#I wanna check to be sure but I can’t because my bin of toys is in a different place that I’m not near

[story-book-sillies]

Anxiety so bad my chest feels heavy

[ignitedbynatsu]

Are You Really That Dense?

A/N: sooo what we've learned is that when I say I will upload the next day, you should probably expect an update a day or two later 😅. Anyway this one is requested by @enchantingpeachherocreator I hope you like it as much as I loved writing it ❤️

Warnings: swearing

Genre: angst tot fluff

👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅

"So when are you going to confess your unconditional love for him?" The green-haired mage took a seat beside you as he caught you staring at his friend once again.

"I will once you admit your own feelings" you shot back, not taking any relationship advice from someone that wasn't even ready to accept their own feeling.

"I'm afraid that I do not know what you are talking about" he tried to play the dumb card which only earned him an eye roll from you.

"I doubt he even sees me that way" you mumbled, breaking your one-sided staring context, leaning your head on your crossed arms in front of you.

"Why don't you hint that you see him as more than just a friend?" Freed suggested at which you scoffed "if the obvious flirting isn't gonna do it, then I don't know what, I bet even Natsu has noticed how I feel, and he hasn't even noticed how Lucy looks at him like he has hung the stars in the sky"

"Yeah... Even I'm surprised that Bickslow hasn't caught on yet. It's almost getting painful" he agreed

"Maybe he's deliberately ignoring it like Gray's doing with Juvia" you mumbled. You'd rather have him straight out reject you than just stringing you along just 'cause he thinks it's fun. You weren't a toy he could play with and just throw away when he lost interest.

"How about one last big gesture? If he doesn't pick up on that then maybe it's indeed better to move on" your friend proposed. You finally lifted your head up from your arms to look at him. "Like what?"

"I don't know... Something personal" he pondered his own suggestions for a second before he suddenly snapped his fingers like an amazing idea just crossed his mind "isn't there a saying like the way through a man's heart is through his stomach?"

"Freed! You're a genius!" At that moment, your eyes got reignited with a sparkle of hope that you had lost over the past weeks.

You knew that you were probably settings yourself up for failure, but you didn't care because you had hope. Hope that Freed, his and your best friend, had given, and he wouldn't give you false hope if he knew you had no chance, right?

Due to the anticipation for Bickslow, you could hardly sleep that. Possible outcomes swirled through your mind that went from a picture-perfect scenario to the most heartbreaking rejection. You hoped with every cell in your body it would be the first.

"Hi Bickslow!" your usual cheerful self was amplified, and he didn't have the slightest clue as to why.

"Hey (Y/N), what you got there?" His eyes fell upon the box that you were carrying in your hands.

"Oh you know, I was a bit bored last night and thought I'd do something sweet to show how much I appreciate you" you explained as you opened the box to reveal his favourite cake.

"Just for me? If I didn't know better I would think you'd try to confess something" he gladly took a slice and let his teeth sink into the sweet dessert you had poured all your love in last night.

A nervous chuckle escaped your lips "about that..."

"(Y/N), this tastes horrible" he laughed as he placed the half-eaten piece back into the box "you trying to poison me or something?"

"I didn't think it tasted that bad" the hope left your eyes as soon as it came as you watched the man in front of you ridicule your baking skills.

"Then you should let your taste buds get checked out. No wonder you only wanted me to taste that garbage" he took the box and threw it into the nearest bin, along with your heart.

You were devastated, heartbroken and humiliated as the whole guild looked at what Bickslow was making such a fuss over. Perhaps he was just stringing you along. "Sorry"

Freed and Laxus sighed as they saw the heartbroken girl ran out of the guild and their clueless friend staring at her retrieving form "what's her problem?"

"Even you can't be that dense" Laxus scoffed in disbelief at his friend's question.

"What do you mean?" Freed was getting more and more fed up with his friends acts, especially since it was hurting his other best friend, so when that final question left his mouth he decided to draw the line.

"Stop it, Bickslow. Just stop it. I cannot believe you just did that to her. You really wanna keep playing the dumb card and act like you don't know how she feels about you? How she has been feeling about you for the last couple of months? You could have just turned her down softly, but no, you wanted to make a big deal out of it and humiliate her in the process. I hope you had a good laugh out of it, asshole" the green-haired mage didn't even wait for a reaction as he stormed out of the guild as well, determined to find his best friend.

"... She likes me?" He was doing his best to process Freed words. Words he had longed for so long to hear. He could have never imagined hearing them in this situation.

He didn't mean to hurt you. That was never his intention. He thought you had done something in the cake to mess with him. How could he have possibly known that it was part of your confession? Something he could've never hoped you'd do one day. After all, he always thought you were way out of his leak. He was certain that any chance of you reciprocating his feelings, was now completely out of the window. The worst part, he had nobody but himself to blame for that.

"You fucked up" Laxus also got up to leave him but Bickslow stopped "Laxus! You have to help me. I didn't mean to hurt her. I really didn't know. Please, I don't know what to do."

His pleas were to no avail as the blonde shook his head "I'm sorry, but, you're on your own for this one"

Some may say that it was unfair the way Laxus treated him, but he knew that if Bickslow wanted to make things right, he'll have to do it on his own. He had to show her he really meant it. Plus it was also a bit of payback for making his friend cry, but that was just a bonus.

He tried talking to you, he really did, but you were always busy. If you had no excuse, Freed was certain to step in and guide you away. It frustrated Bickslow, but he knew he had no right to feel that way. Not at your nor at Freed. He fucked it up.

You on the other hand were torn. You wanted to listen to him, have to hear what he had to say, but you couldn't. You wouldn't survive opening your heart back open to him only for it to be shattered moments later again. Yet, you still cared. Noticing every little thing that changed from his quietness to his slouched posture, nothing passed by you.

That's how you noticed the bandages around his fingers and the one covering his cheek, making him not able to put on his helmet.

"Where are you going?" You ignored Freed's questions as you made your way to where Bickslow was sitting alone.

You towered over him as you stopped right next to the table he was sitting at "what happened?"As soon as he heard your voice it felt like the wind got knocked out of him. He had practised the words he wanted to say to you countless times in his head, yet when you were standing here, next to him, all he could say was your name. "(Y/N)..."

You tilted your head a bit to the side as you waited for him to continue, but no words left his mouth. You nodded your head once as you understood that he didn't want to talk to you. Had you been reading the signs wrong again? You weren't surprised if you had.

But as you turned on your heels to leave again, Bickslow grabbed your wrist. He wasn't going to let you leave again. Not this time "wait!"

You stopped in your tracks and turned back around to face him. His pleading eyes looked at you, begging you to stay. Those dark red orbs you loved so much but didn't get to see very often. All of it was enough to make you stay put and just listen to what he had to say.

"I- uh- I'm sorry" he apologized as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. Once again you waited for him to continue, but nothing came "that's it?"

He was alerted by your reaction. You didn't sound mean or dismissive as he thought you would, no, you sounded tired and heartbroken, making his heartache all the more. He did this. He was the cause of your pain 

"No, that's not what I meant, I mean it is what I mean, I am really sorry for what I did, it's just..." Your eyes softened as he struggled to find the right words. You knew you should keep your walls up, but how could you when he still held your heart?

"Let's start with what happened" you suggested as you motioned to his hands.

A faint colour of red coloured his cheeks as he looked down on his hands as well "Well, funny story actually, well not that funny, but uh-" he cleared his throat and took a deep breath. He never had a problem talking to you before, so why did it seem so impossible now? "I was trying to make you a cake, and it didn't really go as planned"

Your heart swelled at thought of his gesture, but then you remembered the way he belittled your baking skills, making you narrow your eyes again slightly "what happened to your cheek?"

"The cake kind of blew up and burned my cheek" your eyes shot up at his explanation. How do you blow up a cake? Let alone burn your cheek with it in the process?

"Anyway that's not what's important" he dismissed the story as he once again sucked in a large breath. It was now or never "I am really sorry for the way I treated you that day. I never meant to hurt you. I know it's hard to believe, but I really didn't know that you liked me back. I guess I just placed myself in the friend zone from the moment I met you because I didn't think I had any chance with you, to begin with. Because of that the thought of you actually liking me never crossed my mind."

"Why'd you think you weren't good enough for me?" You asked confused. To you, he was perfect. Sure he had done some questionable things in the past, but he showed he was a man worthy of redemption. He was a man worthy of your heart.

"I can't even put in words how perfect you are. You're everything I wished my dream woman to be and more. I always thought you'd deserve someone better like me. Someone who could treat you the way you deserved to be treated. Someone like Laxus or Freed" he tried to explain.

A soft smile played along your lips as you heard the names of your friends, who were clearly in love with each other, fall from his mouth. He really was just incredibly dense. "So please, (Y/N). Give me a chance to prove myself. I'd love you unconditionally, I will treat you the way you deserve to be treated, I... I'd even worship the ground you walk upon-"

"How about we take things slow?" You stopped him before he'd spew even more nonsense.

"Wait! So you forgive me?" He couldn't contain his excitement at the thought of you agreeing to give him a second chance, and when you gave him a sheepish nod he couldn't help but pick you up and spin you around "How about we go on a date? I take you to the best restaurant in town!"

"I'd love to you" you agreed and placed your lips softly against his cheek, making him a stuttering mess once again.

[marshmallowprotection]

Kait’s Emotional Crisis and Analysis on Saeran’s After Ending

That’s right. it’s here folks! You’re here because we’ve managed to survive the waiting period that has been two-years in the making. Are we all happy that we have made it this far and survived the wait? Yes, yes, we are. You wouldn’t still be listening to me babble about how much I love Saeran Choi if you weren’t. We all know what we’re here for, so let’s get down to business. 

THIS IS A VERY LONG POST. I’m not even joking this time. It’s a very long post. 

Spoilers for Ray Route and Another Story!

I’ve been having to control the flappy hands when I see this photo so forgive me if my thoughts are all over the place as I talk about everything that has been on my mind. I literally had to pinch myself when I woke up to a flood of messages on the matter. 

It’s him. It’s my boy. It’s my boy.  It’s my boy! Mom, holy fuck! It’s my boy and he looks great. I’ve had a lot on my mind since I first saw the title screen so let’s get down to what I have to say about that. First of all, I’m in love with MC’s outfit. I’d wear that, that’s the fucking mood tonight. I’ve been frothing at the bit to be able to draw my MC wearing this outfit and I didn’t even wanna start doing something like that until they gave the official release to us. 

What can I say? I’m a sucker for really frilly tops. Those pink jeans are a really nice shade of pink too. It’s not hot pink, it’s a nice bubblegum which is a good contrast to Saeran’s hair, haha! I just like seeing all the pinks around this boy and his MC, of course, has to be cloaked in those colors as well. It just makes me really happy. I love some of the other outfits that MC gets to wear in the game but oh, God, oh, Fuck. This has to be my favorite outfit that we’ve been able to wear thus far. 

The little necktie? Perfect. Those sleeves? Iconic. The hand-holding? PURE AS FUCK. THE VIBES? CHECKED. 

Now that I’ve covered my bases with MC, let’s go onto the Choi brothers and talk about them. I actually like that they’ve been drawing Saeran in more brown and pink outfits. It just feels very right for him. 

It goes to show that his mental state is much better than it was in recent years, like, from Ray to Suit Saeran and to Unknown, we all know that they would dress in black and darker themes if they were given the chance. Ray’s outfit was given to him by Rika to wear, and Suit Saeran was the one that picked his suit out to wear. Unknown walked out of the clearance bin at Hot Topic and added those cowboy boots to enrage me. But, I digress. I’ll fight Unknown at a later date about that. 

The natural and earthy tones that they’re going for here with him are very nice to see. He seems like he’s a lot comfier with himself here. He’s got a cozy little old sweater on and his posture is better than I’ve seen it in many photos. If his style is just cozy sweaters, then, well, I can vibe with that. I can see him working in the garden wearing that and I think that’s the point that they’re making with this style of his. 

The loose collar is also nice. I’m used to seeing his clothes buttoned up and out of the way, making sure that he isn’t showing his body. So, seeing him play with his style and wearing something much looser against his body is a good thing as well. I think I saw someone call him a comfy grandpa in one of the posts that I’ve seen floating around. I chuckle at that mention. 

Saeran doesn’t care that much about fashion, to be honest with you. He would, of course, choose something that’s minimalist and comfortable. These browns work with him very much so. I’m happy to see it! It’s in line with the style that I’ve had in mind for him after the Ending! 

Can you see the way that he’s gazing at the player, though? Can we talk about the way that he’s looking at us?

The longing in that gaze... the way that it looks like he’s been getting some good sleep for once in his life because the discoloration of purple is gone! The way he has that tiny smile that only we know is a smile because he only shares that side of himself with us? His MC? God, I’m in love with you, you fucking bastard man why is your smile making me cry so much?

I could talk about his smile for hours. His expression. The longing. The way that I love you cannot be contained in words, Saeran. It’s far too strong. Just know I’m the person that can feel what’s going on his body from looking at him. He looks to be in a good place. 

Anyways, onto Saeyoung. 

Oh, my darling, Saeyoung. I’m used to seeing you in green palettes. It’s just a tried and true theory with your red hair and you lean heavily into being a walking Christmas palette. It’s rare to see you without your glasses, and I’m sure that a lot of people are swooning over you for that. You know you’re handsome and you will use that against those MCs that love you. I don’t have a lot to say about his outfit but I do think it’s really fitting for him. 

It seems like a muted pull-over and some worn jeans, which seems in line with everything that I would style him in. He knows plenty about style himself and he knows how to make my head spin. 

What is this somber look in his eyes? There’s a smile on his lips but there is this feeling to me that it doesn’t meet his eyes. Is he happy that we’re with Saeran or is he weighed by the fact that he wasn’t the one to save Saeran? Does he know what happens with Rika? Does he feel angry over that? What are we going to tell the RFA and him about this? I know that he would be happy that we saved his brother...

But the guilt in his heart is nothing to scoff off. He always blames himself for what happened to Saeran even though Rika is the one that broke his trust for good and forever. I feel like there’s something bittersweet in his eyes. Does he think that Saeran and the player are going to live happily while he’s not there? 

I always intended to imagine Saeyoung living with Saeran and the player, because they can’t be separated again. 

But does he feel like a weight and a third wheel? I don’t know. I’m scared to think about how he may feel like Saeran is happy now without him and he’ll try to pull away instead of adding anymore trauma onto Saeran’s life. I know that it’s not going to easy for recovery for either of them, but I want to have faith and care for the two of them. 

Saeyoung, you better not self-deprecate. I’ll smooch your forehead too. I just really don’t know how I feel about that look in his eyes. It’s just matching the smile in my opinion. 

I’m still screaming. I’ve been a pit of screaming for nearly three hours now and I know that I’ve still got plenty more to say today on the matter. But, I know why you’re here for real, you want me to analyze what I see in this picture and what I think will be in the AE from what we’re shown. I’ve had a few days to think it over and I’ve got my ideas. 

Where are you Saeyoung? This title screen is not confirmation that Saeyoung is alive. For all we know, this photo could be more inspiration for the theme and the emotion that takes place in the After Ending. 

I have to remind people that when we first played Saeyoung’s AE, it was a rouse and we were treated to a happy dream sequence that sought to talk about Saeran living with us and Saeyoung as he made a toy store. There’s a possibility that in the midst of the search for Saeyoung, we’re confronted with dreams and nightmares on Saeran’s end in regards to his brother. 

It’s my biggest fear that Saeyoung isn’t alive. We don’t know if the Prime Minister took him or if an enemy took him, or if it was the agency, or a combination of all three of these options. I don’t know how I feel about it. I’ve considered that we won’t have the answer until the After Ending itself comes out but I’m interested to know what the answer is. 

If it was Saejoong, well, I fear for Saeyoung’s health if we do find him alive. His emotional state... God, that was always his biggest fear. His and Saeran’s biggest fear that their mother always whispered. She was a monster to the two of them with her abuse but the unknown of what their father would do to them had to be even more frightening. Their mother always said that Saejoong would kill them if he caught them. 

But, he could have honestly done a lot of horrible and twisted things. They could have become political pawns and a sob story that Saejoong could have sold if he wanted quite easily, and their mother could have been killed to silence that story. There was a lot of worse case scenarios. Saeyoung knows and has thought of all of them. 

So the idea that he’s living his worst nightmare? 

The fact that Saejoong could have killed Saeran without him being able to protect him?

The fact that he’d not be able to talk to V? 

He sent a frenzied message to the chatroom for us to contact V for him. This only implies that he was trying to warn V to protect Saeran at the last minute, so it feels like it could only be Saejoong that took him. He panicked hard. He had to make sure that Saeran was protected even if he died. I think that was what he did with his message in the chatroom. 

But, we all know how it turned out. 

I felt like that sacrifice of panic on his part was.... it still hurts me to think about all of it. 

My worst case scenario is a dream sequence and Saeyoung not... not being alive anymore. I don’t know what that would do to Saeran. He wants to make things right with his brother, he really does. The gaslighting and manipulation done by Rika is going to take some time for them to work past, and I know that he can make progress in therapy and as he challenge his intrusive thoughts as we stand by his side. He can see it through. 

He is hopeful for his brother. 

However, it’s going to be tested when he actually faces his brother in the game and that’s the real test. Therapy is one thing. Facing your fears is even harder than talking about them. Saeran is going to... be overwhelmed with everything and he may need to step away when push comes to shove. 

I want Saeyoung to see us together holding hands and let him have that moment realization that even though Saeran went through a lot of harm while they were separated, he wasn’t alone through all of it. He never wanted Saeran to be alone in any way. If Saeran has to step away, then well, that would leave us with his brother in the process.

I can’t say how much I’d choke up if he thanked us for loving his brother. The guilt in his eyes as he cries and we reassure him. I think that’s one thing that I want the most with Saeyoung. I want him to know freedom from his chains and I want to help him too. There’s a lot that I want out of that and there’s so much of this potential that we can talk about in the AE.

There’s a lot with Saeyoung that I want to think about but so much of it makes me wanna cry. 

