You’d promised Amy to keep up the training when you were with Henry.

The dog actually huffed at you, but he knew how this worked by now. You were just trying to bribe him into lying down and rolling over when you heard a familiar voice coming from somewhere up above, on the other side of the water fountain.

“The sun beat down like a hammer, nailing every poor slob fool enough to be out in the LA heat, and I was the biggest fool of them all. The hounds were out to play, and I was the fox in the middle of it all with no sign of a hen house. It was just me and my slim leads to guide me like marked trees to—”

“Abe?” You stood up in time to see the detective jump, his hand reaching for the firearm at his side out of reflex before he recognized you.

“Y/N?! What are you doing here?”

“I’m here with Henry and Chica,” you said, gesturing down at Henry who was currently trying to hide behind your legs. When the detective narrowed his eyes, you added, “Mark and Amy’s dogs. We decided to take them out for a while.”

Abe was still staring at you like something just didn’t click.

“Abe, this dog park is just down the road, we come here all the time. What are you doing here?”

“I’m on a case, of course,” Abe said. He pulled off his hat to brush some sweat off of his forehead and then after a moment of thought stuck his head under the water faucet and let it run for several seconds. He coughed and sputtered a little when he was done but smiled at you. “If you’ve got some free time, I could use a partner.”

“Well, I’m here with Chase and Bing but if I could help,” you said, finishing with a shrug. “What kind of case is it?”

Abe pressed his lips together and nodded a bit as if running through what he was about to say. “It’s…a long story. The important thing is, if you spot a poodle about yeah big, let me know.”

“A poodle? This isn’t another kidnapped dog thing, is it?”

“What? No, no, he just might have a couple of precious jewels in his collar, that’s all.” He caught your expression as you tried to figure out which question to even start with. “Like I said, long story. You say you know this park. Where would the fancy, purebred dogs hang out?”

“It’s a dog park, so wherever they feel like going?” You looked over your shoulder and saw that Bing and Chase were running around with Chica, and Henry seemed content enough to follow you around as long as you had those treats. “This place isn’t that big, we could probably just walk around it. Do you know what the owner looks like?”

“That would have been a great thing to find out when I was hiding the jewels in that collar,” Abe admitted. “Maybe if I’d had my partner with me…”

“Seriously, what the heck do you do when I’m not around?” you asked and found yourself laughing more than anything as the two of you walked around the park, Henry occasionally straying away to sniff at a suspicious tree or one of the more laid-back dogs before running to catch up.

It was in a quiet moment, as the trail you were following wound around in the shade of the trees, that Abe asked, “What about you? How are you doing?”

Almost immediately you thought of the nightmares that were making it almost impossible to get through an entire night, the vision of the door at the house opening when you hugged Mark earlier, and then there was that moment of confusion earlier, that memory blank that hit you out of nowhere.

“Uh…” You didn’t even know where to start, and Abe’s suspicious stare was back before you spoke. “Is that the poodle you were talking about?”

Abe’s head whipped around and then he was running, yelling back over his shoulder at you to cover him, from what you weren’t sure, but the chase went on for far too long as man and dog went around in a circle, the dog darting out of the way every time the Detective took a dive for him. Both were panting hard by the time you stepped in with one of Henry’s treats. While you gained a best friend for the half a second it took the poodle to wolf down the treat and Henry gave you the look of utmost betrayal, Abe pulled the dog’s collar off and swapped it with an identical one from his pocket.

“Whoo!” Abe laughed once and then flopped down onto the grass, his arms spread out and his chest heaving from the effort. Almost immediately he was surrounded by canines and his hand shot up out of the mass of fur. “Partner? Some help?”

“Nah,” you said but gave him a hand up. “So, are you going to tell me what’s going on now?”

“Nah,” Abe said with a wink. That didn’t stop him from praising you to Bing and Chase when you finally rejoined them back at the benches, where Bing was reattaching his arm for at least the second time today.

“Uh, guys?” As great as this was, you felt like you needed to say something when you spotted the stares some of the other people were giving you and Abe now. “I think now might be a good time to head back.”

Abe caught the stares and seconded that. Fortunately, Chica was just tired enough to come at the first call of her name so you were all on your way out of the park by the time anyone had talked themselves into coming over or reporting you. The four of you piled into the Detective’s car with the two dogs, making for a tight fit as Abe peeled out of the parking lot and straight into a traffic jam.

Chase looked over his shoulder from the front seat and asked, “Is this a normal thing for you guys?”

You looked at Bing and the Detective and then just shrugged. “It’s not the weirdest trip to the dog park I’ve had. Honestly, I’m surprised they don’t have Mark’s face on a poster around there after what happened last time.”

Abe’s eyes narrowed in the reflection from the rear view mirror as he looked back at you. “What do you people do when I’m not around?”

Abe drove you all back to Mark’s house on his way to take care of the rest of his case, but while Chase, Bing, and the dogs clambered out of the car he turned around and caught your arm before you could open your door.

“You never answered me before,” he said, but his voice came at a distance and was fading with every word. “How are you doing?”

You saw the door again, back at Markiplier’s old house. You could hear the Detective’s voice, coming from behind you now. The door started to open again, but when you blinked the scene changed, your hand still outstretched but instead of toward the door handle you were about to touch a mirror. A mirror that showed your reflection and, standing just behind you, Darkiplier. His reflection moved and you felt the weight of a hand on your shoulder as he smiled at you.

“Y/N?” Abe was halfway out of the driver seat now, one hand on your shoulder as he shook you a little. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah, I—” You stopped yourself and swallowed. It took everything you had not to push his hand away after what you just saw. “I don’t know…Abe, you saw the house after it was burned down, right?”

He didn’t even have to ask which house you meant. He just nodded, watching you carefully.

“It’s definitely gone, there’s nothing there,” you said. It wasn’t even a question, just a hope that he would say yes and that would be it.

“Well, Tyler and that crazy Chef did a great job, if that’s what you’re asking,” the Detective said, trying to sound lighthearted but not really managing it. “There was barely anything left by the time the fire was through with the place.”

“Barely anything?”

“The place was made out of stone, at least on the outside,” Abe pointed out. “But most of the inside was torched, along with a lot of the roof. The main part of the mansion is almost completely gone.”

“The main part,” you repeated. “What about the upper floors, near the back?”

You were looking for it and you saw the hesitation cross the Detective’s face before his confidence slid back into place.

“That place is gone, Partner. You don’t have to worry about it anymore.” He squeezed your shoulder, gently. “Is that what’s bothering you?”

“I can’t get it out of my head,” you admitted, feeling the corners of your eyes prickle at the words and everything else you couldn’t even begin to explain. The nightmares by themselves hurt to think about just because you knew how real they were. All of those years trapped alone in that house, the one set of memories you would be more than happy to get rid of.

Abe’s phone began to play “Africa” somewhere in his pocket, but he didn’t break eye contact with you as he said, “I’m here if you need me, Partner. Anytime, any reason, you can call me. You know that, right?”

You nodded and he pulled you in for a hug which was thankfully not accompanied by any kind of visions or memories. Just Danny from NSP singing his heart out.

“We’re never going to let that happen to you again,” he said, his voice muffled next to your ear, the moment only slightly ruined when his phone hit the chorus and it was all you could do not to laugh. “Don’t you dare laugh, it’s a great song!”

A minute later you climbed out of the car while Abe reassured what you assumed to be his client that he was on his way. He’d made you promise to call him later, and dropped more than one hint about potential future cases.

It was enough to make you feel a little better. Something you desperately needed just before you walked into Mark’s house and found the fire alarm going off while smoke came pouring out of the garage. By the time you got there the fire was mostly out, the van mostly intact, and Google mostly polite as he reminded you that you did not have the permissions to be asking questions like, “What’s going on?” or “Who started this fire?” or “Why? Just, why?”

((End of Part 4. Thank you for reading! ...I don’t know, I just thought what would be a funny ring tone for the Detective to have, and immediately Jack singing Africa popped into my head. *shrugs*

Link to Part 5: Just Dessert

Tagging: @silver-owl413  @determinedrevolutionary @cherrybomb-jaguar @blackaquokat @catgirlwarrior  @neverisadork @luna1350 @oh-so-creepy @purpstraw @weirdfoxalley @95fangirl  @lilalovesinternet-l @thepoolofthedead @a-bit-dapper @randomartdudette  @geekymushroom ))

[freezingwintah]

Beer and Chocolate

Chapter 1: Different, but in a good way 

It has been a few rough weeks. College was kicking his butt, assignments made it impossible to hang out with his friends. Instead, he buried himself in work, work and even more work.

His only time of solace was when he visited a café not far from his shitty apartment. They made incredible coffee there, not to mention all waitresses (and waiters) were eye candy. Especially one guy stood out. He had bleached fluffy wavy hair to his shoulders, he wore fashionable clothes, his shoes were stylish and trendy, not the regular employees shoes his colleagues wore. And for some reason, he was painting his nails, also let’s not forget the amount of rings he wore. It was a wonder to Smitty how the man used his hands with such elegance and grace.

In words of his nosey friend Craig, he was ‘smitten’ by that man and it wasn’t simple quiet artist’s appreciation, but something more. Smitty wasn’t sure he liked what Craig was implying. That guy just stood out so much. He was different, but in a good way, like he didn’t give a shit about what other people might think of him. In a sense, he was what Smitty wished to be one day – able to express himself without caring what others might say about it.

Smitty wanted to talk to him; he would lie if he told himself he didn’t have hidden ulterior motives, but he had the urge to draw him whenever he saw him, just walking around the café or delivering the orders to customers. He knew his name. John. So simple, he liked it. Smitty saw his name tag when they first met approximately three months ago. It was shameful to admit, but in that moment when their eyes met – greenish blue stared into chocolate brown; he felt a deep connection. Everything on John stood out, even that beauty mark above his lip.

After first month of silently ogling John from distance, on one stormy afternoon after classes he brought out his sharpie and notebook and began sketching him. Smitty made sure no one from staff (and especially not John) saw him and after several such ‘secret drawing sessions’ he got five sketches properly redrawn on a tablet and shaded. He did them between classes and when he was sleepy, but couldn’t sleep due to insomnia. Drawing John was a challenge he welcomed with an open mind, since he never really drew men before in art or design classes.

More than ever, he wanted to just sit and talk with John, about anything really. He was his inspiration (his muse even) and he looked forward to going to that café every Thursday, knowing John will be there, with that stoic, strangely professional expression.

On a windy Wednesday on his day off, Smitty wandered into the café, taking a look behind the counter. The man was there, currently as cashier. Becoming self conscious when he felt those eyes upon him, he picked a vacant booth and sat down. He wasn’t supposed to be here, he had shifts mostly on Thursdays and Saturdays. The fact he knew when John was working and when he wasn’t made it out to be like he was quite a stalker, but in truth he passed by the café every day and simply stared across the glass to the interior.

Seeing as he was already there, he could order a nice cup of coffee or perhaps latte to warm him up. He glanced over at the counter, where John was making a conversation with another guy, his only features standing out were those baby blue eyes and slight scruffy beard. From what he gathered, he and John were close friends, not just co-workers. Their casual banter was out -shadowed by the jazzy bass drop, drowning out their last words, but Smitty saw the look and head gesture directed at him. He quickly looked at his phone, pretending he was busy.

Long steps shortened the distance and with peripheral vision, he saw the man with baby blue eyes standing next to him, bearing somewhat of a cheeky smile. Smitty noticed his name tag. Scotty, huh. “Hello and good afternoon. What can I get you?”

Before Scotty could give him the overhaul of their drinks, Smitty who had it memorized spat out his order without thinking. “A latte please.”

“Alright. It’ll be done in a jiffy.” He said, walking away. Relieved that it wasn’t John who came up to him, he let out a sigh. He wanted to talk with him, but at the same time he didn’t want to ruin it. Behind their waiter/customer relation they had nothing. If John knew he used him as his model for drawing, he’d be most likely be disgusted. And he wouldn’t be able to visit this café any longer. But then again, they never talked.

His train of thought was interrupted by soles tapping on the floor near him. Thinking it was Scotty who brought him the latte, he looked up with a faint smile, that froze in a semi – worried frown. John raised a brow at him. “Your latte, sir.” He set it down, all the time his greenish blue eyes were darted on him. Smitty shifted on the cushioned seat under John’s gaze.

After setting down his cup, he didn’t go back. John glimpsed at the counter where Scotty winked and pretended to polish some glasses. John knew he was spying on him, that ‘polish & shine’ move won’t fool him. Diverting his attention back to the man sitting in front of him. He looked awfully stressed out, to some extent also... hopeful? That spark of hope in those brown eyes as he silently waited was alluring. “Can I see them?”

