#I should fully write out all my feelings on amy at some later date when my brain is working because this was the first time I had ever seen
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Round 3


Propaganda Under Cut
Stephanie Brown
Literally my best friend ever!!! Every time she shows up in a comic I point at her and smile!!! She’s the vigilante known as spoiler & batgirl & was a robin before getting fridged because of editorial mandate and misogyny she deserves so much better @_@. The m/m that some people hate her for is timkon; like they ARE very gay but people are genuinely insane about hating her instead of also realizing that she too is gay (insane amount of subtext w her bff cass). Basically she was Tim’s girlfriend for a long time on and off. People will literally call her abusive for no reason they’ll be like oh but she didn’t apologize for starting a gang war accidentally and faced no consequences for it :/ as if she wasn’t literally KILLED OFF BRUTALLY. And although hate is rarer for her nowadays from what I’ve seen she’s also a victim of Background Lesbian Syndrome. And also a victim of Woman Not Allowed To Have Ocmplex Feelings in the source material itself (tim is canonically bi now yay but like steph wasn’t allowed to have any complicated feelings at all at her on again off again ex breaking up with her for good???). Anyways she’s the light of my life.
she’s the light of my life my baby girl my everything. she canonically dated tim drake, but people love to ship tim with his male friend kon or his male brothers (🤢🤮) and so they constantly sideline her, making her the quirky wingwoman or sometimes even villainizing her by trying to claim she was abusive to tim. i don’t know why so many people hate her my girl will literally just be standing there and people will hate on her.
Stephanie was first introduced in the 1994 Robin series as a side love interest for Robin, but when she turned out to be really popular she became the main love interest. Because of this, she was fully fleshed out as a vigilante calling herself Spoiler to try and take down her villainous father, the Cluemaster. She later grew a lot closer to other cast members, such as Batgirl and Oracle, to get herself a firmly established place among the bats. Then, she dies in a gang war after taking up the Robin mantle. Eventually, in 2009, she was brought back from the dead and took on the Batgirl mantle. Her and Robin get back together sometime around ~2010 and they are solidly together until 2021. Then, Robin breaks up with her off panel for zero reason in canon, only to date some really boring guy named Bernard. By fanon, she's often demonized and turned into an abuser to make either this ship, or a lot of other mlm ships happen. Either that or things are mysteriously set in the time she's dead despite characters who were not yet introduced until she returned appearing. strange.
Amy Rose
WAUGH okay so basically like everyone villainizes her when shipping Sonic with any other character (and 99% of the time its Amy being villainized against a m/m ship ://) but yeah Amy canonically has a "crush" on Sonic and stuff (which is weird in its self cuz age gaps and things but creators smh) and anyways any time people write Sonic in a relationship with other characters they always make her super upset and mad that Sonic isn't dating her etc etc and basically make her a pouting 12 year old because her super hero crush doesn't date her instead of writing her as a supportive best friend to sonic WHICH SHE SHOULD BE WRITTEN AS !!!! and uh yeah if you couldn't tell this makes me so upset because amy is such a good character people should stop ruining her
Even outside of yaoi, she is the most hated character in the FRANCHISE. THERE ARE ENTIRE WEBSITES DEDICATED TO HATING ON HER. HER MERE EXISTANCE CREATES SHIP WARS. IT IS HELL. EVEN THE OFFICIAL TWITTER ACCOUNT AND THE ARCHIE COMICS HATED ON HER IN THE PAST.
Not only is she a incredibly serious victim of yaoi, she is bashed in every fic where Sonic is paired with someone other than her. And when she is paired with someone other that Sonic, Sonic is bashed. And when she is paired with Sonic, other characters commonly paired with Sonic are bashed. It is a chain reaction of madness. Even outside of shipping, she is one of the most hated characters in the fandom. She was flanderized to ridiculous amounts. Even the official Sonic twitter used to mock her. Even official gaming news sites mock her, with a particularly horrible case being when TheGamer outright said Sonic being paired with TAILS is better than Sonic being paired with Amy. The amount of hate this character has attracted is incredibly large. There are entire websites dedicated to hating her.
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spare me a little (of your love)
summary: Klavier always liked to express his love with flowers, so sending a beautiful bouquet to his boyfriend every now and then seemed like the obvious thing to do. However, there’s just one little problem - Apollo is very, very allergic to pollen.
word count: 5.3k | read on ao3
a/n: For @klapollo-week, day two of seven (prompt: "flowers"). All seven of my fics take place in the same continuity! However, each can be read as a stand-alone, with the exception of day seven being a sequel to day five.
This fic takes place at some distant point in time after Spirit of Justice where Apollo and Trucy have learned that they’re siblings, but doesn’t reference any specific plotlines otherwise. My source for flower meanings can be found here. Fic title is from the song Spare Me a Little of Your Love by Fleetwood Mac.
“The language of...flowers?”
“Oui, oui, mon ami!” Athena chirped, nodding eagerly. “That’s just one of the many languages I speak, y’know.”
Apollo eyed her skeptically over the top of his laptop screen. “...right. Elaborate, please.”
“Well, you know how people usually give roses to express their love?” Athena said, leaning across the gap between their desks. She didn’t even blink when she accidentally knocked over Apollo’s calendar and pen holder in one fell swoop. Apollo, on the other hand, shot her an affronted glance that she deftly ignored. “Well, each flower actually has its own specific meaning. It even varies from color to color! Par exemple, white roses symbolize innocence, while yellow roses symbolize friendship.”
“That seems unnecessarily complicated,” Apollo remarked. “Don’t most flowers come with a card? Why can’t people just write their messages instead?”
They turned at the sound of a disappointed groan coming from the middle of the room. “You’re so unromantic, Polly,” Trucy complained, peeking at them from over the back of the couch. “I almost feel bad for Mr. Gavin!”
“Hey,” Apollo protested. “I can be - I-I’m romantic!”
“If you say so,” Athena giggled, poking him in the shoulder. Huffing, Apollo prodded her back. Athena reached for a rubber band, fully intending to escalate things. She lowered her projectile dejectedly when Apollo raised his hands in surrender; he had no interest in losing an eye today.
“Sunflowers and tulips are supposed to symbolize happiness, right?” Phoenix asked. “Those are pretty much the only flowers I really know, so.”
There was a long, uncomfortably drawn-out silence. “...Daddy, your ex-girlfriend’s name was Dahlia. Her real name was - is - Iris.”
“Oh...right,” Phoenix chuckled, only mildly embarrassed. “Speaking of, do you know what dahlias and irises mean, Athena?”
Athena’s eyes were practically sparkling now. “Oui! Dahlias symbolize elegance and dignity.” Phoenix made a face. “...but, they also symbolize dishonesty and betrayal.”
“That’s more like it,” Phoenix muttered under his breath. “And irises?”
“Faith, wisdom, that kinda thing,” Athena shrugged. She then paused. “Y’know, if you want some ideas on the kinds of flowers Mr. Edgeworth would like, I can make some - ”
“Nope, nope, I-I’m good,” Phoenix interrupted swiftly, his face reddening. He had a vase of daffodils sitting on his desk, which Edgeworth had sent to the office a few days ago. None of them believed Phoenix when he claimed they were purely intended for decoration. “So why the sudden interest in flowers, Apollo? Is this, er...is this about Gavin?”
“If you’re not talking about your prosecutor, sir, I’m not talking about mine,” Apollo said firmly, turning back to his laptop.
“Sure, except I think your prosecutor’s fair game when he picks you up from work most days,” Phoenix teased. His tone was eerily similar to Trucy’s. If Phoenix wasn’t both his boss and his sort-of stepfather, Apollo would’ve picked up a rubber band himself.
A few hours later, Apollo was locking up the office for the evening when he heard the roar of a familiar-sounding motorcycle coming up the street. He turned, biting back a smile as Klavier pulled up beside the sidewalk and turned off his engine. “Your bike really is as obnoxious as you are.”
Klavier removed his helmet, pouting. “Achtung, is that any way to greet your boyfriend?”
“It is for me,” Apollo replied, kissing him briefly. “Hi.”
“Hallo,” Klavier murmured against Apollo’s lips, grinning as he pulled away. “Dinner?”
“Yes, please,” Apollo said, reaching for Klavier’s spare helmet. “I’m feeling...pizza and all the cheesy garlic breadsticks. Or maybe we can just get cheesy garlic breadsticks.”
“As nice as that sounds, you need more vegetables than the little bits you get in your cup noodles, baby,” Klavier said, patting Apollo’s hip affectionately. “Pizza, breadsticks, and a side salad, ja?”
“Fine, fine,” Apollo grumbled, settling in behind Klavier. “Turn me into a rabbit, why don’t you? Buy me a bag of carrot sticks the next time we go to the grocery store. Stuff my mattress with straw and newspaper - ”
“And people think I’m the dramatic one,” Klavier lamented, shaking his head in amusement.
It wasn’t long before the two of them were sitting on the floor of Klavier’s living room, pleasantly stuffed with pizza and breadsticks and a mediocre amount of Greek salad (“I’m not a fan of olives, you know.” “Not surprising, since the color doesn’t work with your complexion.” “Klavier, I swear to - ”). A random made-for-TV movie was playing in the background on mute, though neither of them were particularly interested in watching it.
“How was work?” Apollo asked, taking a much-needed gulp of cold water. He wasn’t sure if he was ever going to get the taste of garlic out of his mouth.
“Boring, unfortunately,” Klavier said with a grimace. “Herr Edgeworth didn’t have anything but paperwork to offer me. No trials, no investigations, nichts. You?”
“Same,” Apollo replied. “Mr. Wright’s mostly working with Athena this month, so they’re taking the big clients while I get stuck with the smaller cases. Not that I’m complaining, I mean - it’s a nice change from Khura’in. I don’t want every trial to feel like I’m going under, you know?”
“Nein, that would be terrible,” Klavier agreed. “Exciting, sure, but the stress wouldn’t be worth it. I already found a gray hair the other day, ach.”
Apollo snorted. “Just one? You should see mine - I’m gonna be completely gray by thirty-five at this rate.” He shuffled closer so he could snuggle up against Klavier’s side, letting his head drop to Klavier’s shoulder. “So...turns out, Athena knows all about the flower language thing. Figured she might.”
“Flower...language...thing?” Klavier echoed, confused. He then brightened. “Ah! From our video call with my mama the other day, ja? I didn’t know you were actually interested.”
“I wasn’t, not at first,” Apollo admitted, squeezing Klavier’s arm. “But...I want your parents to like me, and since she said she was taking an interest, I thought, y’know, why not look into it? And it sounds kinda...contrived, not gonna lie. But I guess it’s kinda sweet, too. Like a secret language between just two people.”
Klavier’s face softened. “Ja, exactly. My parents used to write love letters to each other when they were in school, so I think this is Mama’s way of starting a new tradition - buying Papa flowers so he can plant them in his garden. You should see our family estate in the summer, it’s absolutely stunning.”
“Sounds like it,” Apollo said, smiling. “Your parents’ lives sound so...peaceful. Baking, gardening, travelling...I know it’s a little early to start thinking about retirement, but still, they’re living the dream.”
“They’re not retired yet,” Klavier chuckled. “And stop making me feel like I’m dating an old man, bitte. You complaining about your back makes me feel like I have to start complaining about my back.”
Apollo hummed, tracing random patterns along Klavier’s forearm with his finger. He was pleasantly sleepy from a number of things - his long, if uneventful day of work, the amount of cheese and carbs he’d just consumed, and the warmth of Klavier’s skin against his. “Sorry we can’t all afford chiropractors and massage therapists, sheesh,” he teased, unable to hold back a yawn.
“Maybe we can get a massage together someday,” Klavier suggested, stretching luxuriously. “Ah, before I forget - since we were talking about my parents just now, they asked me the other day if it would be alright to text you and send you things, little gifts and whatnot.”
“Huh? They would do that?” Apollo exclaimed. “I only just met them, like, a week ago!”
“They’re a bit...much,” Klavier said carefully. “Even when I was in high school, every friend I brought home was a potential lover to them, you know? They wanted to know everything about them, to shower them with gifts and affection. Even when I started working, I would ask Papa if I could have some flowers from his garden - you know, an arrangement to thank Herr Edgeworth for giving me a raise, a bouquet for my manager when we got our first record deal - and it was always the same story. Achtung, it’s embarrassing, but they mean well. You don’t have to say ja if you don’t want to, I just thought I’d ask.”
“No, I - it’s okay, I’d love to get to know your parents more, I’m just surprised,” Apollo admitted. The thought of them liking him this easily made him both relieved and unnerved at the same time. “Should I, uh, get them something in return?”
“Nein, nein, let them spoil you.” Klavier cupped Apollo’s face in his hands, kissing him softly. “Just like I do.”
“Sap,” Apollo murmured, kissing him back.
_____
It was a sort of gradual thing, for the most part. Barely a day had gone by when Apollo found himself in a group text with Klavier’s parents; he quickly discovered how witty and sweet and whip-smart they both were. Klavier’s father sent gorgeous photos of his garden - and calling it a garden seemed almost too modest when it seemed to be the size of a soccer field - while Klavier’s mother sent book recommendations, even the occasional movie recommendation.
“I never thought I’d be at that point in my life where my boyfriend’s mother sends me three long paragraphs about how she ‘discovered’ the Legally Blonde musical, but here we are,” Apollo had mused to the other agency members.
“Did you tell her that Klavier reminds everyone of that song, the one that goes - ”
“No, Athena, I did not. I want her to like me, remember?”
Soon after that, gifts started to arrive. Apollo had requested they send them to the agency, given how little he trusted his apartment building’s security after they nearly let his cat escape not too long ago. Unfortunately, it was too late before he realized that sometimes, he trusted his co-workers - or more specifically, his sister - even less.
“Trucy, do you know who ate the last piece of pie? Y’know, the one I was saving for today, to celebrate the end of my trial?”
“...huh. No idea, sorry, Polly!”
“Wait - th-there’s graham crumbs on Mr. Hat, what the hell - ”
His sister’s betrayal aside, Apollo felt good about things, almost unusually good. He soon started texting Klavier’s parents just as frequently as he did his own mother, thanking them for their generosity whenever they sent the occasional box of pastries or discounted event tickets. They also exchanged anecdotes about Klavier, along with stories about their own lives. He even received celebratory emojis whenever he told them about his victories in court - over their son, no less.
“I’m starting to think they like you more than they like me,” Klavier had lamented, though he seemed pleased all the same.
Then, a month into their budding familial relationship, a problem arrived on Apollo’s desk in the form of a bouquet the size of his head.
“Ah-choo!”
Trucy and Athena, who had been standing by the latter’s desk, both startled at the sound. “Ay Dios mío!” Athena exclaimed, clutching her heart in shock. “Are you okay, Apollo? That was some sneeze. I thought we were having another earthquake!”
“Har, har,” Apollo said dryly, reaching for a tissue. “It’s just the - achoo - flowers, that’s all.”
“They’re beautiful - very classic,” Athena added, dropping into Apollo’s desk chair so she could get a closer look. “Red roses and white lilies, claro. Ooh, I see some red carnations and white chrysanthemums, too!”
“Well, I see a card,” Trucy said, plucking a small white notecard from between the leaves. “Let’s see what it says!”
“That’s for - achoo - me, thank you very much.” Apollo snatched the card out of her hands, then squinted through his watery eyes to read it. “I...oh. Klavier says his mom helped him make the arrangement, with flowers from his dad’s garden.”
“How sweet!” Trucy gushed, taking a moment to sniff them, inhaling deeply as her eyes drifted closed. “Ooh, and they smell amazing. Mr. Gavin is such a good - ”
“Ah-choo!” Apollo sniffled, wiping his nose carefully. “...dammit.”
“I didn’t know you were allergic to pollen, Apollo,” Phoenix commented; he was on the other side of the room, pouring himself a cup of tea. “You never had any problems with the flowers Edgeworth sent to m - I mean, to the office.”
“Maybe it’s a freshly-cut thing?” Athena guessed, ignoring Phoenix’s awkward laugh. “Or, y’know, some flowers are worse for allergies than others. Dahlias, for example, are the worst.” Phoenix made another face before turning back to what he was doing.
“You should tell him you’re allergic,” Trucy said, patting Apollo’s free hand in sympathy. “I’m sure he’d understand.”
“But…” Apollo hesitated. The others braced themselves, anticipating another sneeze. “...this is from Klavier and his parents, you know? I can put up with a sneeze or two if it makes them happy. He loves sending flowers, and his dad’s really into gardening, so...if I tell them, they’ll stop doing it, and they’ll be too understanding, and I - I can’t deal with that. The, uh, the niceness, I mean.”
“Poor you, having the sweetest in-laws in the world,” Athena teased, pouting exaggeratedly. Oh, the humanity, Widget added. Apollo would have glared at them both, had he not started sneezing again. “Como tú quieras, I guess.”
Hours later, when Klavier met Apollo at the agency, the sight of his face brightening when he saw the bouquet confirmed Apollo’s fears. “Ah, how wunderschön,” Klavier declared, beaming. “I was worried they wouldn’t hold up during delivery. Do you like them, liebe?”
“They’re beautiful,” Apollo said, as honest as he could be. “Thanks, Klavier. I, uh, I hope it didn’t take you too long to put together.”
“You know how picky I can be,” Klavier hummed, carefully drawing a carnation out of the vase between two practiced fingers and bringing it up to his nose to smell. “I don’t settle for anything less than perfekt.” He turned, smirking. “That’s why I’m dating you, after all.”
“Gross,” Apollo said, wrinkling his nose; the effect was ruined by his affectionate laughter. “Hey, is it okay if I press them after they’ve wilted? I was thinking I could keep ‘em in my journal as a nice little reminder.”
Klavier chuckled, reaching over to squeeze Apollo’s hand. “Of course, Forehead. They’re all yours, you don’t have to ask for my permission. And I’m sure Mama and Papa would be delighted to hear you’re planning to give Papa’s flowers a second life. We’ll have to send you more in the future, ja?”
“...ja,” Apollo said weakly, his heart sinking.
_____
The next bouquet arrived two weeks later, bigger and bolder than before. According to Athena, it consisted of pink and orange roses, pink lilies, and yellow alstroemeria. However, it seemed to be the handful of sunflowers that topped everything off that left Apollo’s nose running all day.
“I think the only sunflower I can stand to be around is my attorney’s badge,” Apollo had bemoaned.
After that came an arrangement of white daisies, red gerbera, and white limonium (or, as Trucy liked to call it - she liked practicing tongue twisters when she was bored - “linoleum”). Then green hydrangeas and Queen Anne’s lace, which admittedly wasn't so bad, followed by purple daisies and pink gerbera, which was very, very bad. Apollo did not like the fact that he was getting used to the taste of Benadryl. He did manage to get some reprieve when Klavier sent him a simple vase of pink peonies.
“They’re hypoallergenic,” Athena had informed him. “But...mein Gott, Apollo, just tell him already!”
“But if I do, i-it’s…” Apollo had gestured wildly, unable to find the right words. Athena and Trucy had exchanged glances, then shook their heads in eerily synchronized disappointment.
Pink carnations and pink alstroemeria, purple irises and white aster, yellow daisies and orange roses; Apollo was starting to think the Gavin family garden was endless. And while his journal had never looked prettier, every page decorated with carefully pressed petals, every other page detailed with a date and a description courtesy of Athena’s expertise, his nose had never looked worse, his skin pink and dry and irritated. He was getting too used to the smell of CeraVe as well.
Finally, a bouquet of red roses - thankfully, also hypoallergenic - arrived with Klavier himself. He seemed delighted to be at the agency while everyone else was present for once, chatting happily with Athena and marvelling at Trucy’s card tricks. He and Phoenix seemed awkward around each other, though Apollo supposed that was to be expected. Even now, they hesitated whenever Apollo brought the other one up.
“So what’re you doing here, Mr. Gavin?” Trucy asked after she’d successfully duped him three times in a row. Apollo had to stop her before she started charging him for it. “Is it date night?”
“Not exactly,” Klavier said, turning to Apollo. “I came here to ask you something in person, liebe.”
Apollo raised an eyebrow. “Well, that’s not suspicious at all. What’s up?”
“I think it’s about time you meet my parents in person.” Klavier took both of Apollo’s hands in his, smiling hopefully. “So, if you’re ready...are you free this weekend? We could go to my family estate, spend the day - Mama would love to teach you how to make those puff pastries you like, and Papa wants to show you around the garden so you can see where all your wunderschön flowers came from.”
“I...oh.” Apollo’s face fell for a split second before he quickly regained his composure. “Sorry, Klav, that sounds incredible, but I-I was gonna stay with Mom this weekend. Maybe another time?”
“Natürlich,” Klavier replied, still smiling. While his smiles usually made Apollo feel warm and fuzzy, now all he was feeling was gnawing guilt. “Let me know when you have a free weekend, ja?”
“For sure,” Apollo promised, pecking him briefly on the cheek. “And thanks for the roses, even though I, uh, kinda ruined the occasion.”