I also fear for V and I’ve discussed many of my fears on that matter. I’ll repost my thoughts right here.

Now, in regards to what I sincerely don’t want is a repeat of what went down with V’s After Ending.

I’ve shared my feelings on that matter before and I understand that Cheritz was going for that moral high-road that many people take where they say that it’s better to forgive on your path to healing, and while that can be good for some people, it can leave a sour taste in the mouth of people who don’t pick to forgive the people that hurt them.

I don’t choose to forgive the people that hurt me in many cases. That doesn’t make me a bad person. The problem with the Forgive/Judgement ending is that it can make you feel ashamed for not forgiving someone who quite literally, took funds from the RFA’s first two parties (that’s the only way she could’ve gotten the money to fund Mint Eye, even coercion and manipulation of people on the level that Rika does wouldn’t give her that much ability), manipulated and gas-lit Ray and Saeran for years, deceived and drugged countless people, so on and so forth.

I hate that she’s never punished for her actions. She needs to be rightfully punished for what she did. I want her to get therapy, and I want her to learn that she was wrong for what she did to everyone. I want her to be able to get better for her own health, and I don’t think she should ever be contact with anyone in the RFA ever again. But, that’s up to the RFA if they choose to speak with her or interact with her, not mine. I don’t want her to die, I want her to learn what she did was wrong.

It’s not Mika (Rika Behind Story Spoilers) who went through the cult. Rika had every chance to stop while she was ahead but she kept doing it. I would not forgive Rika, and I would never want to be around her ever again if I were in the position of the RFA when the truth is made known.  

The only action that Rika ever took that could be looked at with the filter of self-defense was when she panicked when the boy’s mother tried to get close to her and harm her in a drunken rage. She acted to protect herself in that situation, but that’s the only thing that she’s ever done that someone could look at and say, she was protecting herself. She felt threatened. She panicked, she blacked out and protected herself from harm.

Don’t get me started on V. I love V, he’s not perfect, he fucked up a lot and he shouldn’t have gone back to Rika. It feels like he saw us love, forgive, and stand by Saeran and thought that he could be able to do the same for Rika, but that is not what will help him or Rika. They don’t need to be together again. They need to be fair away. Rika and V literally burned down the boy’s childhood home and V was wearing his sunglasses, so I can only presume that Rika harmed his eyes after he went to her.

Saeran himself says that he wants to tell everyone about Rika and V, but he needs to be able to discuss it with V. Even Saeran understands that V is a victim to some degree and he wants to help him. 

That was a big fucking comment on his part and I was proud of him for that. 

But, V left for Rika and we don’t know if we’ll ever see him again. So, I really don’t know how that’s going to be handled in the slightest, Anon.

I don’t want Rika and V together, like, ever again.

I want Rika to be punished for her actions and caught. I want V to get away from her and start to learn to love himself again and grow. I believe in him but he’s in need of someone to cheer him on when that abusive relationship ends. I really don’t want a repeat of V’s After Ending.

Don’t make me forgive Rika. 

Don’t make Saeran forgive her, either. 

That’s my worst case scenario fear. I want Saeran to be able to grow and get healthier, for sure, but his final confrontation with Rika should be the last time that he ever thinks about her. He made his mind up and he made it clear that she was wrong and he would never be tricked by her again.

I want him to stand his ground on that. I’ll stand by him no matter what he chooses to do, though. So, I want this to be about Saeran and Saeyoung coming together again, and helping V get out of that relationship with Rika, as well as Rika facing punishment for her actions. 

But, that might be asking a bit too much, haha.

Ideally, I want Saeran and the player to be able to reach out to V and help him get away from Rika as she’s taken down as well. We don’t know if she left Mint Eye for sure, we don’t know if she and V ran away. Who is running the Cult? Is the cult put to a stop or did Rika put somebody else in charge? It’s hard to say on that front and I’m still not sure how that’s going to end up. 

V can open up and work out everything that’s going to fall out here as it did in the events of V Route with Rika. He’ll need to work out everything with Jumin and the others, but I have hope for him to be able to face what went wrong and not only get the help he needs, but get the support of his support circle behind his back as everyone rallies behind him. 

I would love he and Saeran to be able to work out everything, Saeyoung as well, because even Saeran is willing to work with Jihyun. Rika to get some therapy, get punished for her actions and that to be dealt with is great. It never happens so. That would be a nice change.

Saeran knows that V is a victim in all of this too. So, it remains to be seen how this is going to be handled. I can only pray that Jihyun is able to be rescued as we rescue Saeyoung (hopefully, fingers crossed.) I’m still so proud of Saeran for doing that. 

God. 

I’ve talked about Choice and Saeran before in regards to the Secret Ending and his Good ending and... well, I’ll direct you to that post. To read about how important it was for Saeran to be able to choose what  he wanted to do with his life instead of having options forced on him. 

Can we discuss this photo as well from the Special Believer Box that I’m nearly about to buy at this point with whatever comes out with AE cause I need it?? I’m gonna go fucking broke. For you. Saeran. For you. I was saving my money for Christmas and now I’ve got a reason to live. 

I still don’t know if this is the implication of what will happen in the AE or if it’s something that will just exist as a standalone image. I still don’t know why Saeran would be dresses as his brother for some reason, unless there’s a twin switch-a-roo plot somewhere in all of this? I mean, bold choice, but I don’t know. I just think I needed to say again how cute that I think Saeran is in Saeyoung’s outfit. He’s so tiny and slender in comparison to his brother. 

I’m gonna fucking smooch his forehead. I don’t know, I want the CG title screen and this photo here to imply that the Choi boys will be alive and happy together once all is said and done. I can’t say that I know where we’re heading but there is bound to be an adventure to hunt down Saeyoung, but I’m not sure where it will take us. 

A wild-goose chase alongside whatever mystery is left. I can’t wait. 

My ideal ending is one where we get to live in a little house by the sea with a garden with Saeran and Saeyoung where we can visit and chat with the RFA whenever we want. But, we’ll have to see what happens. If you want to read more about some of the things that I think he wants to do with his MC now that he’s free check out this post. 

Anyways. 

Kait’s gotta go cry now. 

[ihaveafandom-problem554]

Hamiltots

"Mama! I-I wanna stay w- with you" Alex whined to his mother. "I'm sorry Alexander but mama's busy. You'll stay with Mr. Washington, he's a nice man."

Alex looks up at Mr. Washington, then quickly diggs his face into his mother's chest. "Ooh! Alexander! I'm so sorry, he's just really shy- OW Alexander Hamilton! What have I said about biting!" Alex only yells into his mother's chest in response.

" It's ok madam, I understand." Washington leans in closer to Alex. " Hey Alexander, Mom needs to go-" Alex yelled even louder then the first time in his mother's chest. "Hey, look I know you're gonna miss mommy, but you can make lots of friends here!" He tries to reassure Alex. "Come on, mom will be back before you know it!" Washington says leaning over to grab Alex from his mother's grasp. "Come on, say bye to mama"

"B-Bye-bye" Alex waved, tears threatening come out from his eyes. "Now, I just know you will make plenty of friends Son." Washington says opening the door for Alexander.

Alex glares at Washington before walking in.

The second Alex walks in, he sees a series of activities and multiple at each one. The crafting table has 4 boys and 1 girl. At the book section there 2 boys and a girl who seems to admire the kid in a pink shirt with puffy hair. One of the girls aren't even doing anything, she's just staring out the window. To take a guess she might be talking to the birds.

Alexander's examination of his surroundings was interrupted by a girl in a yellow shirt and a boy with a missing tooth, he looked scary but his smile was sweet, both kids came from the crafting table.

"Well aren't you two eager to meet our new friend?" Washington charmed patting both the kids' heads.

"Children!" He says getting everyone's attention " We have a new friend! Introduced yourselves, like we practiced yesterday." One by one the kids start to introduce themselves.

"Hi I'm Maria!"

"I'm Charles Lee"

"Samuel Seabury!"

"King George The III" A disappointed was heard from Mr. Washington

"James Reynolds"

" *small cough* James Madison"

He glares before telling Alex his name " ..... Thomas Jefferson"

"John Laurens!"

"Hercules Mulligan!"

"Aaron burr"

"Angelica"

"Eliza!"

"And PEGGY!"

Hercules and Peggy were the two infront of Alexander almost jumping, "What's your name!" Peggy burst out. "A-Alex- Alexander Hamil-ton"

"Wow that's a mouth full!" Peggy says with a wide smile. "Yeah, but not as much as Laf's name"

"Well that's because Lafayett- wait if Jefferson is here...Then where is.." All three kids look up at Mr. Washington, who was looking around the classroom. "Hey Hercules, where's Lafayette?"

"Oh he went with Mrs. Martha, he looked sad."

"Oh ok, Alexander you can go ahead and have fun with Hercules and Peggy" Washington says, then walking off to the back room. "Come on lets go the crafting table!" Hercules grabs Alex's arm then rushing off to the crafting table with Peggy following right behind.

At the crafting table...

"And that's how I will get all turtles to rule the world an I will become a turtle Princess!" John says standing on the table showing a drawn picture with Laurens on a throne and turtles fighting off the humans to Aaron. "You won't be a 'Princess', you're a boy. You'll be a prince or a King." Aaron says grabbing his poorly drawn picture and pointing at Laurens on the throne.

"Sudd up A-a-ron, I'll be a princess when I wanna" Laurens whined while snatching his beautifully drawn picture.

"My name isn't 'A-a-ron' It's Aaron!"

"Nuh-uh It's spelled A-a-ron"

"NO IT'S NOT-" ( calm down Jamal-)

"Guys look Alex- oh wait do you mind me calling you Alex?" Herc asks, his bounce slowly leaving his body. " Yeah you can"

" *Excited gasp* Guys! Alex Seems really cool can he stay with us?" Hercules' bounce comes back. "Sure! he can be my partner in the war of turtles" Laurens says, throwing his hands up in the air. Alexander giggles in response. He sits down with the rest of them and they plan out on how to help turtles take over the world.

Randomly, Alexander feels uneasy, like if he was being hunted. He turns around to see 2 things. Peggy literally jumping of excitement, and a pair of eyes staring at him from the reading center. Like if they stared any longer laser beams would come out and kill him.

Alex gave them the same look back but more intense, the person is taken back, not expecting Alex to glare back. The kid comes out of his hiding spot to reveal itself as Jefferson, his glare get scarier but Alex stood his ground, knowing he can't glare any harder he keeps his glare and continues to stare at Jefferson.

30 seconds past and their still glaring at each other. Like if it was some intense staring contest.

"Alexander, was it?" A woman spoke, causing Alex to turn around. "O-oh yeah.."

The kind women smiles then points to herself "I'm Mrs. Martha... And this shy one is- Oh Laurens we spoke about standing on the table!" She quickly grabs Laurens off the table and onto a seat. "Sorry Mrs. Martha.." Laurens pouts.

"It's ok Laurens. Anyway Like I was saying, Lafayette honey, come on and introduce yourself"

A kid- who looks a lot like the Jefferson kid, emerges from behind Mrs. Martha's legs. Alex smiles "Hi! I'm Alexander! you can call me Alex!" Alex jumps, hoping it would cure his shyness. The boy mutters something under his breath while fiddling with the ends off his shirt. "You can do it Laf!" Herc cheers.

"He's Italian, so he can't speak english that good... He gets really shy about it" Peggy tells Alex. "Peggy it's not Italian it's french!" Mrs. Martha corrects.

"Ohh yeah sorry!"

"My..na-me?..."

"Go ahead honey" Mrs. Martha trying to encourage him.

He takes a deep breath. "Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de Lafayette, Marquis de Lafayette, but Toi can appelle-moi Lafayette" he says in a very THICK accent.

"Ce est tellement cool! Je n'ai jamais parlé de quelqu'un qui parle français (This is so cool! I never spoke of someone who speaks French).." Alex beams.

Lafayette lights up "Tu me comprends!? C'est tellement incroyable! (You understand me!? It is so amazing!)" he leans in to hug Alex. They both share a laugh while Hercules pouts and Mrs. Martha takes in the moment. "YAY!" Laurens Cheers "You can tell us what Laf is saying! This is going to be the best!" All the boys and Peggy, cheer expect Burr. "Well, I'll leave you guys be." Mrs. Martha turns around going off to the back room. "Don't be rough now"

"Guys I'll be right back" Burr says getting up. "Nah-uh, You stay here, Alex just got here and you're gonna go and talk to Jefferpoo" Laurens grabs Burr and sits him  back down.  "Hey! his name isn't Jefferpoo it's Jefferson!"

"Nuh-uh, He hurt Laf a lot he'a a real meanie" Herc protested.

"Yeah! he also took my yellow crayon and broke it this morning!" Peggy whined. Laurens and Herc went over to confort Peggy.

"He just think you guys are babish that's why" Burr stated, causing Hercules and Laurens to argue with him.

...

" Taffy can I test your english again!?" Peggy bursts. "Ooo can I help?" Alex bounces for the first time today. "Oui" Lafayette smiles. "Ooo Lets get a book!" Alex beams, then turning around to go over to the reading center. "W-wait you need-" Peggy panics but Alex was too busy running  over the reading center to listen. Once he gets there, he sees 3 people.

James Madison and Angelica were on one side sitting on a bean bag. James looks like he was reading a book but later gave up and was listening to Angelica who was rambling about something. On the other side was Jefferson he was also on a bean bag reading a book bigger than his head.

Alex looked over in the different genres of books, deciding which one will be better for Lafayette. Grabbing and putting back the bins, sometimes grabbing a couple books in the process. In a split second, he turns around, reacting to the shifting sound of a bean bag. When he does, he sees Jefferson staring right at him.

They stare at each other for a bit, until Lafayette stepped in the gap between them. "Found book?" Lafayette gives him a nervous smile while trying to block his view of Thomas. "Oh not yet. I don't know which one to chose."

"Ooo ooo! Get the one about the black kitty!" Peggy doesn't get in the reading center, but she points at the book she was talking about. It was right next to Angelica. "Excuse me-" Alex says grabbing both, Angelica's and James' attention. "Could you please move... I need to grab a book."

Angelica stares at Alexander. It's not a threatening look, it's a surprised look. "Uh, are you gonna-"

"OH! yeah sorry!" she apologizes than moving out the way.

It a took while but he finally found the book Peggy was talking about. He picks up the cat book and a few other books he chose for Lafayette. " Come on, Laffy! It seems like a lot but I think you can do it!" The second Alex said 'Laffy' he noticed Jefferson look up at him with anger in his eyes.

As the two boys were about to walk out of the surprisingly big reading center. Lafayette fell face first onto his nose.

"Laffy! are you ok!?" Alexander puts down the books to check on Lafayette. "Ce n'était pas pour vous, arrêtez de vous embarrasser. Il n'est pas censé t'appeler comme ça.(It wasn't for you, stop embarrassing yourself. He's not supposed to call you that.)" Jefferson says digging his head back in the book.

Alex was confused. I thought Lafayette was the only one who spoke French... And if he speaks French and english, shouldn't he be around Laffy to translate?... but all those thoughts got put to the side after processing what Jefferson had said to Lafayette.

"Y-you were gonna trip me?" Alex says helping Lafayette up. Jefferson looks up at him, "Yeah, there's rules here. Starting off with one of them, don't call Lafayette Laffy, only I do that and I also don't like the fact you have a lot of confidence to walk in here like no else is here. Your lucky you're new here cause I wouldn't hesitate to drop kick that butt of yours..." Alex was almost speechless, at the same time impressed by how much sass he had.

"That's dumb. I bet all those rules just makes yourself feel better than anyone else-"

"There aren't dumb, they just keep everyone else out of my way, knowing most of you are.... what do you call it ... idiotic" Jefferson snickers. "Well at least I know the difference between girl and boy colors." Alex snaps back.

The room isn't silent but Lafayette and Peggy can feel the dense yet quiet tension between the two.

"Say it again." Jefferson stands up from the bean bag obviously threaten. Alex notices this and takes advantage of his anger.

"Hey Alexander, allons lire les livres que tu choisis? (will we read the books you choose?)" Lafayette says desperately trying to change the subject.

"Sorry I didn't know you poofy hair blocked your hearing, I said-"

"Kids! What's going on?" The 4 kids turn around to see Mr. Washington hold a stack of papers.

"Jefferson-"

"LAFAYETTE WHAT HAPPENED!" Mrs. Martha shouts grabbing nearly every kids' attention. Lafayette didn't know what she was talking about until he touch his nose.

blood..

"Jefferson-"

"Baby how long have you- Why didn't you- Hunny keep your head up- How- Oh it's ok tell- dear goodness that's a lot of- Imma need you to keep your head up-" Mrs. Martha continues unable to finish a sentence.

Alex walks over to Mr. Washington and pulls on his leg. "Yes son-"

"Don't call me that- Jefferson tripped him"

"W-what?-"

"Well he tried to trip me but LAFFY saved me" Alex emphasizing the name 'Laffy'

Jefferson growls at Alex before reluctantly looks at Mrs. Martha who had a very upset expression. "Jefferson we talked about this" She says sternly. "You aren't allowed to do stuff like this, It's rude and you'll get other kids hurt."

"Well sometimes they deserve it" Jefferson mutters. "What was that Thomas?!"

"I'm sorry Mrs. Washington... Sorry Laffy" Jefferson leans in going to give him a hug. " I didn't mean to hurt you"

"And? who else do you have to say sorry to?" Jefferson glares at Alexander "And I'm sorry.... Alexander." He tries not to gag at the name. "It was an accident.."  

"No it wasn't-"

"Thank you, Now are you going to stop hugging Lafayette so you can hug-"

"No"

"Ok then.. Lafayette come with me so I can help you with your nose."

As Mrs. Martha leaves with Lafayette, Jefferson quickly grabs Alex by the collar. "Pull a dumb stunt like that again I will hurt you bad. Understand?" Alex doesn't answer he only glares for a while until he feels someone pull him away from Jefferson.

"Hey are you ok?" Laurens worries. "He didn't hurt you right?"