“S-See what?” He stuttered, thinking that maybe his drawing technique wasn’t so sneaky at all. “I mean the drawings. I know you were drawing me. You weren’t exactly subtle dude.”

Now for sure he was sweating, being caught wasn’t on his To Do List today. His eyes dropped onto his lap. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Let’s not dwell on that, okay? I just wanna see those pictures before Scotty gets yelled at by the manager for stalling. So, do you have them with you?” John asked again and Smitty nodded, his hands went inside his bag, where he fished for his graphic tablet. He pulled up the pictures and an unfamiliar heat pooled into his face. It definitely didn’t have anything to do with the way how close they were, head to head as John silently evaluated his works.

After gruesome twenty or so seconds (but it seemed so much longer to him), John chuckled. “Your style is flattering, I like how everything is so pastel. Also...,” he paused, turning head directly to his Smitty’s ear. “I absolutely like bold and cute guys like you. Do you want to go on a date? I’m free this Friday.”

John said he was bold, but he just asked him on a date, didn’t he? Smitty stashed away his tablet and drank some of the delicious latte to calm his nerves. Meanwhile, John waited for a reply, seemingly collected and calm on the outside, but he was itching for a positive reply. He found him interesting, just like he was interesting enough to be drawn.

He downed half the cup in two gulps and set it back down on the table. “I’m free on that day, too. By the way, my name’s Smitty.” He acted it out cool, like he wasn’t emotionally overwhelmed by the moment. “And my name is John, but you already knew that.”

Smitty might have fooled a lesser man, but John was anything but ordinary. He widely grinned, showing off his smile. “Alright, then it’s a date. Now gimme quickly your phone, Scotty is reliable, but I have to go back to work.”

Oh. John can’t stay and chat. He handed him his phone and the man simply typed in his phone number and saved it under name John ;)

With one last wink, he strut back to the counter, back to preparing beverages, leaving rather flustered Smitty behind.

He still couldn’t believe this was happening. A date with John. He had a date. The imminent truth of it began to seep in. From the corner of eye he caught a glimpse of John’s bleached mane floating in air as he served other customers.

Maybe he shouldn’t linger. Smitty realized his presence in café might mess up John’s concentration. He chugged down the remnants of his latte and paid the bill (this time a middle aged woman came up to his table) and he stood up, gathering his things.

Before he left they shared a look and he left the café, the bell above chimed and he was outside on the street. Like in a haze, he walked back to his shitty apartment.

                                                  ~♦~

When he got back, he went immediately to studying, leaving his phone to charge. Sometime around 10 pm he got a text. He suspected it to be from a teacher or classmate. Smitty’s eyes hovered above the name. He must be tired, why is he messaging at this late hour?

John ;) – ‘sup babe, I’m tired and about to expire. Idk where I’m going with this message, I just hope my direct approach didn’t scare you off. I’m not one to dance around the fire. You like me, I like you so why not give it – give us a chance.

Smitty – Damb. I’m at loss of words. I can’t say I dislike direct people like you. Saves us both time if one party is assertive. I’m glad you asked me out on a date. I hope to learn more about you.

John ;) –  And I’m glad you agreed. Fuck I’m so tired I can barely keep my eyes open. Sorry to cut this short.

Smitty – It’s alright. We can talk more tomorrow, rest up. Also John?

John ;) – Yeah?

Smitty – Goodnight ♥

John ;) – omg so gay, jk xD nighty night Smitty <3

With a chuckle, he locked his phone screen and placed it on the bedside table, laying down. Splayed on the bed, he stared at the ceiling, smiling to himself.

He was looking forward to this Friday.

Chapter 2:  If you’ll have me

Telling Craig was a bad idea. His friend nearly spat all of the soda he was drinking on Smitty’s face. He missed the fruity water fountain sprout by ducking.

Lucky they weren’t inside, but out in the open. It was after classes.

“What the fuck, Smit. You’ve been swooning and day dreaming for three months and he just waltzes up to you and asks you on a date. Am I getting this right?”

He sighed, internally wishing this topic was over and done with. “You heard me, you cucklord. I’m still in awe because of tomorrow. I’ve got a date. That’s a first in... a while. God, I’m beginning to get anxious just thinking about tomorrow.”

Craig rolled eyes. “Boo – hoo. Poor you going on a date with a hot guy that you’ve been ogling. Chin up, it’ll be alright.”

“Easy for you to say. You’re the school fuckboy, you have no problems with relationships. I on the other hand...”

His friend patted him a few times, winking. “Well, if that’s what’s troubling you, let me help you. As the infamous school playboy, I can relay my wisdom and pass it on.” He said ceremonially to which Smitty grunted, but didn’t turn down the offer. At this point he’d take any tips. For a reason unknown to him, Smitty really wanted this thing with John to work out.

Seeing as he didn’t outright decline, Craig smirked and threw away the empty can in the trash bin, then threw his arm around Smitty’s shoulder, dragging him away. “Well then, let’s get started.”

In that moment as he was being abducted to his own apartment, he realized how much he cared about John. And how crazy it all was.

                                                 ~♦~

“I don’t know. This hoodie is so plain.” Smitty commented, standing before mirror in his room. Craig’s voice boomed from the phone on his nightstand, he had him on speaker. “Did you really call me for that? I am about to fu--- have a dinner with that upperclassman Tyler.”

Caught up by in his own little world, he missed on the hint his friend dropped, too occupied with spinning and doing poses. “Hm... yeah... Craig I need your opinion. The plain grey hoodie together with the skinny ass black pants or dark navy skinny tight pants with pink, flashy hoodie?”

“Seriously, go for the flashy pink gay hoodie and black pants. Trust me on this. Also, don’t drink too much, it’s better to remember furious makeout on the couch than to wake up the next day naked with a hangover. Speaking from personal experience.”

“I swear to god, if you tell me to ---“ Smitty got cut off, his cheeky friend couldn’t resist poking fun at him. “Don’t forget to use a condom! Practice safe sex!”

He rolled eyes, his mirror reflection expressed how absurd it was. Getting sex advice from a well known playboy. “Yes, mom.”

Craig chuckled, albeit his voice sounded strained as if he was holding back from laughing. “If that’s how you perceive me as, then I await you home by midnight, young man. And your date better be a gentleman. Now if you'll excuse me, I got something to do.” He chuckled some more on the side, while Smitty quickly changed clothes, as per suggestion he donned the pink and black. It was a good combination, it also brought out some other assets.

Satisfied with his attire after gruesome twelve minutes of matching up different outfits, he smiled to himself. Oddly enough, suspicious small moans filled the room and he had to double check his TV and computer screens if he didn’t leave them on. His only logical conclusion was the sounds came from his phone.

...He didn’t need to know this about his friend, who supposedly hung up, but didn’t. But first, he’ll teach him a lesson for teasing him so much. “Hello there, mysterious upperclassman Tyler! Be sure to practice safe sex! Byee!”  Before he hung up, he heard exasperated gasps, ‘oh shit, I left it on!’ and ‘fuck!’.

Alright, that’s that. Now onto the matter at hand... He dialled up John’s number for the first time, sitting down on his bed to calm his anxiety. He picked up soon, as if he was waiting for a call. “Hey, good thing you called. I was worried you changed your mind.”

“And miss on a date with such a handsome man?” John softly chuckled.

“If your aim is to flatter me all day, then please by all means, continue. Anyhow, I am not one for traditional dates in some fancy restaurant, you’ll be crashing by my place if that’s okay with you.”

Smitty knew John could be forward, but they skipped date one all the way to date four, where they hang out at home. This was risky. Too dumbstruck to reply, he stayed quiet revaluating his next words. “Smit? Did I go overboard, I know it’s our first date and –“

“No, no. John, it’s a wonderful idea. We’re hardly conventional. I’d like to come over to your place. If you’ll have me.” He didn’t want to make it sound too eager ( like a desperate teenage girl for instance who just wanted to get laid), meanwhile from the other side he heard barely audible little cute snicker. “We can meet up by the café. I don’t live so far away, it’s within walking distance of twenty minutes. Are you ready? No need to dress up fancily for my sake dude, but I won’t lie; you’re good on eyes Smitty.”

“I’m supposed to be flattering you John, you’re undermining my scheme to make you flustered.”

“Aw, my bad.”

His lips curled up in a smile. “Are you heading out?” Distant doors closing made Smitty stand up and head towards the front entrance, where he left his keys and wallet. “Yep, I’m en route. See you there.”

“Can’t wait.” He replied with mirth and John hung up. The Canadian jovially put on shoes and left his apartment, locking it up. Smitty took a deep breath. “You can do this, it’s just a date.” He psyched himself up, bravely walking forward.

                                                    ~♦~

John was already there, skulking in front of the café he worked at, casually strolling back and forth, checking his phone every two minutes. He was a bit antsy. It’s been some time from the last time he went out with someone.

In a way, his work fulfilled him. Until a few months back, when he noticed a cute guy staring at him, even went ahead to draw him. Gradually, the guy came in almost every day, looking like he wanted to say something to him badly, but just couldn’t. Of course, his colleagues caught on. Scotty was the first and teased him about the ‘cute guy who comes to see him’ and how they totally would make a good looking couple.

He gave it some thought. Maybe he should try going out with him. One bad experience can’t deter him from trying dating again. He asked Scotty for little help (his friend wore that smug, knowing grin as he agreed to step in and set his bro up) and now, here they were. About to meet up and have their first date.

John pulled out his phone for the twelfth time, when he saw Smitty ran up to him. He stopped to catch his breath and then he grinned. “Running late is my specialty, I hope you didn’t have to wait long.”

“I’m usually the one arriving late, it’s refreshing to see someone else be late for a change. But I digress, you’re here. Ready to head out?”

“I was born ready.” Smitty replied, while John turned and waited for him so they could walk side by side. They passed by crowds of people, but neither paid attention to the stream of faces around them.

They walked past two streets and finally reached the resident area of tall buildings. The younger man eyed the complex before them as John strut towards the stairs. “We’re here. My apartment is on the far left side, over there.” He pointed and Smitty’s mind only came up with ‘nice place’ as he walked up behind John who was pulling out his keys.

He stiffly walked after John, trying to clear his head of dirty thoughts. No, he wouldn’t. As straightforward as John was towards him, he didn’t seem the type to have sex so soon. Not to mention Smitty wasn’t mentally prepared for that yet.

Becoming aware of their impending closeness, Smitty saw John turn the key and opened the door for him. He traipsed in, his heart was caught up somewhere in his throat. Standing at the entrance mat, he quickly took off his shoes, waiting on John.

“We can go to living room if you’d like.” John propositioned, taking off his shoes. Stiffly, Smitty’s body moved on its own, he shuffled to the living room, his eyes taking in everything. The shelves full of games and DVD’s that lined up against the end of one wall, the couch placed in the center of room, alongside with a decent sized TV. He even spotted some old school consoles.

“Alright...”  John said, standing beside him all of sudden. His heart picked the pace considerably, feeling the blood rush to his face.

This was a bit too soon, he wasn’t ready for anything beyond a kiss... and it was just them in one room. Unknowing of the thoughts racing through Smitty’s mind, John approached him and the younger man instinctively took a few steps back, now blushing furiously, ducking from his reach.

A bit confused, John looked down at him, pressing the light switch. “What? Is something on my face?”

Snapping his head, the Canadian gaped at the hand still on the light switch. “Oh...”

John knelt down, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Why are you so nervous?”

Smitty put a hand up in his hair and laughed anxiously to hide his transparent embarrassment. “This is your first time, isn’t it?”

Flabbergasted by the words that left John’s lips, he was rendered speechless. “Don’t worry! I’ll lead. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.”

Flushed and still very much flustered, he just gaped at John like a gold fish. His other hand was slowly reaching, and he himself was coming closer, closer, closer... Smitty’s eyes were fixed on his lips. He closed his eyes, ready to surrender to whatever John wanted.

But then John made him stand up again. He walked to the couch and turned on the TV, along with an old Playstation One console.

Smitty was none wiser what just transpired, approaching the couch. John plopped down, palpating a spot next to him.

Oh. So he meant to play an old school game together...

“You meant gaming...”

“Huh, yeah what else? We talked yesterday about games, figured you’d enjoy playing something together. Was it a bad idea?”

The Canadian shook head, a huge smile crept on his face. “Quite the opposite.”

“Good, now sit down and join me. First up we’ll play good ‘ol Gran Turismo, then Crash Team Racing and then maybe Tekken 3.”