“Ruined?” Klavier repeated, chuckling. “Ach, it’s no big deal, you’re busy. We have time, don’t we?”
“Of course!” Apollo exclaimed, far too loudly. Klavier didn’t seem to mind, though; he leaned down to kiss Apollo properly, humming all the while.
“Anyway, I should get going before Herr Edgeworth notices I’m not in my office,” Klavier said, reluctantly pulling away. The look on Phoenix's face suggested he knew that Edgeworth had figured it out long ago. “Auf Wiedersehen, süßer!”
The second Klavier left, Apollo let out the breath he’d been holding. He didn’t even need to look up to know the others were staring at him very judgmentally. “...I don’t wanna hear it.”
“You really shouldn’t lie to your boyfriend, Apollo,” Phoenix said gently; his voice had taken on the sort of “dad” tone that made Apollo feel even guiltier. “Er, that is, you shouldn’t lie to anyone, but you know what I mean. Are you really protecting his feelings by doing this?”
Sighing, Apollo collapsed into his desk chair, dropping his forehead to his desk with an audible thunk. “I know, I know. It was stupid from the start, but...I-I honestly wasn’t expecting him to send this many! I thought it’d be, y’know, for special occasions only, like every few months or whatever. Then I could deal with it, and he would never have to know. Not, like, just ‘cos he felt like it. Though I guess I really should’ve seen it coming, knowing him.”
“You really gotta tell him,” Trucy insisted. “Next time you see him, okay? Or else you’re never gonna say anything!”
“I will, I swear,” Apollo insisted, combing his fingers through his hair. He could feel more grays coming in by the second. “I have no interest in being the worst boyfriend ever, believe me.”
_____
It didn’t take long for Apollo to realize that while he was perfectly fine - or, at least, reasonably fine - with confrontation in the courtroom, he was very much not fine with confrontation in his personal life. The flower arrangements came less frequently now, and when they did, they seemed to be exclusively hypoallergenic. Klavier’s invitations, on the other hand, seemed more persistent.
“I don’t mean to push,” Klavier would say. “It’s just that exam week is coming up and, being professors and all, they’re going to be very busy soon. I was hoping we’d be able to spend some time with them before then.”
“Yeah, o-of course,” Apollo would reply, his stomach twisting every time, knowing full well he was about to turn him down again.
Another weekend went by, then another. There always seemed to be something, whether it was Apollo’s sudden frequent visits to Thalassa’s, Trucy’s sudden need for a magic show assistant, or that Apollo was just too tired to be good company. Eventually, Klavier seemed to simply stop asking. In fact, he seemed to stop asking him about anything at all.
“Do you wanna grab lunch?” Apollo had once asked Klavier while they were both packing up after the end of a lengthy trial.
“I don’t know.” Klavier had sounded tired, subdued; he refused to look Apollo in the eyes. “I think I’m just going to head back to the office and catch up on my emails. Take care, Herr Forehead.” He’d quickly swept out of the courtroom before Apollo could even say goodbye.
Apollo’s group text with his parents seemed to slow down, too, especially when it came to Klavier’s papa’s photos of his garden. Klavier’s mama, on the other hand, sent him short, stilted messages, now seemingly out of obligation instead of affection. Their near-radio silence, Apollo had to admit, was well-deserved. He knew he had to do something before it was too late, if it wasn’t already too late.
“I was surprised you wanted me to join you today,” Klavier said one morning as the two of them were taking a leisurely stroll around People Park, hand-in-hand. “Lately, I feel like I’ve been dating a ghost, achtung. We only ever see each other in court. Maybe at crime scenes, too, if we’re lucky.”
“And I’m surprised you agreed to come,” Apollo admitted. “I missed you, Klavier. Only...I, uh, I know that’s really my fault, not yours.”
“You do, do you?” Klavier sounded bitter. His grip on Apollo’s hand was looser than usual, like he was ready to pull away at any second, like he wanted to run. The thought made Apollo’s chest ache. “And here, I thought you were as oblivious as ever.”
“Hey,” Apollo protested, frowning. Then, he sighed. “No, you - you’re right. This is on me. Will you - I - listen, I have something for you, back at the office. Can we go get it before you head to work?”
Klavier nodded shortly. While his eyes had softened, his smile was still strained. “Ja, let’s go.”
Thankfully, the agency was empty when they got there, save for a certain something sitting patiently on Apollo’s desk. He set his bag down, then turned on all the lights, his heart pounding rapidly against his ribcage. “So these aren’t as nice as your dad’s, but, uh. This is for you...and your parents.”
“What do you - ah!” Klavier approached Apollo’s desk with wide, disbelieving eyes, his gaze fixated on the beautiful arrangement of white lilies, yellow tulips, and white orchids wrapped in white decorative tissue paper. “Apollo, these are...they’re lovely! Did you pick these out yourself?”
“Athena helped,” Apollo said, hovering nervously. “She said white lilies are for humility, yellow tulips can mean forgiveness, and white orchids symbolize strength. Fitting, since I wanted to...apologize. For being a horrible boyfriend.”
“I don’t know about ‘horrible’,” Klavier said, gently running a finger down the length of one of the orchids. “...but you have been distant. If you’re not actually interested in meeting my parents, or if you...if you want to end things, just say so, will you?” His voice cracked. “I might like a bit of drama every now and then, but not in my own life. Not in my own relationship.”
“What?! No, no, I-I don’t wanna end things at all!” Apollo exclaimed, his voice filling the room. He took a few deep, even breaths to calm himself. “Just...will you hear me out? Please?” Klavier nodded, though he refused to look at him. “I’m...I’m sorry for avoiding you and your parents. And before you ask...yes. I was doing it on purpose. It’s nothing that - none of you did anything wrong, okay? It’s me, i-it’s - it - I - ah - ”
Klavier turned on his heel, worried. “Apollo? Are you - ”
“Ah-choo!”
Klavier jumped. “Ach - Apollo?”
“I forgot there were asters in there,” Apollo grumbled, reaching for a tissue. He wasn’t sure which was redder now, his nose or his cheeks. “It’s - I - achoo - ”
“Apollo,” Klavier said slowly; if Apollo didn’t know any better, he would've thought he was trying not to laugh. “Are you, by chance...allergic to pollen?”
Apollo sniffed sharply. “...yes, dammit, yes! That’s literally what I’ve been trying to say - achoo - just now, until - achoo - my sinuses decided to - achoo - speak for me!” He was half-doubled over at this point, clenching a fistful of tissues in both hands.
“Baby, have you been rejecting my invitation to meet my parents because you’re allergic to all the flowers we’ve been sending you for the last several weeks?” Klavier sounded more incredulous than angry.
“...yes. Yes, I have, yes, I’m an idiot and an asshole and - achoo - I’m so sorry, Klavier, I - achoo - ”
“Bitte, say it, don’t spray it.” Klavier held up Apollo’s tissue box for him, keeping it - and Apollo himself - at a good distance. “Mein Gott, Apollo, I thought you wanted to break up with me! Why didn’t you say anything earlier?!”
It took another minute or so before Apollo finally stopped sneezing long enough to get a full sentence out. He sniffled again, wiping his nose completely clean. “...have you ever told, like, the tiniest lie to make someone happy, only for it to turn into a big...thing? And then you know you have to come clean, that it’s what you’re s’posed to do, but the thought of doing it makes you anxious, even if not doing it also makes you anxious, and then...it just...it, uh, it stays with you.” He swallowed thickly, shaking his head. “Not that that’s an excuse, it’s just - that’s just what happened. I’m sorry, Klavier, I really am. I really do want to meet your parents, they’re so sweet and friendly a-and funny, I’m just...I’m bad at this. Really, really bad at this.”
Klavier sighed. Apollo held his breath, anticipating the worst. Then, Klavier wrapped him in his arms, letting out another sigh of relief. “I understand, liebe, and...I forgive you. Danke for explaining yourself.” He kissed the top of Apollo’s head. “Maybe we should’ve stuck to sending you pies, ja?”
Apollo laughed wetly. “I don’t know how you’re joking right now. That’s usually my job.” He lifted his head from Klavier’s chest to look up at him with a grateful smile. “I really did love the flowers, you know. When they weren’t attacking my respiratory system, that is.”
“Still, let’s not push it any further,” Klavier said wryly. “Now - two things, if you don’t mind. First, let me give you some moisturizer for your poor, poor nose. I’m not kissing you until I’m sure your skin won’t flake off in the process.”
“Ew, thanks for the gross visual,” Apollo grimaced. “And the second thing?”
Klavier smiled. “If you're alright with it, I’d like you to tell my parents what happened...in person.”
_____
The garden was just as beautiful as Apollo imagined it to be, given the dozens and dozens of photos he’d gotten from Klavier’s papa. It was full and lush and vibrant, with towering trees that provided ample shade, a beautiful gazebo with a built-in fireplace, a gorgeous two-tiered fish pond, and of course, a plethora of flowers, as far as they could see. Everything was especially beautiful, in Apollo’s opinion, from the relative safety of the conservatory.
“We’re not throwing you to the wolves, darling,” Klavier’s mama insisted, as if she were talking about actual wild animals and not her husband’s hobby. “We’ll stay in here for high tea so you can admire the garden at a safe distance, yes?”
“Yes, th-thank you,” Apollo stammered, relieved. “High tea?”
“Today’s menu is German chocolate scones and mini-sandwiches. With the crusts cut off for my fussy baby boy, of course,” she added, pinching Klavier’s cheek with a devious grin.
“Mama,” Klavier protested, embarrassed. His papa chuckled, settling into the chair across from his son; he still had a smudge of dirt on his nose. “I’m a grown man, achtung. I have my own health insurance and everything!”
“I really am sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Gavin,” Apollo said sincerely. Despite their kindness and generosity, he was still somewhat intimidated by them, by how tall and beautiful and well-spoken they were. As much as he didn’t want to think about his former boss, Apollo could see where he and Klavier got their good looks and charm from. “I wanted to make a good impression, but I, uh, I didn’t go about it the right way. I’ve been wanting to meet you for a while now, but...I kept it from happening for a dumb reason, and it led to me hurting your feelings and Klavier’s feelings. I’m sorry.”
“All is forgiven,” Klavier’s papa insisted, waving a hand. “Just promise you’ll stop by every now and then, alright? Our doors are open to you, Apollo. Consider us your parents, too, if you’d like.”
Apollo smiled softly. “I would, sir.”
“It’ll be a good, allergy-free time, I promise,” he continued with a teasing wink. “We’ll bake some bread, watch some home movies...are you interested in seeing - ach, what do the kids call it - Klavier’s ‘goth phase’?”
Apollo’s mouth dropped open. “...his what.”
“Papa, nein,” Klavier whined; he really did sound like a child now. “Maybe it was a mistake to bring you here, liebling.”
“Oh, I disagree,” Apollo said, his grin widening. “I would love to see Klavier’s goth phase. Did he dye his hair?”
“Oh, did he,” Klavier’s mama said slyly with the exasperated sigh of a parent who had dealt with too much. “It’s a miracle he managed to get back to blond at all.” She then got to her feet, smoothing out the front of her apron. “Anyway, Papa and I should go check on the scones now. You two sit tight, okay?” Before Apollo could blink, she’d dropped kisses on both his and Klavier’s foreheads, then disappeared down the hallway and into the kitchen, her husband in tow. He turned to look at Klavier, who was watching him nervously.
“I love them,” Apollo admitted. “They’re so sweet, Klav, they - stop looking at me like that, will you?”
“You can’t blame me for worrying,” Klavier said, kissing him briefly. “But I’m glad to hear it. Ich liebe dich, schatz.”
“Love you too, dork,” Apollo murmured against Klavier’s lips. “...so. Did you have a lip ring, or snake bites, or - ”
“Get out of my house,” Klavier huffed, pinching Apollo’s arm with an exaggerated pout.
“Hey! This isn’t your house, it’s your parents’ house, and they said their doors were open,” Apollo teased, laughing. Rolling his eyes, Klavier pulled Apollo into his arms, the two of them snuggled up on the loveseat. In the distance, they could see birds and butterflies fluttering among the flowers, a stray squirrel or two sniffing curiously at the edge of the fish pond. It was peaceful, serene. If it wasn't for the pollen, Apollo could see himself staying outside for hours at a time. “...but seriously, I’m looking forward to the video evidence.”
“I’m sure you are,” Klavier sighed, giving Apollo one last kiss before his parents returned with a large tray of sandwiches, scones, tea, and a vase with a single red rose for decoration - hypoallergenic, of course.
_____
a/n: Welcome to my second entry for Klapollo Week 2021! Continuity-wise, this is the fourth of seven fics, but again, there is no need to read the others to follow each fic on its own. Today, I have projected my allergies and anxiety onto Apollo, because that's what fanfiction is for, right? I hope y'all like my version of the Gavins; I've written them as cold and distant a couple of times, but I usually prefer to write them as warm and witty so that Klavier has a good support system in his life.
Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Likes and reblogs would be much appreciated. Hoping you're all safe and healthy and doing well ❤️
#KlapolloWeek2021#klapollo#kyodoroki#klapollo fic#ace attorney#ace attorney fic#myfic#long post#sorry these previews are so massive!!#today's and day four's are probably the most lighthearted
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Omg congrats on 600 followers! Honestly any fake dating with Jonah x Amy would be amazing, although I love number 44 and/or 48 on your Google Docs <333
This is my first Jonah x Amy fic and I offer two caveats: 1) I’m still not sure if there is a particular vibe people who read for this pairing preferring, so...here we are, and 2) I have only made it through 4x12 of Superstore but am pretty familiar w/ what happens the rest of the series.
Prompt: “You know we’re not actually dating, so why did you propose to me in front of my family?” / “I’m sorry, I panicked.” --- Title: the scene of the complication Fandom: Superstore Pairing: Jonah/Amy Other Characters: My crippling insecurity writing for a new fandom, sleep soft mornings, dumbs being dumb (but, like in a cute way) Additional Tags: friends to lovers (or idiots to friends to lovers??), fake dating shenanigans, alternative universe where Amy’s HS pregnancy test was negative and she and Jonah met in college Word Count: ~2,100 ---
It started with a chance meeting ten years ago, and somehow it’s brought Amy Sosa here: awake in her childhood room with Jonah Simms beside her, sleeping off upwards of half a dozen tequila shots. Maybe she shouldn’t be surprised. She knew that day they met in the lecture hall that Jonah was a person who would make her life exceedingly more complicated.
And ten years later, here they are, practically leaving complicated behind in the rear view mirror.
(“What are two hopes and one fear you have for your first lecture on your first day of college?” the guy sitting to her right asks.
Amy doesn’t answer at first but this stranger just waits for her, all blinking, bright eyes and freshman eagerness. It’s barely morning. Is this her life now?
“Hope one,” she says, holding up a finger, “that I’d sit next to someone quiet. Hope two,” she holds up another, “that no one would talk to me before I managed to find coffee.” She holds up a third finger. “And this moment right here is what I feared.”
For some reason, her shortness delights him. His smile is open and affectionate, and he nods in appreciation.
“Noted.”
And Amy fully intends to never speak to this wide-eyed panda boy ever again, but then their General Psychology professor informs the class that the person they’re sitting next to will be their assignment partner for the semester.
The next lecture her partner – his name is Jonah, she learns – brings her a cup of coffee and doesn’t speak a word until she takes a long sip.
Complicated.)
Jonah snuffles in his sleep, his eyelids fluttering slightly. His hair is doing that thing it does when he’s hot or drunk or has run a hand through it too many times, where a single lock of hair hangs in the middle of his forehead. Amy resists the very real urge to brush it away. Because, yeah, she has those kinds of thoughts a lot and they also make things complicated. They’re friends. Maybe even best-friends, but definitely not ‘tenderly brush a lock of your hair away’ friends.
Do those kinds of friends even exist?
Jonah stirs again, and now that it’s clear he’s actually waking up, Amy reaches for her phone and opens Candy Crush. The last thing she needs is to get caught staring at him like some weird stalker.
“Oh, god,” he groans, his voice scratchy. He stretches out with another groan, his foot bumping against Amy’s as he does. Rather than move away, he kind of just rests it there on top of hers. And this is something she is all too familiar with. Drunk and/or hungover Jonah is yet another complication. More accurately, his propensity to cuddle indiscriminately is a very real complication.
“I need—” Amy reaches for the glass of water on her night stand and hands it to Jonah, stopping him mid-thought. “Do you have—?” She hands him two ibuprofen. “Thank you,” he says.
“You’re welcome.” She looks back at her phone.
Jonah swallows the two pills and drinks the entire glass of water, and then lays back down, curling slightly into Amy’s side.
“I made so many mistakes last night,” he says.
“I’m aware. As are your 80 Instagram followers.”
“I liveblogged it?”
“And tagged everything with the hashtag ‘best noche ever.’” He groans again and turns his face into Amy’s side. She sets her phone back on the nightstand. “What got into you?”
“Your dad is intimidating.”
“My dad?”
“Yes. Your dad. And then he and your brother kept pouring me shots—”
“I knew this had Eric’s fingerprints all over it.”
“Well, it was kind of my fault, too.”
She frowns. “What do you mean?” Jonah doesn’t answer and Amy kicks him under the covers. He looks up at her. His eyes are red-rimmed but also so sleepy and soft. Complicated. “Jonah.”
“They kept asking me questions. About you and me. And I was so worried I’d say something wrong, I kept taking shots to avoid answering.”
“You could have found me.”
“I know, but—” he trails off.
“But what?”
“I want them to like me.”
“Oh, Jonah.” She gives in and brushes the lock of hair off his forehead, and he looks up at her. “They’ve known you for 10 years. They’re never going to like you.”
“Thanks, I feel so much better.”
“I do have one more question.”
“Okay.”
“You know we’re not actually dating. Right?”
He closes his eyes and nods. “No. Yeah. I know.”
“So why did you propose to me in front of my family?”
“I panicked.”
“Panicked?”
“Your dad asked what my intentions were, and there were just so many shots.
“And that’s why you shouted ‘I intend to marry her!’?”
Jonah flips the comforter over his head. “I just got wrapped up in it all.” His words are muffled from under the comforter.
She’s glad for the moment of respite, with Jonah unable to see her. If Amy didn’t want things to careen so off track, she probably shouldn’t have agreed to let him come to her dad’s retirement party as her fake boyfriend.
(“I don’t see what the problem is,” Jonah says, spooning more cashew chicken onto his plate. “You don’t still have feelings for Adam, do you?”
“No. No. God no,” she says. “Absolutely not.”
“Alright. I’m clear on the no.”
“It’s just the last time I saw him— Well, you know.”
“I recall, yes.”
And he does. Jonah knows all about Amy’s high school boyfriend. The one she liked but never quite loved. The one she broke up with when the pregnancy test came back negative. The one she slept with again the summer after their senior year of college.
(An event that occurred in no small part because Jonah was dating Mindy and the two of them were talking about moving in together. Maybe moving to the west coast together and Amy realized there was a very real possibility she was going to be left behind.
Jonah doesn’t know that part of the story.)
Adam is also the guy who thought having sex in her childhood bedroom meant Amy wanted to get back together. He’s the guy bringing his very beautiful fiancée to her dad’s retirement party. Because he’s also somehow the guy who still helps her dad with home improvement projects. And Amy is just Amy – the one who doesn’t visit St. Louis enough, and is using her very expensive liberal arts degree to work as a survey researcher for Cloud9, meaning she’s basically paid to manipulate shoppers.
And, not that it should matter, but she’s also very single. Has been for a while now.
She mostly blames the man stealing chow mein from her plate for that. She blocks Jonah’s chopsticks with hers, and a piece of cabbage goes flying.
“Stop that,” she says.
“You’re not eating it.”
“I’m too annoyed to eat.”
“If you only ate when you weren’t annoyed you’d starve.”
“I hate you.”
She pushes the chow mein around her plate. God, when she thinks about it, this really is Jonah’s fault. If she could just find a way to get over this stupid, dumb, little crush that has creeped up – without her permission, mind you! – then maybe she could actually—
“I could do it,” Jonah says, interrupting her thought spiral.
“Do what?”
“Go with you to your dad’s retirement party. Be your fake boyfriend.”
“You think that’s a good idea?”
“I think it’s a great idea. Besides, I am very close to getting your dad to like me.”
“He’ll never like you.”
“It’s not that I didn’t like the painting—”
“—How would this even work?” she asks, cutting him off.
“I don’t know,” he says. “I think we act like we normally do, but maybe you can hold my hand and be nice to me.”
“Eww.”
Jonah smiles around a large bite of cashew chicken. She really needs to stop hanging out with him so much – he’s become immune to her insults. It’s rude.
And him as her fake boyfriend is a terrible idea. Truly awful. If Amy is looking to get over her crush and make things between her and Jonah less complicated, there are better ways to do it.
Except.
Except she kind of wants to.
“Okay. Let’s do it,” she says.
“Yeah?”
“Yes,” she says decisively. “But if you try and kiss me, I’ll cut your lips off.”