"Nuh-uh, He didn't get the chance." Laurens' eyes light up in admiration. "O-ok let's play pirates until Lafayette comes back."

Alex smiles, then takes one more look at Jefferson who went back to the bean bag. Daycare is going to be fun.

I just want to say Mrs. Martha and Mrs. Washington are the same person.

[breanime]

Bre's Boys as dads.... How do they rectify it when they realise they've been letting work come first too much lately. Obv they wouldn't allow that overall but sometimes things get busy and your schedule can change without you noticing.

Billy Russo: Billy was used to waking up early and hearing the excited footsteps of his son running to greet him, but this morning it was different. Your son walked into the living room where Billy was on his computer, saw his father, and didn’t say anything. He just grabbed his stuffed turtle from the toy bin and walked off. “Did you see that?” Billy asked you, trying to keep the disappointment and confusion out of his voice. You sighed, shrugging. “He’s a little upset with you.” Billy’s heart stopped. “He is? Why?” You looked away, and Billy could already feel the guilt seeping in. “He says you love Anvil more than you love him.” And that sentence broke Billy’s heart. He made sure to go and talk to your son, and after that day, he made every effort he could to be home at a reasonable time and spend time with his family. The last thing he wanted was for his kid to ever feel they were unloved or unwanted, and he vowed to never let his son feel that way again. 

Logan Delos: When Logan came back from working overseas for over a month, and your daughter cried when she saw him; he knew he’d been away for too long. Logan told the company that he wouldn’t do any more long distance meetings for a while, and he actually took some time away from the office and worked at home. He remembered what it was like to be a kid and barely know his own father, and he did NOT want his daughter to know a life like that. So he worked from home and made sure he had lunch with her every day and read to her every night, determined to make sure he was always a distinct part of her life. 

Jax Teller: The club was dealing with a lot of shit lately, so Jax was extremely busy. He came home one night, just in time for story time, and he was about to surprise you and your sons, but then he heard his baby boy’s soft voice ask “does Daddy not like me anymore?” “Of course he likes you. He loves you,” you answer just as Jax’s heart breaks. “But he doesn’t come home no more... Did I do something bad?” “No,” Abel answers from his bed, “Daddy just doesn’t like to be at home.” And that made Jax want to cry. The next morning, he surprised the boys (and you) with chocolate chip pancakes and spent the whole day with them. He knew he wouldn’t be able to do this all the time, but he promised himself to do it as much as he could, and to never let his family think they weren’t the absolute most important thing in his life--and he did. 

Coco Cruz: Coco is unbelievably pissed at himself when he misses your daughter’s preschool graduation. You try to make him feel better, telling him it wasn’t a big deal and there would be more events and programs in the future, but he felt like shit. All he had to remember that special day were the pictures, and when he came home and tried to hug your daughter, she crossed her arms and refused to hug him back, and wow... That shit hurt. Coco stayed up all night, staring at the ceiling in the dark, trying to think of how he could make things better. He was a Mayan, of course, but he was a father and a husband too, and he knew he had to do better in those parts of his life. So he made efforts to be present more, to make it to the events and programs and recitals, and when he couldn’t--if he was in Mexico or stuck at the clubhouse--he would call or Facetime, so his baby girl never had to go a day in her life without hearing her father’s voice. 

Angel Reyes: When Angel’s baby boy calls EZ “Papa” and cries when he sees Angel, that’s when it hits him. Angel had been busting his ass for the club lately, and so he would send EZ over to the house to check on you and the baby and make sure everything was good at home. But this was becoming so frequent, your son hardly recognized him anymore, and that broke Angel’s heart. EZ tried to make him feel better, saying that his nephew knew that Angel was his Dad, but Angel knew he had to be around more--it was simple as that. So he did. He also made it a point to refer to himself as “Daddy” or “Papi” when he spoke to his son, just to kind of drill it in. He had felt inferior to and replaced by EZ far too often in his life, and he’d be damned if his own son chose EZ over him. 

Miguel Galindo: Miguel worked from home, but that didn’t mean he was around much. He made sure to show his face a few times a day, but he didn’t spend as much time with his kids as he wanted to. He was in-between calls, walking towards the library to grab a file, when he heard voices. “Bam bam,” your daughter said, her little squeaky voice making Miguel smile, “how come Papa doesn’t play with us like Mama does?” Miguel’s smile dropped. Cristobal sighed. “He’s too busy,” he answered, “Papa works a lot.” “Oh,” your daughter’s voice sounded sad, “does he like us?” Cristobal paused, and that pause said so much to Miguel. “I think so,” his son answered. That was it. Miguel took the family on a vacation and made sure to play with the kids as much as he could. Miguel remembered being a child and not really having a relationship with his father, and he hated the idea of being like Jose in that regard, so every day, Miguel made sure to spend actual, quality time with his children as much as he could. 

Nick Amaro: The day Nick calls his son the name of the perp on his latest case is the day he realizes he’s been working too much. The self-disgust is overwhelming, and Nick decides to take the some much needed time off to be with his family. It does wonders; he’s happier, you’re happier, the kids are happier--and Nick quickly comes to the conclusion that family time is beneficial to all of you, and he works hard to maintain and build that family time as best as he can. He can’t always spare hours on end, but he makes time as he gets it, which isn’t nearly as difficult as he thought it would be. Plus, there was no sound sweeter than the sound of his kids’ laughter, and he’d do anything to hear that sound as often as he could. 

Johnny Tuturro: Working with the FBI and being a father was tough, but Johnny thought he was pretty good at it. He was there, more often than not, when your daughter woke up in the morning, and he always called to say good night if he wasn’t home. He was kicking ass at this life thing--or so he thought. One night, when he called, he heard his precious baby girl say “I don’t wanna talk to Daddy!” “What? Why?” You asked. “I want Daddy to come home!” She cried back, and Johnny felt tears in his eyes as he listened to her cry. This half-in, half-out thing just wasn’t enough--he had to do better. So Johnny put in a request to get off of undercover work and work on cases from an office. He was able to have breakfast, dinner, and storytime with his family, and that made all the difference in the world. 

Rio: Rio came home late one night to find Marcus waiting for him. “What you still doin’ up, papa?” Rio asked, whispering so he didn’t wake you or his baby up. “I just wanted to see you,” Marcus answered, getting up, “We forgot what color your eyes were.” And with that, he was gone. Rio stood in the living room for what felt like hours after that, picturing Marcus and your son discussing him and not remembering what their dad looked like because he was working so much. The thought made him sick. He got on the phone then and told Mick they were gonna cut back on distribution until they found more reliable employees, and Rio made sure to spend as much quality time with you and the kids as he could. He knew, of course, that there would still be times he worked late, but he talked about his absences with the kids, and made sure they knew that their Daddy loved them, and would do with anything for them. So even if he was gone, they knew he would come back, and they knew how much he loved them. 

*******************************************************************************************

Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think!

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[creativeskullcreations]

Outside chapter 25: What Comes Next

And here it is, the final chapter. It's been a wild ride, y'all, but more on that in the next chapter. Also can anyone guess who the sequel will involve? There's a hint, though it'll be a while before I get to it.

Stacy chopped the vegetables for the upcoming stir-fry as Scout watched from the other side of the sink. Will was working on measuring out the rice, hopeful that this time it would be the right amount. Scout hoped for another rice-explosion.

Rice cooker started, Will washed his hands and headed down into the basement. Nick and Riley sat in cages along the back wall, tied up and gagged. Riley glared at him as he approached, but Nick stared into space, unmoving and unseeing. Will came up to the cage and poked the Puppet's face with a pen, and on finding no reaction took the artist out of his cage, manually closing his eyes as he went.

Will laid the body on the table, untying him an removing the gag before wrapping him up like a mummy. Wrapped up in fabric and bound with silver infused rope, he was laid gently into a velvet lined box, that was closed and locked up tight with a key and code. It was placed on top of the box that held Mortimer, right next to the one that held Daisy. Right next to the many other boxes lining the wall.

Will finished checking in with the other dolls and toys, finding no change or escape attempts. He went to leave, but stopped first to look at Riley. She was obviously tired, no longer struggling against the ropes that bound her. Instead she opted to give a death glare, which he returned with a steady stare.

"You're next, you know." He told her quietly. "Don't worry, you won't get a different treatment from the others." She just glared harder, and he went back upstairs, heading back for the kitchen.

"Nick's gone dormant." He told Stacy quietly as she cooked the vegetables and rice in a pan. She frowned and nodded, but didn't reply beyond that. Scout was on the table, messing with the forks, and neither of them wanted to bring it to her attention. As he went on to stop the Puppet from her tower building, Stacy breathed a sigh of relief.

'Three down, just one more left.' She sighed in relief as she scooped the food onto four plates. 'It's almost over, then.' She set them up on the table while Will went off to find Canon. He returned quickly, no Puppet in sight.

"Yeah she's still up there, and not coming back down. But she did yell at me to go away this time, so I think we're making progress." He said, taking a seat. Stacy dumped the food that would've been Canon's into a tupperware before taking her own seat.

Scout, true to form, had already started stuffing her face. She stopped briefly, swallowing her mouthful with some difficulty. "I don't even know why you fucking bother. If she wants to be miserable, let her be miserable. Better than having her bothering me all the time." Another scoop of rice went into her mouth. "Why are we eating this again? It's fucking gross."

"We have to have at least two nights where we eat real food." Stacy told her. "It's healthy."

"It's. Gross." Scout repeated. "Didn't you make a cake? Where is it?"

"Cake comes after dinner. Eat your rice." Will told her. And, with some grumbling, the Puppet continued to shovel the stir-fry into her mouth.

"My Dad wants me to come home for Thanksgiving." Stacy said, after a few minutes of silent eating. "I think I should probably go this time, rather than just call."

"Might be a good idea." Will agreed. "Doesn't Danny need to, uh, do something anyways?"

"That's another reason I'm going. And why Scout is coming too."

"What? Ew no I don't wanna go." She dropped down into the chair behind her. "I like this house."

"It's just for a few days. Besides, I want you to meet my brother. It's important."

"How important? Also isn't he the one who can't hear? That's weird." Scout commented, peering over the edge of the table like some sort of gremlin.

"Yes, and yes he is weird but not because he's deaf." A pause, as Stacy realized something. "So don't tell him that that's why he's weird."

The two stared at each other, long enough that Will sighed and reached over to pull the Puppet back up onto the table. "Finish your food so we can get to the cake already." He grumbled, stabbing into a larger piece of carrot. "Also has Lisa gotten back to you on that project she's working?"

"Not yet, but apparently it's been more difficult than she thought. Neither Stitch or Bonzai are cooperating, and Scout doesn't even want to know what she's working on." Stacy side-eyed her Puppet, who glared right back.

"I want no part of that crazy bitch's plans!" She insisted, and was met with two sighs.

"You don't even know what it is." Will pointed out, and got a handful of rice in the face for his trouble.

"I don't fucking care. It involves fabric, and I don't fucking trust her!" She went to grab another handful of rice, only to find her plate gone, and Stacy halfway to the sink with it and the other two plates.

"Who wants some cake?" She asked with false cheer, holding the pan and a knife up. Scout cheered, and Will just sighed, though with a small smile.

-----

Lisa sighed heavily, pulling at her hair as she stared down at her notes. Nothing seemed to be working, though not like she could even test her theories with nobody cooperating with her. Even Stitch, who had agreed to help, and been swayed into not helping by Bonzai.

Finally, she stood and swept the notes into a folder, shelving it for the time being. She had classes to plan for next year, and should probably get on that. She grabbed a fresh notebook and opened it up. 'I wonder is Stitch would be willing to come with a few days out of the week.' She thought as she started on the plans. 'She's not that creepy, and isn't as loud as the others. And kids always love a Puppet.'

A light smile crossed her face as she thought of vague scenarios and sketched in small notes on where the Puppet could fit. She wasn't sure if her supervisor would even allow it, but it was nice to fantasize. Unfortunately, her fantasies were soon broken by a loud crash from the living room.

'Oh what did those three do now?" She stood and left her study, to find the little train Mason had set up crashed into a wall. Her roommate was doubled over laughing behind a camera, while Stitch and Bonzai were arguing. She leaned against the wall, watching the scene.

"I hope you got some good shots, cause it's time to clean this up." She told them, and instantly he sobered up.

"Aw, come on Lees, they love the train. Just look!" He pointed to the two Puppets, of which Stitch was actively strangling her brother.

"It looks like they're trying to kill each other." She leaned down, scooping the Puppets into her arms. "Besides it's gonna be time for bed soon, and I don't want to trip over this again tomorrow morning."

"Ugh, fine." He pulled his phone out and snapped some pics so he could put it back together later. He then started grabbing track pieces and putting them into a nearby bin. Bonzai let out his own groan, just now noticing what was going on.

"Hey wait don't put it away!" He struggled, but couldn't break Lisa's hold on him. "I wasn't done with that! Stop!"

"Ah but my Host has spoken. You are done with it." Stitch intoned smugly, to be met with a hard glare. He was ignored as Lisa carried them to what had been a guest room, but was now set up as their room. Not much had really changed about it, save for there being more toys and some kids' books around. It was mostly a temporary place for them, that had become permanent.

"You guys really gotta clean this place up." The blonde muttered as she stepped over things to put them in the bed. Bonzai tried to escape the second he was let go, but Lisa grabbed him again and almost forcibly tucked him in beside his sister. He crossed his arms and sulked while Stitch looked far too happy to be fussed over like that.

"Glad you're enjoying this humiliation." He muttered.

"It is only humiliating if you dislike such actions." Stitch whispered back as she watched her Host put away some of their things. "Personally, I feel like this was an optimal outcome. Look at her, cleaning for us."

"Well I wasn't done playing with Mason." He grumbled, just loud enough that Lisa heard.

"What were you guys doing, anyways. I saw Mason had his camera set up." She said, coming to sit down on the bed with them.

"We were making a movie! With fun action sequences and a train chase!" Bonzai told her excitedly. "It was totally awesome!"

"He told us he would put it on the internet when he was finished." Stitch told her, and Lisa frowned briefly before covering it up.

"That sounds so cool!" She said. "I can't wait to watch the finished thing. I bet it's gonna be awesome!"

"Hell yeah it is!" Bonzai agreed, and received a small pat on the head for it. He quickly brushed her hand away while she gave Stitch an identical pat, then stood to leave. Turning the light off as she went, she made sure the door was tightly shut before heading back to the living room.

She took a deep breath. "You're going to put them on YouTube?!" She whisper-shouted with a squeak.

"Uh, yeah? I'm not gonna make a whole ass movie just to let it sit in the camera." Mason told her, putting the last of the track pieces in the box.

"You can't do that! What if somebody sees? Oh man we're gonna get in so much trouble!"

"Lisa, relax. Stacy made a whole TikTok account for Scout, and nothing's happened to them." He pointed out.

"That's Stacy though! She has, like, supernatural luck or something! We're gonna get caught and they'll be taken away!"

"Look, Lisa, it'll be fine. And besides, the movie's not done yet. There's plenty of time to see if Scout gets caught because of TikTok or not." He grinned, which faded at the hard look Lisa was giving him.

"If anything happens to anyone because you put that video on YouTube, you're dead." She told him, but he just grinned back.

"Fair enough." He said. "But don't worry so much. It'll be fine, I'm sure of it!"

-----

Sammy walked into his half-dark apartment, not bothering to turn on any other lights. His backpack fell to the floor with a heavy thump as he wandered into the kitchen for a soda from the fridge. Drink gotten, he opened it up as he wandered into the living room, sitting on the couch and lighting up a joint.

He blew out a mouthful of smoke, barely noticing as Bit appeared on the couch. She crawled over to lay her head in his lap, letting out small coughs occasionally. He stroked her hair absentmindedly, slowing down as his mind drifted with the smoke.

"You need to stop doing that." Bit mumbled, coughing again as Sammy finally passed into a weed fueled haze. She got no reply, so she sighed unhappily.

She'd been expecting something... more with Sammy once they got back. And her siblings seemed to have gotten that, even if Canon was being a weird bitch about it. But all she got was a Host that left her alone for days at a time, only to come home and smoke himself into oblivion. And then he'd leave again the very next morning.

He didn't talk or play with her like the other Hosts did with her siblings. It was almost enough to bring her to tears when she was left alone in the dark apartment. Almost. She never actually cried from it(not like she'd admit it, anyways).

She was tired of the taste and stench of the smoke, however.  It made her cough, and smelled worse than anything in the Studio. She wished he could get through one day without smoking. She knew that the next time they all met up, she was going to stink.

-----

Stacy brushed her hair, sitting on the bed next to Scout, who was deep into playing an old Gameboy that had been found in a box. As soon as her hair had been tied back into a braid, she lifted the Puppet into her lap and gave her hair a few quick strokes with the brush.

"Okay, it's bedtime now. Save the game and turn it off." Stacy said, putting the brush away. She unhooked her prosthetic and set it down beside the bed, in easy reach for the next morning.

"Can't save can't pause gotta keep playing." Scout mumbled. Her Host sighed before grabbing the game and pausing it, then plugging it into the charger on the side-table. The Puppet reached for it, but was held in place as Stacy turned off the light and laid down.

"Bedtime is now, Scout. Will's already asleep." She muttered as she settled down, and Scout finally stopped fighting it. Stacy would go limp soon enough, anyways, and then Scout could go back to playing.

And, just as predicted, once Stacy was fully asleep it was easy to squirm out of her loose grasp and grab the Gameboy. She settled into the corner of the room to play, when she noticed a light go by the open door.

Too low to the ground to be anything but Canon, Scout eased through the gap between the door and door-frame. She followed her eldest sister to the kitchen, just in time to see her pull the tupperware of gross rice out of the fridge. It landed on the floor with a thump and she pulled the lid off to shove the cold leftovers into her mouth.

"You know that tastes better warm, right?" Scout asked, and Canon jumped, then hunched over her food and glared at her sister.

"Shut up and go back to your Host!" She hissed before chomping down on another mouthful of food. Hunger satisfied for now, she put the lid back on and hefted the container back into the fridge. She then closed the door, plunging the kitchen back into darkness.