Smitty shook off the embarrassment and sat down, taking the second controller.

The game booted up and their long gaming session began.

                                                     ~♦~

Spent after playing for over four hours, they only stopped because they were getting hungry. John ordered some pizza for them and while they waited, he brought out beer from the fridge.

Smitty was somewhat relaxed now, but still he couldn’t shake off the previous awkward moment from his mind. He stood up and paced along the carpet, stretching his legs.

From the kitchen John’s voice called out to him. “Smit, you want some chocolate? Scotty gave me some expensive brand, said he's got lots more. He got it from a... very close friend.”

Frowning, Smitty glanced at the beers on the coffee table. Beer and chocolate? That’s a rather odd combination.

Now that he thought about it more, the beer and chocolate were like them. An odd combination.

“Sure, why not.”

John came back, sat down ridiculously close to him as Smitty held back from scooting a bit away. No need to be shy around John, he’ll be his boyfriend soon. Or maybe is already. This inner chitchat was hurting his brain, so he stopped fretting and tried to appear relaxed.

He got a huge chunk of dark chocolate from the blond. “Thanks.” Smitty said.

The older man tentatively bit into the chocolate and then took a sip from the beer bottle. His face immediately scrunched up in a semi – disgusted grimace.

“Oh my god, this wasn’t probably a good idea. Don’t try what I just did.”

But he already biting into the chocolate, appreciating the taste on his tongue as he bathed his taste buds in beer. It was... an experience to say the least. “Oh my god.” He gasped, putting down the beer bottle. John followed suit shortly after, but his gaze lingered on the bottles, pondering.

Smitty felt the mood shift considerably. “Sweet and bitter.” He murmured, locking gaze with the Canadian. “I haven’t dated since I started my job. It’s not the lack of time, but I had no interest to invest time into a person. There was simply no one of substance... until you. This will sound so fucking cheesy, but you’re the chocolate to my beer.”

He couldn’t stop it, he laughed out loud, eventually tears came out at some point. Smitty smacked his knees, wiping the tears away. John waited until he stopped laughing, a bit red in the face. “Oh, I don’t know if you’ll laugh after this...” His voice trailed off as he slanted, placing both his hands on his waist.

Smitty was mesmerized, he was waiting for this...

His own hands snaked on John’s back, wrapping around him. Their lips touched, the bitterness was drowned out in the sweetness.

It was nothing like they ever experienced. Smitty withdrew as first, his cheeks were positively burning up from blushing so madly. “That was...hot.”

John’s fingers ruffled his hair, which brought new sensations to him as his stomach did flips. “I knew if I kept on searching, I’d find you. My sweet half.”

Smitty cackled. “This is too gay even for me, just say you love me and kiss me some more.”

John’s smirk could rival that of Cheshire Cat. The blond held his hands, looking him in the eyes. “I love you, Smitty.”

“Damb, I love you, too John.”

Both men laughed, as John was pushed down and Smitty kissed him.

Suffice to say, the pizza delivery guy had his fill for today after he saw John and Smitty looking as if they battled a long, merciless war against each other. Which they did and they called it a tie.

[zwei-the-penguin-with-a-pen]

‘Misery Business’

"Did we have to bring the dog?" Blake complained again as she and Yang walked toward the beach. Zwei trotted along at Yang's feet. Blake had gotten used to the Corgi to an extent, but she still didn't like it following them around all the time. Oh well, she was determined to have an awesome beach day with Yang, dog or no dog.

"Give it a rest, Bee Vomit. We're stuck with him until dad gets home from his mission, and Ruby and Weiss were hitting the gym. Dogs aren't really allowed, and Glynda would probably kill my sister if Zwei wasted his insides in her gym. Speaking of which," she looked at the dog bouncing at her feet, "would you kindly get on with it? I'm trying to have a date here, dude."

BORK! The small grey dog protested. He would expel his waste when he was good and ready. Humans were always in such a rush. He noticed a fire hydrant that looked particularly interesting and decided that would be the place.

"Finally. Good boy." Yang told him as he returned. Blake rolled her eyes.

"You're going to smell like that dog forever now," Blake complained, whipping her hair around.

"Hey, that usually makes you rub yourself against me, and that's an idea you know I can get behind." Yang purred loudly at that remark.

"Keep talking like that and you won't get any behind..." Blake retorted, Yang nearly spitting out the water she'd been drinking.

"Wow, Blake, I've never heard you make a sex joke in regular conversation."

"Well, I've been around Team SSSN pretty frequently lately, since they're visiting from Haven, and those four are a neverending fountain of crotch humor. Not to mention the horrendous jokes about butt stuff..." The kitty Faunus shuddered at the very thought. "I swear if Sun makes one more joke about Neptune's 'trident' I'm going to strangle him with his own tail."

"Isn't he kind of into that?" Blake thought she would vomit at hearing that.

"I try not to ask, and I try harder not to listen. I think Neptune is more into tail play. Dust, please don't make me talk about this anymore." She could see Yang smirking in her peripheral vision and knew this would not end anytime soon.

"I'll allow you not to suffer... for now." Yang's hand reached up and tousled Blake's hair, causing Blake's ears to wiggle. The same hand traveled down Blake's body before landing firmly on her rear.

"Come on, Glucose. Not with people around." Blake groaned though she appreciated the grope. She caught sight of the beachside snack shop and made for the stand. Yang and Zwei followed close by her. Blake ordered a medium salad with a mug of hot tea.

"And for you-- oh my god, can I have your offspring?" The young woman spoke, quickly covering her mouth. "GODS I'M SORRY! You're just so... muscular." The girl's eyes turned to stars at the sight of Yang's incredible arms.

"Thanks, but just so you know, I'm smashing on the cat girl whose order you just took..." Yang replied. This gave Blake an idea.

"Baby, do the thing!" Blake asked. Yang shot her a quick look, but she flexed her right arm anyhow.

"Oh my god," Blake and the cashier both groaned, each of them breathing heavily.

"Your food's on me. The both of you. And even the Corgi, if he'd like something." She told the couple, still starry-eyed at Yang's muscle mass.

"Oh, well I'd like a cheeseburger and a smoothie. Do you have anything raw for Zwei?"

"The only meat that isn't burger meat is our Seafarer Steak, and regulations say I have to cook it. Wouldn't want to get shut down."

"I can see that. He'll have one of those, as rare as you're allowed to do." Yang grinned. She and Blake flipped more than a few Lien at their server. "Buy yourself something you look cute in, though I'm sure you'd look cute in anything."

"Ease up on the flirting, Glucose. Are you trying to out-gay me?" Blake interjected, hardly able to keep a straight face.

"Seriously, Bee Vomit, do I even have to try?" Yang retorted, winking at her girlfriend.

"You two need to stop! I have a shift to work and I can't take much more of this!" The poor server was swooning over the two of them. Blake and Yang shared a laugh as they and Zwei found a table.

"You're seriously just getting a salad?" Yang asked her best girl. Blake wiggled her ears.

"Well, I'm gonna toss this into it." She mentioned as she dug a can of tuna from her pocket.

"OH, MY DUST! BLAKE HAS TUNA IN HER PANTS!"

"Yes, Yang, I do have tuna in my pants. Apparently, everyone here needed to know that, so thanks for sharing that vital information with the entire snack shack." Blake condescended, or at least tried to; her honeypot was too upbeat for any of that.

"CAT EARS AND MUSCLES, since I forgot to take down your names!" The server called out. Blake acquired the food so Yang wouldn't give that poor girl a nosebleed. Blake popped open her tuna and spread it liberally over her glorious salad.

"Oh, and the Struggling Seafarer for the Corgi!" Zwei's head perked up at that, and he trotted over to collect his food. The cashier winked at him as he picked the plate up with his teeth. He returned to the table and tore into his delicious dinner.

"Is it good, boy? Geez, it must be." Yang asked, answering her own question. Zwei seemed to be enjoying his meal just as much as they were enjoying theirs.

BORK! AWOOO! CHOMP!

After their eats, the three of them found a nice spot on the beach to lay out on some towels. Yang complained about her tan wearing off, as she hadn't made the beach since long before the summer started. Blake rolled her eyes, which nearly popped out when Yang tossed off her tank top.

"Good grief, now I know how the snack chick felt. You are so chiseled it's terrible. You have better abs than Sun and better arms than Nora."

"Too bad I don't have better legs than Pyrrha."

"And who says you don't? Hers are much more muscular, but yours are nicer to look at, Honeypot." Blake twitched her eyebrows at her favorite blonde. Yang grinned widely.

"You're too kind, Glucose." Yang rustled Blake's hair with one hand, slapping her behind with the other.

"I knew the suffering wouldn't stop. And here we were, having a cute moment."

"Does my hand being on your butt make it any less cute?"

"I guess not." Blake grinned, resting one hand on Yang's chest. "I hope this moment lasts forever."

"This moment with your hand on my boob?"

"The same as the one with your hand on my ass. It's perfect."

BORK!

"Shut up, Zwei!" Blake complained. "And no, you can't snuggle with us. Not where anybody can see it, at least." Zwei frowned, but he understood. He found a nice spot at the edge of Yang's towel and made a few circles before falling over and sighing loudly.

\/\/\/\/\/

\/\/\/\/\/

\/\/\/\/\/

Day 13: ZWEI

Zwei is one of my favorites. I mean, I named one of my OCs after him, and I took his name for my artistic endeavors. I’m glad he gets a whole day to himself, even if he’s a bit difficult to write about. The usual way is to just have him off in the background or something while I write a shameless shipping story WAHAHA!

But yeah, bees and shit. And inside jokes. @magical-game will understand most of them, and some of the folks that attended NebKon this weekend might recognize one, too.

[i-d-k-man]

If I’m Being Honest

[Tododeku, BNHA]

A03 Link

2.  No, you hang up~!

It took two flights of stairs for Todoroki’s own post-workout stench to pierce through the cloud of mild panic surrounding his brain.

It took the next flight of stairs for Todoroki to decide that he didn't give a single shit, and that his one and only goal at this point was to retreat to safety of his room so he could think.

On the fourth flight of stairs, Todoroki finished the last of his water, throat clogged like a BP pipeline as embarrassment over his incident with Midoriya resurfaced.  He screwed the cap of his bottle back on clumsily.  Just focus on getting back.  

Only the fifth flight of stairs remained between Todoroki and victory when it was cruelly yanked out from under him, in the form of three chattering figures entering the stairwell.

“- only has a shelf life of like a week, but he still ate the whole bottle!  Oh, hey, Todoroki!”  Ashido greeted enthusiastically.

Right behind Ashido, Uraraka waved with a friendly smile.  Tokoyami, somewhat unexpectedly, rounded out the trio, nodding cooly at Todoroki.

“What incident has befallen your face, Todoroki?”

“...Hello, Tokoyami.  And I got punched during training today.  Nothing exciting.”  The girls oooo’ed sympathetically.   Please just let me go, Todoroki prayed, eyes flickering nervously over the trio.  

“So, Uraraka and I were having a debate, and we need your opinion.”

Todoroki’s eyebrow twitched, ever so slightly.

If Ashido noticed, she didn’t care.  “ Uraraka here thinks - very sadly, in my opinion - that a Frosty is better than a McFlurry, and I need you to be the voice of reason here.”

“Alright, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here…”  Uraraka countered, before Todoroki could even respond.  “I don’t appreciate the way that you just assumed  Todoroki would choose the McFlurry, and how you insinuated that it was the ‘reasonable’ answer.”  Her voice raised with genuine conviction.  “Need I remind you that a Frosty is only 99 yen?!  Hell, you couldn’t find a better deal than that if you -”  

The doorway to the fifth floor taunted Todoroki as he tuned the conversation out; just mere meters away.  He even tried inching towards it, until Ashido grasped his forearm with surprising strength.

“Please, Todoroki,”  her eyes blazed.  “You’re like, one of the smartest dudes in class.  Set the record straight, once and for all.”

Ashido’s grip tightened.  Todoroki frowned slightly.  “Why can’t you just ask Tokoyami?”  

Both girls scoffed in unison.  “As if!  That weirdo gets salads at fast food restaurants.”

“I don’t enjoy grease,”  Tokoyami stated, arms folded primly.

“See what we’re dealing with!  You gotta help us, Todoroki.  Which is better, the McFlurry or Frosty?”

Todoroki opened his mouth, fully intent on just picking one at random and retreating upstairs, but what came out instead was:  “I have never had either.”

Twin gasps echoed up the stairs.  Even Tokoyami appeared shocked.  “Todoroki, what kind of depraved life have you been leading?”