“That seems like a proportionate response.”)
“So, to be clear, I told you kissing wasn’t allowed, and you thought that left proposals on the table?”
He groans again from under the comforter. It’s a little sad and a lot pathetic. Poor guy.
She pats the comforter in the area of what she hopes is his shoulder. As annoyed as she is at having to untangle these threads, it’s not his fault. Not really. She knows her family is relentless. Amy slides down and flips the comforter over her head as well.
Jonah rolls over onto his side to face her. Amy does the same.
“It was better than Adam’s proposal.”
“Adam proposed?”
Amy nods. “Ish. If I remember correctly he said, ‘I’ll marry you if I have to.’”
“Yikes.”
“Right?” It’s cozy under this blanket. Intimate even. “You did say some nice things. Even if they came out kind of slurred.”
“Amy—”
“Sexy, huh?”
“I really didn’t mean to shout that to all of your dad’s—”
“Because it’s not true?”
“No!” Jonah winces and Amy isn’t sure if it’s ‘I have a hangover’ induced or ‘I am revealing too much’ induced. “It’s true. Of course it’s true. You are very, you know.”
“Sexy on a completely objective level? Or, are you saying that you, yourself, Jonah Simms, think I’m sexy?” Jonah goes completely still. Amy isn’t even sure he’s breathing. It’s entirely uncharacteristic and a little unnerving. She pokes his cheek. “Are you blushing?”
“Big time, yeah.”
That does enough to break the tension under their blanket enclave, both of them laughing, at first awkwardly and then more genuine. Once they stop to catch their breath, Amy notices they’ve shifted closer together.
This would be the perfect moment to flee from the scene of the complication. But the complications don’t seem so terrible at this specific moment. She blames that lock of hair of his.
“How long have you held this opinion?” Jonah frowns at Amy’s question. “Regarding my sexiness?” she clarifies.
“Amy—”
“What?”
“What are you doing?”
“I just want to—”
“Really? You really want to have this conversation?”
Jonah stresses the ‘you’ and Amy knows why he does. There isn’t a topic or feeling that is off-limits to Jonah – he’d happily discuss every feeling he’s ever had. It’s her. It’s always her.
Their faces are so close they’re practically sharing the same pillow. It takes no effort at all for Amy to close the distance between them, lightly brushing her lips against his. As quick as it began it’s over, and even in the dim light under the comforter, Amy can see Jonah’s eyes blown wide. She’s sure she looks just as shocked and she’s the one who did it.
“You said if I kissed you you’d cut off my lips.”
“Which is why I kissed you.”
“Oh,” he nods. “Makes sense.” Jonah taps out a slow but erratic rhythm against the side of his leg. She just knows he’s trying to stop himself from verbalizing every single thought in his head. “To be clear, was that a friendship kiss, or—”
So Amy kisses him again. This time Jonah recovers quickly from his shock, winding a hand into her hair, his palm cupping the back of her head. It’s just unbelievably good.
“Okay,” Jonah says, his voice unsteady as he pulls away. “That answers that.” He traces her jaw with his thumb. “Any chance we could do it some more?”
Amy rolls onto her back, putting some distance between them. “I don’t think so.”
“Wait. What?”
“Your breath is awful.”
Jonah breathes into his hand and sniffs it to confirm. “What if I brush my teeth?”
Amy sighs, long and exasperated. “I suppose that would be—”
Jonah is out of the bed in seconds, scrambling for his overnight bag, and Amy presses her lips together to hide her smile. From the way Jonah smiles, soft and delighted as he backs out of the room, she isn’t fooling anyone.
So far past the point of complicated, she thinks, her heart still racing. But then again, maybe complications that make her feel like this are okay.
#simmosa fanfic#superstore fanfic#jonah x amy#jonah simms#amy sosa#amy dubanowski#I hope you like it anon!#first fic for a new fandom is always the most nerve wracking!#why is that?#p: jonah x amy#c: jonah simms#c: amy sosa#tv: superstore#otp: fresh start#Anonymous#never stories
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Josh Lyman Headcannons
So as if we didn’t know I have clearly fallen down a West Wing rabbit hole and I have lots of feelings about this wildly geeky and monomaniacal man so clearly everyone else should be subjected to these thoughts.
✨ Josh is dyslexic; I think he was formally diagnosed in middle school after the fire. I think before middle school, Josh was a good student who coasted a bit because the material was easier to understand so he could kind of coast by a bit on his natural smarts. But after the fire it was a perfect storm of events--he gets a bit lost in grief, he missed some school because of its aftermath, and middle school was getting harder and the pace was faster. Anyways, he was actually really angry when he was first diagnosed. After the fire, he vowed to be a perfect son because he didn’t want to add extra stress to his parents who were already dealing with so much so he thought it was a personal failure to get diagnosed.
✨ Josh also thought it was a sign of weakness to be dyslexic and his mom spent the better part of a month after he was diagnosed saying it wasn't but Josh just figured that was his mom, well being his mom. He had a tutor, Alexis, when he was first diagnosed. His parents were surprised at how patient she was with Josh because most of the teachers after the fire remarked on how withdrawn he became, how he was prone to angry outbursts, and was just sort of unpredictable but Alexis took it all in stride. She let him throw his tantrums before calmly trying to get him back on track. By the end of their sessions Josh had picked up study habits, coping strageties on how to deal with school when it got stressful, and organizational habits. Josh used those same strategies all the way through adulthood--its why he is always quick to work through memos out loud and with other people so he can bounce ideas off of them so he can be sure he is getting everything and to anyone else his office looked like a cluttered mess. And to anyone but Josh it was but then systems worked for him--he always knew where to find files much to the surprise of everyone else.
✨ I also think he boasts so much about his verbal SAT score because that type of test isn’t geared towards people who learned the way he learned. he studied for months for that test because he knew if he wanted to go Ivy League he needed a competitive score.
✨ Josh has so much survivors guilt; like its a lot. Even thirty years alter he hated himself for running out of the house that night--he hated that he acted on autopilot without even thinking about Joanie. His parents, in the months following the fire, were a mess--his dad threw himself into work and his mom became obsessive with helping out at their local synagogue. Josh just sort of fell through the cracks because of it. It wasn’t until he had a panic attack at Shea Stadium because someone was selling burned popcorn that Noah and Ruth realized how much they’d neglected their sons trauma.
✨ A dark place within Josh always kind of thought his parents resented Josh for living and would have preferred that Joanie lived instead. He was sure she would have been less of a hassle and given them grandkids much earlier than he ever could have. He never voiced that particular thought out loud until he started seeing Dr. Weeks in there aftermath of his PTSD diagnosis. Dr. Weeks was also the first therapist that called Josh out on his bullshit and never let him skate by with anything less than honesty. Sure she’d table things Josh wasn't ready to talk about but she always circled back and as the sessions wore on she noticed that Josh would sometimes circle back to things before she even brought it up again. About a year into seeing Dr. Weeks Josh brings his mom to one of his sessions and they talk a lot about Joanie and the fire that day. That’s when Josh admits that he sometimes wishes Joanie had lived instead. Ruth just like breaks down because she never thought her son felt this way and all she says is that she’s thankful that he’s here now and that she felt the same when she saw him sitting in the back of a firetruck covered in ash and she can’t imagine a world where he wasn’t in it. Josh still doesn’t fully let go of that guilt but that session went a long way to bringing him closure.
✨Josh grew up wealthy and because of that he could attend schools like Harvard and Yale; he clearly grew up with a certain amount of privilege but he also put in a lot of work to get there and stay there. Like I said, he lived with massive amounts of survivor guilt and he always felt like he had to do great things as a way ti justify the fact that he lived. To do that he sacrificed having and developing a personal life to throw himself into doing well at Harvard and then building connections at Yale he could leverage into job opportunities on the hill after he graduated.
✨ Also, I know canonically Josh dated women but in my headcanon he’s gay. I think he dates Amy and Mandy because he so desperately wants to fit into the boxes men like him are supposed to fit into. Also, because he was so focused on developing his academic track record he never had much time to think growing up about his dating preferences. Sure he would stare a little too long at men and wonder what it would feel like to have one of them on top of him but he always thought once he found the right girl those thoughts would just....not be there anymore. He’s afraid to admit to himself that he's gay because then that would mean he’d have to admit it to his parents, his friends etc and that TERRIFIES him.
✨ The first person he tells is Matt Skinner and he’s unsurprisingly very helpful as Josh tries to navigate the whole acceptance and coming out thing. Matt also releases a very short, but terse press release the day Josh is outed and goes toe to toe with leadership when they want to use his sexuality as some sort of leveraging bargain chip in negotiations with him.
✨ Again, my headcannon is that Josh is outed (and really you can thank @callixton for making me want to write this story!). His mom us surprised at first when she reads the story in the Washington Post about how he’s gay, the PTSD etc--and then she’s so angry reading the comments below the articles online. She had to disconnect the phone because so many reporters wanted her comment and all she could think of was that she couldn’t be in Florida anymore. She packed a small bag and grabbed the first flight she could to DC and bypasses the White House in favor of going straight to Josh’s Georgetown townhouse. Ruth finds him sitting in the dark with his suit coat balled up in his hands. Josh doesn’t fight her when she pulls him to her chest; they just sit like that for an hour before he seems to register her being there. She’s surprised that he hasn’t cried and by the looks of how put together his apartment was that he hadn’t thrown anything in anger either. All Ruth says is, “you’ll always be my son and nothing will ever stop me from loving you,” and then Josh finally just loses it.
✨ Toby drops by later that afternoon and offers to sit with Josh while Ruth runs out for Chinese food which was always Josh’s favorite go to comfort food. Toby doesn’t say much but does offer to introduce him to some of his friends in the community and that no matter what Toby, Donna, and Sam weren’t going anywhere. Josh doesn’t miss the fact that he didn’t mention Leo but still he smiles weekly at Toby and says that he should stay for dinner.
#josh lyman#the west wing#josh lyman headcannons#of course this got long#callixton#shannon writes#anyways let me know what you guys think
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Hi! We’ve never talked but I adore your blog and writing 🤗 I would love to see 38 from the prompt post maybe?
38. “Nothing about us is conventional”
- -
Stiles kissed Derek first.
He’d always thought that one day, after the man got his head out of his ass and realized Stiles was downright irresistible, Derek would be the one to initiate things. But then at the beginning of senior year, after a summer of Stiles spending every waking moment at the loft, Derek still hadn’t done anything.
So Stiles kissed him first. He thought he was allowed to do that.
And the thing was, Derek responded.
Stiles liked to believe that one day, he’d break down all of the Sourwolf’s walls. He knew he’d gotten even further this summer than he ever had before, but Derek was a fortress. Just when Stiles thought he’d broken down the man’s last level of grumpy-growly defense, he was faced with a whole other line of barriers.
One day, Stiles thought. One day, he’d get the man to fully trust him. But for now, he thought things were good enough.
Except, he forgot Derek was a hard-headed asshole.
“This,” Derek said, coffee in hand and a brown-haired woman standing at his side, “is Amy.”
Stiles blinked intelligently at her for a moment. Her cheeks were pink and she looked nervous, the barista’s apron wrapped around her waist. Stiles supposed it wasn’t ‘Amy’ who surprised him, but the fact that Derek knew anybody outside of his little loft hidey-hole.
Also, that the man was introducing them. Maybe he was proud of making a new friend?
Derek waited with a raised eyebrow and Stiles blinked out of his thoughts, pushing a half-hearted grin onto his face as he nodded, not quite sure where this was going. Derek confused him sometimes. “Okay.”
Some of Amy’s smile faded. Derek shot him a warning look. “Stiles, this is that friend I was telling you about.”
‘Derek’ and ‘friend’ still took Stiles off guard. He supposed if he thought about it, Derek had mentioned meeting someone at the cafe a few weeks ago. He’d said something about how she was ‘nice’ and ‘funny’. Stiles was pretty sure he’d been complaining about his single woes from Sophomore year, then. He hadn’t really been listening to Derek or himself, to be honest.
Sometimes, Stiles just felt the need to talk.
“Oh,” Stiles said. Then a sudden panicked realization hit him like a truck. “Oh.”
Derek’s forced smile looked more murderous than usual. But before Stiles could make up an excuse to run, Amy was stepping forward, Derek was stepping back, and Stiles was left alone with no coffee and apparently a… a... wait, was Derek wingmanning him?
Stiles’s stomach did something entirely new and he was pretty sure he wasn’t okay with it.
Amy started to say something but Stiles’s mind had gone blank. Three days ago, he and Derek had been making out on the couch and now the man was trying to set him up? Or maybe… maybe… no, the kissing had not been a fever dream. Stiles had gone right home afterward and proceeded to have a panic attack followed by the literal eating of a giant tub of ice cream in celebration.
His dad had been giving him strange looks ever since.
“Stiles?”
Stiles snapped out of his thoughts, looking at Amy with round eyes. She held out a slip of paper with her number on it and he stared for a moment, before plastering another grin on his face and taking the paper from her hands.
“So you’ll pick me up at seven?”
“Seven?”
Amy’s smile flickered. “For dinner at that new Italian place I was just telling you about.”
“Oh,” Stiles said. “Um, oh, yeah. Italian! Love Italian. Yeah, I’ll be there. At seven. Because this is a date?”
Amy was looking a lot less impressed now than she was five minutes ago. Stiles thought that was usually how things went when he talked to girls, wingmanned or not. But she still nodded and then turned away, moving back behind the cafe counter.
Stiles just stood there for another few moments, staring at the slip of paper in his hands as his brain tried to catch up.
Derek had just wingmanned him. Derek Hale has just wingmanned him. Then left. And now Stiles was going on a date. Tonight.
“Oh my god,” Stiles said, shoving the number into his pocket.
That stubborn-headed Alpha bastard.
-
Stiles showed up at the loft a lot later that night with a suit jacket hanging off one shoulder, a tie half undone, and exhaustion under his eyes that he couldn’t even begin to explain.
Derek sat on the couch and tensed up the moment he spotted him in the doorway. Stiles held his gaze for a long moment before trudging over and dropping down at his side with a sigh. If possible, Derek tensed even more.
“Did you have a… good date?”
“Dude,” Stiles said, glancing over. “I think my wallet is crying.”
Derek’s brows furrowed. Stiles leaned heavily against his side, just wanting to burrow up and maybe sleep for the next day or two.
It wasn’t like anything had gone wrong, exactly. In fact, Stiles would say he’d been the proper gentleman. He’d shown up on time, he’d paid for dinner and dessert. They’d walked around town after and when Amy told him things ‘just weren’t like she’d expected’ Stiles nearly full on agreed. But he was a gentleman. So he’d just nodded, driven her home, and decided he was never letting Derek wingman him again.
Which really shouldn’t be a decision he had to make.
“I just want curly fries and sleep,” Stiles said. “But that restaurant was so expensive, I don’t think I can even afford curly fries right now.”
“So… it didn’t go well?”
Stiles glared at him. “I blame you for this.”
“What.”
“Dude!” Stiles said, drawing back a few inches. “What? What? When you said ‘let’s go get coffee’ this morning, I expected to be walking out with a nice hot mocha, not a date!”
Derek gave him a blank look. “I told you days ago this was happening.”
“Uh, when?”
“When I told you Amy was looking for someone and you said ‘oh yeah, I know that feeling’.”
“Because I do! I have! Not now, but—”
“Then I told you I could try and set something up and you gave me a funny look and said ‘yeah, Sourwolf, you do that’ and proceeded to walk out of the loft.”
Stiles blinked at him. For some reason, those words did sound familiar, but he wouldn’t go around saying something like that unless… “Dude, I was joking! Are you serious right now? I’m like, ninety percent sure we had just finished making out before that conversation!”
Derek stared. Then his face turned bright red, he frowned even harder, and proceeded not to say another word. Stiles shoved himself off the couch, throwing his hands up.
“Oh my god, Derek! Are you serious?”
“What.”
“Stop ‘what-ing’ me! Do you really think I go around kissing people and then letting them set me up with someone else? That’s a douchebag move. That’s a Jackson move!”
The man looked at him with a blank expression. Stiles scoffed and turned away, waving a hand over his shoulder.
“You know what, fine dude, whatever. I’m going to go beg spare change from my own father because I’m in desperate need of curly fries but I can’t even afford any right now. Please, feel free to make up a list of everyone else you think I should attempt dating. Clearly I need it.”
Derek didn’t answer. Stiles gave him one more look over his shoulder but the man just crossed his arms, arching one brow. Stomach twisting, Stiles stalked out of the loft and made sure to slam the door behind him.
He was tired earlier. Now he was downright pissed.
When he made it to his jeep, he didn’t drive for a long moment. Instead, he glared at nothing and tried to keep himself from stalking right back up to the loft. What the hell did Derek think they were? What the hell did he think Stiles had wanted in the first place?
He tried to replay the last few weeks over again in his head. The first time Stiles had kissed him; all nerves and a sudden rush of adrenaline. Then small kisses on the couch, or in the kitchen, or when Stiles came by the loft after school.
And Stiles… Stiles hadn’t known what exactly to call it.
They didn’t mention anything to the pack but Stiles thought that might just take time. And Derek didn’t really acknowledge anything was happening until Stiles was kissing him, but he thought maybe that was just another one of the man’s walls.
Sighing, Stiles dropped his forehead against the steering wheel. Was he the idiot here?
No, he couldn’t be. It was the hard-headed, grumpy growly, big bad Alpha werewolf who was most likely up angsting in the loft and—
A knock on his window startled Stiles out of his thoughts. He squawked, head snapping upward, and his elbow banged on the steering wheel, the alarm almost instantly going off. Derek jumped back and Stiles swore, quickly turning it off.
For a moment, they just stared at each other. Then, groaning, Stiles opened his door and pulled himself back into the night, crossing his arms against the faint chill.
“What, Derek?”
“You weren’t checking me off a list.”
Stiles stared at him for a long moment before finding words. Derek’s face turned bright red and the man dropped his gaze. “What?”
“You weren’t checking me off a list or experimenting with… another gender, or—”
“Dude, what the hell?”
Derek looked up, a ‘caught in headlights’ look in his eyes. Stiles swallowed hard, searching his face.
“That’s what you thought I was doing?”
“You’re a teenager, Stiles, it’s the expected and conventional behavior of—”
“Conventional,” Stiles said, cutting him off.
Derek nodded.
“Oh my god,” Stiles said, rubbing a hand over his face. To be honest, he really should have seen this coming. One of Derek’s biggest walls was ‘I’m not deserving of actual love’ but Stiles had been hoping he’d broken that one down already. Apparently not. “Derek, nothing about us is conventional.”
Derek just looked confused. Stiles sighed and stepped forward, tilting his chin upward.
“You’re a big bad grumpy Alpha werewolf. I’m the token human with a baseball bat who Isaac compares much too often to Little Red Riding Hood. We fight monsters every other week and attempt to live normal lives in between. Also, I’m eighteen now. I’m like, a couple years away from getting grey hairs.”
Derek rolled his eyes at that. Stiles grinned, reaching up to brush the pad of his thumb across the man’s lower lip.
“Also you’re like, really hot. I’ve been wanting you to kiss me since Sophomore year and if we’re being honest, I kissed you first with the hopes that we could keep doing that. For a long time. Like, a really long time. Like, maybe until we actually do have grey hairs and—”
Derek moved forward and cut him off, slightly chapped lips pressing against his own. Stiles startled for only a second before melting into the man’s touch, his hand moving to cup the back of Derek’s neck.
“You,” Derek said around his lips, breaths warm against his skin. “Stiles, I want you too.”
“Good, you big idiot, because I’ve been pining for two years now—”
Derek seemed to notice how effectively he could shut Stiles up by just kissing him. Because the man only growled at the back of his throat and pushed Stiles against the jeep, one hand catching a handful of his hair and tilting his head back a few inches before kissing him harder.
Stiles wasn’t really complaining.
And yeah, he thought Derek was kind of a big idiot. But to be fair, he could be too. And maybe it took two years, one chaotically pining summer, and an accidental wingmanning situation, but Stiles was pretty sure he’d broken down another wall tonight,
There were probably more.
Like, a lot more. Like enough to give him grey hairs even as a teenager more. But Stiles might be a little okay with that. One day, he thought, he’d get the man to fully trust him. One day, he’d break down all of Derek’s walls. But for now, things were good enough.
Derek was always enough.
- -
I had so much fun with this one! Thank you so much for the prompt, you’re so fantastic. And I hope I did it justice!
(if you enjoy my writing, consider supporting your underpaid student writer? You can also request a prompt if you’d like!). https://ko-fi.com/rh27writer
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10 and/or 11 for peraltiago please? if you're still taking prompts :O
henlo i AM still taking prompts!!! i’m just working through them much more slowly than originally anticipated lmao but thank u for checking!!!!
once again this is not my best but i’m proud of myself for making it through and also!!!! for not adding one single IOTA of angst to this yes i am capable of writing straight fluff i know it honestly was a shock to me too
10. “Stay?”
11. “Do you know how to knock?”