"C'mon Canon, Will's worried about you. I think." Scout scratched her head. "It's honestly hard to tell with him sometimes."

"I. Don't. Care." Canon said simply, pushing past Scout in order to get back to her hiding place.

"But he's your Host!" The elder sister paused, leaving Scout feeling safe to continue. "Everyone else likes their Hosts! Did... did something happen or-"

"Just because the rest of you are happy to be pets doesn't mean I am." She stated. "They'll all get bored of you eventually, so don't drag me into your delusions." And then she vanished, leaving Scout with a rebuttal dying on her lips.

"Well, fine then! Be a bitch, see if I care!" She grumbled as she made her way back to the bedroom in the dark. She Jumped onto the bed, crawling under the blanket and up against Stacy.

"We're not fucking pets." Scout muttered. "They care about us. Stacy cares about me. I know she does." She sniffed, burying her face under the covers. "Why does she have to be such a bitch about it?"

-----

Somewhere far away, in a different, rainy city, sat a small building. Out of that building, through the boards covering the door, a tiny figure made of wood squeezed out, dragging an envelope with him. Holding it over his head, he raced to the nearby mailbox sitting at the corner. It took some work, but he was able to climb up and stuff the letter he was carrying inside.

And just in time, too, as a flash of lightning showed a stark white figure about the size of a child standing just inside the doorway. Thin strings wormed their way out through the boards, attaching themselves to the puppet's limbs. It screamed, a high-pitched, sharp sound as he was dragged back inside.

The rain continued to fall as the city slept on, completely unaware.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Pulling Rank

Series Summary: After the events of Civil War, Steve and his team are stuck in their compound. Following a mission, you disagree with your stalwart leader but he does not take kindly to your defiance.

Sequel to Insubordination

Chapter Description: Stuck in the compound, the reader can’t get away from the captain.

Warnings: dub/non-con and explicit sex (including oral) Obviously 18+ (like this whole blog)

Note: I decided to do a sequel (at least) to this fic. Hopefully you all enjoy some more dark Steve although lately it seems he’s taking over the blog. I’m still working on raffle winners but they will be up over the next few weeks and hopefully offer more variety. 

Anyways, thanks for reading. Feel free to send an ask, reblog, or reply you reaction :)

Waking up the next day was difficult. Every muscle in your body was both tight and weak. You felt as if you had been run over. You were in the same position Steve had left you in; sprawled sideways across the bed, the remnants of his dry cum on the duvet and your skin. You shook as you sat up, bruises darkened along your hip bones where he had held you down. You glanced over at the vibe carelessly laying on the dresser and your stomach flipped. It had definitely been real.

You rose, wobbling on your legs before you caught yourself on the dresser. You grabbed the toy and lumbered into the bathroom, dropping it into the bin. You doubted you’d have any urges after last night. You’d be content enough to be left alone. If Steve wanted to chase you out, he was doing a good job. You sat on the toilet, your back aching as you hung your head. You should go back to Stark Tower and beg mercy; swallow your pride and sign the Accords. No, it was too late for that. You had chosen your dog in this fight but you hadn’t realized it was vicious.

It took about ten minutes to find your strength again. You managed to turn on the shower and step inside, hoping to sear away Steve’s touch. He lingered on you even after you stepped out of the steaming bathroom. In this place, there was no escaping him. You felt worse as memories of the night before had your skin burning. It was everything you had been yearning for and more; you just hadn’t expected it to happen like that.

You stripped the bed and tossed the blankets in a pile. You’d worry about the laundry later. You were restless. You kept pacing, unable to sit still for more than minute. What if he came back? A fucking lock wouldn’t hold off a super soldier. You should go. Just leave. He didn’t want you on missions anymore and it seemed he didn’t want you in the compound either. You could ask Clint for help. He was laying low, having gone along with everything for the sake of his family, but he’d give you place to hide out. No one else needed to know.

No, that was selfish. Risky. You couldn’t endanger his family for your own missteps.

A knock came and you froze. You stared at the door, shaking as your visitor rapped again. The handle slowly turned and you waited with dread. As the door opened you gasped and sighed in relief. It was only Nat. You shook your head at yourself.

“Hey, what’s going on?” She let the door go, “I thought we were going to work out this morning. Why didn’t you answer your door?”

“Uh, sorry, I’m tired,” You lied, “I...was just stressing all night about…” Your voice trailed off and your eyes searched for anything but visions of Steve. “My suspension. I don’t know, um, don’t know if I, uh, should stay any longer.”

“Y/N, it was one day. A stupid argument. You can’t go.” She scoffed, “Don’t leave me here alone with these idiots. I mean, Wanda’s never here and I don’t wanna be the only one left with brains above the waist.”

You tilted your head and chewed your lip. You couldn’t tell her, she wouldn’t believe you. You didn’t want to tell her. Or anyone. You wanted to forget. If you kept in line, listened, Steve would leave you alone. You hoped. “Fine,” You relented, “Not like I have anywhere to go. Let’s just…” You paused as you turned to the dresser, your hand hovering in front of the knob. He had stood right here; he’d been waiting. “...Go work out.”

“You could use it. Get some of that tension out,” Nat chided, “Jesus, Y/N, you’re gonna start driving me crazy along with yourself.”

“The guys, they usually work out at night, don’t they?” You grabbed some workout gear and headed into the washroom, leaving the door slightly open so Nat could hear you.

“Don’t worry about Steve. If anything, he’ll just give you the silent treatment. He’s stubborn but he’ll get over it.” She said, “You know, you were right. He was being a dick.”

“Uh, yeah,” You pulled on your shorts and the loose tee. You re-entered the bedroom and sat to put on socks and your sneakers. “I just, I don’t need another argument, is all. I just want to work out and forget about everything.”

“Oh yeah, even the laundry?” She kicked the pile of sheets.

“It’s my day for the wash,” You lied, Sam wouldn’t mind you snagging the machines. He rarely used them anyhow. “Trying to get a head start.”

“Well, let’s go.” She clapped her hands, “I really do get fed up waiting on you all the time.”

“You could’ve gone without me,” You grabbed your water bottle; you could fill it from the fountain in the gym. “You’ve done it before.”

“You’re a drag when you’re hungover,” She chuckled and led you into the hallway. “Well, more so than usual.”

You and Nat continued to kid until you came in sight the glass wall of the gym. It was like an actual facility; machines, weights, mats, everything you needed. You laughed as you turned the corner, almost forgetting what had you so on edge. Until you glanced over at the gym. You stopped short and Nat nearly tripped in her surprise.

“What is it?” She asked.

“I…” You stared through the transparent wall. Steve had his back to you as he squatted a good two hundred pounds and Sam jogged on the treadmill across from him. “What are they doing here so early?”

“Oh,” She turned, noticing the unexpected patrons, “It’s fine. I’m sure we can all share peaceably.”

“No,” You backed away, “No, I think I’d rather do my laundry.”

“Fuck, Y/N, it’ll be fine.” She hissed.

“You can work out without me, I’ll just go later tonight,” You tried to get away before Steve could turn and see you. “Really, I just...I can’t deal with him right now, okay?”

She sighed and crossed her arms. “Fine. Have fun with your dirty sheets.” She spun on her heel and marched away. You shook your head as you watched Steve’s back muscles move through the thin fabric of his shirt. Your lip trembled as you recalled his strength, how easily he had held you down, the deep plunge of his cock inside of you. You turned and hurried in the other direction, your head spinning.

Fresh sheets on the bed, a sandwich smuggled back to your room for supper, a day spent successfully evading Steve. Another hour and you would chance the gym. Midnight workouts weren’t very popular. You spent the time watching Youtube on your phone, your leg shaking eagerly. You hated missing a workout; especially as it was essential to your livelihood. Although, you weren’t going on missions anytime soon.

You checked your watch; quarter after. You slipped into your sneakers and grabbed your water bottle again, this time determined to get your sweat on. You were relieved to find the gym empty and you started your stretches just in front of the bike. You liked to cycle; your speed your greatest asset. As you touched your toes, you heard the subtle whisper of the gym door. You looked between your legs and nearly fell on your head. Steve stopped just inside, crossing his arms as he stared at your ass.

“I was wondering where you were this morning,” He watched as you stood straight, turning to him in surprise. “Nat said you weren’t feeling up to it today.” He neared, “Wonder why?”

“What do you want?” You walked backwards, colliding painfully with the treadmill.

“What was that? I didn’t hear a sir or Captain in there.” He tilted his head as he spoke, “I thought we went over this last night.” You were trembling, reaching back to grip the machine as you fought to stay standing. “It’s gonna be a long suspension if you keep on like this.”

You felt behind you, edging away from the treadmill, past the bike and around the weights. There was a rack between you and him. He followed steadily; enough that he kept up. When you were closest to the door, you turned and darted, pulling it open as your panic turned your vision hazy. You could hear him behind you as you ran down the halls. You knew he was faster than you but you didn’t care. You needed to get away. You turned the next corner and he caught you by the back of your shirt, the fabric tearing down the middle. The force of it caused you to trip and you barely got your arms up to save your head.

Out of breath, you tried to get your knees under you but a kick to your rear kept you down. Steve slid his foot under your side and flipped you over as you panted. He brought a foot to the other side of you and knelt down to look at you closer. He smirked. “You didn’t think our little lessons were done.” He taunted, “You still have much to learn.”

“No, please, you don’t have to do this,” You attempts to push him off were futile and he caught your wrists and backed up and pulling you to your feet. You struggled with him but it was hopeless. “I’ll scream.” You threatened.

“Go ahead. Who do you think would believe you? Even if they stumbled on this little scene, what are they going to do?” He chortled, “I mean really, what have you done about it? What can you do?”

“Why?” You breathed desperately.

“Because I can,” He said, “Because I can’t be leashed anymore. Those days are over and I’m in charge now.”

“You made your fucking point,” You hissed, his grip was painful on your wrists.

“I know,” He look down at you triumphantly, “It’s not about that anymore.” He spun you around, releasing you and holding you to the wall by your neck. He leaned down, his voice low as he spoke in your ear. “You know, there is a side effect of the serum not many know about. Torturous, really. It’s this unending desire. This deep want that just can’t be sated. You get one taste and you wanted more. A hunger that only grows the more you feed it.” He exhaled, his breath singing your cheek, “I’ve ignored it for too long.”

“Steve, please,” Your eyes were wet, “Please, I know this isn’t you. I’m just...that girl you met in New York. You trained me, taught me everything I know.”

“I didn’t train you well enough,” He snarled as he bent closer, his lips brushing your neck before his teeth sunk in. You yelped as he bit you and his hand moved over your mouth as he sucked at your flesh. He pulled away with a pop, standing straight to admire his mark. He brought his other hand up and ran his thumb over the tender spot. “I’ve decided on two months suspension. I figure it’s enough time for you to go over the basics.”

“What’s changed in you, Steve Rogers?” You sputtered.

“Nothing. I was always an animal,” His fingers framed your face; an unspoken threat. He could crush your head in a single move. “I’ve just been uncaged.” 

You croaked. There were no words left to you. Your voice was caught in your chest, your whole body trembling at you stared up at this monster before you. 

“I always thought of fucking you, but I was too cheesy about it. I thought of dates and flowers.” He scoffed to himself. “ What a joke.”

You squirmed but it made no difference on his hold on you. He smiled at your pathetic struggles and he reached down to yank on the front of your top, the torn fabric slipping down your arms. You caught it but it was useless now. A rag. “I will give you one choice; should I fuck you here or drag you back to mine?”

You blinked, your chin shaking as you held back the lump rising in your throat. “Not here,” You said quietly, “Please...Captain.”

“Ah ha,” He sounded impressed with your use of his rank. “Good girl. Come on then. I can’t wait any longer.”

He turned you, keeping you ahead of him as he marched you down the hallways, your arms holding the remnants of your shirt against your chest. His room was just around the corner from yours. A fact which now disturbed you. You watched longingly as you passed your own door and he stopped you before his. 

“Now,” His long lashes flicked as he looked you up and down. “We’re going to practice your listening skills tonight. See what you really learned. So, you do what I say, you do it well, and you’re halfway to a model soldier. Got it?”

“Yes, sir,” You nodded, staring at his door with dread.

“Hmm,” He grumbled, “I think I prefer Captain.”

“Yes, Captain,” You kept your eyes forward, doing your best to still your nerves. Reaching desperately for some semblance of stability. Do as he said and it’d be over soon.

“Open the door,” He said and you quickly reached for the handle, pushing it inward. “Ladies first,” He beckoned you onward and you stepped inside, “Yeah, mmm, you’ve got such a cute little ass.” The door closed behind him. “Stop right there. Bend over.” He groaned in approval and neared you, his hands settling on the thin fabric of your leggings. He jiggled your ass before slapping it as hard as he could. You caught yourself before you could land on your head.

“Stand up,” He backed away, “At attention.” He commanded and you stood straight, your shirt falling to the floor. “This,” He reached out and snapped the strap of your sports bra, “You need to get a nicer uniform, soldier.”

“Yes, Captain,” Your voice was airy; barely your own. It was his now, as your body was.

“Undress, quick,” He circled you, silent as you took of each piece of clothing. The tension was suffocating. “We’ll have to work on that time, soldier.” Your lips curled as he once more addressed you with the patronizing title. “Good form, nonetheless.” He cupped your breast, flicking your nipple with his thumb. “Now, undress me.”

You gritted your teeth through another ‘Yes, Captain’, and moved closer to him. He stood before you patiently, watching you with a smirk was you tugged up the hem of his tee shirt. He lifted his arms, stooping to help you maneuver the cotton over his head. You struggled so much to unbuckle his belt that he laughed. When at last that was done, you slid off his jeans, pausing to remove his shoes and socks awkwardly. You felt as low as dirt.

You glanced up at him as all that was left were his boxer brief. He looked down at himself, his erection about to burst through on its own accord. You pressed your fingertips to the elastic, slowly slipping them under and guiding them down. As the head of his cock popped out, your eyes widened. It somehow looked bigger than last time. Well, you had been half-delirious then. Lower, lower, until they fell to the floor. He stepped out of the underwear, his cock poking your stomach as he came closer. You back up but the flash in his eyes kept you near.

“Now, before we continue, I need you to answer a few questions. Honesty is important in a good soldier,” He walked around you again, his cock bobbing with each step. “How many men have you fucked? Before me, of course.”

You sighed and looked down. Whether the number was high or low, it was embarrassing. You answered and he nodded, stopping before you. “And,” He took your hand and wrapped it around the base of his cock. “Were any as big as me?”

“No, Captain,” You admitted. He was well above average and there were few who could compare.

“Mm-mm-mm,” He preened at your answer, “I could tell. That tight little pussy needs breaking in.” You let go of him and he sneered. You quickly set your hand back on his cock. “But you’re biggest problem is that mouth of yours, so why don’t we work on that?” You swallowed and looked down at his cock, your fingers couldn’t even wrap around it fully. You couldn’t imagine taking all of it.

You kept hold of him and stiffly got to your knees. You looked up at him. He was too tall. “Damn,” He swore, “All is not lost. Bed. Hands and knees.” You let go of him and did as he said, climbing up on his large bed; bigger than your double. You waited at the edge as he followed, standing before you as he wiggled his hips teasingly. “Better.” You stared up at him, hoping he would suddenly change his mind. No, that was stupid. “Suck my cock.”

You cringed, letting out a deep breath. “Yes, Captain,” You bent to press your lips to his tip, flicking your tongue out to wet it. You did your best to spread your saliva up and down his shaft with your lips and tongue. You prayed he didn’t try to go all the way. You’d choke if he tried that. You carefully stretched your mouth around his head and he twitched, a moan floating from him. He leaned into you, pushing further in as you opened your jaw as far as you could. You flinched as his head poked the back of your throat, drool plastered on your lips.

You tried to pull back but he caught the back of your head. He forced himself deeper and you kicked your feet as you struggled to breath. You could barely get enough air through your nose. You were almost at his base, tears at the corner of your eyes as your nails dug into the blankets. He reached his limit and your passage was completely blocked. He stayed there for a moment, watching your face change colour before pulling back. He thrust in again and out; a steady pace as you gasped between intrusions. Your sweat mixed with tears and saliva as he moved his hips faster, fucking your face as his hands held your shoulders.

“That’s it, soldier,” He hummed, “Fuck, I didn’t think you could take it all but look at you.”

You grew dizzier with each plunge into your throat and your body began to sag, hands slipping as you crumpled on the mattress. He removed his cock from your mouth and let you fall, watching you wheeze into the duvet. He sat down beside you, feet still on the floor as he reached over and patted your back. “Catch your breath. That’s it.” He cooed, “Now, get on my cock. You can’t just leave me this way.”

Weakly, you lifted your head and sat up, dragging yourself to the edge of the bed. You climbed down and turned to him as he leaned back with his hands on the mattress behind him. “Soldier.” He warned.

“Yes, Captain,” You quavered, stepping closer. You got up, squatting over his thick thighs as you reached down to steady his wet cock. You were shaking as you used his muscular torso to hold yourself up, his head at your entrance. You let yourself slip onto him, a sigh fluttered from him as you lowered yourself. There was some resistance, some pain, but you pressed on, afraid he would force himself in all at once. Your walls were tight around him, gripping him as he impaled you fully. “Aiii!” You let out the unwanted yipe at the overwhelming fullness.

“I think you know the drill, soldier,” He stayed reclined, watching as you lifted yourself on your knees and brought yourself back down. You shuddered atop him. “You like that cock?” He asked as you continued your motion, fingers clawing at your own thighs. “Answer me, soldier.”

“Yes, Captain,” The reply rose on its own as you drowned in ecstasy. He was too much. Too strong, to powerful, too big.

“Tell me you like it,” He breathed, tilting his pelvis up slightly, getting even deeper.

“I like your cock, Captain,” Your head lolled back as you rode him.

“Touch yourself,” He rasped, “I want to see you cum.” You moved your hand to your clit, keeping stride, and began to rub yourself, eager for your climax. Your arms shook and your muscles clenched and released as you chased the high. “Are you going to cum for your Captain?”