“A lonely one,”  he blurted truthfully, yet again.   What is wrong with me?   Todoroki really needed time to think, not -

“Todoroki, I vow to save you from your tragic depravity!”  Ashido declared passionately, clasping his hand.  

- not this, this chicanery .  Todoroki shook off Ashido’s grip.  “I’m afraid that I must decline.  “I’m…”

‘busy’.   Nope, the word refused to exit his mouth.   ‘tired’   and ‘sick’   met a similar fate.  Todoroki startled as his left temple throbbed.

“...sweaty,”  he finished quickly, lamely.  “I, um, still need to shower.”

“We just learned that you’ve never had a McFlurry or  Frosty, and your mind is on showering?”  Uraraka looked affronted.

“Yes?”

“Well, then, that’s just too bad.”  Uraraka crossed her arms resolutely.  “Because you’re gonna come join us on our fast food run, right now, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Besides instantly freeze all of us in place,”  Tokoyami muttered.  Uraraka glared at him.

“No,”  Todoroki added more firmness to his voice.  “I’d really rather not, right now.  Besides, if I don't shower I'll gross people out.”

Ashido scoffed.  “As if you  could gross people out.  Besides, body odor is practically celebrated at fast food restaurants.”  She put her hands on her hips.  “Have you even had lunch today?”

“...No.”

“Aren’t you hungry, then?”

Of course, Todoroki’s stomach took that precise moment to grumble loudly.  Todoroki sighed.  “Yes, I am.”  Damn traitorous organs.

“Betrayal often comes from those closest to us, perhaps even from ourselves.”  Tokoyami noted, sagely.  

Ashido blinked.  “What?”

“If we’re going to go, then let’s get on with it,”  Todoroki interjected.  Seeing no way out, he had no choice but to embrace his plight and adapt.  Now, his goal was expediency.  

Uraraka and Ashido cheered, grabbing Todoroki’s hands and dragging him down the stairs.  Tokoyami followed, murmuring something to himself about knives and backs.

Just stay calm, Shouto.  It’ll all turn out fine.

 Blessedly, their destination was a mere five minute walk from campus, no trains required.  Todoroki felt relieved, especially considering the obnoxious passengers that morning.  The sun warmed his back pleasantly as he walked, and he inhaled deeply.

It was still a beautiful day, if nothing else.  

Uraraka traced his line of vision, landing on the feathery clouds.  She smiled.  “Do you like the summertime, Todoroki?”

“I do.”  The sun broke from behind its cloudy gate, and Todoroki had to redirect his gaze to the road.  “A lot of people complain about the heat, but I can just keep myself comfortable with my quirk.”

“That’s so awesome!  And so unfair!”  Ashido pouted.  

Todoroki shrugged.

“The only thing that makes life unfair is the delusion that it should be fair.”

Ashido rolled her eyes.  “Shut up, Tokoyami, you have a freaking invincible shadow bird living inside of you.”  

Despite himself, Todoroki found a smile pushing at the corner of his lips.

Golden arches cast an imposing shadow on the foursome, shimmering in the sunlight.

“Oh, I understand now,”  Todoroki muttered, mostly to himself.  “The ‘Mc’ in McFlurry is a reference to McDonalds.”

Uraraka eyed him warily.  “I mean, yeah... How has someone as smart as you never put that together?”

Todoroki hummed.  “Probably because I’ve never been to McDonald’s.”

“WHAT?!”  

The synchronized shriek literally scared birds from their roosts on a telephone wire, wings flapping wildly.  A flight-type quirk suddenly seemed very appealing to Todoroki.

“I said, I’ve never been to McDona-”

“Yeah, yeah, we got that.”  Uraraka threw her hands up.  “How not, though?!  Were you raised under a rock?”

“No.  I was raised in my home.”

Uraraka simply gaped at him.  

“What a mad banquet of darkness,”  Tokoyami supplied.

“Hey, now, we need to look at this as an opportunity!”  Ashido threw her arms over Uraraka’s and Todoroki’s shoulders convivially.  “We get to be the ones to see Mr. Blue Blood here pop his fast food cherry.”  Todoroki cringed at the comparison, shaking off Ashido’s embrace.  “Uraraka, Tokoyami, we have truly been blessed on this day."

“You’re right!”  Uraraka smiled.  “Let’s go, then!  We should make Todoroki eat a McRib.”

Blessed, huh?   Todoroki braced himself as they approached the restaurant, the vast unknown lying just behind smudged glass doors.  

The first thing to hit Todoroki was the smell, a pungent mix of delight and horror.  He could practically taste the grease in the air.  

“So, Todoroki,”  Ashido nudged his side.  “First impressions?”

Mismatched eyes scanned the spectacle before him.  “The space is somewhat… cluttered, yet also efficient.  The smell is also quite thick.”

“Ahh, that’s the golden aroma of their ‘World Famous Fries’.”  Uraraka clasped her chest.  “They’re heavenly.”

A bold claim, certainly.  Todoroki turned his attention to the menu boards.  And was promptly stunned.  “Holy hell, everything is so cheap!"

“Wow, Todoroki, that might be the most emotion I’ve heard in your voice, like, ever,”  Ashido joked.

Uraraka was delighted.  “I know, right, Todoroki?  It’s perfect for a broke high school student like me.”

Todoroki made a tactical decision to not mention his vast checking account.  

“So, what do you think you’ll get?”

Todoroki scanned the menu once more.  “I’m still deciding.”

“Take your time,”  Ashido nodded reassuringly.  “Nobody’s first time should be rushed.”

“Mine was,”  Tokoyami said, and was met with complete silence.  

“I think I’m ready to order,”  Todoroki declared, strategically.

Uraraka ordered a Big Mac, a ‘splurge’ in her words, which made Todoroki even more secure in his decision to not draw attention to his finances.  Ashido took the road less travelled by ordering McNuggets, and Tokoyami stuck true to his values by ordering a salad.  

Todoroki stepped up to the counter, inexplicably nervous.  He had faced countless villains, defeated the infamous Hero Killer, even taken two freaking knives to the arm, yet here he was, stumbling over the order he had rehearsed 7 times in his head.

“A, um, quarter pounder with cheese.  Except, can I take off the onions, mustard, and onions?  Fuck, I meant - ah shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to cuss.  And a small fountain frink - drink  - please.”

Todoroki wanted to die.  The cashier, a girl about his age with bright green eyes, smiled benevolently.  “Don’t worry about it.  So, no onion or mustard?”

“Yes, please.  And no pickle.  Please.”  The girl’s nametag read ‘Suzuki’, decorated with little squiggles.

“So demanding,”  she joked, eyeing Todoroki.  “But I can make it happen.  Has anybody ever told you that you have incredible eyes?”

Behind him, Uraraka stopped munching on her fries.  “Yes,”  Todoroki replied.  “One of my doctors said heterochromia affects less than .67% of the population, so I was an ‘incredible’ case.”

Suzuki giggled, much to Todoroki’s confusion.  He’d been serious.  “So, you’re quite a standout, huh?”  She leaned onto her cash register.

“Statistically, yes.”  

“Mmm,”  her own green eyes flashed, and Todoroki found himself enjoying their color.  Old habits.  “What’re the stats on me getting your number, then?”

Todoroki stared down at his order ticket, #73.  “I’d say 100%.  Don’t I need to give it to you to get my food?”

Ashido choked on her drink.  

“Well, yes,”  Suzuki soldiered on.  “But I was more talking about your phone number.”

“Oh.”  Green eyes occupied Todoroki’s attention again, but this time they didn’t belong to Suzuki.  “I’d, um, prefer not to.”  

“Aw, damn,”  Suzuki sighed, but good-naturedly.  “I can’t say I'm surprised, though.  Already got a special somebody?”

A spotlight may as well have been shone on Todoroki.  No signs of movement were evident behind Todoroki, and he could practically feel Uraraka, Ashido, and Tokoyami’s eyes on the back of his head.  

Todoroki may not have any idea what the hell was going on, but he knew questions initiated what the kids called a Bad Time.  Sure enough, a godforsaken throbbing emerged in Todoroki’s temples, and he stiffened.

“I, um.”  Todoroki unconsciously crumbled his order ticket in his fist.  “That depends on what you mean by ‘already got’.”

“Ahh.”  Suzuki winced sympathetically.  “You stuck in the friend zone?”

Crap, another question.  And a painful one, at that.  “It...seems that way,” Todoroki forced.

“Well, I think they’re missing the hell out, whoever they are.  They must be crazy to pass up on a .67 in a hundred guy like you.”

Suzuki was smiling, and the sincere kindness in her green eyes made Todoroki sigh - a little close to home .  “‘Crazy’ isn't too far off, actually.”  Midoriya’s mad grin at their first sports festival flashed through Todoroki’s head, and fondness traced the fairest hint of a smile on his lips.  “Thanks.”  

“No problem.”  Suzuki winked, and handed him a bag that was practically dripping with grease.  “Try not to get diabetes too quickly, now.”  

Unexpectedly, Todoroki made it a solid four bites into his burger before the interrogation began.

The first introduced Todoroki to the surprisingly delicious taste of the famed Big Mac, and he give himself a split second to surrender himself to the lovely flavor of grease before switching gears to more pressing matters.  

Bite two was marked by the illumination of a mental lightbulb.  His inability to make excuses, his adverse reaction to avoiding questions...there was no way it was just coincidence, it couldn't  be.

By bite three, Todoroki was convinced - as crazy as it sounded - that he was unable to lie.  He didn't know how, or why, or even if his theory was correct, but the puzzle pieces seemed to point to that, if not a very similar, picture.  

A picture where Todoroki was trapped with two talkative classmates and a shadow demon’s host in a fast food chain, unable to dodge questions or rely on trusty old Awkward Silence.

Bite four was quite hard to swallow.

Now - cue the interrogation.  

“Sooo, Todoroki…”  Ashido grinned, dangerously, and Todoroki could already hear his funeral bells.  “You like someone, huh?”

He forced his bite of burger down.  “Yes.  And wasn’t the whole point of this trip to make fun of my reaction to a cheap burger or something?”

Yes, change the subject.  Easy.  He could do this.

“Originally, yeah.”  Ashido leaned forward.  “But now, more pressing matters have arisen.”

Damn, he couldn't do this.  

“You mean you haven’t noticed before?”  Uraraka rolled her eyes.  “You just saw a perfect example of Todoroki’s social prowess, and you think he’d be able to hide a crush?”

Ashido burst out laughing, spewing bits of chicken nuggets.  “Oh my god, your little eye statistics.  My abs were aching .”

“I, too, felt I underwent a satisfactory abdominal workout.”  Tokoyami - that traitor  - pitched in.  

Todoroki frowned.  “I’m right here, you know.”

“...No offense.”  Uraraka patted his arm.

“Uraraka makes a good point.”  Tokoyami dapped at the ranch on his beak with a napkin.  “Todoroki does not interact naturally with people, like oil suspended in a sea of water.”

The burger in Todoroki’s hands sagged.

“The both of you are right,”  Ashido nodded.  “Which is why we need to help him!  Todoroki, who do you like?”

Todoroki panicked, dropping his burger with a wet flop.  Like hell he was going to tell this peanut gallery.  Knowing Ashido, she'd probably take it upon herself to lock Todoroki and Midoriya in a closet until they made out, or something.  A definite no-go.  

“Someone in our class.”  Alright, no pain jumpkicked Todoroki’s skull - vague answers seemed to check out.

“Well, duh.”  Ashido flapped her hand.  “Do you even keep up with anybody our age outside of U.A.?”

“No.”

Wow, this quirk was kind of -

“Any friends from childhood?”

“...No.”

-depressing.  

“Oh, ok!”  Ashido tried to recover with awkwardly forced enthusiasm.  “I'm glad that we get to be your first friends, then!  You've had fun, I hope?”  

“Once I got past the initial awkwardness, yes, I have made many fond memories,”  Todoroki babbled, then inwardly groaned.  He was oversharing.  It must be part of the condition.

Uraraka raised an eyebrow.  “What initial awkwardness?”

“During first year, I had absolutely no idea how to interact.  Once, I accidentally called Kouda ‘Gouda’, like the cheese, and I was too embarrassed to talk to him again for 4 months.  That's just one example.”  

“Oh my god,”  Uraraka whispered.  “He always asked us if we thought that you were trying to intimidate him.”  

Todoroki groaned - outwardly, this time.  “I'm the worst.  How am I ever supposed to become close with M- er, my crush if I can't even flirt with a random cashier?”