To say Jake is annoyed with Gina would be an understatement.
Granted, not a huge understatement, but certainly narrow in terms of the full scope of emotions he’s feeling. Gina just has this way - this I’m right and you’re wrong and those are the facts kind of confidence that, while sometimes endearing, more often than not lands both her and the people around her in hot water. Jake’s honestly lost count of all the times he’s swooped in and saved the day for her over the years, just to be thanked with a hair flip, a roll of her eyes, and an I had it handled, doof.
He’s working very hard not to swoop in and save the day right now - trying hard to focus on whatever stupid sports game Terry is half-watching in the living room and not on the ever-increasing volume of the girlish giggles coming from the kitchen behind them. He’s angled in such a way that he can glance back if he needs to, but he’s regulating himself to one glance per five minutes; at this angle, he can mostly see Gina’s face, framed between the doorframe and Amy’s body.
Jake can acknowledge that ninety percent of his agitation stems from the fact that Amy’s in there with Gina. It would be one thing if it was just Gina and Rosa drinking themselves silly in the kitchen - but Amy’s a lightweight, plain and simple, a fact that Gina knows well and regularly takes advantage of on the annual lake house weekend. It would be another thing if this was yet another year of fruitless pining and yearning for him - if Amy was nothing more than a partner and a dreamy what-if.
As it is, he’s watching his girlfriend drink herself into a stupor at Gina’s goading, and while he’s fully aware of the fact that she’s a grown woman fully capable of making her own decisions, he remembers in vivid technicolor just how embarrassed she was after Overly Confident Amy nearly got herself demoted last year.
A particularly loud, lower-pitched screeching noise - followed by an even louder laugh - echoes out of the kitchen, and Jake’s on his feet before he’s even fully processed what he’s heard. Terry’s looking around now, too, face contorted in an irritated scowl; briefly he meets Jake’s eyes, before pursing his lips and returning his gaze back to the television. “Not today,” he says simply. “Knicks are playing, so Terry is stayin’.”
Jake rolls his eyes as he shuffles out from behind the coffee table, resisting the urge to snark at his sergeant. Despite his massive size and general laziness while lounging on the couches here, Jake learned the hard way Terry’s reflexes never go on vacation.
The low-pitched screeching noise, as it turns out, originated from the legs of Amy’s stool scraping across the tiled kitchen floor; she’s still doubled over in laughter about it, leaning most of her body weight against the kitchen counter. Rosa’s smirking over the rim of a sloshing tequila shot and Gina’s muffling her laughter behind one hand, her phone clutched in her other, filming Amy. Empty plastic cups litter the counter between them, several fallen to the floor; there are dented beer cans and half-empty bottles of liquor strewn between them, too, the entire place a portrait of drunken debauchery he would normally find hilarious.
He’d find it hilarious under any circumstance, really, except the one where their extremely straight-laced captain is sleeping directly over their antics.
“Hey,” he says softly as he edges toward Amy. He frowns at Gina when she pans the phone up into his face, blocking the camera with one hand while gently running the other up Amy’s back. “You okay?”
Amy nods, her cheek now flattened against the counter, still laughing too hard to verbally respond. “She’s fine, protective Polly,” Gina drawls, words slurred just enough to give herself away. Jake shoots her a scowl, still rubbing his palm up and down Amy’s back. “Why don’t you take a shot or twelve and catch up with us.”
“You might wanna consider pacing yourselves -”
“Oh, my god, don’t be that guy, Peralta,” Rosa sneers before throwing her shot back. “We’re grown-ass adults -”
“Never said you weren’t,” Jake interrupts, “I was talking more about the fact that it’s our first night here and you guys have already burned through half of our booze supply for the whole weekend.”
“We’re having fun,” Amy slurs, reaching with numb fingers to pull fallen hair out of her mouth. “You should try it sometime.”
“Oh, I should try having fun? You’re talking to the father of the Jimmy Jabs, here, girl! The father and original champion of the Halloween Heist! Fun runs through my veins.”
“And orange soda.”
The three women before him burst into laughter, Gina dropping the phone with a loud clatter, and Jake finds himself scowling at all three of them. Amy makes a sound at the back of her throat when Jake pulls his hand away from her back; she reaches for him weakly as he steps back, side-stepping her fingers at his naval before grabbing and briefly squeezing her hand. “I’m going to bed,” he tells them, pulling his hand from Amy’s. “You guys should keep it down, though, you’re right under where Holt is sleeping. And you,” he waits until Gina is meeting his gaze, knowing his expression is comically distorted but also serious enough for her to grasp. “Don’t kill her.”
He points to Amy, eyes never leaving Gina’s face; Gina glances at Amy before meeting his gaze again, a defiant gleam in her eyes. Amy’s making a noise in the back of her throat - some weird, high-pitched sound not unlike a petulant whine - so Jake salutes her before backing out of the kitchen.
His phone begins buzzing as soon as he’s on the stairs, but he ignores it, knowing without looking that it’s Gina trying to antagonize him. It buzzes as he closes his bedroom door, and again on the bedside table as he changes into his pajamas, and again as he quickly brushes his teeth in his adjoining bathroom. 4 missed calls from Gina Linetti rolls across his notifications page when he plugs his phone into the charger; one swipe later, and they’re gone, leaving his phone peacefully undisturbed.
He stares up at the ceiling as he lays in bed, listening to the muffled sounds of the others trudging up the stairs, Rosa bidding someone goodnight as the floorboards just outside of his door creak beneath her feet. It seems the last stragglers are finally settling in for the night; one particularly loud thwack against his bedroom door confirms that Gina, at least, is retiring for the evening.
The door at the end of the hall squeaks shut, and the house is enveloped in silence.
Jake rolls to his side and punches his pillow into place, trying to ignore the empty feeling in his chest. Rationally speaking, falling asleep without Amy’s warmth against his back shouldn’t be impossible. He’s done it before, even since they started dating. Rationally speaking, he’s fully capable of falling asleep without Amy.
That doesn’t stop his heart from leaping up into his throat when he hears clumsy hands rattling his doorknob.
The way she edges inside might be an attempt at being smooth, if not for the whispered laughter escaping the hand flattened over her mouth. Jake props himself up on one elbow, watching through the near-darkness as she eases his door shut and briefly leans back against the wall to the left of the door. “Do you know how to knock?” he whispers.
She jumps, hand falling from her mouth to flatten over her heart. “You scared me!” she whisper-shouts.
“You broke into my room!” he whisper-shouts back. She rolls her eyes as she toddles forward, briefly grabbing onto the footboard of his bed before edging around the right side. He sits up as he watches her progress, snorting when she flattens both hands against the mattress and slides them toward him until her fingers are trapped beneath his butt. “Warm enough for you?”
“Not yet,” she sighs, clambering up the bed ungracefully, momentarily gripping his thigh to anchor herself. She flops down beside him unceremoniously, huffing out a breath that makes the hair fallen across her face flutter, before blinking up at him owlishly. “Come down here.”
“You smell like a bar,” he says, not moving.
She quietly whines, pushing the hair away from her face. “‘M too tired to wear clothes,” she mumbles, before her brow furrows.
“You mean you’re too tired to change?”
“Yeah. That.”
“Well, you’re gonna hate sleeping in jeans,” he tells her. She hums, eyes already closed, and for a moment he can barely take a breath around the endearing bubble of affection swelling in his chest. “C’mon, Ames, you can’t sleep in these clothes.”
“Pajamas are too far away,” she mumbles, eyes still closed. “Lemme sleep.”
“Not yet,” he says as he rolls out of bed. She whines again, reaching blindly across the mattress for him, but just like in the kitchen he side-steps her searching fingers with ease. “Where are your PJ’s?”
“My room.”
“Where in your room?”
“Not tellin’.”
“Your other option is to borrow clothes from me, and while you are more than welcome to do that, you should know that Gina will never let you live it down.”
“Gina can bite me.”
“Gina will bite you, I have scars to prove it.”
“Whatever,” she whines, brow furrowed. “You’re my murmzeep, we can do whatever we want.”
He snorts, already moving around the foot of the bed to reach her. “I am your murmzeep,” he says, scooping both of her hands up in his and gently pulling her into a sitting position at the edge of the bed. “And you’re my jinglebin. I’d love to let you borrow some clothes.”
She cracks one eye open, a sly smirk slowly spreading across her face. “Oh, you’d love that? How much?”
“Not enough to do that, you freak.”
Now both of her eyes are open, an undeniably hurt expression darkening her face. “Hey -”
“Not because I don’t want to, but because literally all of our colleagues are in the same house and I’m pretty sure they’d hear something,” he quickly amends.
The hurt fades, replaced instead by disgruntlement. “We should buy them earplugs tomorrow,” she mutters, lifting her arms so Jake can pull her sweater up over her head. “Or - or tie a sock on the doorknob.”
He snorts as he tosses one of his extra shirts at her, and a wide grin splits across her face. “I’m sure sober you will totally go for that idea,” he says, digging through his bag for the extra shorts he knows he packed. “I’ll definitely bring it up over breakfast.”
“Yeah you will.”
She flings her bra across the room before tugging his shirt over her head, leaving her hair even more mussed than before. Jake pulls her up to her feet as she runs her palms over her face, trying and failing to get her hair out of her eyes as he unbuttons her jeans and pushes them down over her hips. It’s odd, the feeling overtaking him as he kneels down to work them over her feet; he’s done this more times than he can count already, but it’s never felt quite this...domestic before.
Amy, oblivious to the unidentifiable feelings welling up in Jake’s chest, steps out of her jeans and stumbles slightly, doubled over to find purchase on the mattress once more to keep from face-planting into the bedside table. Jake quickly tosses her jeans in the same direction her bra went, gripping her hips until she stops swaying. “Hold onto my shoulders, babe,” he instructs softly.
She grumbles something unintelligible but does as he says, shifting her weight forward until her body bows over where he’s still kneeling on the floor before her. She makes quick work of stepping into his shorts, yawning loudly as he pulls them up her legs; she’s still yawning when he pushes her hips down, settling on the bed with a bounce. Her eyes are closed again as she shifts around to stretch out across the mattress, a contented hum emanating from her throat when he pulls the quilt up over her body and lightly brushes his knuckles over her cheekbone.
Both of his knees crack when he stands, sending an uncomfortable pang through both legs, but after a momentary pause he’s quickly stealing around the end of the bed again, back toward his side. Amy hums when he slides in beside her, already rolling to her side to face him, frigid fingers sliding around his torso. “Roll over,” she mumbles, her breath a puff of spearmint and tequila stinging in his nose. “I wanna - jet pack.”
“You sure you don’t wanna be little spoon tonight?” he asks softly, closing his hands over her forearm. “You’re gonna be super hungover in the morning and I don’t mind -”
“Don’t care,” she interrupts, so with a smile and a shake of his head, he complies. He can feel her shuffling closer, her grip around his torso tightening until her cheek makes contact with the space between his shoulder blades. He feels her lungs expand and contract in time with her billowing sigh; with one last nestle of her head, she goes still against him. “Stay?”
“You’re in my room -”
“Stay.”
“You got it, babe.” he murmurs, lifting her hand up to press a kiss against her knuckles before returning her arm back to his waist. She nuzzles a little closer, fingers gripping hard into the excess material of his shirt, before releasing another smaller sigh. “Ames?”
“Mm?”
“I’m glad you came in here.”
He feels the cheek against his back swell with her smile, and her grip on his shirt loosens. “Me, too,” she murmurs. “I’m - I like you. So much.”
Affection bursts through his chest, momentarily overwhelming his senses. He bites the inside of his cheek to keep from giggling - the giddiness in his chest makes him want to scream. “I like you so much, too, Amy,” he finally manages to whisper.
Her response is a quiet, almost imperceptible snore that vibrates against his back, and it takes everything in him to keep from laughing so hard she wakes up again.
#brooklyn 99#brooklyn 99 fanfiction#jake x amy#peraltiago#peraltiago fanfiction#my b99 fics#prompt request#thank u for this i loved these lines!!!!!!#Anonymous
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that would be enough
It’s an amazing opportunity and, frankly, one that he would take with no hesitation if it weren’t for his incredible, beautiful wife and the baby she has been growing inside her for three months. That’s a pretty big ‘if’.
(in which jake gets offered another fbi job and he has a seemingly impossible decision to make - which maybe isn't really so difficult after all.)
read on ao3
After working a double, during which he arrested a major drug kingpin and helped Rosa and Charles find a suspect in their homicide case, Jake is: A) feeling pretty pleased with himself, and B) more than ready to get home to his wife and bring her some Polish comfort food (they’ve ordered from them so much lately that they’re on a first name basis with their delivery guy).
It’s super unlike him that he even stops to check his email on his way out of the precinct, but he’s so used to waiting for Amy to do it that it’s become a habit at this point. Aside from an exciting announcement about an upcoming sneaker sale at an outlet mall upstate, there’s only one unopened item in his inbox. It’s an encrypted message from Captain Kim, whom he hasn’t spoken to since she finally accepted his long series of apology emails (accompanied by a fruit basket, Amy’s suggestion) and the subject line simply reads Job Opportunity.
It’s brief, but the gist is simple: there’s an undercover operation in the works, they think he’s the right person for the job, it would be a great opportunity and an excellent way for him to get his foot in the door for a potential higher-up position in the FBI. The rest is a little more murky - it’s potentially very dangerous (she can’t go into detail in an email, obviously, but he’s willing to bet it’s got something to do with one of the crime families that have been gradually moving their operations from Manhattan into Brooklyn). It could also take months. She urges him to take time to seriously consider the position, and to contact her as soon as he comes to a decision.
It’s an amazing opportunity and, frankly, one that he would take with no hesitation if it weren’t for his incredible, beautiful wife and the baby she has been growing inside her for three months. That’s a pretty big ‘if’.
He’s so lost in his own thoughts for the entirety of his commute home that he actually forgets to pick up dinner, which he realizes the moment he opens the door and sees Amy reclined on the couch reading her third pregnancy book of the week, all four of their designated “living room blankets” draped over her.
“Oh my god, I forgot the food,” he blurts out, startling Amy and making her drop the book on her lap. “I’ll just run back out and grab it, sorry, I-”
“Babe, wait-” She jumps up from her perch on the couch and carefully places the book on the coffee table. As she crosses the room to meet him in the doorway, his eyes flit to her barely noticeable but steadily growing baby bump. Their baby. Their baby that needs him. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he mutters, avoiding her gaze as he shifts back and forth. “I just forgot the food so I’m just gonna head out real quick-”
“We can just order, Jake, I can wait,” she assures him with a warm smile. Pregnant Amy is usually - to put it in the most favourable term possible - less than patient when it comes to food, so he can tell right away that she either really missed him or can tell something’s bothering him.
She wraps her arms around his neck and leans up onto her tiptoes to kiss him hello, and judging by the intensity of her kiss and how tightly she’s squeezing him he figures it was the first one and he’s in the clear of having to talk about all that for at least a few minutes.
“Did something happen at work, babe?”
Damn it, so close.
“Why do you ask?”
“You’re super tense,” she frowns, rubbing his shoulders as she shifts back down to her normal height. “And you won’t look me in the eye.”
She places her hand on his cheek and gently guides his gaze to hers, forcing him to make eye contact with her, and some combination of her touch and the impossibly tender, concerned look she’s giving him causes him to cave instantly.
“Um, can we talk?” He gestures to the couch, where her mountain of blankets have been abandoned, and she nods quickly.
They settle in on the comfortable sofa, the first purchase they made together when her apartment became theirs. They’ve had god-knows-how-many important conversations and lazy Sunday afternoon cuddles and heated post-date makeout sessions when they just couldn’t make it all the way to the bedroom on this couch. He’s willing to bet that they conceived their child on this couch three months ago, though an argument could be made for the shower that morning or their bed later that evening as well.
Amy tucks her legs behind her and turns to face him, reaching out to rest a hand on his thigh and waiting for him to speak.
“Remember how Captain Kim mentioned a potential FBI liaison position for me?”
Amy nods and sits up straighter, her eyes brightening. “Did the FBI offer you a job?”
“Not exactly.” He scratches his head, searching for the right words. “Captain Kim recommended me for an undercover mission with the FBI. She made it seem like - uh, if it went well I could be offered something more permanent with them.”
Amy pauses for a moment, clearly deep in thought. “That could be life-changing.”
“I know, but Ames, it, um-” He sighs. “The job sounds a lot like last time I went undercover.”
Her grip on his thigh seems to tighten, perhaps subconsciously, as she stares fixedly at the book left forgotten on the coffee table. He can imagine her train of thoughts; last time he went undercover it was six months with an incredibly dangerous crime family and he could’ve died a bunch of times. They may not have been together at the time, but their mutual yearning was only amplified by the painfully long separation. They’ve been no strangers to painfully long separations since - god, he would do anything to have every night he spent in the Florida heat or a chilly jail cell back and get to relive each one of them in her arms instead.
He reaches out to grab her hand with both of his. “Ames-”
Before he can get any further, she shrugs him off and walks purposefully towards their bedroom. He’s terrified he’s going to hear the sound of a slamming door that he associates so strongly with being a helpless kid watching his parents’ relationship fall apart and never connects to his own marriage, but it never comes.
She returns moments later with her trusty notebook and a pen in hand, sitting back down next to him and beginning to write.
“What are you doing?”
She doesn’t look up at him. “It’s an important decision. We need a pro/con list.”
Jake sighs. “Honey, can we just talk about it?”
“We are talking about it,” she deadpans. “We’ll start with the easy stuff. Pro: you could get your dream job.”
As soon as she’s done writing, Amy looks over to him, which he takes to mean that it’s now his turn.
“Okay. Con: I could be gone for three to six months, a.k.a. when you could literally be giving birth to our child.”
“But you could do it in three,” she counters. “Pro: you could make more money at a new job, which we obviously need more than ever.”
“Con: I could mess up the job somehow and not be recommended for the new position.”
Amy doesn’t write that one down, and he raises an eyebrow.
“It wouldn’t happen, you’re too good at your job.”
His heart swells at her quiet but reverent tone, and she doesn’t pull away when he reaches to grab her hand again.
“Okay, your turn, then,” he prompts.
She stares at the paper intently, and her hand holding the pen begins to tremble as her gaze shifts over to the con column. He almost knows what she’s going to say before she says it, because it’s only natural for the mind to go to the worst-case scenario in situations like these. Still, it’s hard for him to stomach the mere thought of leaving her all alone, especially now.
“You could get hurt,” she mumbles shakily under her breath. Her watering eyes begin to shed fully-formed tears, falling steadily on her grey t-shirt. “I-I could lose-I could lose you-”
She’s cut off by a small sob, her fists clenching around the material of the blanket as her entire body starts to shake. Amy crying isn’t rare, and pregnant Amy crying is an even more frequent occurrence, but seeing her cry over anything more than a spilled yogurt cup is too much for him to take. Jake’s heart feels like it’s cracking in two, but his instincts overpower his own sadness and he reaches for her immediately. She falls into his chest the moment his hands reach her and her sobs increase in volume as she clutches at his shirt.
“That’s never gonna happen, baby,” he whispers against her hair in-between quick, healing kisses everywhere his lips can reach. “Shh, you’re not gonna lose me.”
“You - you can’t promise that.”
“I am promising you that. I’m gonna call Captain Kim first thing Monday morning and respectfully decline the offer. I’m sure she’ll understand.”
She pulls away from him, shaking her head quickly.
“I can’t ask you to do that. It’s too good of an opportunity, being a detective won’t be enough for you forever and this job is your dream-”
“You didn’t ask me to, Ames, and it’s not. You and our little lemon-sized-as-of-this-morning baby are my dream, okay? You’re not just enough, you’re everything - more than everything I could have ever dreamed of. Okay?”
Amy wipes her tears away, but there are already new ones forming in her eyes. She looks at him with so much trust, and he knows now, even more than he did five seconds ago, that he could never put himself in harm’s way again unless absolutely necessary.
She finally cracks a small smile, nodding slowly.
“More than everything of which you could ever have dreamt.”
Jake frowns. “Huh?”
“You ended a sentence with a proposition. It should be ‘more than everything of which you could ever have dreamt.’”
He laughs softly, cupping her face and wiping the remaining tears away. “That’s my girl.”
She tucks herself back into his embrace and squeezes his arm tightly as the other one wraps around her waist.
“Are you sure about this?”
Jake nods against her head, his free hand stroking her hair.
“I think I kind of knew what my answer was as soon as I read the email. I used to get so excited about these crazy life-or-death missions, but now…”
“No more ’eyes closed, head first, can’t lose?’” she supplies, smiling up at him.
The memory of walking away from her in a parking lot, the weight of his confession hanging in the air as he left knowing he might never see her again, stings a bit. He wishes he could tell that version of himself that had never really experienced true love and happiness how much he would have to live for someday.
“Who woulda thought that guy would be a dad?” Jake laughs.
Amy snuggles further into him, kissing the spot on his hoodie that rests over his heart. “You’re gonna be the best dad. I love you so much.”