“Yes, yes, Captain,” You forced out in your throes, “I’m going to-to-to cum, Ca-a-a-a-ptain.” Your orgasm was stunning. Dumbfounding as every thought left your head. You forgot that it was Steve below you, that he had dragged you here, that he had fucked you just as roughly the night before; everything.

“Ugh,” He grunted, his hands on your hips as he sat up. He stood up easily with you still on his cock, bouncing you up and down. All at once he lifted you from his length and set you on your weak legs, nudging your shoulder. “On your knees, soldier.”

His cock twitched as you lowered yourself, still dripping with your juices. “Take my cum in your mouth.” He ordered with hands on his hips.

You grabbed his cock and began to stroke him. “Faster.” He groaned, “Yeah, yeah, more. Tighter.” He commanded your every move and you worked his length furiously. “Open your mouth.” You forced your lips open and tilted your head back, his cum spurting forth. You tried to catch it as best you could, hot ribbons landing along your cheeks and across your lips, your tongue coated in saltiness.

You slowed as his orgasm faded and released him as you sat back on your heels. As his cum cooled on your face, your cheeks burned. There it was; the humiliation. Steve reached downand smeared his cum across your face before grabbing your chin firmly as he forced you to look at him. 

“Now, it’s time to test your stamina, soldier.” You had no choice but to stand as he pulled you up by your jaw, “Touch your toes.”

tags: @breezy1415 @alexakeyloveloki @beautiful-and-strange @phoenix21love @momc95 @buckycaptspideypool @meaganottiz02 @patzammit

[swellwriting]

What do we do now? -Part six

Part Six- Sunset (contains smut*)

A/N: This chapter contains smut but it is clearly marked where it starts and stops so it's easy to avoid if it's not ur cup of T, please only read that part if you are 18+ thanks xx

Word Count: 3.4k   Series Masterlist

Remus woke up with Y/n in his arms again, no further moves had been made since he had dodged her attempt at kissing him last week. He never stopped thinking about it, how close she was, her slightly puckered lips and the mint chocolate on her breath. It haunted his dreams and he was worried he would talk in his sleep and make his adoration of her obvious.

She was none the wiser, since she tried to kiss him and failed the only thing she had realized was that she was in love with him, she made no new discoveries about his feelings.

He reached into the bag beside him and pulled out a chocolate bar, the crinkling of the wrapper interrupted Y/n’s sleep. She blinked, rubbed her tired face on Remus still bare skin, weird how she was so cold in a giant warm sweater but he stayed warm regardless of what he wore.

She eyed his chest and stomach taking mental note of where all his now fading injuries were, she sat up slightly crossing her arms and laying them on his chest resting her chin on her hands.

“Morning, chocolate?” He asked, mouth full of the sweet snack he spoke off.

“Of course,” she smiled, her tired eyes closing from the action. She made no move to grab a piece, just opened her mouth expectantly and Remus took the order, breaking the last piece in half and then placing one in her mouth and the rest in his own.

She hadn’t noticed that it was the last piece though, she quickly finished eating it and opened her mouth again but Remus shrugged his shoulders a bit continuing to eat the last piece.

Y/n frowned and tapped her fingers impatiently on the skin below his collar bone, was she this close before? “You ate the whole thing!”

“Sorry Mini.” He must be feeling better, he called her by her nickname and he wasn't one to use it often. Her heart fluttered at the sound.

“That was the last of our snacks too, wasn’t it?” She questioned and he nodded, he noticed that one of her knees was pinned between his own, he wasn't sure when that happened but she was now basically on top of him. Her hands were against his chest and she could feel his heartbeat quicken, she noted the way his cheeks turned rosy pink as he looked from their intertwined legs and back up to her eyes, her face was closer than before.

She decided to toy with him further, maybe she should try to kiss him again and if he pulls away this time she will know for sure that he doesn't feel the same for her.

“Guess I'll just have to eat you then,” she joked, her sweet and quiet voice making it worse for him. 

Remus let out a squeak of a response, “Guess so.”

Their noses bumped before their lips met, she turned her head slightly and placed her soft lips on his, one solid slow kiss. Remus met her for it this time instead of pulling away. Her breath and lips tasted like chocolate again, just like last time. He didn't initiate anything further, he laid there, hands idle and still. She pulled away from the kiss and he admired the way her cheeks rounded from how wide her smile was.

“Sorry.” She said averting his eyes but he was quick to dismiss her bashfulness.

“No, don't be sorry, I just, don't be sorry.” He tried to communicate his feelings to her but had never done such a thing before. He wanted to say that he liked the kiss, he would kiss her as many times as she’d let him. He wanted to say that he hadn't stopped thinking about kissing her since the last time he so foolishly pulled away. He wanted her to know that he wanted more with her, a life and a future and all the stupid stuff people who are in love do together, he wanted it all. 

So many words bounced around his skull, anyway he could formulate even a half-coherent sentence would work. If he could just mutter the simple question to her, asking her to be his girlfriend, or however it is that people ask that sort of thing. Sadly the only words that came out of his mouth were a pathetic attempt of a question and a statement, “Breakfast?”

She watched him silently for a few minutes before speaking the question and when he asked it she nodded in response. She could still feel his racing heartbeat against her palm and see the fear and anxiety in his eyes that couldn't focus on anything.

Remus had always blocked off his emotions, he wasn't concerned with dating at Hogwarts, he wasn't concerned with it afterwards either. He wasn't purposefully pushing that part of a potential love life away, he just wasn't pursuing it. 

He wouldn't have ever gone looking for someone to love either, they just so happened to get in the passenger side of his stupid muggle car and agree to run away with him. 

Y/n knew bits of this without Remus telling her. Lily had told Y/n probably too many details about Remus’ sad and non-existent love life, out of worry. Lily did that a lot, when she was worried about something she would talk about it forever making herself worry more and more. It took a bit of reasoning, which Y/n and James had both perfected, to get her to calm down.

Y/n gazed emptily at the forest out the window, only brought back to reality by Remus carefully sitting up holding her waist to keep her in her spot.

“I better start driving then?” He asked with a sleepy smile, “Unless you wanted to?”

“I’ll take back that kiss!” She challenged, squinting her eyes at him, her face extremely close to his since she was still sat on his lap.

Remus closed the space even further, looking from her lips to her eyes before kissing her briefly again. Then he pulled away and climbed into the front seat with a proud smile on his blushing face for being so confident in that moment.

Y/n sat in the middle seat, still stretching a seat belt over her shoulder but she rested her tired body against Remus’ as he drove to get some breakfast.

-

Fast food wrappers from a quick and cheap breakfast were stuffed into a bag, the two were leaving the parking lot as Y/n was half hanging out the window trying to throw the garbage into the bin. She tossed it with acute precision landing neatly in the bin without knocking anything else out.

She cheered quietly for herself and Remus laughed, she got a bit too excited and hit her head as she quickly came back into the car.

“Ow!” She yelped and brought her hands to the same bump that was there from the night of the full moon when her head hit the wall.

“Of course you managed to hurt yourself.” Remus continued to laugh at her knowing she wasn't actually hurt.

“I hit my head the other night too, I'm thinking this bump will never go away at this rate!”

“The other night?” He questioned, eyes on the road.

“Yeah, when we were in the separate rooms. After I went to my room alone I was sitting against the wall to make sure you were okay and I fell asleep and got woken up when my head fell out of my hand and hit the wall.”

“I’d feel bad if I hadn't told you to not do that,” Remus said, sparing a glance at her as she ran her fingers over the bump on her head. She noticed he was looking so she just stuck her tongue out at him in response.

They drove down a long road for what felt like forever, unsure of exactly where they were off to next. They were very short on money and they were both aware of it as they scraped together some change for their breakfast.

After an hour of silence and shitty radio songs, Y/n finally spoke up. “I've been thinking.”

“Either wonderful or terrible things can be a result of that.” Remus teased.

“We are almost completely out of money and we have no way of making any more. We have a few options, we could rob a bank, I'm thinking something a little less secure than Gringotts,”

“A little?” Remus interrupted with a laugh.

“Or I have this friend, I know he survived the war because he sent me an owl when he heard about James. Anyways he said he was doing really well, he has some sort of business that he’s running and that if I was ever nearby to pay him a visit and check out his business.”

“So you wanna go visit him?” Remus asked, curious as to who this friend was and if he would know him from Hogwarts.

“Yeah, I thought we could since we really have no other destination in mind! Do you remember Bertram Aubrey? He was in Hogwarts with us?”

Remus went silent for a moment, the name sounded familiar to him but he couldn't remember why. Bertram Aubrey? Suddenly Remus remembered exactly who that was.

“James and Sirius hexed him and made his head huge, they got double detention for that one.”

Y/n had an exasperated look on her face, out of all the people they could have hexed it had to be Bertram? “Do you think he will remember that?”

“Oh, I'm sure of it! Hopefully, he’s forgiven them and that extends to me, he wasn't exactly friendly to any of us after that.”

“Rightfully so, I’d be pissed.”

“I think it was an accident honestly but I can't remember.”

The car went silent until Y/n suddenly broke into a fit of laughter, “Sorry, I just remembered seeing him like that, I forgot that happened, he couldn't fit the hood from his robes over his head.” She bent over in a fit, reminiscing on the funny memory.

“Glad it has made you laugh all these years later.” Remus smiled trying to hold back the laughter himself.

“Oh, I laughed back then too, in front of Bertram. He was so mad,” she had to pause to breath between laughs, “I wish James was here so we could laugh about it together.”

She stopped laughing slowly, the realization of what she had just said hit her like a ton of bricks. Remus noticed this, he too felt bad when he would think about his friends in past tense like he was accepting that they were gone and he shouldn't be. Like he should still be a mourning mess at the sounds of his friend's names.

“It’s okay to talk about him, to remember him and wish he was here. I know it feels like the only right way to mourn him is to be sad and miss him and all of them all the time but it’s okay to remember him in happier ways, in stupid memories and stories from our past because that's all we have left.” Remus talked as seriously as he could as he focused on the road in front of him. Y/n didn't reply she just intertwined her fingers with the hand that he wasn't using to drive and let her head fall on his shoulder.

They continued to drive like this in silence, only speaking so Y/n could direct Remus where to go every now and then, eventually Remus reached a crossroad, he went to ask her if he was supposed to go left or right when he noticed she had fallen asleep. He didn't want to wake her up so he decided to pull into a small empty parking lot beside a large field that led to a forest with walking trails.

It was late afternoon, night time was inching closer and closer. The area they were in seemed pretty uninhabited, perhaps a busier place in warmer months.

Y/n’s eyes blinked as she woke up from her nap, she was unsure how long she had been asleep but she looked ahead seeing the green forest and determined they weren’t driving anymore. “Sorry, I fell asleep.”

“That's okay, driving is boring sometimes.”

“You're just really comfy.” She said as a smile broke across her face and she stretched her arm across his stomach letting her hand fall to rest near the top of his thigh. If her ear was near his mouth she would have heard his sharp inhale at the tiny touch. Her ear was instead pressed against his chest, almost directly against his heart.

“I can hear your heartbeat, it jumped.”

“Well, you make me nervous,” he replied honestly and quietly.

___________ Smut 18+ starts

“I make you nervous? What about when I do this?” She asked in a sultry tone as her hand slid up his right thigh, ever so slightly rubbing against his crotch and then up his stomach. He gulped, eyes watching her every move as he nodded in response.

She smiled up at him and batted her eyelashes, she watched as the almost chemical reaction between them made his face turn rosy red, it travelled up his neck and darkened his cheeks. She moved to straddle him, sitting on his lap.

 He quickly moved his hands to her hips, gripping tightly. They both smiled into the kiss, teeth clashing and tongue biting as it got heated rather fast. It was almost as if they had done this a million times before instead of the contrary which was that they only had their first kiss this morning. 

The kiss was sloppy and completely new to them. A kiss, a simple chaste kiss was easy but this was like being thrown in the deep end with no knowledge of how to swim and Remus felt like he was trying to use his tongue to keep him afloat. Okay, probably a bad metaphor on his part. 

His hands travelled up her hips and caressed her sides sliding under her large sweater. Her hands wrapped around to the back of his neck, tugging his hair and scratching his skin lightly.

Y/n moved closer to him, pressing her chest on his and grinding against him. Through the many layers of jeans and cotton between them the friction was more than Remus could handle, not only was Remus inexperienced, much like Y/n was, but he hadn’t had a moment alone for so long. The only time he was alone was during the full moon. Every part of his being and his raging hormones were begging him to touch himself that night but he had so little time before he changed to do anything about it.

He had thought about it too, he had thought about doing this with her. Now that it was actually happening, and so fast, he couldn't control himself. He moaned loudly into her mouth, almost biting too hard on her tongue. She giggled in response, a light-hearted airy giggle that took Remus’ breath away even more.

Y/n wasn't as weak as Remus was, well not to say Remus was weak all the time but in this specific situation he was basically helpless, she had all the power and he was okay with that. She continued to grind down onto him, she felt his hard cock throbbing in his pants, it rubbed against her clothed clit and she moaned biting her lip. He wanted more and so did she but they were nowhere near ready to actually have sex, especially in the car in some empty parking lot.

They both needed a release though, and desperately. Y/n shifted her hips, wiggling so she could move back and away from him. She kept kissing him, craning her neck to reach him as she started undoing his pants. The action was easy enough for her to do, but as she reached to pull his pants down easily, he tried to do the same to her. Their arms tangled as they pulled on jean and zippers, Y/n finally stopped fidgeting with his underwear to shimmy getting her own pants down enough for his hand to fit in. Luckily her sweater was almost as long as a dress and if anyone happened to catch them she wouldn't be left completely exposed.

They didn't break the kiss for a moment as they reached into each others pants, she gripped his cock near the top, stroking at different paces and basing what was best off of his reactions. As she finally found a good pace she was distracted by Remus’ travelling fingers, they slid between her slit, spreading his fingers apart. He rubbed circles aimlessly until he found her clit, she moaned sweetly in his mouth, their noses squishing together.

He inserted one finger and then two, deciding that was probably good based on the sounds she made, he brought his thumb back to her clit, rubbing circles and pushing fingers as she pumped him rhythmically.

They didn't take long, they actually took longer to figure out how to do what they were doing, once they got it figured out it was mere minutes until they were falling apart in each other hands.

Remus came, making quite the mess as Y/n finished shortly after leaving a mess on his hands as well. They kept kissing, pausing only when Y/n whispered a cleaning spell and then pressed her lips back to his before she even said the last syllable.

They repeated their actions from before, but in reverse this time, Y/n fixed her pants and then their arms struggled to simultaneously zip and button up their Jeans.

___________ Smut ends

They pulled apart, his lips red and hers swollen but in a good way, like the way lips look after a having a cherry popsicle. Sweat collected on their foreheads like it was the middle of summer instead of November. Y/n took her long sweater sleeve and wiped Remus’ face, he smiled up at her as he did the same. She leaned back a bit, relaxing against the steering wheel that she didn't realize was so close to her.

Remus placed a hand on her chest, right where her ribs were and pushed her back making the horn honk, they both giggled, like little kids lost for words.

Y/n couldn't help but admire the way the sun shone on Remus’ pale skin, making him look like golden glass. 

It was the golden hour which was the most beautiful time of day, the sunset was coming shortly. Remus pulled Y/n’s arm pulling her down to fall beside him, she tucked herself in under his arm and they sat like that, they sat like that until the sunset started. The sky went from golden yellow to orangey-pink clouds floating in a sea of cherry red sky.

Y/n sat for a moment, wishing she could remember this, take a picture to keep forever, that was when she remembered she had actually brought her Polaroid camera with her. She meant to document the whole trip but she forgot until just now.

She leaned over into the back seat and came back over with an excited smile and her hands wrapped gently around the camera as she turned it on, the lens twisting open.

“I forgot I had this,” she commented as she moved towards the car window, she could have gotten out of the car but she wanted it to look exactly like the way she was seeing it. 

The picture showed the sunset in muted colours, the rearview mirror was in the top of the photo and the dirt on the window was evident, it was perfect.

She took the photo that came out and placed it on the dash of the car, she turned to Remus, he smiled goofily with his mouth too wide and his eyes squinted, it was still perfect. 

She went to sit back down but then Remus took the camera from her, she was sat cross-legged, one hand fiddling with the laces of her Doc Martens and the other completely hidden in her large sweater, her smile was bright but it was like she was trying not to make it too big but she couldn't help it, it was perfect anyway.

-

Part 7

[brattywriters-anonymous]

This Way..

 Part V (and the Valentine’s Day special) of the “I’m Never Wrong” Series.

Erik x (Black!)Reader

Fic Playlist: Back in One Piece x DMX feat. Aaliyah, This Way x Khalid feat. H.E.R, Gonna Love Me x Teyana Taylor, You Got Me x The Roots feat. Erykah Badu

Warnings: ANGST, Violence, Erik done fucked up!

It had been over six months since your night off, and quite a bit has changed. You recently chose to work as the remote part time senior partner to spend more time with Leanna and JuJu, as you promised N’jadaka on your honeymoon. The two of you made a pact to be more involved in the family you were building. He vowed to transition from Wakandan Wardog to the Director of the Oakland Wakandan Outreach Center. In reality, N’jadaka was only home for about four months out of the year. One month for every season. When he left a month after your romantic night, he promised that it was his last mission and he’d only be gone for a month. One month turned into six. It was reminding you of the first year of your relationship when he returned from Wakanda. Except for now, you have paperwork and two children between you. Which fueled your anger on a different level.

Each day that passed after that promised month, Y/N’s resentment grew. It had been radio silence for five months, JuJu had learned to roll over, crawl, and even started standing on his own. N’jadaka missed all of those precious milestones. He and Y/N couldn’t even celebrate his birthday together the week prior to this one. This particular day, you cup runneth over. Leanna is on her worst behavior, talking back and being sassy. N’Juma was screaming all day at the top of his lungs due to his top two teeth coming in. You couldn’t even finish reviewing your junior partner’s briefings due to your children running amok in your house. You have had it. While Lee Lee was throwing all of her toys out of her bin, and JuJu was having a temper tantrum, you walked out on your porch.