He didn't know why he was actively slapping his heart on his sleeve like this - maybe it had to do with his current predisposition towards honesty - but he allowed himself to continue.

“I'm just, I never have any idea what the hell I’m doing, and they're so, so incredible , so far out of my league that it’s laughable.  I don't even know how to begin.”  

Uraraka patted his shoulder.  “I can't be sure who you're talking about, Todoroki, but that cashier was right.  You can't sell yourself short.  And I don't just mean appearance-wise,”  she teased.

“You'll always have good ole Twitter as a confidence booster,”  Ashido added, sagely.  

“Inner beauty is great, but a little mascara never hurt.”

Todoroki blinked.  “But I don't even wear make-up?”

“I think,”  Uraraka chimed in,  “what Tokoyami was trying to say is that you're the whole package, Todoroki!  Whoever it is that you're interested in, you should tell them how you feel!”

“Yes!”  Ashido balled a fist in conviction.  “Love is the spice of life!  What have you got to lose?”

“A meaningful friendship, a large chunk of self-confidence, the relative ease of interaction between my crush and I, and a huge amount of sleep.”

“Well, alright, it sounds pretty dismal when you put it that way.  But between you and me, Todoroki,”  Uraraka leaned over to whisper to Todoroki.  “If it’s a certain green-eyed dude with no sense of self-preservation like I think it is, then I wouldn't worry about it at all.  If I were you.”  

Todoroki’s heart bungee jumped into his gut, springing back up into his throat.  “What?”  he choked.

“You heard me,”  Uraraka smirked.

“And I didn't!”  Ashido protested loudly.  “Secrets are no fair.  Right, Tokoyami?”  She grabbed his shoulders and started whispering obvious gibberish into the side of his head.  “Wait, do you even have ears?”

Todoroki took in the scene absently, mind still hooked on the fact that Uraraka, one of Midoriya’s closest friends, felt confident that Midoriya, well...Todoroki wasn’t quite sure, actually, but it was definitely good news, no matter how vague.  Right?

“So, Todoroki, how are you gonna confess?”  Ashido asked, yanking Todoroki’s attention back before he could delve too deep into fantasy over Uraraka’s words.  “Are you gonna go for a classic approach like a rooftop or just suddenly dip her into a kiss one day?”

And just like that, Todoroki plunged neck deep into fantasy again.  “I, I.”  His ears burned.  “No, I'm not planning to do either.”   ‘Her’ , Ashido had said, and Todoroki deemed it in his best strategic interest to not correct her.     

“Aww, boo.”  Ashido gave a thumbs down.  “And you haven’t even told me who it is, which is a double boo.”

“Let’s not boo Todoroki too harshly now,”  Uraraka - his beautiful, shining guardian angel - intervened.  “Not everybody likes to share like Kirishima.”

“Bakuuu~”  Ashido crooned, and Tokoyami smiled into his salad.

“Exactly.  So, for the sake of privacy, let’s call Todoroki’s mystery crush by a codename.  Like Toyota!”

And just like that, the guardian angel lost her wings.  

“Please, I’d rather not talk at all about...Toyota.”

“They have excellent crash safety ratings,”  Tokoyami said.

“The same can’t be said for Todoroki’s Toyota,”  Uraraka mumbled, and Todoroki glared at her. 

“I think this Toyota talk has been a long time coming, Todoroki.”  Ashido rested her chin in her hands.  “I mean, what was your plan?  Were you just gonna live your life infatuated with someone from the sidelines, staring at them longingly like some really cute outfit in a shop window that you know you’ll never be able to afford so you just cry in bed at night thinking about how great it would have looked on you?”

“What a concise simile,”  Tokoyami sniped.

Todoroki sighed.  “Yes.”  Because that was the truth, wasn't it?  If he kept going as he was, he and Midoriya’s fates were sealed as parallel rather than intertwined.  Somehow, admitting it out loud made Todoroki feel rather…

“Wimpy.”  Ashido tutted.  “That’s kinda wimpy, dude.  No offense.”

“None taken,”   Todoroki attempted, but the words wouldn’t come out.

“I’m always happy to help!  If you want, I can lock you and Toyota in a storage room closet or something until you inevitably start making out.”

Aaand there it was.  

“In my opinion, you should scribe this Toyota a heartfelt letter, spill your very soul onto the ink, and deliver it personally with care so that you may await their response with bated breath.”

Todoroki relaxed a bit.  That scenario actually sounded quite pleasant, really.  “I’m grateful for the advice, Tokoyami.”

Tokoyami nodded.  “Of course, after receiving your joyous response, you shall then proceed to make out, passionately.”

“Why is everyone so adamant that I make out with T...Toyota?!”  A nearby customer shot Todoroki a concerned look, and he debating sinking under the table.  

Uraraka laughed as Ashido grinned.  “Aww, Todoroki, you're blushing!  Thinking about sucking face with Toyota?”

“Yes!”  Todoroki croaked, and fuck his voice for cracking, honestly.  “And holding hands, and cuddling, and sparring until we fall on top of each other like always, but this time I’ll actually move forward and, um.  Nevermind.”

“So you have thought about it, after all?”  Ashido looked triumphant.

“Of course I've thought about it.”  Todoroki’s voice softened.  “I've thought about it every night for nearly two years.”

For a few moments, Todoroki’s only response was the beeping of cash registers and whir of industrial air conditioning.

“Two years?”  

And if Uraraka had sounded incredulous, Todoroki couldn't find it in him to blame her, because it was kind of shocking, really.  Admitting aloud just how long he'd had feelings for Midoriya made it seem all the longer, all the more real.  “Yeah.  Pretty long, huh.”

The cash registers kept on beeping.  Todoroki sighed.  

Then jumped out of his own skin when Ashido slammed her fist onto her plastic tray, voice raised in conviction.  “Then that's all the more reason to make a move!  You’re gonna go back to school, and you're gonna ask Toyota out!  Now, who are you?”

“Todoroki Shouto,”  he whispered, still a little alarmed.

“Nope, you gotta say it like you mean it.  Now, who are you?!”

“...Todoroki Shouto!”  Another customer glared at Todoroki, and he shrunk into his seat.

“Damn straight you are!  And now that that's settled, the three of us are gonna help you make all your dreams come true.  Right?”

“Right!”  Uraraka giggled.  Tokoyami inclined his head.  

Todoroki felt embarrassed, helpless, and a tap on his shoulder as a girl with navy blue hair suddenly appeared at their table, with impressive stealth.  “Did you say that you're Todoroki Shouto?”

“Hell yeah!”  Ashido exclaimed, still in motivation-mode as Todoroki confirmed his identity with a sinking feeling.  

“Oh my god!”  Navy Hair squealed, and retreated to another table, chock-full of prepubescent girls.  She pointed in their direction, and a dissonant chorus of shrieks followed.

“It’s time to go.”

Uraraka pouted.  “But we didn’t even get you a McFlurry-”

"Now .”

When the gaggle of girls arrived at Todoroki’s table, their only greeting was three unused ketchup packets.

The walk home was marked by a tempest in Todoroki’s gut, and he wasn't sure how much he could blame on the Big Mac.

Ashido and Tokoyami occupied themselves arguing over the fine line between goth and scene, and Uraraka turned to face Todoroki, brown hair swaying.  

“Is it nice to constantly have to outrun hordes of fans?”

“No.  In fact, their ever-increasing presence has put me on edge in public lately, and I get nervous.”

“...Oh.”

Silence reigned after that, excepting Ashido and Tokoyami’s heated debate, and Todoroki sighed into the warm air.  Christ, what a mess this whole impromptu affair had been, from the cashier, to customers likely thinking that Todoroki had a hard-on for his car, to Uraraka telling Todoroki not to worry about liking Midoriya.  

Wait .  Todoroki stopped in his tracks, then zeroed in on the messenger herself, walking with her hands in her pockets.  

“Uraraka,”  he called, jogging slightly to catch up.  “You remember what you said earlier about me not needing to worry about Midoriya?”

She twirled her hair with her pointer finger.  “Ah, yeah, I do.”

“Is there any way you could explain what you meant?”  he asked, failing to tamp out an excited edge as his stupid, smitten brain began anticipating her response, jumping to conclusions.

“Yes, of course, Todoroki!”  Dream Uraraka beamed.  “I was just saying that Midoriya is deeply in love with you and wants to date immediately and kiss in the locker room and let you play with his hair!”

Real Uraraka opened her mouth.  Todoroki felt his chest flutter.  “Nope,”  she stated - simply, devastatingly.  

Todoroki could practically hear his hopes shattering.

Uraraka must have heard it, too, because she smiled sympathetically.  “I'm sorry, Todoroki, but I made a promise that I fully intend to keep.  I’ve already run my mouth too much.  You’re a smart guy, though.  I’m 100% sure you’ll be able to work things out on your own.”  Her smile shifted into an encouraging one.

“But-”  A buzz in Todoroki’s pocket cut him off, and he pulled out his phone.

Midoriya Izuku:

>>>  how’s the face???

 Todoroki kept his phone close to his chest, inexplicably nervous.  It buzzed again.

>>>  hopefully not too bruised to keep random hordes of girls from attacking

>>> or maybe thats a good thing ?

 “What’s got you all smiley, Todor- oh my god.”  Ashido peered at the phone cradled against his chest and broke out into a dangerous grin.  Suddenly, his nerves didn’t seem so inexplicable anymore.  “You’re texting Toyota, aren’t you?”

Shit.  Todoroki may just end up shoved into a closet with Midoriya, yet.  “..Yeah.”

Before Todoroki could even react, Tokoyami appeared out of genuine fucking nowhere beside Todoroki.  “It’s Midoriya Izuku,”  he reported, straightlaced, straightforward, straight to the point.  

The common syllable, of course, being in direct opposition to a certain Todoroki Tidbit that had just been exposed to an incredulous Ashido, her black eyes popping.

“No fucking way…”  She abandoned Uraraka to join Tokoyami beside Todoroki.  “Holy shit,”  she whispered, eyes glued to the phone.  “I’ve been such a fool - I don’t know how I didn’t see it.  The gym fire makes so much sense now!”

“The important thing is that nobody got hurt!”  Uraraka piped up, across from the three of them.

“Let’s really not talk about that, please.”

“You’re right, Todoroki, there are more important things to attend to.  Like the fact that the Twitter heartthrob himself bats for the other team.  I think we should take a moment of silence for all the broken hearts of Todoroki’s fangirls,”  Ashido stated solemnly.

Tokoyami bowed his head in respect.  Uraraka missed the entire point by laughing.

And Todoroki just stood helplessly, the conversation completely out of his control.

Then lept out of his skin when his phone was swiftly swiped from his hand, Ashido whooping victoriously.  

“I’m gonna text him~”  she sang, and fear drenched Todoroki’s very core.  

“Don’t.”  He pled, desperately.

“Do.”  She retorted, mercilessly.  “Now which pickup line should I send him: the appendix one or the bandaid one?”

“I enjoy the appendix one,”  Tokoyami voted, and Todoroki knew it was only a matter of seconds before his most valued friendship lay in shambles.  

It was pure adrenaline, then, that made him lunge.  Pure survival instinct that made him grab for the phone, right as Ashido was typing.

Ashido - damn her  - dodged, holding the phone behind her back and cackling.  Todoroki lunged again, seemingly to the right, but then changing to the left at the last moment.  With a loud smack, he took hold of the top of the phone.

“That was a well-executed feint,”  Tokoyami praised.

The perpetrator squawked, but maintained her grip.  Todoroki yanked at the device - Christ, was Uraraka literally on the ground laughing in the background? - yanked with all his might.

“I’m trying to help you!”  Ashido gasped, eyes twinkling a bit too much for her intentions to be merely altruistic.

“And I don’t want to be helped by talking like Kaminari!”  

Ashido snorted at that, losing focus just enough for Todoroki to concentrate all his strength into one final tug.  

The phone - he’d gotten it back!  Todoroki released a huge sigh of relief and stuffed it into his pocket.

Then stiffened as a muffled, disembodied voice trickled from his pocket.   “Hello?”

Swearing under his breath, Todoroki pulled out the godforsaken device.  A full-screen photo of a smiling Midoriya affronted him, along with the knowledge that he must have accidentally dialed Midoriya up during his struggle with Ashido.

Fucking hell, couldn’t the universe cut him a single break?!

“Shouto?  Are you there?”

“Yep!”  His voice squeaked out on the wrong side of puberty, and Uraraka fell back down onto the street.

“Shouto?”   Ashido mouthed, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.  Todoroki’s cheeks glew red.  Of course they’d be able to hear Midoriya talking.  