He’s filled with a surge of warmth, both from her embrace and words of love, and the knowledge that he will do everything in his power to be the best dad. He will stick around and he will do everything in his power to make their child as happy as they can be and he will give every ounce of unconditional love and support in his body. He will be better than his father, better than his past self, better every day than he was the day before.
“I love you,” he kisses her cheek, “and you”, his hand grazes her belly (he’s been eagerly anticipating a kick, though she reminds him it could be weeks or even months before they feel anything), “so much.”
She shifts to properly kiss him, and he gladly welcomes it with a hand on her back pulling her closer and the other still tangled in her hair. When she pulls away and smiles at him, he feels like all the weight of the world has been lifted off his shoulders.
“Can we order dinner now?” she pleads, breaking the tranquility of the moment, but with good reason. “I’m actually starving.”
“Good idea, Tomak is going to get super worried if he doesn’t hear from us soon.”
He pulls his phone from his pocket and goes straight to his recent calls, ordering enough pierogis to feed a small army (or one pregnant Amy) and a couple of hot chocolates, and they seamlessly fall into their routine of selecting whatever they’re currently binging on Netflix (right now it’s The Crown), getting cozy, and waiting for Tomak’s arrival.
This, forever, will always be more than enough for him.
#we BACK ladies#💕💕#i'm sry my first fic of the season is a lil angsty but it's really not that bad#jake x amy#b99 spoilers#maybe ??#anyways hope u like it <3
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Day #20: My Head And My Heart Are Caught In Between
Another planet to land and another chance for shenanigans. I just want all of you to know, I actually can’t write romance that well. I never went on a date and I’ve been scarred by YouTube on the idea of dating. Please, shoot me what I did wrong on ask.
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Crosshair and Fennec were waiting patiently to land in their current planetary destination. The main city was packed from what they were seeing waiting up in space. After the whole “Getting lost in the unknown regions” thing, Crosshair thought it would be a great idea for Fennec and him to go bounty hunting in a city. Korkie readily agreed much to Crosshair’s surprise, but Fennec knew what was up.
His and Fennec’s talk about his sexuality made him question things. Currently, Korkie was trying his hardest to hide from Crosshair despite wanting to be closer to him. It was not his fault since Fennec was the one who brought it up and from her perspective, Korkie might not have any ideas on dating men. Especially since he was force to accept the idea that he has to have a wife.
“I’m going to wake up Korkie,” Crosshair said.
“Why?” Fennec asked. “You always let him sleep until his visions were done.”
“Maybe, but it’s been almost an hour since we’ve waited. I’m getting tired of waiting for their karking asses to think and give us a hanger.”
“Okay, but I don’t think he’s in the bunk.”
“I know, he’s been avoiding me.”
Fennec gasped. She knows by now that Crosshair has great eyesight, but whenever Korkie was doing something, Crosshair merely shrugged it off. They had their boundaries and accepted it.
“Are you mad?” Fennec asked.
“No,” he answered. “I mean, I did to him once. You were there and you know it means somethings up.”
“Maybe he’s embarrassed that I told you you saved his life.”
“Maybe, but he’s saved my life and I never avoided him.”
“Well, maybe it’s just that Korkie was having a fight with his great-something grandfather and he didn’t fight for Clan Kryze. He fought for someone who’s not even fully Mandalorian. That sounds embarrassing? Right?”
Crosshair shrugged and left the cockpit for the bunks. Fennec bit her lower lip. She promised to keep both conversations secret and now look where it landed her. One was questioning everything he thought about his partnership, and the other was too dense to realize what might be wrong with the other person. Maybe Fennec should have not said anything to the both of them, but she just wanted to be there for both Crosshair and Korkie. Crosshair because he is her mentor and Korkie for being a family figure after years of being alone.
Fennec sighed and did nothing. Those two will figure it out on their own. They always did.
Crosshair was at Korkie’s main bunk and sighed. He knows there was another, more secretive room in the ship. When he questioned Korkie about why his bed wasn’t wet from the tears he produced because of the visions, Korkie said it was because he had used the Kryze secret bedroom. Which was all he said. Korkie didn’t tell him where it was, or if it had a password, he just said there was another room.
Which means Crosshair started knocking the wall at the end of the bunks. He thought it was weird that the top of the ship seemed long when the cockpit and the sleeping area were smaller in the inside. He heard a shallow knock and smirked. The secret room was behind the wall. Yet, he still had no idea how to get to Korkie so he did the next best thing. Bang on the wall until Korkie hears at least one knock.
The problem? Korkie heard all the knocks. He was in his visions watching some past Jedi and Mando fights when his visions felt a disturbance in the real world. He knew only one person was willing to wake him up and Korkie groaned in fear. He wished he never said anything about his sexuality to Fennec because now he’s having some issues being next to Crosshair.
He wanted to hold Crosshair’s hands. Cook a feast for him and act like a nurse when he needs to. Buy Crosshair the best clothes fit for the best sniper. Buy the best blasters and rifles for the best sniper. Kiss-----
Korkie jolted up from the visions and back to the real world.
“NO,” he thought. “I like Cross as a partner. I don’t like him as a future husband!”
Korkie groaned as he sunk into his king-sized bed. Why did husband get into his?
Oh right, Lagos. He did like Lagos in the past, but they both knew even if they were to be married, it wouldn’t be filled with much love. Their marriage would have been political in all and she wouldn't have a chance to be in love with her true fated spouse. She was the first person he told about liking men and she didn’t say anything after he told her. Maybe it was the fact that mere days later Mandalore got into a Civil War, but Lagos became distant to him and they never truly got to mend things.
Maybe it was his fault that he keeps telling girls about liking guys, but can whoever controls life give him a break for once in his love life? He hasn’t met many men to have a good crush and them and the one person he might have a crush on is also the the guy to almost sold him to the Saxons.
The knocking kept coming and Korkie just wanted to stay in bed. He didn’t want to look at Crosshair for obvious reasons. He knows Crosshair knows somethings. He knows he might have to reveal the passcode to the bedroom. He knows the instant Crosshair sees him acting up and going to the bedroom he’ll have no peace.
Korkie took the second option. There was laundry chute near the bed for the dirty laundry. He ran to the laundry chute and went into a pile of dirty laundry. Crosshair’s laundry. He shriek and fell down when he got up. Both him and the bin went to the floor.
“Need help?” Crosshair said as he held out a hand.
He heard the familiar cry of a Korkie and guessed where he could have landed. Korkie was blushing mad, but he took it. He knows he was blushing, and taking his partner’s hand wouldn’t hurt as much as landing in the laundry.
“You know,” Crosshair started again. “I was wondering why there was a chute. Now I understand. It’s for royals who love to keep codes of secret rooms.”
“I need my sleep,” Korkie stammered.
“You were okay sleeping close to me.”
“I wanted privacy.”
“Korkie,” Crosshair cooed as he placed a hand on the royal’s shoulder. “Are avoiding me and being a hypocrite?”
“Hypocrite?”
“You said we can talk it out and those bastards in that planet won’t let us land for now. Let’s talk.”
Korkie didn’t want to, but he didn’t want to be a hypocrite to Crosshair. They went to the kitchen and Crosshair asked him to make deserts. Crosshair was beginning to have a sweet tooth due to Korkie and they both knew it. Korkie went to create desert in silence until they were sitting at the table.
“What happened?” Crosshair asked.
“I’ve never had a close relationship with a men before,” Korkie blurted.
Korkie looked at Crosshair for any reaction, but he just shrugged.
“What about that Amis guy?” he pointed out. “You said you used to be his friend.”
“That was all it was. A friendship.”
“And what makes us different?”
“You’re willing to talk to me like this. He never did and I had was afraid to talk to Soniee and Lagos like this.”
“Why?”
“Soniee was more like Amis in a talking sense, and Lagos was... Lagos.”
“Bad breakup?”
“Almost engagement. Not that I had a choice in the matter.”
“Sad, but why do this? This is like what? The third time?”
“I guess I never knew I would act like this. I’m surprised by myself also and I’m truly feeling like I’m figuring myself outside of being ‘Korkie Kryze’ and just being Korkie.”
“Korkie, you really are just like a kid finally being thrown into the real world. Yet, I understand. I thought I was never going to leave Kamino because of being myself. Now, I’m here and with you.”
“And you’re stuck with me.”
“Yup.”
“I told Lagos I might like men once. She and I never patched things up and just became distant. Then again, Death Watch turned Mandalore to a battleground and she wasn't even there when I was exiled.”
“Thank the Maker you dodge a bullet. If she can’t accept you, you can’t be with her.”
“You’re not ashamed of me? Of my sexuality?”
“No. I like men too. Maybe it’s because life’s too short or the fact that I’ve always been next to men all my life, but I’m not ashamed to say if I had to kiss a man, then I’d do it. Besides, there might be men that can please me better than women.”
“Oh.”
“Not that I had slept with anyone. The entire world hates clones and I’m not always filled with credits.”
“I don’t hate clones.”
“Which is why I like our partnership.”
Fennec came onto the scene and whined. She loves Korkie’s desert, but she just missed something possibly more juicy than his fruit deserts. Yet, that is not the point.
“We’re clear for landing,” she announced. “I put us in autopilot and we’ll be landing shortly.”
“Good,” Korkie said. “I can’t wait for your next successful bounty.”
“Yes,” Crosshair agreed. “Also, Korkie you’re going to have to stay here. This planet has too many ship thieves and you’re good at blasting.”
“Fine, but bring me back a souvenir.”
Crosshair nodded as the ship landed. Fennec Shand was ready to shine once again.
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Ten Things [Chapter 7]
Fandom: Sanders Sides Pairings: Anxceit, Royality Intrulogical Summary: Ten Things I Hate About You AU When Roman Prince learns that Patton Foster isn’t allowed to date until his older brother, Virgil, is, Roman is crushed. Roman’s twin brother Remus, however, comes up with a plan: find someone who is willing to date Virgil. And who better to ask than Janus Verona, who according to rumours is willing to do anything for the right price? Taglist (ask to be added): @glitchybina @someone-idk-is-here @ellietempest @imlikeaghostzombiejesus @anxiety-ismy-name Notes: Better late than never, right?
Hopefully I won’t have as many more delays in the future, but in other news, we’re halfway through! (According to my outline, at least) I’m really excited about getting into the second half, which has a lot of fun things in it!
AO3 Link - Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six
Remus meandered along the school corridors in the hopes that someone would see him, take pity on him, and offer him a lift home. So far, his plan wasn’t bearing much fruit.
With Roman in detention for hacking the schools intercom system (not that it counted as hacking if it was left alone in an unlocked room) Remus was forced to either wait around for an hour or make his own way home. Waiting around meant boredom, but going home meant walking, which was only slightly better.
He turned a corner, and grinned when he spotted Logan talking to a guy Remus didn’t really know. At least Logan might offer some entertainment – he was fun to wind up, and, best of all, never seemed to take his antics too seriously. Well, other than when Remus deliberately got science wrong.
Remus waved, but Logan didn’t notice. The other guy was leaning close to him, saying something, and Logan had his head down, his shoulders hunched. Remus faltered. Clearly, only one person was happy to be having that conversation.
The guy laughed, and shoved Logan, hard enough to make him stagger back a step. Rage twisted up in Remus’ gut, and he strode forward, but the guy was already walking away.
“Hey!” Remus shouted. The guy didn’t look back, just disappeared through the doors that led out of the school.
Remus began to follow, but Logan’s hand caught his arm, freezing him in place.
“Leave it,” Logan said.
Remus frowned, turning to Logan. “Who the hell was that?”
“That was Jake,” Logan said, sounding resigned. He began walking out of the school, and Remus followed him.
“What did he want?” Remus asked.
“Nothing.”
“He was clearly messing with you.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Bullshit,” Remus snapped, grabbing Logan’s arm and holding him in place. “C’mon, Lo, tell me what’s going on.”
“Why?” Logan snapped. “So you can join him in making my life miserable?”
Remus dropped Logan’s arm and took a step back. “Logan, that’s not -”
“Of course not,” Logan said before Remus could figure out how he was going to end the sentence. He shook his head. “I have work to do.”
Remus watched Logan walk away, frozen in place. Something was definitely wrong, but Remus didn’t know what to do about it. How did you make someone feel better?
He could go beat up Jake. Remus spun on his heel, and marched to the car park.
You’ll get suspended, a voice that sounded suspiciously like Logan warned. Remus ignored it. Who cared if he got suspended? It would get the dude off of Logan’s back. It might even make everyone else think twice before messing with Logan.
Remus arrived at the car park just in time to see Jake get into a shiny new car and drive away. Remus scowled; so goes that idea.
He could still fight the guy tomorrow, but it wouldn’t feel the same. He wanted a way to cheer Logan up now. Make it so that Logan wasn’t bothered about Jake and his shitty, perfect car.
Huh. That gave Remus an idea. Sure, beating him up might be off the table for now, but there were other ways to get revenge. Ways that would probably make Logan feel better, too.
Smiling to himself, Remus began walking away from school. He’d need to go on a recon mission around the neighbourhood, and then visit Logan when it got dark, but first, he was going to the grocery store.
The date was perfect.
Roman had driven them to the park, where they had walked hand in hand. When they got to the lake, Patton noticed Swan boats and mentioned that he’s always wanted to go on one. So Roman had decided that the best time to try it was right there and then, even though the sun was setting.
They stayed on the lake until it got dark, when they went back to shore and Roman drove Patton home. Patton wished the day wouldn’t end – everything felt so magical, that he was scared it would disappear at any moment.
They pulled into Patton’s driveway far too soon.
Roman insisted on opening Patton’s door for him, and then walking him up to the house.
“I’ll see you at school then,” Roman said when they were standing on the porch.
Patton nodded. He opened his mouth to say something – to ask Roman to kiss him again – when the door slammed open, making both of them jump. Virgil stood in the doorway, looking furious.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Virgil snarled.
Roman stiffened. “I was just taking Patton home.”
“I told you to leave him alone!”
Patton moved between the two of them. “Virgil, stop. It was just a misunderstanding.”
“I don’t care! You said you weren’t going to waste your time on him!” Virgil said accusingly.
“No, I didn’t,” Patton protested. “You did.”
“And you agreed!”
Patton said nothing, and Virgil narrowed his eyes.
“You did agree,” Virgil said.
Patton hugged his arms close to his body. “Virgil, can we talk about this later?”
Virgil glanced between Patton and Roman, and then shook his head. “Fine,” he said dully. “Do what you want.”
“Virgil, that’s not-” Patton began, but Virgil was already going inside. The door shut between them.
“Well,” Roman said lightly. “He’s a real charmer.”
“He’s a good person,” Patton said. “He just… worries about me. You must feel the same way about Remus.”
“Sometimes,” Roman said. “But Remus can look after himself. And so can you.”
Patton tried to smile. He wished Roman hadn’t had to see that. He reached out and grabbed Roman’s hand.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“You don’t need to apologise for your brother,” Roman said. “Trust me, I get it.”
Patton smiled. He wasn’t sure what to say, so he just stared down at their entwined hands. He ran his thumb over Roman’s hand.
“Are you okay?” Roman asked.
“Of course,” Patton said, as cheerfully as he could manage. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“If you’re sure,” Roman said, but he sounded doubtful.
“I am sure,” Patton asserted. “I had a really good time today.”
“Me too.”
“I should get inside,” Patton said. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“And every day after that,” Roman said, making Patton giggle.
Despite what he’d said, Patton stayed on the porch until Roman had gotten into his car and driven away. Only when the car had fully disappeared did he go inside.
By the time he did, Virgil was hidden in his room.
Logan was unable to focus. The very idea should be absurd – Logan prided himself on his attentiveness to his studies. And yet, every time he tried to solve the maths problems in front of him, his mind kept wandering.
Jake had been a metaphorical thorn in Logan’s side for years, though he had not caused problems for a while. Apparently, Jake had been bored today, because he had decided he had nothing better to do than harass Logan. It had made Logan reluctant to go to the cafeteria when Remus had asked – an irrational fear, as Jake could very well find him anywhere in the school.
A knock sounded at the door, but Logan ignored it. Patton was with Roman, so there was no chance that whoever it was at the door was there to see him. Instead, he tried to focus on his work, only to realise that he’d forgotten what the problem was, and had to reread it again.
This wasn’t right! Logan had never had this problem before, and now that he did, it was because of Jake? Someone who would likely amount to nothing after graduation? Normally, Logan would be completely unaffected, even as Patton rushed to comfort him.
The thought of Patton made something twist in his gut. Another irrational thing; Logan was not entitled to Patton’s time, and so had no reason to be upset that Patton wasn’t there. Surely, Jake’s teasing on how Patton had found a new boyfriend (in this scenario, Logan was apparently Patton’s previous boyfriend, despite never having romantic feelings for him) couldn’t have gotten to him.
“Logan!” his mother, Martha, called.
“I’m busy,” he called back, because he didn’t need another distraction when his head was already providing one.
“You have a guest.”
Logan frowned, and made his way out of his room. If Patton was here, that would imply something had gone wrong between him and Roman, which meant that Logan would need to have a conversation with Roman about the consequences of him hurting Patton.
But then, if Patton was here, his mother would have just said that.
“Who is it?” his other mother, Amy, asked, poking her head out of the office.
“I don’t know yet,” Logan pointed out. “Shouldn’t you be working?”
Amy had decided that this year she was going to write the book she was working on for sure. This was a process that involved very little actual writing, and a great deal of seeking out distractions. It led to a mother who was suddenly fascinated by everything Logan did.
Amy pouted. “Isn’t say that meant to be my job?”
Logan just fixed her with a stare.
Amy rolled her eyes dramatically. “You’re not me real dad,” she declared, before slinking back into her office. She left the door open.
Logan continued down stairs, but he only made it halfway down the staircase before freezing, because Remus Prince was standing in the hallway, talking to his mother.
Remus spotted him and waved with one hand – the other hand, Logan noticed, was carrying a shopping bag. Martha turned and smiled.
“There you are,” she said. “Sorry about the wait, he’s an extremely rebellious child.”
“One day someone will believe you when you say that,” Logan said as he walked down the final steps.
“Not if they’ve spent five seconds around you, they won’t,” Martha shot back. She touched one hand to Logan’s hair in a display of affection, before gliding back to the living room.
“You have two mums?” Remus asked. Of course, he had seen Amy when she had picked him up from the party.
“Yes. Surely I’ve mentioned it before?”
Remus shrugged, fiddling with the handle of the bag. “Probably. I don’t always pay attention that well.”
“Pardon my abruptness,” Logan said, “But what are you doing here?”
“I’m here to torment you, obviously,” Remus said.
It was meant as a joke, like many of Remus’ statements were, but Logan could see the defensive curl to his shoulders. Logan grimaced when he thought back on what he had said earlier.
“I apologise for how I acted,” Logan said. “You are nothing like Jake.”
“Yeah, I hope not,” Remus said. “What’d he do?”
“The details are irrelevant. Suffice to say we have been rivals for a while now.”
“Seems kinda one sided for rivals. What happened, he get mad you did better at him on a test?”
“That would require him to be mad at the whole school,” Logan said drily, and Remus snorted. “No, he takes issue with me choice of friends. Or, more accurately, with Patton’s choice of friends.”
“He’s mad you stole his bestie?”
Logan nodded, and Remus groaned. “Ugh, that’s so boring.”
Logan fought down a smile. “What were you hoping for?”
“Drama! Betrayal! An illicit love affair!”
He was unable to stop the smile now, though he was able to smother it as much as possible. Why on earth did he find Remus’ antics amusing, when by all rights he should be infuriated by them.
Well, he normally was infuriated by them. He just also found them amusing.
“Still,” Remus said, “We have to do something.”
“About what?” Logan asked.
“Jake! He doesn’t get to just mess with you!”
Logan shook his head. “There’s nothing to be done. He doesn’t constitute a big enough problem for the school to step in.”
“That’s why we’re not asking the school.” Remus grabbed Logan’s arm. “C’mon.”
“I have homework,” Logan objected.
“Well, I’m kidnapping you, so there,” Remus said.
Logan sighed. “Mum,” he called. “I’m being kidnapped.”
“Let us know if you’ll be staying out late,” Martha called back.
Logan shook his head as he let Remus drag him out of the house. “What exactly is the purpose of this?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Remus asked. He held up the shopping bag. “Revenge, my dear Watson.”
Dinner was an awkward affair, with both brothers eating in silence, despite Remy’s attempts to initiate conversation. Virgil fled back upstairs as soon as he was able to, and Patton wanted nothing more to follow him.
“Okay,” Remy said. “What happened?”
Patton swallowed uncertainly. “What do you mean?”
Remy fixed Patton with a stare. “Don’t play dumb, Pat. Since when are you and Virgil fighting?”
Patton sighed. “Something happened, and, uh, Virgil and I disagree on it.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing bad,” Patton quickly assured him. “At least, I don’t think it’s bad.”
“That’s not as reassuring as you think it is,” Remy remarked. “You know you can tell me anything, right?”