You let out a scream and broke down. You were out of steam, out of options. Your ears pick up the sound of tires rolling up to your house. Since your home is the only one in the col du sac, whoever it is is either turning around or they’re parking. When you hear the engine die you lift your head to find a blacked out Suburban. Nakia emerges from the passenger seat, Ayo from the drivers side. You hold your breath, thinking the worst when you don’t see N’jadaka. You see the rear passenger door crack open, you let out a short sigh; still panicking because you can’t see who’s behind the tented windows. Those muddy steel toe boots hit the pavement your breathing find it’s normal pattern, then your eyes  turn more red than they already are from your tears.

Erik gets out of the car, all smiles. That’s until he sees your bloodshot eyes and mean mug. His smiles disappear into a look of concern. You charge straight for him with your fists balled. You huff as you swing and your fist connect with his cheekbone. He reaches for your arm but your anger adds to your speed. Your other fist bangs against his nose. His head twists to the opposite side of your abuse as blood flies across your front yard. He gains control of your arms, ignoring his injuries. “Y/N, Y/N! Dammit! Calm down, woman!” You grunt at his demand, trying to free yourself from his hold. He grips your wrists tighter, “Our kids in there alone!? Ayo, Nakia, can y’all check on them please?”

The pair stand among you two in shock. Nakia taps Ayo’s side and they fall into the house. “I’ve been taking care of them day in and day out for over six months so excuse me for needing to take a fucking breather, N’Jadaka! Why didn’t you call? Why haven’t I heard from you!? I was starting to think you--” “You was starting to think I was dead?” “I was starting to think yo ass left! You’re so fucking selfish! I can’t even believe you right now. Hopping out of the car like you were gonna be met with kisses and hugs. Nigga fuck you!” You shove him with your shoulder, he surrenders and lets you go. You push the front door open, it slams against the wall; attention from your children, Ayo, and Nakia turns to you.

You make a beeline to your bedroom and you start stuffing clothes, toiletries, and shoes into your oversized backpack you fill it to the brim and grab your car key. You brush past your estranged husband to close your laptop and put that in its respective bag. “Where do you think you going?” “Away from you.” And with that, you turn you back and trail to your car. You hear N’jadaka’s heavy footsteps follow you, “Babe, can we talk about this? I’m so--” “Yeah I know, You’re sorry. You’re sorry as fuck. You let half a fucking year go by! You haven’t seen or heard from me. Let alone your daughter and son. You missed Leanna’s birthday! You’ve missed so fucking much with not even so much as a bullshit filled excuse as to why!” As he intends on interrupting you, you slap him clean across his cheek. “You had six months to talk and you didn’t. I’m about to say my peace before I peel out. I’ve highhandedly taken Leanna to and from school, battled her chicken pox and three colds she’s gotten, and put her in ballet in the six and a half months of your absence. I’ve watched N’Juma flourish. He went from babbling and slobbering to teething, crawling, and standing. The boy is damn near walking and you were nowhere to be found! You left me here with little to no help and support. I needed you! You neglected your responsibilities and didn’t make good on your promise which left me to pick up your slack!”

N’jadaka swipes his thumbs across your cheeks to wipe your tears but you push him away, “You ain’t shit for this ‘Ja. You really not. I’m out. I’ll be back whenever. Like you.” You push start your car and peel off with your tires screeching.

--

Erik’s POV

Lee Lee and JuJu were both screaming and crying at Y/N’s dramatic exit. I knew I had some explaining to do when I got home but, shit! I didn’t know I was gon come back to a couple of blows to my face(PAUSE). Now I’m in the middle of my living room, with two crying kids on my hip with my sore ass face.

I finally get my kids asleep and I start my search for my wife. I call up Shuri, “Hey cuzzo, are Y/N’s Kimoyo beads activated?” Shuri types some figures into her database before answering, “Yes. She’s traveling pretty fast. She may be on a flight.” “A flight!? Where?” Shuri gets to typing again, “Let’s cross check the San Fran International flights.. track the flight plans with her location.. Cousin?” “Yeah?” She pauses before continuing, “She’s coming here.” “Here, meaning, Wakanda?” “Yes.”

T’challa has allowed flights to come into our home country, exclusively for natives and their families. So Y/N actually going is a pleasant surprise. “Alright, bet. Tell ‘Cha I need the jet.” “N’Jadaka, maybe you should give her some time, eh?” “Shuri, maybe you shoooould mind your business, eh? Look I’ve gone six months without my wife. I need her to come home. Plus, it’s not gon be just me coming. The kiddos are tagging along too.” Shuri smiles at the suggestion, “Great! Mother has been dying to meet them!”

--

Y/N’s POV

“Good Morning ladies and gentlemen! We are now landing. Welcome to Wakanda!” The flight attendant graciously announces my arrival to N’jadaka’s home country. I haven’t been back here since the wedding. Since Leanna was too young to travel, she’s never been here and of course JuJu hasn’t either. I miss my babies, don’t get me wrong. But being with those two, caring for them day in and day out for that long, alone, took it’s toll on me. Mentally and physically. I need this vacation. This is the best place I thought about going in the midst of my rage. The clear port is next to the Golden city. I find my way to the center of the city to Shuri’s lab where it seems like she’s waiting.

“About time, Y/N!” She hugs me tight, “How are you?” “Uh, Shuri, how did you know I was coming?” She gives me a childish chuckle, “My cousin asked me to track you down. I knew you were coming about an hour after you took off.” I roll my eyes, “So he’s coming?” Her eyes wonder off as she turns back into her lab, “I do not know Y/N! But uhm, come on in. I wanna show you what I’ve been working on. And I’ll take those while I’m at it..” She rolls my Kimoyo beads off of my wrist, “Why? They work just fine.” “Ugh! You sound like T’challa! Just as I tell him. Just because something is working, doesn’t mean it can’t be improved.” Some contraption standing before us piques my interest, she begins explaining what it is. “This is what I’ve been working on. It’s a collection of vibranium bots. I got the Idea from that Disney movie, Big Hero 6. Leanna showed it to me! They’re about 300,000 microbots that can help improve the construction and infrastructure in major cities all over the world.” The microbots built a replica of T’Challa’s panther suit,  a car, and finished off with a replica of the outside of Shuri’s lab. “Wow Ri, this is awesome!”

Shuri turns off the remote which controlled the bots in the form of a glove. “Thank you Y/N. It’s only in prototype stage right now. But.. once it’s ready for mass production, I’ll introduce it after opening the latest Outreach center in Brooklyn, New York City!” I’m truly impressed. Shuri is a kid genius. I surely hope Leanna takes after her since they are quite fond of one another.

“Cool! I’m sure you’ll be in the Forbes magazine, once again, on that invention alone. Anywho, how’s Queen Mother?” “Queen Mother is doing quite well, Y/N.” T’challa and Shuri’s mother appears from the front entrance. “Queen Mother.” I bow, she takes my hand to pull me upright, “Y/N, we are family. There’s no need to bow.” Ramonda gives me the warmest hug. I truly feel at home here. The people are beautiful, it’s like the colors are more vibrant. The sun rises and sets in a brighter tone. Maybe I should’ve made it here a long time ago.

I pursue Ramonda to the throne room as she asks, “Now child, what brings you to Wakanda? I know that American holiday for lovers is tomorrow. Where’s my nephew?” I’m trying to think of how to tell her what happened in a respectful manner. Even though we are technically family, I still want to reply in a courteous manner. “Well.. Er-- I mean, N’jadaka.. He said he was only gonna be gone for a month. A month was more like half a year. Plus, to be honest, I haven’t even thought about Valentine’s day.” Ramonda’s face furrows into one of amusement. “Maybe you should think about that Y/N, it may remind you and him why you fell in love to begin with. I am not sure why he would tell you when he would return. War dog missions have no set duration.” I stare out to the panoramic view of the Golden City, “He wasn’t supposed to be doing this forever either.” Ramonda hums in agreement, “Mhm. He’s spoken to T’challa about that mission being his last. He will be accepting the director position for Director of your home town’s Outreach center, yes?” 

“I mean, yeah. I guess. He never told me any of that.” I let out a sigh “You never gave me the chance to explain, love.” Swinging around toward the door, I find N’jadaka standing in his typical at ease stance, force of habit from bring in the Navy. My mouth twitches to form a smile, but my thoughts correct me. “What are you doing here ‘Ja?” He plasters a smirk and shrugs, “I came to get my wife. What is my wife doing here?” “She came here to relax, to reflect. We can do that.” N’jadaka turns his lip up and nods, “Okay Y/N. As far as I can tell, you do need that. You damn sure deserve it.” I cross my arms, deeply amused at his response, “Ha! Ha! Oh, We, huh? What part of me leaving you with the kids you didn’t understand? What part of anything I told you has you misconstrued that got you to come here?”

He mirrors my movement, crossing his arms, “I don’t have anything misconstrued, Y/N. I get everything you said to me. I apologize for making you feel neglected, baby. I just didn’t wanna start anything by telling you it was gonna take a lot longer than I thought before I completed the mission. Next thing I knew, we had to go under the radar, and I couldn’t tell you.” “N’jadaka Erik Stevens-Udaku. How dare you! You left me to think whatever!” He grips me by my waist and pulls me to him, looking at me face to face, “I’m sorry for that. I’m sorry for it all. I think you should be here right now. You need some R&R, I get that. So, we’ll be spending Valentine’s Day here this year.”

“Ugh. Here you go with this we shit again!” Ramonda clears her throat, “I apologize..” ‘Ja whispers in my ear, “I don’t just mean me in the we..” I hear tiny footsteps close in, “Mommy! This place is so prettyyyy!” Leanna exclaims this to me while reaching her tiny arms as far as they can stretch to hug my legs. I bend down to meet the love that is my first born, “It is isn’t it?” She enthusiastically nods, “Yes! Baba said this is where he’s from, why don’t we live here?” He intercepts, “Le, we don’t live her because daddy and mommy have responsibilities to home.” I pick her up and nod, “Yeah, we both have jobs to do, lovebug. We’re always welcome to visit though.” Leanna jolts for joy and chants, “I wanna hang out with cousin RiRi! Where she at?!” Ramonda chimes in, “I’ll take you to her, she’s in her lab! Give mommy and daddy some time alone, eh?”

--

Erik leads me to the west wing of the palace where the Dora placed my bags at the door, “This is your room Y/N. Leanna, N’Juma, and I are gonna be on the other side of the palace.” “Okay, so are we gonna be separate the entire time?” He shushes me, “Damn, woman! No. But You did say you needed time to yourself. I’m giving you that! Tomorrow is Valentines day, I got a few things lined up for us to do with the kids and I got something special for you.. Just let me, okay?”

I open the door to my suite, my back to him I rebut, “Let’s just see how the day goes with the kids. Then I’ll tell you if I’ll let you or not.”

With that, I roll my belongings in with me and shut the door. Retiring to the room for the remainder of the evening.

--

I spent the ladder part of the night prior completing the brief reviews I had left before my huge blowup. I fell asleep after I completed my last one. It’s eerily quiet on this side of the palace. Yet, I am grateful for it. I woke up around seven AM with the strangest crook in my neck. I wince in agony, holding my neck where the source of pain resides. Shit! I must have slept wrong. I guess I can try to ease the pain with a hot bath. I plug my phone up to my beats pill and turn on my r&b playlist. Apple sure knows how to channel my mood because This Way by Khalid and H.E.R. begins playing, channeling all of yesterday’s energy into my morning.

You say I'm trippin', bullshit You're the one to make me do shit You're the one to make me feel it The feeling of stupid I was in your corner When you were putting me through shit Now you wanna leave No, you leaving me was foolish

I sink lower the more my comfy bath as the song continues, my mind flashes back to N’jadaka’s abrubt return back home..

“You’re sorry as fuck. You let half a fucking year go by! You haven’t seen or heard from me. Let alone your daughter and son. You missed Leanna’s birthday! You’ve missed so fucking much with not even so much as a bullshit filled excuse as to why!”

Yeah, all of these excuses Say I'm the one that made you ruthless Well you're the reason I'm crazy And with you, I feel useless I let you have it You took me for granted Always wanna play the victim When they don't know the truth is...

You left me this scar on my heart When I'd never take it that far (oh) Why would you say that it was true love If true love is absolute, what more can I say?

My Kimoyo beads go off on my left wrist, I answer it. N’jadaka is on the other end, “Good morning baby.” “Good morning ‘Ja, how are you?” “He releases a heavy sigh, “Our kids are a handful, ma. N’Juma is still on west coast time so he’s sleep now. But he was up until the past hour. Leanna is a total diva. She doesn’t wanna get up, at all!” Poor Erik. He looks so defeated. He only got a night compared to my one hundred eighty-some odd nights of that. “Bribe her with breakfast ‘Ja. JuJu can only be sleep for the next hour or else you’ll have a repeat of last night so you may wanna get her breakfast like, ten minutes ago.” Something flies by his face when he shakes Leanna to wake her up, “Lil girl did you--Get up Leanna! It’s time for breakfast!”

“What’s the plan for today Stevens?” He goes away from the camera view, you hear him tell your eldest child to brush her teeth and wash her face before he comes back, “We’re gonna take the kids to meet W’kabi, Okoye, and the boarder tribe so they can see the rhinos, then we’ll make the trip up to Jabari land so they can play in the sn--” he looks in what I assumed to be where his bathroom was located to see if Leanna was being nosey. I guess the answer was yes because he spells out the next word, “S-N-O-W.”

They’ve never been in the snow with us living in California and all, so it’s really thoughtful that he wants the kids to have that experience in Wakanda. I just hope he takes my advice or we’ll be in for a long and trying day. “Sounds good ba..” The words of adornment almost slips through my teeth, his eyebrows hit the top of his forehead waiting for the rest of the word to drop, “--Sounds good N’jadaka. The kids should enjoy it. I’ll be out for breakfast in a bit.”

--

I stumble through the corridors in my robe and slippers, searching for the dining room. I feel like I’m walking in circles at this point. I hadn’t bumped into anyone and I haven’t seen anything resembling a kitchen or a dining room. I finally found some stairs so I descend to what looks like a foyer next to two huge ass doors, then I hear my daughter yelling, “Where’s mommy? You said she was gonna be down here!” I follow the bossy little voice to the dining room, “I’m sorry LeeLee. Mommy got lost in here it’s so big!” Ramonda and Shuri laugh, “Sorry cousin, I told N’jadaka I should’ve retrieved you.” Speak of the Devil, he comes into the area with a large plate of pancakes in one hand, and a pitcher of OJ in the other, “And I told you she would find her way. How you doing baby?”

I cradle my neck again, “I’m good, except for my neck. I think I slept wrong last night.” N’jadaka huffs, “You slept sitting up, working?” My eyes squint as I purse my lips, “Yes--” I mouth, ‘smartass’, then continue, “I did.” He leaves that where it is as Leanna goes on to talk about her lab time with Shuri, “We’re syncing her gloves to surge an--E--M--P?” She looks over at Shuri for agreement of her termenology, Shuri nods, “Yes, LeeLee. Which stands for?” Leanna looks up, deep in her thoughts, then she snaps, “Eeee--Electromagnetic Pulse.” My four year old is truly on her way to becoming a genius. I’m so proud, “Look at my little scientist!” Leanna glows at the praise, “Baba says I can help with cousin RiRi’s project at home at the center, right?” N’jadaka pops a strawberry in his mouth and nods at his baby girl’s query, “Absolutely. I just got the news, T’challa will offically name me as the director of the Oakland Wakandan Outreach Center before we leave. I start work the week after next.”

Ramonda embraces her nephew and congratulates him. Their relationship had come a long way since he left Wakanda seven years ago. They resented one another. She disliked him because of his quarrel with T’challa, he disliked the entire side of the family that neglected him after his Uncle killed his father, and she wasn’t excluded. Now, he’s closer with her than he is with T’challa or Shuri. She’s like a surrogate mother to him that he needs in his life to keep him balanced. He’s become a better man since reconciling his differences with her. “Congratulations N’jadaka. I’m happy for you.” He turns his attention to me, “I’m happy for us. This is what we’ve wanted since we’ve gotten married. It’s taken me longer than expected..but now I’m able to be closer to our family.” I look down, poking my fork at my piece of watermelon, “Yeah, you are.”

--

Part Two is dropping later tonight. Stay tuned!!!

[dee-vine]

Shutter Speed Ch. 17

Well. Here it is. The final chapter has arrived. Just in time for the midseason premier

I just want to say how thankful I am for all of you for sticking with me on this crazy, slow journey. You have all made my first fic writing experience a great one, so thank you so much. I couldn't have done it without you all!

I am going to miss writing this, but never fear, for I am not done writing! Keep an eye out for my future works (two in progress).

And, just because this story is done, does not mean I am gone. I am always on here so feel free to come chat. I am always open to new friends!

Love you, and thank you, xx Dana

Ch 16 | AO3

Betty never went to her mother’s hotel like she offered. She texted her, saying she had to pick up a shift at work, and that was it. Alice called maybe a week later, just to check in on Betty, and it was a surprisingly civil conversation. Just a simple talk of how Polly and her dad were doing, some news about her hometown, and that’s really it. Nothing about her modeling, or Jughead, or the “vile” city she calls home.

After that phone call, her life went back to normal. She picked up more shifts at work, shopped with Veronica, played video games with Archie, and had two photoshoots with Jughead. One of them, her favorite one, would definitely not get the approval of her mother. They explored the city, finding rustic rooftops and vintage hotel rooms to shoot in, with Betty wearing low-cut, exposing tops and chokers-- all very provocative.

Out of all the photoshoots, that was probably the most fun one. He had her climbing rooftops, in a safe manner, and the outfits that Veronica had chosen for her were absolutely incredible. They had the best time, spending the whole day wandering around, until it was too dark to take pictures.

His article still had not come out, and Betty could not stop impatiently asking him every time she saw him when it would come out.