“Oh alright!  It seemed like you may have called on accident.”

“Oh yeah.  That’s because I did.”

“Oh, haha.”

“Ha, yeah.”

Todoroki stood there awkwardly, toeing at the road.  

“What inspiring dialogue,”  Tokoyami deadpanned.

“For real, dude, this is horrible,”  Ashido whispered fiercely.  “Say something funny.  Flirt!”

As if he could ever pull that off.  Todoroki consulted the asphalt, mind coming up blank.  “So, uh, do you prefer a Frosty or McFlurry?”

Oh god, he instantly regretted that one.  Uraraka, who had only just stood back up, collapsed against a (rightfully) unimpressed Ashido, shaking violently.  

“Probably a Frosty.  They’re cheaper.”  From her slump on top of Ashido, Uraraka fist pumped.  “What about you?”

“I’ve actually never had either.”

“Oh!  Haha, that’s too bad.  To be honest though, I can’t really remember the last time I had either.”

“Ask him on a date!!”  Ashido whisper-yelled.

Tokoyami nodded.  “A perfect tactical opening.”

But instead of doing just that, of following perhaps the only sound advice he’d been offered all day, Todoroki glared and covered his free ear.  He’d had it to hell and back with making a fool of himself publicly.

“I know, I know, the tragedy must have shocked you into silence,”  Midoriya joked, and Todoroki felt fuzzy.

“Ah, not quite.”

Midoriya laughed.  The fuzziness increased.  “That’s cold.”

Forgetting his audience, Todoroki hummed.  “Hopefully, sometimes cold is a good thing.”

A muffled cough echoed through the receiver.  “Of course I like - I mean, cold things are awesome.  And hot things too!  Like, uh, I enjoy the winter and summer a lot separately, so if they came together or something it would be amazing.  Yep.”

“You’re so in there,”  Ashido giggled.

“Very much so,”  Tokoyami agreed, and Uraraka flashed the ok gesture with a huge grin.  

Todoroki’s face blazed even brighter.  It was high time to end this call before he slipped again.

“Alright, well I think I’m going to go now.  Sorry for bothering you.”

“You never bother me, Shouto,”  Midoriya’s voice crackled cheerfully, and Ashido awww’ed.  “Seeya later!”

“Bye, love you.”  Todoroki hung up calmly.

...

...

Then promptly dropped his phone, swaying violently on his feet.  

Dark Shadow instantly darted out to catch the phone, and Todoroki would’ve been grateful if it wasn’t for the tiny little fact that his entire world had just ended.  

“Oh my god,”  he whispered distantly.  

Nearly instantly, his phone buzzed again, and when Todoroki made no move to take it, to react in any way, to continue living, Uraraka grabbed it herself.

“Oh my god,”  he repeated.  Even Dark Shadow seemed to be cringing in secondhand embarrassment.  

“Midoriya wants to, uh,”  Uraraka spoke softly, like a paramedic to a victim in shock.  “He wants to know if you said that by accident.”  Then, more to herself.  “He’s probably halfway to actual physical combustion.”

“Oh my god.”   Todoroki swayed again, still a little hung up on the most mortifying blunder in his entire life.  This made the gym fire look like a barrel of fun.  “I just, I just told Midoriya that I’m in love with him.  Then hung up.”

“The instant hang up was a little cruel.  Although I guess I have to respect just going for it like that.  Even if it wasn’t romantic at all.  Like, at all.”

Todoroki faced Ashido with panicked eyes.  “I didn’t mean to say it!  It, it was just on my mind and it slipped out on its own and…”

Wait .  A predilection to say what he was thinking…

“Fuck ,”  he groaned, with real feeling.  

Meanwhile, Uraraka’s own phone began buzzing up a storm, and she raised her eyebrows as she scanned the messages.  “You really should explain yourself, Todoroki.  Before cardiac arrest comes into play.”

Shit, she was right.  Numbly, he took back his phone and opened his text window with Midoriya.

  >>>  hey did i hear u wrong or did u just say ‘love u’ hahahahahah

>>>  thats pretty funny dude, A+ joke, 10/10, top of the line there buddy

>>>  it was just like by habit right??  Right?????

>>>  once i called all might Dad ahahahancxknvkvnxd can u believe it??  hes not actually my dad !!1!  crazy!

Then, curiously, a message of all blank spaces.

>>>  I’m sorry about those prior messages, Shouto!  I’d appreciate it greatly if you disregarded them :)  Thank you!

 “I need to change schools,”   Todoroki croaked, shriveling inside.  Why, oh why hadn’t he just stuck with the appendix pickup line?

“Before you do that, though, could you please text Midoriya back?”  Uraraka glanced at her phone.  “Thank god I paid for unlimited messages...”

“What should I say?!  ‘Oh hey Midoriya, it’s Todoroki.  I know I just accidentally admitted that I’m in love with you but have you done the homework for Monday?’”

“Is an unfortunate Freudian slip really the manner in which you want to reveal your feelings?”  Tokoyami raised a respective eyebrow.

“Of course not!”  Todoroki scrambled to find the words.  “Midoriya - he deserves the world.  Or at least a goddamn bouquet.  Anything but this.”

“Then brush this off as an accident - as it genuinely was - move on, and focus on crafting a confession you deem worthy of Midoriya.”

“And my closet offer still stands, by the way,”  Ashido added, effectively squelching the composure Todoroki had gained from Tokoyami’s words.  

Drawing a deep breath, he unlocked his phone.  There was no need in prolonging the inevitable.  

 <<<   I’m sorry for not replying until now

<<<  I didn’t intend to say... what I said

<<<  like you guessed, it was an accident, and quite an embarrassing one

<<<  I apologize for any confusion.

 “Goddamn, Todoroki, you’re texting a friend, not drafting a business email.”

Todoroki ignored Ashido and opened Midoriya’s near-instant reply.

 >>>   oh haha thats what i thought!

>>>  dont worry about it dude, no big deal :D

 Todoroki shoved his phone back into his pocket, and began making his unsteady way back towards campus.  

Uraraka’s phone buzzed the entire way.

Twenty minutes later, Todoroki sped through his long-awaited shower, that disastrous “ love you”   looping endlessly through his mind.  He shampooed with much more vigor than necessary.

Twenty five minutes later, Todoroki received a text from Uraraka.

>>>   your ass is lucky that i also upgraded to unlimited minutes

Thirty minutes later, Kouda was surprised to discover the men’s bathing facility practically dripping with steam, and a thick slush of ice coating the bottom of one of the showers.

Thanks for reading!  :D 

[waywardmoeyy]

Chained (Part 2)

Sam x Reader 

Word Count: 1555

Warnings: flashbacks/nightmares, mental breakdown, angst, violence.

**Sorry this one is a little… different. I had a bit of a rough day emotionally and this is what came out. It’s not really what I was planning, but I just went with it... so I apologize.

Chained Master List

Dean nodded towards you, giving you he “go” to round the corner. Your machete was clenched tightly in your right hand as you swung around the decrepit concrete building, meeting up with half a dozen large vamps. The one in the middle was slight, but very tall. His long black hair fell over his shoulders, tickling his elbows. The monster grinned as you froze before them.

“Hello, my dear,” the monster cackled. You winced at his words as Dean took his place beside you, followed by Sam.

Sam shouted as another vampire tackled him from behind. You spun around to see at least a dozen more sprinting towards you and the boys. Before you could think, you were running at the front pack, machete straight out in front of you. Two massive vamps stomped towards you causing you to slow your pace. Each of them could eat you for breakfast, literally.

You lunged at the first one, slamming yourself into his arm causing him to lose his balance. “Timber!” you joked as your blade met his neck. The second vamp caught you by surprise, lifting you with one arm and slamming you to the damp concrete.

“Save this one for the collection.” The slim vampire ordered his thug. The giant lifted you into his arms and followed his master.

“Sam…” you muttered as your consciousness drifted away.

The smell of spice and soap filled your senses as you came to. Your head lay against a warm, solid mass clad in what felt like a cotton tee. You slowly opened your eye to see Sam glimpsing down at you.

“Welcome back, beautiful,” he whispered, leaning down and kissing your forehead. Dark purple rings encircled his eyes and his lower lip was split. His oily hair stuck to the side of his face. But he still looked pretty damn dapper.

You cleared your throat. “Hey.” Cough. “Water,” you begged. Sam turned to the table beside him, grabbed the glass of water, and handed it to you. You sipped it and sighed. “How long have I been out?”

“Several hours. You needed your rest. Gave us a bit of a scare, though. One minute you were up, the next you were out cold,” Sam explained. He cupped your cheek in his hand and smiled.

You brow furrowed. “You’ve been sitting here for several hours?”

Sam nodded and squirmed under you. “Yeah. I lost feeling in my legs at least and hour ago, and I really need to pee,” he joked. His tone was light, given what had transpired over the last week.

You slowly sat up, propping yourself on your hands, and shimmied off Sam’s lap. He stood and made a break for the bathroom. You chuckled as you watched him do his “potty dance” to through the doorway.

Once Sam was gone, the emptiness of the room consumed you. The four walls felt like they were closing in, wall photos of you and the boys growing and shifting in your blurred vision. You clutched the covers on your bed, shrinking into the fluffy comfort. I’m home, I’m safe. You repeated the mantra in your head. It was the only thing keeping you sane at the moment.

“Hey, you.” You jumped as Dean entered your bedroom. The room shot back to normal. “It’s good to see you awake.” Dean parked himself beside you on your bed, leaning in to hug you. You winced at the contact, closing your eyes and imagining Sam instead, wrapping his safety net around you.

“Yeah, glad to be back.” That was a lie. Your body ached. “You got any Ibuprofen? Aspirin? Something? I’ve got a headache the size of Siberia,” you moaned. It was true. Your neck had been the personal drinking fountain for vamps for four days or so. Ugh. Not something to think about right now.

“Yeah, I’ll be right back.” Dean shot up from your bed and headed down the hall.

Closing your eyes, you leaned against the headboard and shivered. The tension from being in that cell never left, but chained itself to you like a parasite. It had been the most terrifying thing to happen to you in a while.

You slipped out from under your covers and sauntered to the kitchen. Biting your lip, you reached above the fridge, on your tip toes, and grabbed the brother’s “hidden” bottle of whiskey. Then, you shuffled back into you room.

A sigh of relief left you as you studied your room. Neither of the boys were there, leaving you completely alone to enjoy yourself. You grabbed the bottle of aspirin Dean left on your beside table. After taking two pills with a swig of the whiskey, you flipped on the TV and searched through the channels. You stopped as you found one of your favorite movies, Underworld. You took another swig as you settled back into the plush comfort of your bed. A few days of good movies and whiskey should do the trick.

You lurched up against the backboard as a scream erupted from your TV. You eyes widened as the vampires fangs extended. Shutting your eyes, you dropped the whiskey to the floor, shattering the bottle. The clamor echoed down the hall.

“Y/N!” Sam shouted as he pounded down the hall. He rounded the corner into your doorway, “Y/N, what happened—“

You began to sob uncontrollably, your shaky hands holding your tear-soaked face. Your knees met your chest as you rocked back and forth. “No, no, no.”

“Y/N, baby.” Sam reached for you.

He grunted as your fist met his jaw. “No!” you shrieked. Sam plunged to the floor, holding his jaw.

Struggling to ignore the pain, Sam shot back up to your side and encased you in his muscular arms. “Shhh. It’s okay.” Sam repeated, holding you close. You wanted to believe him, you really did, but the fact was you had completely lost your marbles. Whatever the vampire did, whatever venom he released into your bloodstream was making you a nervous wreck. Vamps were an easy kill, but this was a new kind of vampire. A larger, stronger pack. Driven by something.

“Sam!” You wiggled from his grasp. “Sam! The vamps-“ Tears continued to stream down your face as you struggled for words. “They are hunting us! They are hunting the hunters, wiping us out.” The realization kick started your entire body. Standing from the bed, you started to pace back and forth in front of Sam. The hunter stared at you, wide-eyed.

“Y/N, slow down. Please. You’re starting to scare me,” Sam breathed. His breaths shuttered as his eyes flicked back and forth, following you as you continued to pace.

Guilt consumed you as you watched Sam struggle to find himself. He was overrun with concern and confusion. You had been kidnapped by vampires, tortured and fed on for four days, and now you were acting like someone had just shaken you like a maraca.

Sam grabbed you and pulled you onto his lap, holding you still. “Baby, please. Just stop. Just breathe,” he begged. Fear swirled in his hazel eyes as he watched the woman he loved break down. He rocked you against his chest. “There you go. Just breathe.”