“I know,” Patton said. “And I’m going to – I was always going to, it’s just…”
“Hey.” Remy placed a hand on Patton’s shoulder. “If you really don’t want to talk about it now, you don’t have to.”
It wasn’t something Remy had offered before. Normally, he would push harder, worried about what could possibly be so bad.
“No, I want to,” Patton said, and it was suddenly true. “Do you remember when I was talking about Roman?”
Remy looked confused, before his face morphed into resignation. “I think I can see where this is going.”
“Virgil is dating Janus now,” Patton said. “He told me. Which means that I’m allowed to date now, too.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Remy said, waving a hand. “When did both my sons turn into Casanova’s? Fine, I guess you can go on a date with him.”
“Oh,” Patton said. “Actually, uh-“
“You already went on one, didn’t you?” guessed Remy, who was well experienced with the tactic of doing something before your parents could ban you.
Patton, at least, looked sheepish when he nodded, something that Remy never had.
“Wait,” Remy said. “Let me get this straight – you and Virgil are fighting over a boy?”
Patton sighed, and nodded. Somehow, he ended up spilling the whole story – or at least, an abridged version of it, leaving out the amount of alcohol he’d drank on Friday.
“Virgil doesn’t trust him,” Patton said. “But Virgil doesn’t even know him.”
“Well, if it makes you feel better, I don’t trust Virgil’s boyfriend either.”
It didn’t make Patton feel better.
“That’s just it,” he complained. “I’m happy for Virgil, why can’t he be happy for me?”
“He is happy, probably,” Remy said. “He just worries about you. We both do.”
“But I don’t want to be worried about. I like Roman, isn’t that enough?”
“I wish it was,” Remy said ruefully. “Look, Virge will come round. You know how he gets about change.”
“I guess,” Patton said with a sigh.
Still, it felt wrong, not having his big brother to gush to.
“Okay, jeez, I won’t call you Watson again,” Remus said when Logan paused for breath. “I didn’t realise you took Sherlock Holmes so seriously.”
“I take insults to my character seriously,” Logan said. He frowned and looked around, noticing their surroundings for the first time. “Where are we?”
It was night now, with only the streetlights illuminating the quiet, residential street they were standing on. They were by a fence between two perfectly normal houses, out of sight from the windows.
“You don’t recognise it?” Remus asked. “Look at the car.”
Logan squinted at the two cars parked in the driveway. One of them looked familiar, but it took him a moment to realise that he’d seen it at school, and another one to realise who he’d seen driving it.
“Remus is – is this Jake’s house?”
“Yep,” Remus said, reaching into the bag.
“Why are we at Jake’s house? How do you even know where he lives?”
“To answer your second question, I know a guy who knows a guy. And for the first one,” – Remus pushed a carton of eggs into Logan’s hands – “We’re here for revenge.”
Logan stared at the carton, then back at the car, which Remus was moving closer to. He realised what Remus was suggested in a sudden rush.
“Absolutely not,” he hissed.
“C’mon, aren’t you mad about everything he’s done?”
“That doesn’t mean we should egg his car.”
“Do you have a better solution? One that will actually work?” Remus challenged.
“I fail to see how this solution will do help.”
“It helps because it’ll make you feel better.”
Logan stared at the eggs. It was normally Patton that made him feel better, but he’d almost never had that. Jake had tried to drive them apart, telling Logan that Patton didn’t really want him around, that he just felt bad for Logan. Barely aware of what he was doing, he took an egg out of the carton. When he looked back up, Remus was watching him, face earnest.
It would have been easy to dismiss Remus as just wanting to cause trouble, but if that was the case, he would have started throwing eggs by now. He really was there just for Logan’s sake.
Logan threw the egg.
Remus whooped as the egg went splat against the car’s windshield, and Logan felt a rush of exhilaration.
Remus quickly tossed his own egg, which hit the passenger door. Logan grabbed the next one without think about it. It was like a dam had broken, and now all of Logan’s frustrations came flooding out. He kept throwing eggs, and Remus cheered whenever one hit the car.
The car alarm went off, shocking Logan into stillness. What had he just done? The car was now a runny, goopy mess.
Remus didn’t stay still. He grabbed Logan’s arm and shouted, “Run!” just as a window opened.
The remaining eggs dropped from Logan’s hand as they raced down the street. He could hear the sound of someone shouting behind him, but Remus kept a grip on his arm, pulling him when Logan became out of breath.
Eventually, Remus decided that they were far enough away, and came to a stop. Logan crouched on the ground, gasping for breath.
“We lost them,” Remus said proudly.
“That,” Logan said between pants, “Was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever done.”
“Worth it, though.”
Logan nodded, unable to speak. When he finally caught his breath and looked up again, Remus was staring at him.
“What?”
Remus blinked, seeming to come out of a daze. “Nothing, it’s just – you’re smiling.”
“Oh.” Logan was suddenly aware of the grin that threatened to split his face in two.
Remus smiled, and sat down next to Logan.
Remus had figured out that something was wrong with Logan, and then figured out what was wrong. He’d gone out of his way to help Logan, albeit using a rather chaotic method. And for what? The only thing that seemed to have come out of it was that Logan felt better.
“Remus?” Logan asked.
“Hm?” Remus didn’t turn his head. The half-light shone eerily on his features, like someone in an old horror movie.
“Are we friends?”
It was a foolish thing to ask. Surely, Logan should know who his friends were. If he had to ask, wouldn’t that imply that they weren’t friends?
Remus didn’t seem to take offense, though. He just smiled. “I don’t do this for every guy I tutor.”
“I’m the only person you tutor,” Logan said drily. “But thanks. I… consider you a friend, too.”
Strangely enough, Remus’ smile looked brittle after Logan said that. It must have been a trick of the light though, because when Remus spoke it was with his usual irreverent tone. “Well, you’re stuck with me now, Calculator Watch.”
Logan could imagine worse people to be stuck with.
#sanders sides#sanders sides fanfiction#royality#intrulogical#anxceit#patton sanders#roman sanders#remus sanders#logan sanders#virgil sanders#my fic#ten things
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I’ve been vague about what has been going on in my life intentionally, both because I needed to tell some people offline first and because it’s a lot to process.
But here is what happened: I am in the process of miscarrying.
I thought it might help to share my story. Miscarriage is more common than people realize and rarely talked about. If someone can benefit from my story, all the better, but mostly this is to help my grieving and coping process.
This is pretty detailed, so trigger warnings and all that.
Exactly one month ago, I read the results I had longed for: pregnant.
Today, I’m sprawled out on the couch in the most excruciating pain I’ve ever experienced.
They don’t tell you that miscarriage is a process.
We’ve been trying to conceive since the end of last June. It was taking so long, I was convinced I’d be scheduling a fertility consultation this coming June. They tell you if you’re under 35, to give it a year. Before we started trying to conceive, I’d tell anyone about how time speeds up the older you get. It makes sense logically, of course, when a year is 1/5 of your life, it sure seems long, but went its 1/32, well...
But this has been the longest eleven months of my life. The first month we started trying, I had an unusually long cycle. 39 days. I was so sure I was pregnant. My breasts had been hurting for two weeks. Husband and I were vacationing in Minnesota to see Aston Villa play. I bought a pregnancy test, beaming, excited, and was puzzled by the negative result. A week later, when my period came, I cried to my mother, and she said something about the universe saying I wasn’t ready or something. Whatever it was sounded bleak and ominous to my ears. It sounded like it meant I’d never be ready.
The fall was busy and stressful, and despite all the tedious ovulation test strips, nothing happened except somehow, my period got lighter month by month. I was pretty sure something was wrong with me. I thought I had a UTI. (I was actually stressed and dehydrated, which I eventually remedied.) While I cried at a Sara Bareilles concert in November, my mother told me that her OBGYN said it can take as much at 9 months for the body to recalibrate after being on the pill.
Speaking of which. I’ve been taking the pill for over a decade. For the most part, I took it correctly. There is some leeway to taking it incorrectly, for the record. You can miss two pills in a row and it still has instructions for what to do (while cautioning to be safe and use extra protection). Maybe only once did I ever have to throw out a pack for missing too many in a row.
(This is maybe neither here nor there, but rebelcaptain accidental pregnancy fics have become a bit of a pet peeve for me. Jyn and Cassian are far too careful and intentional to let that happen, and it is so easy to be responsible since there are so many birth control alternatives these days that don’t even require reliance on routine or memory.)
So, of course, the concern lately is that clearly 10+ years on birth control has messed me up. I do not know this objectively (what I do know is that I have OCD and anxiety and obsess over Everything That Can Go Wrong), but the point is that birth control really can have consequences that I don’t think are necessarily fully understood or studied. DO NOT GET ME WRONG, USE BIRTH CONTROL. My only regret is what I didn’t know.
I learned too late, but a lot of conception advice articles tell you to quit the BC as soon as possible. Even if my mom’s OBGYN is wrong, the general advice does seem to be that it can take up to 3 months for your body to recalibrate. So, if by any chance someone reading this is thinking about conceiving soon, if you take nothing else away from this rant, take this. I wish I had stopped taking the pill a few months before we actually intended to start trying.
After ten months of all this worrying, I finally got what I’d longed for. The moment I saw that positive result, it felt so surreal. There had been little things leading up to that moment, strange hints and signs, like I knew subconsciously even before a test would have been positive. I wrote that Howl’s Moving Castle pregnancy fic before I knew. I started learning “Here Comes the Sun” on my ukulele before I knew (it’s... silly, but I decided I wanted to learn the ukulele because I wanted to be able to play that song for my kids some day). It involves finger picking, so I’d been putting off learning it, but one day I just decided it was time. And finally, I decided to watch the latest season of Brooklyn 99. I’d avoided it because I knew Amy & Jake were also trying to conceive, and it was too emotional for me to watch that when I was so frustrated for how long I was taking. (Of course I didn’t realize they also had trouble, and watching it actually felt cathartic for me.) I got that positive result literally the next morning.
I spent Monday, April 20, making checklists and spreadsheets. I set my first prenatal appointment for May 8. Those two and a half weeks were the slowest of my life. They stretched out like a rubber band. I couldn’t really focus on anything except this pregnancy I’d waited so long for. That’s probably why time moved so slowly. I wasn’t filling it with the hobbies I enjoyed, writing and playing my ukulele. All my overwhelmed brain could handle was the hilarious distraction of Community. Yeah, this is also around the time I disappeared from fandom. It was originally for a happy reason, I was just too excited to focus!
I know many women who have miscarried. The data seems to vary from source to source, but anywhere between 10% to 20% of pregnancies end in miscarriage. I couldn’t wait to get to the doctor to confirm everything was okay. I wondered if they would do an ultrasound; I dreamed of seeing a fetus on that screen.
We started talking about how we were going to tell our family. We wrote a pretend promotion letter for my sister, promoting her from “sister” to “aunt” (she’s a badass at her job and we had recently been talking about her promotions so it was thematically relevant). We planned to do a video call with my parents where we played Quiplash and created custom answers related to the pregnancy.
But we never got that chance. On May 8, I went in for my first appointment. I’d spent the last three days sewing a mask because the ones we ordered still haven’t arrived yet. So all the time I would have spent preparing myself for the worst (as is my way) was spent instead distracted by sewing and finishing up Community.
They took me to an office first and went over medical history questions. “Any morning sickness?” the nurse asked. “Not at all,” I said. “Should I be worried?” “No,” she answered. “Consider yourself lucky!”
(For the record, many women who carry to term do not ever get morning sickness.)
(It was just one of those unfortunate exchanges.)
Then the exam with the doctor. All in all, it’d probably been 30 or 40 minutes by this point, all of this excited talk. I was going to tell my parents on Mother’s Day. My due date was Christmas.
I video call my husband just in time for the ultrasound.
There was no embryo.
The doctor said a lot of women are ovulating later in their cycles due to the stress of the pandemic. At the time, I thought maybe. Hope is funny like that, in the face of logic. It started to grow like a weed in the cracks of my breaking heart.
But the thing is, even with that stubborn hopeweed, I knew. I’d been doing this for ten months. I knew when my last period was, I knew when I ovulated. I was 7 weeks and 1 day, and there was no embryo, and that was it.
The beginning of the process of miscarriage.
Technically, it’d started a few days before that appointment, but I was distracted at that time. I’d noticed one morning that there seemed to be more hair in the shower floor than there should be.
Dots started to connect. My breasts had stopped aching. Now, they started to shrink back to their original size.
This happened over several days. I felt certain I would miscarry on Mother’s Day; fortunately, that did not happen. No, enough days had to pass for that hopeweed to prosper. Only then, when it whispered maybe would I start spotting and cramping.
On Tuesday, the second ultrasound confirmed what I already knew. Not viable. Missed miscarriage. Technically, the prescription the doctor hands me reads “missed abortion.” “It’s just the technical term,” the doctor explains, acknowledging that many women might find this triggering.
I don’t cry as much as I did. I only cry when I tell people. It seems important for people to know, just in case. Just one person in the relevant circles of my life. I had to tell my boss to explain the sudden uptick in unexpected doctor appointments. (I’m Rh negative, so I needed to go to the hospital to get bloodwork and a Rhogam shot -- and being in a hospital these days in anxiety-inducing enough without this trauma.)
It still feels surreal. All of this happened in one month. Somehow my life has changed completely and then reverted back. This is just a blip in my life, relatively, and yet it seems the longest month of my life.
In movies, in stories, miscarriage seems to go the same way: a flash of bloody sheets, a shout of shock and pain, and then grief. I never knew how it really goes: that it would stretch out for weeks, from the moment I saw that first ultrasound to now, twelve days later, just starting to bleed. I’ll have to go back for another ultrasound to confirm it’s done, and if it’s not, then I’ll need surgery.
This speaks nothing of the grief.
And then it’s back to square one, a whole year later: ovulation tests and endless waiting.
It’s been a whole month; it’s been only a month, and miscarriage is a process.
#tw: pregnancy#tw: miscarriage#the latest with liz#this is detailed and specific#not for everyone#it's part of my grieving process#it's been a month and i thought it might help to say something
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Little Women, big statement
Title: “Little Women”
Release date: Dec. 25, 2019
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Laura Dern, Timothee Chalamet, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Tracy Letts, Bob Odenkirk, James Norton, Louis Garrel, Jane Houdyshell
Directed by: Greta Gerwig
Run time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Rated: PG
What it’s about: Based on the classic novel by Louisa May Alcott and the author’s personal writings, “Little Women” is the story of the March sisters – Jo, Amy, Meg and Beth – as they come of age in a lower middle-class home in Massachusetts during the Civil War era.
How I saw it: Making a movie version of the classic novel “Little Women” fresh and contemporary would seem a formidable task. Louisa May Alcott’s timeless story of the March sisters has been made into seven full-length feature films (dating back to 1917!) and countless TV adaptations (including a Japanese animated version), musicals and stage shows, and its Civil War era setting and way of life would seem to have little in common with today’s technology-saturated world. Alcott’s book is beloved, popular upon its publication in two volumes in 1868 and 1869 (and then combined) and still read, revered, dissected and discussed 150 years later. Any moviemaker wanting to rework it had better tread lightly.
But writer/director Greta Gerwig, not surprisingly (and thankfully), did not tread lightly. Nor did she stomp all over Alcott’s work. Her version of “Little Women” gives the story’s feminism 21st century bite while also paying respect to the source material. It’s still a period piece, still a captivating story of four sisters’ bond, still a warm family drama, still about romantic love, still about practical love, still about unrequited love, still about restraints society places on women, still about women’s struggle for identity. But Gerwig’s version feels like it is of the here and now. And it’s an outstanding film.
Alcott based her book loosely on her own life, and the main character (representing the author) is Jo, a determined, hot-tempered, tomboyish writer played in the film by Saoirse Ronan. She is the March sister who most questions what is expected of women in the mid-1800s. At times she is the family’s breadwinner. She is the one who puts her life in New York on hold when her sister Beth (Eliza Scanlen) falls ill. She has a rivalry with her mischievous, boy-crazy youngest sister Amy (Florence Pugh). She does not understand the choices made by her oldest sister Meg (Emma Watson), who is content with getting married (and marrying for love, not money) instead of pursuing a career in acting. Jo also is loved by a neighbor, Laurie (Timothee Chalamet), who is loved by Amy, though she plans to marry for money. Jo has decided to go it alone, to be her own woman, to be more than someone’s wife. “Women, they have minds, and that have souls, as well as just hearts,” Jo says in one of several bits of empowerment dialogue in Gerwig’s film. “And they’ve got ambition, and they’ve got talent, as well as just beauty. I’m so sick of people saying that love is just all a woman is fit for. I’m so sick of it!”
Jo, as in the book, eventually does marry (though Alcott did not), though the middle-aged Friedrich Bhaer of the book has been reimagined as a hunky young man (played by Louis Garrel) who shares a kiss with Jo under an umbrella at a train station. In this movie version, Jo is told that women in books either must get married or die (and, according to her publisher, it does not matter which). Gerwig’s version shows Jo driving a hard bargain with the publisher (Tracy Letts), and her insistence on doing her own thing and being heard as a woman in a man’s world seems as if Gerwig, who has been outspoken about a male-centric Hollywood, has interjected herself into the story. Gerwig has said that Jo March was her hero growing up but that she now most admires Alcott, so Jo becomes a natural extension of Alcott and the filmmaker simultaneously in Gerwig’s screen version.
Ronan is, as usual, outstanding, her Jo full of spunk and heart. Pugh’s Amy gets her own epic speech about love, marriage and what is expected of her; Pugh is strong as the young adult Amy but is too much an adult to pull off 12-year-old Amy. Laura Dern brings a touch (but not too much) of her edginess to the role of Marmee, the girls’ mother. Chris Cooper stands out as Mr. Laurence, the March’s wealthy neighbor who befriends Beth. Chalamet is perfect as the young Laurie, especially in the scene in which Jo breaks his heart by being honest with him.
Any criticism of Gerwig’s film (and there isn’t much criticism) has centered on her choice to make this version a non-linear story. This “Little Women” jumps around in time, and it can be hard to follow until you get used to it (hint: look for the change in color palettes during different periods of time). But the non-linear format works in the film’s favor. For one, we meet Jo when she already is a young adult, which helps reinforce the film’s emphasis on strong women over the younger March girls. It also allows Gerwig to juxtapose scenes for effect, like when the girls are shown having fun at the ocean and then the story shifts to Jo reading to a weakened Beth on the beach. The format also seems to keep the pace lively and perhaps adds spark to a story already familiar to much of the audience.
No matter how “Little Women” is sliced, though, it is a powerfully emotional story, one that is engrossing and certain to bring more than one tear (and cheer). Gerwig, by making a few key changes along with some minor tweaks, by coaxing strong performances out of her cast, and by offering a lovingly made film that is beautiful to look at (and hear), has made “Little Women” seem like her own, a time period movie fully in touch with the world in which Gerwig resides. It is clear much work and thought went into its making, and the results are wonderful.
My score: 93 out of 100
Should you see it? Yes. As with the book, it will have more appeal for women, but it is a film of importance that just so happens to be immensely entertaining and should be seen by all.
#movies#film#movie review#movie recommendation#little women#greta gerwig#oscars#best picture#feminism#louisa may alcott#saoirse ronan#florence pugh#emma watson#laura dern#eliza scanlen#timothee chamalet
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Mi querido Dr. Huevo can I interest you in some uhhhhhhh older!Sonamy headcanons???
¡Ohhh claro que sí, Anon! Did you have something particular in mind? I don’t know if I posted here my thoughts on the matter (estoy seguro que lo hice en mi blog principal en español), but I don’t really go well with the whole idea of Sonic and Amy marrying, settling down, having children and whatnot (even tho I’m currently writing something that literally starts with them getting married). Like Sonic, I’m kind of a free spirit, and that family life is both scary and boring to me, heh. I can share with you some of my main older!Sonamy headcanons:
- First of all, I struggle to imagine them past a certain age, maybe late 20s is the oldest I can go but that’s because, to me, they will be forever this young couple, full of energy (lol)
- Second, and funnily enough, I think Sonic Boom is the perfect older!Sonamy experiment. My Boom!Sonamy main headcanon doesn’t buy the fact that they’re still 15 and 12 respectively, but instead a couple of years older (18 and 15 maybe), hence why they’re much closer and thinking about each other in not-so-platonic terms. I do have conflicting Boom headcanons regarding if that universe is separated or a continuation of Modern canon, tho. I could post them later if you want.
- For a full-blown headcanon: there’s a point later in Sonic’s life when he realizes that there’s nothing wrong with feeling the way he feels about Amy, so he starts opening to her, spending more time together and going out on dates, up to the point their friends do notice that something’s going on (thanks to some of cutegirlmayra’s Boom!Sonamy prompts for that last idea). I do ocasionally think the current canon is evolving towards this idea but, knowing SEGA, the end result will always be kept as our headcanon.