“Soon,” is all he’d say, changing the topic of conversation right after. After a while she stopped asking so much, and nearly forgot about it until now.

It’s been a month since her mother’s surprise visit, and Betty is working at the coffee shop again, just a normal Friday afternoon. They are just getting through their second rush of the day when she sees Jughead walk in and stand in line. She gives him a small wave as the current customer looks over their bakery items, smiling when he pretends to tip his hat at her.

“Oh, our dearest Romeo hath arrived,” her coworker Kevin says in her ear as the customer finishes paying. Betty wishes them a good day before she smacks his forearm, turning to him.

“Stop it Kev, he’ll hear you,” she reprimands.

“Who will hear what?” Jughead asks, stepping up to the counter. Betty’s face heats up as she turns back to him, pasting a smile on her face as she takes in his appearance. His iconic crown beanie is sitting nicely on his head, and he has his messenger bag slung across his body, probably having come from work himself.

“No one and nothing. Are you having your usual?” Betty asks, already punching it into the system.

“I come here too often I think,” Jughead smiles sheepishly. Betty laughs and shakes her head, accepting his cash.

“It’s always nice when a man knows what he wants,” Kevin says from behind her, throwing a smirk over his shoulder. Jughead laughs quietly, while Betty rolls her eyes.

“I apologize for him, he can’t hold his tongue,” Betty says, turning to Kevin to glare at him with her words. Kevin responds by blowing her a kiss and walking towards the back to the stockroom. Betty turns back to Jughead when he clears his throat, another small smile on his lips. “Sorry, I’ll bring your coffee over to you.”

Jughead goes to sit down at a table by the window, removing his bag from his shoulder and setting it on one chair. She watches for a moment as he sits down, removing his hat and setting it down on the table. She snaps out of it when he glances over at her, busying herself with pouring his coffee in a to-go cup, since he doesn’t expect him to stay long.

She walks over with the cup and places it down on the table, earning an award winning smile from Jughead in return.

“Thanks Betts,” he says, taking a sip and making a small humming noise. “Do you have a moment to sit?”

Betty glances around the shop, having now emptied after the lunch rush. There is no one in line and Kevin is back behind the counter, giving her a knowing look. “I think I can spare a minute or two,” she decides, sitting down across from him.

“Not that busy today, then?” he asks, leaning forward on his forearms.

“A little bit. We just had a rush, but it will probably be slow for the rest of the day,” Betty tells him, leaning back in her seat. “Did you work this morning?”

“Yeah, had some editing to do. Also, that reminds me, I have something for you.” He opens his bag, digging through it before pulling something out and closing the bag. “The magazine is out in stores today, but I got you a special copy from worked. Signed by some big shot photographer they’re featuring.”

He slides a magazine across the table towards her, and Betty is met with the model on the cover. She smiles up at him and starts to open it, but is interrupted by Jughead’s hand atop the magazine.

“Don’t- not now. Read it after work when you have time,” he tells her, retracting his hand. Betty looks up into his eyes and sees a flash of worry in them, making Betty nod slightly.

“Yeah, of course. After work,” she agrees. He hesitates before nodding, leaning back in his chair with his hand firmly around his coffee cup. His leg is bouncing and he looks incredibly nervous, not keep eye contact for long, but Betty doesn’t comment on it. She simply watches as his fingers toy with his discarded hat, telling him about a customer that came in. She watches as he puts the hat on wordlessly, and only pauses her words for a brief moment before continuing.

Eventually, Betty has to get back to work. She bids him farewell, moving a piece of hair out of his eyes, and then goes back behind the counter. She can’t help but glance at him every once in a while as she makes orders.

“You’re staring,” Kevin suddenly says, nudging her in the back and making her jump. She spins around to face him, frowning at the wild grin he’s wearing.

“I wasn’t,” she argues, making Kevin laugh.

“Oh, you were. And now he’s leaving, so you can’t anymore,” Kevin tells her, pointing in Jughead’s direction. When she turns towards him, he’s walking towards the door with his head ducked down, bag slung over his shoulder. He looks up just as he is about to open the door to the shop, looking in Betty’s direction. Their eyes meet, and his lips quirk up in a small smile. He lifts his hand up and waves, Betty waving back as he walks out the door. She lets her hand fall back to the counter, frowning. She can’t help but feel weird at how he was acting-- all nervous and jittery. She wanted to ask, but knew it wasn’t the right time. ‘Maybe later,’ she thinks, already planning out her text in her head.

“Oh, is this loverboy’s feature?” she hears, breaking her thoughts. She turns to find Kevin holding the magazine open in his hands, paging through it. She reaches over and snatches it out of his hands, closing the magazine and setting it on the counter where she had it.

“I’m reading it later,” Betty says. Kevin raises his eyebrows and shrugs, walking over to the counter to stand next to her. “He asked me to.”

“What, is he gonna profess his love for you in it?” Kevin jokes, picking up the magazine again to examine the front cover. Betty can’t help the blush the creeps up her neck, quickly looking away so he doesn’t notice. She doesn’t know why Jughead asked her to wait to read it, but she’s going to be a good friend and follow his orders. She just had to suppress the urge to open it until after her shift.

The rest of the day went by slowly. Not many other customers came in, so Betty and Kevin passed the time doing the daily crossword puzzle and playing a random trivia game he had on his phone. It passed time, and by five o'clock they were ready to shut down.

“Any fun plans tonight?” Kevin asks as he wipes down the tables. Betty looks up from where she’s cleaning the machine, thinking about it for a moment before shaking her head.

“My roommate will probably think of something for us to do. She’s spontaneous like that,” Betty shrugs.

“Well, I for one will be watching reruns of House Hunters and treating myself to a pint of ice cream. So I hope you have more fun than me,” Kevin says, throwing the rag over his shoulder and walking behind the counter. Betty laughs and does one last wipe down before tossing her rag at him.

“I’ll try my best,” she says. “Is everything cleaned up?”

Kevin nods, dropping the rags into the dirty bin, untying his apron and folding it up. Betty does the same, stuffing it in her bag along with the magazine. “Do you wanna lock up or should I?”

“You go ahead,” Kevin tells her. Betty smiles gratefully and slings the bag onto her shoulder, walking out from behind the counter.

“Bye Kev, have a nice weekend, I’ll see you next week!” she says as she walks towards the door with a wave. Kevin waves back, before calling out quickly.

“Let me know how the article is!”

By the time Betty gets home, she’s already exhausted. Working all day is never fun for anyone, but at least she has the entire weekend to recuperate.

Veronica is home when she walks in, sitting on the couch. She happily greets Betty, putting down her book to take her in.

“I love when you come home from work, because you always smell like coffee,” she comments, standing up to give her a hug. Betty laughs when she hears her inhale deeply, pulling out of her embrace to drop her purse onto the sofa.

“I’m there all the time, I’ve surely got coffee seeping into my skin,” Betty answers. When she first started working there, she hated how she always smelled like coffee afterwards. But now Betty has actually started to enjoy it, except today when all she wants to do is shower.

“I think I’m gonna shower, I am so tired,” Betty voices to her roommate. Veronica nods and sits back down, picking up her book again.

“Let’s do something tonight, go out or something,” Veronica says, opening the book up to her bookmark.

“Sounds great,” she nods. “Also, Jughead dropped off his magazine with his feature in it. It’s in my bag if you want to read it.”

Veronica only nods to show she heard her, so Betty walks over to her bathroom, closing the door shut behind her. Her speaker is already in there, so she turns it on and connects her phone, deciding to go all out with this shower. She makes the water somewhere between warm and hot, turns on her relaxing playlist, and gets in.

A hot shower is one of the best things after a long day of work. The heat relieving her tense shoulders, the music and aroma relaxing her even more. It’s a time where there are no stressors or interruptions, and she can be at complete ease-- until Veronica bursts her door open with her shrieking.

Frantic, Betty sticks her head out to see Veronica shaking the magazine wildly. “What? What’s happening?”

“Jughead fucking Jones is happening! Have you read this?” Veronica asks, shaking the magazine in her direction.

“No, he told me to wait until after work. Did he say something bad?” Betty asks, confused.

“Quite the opposite actually! Just listen to this-- sorry, I interrupted your shower. Please keep washing, I’ll just read to you,” Veronica tells her, waving her hand and paging back in the magazine. Betty obeys, closing the curtain and washes out the remaining soap from her hair.

“Okay, so in the beginning it’s just asking about how he started getting into photography and where he got his skill from, blah blah blah. And then the interviewer asks who you are, of course, and he goes ‘her name would be Betty. I met her through a Craigslist ad, and I enjoyed her company so much I stuck with her. Not to mention she’s incredibly photogenic and beautiful and I couldn’t really see myself choosing someone else.’ And then the interviewer agrees, of course, but my god, that’s not even the best part,

“The interviewer comments how provocative the photos are, and asks how that was during the shoots. And Jughead is said to ‘smirk to himself’ before answering, ‘I’d like to consider myself a gentleman. And like I said, Betty is very beautiful. I’m lucky to be able to photograph her.’ Jughead Jones is saying this Betty! Your Jughead!”

By now, Betty has finished washing up and is just standing under the stream of water. She snaps out of it and turns the water off, reaching out to grab her fuzzy robe, putting it on before stepping out of the shower. She walks straight towards Veronica, who is holding the magazine out to her, taking it from her hands to read it herself.

“INT: So, you mention you would like to further your career as a photographer, but as you know it is a tough field to succeed in. What gives that drive, makes you believe that you can do what you want to do?

JJ: (after a moment of contemplation) I never had it easy during my life. I’ve already had to work harder than some to even get into school, so I’m used to not having success. But I met someone recently that has inspired me in more ways than one. They have become my rock, the person that I trust more than anything, which is not easy for me. I’ve seen them go through very difficult things, but always with a smile on their face. Yeah, it’s a competitive world, but as long as I have someone by my side telling me that I can do it, then I know that I can. They have inspired me to follow my dreams, because they never give up on anything they try to do.

INT: You speak very highly of this person, so they must be pretty important.

JJ: Well, I like them very much, and yeah, they are very important to me. It’s important to have that one person that you can go to. It’s what keeps people going, what keeps me going…”

Betty stops reading after that, nearly dropping the magazine. She has tears clouding in her eyes as she looks up at Veronica, who’s smiling softly at her.

“How is he so eloquent?” Betty mumbles, wiping at her eyes. She’s slightly confused about the article, not really sure what to make of it. Veronica, however, looks like she knows something that Betty doesn’t.

“I think we’ll cancel whatever plans we may have had tonight. You go see your boy,” Veronica smiles. With a second thought, glancing down at her, she adds, “After you change, of course.”

Betty just nods, closing the magazine and walking out of the bedroom. Jughead’s words keep playing over and over in her head, paired with visions of his nervousness earlier this morning. She feels like she should know something, but all she can think about is how open he was in the article. She knows Jughead to be a very closed off person, so reading him admitting all these things is a shock.

She gets dressed quickly, leaving her hair down to dry, before she’s walking into the living room to grab her bag. There is a new sense of determination as she stuffs the magazine in there and slings it over her shoulder. Veronica watches her the entire time, and amused expression on her face when Betty finally stops to look at her.

“Want me to come with?” she asks, dropping her book in her lap. Betty simply shakes her head, but smiles slightly. “Okay. Well good luck, I guess. Tell him I say hi and all.”

And with that, she’s out the door. She’s decided that it’s finally time to tell Jughead Jones how she really feels, because it has gone on for long enough. Now is the time.

While Jughead sat at the coffee shop with Betty, he was overcome with a sudden nervousness. She was going to read his interview later, and she was going to see him bare his feelings to the world. And he was terrified.

He played out the scenario in his mind-- how he’d tell her. He prepared an entire speech, but as he walked home from the coffee shop he forgot everything. And then the fear came back.

He has been wanting to tell Betty for nearly two months, but his fear always got the best of him. Fear of rejection, fear of scaring her away, and now fear of losing his chance. What if he waited too long and now he just looks like a fool?

He knows they have this weird, unspoken thing going on between them, but that could very well be the result of being a young adult. For her, at least. For Jughead, it’s real.

So real, that when he comes home he shuts himself away in his bedroom listening to sappy love songs and trying his hardest not to text her or call her. He knows she works all day so wouldn’t even be able to have a conversation, but if he keeps these feelings in any longer he’ll combust.

He spends hours laying on his bed, drowning out any outer noise with his music. He doesn’t hear when Archie comes home and slams some doors. He doesn’t hear when, shortly after that, a knock on the front door sounds. He doesn’t hear Archie open the door and greet whoever it is, or when he says ‘he’s sulking in his room’. He doesn’t hear anything until his bedroom door is swinging open, a wet-haired and wide eyed Betty standing in the doorway.

Scrambling to sit up, Jughead switches off the music and turns to fully look at her. “Betty, you’re here.”

It’s not a question, and Betty just nods, walking into the room. His eyes drift down to her hands, seeing her carrying the exact magazine he gave her this morning. He freezes, looking back up at her face as his shoulders sulk, the fear washing over him again.

“I have questions,” she says, sounding a little breathless. Her face is also flushed, looking like she may have ran here from her apartment. Licking his lips, he nods and pulls the hat further down on his head. “The hat. You wear the hat when you need comfort.”

Again, it’s not a question, but Jughead feels like he’s in an interrogation room all of the sudden. He averts his eyes to the bed, not able to look into hers as he nods slowly.

“You don’t- you can take it off. I want you to take it off,” Betty whispers, and her voice sounds slightly choked up. Jughead hesitates before slowly reaching up to slide the hat off of his head, placing it on the bedside table. Betty lets out a breath of air and walks over to the bed, sitting down on the edge and facing him.

“You said you have questions,” Jughead repeats, looking back up at her. Her eyes search his face for a moment before she nods, placing the magazine on the bed.

“The person you talked about, the one that inspires you... is that-” Betty cuts herself off, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. He can sense that she’s having trouble getting the words out, so he places his hand on the magazine next to hers, staring at them both.

“It’s you, Betty. I was talking about you,” he tells her. Out of the corner of his eye he sees her head snap up to look at him, but he can’t face her yet.

“Wh- how? How do I inspire you?” she asks, and that finally makes him look up.

“Are you kidding me? Do you know how strong you are?” he asks, and she shakes her head slowly. “Betty, I’ve only known you for a short time, but I’ve never met someone as strong as you. I have seen you battle your anxiety, I’ve seen you stand up to your mom. I’ve seen you grow stronger and more confident everyday that I’ve known you. That’s why you inspire me. Because if you can do all this, anyone can.”

She lets his words sink in, her eyes turning glassy when she meets his. “Juggie, I-”

“I need to tell you something. I’ve been wanting to for a long time and I just, I need to say it now and I need to ask you not to say anything until I’m finished. Is that okay?” Jughead looks at her, looks into her wide, teary eyes. She nods slowly, bringing a hand up to wipe at her eyes. Jughead takes a deep breath and stands up, feeling the need to pace as he talks.

“When I first saw your picture, Archie teased me because I stared at it for so long. I know I said I liked how you answered the questions, but truthfully- you’re beautiful. And I’ve said that, yeah, in the article and all but...you’re so beautiful, Betty. And sometimes I wonder if the gods are playing a trick on me by sending down a literal angel to remind me I’ll be forever alone.” He pauses, breathing out a laugh and shaking his head.

“And then I met you, and I knew I couldn’t lose you. So I tried my hardest not to, by asking you to keep modeling for me. And you said yes. I still wonder why, but you did and I’ve never been happier. And then Archie teased me even more,

“But the more he teased, the more it became reality. You are like- you’re like the moon. You have this gravitational pull, and I am the Earth just wanting to be pulled towards you, but I can’t. Because if the moon and the Earth get too close, there will be tsunamis and earthquakes and just- bad things will happen.” He chances looking up at her, pausing his pacing, but she’s staring down at her feet so he continues.

“So I pulled away. You stayed in your own orbit and I stayed in mine. Then, enter a space rover that makes its home on the moon. And the moon likes this rover a lot, and the Earth is jealous because the Earth wants to be on the moon but can’t because tsunamis. And- fuck, I’m not making any sense now am I.” He doesn’t mean it as a question, because he’s hearing his words in his mind and wants to slap himself for being an idiot.

“Forget the metaphor. What I’m trying to say is...you are my person, Betty. You are the person that I trust more than anything. You’re the person that I want to go to when I accomplish something big. You’re the person I want to bring me up when I’m down, the one I want to spend celebrations with. You’re the one, Betty. And I-” Jughead pauses, his breath catching in his throat when he looks at Betty. She’s looking up at him with tears streaming down her cheeks, but a smile on her lips. He looks into her bright eyes, finally finding the courage to say what he couldn’t before.

“I love you...Betty Cooper,” he finally says. It feels like a weight is lifted off of his shoulders when he says it, like it was dragging him down and now he can fly away.

And then Betty stands up. She still has a smile playing on her lips as she wipes a tear away, walking towards him. He can’t breathe, suddenly, as she stops in front of him, looking up at him with earnest eyes.

“Jughead Jones, I love you,” she says, her face impossibly bright with happiness. Jughead smiles, partially in relief and in happiness. He brings his hand up to caress her jaw, his thumb wiping off a few tears. He’s aware of how close they are, and how they’ve never been this close before. It means something in itself, because now Jughead is free to do what he’s only dreamed of before.

They lean in at the same time, Betty’s hands coming up to caress his face, and when their lips touch its soft. But then Jughead drops his hand to her neck, threading his fingers into her hair and pulling her closer, deepening the kiss. He lied before-- this makes him feel like he is flying away.

He eventually pulls away, a little breathless as he touches their foreheads together. Her tears have now dried, but the smile is still there, wider than ever.

“Will you go on a date with me?” he asks with a grin. Betty laughs slightly, hands dropping down to rest on his chest, her fingers playing with the fabric of his shirt.

“We’ve done this a bit backwards, but yes. I’d really love that,” Betty answers. Jughead’s smile softens, one hand dropping to her waist. He looks into her eyes while he gently strokes her jaw with his thumb.