You nestled your face in his neck. “Thank you,” you whispered as exhaustion took over.

Sam gulped down another shot of whiskey and slammed the glass onto the map room table. The younger Winchester ran his thick fingers through his freshly washed hair and sighed, thinking back to your meltdown a few hours before. He didn’t blame you. He had been in a similar situation several times. He just wished it was him going through it and not the love of his life.

“How’s she doin’?” Dean asked as he dropped into a chair across from Sam.

Sam contemplated lying to his older brother, but Dean would probably see right through him. He let out a sharp breath. “Not good, Dean. She’s having nightmares, flashbacks. Hell, one of her favorite movies triggered a major freak out. She’s sleeping now, but I have no idea what’s going to happen when she wakes up. It’s almost like a small part of her is still chained in that room.” Sam tilted his head as a thought crossed his mind as he remembered your rant. They are hunting the hunters.

Dean cocked his head as he studied his troubled sibling. “Dude, I’m so sorry. I’m sure she will get better as time goes on.” He slapped a hand onto Sam’s shoulder.

“Dean, there was something she said to me when she was having her episode. Something worth looking into.” He blinked hard as he tried to get the vision of you manically pacing out of his mind. “She said that she thought the vamps were hunting hunters. What if that’s why Harrison was there? A few of those guys looked familiar. I mean, what if Y/N is right?”

Dean rested his chin on his fist. “But why? Vamps have been around for centuries and only take what they need, maybe a little extra. But that was a pretty big nest…” Dean scratched his head. “I’ll look into it. Go check on Y/N.” Dean joked.

Sam raised himself from the table, nodding at his brother. He braced himself for what he might be walking into.

Forever Tag List

@pizzarollpatrol, @barbedwireandbubblegum, @drawingheartz

Chained Tags:

@the-bottom-of-the-abyss, @neverenough24, @roseangel013bf @aquabrie 

[jackfollmanwriter-blog]

Out of State

Your first year of college is supposed to be a coming of age story. Meet new people. Make new friends. Learn things that change your perspective on the world. Drink. Study. Fuck. Not me.

I spent the majority of my first year of college lying in bed in my dead grandmother's house sleeping, eating horrible food, beating off to Internet porn and skipping class while a black cloud of fear, anxiety and growing social anxiety seeped into my being like fog off a dark bay.

The first mistake I made was following my father's advice of moving into my freshly-deceased grandmother's house instead of the freshman dorms to save money. My parents agreed to pay the astronomical out of state tuition, the least I could do was accommodate by living in my grandma's dusty old house which still smelled like her nine months after her passing.

I had a lot of reasons not to complain. My grandma's house was fairly large, within walking distance of the school and the beach. Had I not been petrified of the place my entire life, it could have been a dream come true.

I spent most Christmas breaks of my formative years at my grandma's house in Santa Cruz, but no matter how times I stayed there, I never shook an unnerving fear of the place. One of those typical grandparent houses that hadn't changed a lick since the 50s, the place was just a completely alien environment for a little kid raised in a brand new house. It was one of those old homes that seemed to have a personality itself. Every step made a sound. It had its own scent. The lighting was dim. The artwork dated and eerie - filled with portraits of long-dead relatives. I never seemed to be able to sleep all the way through the night there.

Plus, my grandpa was a simply frightening dude who I never had a single real conversation with in the 15 years we shared on this planet. All I knew about him was he was well-decorated in the Pacific theater in World War II, he worked the night shift at some kind of factory, he slept (a lot), he liked McCormick whiskey (a lot) and I found out down the road he wasn't my biological grandpa.

The most-terrifying moment of my life occurred when I was nine. I was watching late-night TV in the living room because I couldn't sleep and he snuck up behind me. I can still picture him walking into the doorway of the living room stark naked – hairy with a pale blue skin tone. He didn't say a word, just walked up next to me and shut the TV off.

But back to what I was talking about...

Come September, I packed up my Chevy Malibu and drove down to Santa Cruz from my parents' home in suburban Portland to move into my grandma's house and start my first semester of college. I should have been stoked as an 18-year-old with his own three-bedroom house right off of campus about to start his first year at a killer school, but I was far from. I was leaving behind my brand new girlfriend back at home, my dog, and I was still terrified of my grandma's house. I tried to pull out of the whole out-of-state college thing just a few weeks before the semester started, but my parents convinced me to stick it out and set me up with a therapist to meet with weekly when I arrived to help me through it.

Things got off to a rocky start when I showed up. I couldn't get a good night's sleep in the house for the life of me and not just because the place freaked me out. Apparently crickets invaded the house while it was empty all summer and were almost impossible to get rid of. Their horrible chirping was perpetual once it got dark and the local exterminators were 0-3 thus far with trying to get rid of them.

Also, college was nothing like I thought it would be. One, it was a mountain of work. Two, everyone at my school was a crunchy hippy who I felt judged me on everything from the beef jerky I ate between classes, to my Nikes, to my Oregon Ducks football shirt.

I instantly became a loner. Just walked to and from classes and the store to occasionally pick up food and then locked myself back into the gloomy dim light of my grandma's house.

The days turned into a rhythm. Wake up late for class. Porn. Quick shower. Force feed. Fast walk to class. Get in five minutes late. Eat depressing lunch by self at the fountain in the quad. Go to other classes. Walk home. Porn. Frozen dinner. Porn. Seinfeld. Sleep. Again.

Until it started happening about a month into the semester...

She came.

The only light in the room beamed upon my face from the computer perched on my stomach. The screen broadcast a short film which gave me a deep feeling of shame in my gut knowing this was all taking place in my mom's childhood bedroom. But hell, I was an 18-year-old boy, what do you expect me to do?

I was right in the middle of things when the blanket flew off of my body, leaving me completely exposed in the night. I threw my laptop to the floor without caution and jumped up in the bed to see the blanket  lying crumpled on the floor in the blue light of the computer screen.

Was there a gust of wind? No. All the windows were closed. The coastal sea air made it chilly on the October nights. There was no way that blanket could have flown off me the way it did unless it was pulled off by someone else.

I laid there, panicked and panting with my eyes glued to the laptop, coated in embarrassed sweat.

I felt the presence of a new weight introduce itself to the foot of the bed.

The dark and the adrenaline of shock and blush clouded my vision, but I could see a presence approach me from the foot of the bed. Sleek, slender and soft, I saw the hazy outline of a red-haired woman crawling up the bed at me. She slipped up my legs until she was rested her soft weight upon my wilted lap.

From a closer vantage, I could see the woman's face though it was still cloudy, as if she wasn't fully there. I closed my eyes tight as she pushed her face to my mine and kissed me softly upon the lips.

I opened my eyes once I felt her's push away from me. I saw the woman sitting on the end of the bed, her back facing me, shuddering with muffled sobs.

I pushed myself up against the headboard as much as I could and closed my eyes again.

I stayed up at the top of the bed, tucked up and frightened for hours until I felt the weight of the woman get up off of the bed and leave the room. Injected with a faint amount of relief, I uncoiled my body and relaxed, lying naked on the bed, wide awake until the morning came.

*

It's funny how the shining warmth and light of a burning ball of gas millions of miles away can provide so much comfort to your fears. The glow of the sunny day which greeted me when I walked outside to go to class soothed the troubles of the crazy night before.

My classes and lunch went by in the same quiet, dull, depressing way they usually did, but instead of rushing back to my grandma's house to drift away the night in seclusion, I was reluctant to go back. I hung around campus after my last class not knowing what to do. I considered calling my parents. But what was I going to say.

Hey mom and dad. I have to come home because grandma's house is haunted by the ghost of a hot young woman?

There was no way I could do that. Unfortunately by the time I decided on this, the Fall sun had set on the Pacific and the only place I had to go was back to the house where the aforementioned sexy ghost was.

I at least had a juvenile strategy. I heard about a mini-mart just off of campus known for selling beer to underage students and figured I could make a stop there to see if I could buy some of the world's oldest cure for fear and anxiety.

The rumors were true, but I made the grave mistake of purchasing two forties of Steel Reserve. I figured I should skip the usual Bud or Coors Light I would get and buy something I assume a person of age would buy with the four dollars and change I had in my wallet as not to draw suspicion. I sat in the backyard of my house forcing down the malt liquor and wincing in disgust.

The alcohol started to kick in about halfway through the second 40. The tension and fatigue from not sleeping last night smoothly started to melt away and the booze pumping through my veins made me a little bit bolder. Was I seriously scared of a female ghost? I could tell I was sufficiently drunk when I started to think to myself the ghost was really attractive and I almost hoped she would come back again.

I poured out the rest of the second 40 onto the grass and headed inside.

Even my blood alcohol level couldn't fully numb the uneasy feeling the house gave me. The chirping of a lone cricket and the presence of a half-full glass of red wine upon the kitchen counter when I walked in shot me with a jolt of sobriety.

A closer look at the glass revealed the faint hint of red lipstick stuck upon the top rim of the thin glass. A wave of cold fear overtook the warm glow of alcohol inside me.

I heard sounds of a shower running coming from the hallway which led back to the bedroom.

I thought about running back out the door, but stumbled towards the sounds of the shower, following a trail of women's clothing strewn upon the carpet. I bit down upon my cheek when I walked into the dark hallway and full absorbed the sounds of the spraying water in the bathroom.

The door to bathroom was open just crack, releasing moisture and the scent of fruity body wash into the air. I stood outside the door for a handful of moments, chewing my fingernails.

I took a deep breath and went in.

Her silhouette was there in the fogged-up, pebbled glass of the shower. Her back to me, I admired and feared her form at the same time for a few moments before I slipped back out of the room.

So drunk and so tired, I felt as if I almost melted into the bed when I collapsed upon it. I wasted no time undressing, brushing my teeth or conducting any other pre-bed time rituals, just laid down and let sleep take over me until my mind was thankfully blank.

*

The problem with an booze nap is once the alcohol wears off, you are left wide awake, sweating and starting a hangover in the middle of the night.

My eyes opened wide in the dark to reveal an alarm clock which announced the time as 1 AM and a window pelted heavy with thick rain and a stiff wind. Waking up almost immediately sent the tortorous surge of a raging, dehydration headache onto my skull. It quickly felt as if my brain was shrinking inside my head. I wanted to vomit.

I went to crawl out of bed towards the bathroom, but was halted by the feeling of a stir in the bedside at my back. I felt it again. A light shifting accompanied by the sound of a sigh.

I froze at the edge of the bed. I was too hungover and groggy for this shit but had to get up off the bed to shoot a look.

She lied there sleeping in the bed right next to where I had messed up the covers. Her long, thin arms draped over a naked body of golden skin and long auburn hair. The sight was something I probably usually would have liked to see, but not under these circumstances.

My answer to the problem? Go to the bathroom. Barf my guts out. Go out and sleep on the living room couch.

*

Thank God I had an appointment with my therapist the next morning. I usually dreaded our little parent-forced sessions, but I truly needed to talk to someone at that moment in time, or I might officially lose the last of the marbles I was grasping.

It was a while in the session before I broached the topic, but a back-and-forth about the consequences of my solidarity provided a nice, defensive segway.

"So how often do you interact with other people, on average?" My therapist asked from behind thick glasses and a clumsy plume of grey hair which tickled down at her eyes.

"At least a few times a day," I said in a tone I'm sure could not have sounded more defensive.

"I mean, true human interaction. Conversation. Feeling. Touch. Not just a please, thank you with the clerk at the store, an 'is that seat open?' From a classmate."

"Uh, I don't really know."

"I know it might seem hard, but I think you need to make an effort to include more interaction in your life. I understand it's not easy."

"I don't think you truly understand what I'm going through?"

"I think you're right. You haven't been overly forthcoming with exactly what has been troubling you."

"I'm haunted."

I couldn't believe I outright said it. I immediately swallowed my tongue.

"What are you haunted by?"

I waited a long time to respond.

"A girl."

"An ex-girlfriend? Your mom mentioned you left a girlfriend up in Oregon, but you broke up. Classmate who spurned you?"

"No. I have no idea who she is."

"So it's the idea of a girl?"

"NO. IT'S A FUCKING GHOST. A FUCKING GIRL GHOST IN MY GRANDMA'S FUCKING HAUNTED HOUSE."

My face was bright red, my hands trembling.

"You think the house you're living in is haunted?"

"Uh huh."

My therapist thought about it for a few moments.

"You know sometimes when people are isolated, don't have much interaction, they begin to invent characters in their head. It's how a lonely child before they attend school with other children might invent an imaginary friend. Our brains crave other characters in the little play taking place in our head."