- After declaring their feelings for each other, Sonic and Amy decide to go on adventures all over the world rather than just doing the boring date thing again. They take lots of pictures of every exotic place they visit, and are always on the move. One night they could be having a romantic dinner under Spagonia’s moonlight, and the other day they could be racing each other at Wild Canyon just for fun and due to the romantic rivalry they develop. As you can see, this is not your run-of-the-mill, fully romantic relationship with gifts and letters and big displays of love, but instead one that resembles more of two best friends rocking the world.
- I do headcanon the idea that, in the future, Tails is mass-producing portable Miles Electric devices with fully-working network capabilities for the world to freely use (think of it as Tails’ version of a modern smartphone). This allows the existance of social media in Sonic’s world, where people can follow Sonic and Amy on their adventures, something that like 95% of the whole world is interested in (this is a topic I’m covering on “Celebrity Life”, that project I mentioned above).
- In this future, Dr. Eggman is the main figure behind SonAmy’s online cult following. The doctor prefers to moderate discussions (with his own Miles Electric, lol) and organize events rather than going on his own quest for world domination.
I guess I do have some more headcanons, but I’m going to need more time to sort them out first. Also, lots of my older!Sonamy headcanons are literally parts of my “Celebrity Life” reports, lol. I should get back to work on Part 4, I hope to read more from you soon!
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Bel Ami - B.B (4)
Summary: You had bigger fish to fry in NYC between your new job, living in a new city and old friend – you were sure in over your head, but who’s that cute stranger that keeps helping you out?(Reader/Bucky Barnes)
Prompt: Person A: “Okay, I have something to confess… I like you. I have for the past two years now and it’s been killing me to hold it in this long but I think you deserve to know.” Person B: “You nerd, we’ve been dating for the past two years.
A/N: this is for @sgtjbuccky‘s writing challenge. please welcome to “you’re both idiots”.
Feedback is always welcomed.
1 week later.
“So, she stopped showing up to the cafe?”
“Yeah, but I don’t blame her...What with the whole owner of where you work thing.”
“Buck, you seem really hungover this though. Are you sure you aren’t feeling more?”
“...”
It takes you a month to fully comprehend what you saw that morning when Bucky, whose real name was James Buchanan Barnes, had walked into your office. From what you understood, his family --an old New York family that had been building their money for years-- owned the whole building and several other within a block radius. No, James wasn’t the head hancouch of where you worked --the owner subleased the floor-- but he was a man with money and a great deal of power. You had also heard that he had dated several other woman that had caught his attention within the building over the years -- it was pass time of his.
It was extremely hard to place the picture of Bucky, sweet and cautious, along with Daisy with the one that James Buchanan Barnes that everyone seemed to be rumoring about.
The man hadn’t been seen in years, only until a few months back when his father passed away did he really starts to show up once more. You wondered if at one point he had seen you and decided to reach out when you got sick, if you were meant to be a new game for him now that he had came back to reclaim the throne of the Barnes Conglomerate.
It’s too much to think about and deep down it hurts, so you decide to push it all away. You’re a little sad, but your world isn’t meant for millionaires and playboys, so you close the book on ever meeting or seeing Bucky again.
“Have you thought about it?” Winnie frowns as she notices that her son isn’t paying any attention to him, “You aren’t even listening, James.”
“No,” Bucky sighs out as he pets Daisy who simply looks at him with those big, blue eyes of hers, “You want a fundraising gala set up an attempt to find me a girlfriend. I know, I know.”
Blue meets blue as James gives his mother a defeated smile that can’t help her but make her pause. He had been like this for days, since they had gotten a tour of one of his father’s older buildings. Winnie knew that her son hadn’t been the same since coming back home from his tours of service all those years ago -- the charming, trade of all jacks, womanizer was gone and replaced with a more somber man. Due to this, George had decided to keep his son’s interactions with the family’s holdings to a limit and let him follow his own pursuits -- to wait until the time was right once more, though that had come sooner rather than later as George passed away early last summer.
James had been told to step up once more, but it caused more anxiety than anything else, especially with the last clause that his father had written out for him -- even in death George Barnes was still an eccentric.
“Is there something wrong with that?” Winnie can’t help but ask as she crosses the small Manhattan apartment that Bucky called his own, “I just worry about you, dear. It seems like you lost something.”
Bucky can’t help the laugh that escapes him at how intune his mother could still be with him: “Yeah, something like that.”
“Was it the dog foundation again?” Winnie asks, because the thing that seemed to take up most of her son’s time beforehand was the dog training service non-profit that he helped with.
Sometime after he came back, he thought about getting a service dog to help but instead found himself researching and getting the necessary license to help volunteer and train the animals -- like he was doing with Daisy at the current moment, who just stood still from at his side. Bucky shakes his head before passing a hand through his face in annoyance, trying to find the right words to everything.
“I think I fell for a gal I’ve been having those meetings with,” Bucky explains as Winnie gives him a confused look, “By accident, we run into each other from time to time.”
“I could see how that could be a problem,” Winnie nods in understanding. I mean, if they only saw each other from time to time -- there was no way that Bucky could really get her number or anything. His mother knew and understood that he wasn’t the charmer that made a lineup of girls sigh at his feet.
“That isn’t the main problem in all this, ma,” Bucky explain a bit more, as Winnie waits in silence, “I saw her the other day at the Tower, she works there.”
Winnie can’t help but let out a mix of a scoff and groan at her son’s revelation before placing a sympathetic hand on his shoulder: “ Goodness, James. You never learn.”
“I really don’t’, ma. I really don’t.”
And with that, Winnie can’t help but keep moving forward with the plan for the fundraising gala.
However, fate seems to know that you are calling out to each other -- at least, Bucky is in the way he thinks about constantly since you stopped going to your shared cafe after the first week. The worry of whether you would reject him if he ever sought you out gave him sleepless nights and fatigue that he wasn’t sure how handle -- just a few chance meetings and Bucky could tell he was lovesick, even if he wasn’t supposed to be.
You, on the other hand, were more tamed about your pinning and while you saw things that reminded you of Bucky and Daisy in the month that followed -- you could still move on without much else in mind. You ignored that your heart lurched for a quick second.
However, fate is cruel to lovers that try to ignore that nature order of things, as you end up getting caught in the rain on Saturday afternoon with no umbrella and trying to save yourself underneath a large tree.
You’re shivering and cold when you see it -- a man and a dog (wearing a bright green raincoat) making it down the road your way with an umbrella at hand. You’re ready to yell out and ask for some help until you see who it really is.
Blue eyes meet your own, as Bucky heads towards your direction and placing the umbrella directly underneath you, as the dog -- a black and brown Lab mix looks up.
“Hey, are you okay?” he rushes forward, clearly not noticing who you are until you are face-to-face and the thought that he is willing to help anyone makes you smile for a brief moment. His eyes widen, as you move back for a moment, causing him to frown.
“Let’s get out of the rain,” Bucky pleas softly, as you look at him and then at the dog. He looks at you and lets out a little huff of air, almost as if annoyed, “I think Luke agrees too.”
“Okay, I’ll listen to Luke,” you throw him a bone as Bucky grins before leading you through Central Park. The walk is cold, lonely, and quiet as it seems that the park has emptied just a little due to the weather, but there was always people here and there but due to your lack of talking, it seemed lonelier than it should be.
“Thank you,” you finally state timidly as you look up ahead halfway through your walk, as Bucky simply nods. It’s then you admit shyly: “I lost track of time at the library and I still can’t find my umbrella.”
“It’s a good thing that I found you then,” Bucky lets out awkwardly as you simply nod.
You nod in agreement, making out of Central Park along the way, before asking: “Is he another trainee?”
“Yup,” Bucky declares like a proud summer while look at the raincoat-clad dog, “Daisy is getting graduate, so they gave me a new pup to train.”
You can’t help but stare at him for just a moment, as a familiar thought raises from the back of your mind since you had heard all those rumors about him from the office ladies back at work.
Doesn’t it hurt to move from one person to the other so quickly?
However, instead saying anything you let Bucky go on about how a good boy Luke is in his training and how Daisy has been doing. It almost reminds you of the last time you had seen him at the cafe before the “big reveal” and just how warm and caring Bucky seemed to people towards animals. And you too, is something that your heart added as an afterthought, but you ignored it as Bucky stopped in front of a bistro place and looks at you.
“Are you hungry?” he questions, “We could sit here and wait until the rain stop. I know they allow dogs.”
There’s a pleading look in his eyes, as Luke’s tail seems to start wagging over the smell whatever is cooking inside and why you want to say no -- that you should be heading into a minimarket, buying yourself an umbrellas, and heading home. Instead, you brush your hair back and nod. Bucky nods as you both enter and head towards the back.
He grabs you a menu before you sit in a medium booth with Luke standing near the end of the table. It might be because you’re out of the rain or that you actually agreed to eat with him, but there is something brighter and more carefree shining in Bucky’s face as he watches you gloss over the menu. There are a million things he could be saying or asking in this moment, but he goes with the safest.
“I know there might a lot of things running through your head right now,” he starts off as you give him a brief glance, trying to stay as calm as possible, “And I am willing to answer all your questions, but you have to promise me one thing.”
“What?” you dare to question, as Bucky pulls his hand out in front of you. Luke watches the interaction quietly.
“Friends?” Bucky questions, and that’s when you really look at him. He gives you bright but strained smile, trying his hardest to keep you in his life in some way, while push back the thought of just how cute you look in that moment.
You bite your lip for a brief moment and Bucky swears that he’s done for. However, your voice breaks his thought.
“Okay, Bucky,” you relent and pull out your own hand to shake his, “Friends.”
You smile as Bucky lets out a loud, relieved laugh before telling you that you could order anything you want on the menu and that Luke was getting a big steak -- much to the dog’s excitement.
It was a step on a different direction, but for now at least you still had each other.
#salinaswritingchallenge#james buchanan barnes#james barnes#james bucky barnes x reader#james buchanan barnes x reader#Bucky Barnes#bucky barnes au#bucky barnes fanfiction#bucky barnes angst#bucky barnes fanfic#bucky barnes fluff#bucky barnes ceo#bucky barnes modern au#bucky barnes fic#bucky barnes fan fic#series: bel ami#fabiola trying to write
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Doubts
A little Tyler and Ashe drabble! Please read it if you have the chance! I just felt the urge to write for them. Ashe comforts her doubting boyfriend. Short, sweet, and fluff of fluff! just like me. ;)
XxXxXxXxX
Ashe was pretty sure she was in heaven. After a long, and fruitful day of training, Ashe and Tyler were once again chilling in their room.
They had both enjoyed a refreshing dinner, but Ashe was still starving. They had been putting her powers to the test, meaning she felt particularly drained. Hence, she needed to binge some food. She'd deal with the calories later. She was pretty good at burning them off, if she said so herself.
She was draped over a love seat, a bowl of onion dip resting on her stomach as she dipped another chip before popping it in her mouth.
Glancing over, she looked at her boyfriend and smiled softly. He was resting his head on the couch, his eyes closed as his chest slowly rose and fell. Ashe was half convinced that he was asleep by now.
Ashe felt incredibly proud of her boyfriend. While he had had his powers for a while now, he was still trying to catch up to the rest of the group, and she knew he worked harder than even she did at it. The progress was really starting to show itself too. His control, strength, and creativity with his ice manipulation was impressive, unfortunately that also meant it was taxing on him as well.
Chewing her lip for a moment, she figured she should plan another rest day for them soon. She didn't want him to wear himself out after all, and she knew his stubborn ass wasn't going to admit he needed rest.
Watching him, Ashe figured she should get a blanket for him. He shouldn't just sleep out in the open like that. As she dipped another chip, and tried to summon the will power to get up to take care of her boyfriend, his voice surprised her.
“Do you think I'm cool?”
Ashe jumped slightly, catching her onion dip to stop it from falling before she took another bite.
“Not at all, you dork.” She offered, barely missing a beat.
Ashe did actually think he was incredibly cool, and she was pretty sure he knew that. So ask a dumb question, and get a dumb answer.
Instead of his usual retort, he just fell silent.
This caused Ashe to crane her neck to look over at him from her relaxed position.
“Ty?” She asked, seeing him staring pensively at the table for a moment, before he stood up. He mumbled something about being tired, before he started to slink off.
Ashe barely managed to set the dip down before she lunged over the table, kneeling on the couch and grabbing his hand.
“Hey! Don't walk away. What's wrong? What did I do?” She asked, her eyes searching his. She knew something was wrong. More so than just her teasing him about being a dork. It ran deeper than that, they had been through enough to understand each other pretty well by now.
Tyler just looked at her with a closed off expression, one she absolutely loathed. She hated seeing him close off himself. Turning his back on the world to deal with his own problems. She was there for him, darn it. And even if she was the source of his problems, she'd find a way to solve them.
Tyler froze in place, not really fighting her grip on his hand. His eyes searched hers for a moment, until he felt her tug on his arm.
Ashe sat properly on the couch, patting the cushion next to her as she coaxed him to sit back down. After a moment Tyler relented and took a seat.
Reassuringly Ashe rubbed his back, and waited. She knew he would speak, she would just give him the time he needed until then.
“The meeting we went to had some pretty cool people, didn't it?” He asked after a moment.
Looking at him curiously, Ashe slowly nodded. “Yeah. There were a lot of people from all factions there.” She offered.
“Plenty of powerful Angels there. Plus those neutral guards were so awesome.” He continued, still not meeting her gaze.
The gears in Ashe's head slowly started to turn. “Tyler... are you...”
“Do you ever wish you had recruited one of them instead of me and met them?” His voice offered, a step softer.
“Tyler!” Ashe blurted out, causing the boy to flinch. “Look at me.”
Slowly Tyler turned to look at Ashe, his eyes still looking away until he couldn't resist anymore and met her gaze.
Ashe's eyes were soft as she looked at him, taking both of his hands in hers. “Tyler, are you jealous?”
Slowly Tyler nodded after a moment, before sighing. “I just... Everyone there was so cool. Their powers were awesome, they looked much cooler than me, and could do so much more than I could in a fight. I'm just... afraid you're going to realize one day that you can do better.”
Ashe's eyes narrowed and her jaw set. “You really don't get it do you?”
Tyler just looked at her, caught off guard by the hard edge in her voice. “What?” He asked after a moment.
“Just how much you mean to me? How cool you are to me? How much I look up to you?” She offered, still staring him down.
Tyler's jaw just dropped. “I don't... I mean... I'm just...”
“You're you, Tyler. That's why no one can match up to you in my eyes. Why do you think I have a thing for guys with shaggy hair?” She asked, quirking an eyebrow. She reached up and ran a hand through his hair, gently playing with it. A small smirk played across her lips as she felt him lean his head into it ever so slightly.
“It's because you have it. The same reason I love brown eyes. The same reason I now have a playlist of just piano music on my iPod. Because it reminds me of you, so of course I love it.”
Tyler was caught off guard, unable to form words as a light blush dusted his cheeks.
“Your powers are beautiful, Tyler. I don't know why you can't accept that. Ever since I first saw them, the beauty is breathtaking. Nothing can compare to me.”
Her other hand traced it's way up his stomach to his chest, before resting on it. Mentally, Ashe noted the definition she felt had increased. God, he was just getting hotter to her and it was utterly unfair. “Trust me, you're incredibly cool and hot to me, even if you are a dork.”
Tyler just nodded after a moment, his blush in full force.
“I get it, it's easy to be jealous. There were plenty of girls there that had more curves than I do. That are a little thinner than I am.” She offered, her eyes flicking off to the side in a slight pout.
She felt Tyler shift, and saw his eyes scrunch in the cute way they always did when he was upset. Before he could get into a rant about her that she knew he was a step away from, she placed a finger on his lips to silence him.
“But I've come to realize that you love me, and I'm not worried about them. I know there is nothing that could come between us. I'm pretty sure you know that as well.”
She offered, raising an eyebrow challenging.
Tyler nodded, his pout turning into a small smile. One of those that warmed her heart far more than her powers ever could.
“So while I understand it, you don't need to feel jealous. I promise you, I will never meet another guy in the same league as you in my eyes. No matter how cool you think they are, or how pretty, or how smart or whatever it may be. To me, they will always just be compared to you, and they will never match up. After all, there's no substitution for the original.”
She said, leaning forward to kiss his nose.
Tyler just nodded after a moment.
A devilish smirk crossed Ashe's face for a moment. “Besides, don't think I'm ever letting go of you.” She said as she draped her arms over his shoulders, lacing her hands behind him as she pinned him on the couch, leaning forward ever so slightly.
Tyler's hands moved up to rest gently on her hips. “I think I can live with that.”
Ashe closed the distance, and shared a proper kiss with him. A few moments later, a little out of breath and satisfied that Tyler had gotten the message just how intense her love for him was, she ended their kiss and scooted off him to cuddle up next to him on the couch.
“Feeling better?”
Tyler nodded, draping an arm around her and pulling her a little closer.
“I know you feel the same way I do.”
Ashe just hummed happily, before she raised an eyebrow.
“The same way?”
Tyler just looked off to the side, embarrassed. “They must have not said anything to you then. Alice loved teasing me about the fact that apparently I spent more time looking at you than I did acknowledging the rest of the meeting existed.” He muttered. His eyes flickered back to her after a moment. “It's fine though. All the other people were just disappointing reminders of you. You were by far the hottest thing in that room.” He said with a wink, fully intending the pun on her fire powers.
Ashe just rolled her eyes, shoving him away slightly. “First, that pun was awful, I loved it. Second, you should pay more attention during the meetings. A lot of important things were actually said there, we have plenty of time to stare at each other when we're home here.”
Tyler just pouted, until he felt her grab his shirt and pull him close before she kissed him again.
“Third, you're really sweet. Now come on, after all this talk we need to go on a date. Ami owes us anyway. I'm thinking the movies then milkshakes?” She said, standing up and offering her boyfriend a hand.
Tyler took it, standing up and pulling her close. “Nothing would be better.”
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all i know is a newfound grace
requested by @capnperaltiago & anonymous - 32. A kiss so passionate, so perfect - that after they part, neither person can open their eyes for a few moments afterwards.
c h e e s y af + an excuse for me to write more taylor swift-inspired early relationship fluff about amy falling for jake instead of studying shocking
read on ao3
Jake has always been full of surprises.
Some are unwelcome, like his “Peralta guarantee” that resulted in her having to take him to the ER, or the ants she found in her car weeks after he left a half-eaten candy bar in the glove compartment during a stakeout to “keep it safe” while they chased their perp. Others, however, such as the unexpected acts of kindness and bravery and sometimes even maturity that he’s displayed over the years she’s known him, have caught her so off guard that it took a long time - longer than it should have, really - for her to acknowledge her feelings for him.
Over the course of one evening alone, one of their first dates - their fifth, to be exact - she actually loses track of how many times she’s astounded by him.
He shows up early, for starters. Jake is rarely on time, she’s grown to expect tardiness, so when he knocks on her door more than ten minutes prior to the agreed upon time - she was ready twenty minutes earlier, of course, but she would be foolish to start holding him to Santiago standards - Amy thinks her ears are deceiving her.
He brings flowers. They’re light pink orchids, her favourite, and slightly wilted because he bought them that morning when they caught his eye at a stand on the way to work and he thought of her and he is still Jake, so it makes sense that he didn’t think to put them in water. The sentiment is so sweet that she could not care less about how they look as she puts them in her nicest vase.
It’s his turn to pick the restaurant, so she’s fully prepared to spend the evening at the nearest buffet with bottomless chicken fingers. She does very little to hide her affection, stopping to kiss his cheek in the middle of the sidewalk, when he states that he picked a nice, casual Cuban restaurant within walking distance to her place because, according to Jake, she “mentioned that she missed her mom’s cooking” and she “is always talking about how he should get more exercise.”
Throughout dinner, as she watches him nearly cry after they place a bet on who can handle the most hot sauce (winner picks the movie later) and observes the way his eyes light up with genuine interest and adoration as she talks about her day, Amy comes to the most startling revelation thus far: she’s totally falling for him. Hard.
It’s a little intimidating; Amy doesn’t have commitment issues per se, but it’s a little overwhelming to not be able to breathe normally at two o’clock on a Wednesday afternoon because Jake is smiling at her across their desks or have her mind clogged with images of him in her bedroom last night when she’s trying to focus on her paperwork (she’s made two typos this week).
Perhaps even more surprising is how incredibly safe and at ease she feels with Jake despite the intense emotional rush. It’s a lot less scary jumping off the deep end when she’s almost certain he’s going to be there to catch her.
“That was amazing,” Amy says as they walk out of the restaurant and onto the street, the sky coloured with orange and pink hues as the sun sets over the city. It’s a gorgeous late summer evening, the kind that could only be improved upon by the large amount of tamales in her stomach and the light, fluttering sensation in her chest.
Her hand reaches down to tangle her fingers with Jake’s without much of a thought, but it’s still a new enough concept - them, Jake and Amy, holding hands - that her grip remains loose until he smiles at her and tightens his hold.
“I agree. Although, in the future, I probably shouldn’t make bets that I have no chance winning.”
She pats his hand reverently. “Yeah, that was a long shot.”
“I thought maybe you would cut me some slack out of pity after my eyes started to water, but it appears even my girlfriend will show me no mercy.”
The casual usage of the word “girlfriend” delays her response time considerably while she takes a moment to replay it in her brain, but she quickly recovers when she feels him turn to look at her.
“Your eyes weren’t watering, Jake, you were straight up crying,” she teases him, gently bumping his arm with hers. “In your defense, it wasn’t really a fair fight.” He looks at her hopefully for a moment, and she shakes her head. “We’re still watching Harry Potter. I won fair and square!”
He sighs dramatically as they reach her building, his hand slipping out of hers and immediately moving to her back as they walk up the steps. “You did.”
Amy smiles to herself at her boyfriend’s - not partner’s, not colleague’s, not friend’s, boyfriend’s - antics as she stops at the top of her stoop to rifle through her purse for her keys. Once she’s secured the keychain, she glances up to find Jake gazing at her - a gaze she’s become very well-acquainted with over the past weeks - with his eyes flickering from hers to her lips, his bright smile fading into a serious, fixated expression. Maybe it’s the two margaritas she had with dinner or the fact that she’s felt increasingly secure in their relationship with every passing day thus far, but she doesn’t wait for him to make the next move.
Completely indifferent to the dozens of New Yorkers enjoying an evening stroll, Amy rolls up onto her tiptoes, an easier feat with the heels she’s wearing, and presses her lips to his. It’s already an automatic response for her to wrap her arms around his shoulders and his hands to rest on her waist, pulling her closer.
He quickly deepens the kiss, angling his head for better access, and she’s once again overwhelmed by the feeling of intoxication that comes with kissing him. It’s very quickly become the only thing she wants to do at any given moment, something she can’t believe she’s missed out on for all these years. It’s dangerous to throw words like “love” and “fate” around this early in a relationship, even in the confines of a journal entry or a phone call with Kylie, but there’s no denying that even her best kisses with Teddy or previous boyfriends never made her feel like this.
(Like she’s floating.
Like this is it for her.)
She melts into him, and an unprecedented urge to pop her foot up in the air like she’s in a movie washes over her. It feels like nothing short of a fairytale when he reaches up with one hand to cup her cheek and they gently pull away, remaining close enough that their noses brush and keeping their eyes closed, neither of them ready to burst the bubble of passion and intense emotion that’s enveloped them.
“Wow,” she whispers, worried that speaking too loudly will disrupt the tranquility of the moment. She slowly draws away from him as her eyes flutter open, and he comes to the surface a moment later, his grip on her waist loosening slightly. “That was, um…”
Jake lets out a breathy laugh, his eyes shining with raw affection as he takes in the similar smile gracing her face. “…Yeah.”
She’s positive she could stay here until morning as long as she gets to keep kissing him, but a cool breeze sends goosebumps up her body. He immediately detects her shivering and responds by rubbing his hands up and down her bare arms. It’s such a natural response that she can’t help but wonder how many times he’s watched her complain about being cold before, how many times he’s stopped himself from trying to warm her up.
“Should we go inside?”
She nods, unlocking the door and reaching out behind her to take his hand and lead him in.
About halfway through Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, while curled up on the couch with her head on Jake’s shoulder and laughing softly as he imitates the characters with varying degrees of horrible English accents, she realizes she shouldn’t be surprised at all. Some small part of her, though she repressed and fought and ignored it for as long as possible, has been falling for this idiot since the day she met him.
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To the guest that requested this one: I really really hope this is what you expected! If not I’m sorry … if yes, then yay!
Guest: Please do one when Beca is pregnant?
One Shot 9
Chloe walks into the house. She’s exhausted. The day had been filled with so many activities for the kids because it’s the first day of school. The teenagers were way too excited and Chloe is one of the favorite teachers so they kept coming to ask for advice. What extracurricular activities they should choose for their last high school year. For each and every one of them she had some advice and it seemed to help them out. But right now she just wants to lay on the couch, wrapped in her beautiful wife’s arms.
“Beca baby? Where are you?” Chloe shouts into the hallway while taking of her heels. She lets out a relieved breath when they’re off. “In the kitchen.” Chloe makes her way into the house and stops when she gets to the kitchen. “What’s the occasion?” Beca grins as she pulls out Chloe’s chair for the redhead to sit on. “Don’t tell me you forgot.” The brunette says with a wink. “Forget what?” Beca kisses Chloe on her cheek before walking around the table to sit down herself.
“It’s our anniversary, 8 years ago today we met.” Chloe’s eyes widen and she turns in her seat to look at the calendar. “Oh god, I can’t believe I forgot!” Beca gets up from her chair again so she can hug her wife. “It’s ok, at least you remember the important ones.” Chloe lets out a sigh and wraps her arms around Beca. “How did I get so lucky?” Beca shrugs. I don’t know, I’ve been asking that same question for 7 years.”
8 years ago today they met at the activities fare and a little more that 7 years ago they started dating. After the ICCA’s everything went so fast and when Chloe kissed Beca everything was complete. They will be married 5 years in November. Their lives are perfect. Chloe is teaching high school students while Beca is a famous producer. All their dreams came true.
“Anyways, I made lasagna. And I have a bottle of wine ready for you.” Beca presses on more kiss against Chloe’s temple and serves the food and wine. “Aren’t you having any wine?” Chloe asks when she sees that Beca only brought out one glass. “My stomach has been weird today so I don’t want to upset it even more.” Beca smiles trying to brush it off. “Maybe you should go see a doctor?” Beca nods. “I did, I’m still waiting for the results.” Chloe takes the answer and they eat their food in a comfortable mood, talking about their day.
“Babe, why don’t you go and set up a movie while I clean up in here.” Chloe raises her brow. “Since when do you suggest watching movies?” Beca laughs at the cute face her wife pulls. “Since it’s our anniversary and I love you.” Chloe wraps her arms Beca’s neck and pulls her into a kiss. “Hurry up, I don’t feel like waiting.” She says with a wink before walking out of the kitchen into the living room.
A good ten minutes later Beca walks in with something behind her back which of course makes Chloe curious. “What’s that behind your back?” Beca rolls her eyes. “Something I will give to you when you close your eyes.” Chloe grunts but does as told. “Put out your hands.” Chloe slowly puts her hands in front of her and waits. Beca takes a few steps forward and places the small bag in her wife’s hands.
“Ok, you can look now.” Chloe opens her eyes but frowns. “Oh Beca, why did you buy me a gift if you knew I forgot about today.” Beca lets out a soft laugh. “Because I love spoiling you and open the present. I’m sure you’ll love it.” Chloe reaches into the bag and takes out something that looks like a piece of clothing. She quickly drops it when she sees what it is. “A-are you…?” Beca nods. “I am.”
Chloe jumps up and flies into Beca’s arms. “We’re going to be mommies.” The excitement is contagious and soon Beca is laughing while trying to push off Chloe. “Babe if you kill me now it will be a lost effort.” Chloe stops squeezing the brunette and picks up the baby onesie. She smiles at the text writing on it. A little chicken coming out of an egg saying: Hatched By Two Chicks.
“When did you find out?” Chloe asks still smiling brightly. “I threw up this morning after you left for work. First I thought it was a bug or something but then it hit me that my period is late. I ran to the store and got some tests after I called in sick. I did them and they all came out positive. I went to doctor Montgomery’s office as one final test and she confirmed it. We’re going to be parents.”
“We are, we really are.” Beca can see the tears in Chloe’s eyes so she wraps her in her arms. “Have you told anyone yet?” Beca shakes her head. “No, you are the first and most important person that has to know. We can call your parents and Aubrey if you want?” Chloe nods. “Yeah and we can call your parents too.”
They set everything up and call Chloe’s parents via skype. The Beale’s quickly pick up. “Beca, Chloe how are you?” The over enthusiastic redhead never fails to make Beca chuckle. “We’re good mom. We’re calling because we have some news.” Beca squeezes Chloe’s hand as a sign to continue. “Mom, dad… Beca’s pregnant!” A loud scream can be heard on the others side. “That’s fantastic, how long?” Misses Beale asks. “About a month, we found out today.”
“That’s amazing sweetie, when will you come over so we can celebrate?” Beca smiles at the screen. “We will come as soon as our schedules let us.” Momma Beale lets out a sigh. “Fine… oh before I forget, are you going to reveal the sex of the baby when the time comes?” Beca and Chloe look at each other. “Uhm we haven’t talked about that yet misses Beale.” Chloe sees the weird look on her wife’s face. “Mom can we call you back later about that? We need to call Beca’s family too.” Chloe’s mom nods her head and soon the screen shuts off.
“Bec, do you want to know the sex? Or do you want to wait?” Beca sighs. “We’ll do whatever you choose Chlo.” Chloe shakes her head. “This should be something we both decide. Talk to me, please?” Beca turns so she faces Chloe. “I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl, the only thing I want is it to be healthy. I want to wait and be surprised the day he or she is born.” Chloe kisses Beca on the cheek. “Then we’ll wait, in the end we’ll have a healthy baby that we’ll love.”
The two women call Beca’s dad who each reacts similar to Chloe’s. Aubrey on the other side is already planning her next flight to New York so she can help with anything that needs help. Beca tries to stop her but sadly Aubrey doesn’t listen to the brunette. The blonde still has her apartment there and the lodge could function without her there 24/7. The next people were the rest of the Bellas. Of course they’re already planning some kind of party. All Fat Amy’s doing of course, how else would a party happen?
-,-,-,-,-
Let us fast forward 5 months. Beca is now 6 months pregnant almost done with her second semester. Of course there have been some up and down but nothing our lovely couple couldn’t handle. They already started picking out the furniture and paint for the baby room. Some baby names might have dropped here and there and it keeps them excited.
Chloe enters the house after a full day of teaching. But all of the tiredness she feels leaves her body when she thinks of her beautiful pregnant wife. “Beca?” The echo fills the hallway but no answer. Chloe quickly checks the living room and kitchen but the brunette is nowhere to be found. “Beca?” Chloe shouts up the stairs. Maybe she’s in the home studio? Chloe walks to the cellar door and goes down in search of Beca.
When she can’t find the brunette there either panic starts to fill her senses. Rushing back up Chloe runs up to their bedroom, hoping that Beca is sleeping in their bed. But yet again no sign of life in there either. Chloe runs her fingers through her hair trying to remember if Beca told her anything about an appointment or…
“The nursery.” Chloe walks up to the semi finished nursery. Beca has been spending a lot of time there talking to the baby about what and how things will look. Chloe opens the door carefully and is shocked by the sight before her. “Beca get off that chair.” She all but screams. Beca freezes on the spot with her arms still stretched out.
“Chlo I love you but please never do that again.” The redhead watches Beca screw in the light bulb she’s holding before climbing back down. “I shouldn’t do that? Beca you’re 7 months pregnant, you should be resting not…” Chloe’s eyes widen when she sees that the walls are painted, even the one wall they chose to theme in a musical way. The black music notes and treble keys floating around a guitar hanging in the middle. An electric piano pushed against the wall.
“You painted the room?” Chloe’s voice comes barely above a whisper. “Yeah, I really wanted everything to be done before the big day is here.” Beca tries to hug Chloe from behind but her belly is in the way just a little too much for her liking. “How do you like to crib?” Chloe’s head shoots to her left and sees the fully put together crib. “Beca it’s… amazing.” Chloe wants to be mad at the brunette but seeing everything ready makes it all so much more real.
“Before you get down from your little happy place and get mad at me. I had some help from Jesse and Aubrey. They came by this morning after you left.” Chloe turns around and gently rubs Beca’s belly. “I guess it does make me less angry but it doesn’t mean you’re off the hook.” Beca throws up her hands in surrender. “You are marching your cute self downstairs and lay down on the couch while I prepare dinner.” Beca mumbles and angry ‘I’m not cute.’ but does as told.
Chloe follows her with a smile and a shake of her head. Life will never be boring with Beca Mitchell.
-,-,-,-,-
Chloe has been cooking for an hour and the food seems ready. Not wanting to make Beca get up Chloe prepares everything so she can take it to the living room. Two plates on a desk and two bottles (Yes, if Beca can’t drink Chloe won’t drink either), Chloe is ready to go.
There are many things Chloe could walk into at this moment. A sleeping Beca, an annoyed Beca, a mixing Beca or a watching tv Beca. But nothing in the world could prepare her for the cuteness that’s in front of her. Beca is softly singing to the baby with a smile. If any of the Bellas would ever hear of this the ‘badass’ captain would never live it down.
The redhead is falling in love all over again. Chloe sneaks up to the brunette and places the plates on the table before harmonizing with her.
Beca: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: When the rain starts to pour
Beca: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: Like I’ve been there before
Beca: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: ‘Cause you’re there for me too
Together: You're still in bed at ten And work began at eight You've burned your breakfast, so far Things are going great Your mother warned you there'd be days like these But she didn't tell you when the world has brought You down to your knees and
Beca and Chloe: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: When the rain starts to pour
Beca and Chloe: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: Like I’ve been there before
Becaand Chloe: I’ll be there for you
Chloe: ‘Cause you’re there for me too
A single tear rolls down Beca’s cheek. “Do you think I’ll be a good mom?” Chloe is taken aback by the question. “Of course, you’re going to be a fantastic mom… we are going to be fantastic moms.” Beca half nods, half shakes her head. “What’s wrong?” Beca shrugs. “I’m scared, I don’t want to be like him.” Chloe takes the brunette’s hands in hers squeezing them lightly. “You are nothing like him. You will fight for your family no matter what it takes. We will always love you.”
“I will always love you too Chlo-auch.” Chloe jumps up what are you in labor? Are you…” Beca quickly makes Chloe stop talking. “I’m fine, the baby kicked.” Chloe lets out a relieved breath. “You little devil have to stop hurting your momma, or else mummy will be angry.” Beca watches as Chloe kisses her stomach. Yeah, she really is the luckiest woman alive.
-,-,-,-,-
Beca Babe, my water just broke…
Beca is freaking out. Her water broke and Chloe’s at the school in the middle of a lesson. She also send a text to Aubrey and Jesse.
*Phone Call*
Beca: “Hello?”
Jesse: “Bec I’m on the way. Aubrey is picking up Chloe and we’ll meet her at the hospital.”
Beca: “Thank you Jesse, see you soon.”
Jesse: “Sure dude… oh and Becs?”
Beca: “Yeah?”
Jesse: “Hang in there.”
Beca: “I will.”
*End Phone Call*
Jesse reaches the house ten minutes later. “Alright do we need anything?” Beca rolls her eyes. “There’s a blue bag on the floor in our bedroom, could you take that one down?” Jesse nods and runs up to retrieve the bag. “Got it, anything else?” Jesse jumps down the last four steps of the stairs. “No that’s all we need… aargh.” Jesse holds on to Beca while she holds out a contraction. “Uhm Jesse we should like really go.”
“Yeah we should, the car’s out front.” Jesse leads Beca to the car and makes sure she’s comfortable before jumping in himself. The drive is pretty short and Beca seems to handle the stress well. Or at least on the outside, on the inside she’s screaming like a little girl. “We’re here.” Jesse parks the car right in front of the entrance and circles the car to help Beca out but gets shoved out of the way by Chloe.
“Everything will be alright, just keep breathing.” Beca smiles at the redhead returns the gesture with love. “Let’s get you inside, doctor Montgomery is waiting for you.” Chloe maneuvers Beca into a wheelchair and rolls her inside where a nurse takes over. Chloe follows them together with Aubrey and Jesse. Before entering the room Chloe turns around to face her friends.
“Before I go in I really want to thank you for what you did today. It really means a lot.” Aubrey and Jesse wrap Chloe into a big hug before pushing her through the door. “You can thank us when you’re a mom, right now you wife needs you.” Jesse says with a goofy grin. Chloe rolls her eyes with a smile but quickly rushes to her wife’s side.
Beca is getting checked of everything is alright. “Beca you’re doing great, you’re a bit more than 3 cm dilated. You can go home for the time being. You should come back when you’re 6-7 cm dilated.” Beca nods and wants to get out of the bed when she’s stopped by the doctor. “Don’t do too heavy things and try to rest. If you do want to do something take a walk but not alone.” Beca nods and attempts to get off the bed once more. “Are you good to go?” Chloe asks. “As good as I’ll be.”
Chloe drives Beca home while Jesse and Aubrey follow in Jesse’s car. The four arrive and help Beca get comfortable. “Uhm Chloe we should call your parents.” Chloe misses the look Aubrey and Jesse share. “What about your parents Beca? Shouldn’t you tell them?” Chloe tries to shush Jesse but it’s too late. “My mom passed away over a year ago and I don’t want my dad there when it happens.”
“Bec I’m so sorry.��� The DJ shakes her head. “It’s fine… how about it Chlo do you want to call?” Chloe plops down net to Beca with her phone calling them.
*Phone Call*
Mama Beale: “Hello?”
Chloe: “Hi mom, we need to talk.”
Mama Beale: “What’s wrong? Is it Beca?”
Chloe: “Relax, we just wanted to let you know that Beca’s water broke. It’s too early to be in labor but it could be happening soon.”
Mama Beale: “Oh honey that’s amazing, we’ll be there as soon as we can.”
Chloe: “There’s no rush mom, we’ll see you when you get here.”
*End Phone Call*
“Uhm Chlo can I talk to you for a moment? Alone?” Aubrey pulls Jesse into the kitchen so they can give the two some privacy. “What’s wrong?” Beca lets out a sigh. “Please don’t stop loving me.” Chloe lets out a chuckle but tenses when she sees Beca’s sad eyes. “Bec I’m not going to stop loving you. We’re having a baby.” Beca shakes her head. “I’m scared that you’ll leave when it’s over that you won’t find me attractive when it’s over.”
Beca doesn’t cry often or communicate her feeling so this moment is heartbreaking and relieving at the same time. “Bec I will always love you. You will always look beautiful to me.” Beca looks up to meet Chloe’s eyes. “Do you really mean that?” Chloe cups Beca’s face and presses a soft kiss on her lips. “I will always love you, no matter what.”
-,-,-,-,-
“AAAAARRGGGHHH” Beca’s screams are deafening. She has been in labor for the past 4 hours and it’s time to push. “Don’t you dare hold my aarrghh…” Beca yanks her hand away from Chloe. “Babe it’s ok, I’ll be fine.” Chloe tries to take Beca’s hand again but fails when Beca grabs the sheets. “No Chlo I don’t want to hurt you.” Sweat is dripping down Beca’s face and she’s red in her cheeks.
“You won’t hurt be me babe, it’s what I’m here for. To support you.” Beca shakes her head and bites her jaws down when another contraction hits her. Chloe frowns at the sight, she hates seeing anyone in pain. Especially Beca. “Alright Becac, it’s time to push.” Beca leans forward with a loud grunt and Chloe positions herself sideways behind Beca.
“Another one… we can see a head… push…. push…. one last push!” With one last loud cry Beca’s scream gets replaced by a baby’s cries. “It’s a boy.” Chloe sheds a tears as she watches a nurse take her baby boy away. “Beca are you ready for the next one?” With a small nods Beca quickly prepares herself. A small fifteen minutes later and a second healthy baby pushed out Beca can finally relax.
“Beca, Chloe would you like meet your twins?” Beca takes a breath and smiles at the doctor. Chloe opens the door to let the waiting people inside. “Do you have a name for your little boy?” Beca looks at Chloe with a smile. “Damien Charlie Mitchell – Beale.” Chloe nods in agreement and accepts the boy handed to her. “And what about your baby girl?” A surprised round of ‘what’s’ travels around the room. “Surprise, we have twins.” Chloe says trying not to choke in the tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Elisa Sarah Mitchell – Beale.” Beca whispers when they hand her their newborn daughter. Chloe sits down next to Beca who is exhausted but smiling like nothing happened. “Hey uhm Aubrey?” The blonde takes a step forward when Beca speaks up. “We were talking and… would you like to be Damian’s godmother?” Aubrey cover her mouth with her hands and nods frantically. “Oh and Jesse? Would you do us the honor of being Elisa’s godfather?”
“Of course, I’m going to spoil that little kid rotten.” Beca sends him a glare. “If anyone is going to spoile my kids it’s going to be me.” Chloe chuckles and leans down carefully not to squash her kids and kisses her wife. “Don’t worry babe, you’ll have enough time to spoil them.” Beca smile up to her wile tiredly. “Alright let’s give Beca some time to rest. You can all come back during visiting hours.” Doctor Montgomery ushers everyone out of the room winking at the new parents.
“They’ beautiful.” Beca whispers looking down at the sleeping baby in her arms. “Just like their mother.” Chloe whispers back. This is the beginning of a bright an wonderful future.
I DO NOT OWN PITCH PERFECT!
FOLLOW ME ON TUMBLR FOR SNEEK PEAKS FOR UPCOMING CHAPTERS –katelides
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#fanfiction#bechloe#prompt#beca mitchell#chloe beale#pitch perfect#pitch perfect 2#pitch perfect 3#last call pitches#little big one shots#one shot
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