"It's not an imaginary friend. This is what why I didn't want to bring up my true problems."

I watched her jot down something on her notepad.

"And I know what your thinking. I'm not crazy."

"Look, I'm only trying to help, but if you aren't willing to work with me, there isn't really anything I can do."

"Well, okay."

I got up out of my seat.

"I'll be on my way then."

I nodded at my therapist before I headed out the door.

A walk on the soggy beach sounded like a good way to calm my nerves. I shouldn't have brought up the ghost. The therapist was probably going to report to my parents I was going schizo or some shit and  I was going to get shipped off to some kind of crazy house with a bunch of weirdos.

The light rain thankfully mostly cleared the beach and I was left alone with my own troubles as I traversed the thick sand until I reached the boardwalk and ran into an old friend. The scent of freshly-burned marijuana.

My eyes instinctively followed the scent to a smoke trail which trickled below the boardwalk.

Clustered under the cover of the boardwalk was a group of about six or seven vaguely-familiar flunkies all clad in dark sweatshirts and jackets.

"Don't be starring unless you want to hit this," a bearded-member of the group interrupted my starring.

I blushed and put my head down for a moment, but eventually headed over to the cloud of smoke and was greeted with a chorus of laughter.

"That's what I thought," the bearded guy said with excitement.

I joined the group and took a hit before passing it to a girl with a shaved head and long eyelashes in a camo jacket.

The townies had some really good weed, not a huge surprise in Northern California. It hit me like a freight train after a few more passes of the pipe.

The group had been talking about a nice little "kick back" the entire time I was with them. Based on the steady eye contact they all kept making with me, I figured I was invited to said "kick back."

Not surprisingly, their sweet "kick back" consisted of sitting around someone's mom's dog shit-infested backyard in the run down part of town, smoking more weed, drinking some cheap beer and listening to the bearded guy play a ratty old Epiphone acoustic guitar (poorly) and cover Pink Floyd and Bob Marley songs (also poorly). The only thing that kept me around the gathering into the night was the conversation between me and the girl with the shaved head whose name I discovered was Loralei.

Loralei made it clear she lacked respect for me since I was enrolled at UCSC. The townies hated the disrespectful rich kids (especially the out-of-state ones) they believed made up the student body. However, she respected my mutual distaste for my colleagues. She also said she liked my accidental, lazy style. I had been reduced to wearing my dead step-grandpa's slacks, smoking jackets and never combing my longish hair out of pure laziness and only Loralei's fondness for my attire made me realize my get up actually probably made me look like some kind of aloof indie rocker.

The two of us slipped away from the group and a tone deaf version of Redemption Song to have a quieter conversation on the steps of the house where we could hear the sounds of someone's mom hacking smokes and watching Wheel of Fortune.

"This shit's pretty disappointing, isn't it?" Loralei asked.

I was so high, I could barely speak, but managed.

"It's better than what I usually do here, I guess."

"What's that?"

"Lay around my house by myself. Sometimes buy some beer and get a little messed up."

"Doesn't sound that bad, you have your own house? I thought you said you were a freshman here? Shouldn't you be in the dorms?"

"My family has a house in town, I'm staying there."

"Then let's go there. This shit is boring. I do this everyday."

Loralei was interrupted by the bearded guy, guitar in hand. I was alarmed to turn and see his eyes intensely glued to mine.

"Hey bro. Can I ask you something real quick?" He said and sent a nod in the direction of a quiet corner of the yard.

"Uh, yeah, yeah," I agreed with fear bubbling in my stomach.

The bearded guy (I still didn't know his name) got really nervous and jittery once we reached the secluded patch of grass in the corner. He could barely focus, but eventually started talking with his eyes on the ground.

"Uh, I have a question for you man."

"Okay."

"You think you are better than us just because you go to that fucking school?"

"What?"

"Are you trying to come in here and take our girls?"

I gave the guy a long, confused stare.

"Uh, no, sorry man," I said in the same way you would say to a homeless  person who asks you if you have a quarter. "I mainly just want to leave now."

The bearded guy didn't say another word. Just stared at me for a few moments before walking back towards the fire.

The whole interaction shook me up. I was instantly no longer comfortable in the situation I should have never been comfortable in to begin with.

I saw an opening in the fence next to me and slipped out onto the sidewalk.

I started off towards the better part of town and my home in a clumsy gait, tranquilized by the weed which was still bogging down my system.

"Wait. Wait," I heard Loralei's voice call out from behind me.

I turned to see her run up to me in the streetlight.

"What are you doing?"

"It was getting just a little too weird for me in there."

"Yeah, I know. It's weird. But you still want to hang out?"

*

Loralei and I locked arms about halfway through the 20 minute walk to my grandma's house. The touch of another felt so refreshing to my tortured body. I think it had been a couple months since I had enjoyed the true touch of another person.

I was a little bit scared of what Loralei might think when she came into my grandma's old school house and saw all the quilts, glass elephants and family portraits from the 80s, but I figured if she was used to the scene we just ditched, she wouldn't bat an eye. I let her in behind me. My brain raced with the usual fears you have when you have someone over unexpectedly. Did I flush the toilet? Is there porn pulled up on my laptop? Is my dirty underwear lying on the floor?

All my fears evaporated when Loralei grabbed me in the dark room and kissed me. She pulled me close and we stumbled over to the stale couch where she fell on top of me.

She covered my mouth and started unbuttoning her jacket. My heart began to race in a good way for the first time in quite a while. I started to take my clothes off while I admired Loralei. I was so excited I almost didn't know what to do.

I think she could sense my nervousness. She leaned down, bare-chested and we made out for what seemed like quite a long time. It had been so long for me and I was so high I thought we might have made out for an hour when we finally pulled away from each and gasped for air. I smiled at her and tried to catch my breath.

I was going to say something sweet, but something I saw out of the corner of my eye caused me to bite upon my tongue and quiver in pain.

Sprinting down the hallway with a lit candlestick in hand was my ghost, her dark hair whipping in her front of her face in her full dash, her speed nearly extinguishing the candle in her hand.

"Holy shit," I yelled out.

Loralei's eyes transformed from sensual to horrified in a flash. I tried to scramble out from under her, but wasn't fast enough.

The lighted candlestick flew into her head, fell down her jacket and landed on a quilt on the couch next to us, quickly igniting it.

"What the fuck?" Loralei screamed out.

I saw Loralei lifted up off of me by the back of her head. She squirmed before shaking away and tumbling to the floor.

I saw my ghost in as good of a focus as ever in the light the rising fire of the quilt provided. Her dark eyes glared at me from across the couch before she turned her attention back to Loralei.

The ghost chased Loralei to the front door. As soon as she left a gap between her and the hallway, I bolted and scrambled into the kitchen.

Once in the kitchen, I took a turn for the bedroom. There was a lock on the door. There was a lock on the door. I kept repeating to myself.

I burst into the bedroom, locked the door and ran into a big closet in the corner. There's another lock on the closet.

I slapped in the lock in the closet, tucked myself behind a collection of hanging heavy coats which still smelled like my grandma's stinky perfume and held my breath, waiting for the sounds of footsteps to approach the door.

But they didn't.

I stayed quarantined in the closet for what must have been hours. I wondered if I would see daylight when I finally took a deep breath, unlocked the latch and headed back out into the master bedroom.

It wasn't quite light in the room yet, but the blue aura coming from the bedroom window meant dawn was just greeting the world. I tiptoed in the shallow light over to my bed where I hoped to grab a couple of hours before the full stroke of morning but was greeted by a hand-written note placed upon my pillow.

Written in blank ink cursive, I felt just a touch of moisture upon the paper when I picked it up and read it.

It's okay if you don't want to be with me.

*

Weeks went by without another appearance from my ghost. The only thing left of her were the burns on my grandma's old quilt in the living room.

I myself actually slipped into becoming more and more of a ghost. I never went to campus. Was failing all of my classes. The only time I left the house consistently was to go to my therapist so she wouldn't tip off my parents about my falling apart and when I did, I played the part of the sane guy who was putting it back together. Never brought up any ghosts with beautiful faces.

I couldn't even really talk about my ghost anyway. She left me. I passed the days alone in my dark grandma house strangely missing my supernatural partner. Would she ever come back?

It seemed for those dark weeks, the answer would be no, but then I received a message from a  number I had never seen before.

The call came early in the morning (I was sleeping again, a lot actually) from a number I didn't recognize. Being it before seven in the morning and a number I didn't recall, I figured it was phone spam and went right back to sleep.

When I awoke a few hours later, I discovered a new voicemail connected to the missed call. When I hit play, I heard a voice I instantly recognized, but couldn't place where I had heard it at the same time.

Hi James. Last night was great. I hope we can do it again. Bye. Bye.

I played the message again and again and again, trying to figure out where the hell I knew the voice from, but still couldn't place it.

I thought a shower might help clear my mind but I shocked myself when I got off the bed and onto my feet. Lying on the floor, next to the bed was an empty condom wrapper, a rose petal and another note in the same penmanship of the one I had read weeks before.

See you tonight. ♥♥

*

The shower did nothing to help. The hot water cooked my troubled mind until I got out and slowly started to work my way to a resolution: I was going to embrace this thing.

My life was a hideous shamble. So why not have company? Even if it is dead company. I shaved (everywhere), combed my hair, put on a proper outfit for the first time in months and popped open a bottle of red wine I found in the cupboard that had probably been in there for years.

I took a seat on the uncomfortable couch in the living room, sipped on my vintage 2014 merlot and waited for my mystery guest to arrive - my eyes glued to the front yard outside the living window, my ears tuned to every little sound in the house. I had no idea from where she would come.

I would sit in that stale room with the stuck-together ribbon candy and Yankee candles, sipping my merlot until the bottle was almost finished and the sun began to set. No one arrived throughout the day, except for a postman who walked up to the door and avoided eye contact with the entire time.

*

I awoke on the couch to the sounds of a rumbling engine, which like that voice on my phone, was familiar, but still alien at the same time.

I opened my eyes and saw tall headlights burning through the open blinds of the living room window. I squinted, my head throbbing from the forming hangover, I faintly saw the outlines of a few people walking up from the driveway towards the front door.

I tried to scramble to my feet, but fell to the floor in the middle of the room and couldn't get back up. I was glued to the floor.

The footsteps were at the door now. Shit, I couldn't remember if I had locked it.

I heard the door handle turn. Okay, I definitely didn't lock it.

The door opened and the first person I saw walk through was not who I expected. It was not some kind of sultry, haunting figure vaguely familiar to my addled brain. It was someone I knew far too well.

My dad.

He was followed by another person deeply ingrained in my memory.

My mom.

They walked in together with one more person trailing them who was more in the hazy realm of my brain.

The ghost. Her scorching eyes burned into me once she walked into the room.

"Why the hell are you here?" I screamed up at them.

"James, you know why were are here," my said with tears in his eyes.

I watched my dad pull out a pipe and a small baggy out of his jacket pocket. He pushed the items down in my face.

"We already took these from the backyard."

*                                                                                                                                                                                        

I was addicted to heroin. It was as simple as that, yet not quite as simple as that at the same time.

I wasn't even fully aware I was addicted to heroin at the time I was in so deep. I smoked the stuff multiple times a day in the backyard and started the bad habit back in Oregon months before I moved  down to Santa Cruz. So by the time I showed up there, my brain was an unreliable fog of hazy addiction.

The "ghost" I was seeing was actually my ex-girlfriend Tory. I had been ignoring her texts and calls, deleted her from my phone and Facebook contacts and she was desperately trying to connecting with me, knew of my addiction and was trying to get me back to normal before my parents found out. I had only started dating her after my addiction had started so my strung out memory and hazy vision inside the dark house clouded her in my mind. She was going to school up at Humboldt State so she could only do the long drive to Santa Cruz periodically for short periods of time to try and rescue me in the night and then would have to get back on the road in the early morning to keep her own education from falling apart.

After seeing how bad I was, she eventually caved and told my parents. They immediately jumped on a flight and came down to have an intervention with me.

Now I am far, far from my grandma's supposedly haunted house in a rehab facility somewhere on the Oregon Coast wearing a white robe, sipping coffee all day, taking up smoking and watching country music videos on TV (for some reason that's all they watch here). It fucking sucks.

I sit in my white little room, with my born again roommate always telling me something about Corinthians or John 3:16 or some shit I have to tune out just wishing someone would actually haunt me.

Preferably someone sexy please.

Originally published by Thought Catalog on www.ThoughtCatalog.com.