“Moon of my life,” he whispers, and then he’s kissing her again, because he can’t get enough of it.

They don’t notice when Archie walks past the open doorway, stopping abruptly when he sees them. He watches for a moment, grinning to himself before walking away. He won’t run and tell Veronica, of course he won’t.

Except he totally will.

They tell Veronica and Archie a few weeks later, after classes start.

They are having a movie night at Betty’s, but Jughead arrives late due to a work thing. He walks right in, greeting Archie and Veronica as normal. He disposes of his book bag as Betty emerges from the kitchen holding a bowl of freshly popped popcorn. She smiles when she notices him, and Jughead walks towards her to greet her. He touches his hand to her hip, mumbling a ‘hey babe’ and pressing a quick kiss to her lips. He freezes once he realizes what he’s done, Betty’s eyes wide. He spins around, hoping that maybe Archie and Veronica were too enveloped with each other to notice. But alas, they are staring at him with wide grins, both looking like they’ll burst from happiness.

Jughead clears his throat and takes the bowl from Betty, walking over to the couch and sitting down. They’re still staring when Betty seats herself next to him, completely silent. It’s Jughead that finally breaks the silence, not even facing them.

“We’re dating now. Don’t say anything about it,” he says, like it’s the most casual thing. He should’ve known they wouldn’t listen, of course, because he and Betty are soon both wrapped up in Veronica’s arms, the girl squealing into their ears.

“I knew this day would come and it’s better than I ever imagined!” she squeals. Jughead looks at Betty with a pained look, but she just laughs and takes his hand and hers, mouthing that it will be okay.

And maybe, just maybe, they will be.

[inspiredstory]

Chapter 7

From birth, the new generation has been forced to follow the new regime. There were only two basic laws to follow; do not disobey the regime and, you are to live with & only love the person that matches your serial number. But for Jungkook & (Y/N) that was never an option.They never agreed with the new regime and now there’s a reason for both of them to fight back.

Read on AO3

Pairings: Jikook // (Y/N) x Surprise member 

Prologue / Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 / Chapter 6 / Chapter 7 / Chapter 8(coming soon)

**

                Seung Jo placed Jungkook in front of a black computer monitor and spoke, “You have 60 seconds to figure out how to get the computer monitor up and running.” “Wait what?” “GO!” Jungkook’s hand start sweating as he began looking around the computer monitor trying to see if there were any loose cords, “Seung-Jo, I-I don’t know anything about this.” “You’re wasting time.” “N-no I’m serious, I really-” “Time’s up.” Seung Jo hit Jungkook in the back of his head and reached over towards the computer monitor, plugging it into an outlet where it proceeded to turn on. “I never said the monitor was broken. When in war you must always observe your surroundings. Follow me.” He unplugged the monitor and walked towards the other end of them the room where a working computer sat, “This computer has a virus, you have 2 minutes before it reaches the core and erases all our files. Fix it.” Jimin breezed through his tasks very easily, he was asked to explain components on medical labels and what they did to the body; if they helped and if so how much help they gave. His final task was being put to practice. “We have two men coming back from a heist and one of them has a deep cut that YOU will treat.” “HUH?!” Suddenly a groaning man came limping in with his colleague helping him, “he got caught in one of those meat cutter things. I did as much as I could but he’s losing a lot of blood.” Jimin nodded, knowing that he had to keep calm. His cousin was studying nursing and while he didn’t get to visit him that much, the few times he did he would always learn something new. His cousin would always remind him how doctors and nurses had to always keep calm because if they didn’t then their patient might get worse. He forced his hands to steady themselves, “I need some type of cloth or rope, anything to cut off his circulation or he’ll keep bleeding to death.” Quickly Myung-Soo found a long piece of rope and handed it to Jimin where he proceeded to tie a makeshift tourniquet around the cut up area. “We’re gonna need some type of alcohol, gloves, and someone to do the stitching. Oh… and towels. And maybe some vodka.” “For numbing?” “Yeah sure, for that too.” Once the material was presented to Jimin he took a drink from the bottle of rum and handed some of it to the injured man, “Drink, you’ll need all the courage juice you can get.” The injured man nodded and took a big gulp of the beverage. Jimin dumped some of the contents of the bottle onto the man’s wounds and cleaned it up with pieces of ripped up cloth. A small young man stepped in to help with the stitching and 10-15 minutes later they were all done. Jimin stood up and walked to the far end of the room. He stood there for a while trying to understand what he had just done, shaking his head in disbelief. A soft hand on his shoulder made him jump. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I just wanted to tell you that you did great. Yun-Do really appreciates it.”

                “A nerf-gun, you’re serious?” “We don’t know how you handle a weapon and we can’t spare ammo for amateur shooters.” Taehyung took the other toy gun and stood at the far end of the room, “Try to shoot me.” (Y/N) held her gun in position, aiming directly at Taehyung’s head; before she could shoot she felt two small objects hit her shins. Looking down she saw two small nerf darts sticking onto her body. “What the hell?!” “In combat, you won’t have time to position yourself; you either shoot or get shot.” He made his way back to her to retrieve the small darts and headed back to his spot. (Y/N) grew frustrated and nodded. She waited for Taehyung to make a movement with his gun and as soon as he did, she sprinted towards the other side of the room, not having shot a single dart at him. She went behind a black trash bin where she would obviously be found but, she wasn’t hiding. She was waiting. Her ears picked up on empty clicks; he was out of ammo. Quickly she ran from her spot and shot three times. One of the darts missed but the other two landed on his body; one on his arm and the other on his chest. (Y/N) didn’t notice how heavily she was breathing but instead on her tactics. She smiled and went to grab her darts but she was stopped. “Not too bad-” Taehyung said as he walked up to her and dropped the darts at her feet, walking away to pick up his own. “-In battle it won’t be as easy. Let’s go.”

                The three continued in their respective training fields for about an hour or so before each member brought them back to Jackson. “Reports?” “Jungkook did awful. He’s not fit in the technological area. The only thing he managed to pick up on was being aware of his surroundings, aside from that he’s not useful in my area.” “Jimin did great; he knows how to identify medicine and their usage. He also patched up someone that came in from their heist.” “Someone got injured? How bad was it?” Jackson asked with concern coating his words. “Not too bad. Like I said Jimin patched him up and I checked on him later on to make sure he was good. He’s fine.” “And how about our female runaway? Taehyung, report?” “She did fine.” Jackson nodded, understanding his friend’s way of expressing himself. “Well now you’ll all switch. Jimin in tech, (Y/N) in medical and Jungkook in guns. Go.” They spent the next 3 hours training and switching amongst the three teams. The final part of training had arrived and they met up once again with Jackson, only this time they met up in the pit which to their surprise was empty. “Where is everyone?” “Don’t worry about them. You’ll know where they are once you get assigned. This is the final part of training and assessment. We need to know how strong you are and if you can handle hand-to-hand combat. The three of you will face three fighters. First someone of your size, second someone slightly bigger and thirdly, me.” Hoseok walked down the steps with a new face following behind him. They both stood next to Jackson as he said, “I’ll let you guys choose who goes first.” “I’ll do it.” (Y/N) responded without hesitation. Jungkook grabbed her arm, “wait, you can’t g-” “Let go.” She shook his grip off of her arm harshly and stepped towards the middle of the room where a poorly drawn circle was placed to separate the “fighting area” from the regular. She took a small hair tie from her wrist and put her hair up in a tight ponytail. The new face joined her in the “fighting area”, him having almost her same height and weight. He lunged towards her, his arms extending to grab her waist. She quickly stepped back and spun around maneuvering her way to his side of the circle where she proceeded to elbow him in his side. He quickly recovered from her blow and grabbed her hand, pulling her past his back and onto the ground. However she didn’t plan on giving up so quickly. As he went to punch her in the face she used her legs to catch his face in between them, she grabbed his arm and forced him into headlock with his face in between her thighs and his arm in her hands, stuck in a position where she could break it. Truthfully she didn’t know she was good at dodging moves, in her mind it was all pure luck and anger. “Alright you can let him go.” Jackson said. “Nice moves princess. I’m Hoon-Yi and by the way… I wouldn’t mind you teaching me how to do that headlock.” (Y/N) smiled and nodded, bumping fists with the still Hoon-Yi while stepping out of the ring. The three made it past the first round with ease, having slight struggle but managing to pin down opponents within the first 5 minutes. The second round was where things got harder. Jimin & Jungkook managed to win in 10 minutes but they were both left breathless, with bruises on their faces and bodies. (Y/N) struggled the most and also took the longest (13 minutes) to take down Hoseok. Everyone caught on to her tactics; she never fought, only dodged and disarmed but yet she managed to beat her opponent with little to no wounds on her body or face. The atmosphere between the three friends was tense as now it was evident that Jungkook & (Y/N) were not on the same page anymore. She had ignored his offer to help her and was refusing to look in his direction. He was hurt and confused but he had to keep training. Jackson stepped into the ring and just as Jungkook was about to join him, he held his hand up. “I’m choosing now. I want her to come in first.” (Y/N) looked up and nodded, brushing past the two boys as she stepped into the ring. “I want to tell you something before we begin. If you fight with anger, you’ll never win. It clouds judgement.” “Thanks Buda. I’ll keep it in mind.” The two began their fight and as expected she was doing a great job at dodging his moves, while fighting Jackson yelled out, “Stop dodging and take me down! Hit me!” (Y/N) ignored his words and continued to dodge his moves. She kept going until she felt a strong object come in contact with her face; her hand moved up to her face as her body collided with the harsh ground. “Get up and keep going. You like dodging so much? Let’s see how well you do it while you’re in pain. You can’t keep avoiding a hit. You’ll have to hit me eventually. Don’t wanna do it now? That’s fine; we’ll see how much pain you can endure before fighting back.” (Y/N) stood up, rage filling her body. She lunged herself at Jackson completely forgetting what he had told her initially; if you fight with anger, you’ll never win. He was beating her senselessly, throwing her onto the ground, kicking her and knocking the air out of her. It wasn’t until she spat out blood that he decided she had enough. “No.” “What?” “I said no, I’m not done. One more fight, just one.” “Sweetheart, you haven’t gotten in a single punch and you want to keep going? Learn your boundaries.” “Jackson, just one more fight. Then I’m done.” “Fine. One more.” This time (Y/N) pushed her anger aside and memorized the tactics Jackson had used, of course it was difficult since he changed it up quite frequently but she managed to figure out a pattern. Finding a free spot was hard, especially with him knocking the air out of her with his fist colliding on her stomach but she found it. Her fist quickly came into contact with his cheek and they both fell backwards. Jackson caught himself and managed to stay upright but (Y/N) yet again collided onto the floor. She laughed slightly and sat up weakly. Jackson smirked and nodded at her, letting her know that she had done a good job. “Jungkook, come on. You’re next.” The two men went at it for a while, both delivering good hits but managing to stay up. However, Jungkook was no match for Jackson; he had far more training, is body was far more muscular and, he was much wiser. Jimin lost sooner than Jungkook & (Y/N), he could definitely hold his own in a fight but after a certain amount of hits his body would give up on him. Jackson helped him up as he shared some words with him, “You need to get stronger. You’re good but you can become better. Learn how to handle hits, Jimin.” His head turned towards Jungkook with a smile appearing on his face, “You… you’re great. A couple of months in training and I’m sure we’ll be on the same level. We need to focus on your technique.” He proceeded to walk over to (Y/N) who was sitting on a crate with her hands holding her face, he place his hand on her shoulder and spoke up, “You’re also good… very persistent but, you’re driven by too much anger and fear. Sometimes you need to make the first blow.” he turned his attention towards the center of the room, “I’m sure you’re all tired so why don’t you guys all take a nap and I’ll get you in an hour or so. We can talk about where you’ll be assigned to once you’re all in a better state of mind.” Everyone nodded, Hoon-Yi followed behind Jackson as he headed back up the stairs. Jimin & Jungkook were drawn immediately back to each other, both inspecting their wounds and talking about how difficult things were becoming. They were about to leave when a sudden ‘T H U D!’ drew their attention. In an attempt to get up by herself, (Y/N) had fallen over… her body completely exhausted from all the battles. Jungkook gasped and went to help her but something stopped him. His eyes found (Y/N)’s weak hand reaching towards Hoseok instead of him, quietly asking him, “Please… will you carry me to my room? My legs burn.” Jungkook felt a sudden pang of guilt and hurt filling his body, why was his best friend asking for someone else to help her when he was clearly available to help? His gaze followed Hoseok carrying (Y/N) in his arms up the stairs and out of the pit. Jimin wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s torso from the back and asked him, “Why are you feeling guilty?” “I just feel like I should’ve helped her.” “Hm… maybe you should have, but remember we’re all making new friends down here. Maybe now you two don’t depend so much on each other-” Jimin felt Jungkook’s reach, anger. “-I’m sorry, I’m not saying it to upset you baby. I just think that now you two have a chance to make your own lives and not depend on each other so much.” “You know, I’m really tired. Let’s just go to sleep.” Jimin nodded, only being able to understand some of his boyfriend’s emotions.

                Two hours later, after the three friends (or, ex friends) were woken up by Jackson standing in their room with two familiar faces; Kim Taehyung and Myung-Soo. “Wakey wakey newbies, it’s time for you to get to work.” Jimin was the first to let out a groan followed by the other two roommates. “Good to see you’re all still alive. Right, well… after debating with the captains we came to a conclusion for each of you. Park Jimin, you will be a part of the Medical team. Myung-Soo will brief you on everything you need to know afterward.” She gave him a warm smile. “Jeon Jungkook, you will be in our army force. You’re great at combat and need a little training with weapons. Kim Taehyung will also brief you afterward.” “Army? Are we preparing for a war?” Jungkook asked with some fear and hesitation in his voice. “Not exactly but, we like to be prepared for worst case scenarios. Which leads me to you; the princess of the room, (Y/N). You will be joining a different team. You will join The Heist team. Now, just because you have all been given a specific team to work with does not mean that you won’t train in everything else. You will take turns in the kitchen preparing food for everyone here, you will help clean our hideout, you will keep watch for guards at night, the list goes on. Today you’ve all been pushed past your limits so let’s get you your first meal of the day.” Jungkook looked at his watch and realized that it was only 2 in the afternoon.  Everyone went down to the pit to get their food. Once they received their trays, Jungkook sat with Jimin who sat next to Jackson. Myung-Soo headed towards her group of friends and Taehyung sat on the cold hard ground by himself. (Y/N) looked at her former best friend and his boyfriend, wanting to sit with them but deciding against it in the end. “Where you going, princess?” “If I’m going to stay down here then I might as well make some new friends.” (Y/N) smiled weakly and walked towards an empty spot near a group of girls. “Hey, can I sit with you guys?” “Of course! You’re the new recruit right?” “Well duh! She’s obviously new, I love your hair; it’s so clean!” “Oh, way to freak her out Rosé. You don’t just randomly compliment clean hair!” “I’m trying to be nice!” (Y/N) laughed and sat with the girls. “Why don’t you guys start with telling me your names before we get into weird compliments?” “Told you it was weird, I’m Hani. I’m usually around the tech area since that’s my expertise.” “I’m Rosé as Hani mentioned before. I’m around the stock and rationing area.” “I’m Téa; usually around the weapons area.” “Nice to meet you all, I’m (Y/N). I’ve been assigned as a part of The Heist.” The girls let out playfully ominous Ouuuu’s. “That’s a pretty big deal; you’ll get to see the light of day! We don’t ever see sun or moonlight down here.” Rosé commented. “Don’t scare the poor girl. Heisting is very exhilarating but also dangerous. If you were placed there, you must be good. Sometimes I go when others can’t but… it’s not too often.” Added Hani. (Y/N) looked down at her tray and picked at her food. “No offense but… what is this?” she asked. “Ah, right. It’s your first day. Well, today we have-” Téa inspected her tray, “Hmm… looks like black beans and veggies.” “Does it always look so-” “Disgusting? Yeah but try it, it’s not as bad as it looks. I’m sure the team will take you out soon as we’re running out of food.” Back at Jackson’s table, the boys began talking amongst themselves, Jimin being the first to ask questions. “So Jackson, how long has this place been operating?” “Hmm, about 3- no,4 years… I’m not sure but around 3 or 4 years… but I didn’t come around until half a year later so I’ve been here for about 3 or 4 years and a half.” “So you didn’t start this?” Jungkook looked down at his feet remembering the heartbreaking story Eun-Ha told him. “No, my best friend did. His name was Namjoon.” “Where is he?” “I don’t talk about him. Just like Eun-Ha doesn’t talk about him. He’s a lost cause now.” Jungkook laughed dryly before speaking up, “He’s your best friend but you think he’s a lost cause?” “Listen kid, you haven’t been around as long as we have. You haven’t seen the things we’ve seen. You don’t know Namjoon and-” Jackson stopped himself and took in a deep breath to control himself, “-I miss him every day of my life but I’d rather not talk about it ok?” Jungkook nodded and apologized for being so rude. Jimin took his boyfriend’s hand to calm him down and continued asking, “How many people here are soulmates?” “Lots… there’s more soulmates than not soulmates. Hobi, Eun-Ha and Taehyung are the ones that you know of that aren’t soulmates.” Jungkook whispered, “And (Y/N).” ‘Hey, quit it’. “She’s not a soulmate? How cute.” ‘I didn’t say anything out of place, Jimin.’ ‘You’re trying to throw jabs at her while she’s not here. I’m not letting you do that babe.’ ‘Alright… sorry.’ Jackson stared at the two boys who were smiling down at their food, “Wow… never seen two people so interested in food.” Jackson chuckled. “Oh… no we were just-” “Thinking?” “Yeah... hey uhm, where’s your soulmate?” The boys noticed how Jackson tensed up, quickly finishing his meal. He excused himself from the two men and left the room without answering their question. A young looking man sat in Jackson’s place soon after he left, “What did you two idiots say to him? You asked about his soulmate didn’t you?” The two men were slightly shocked but nodded to confirm that man’s assumption. “Idiots-” he laughed slightly, “I’m Mark. Let me just help you out so you don’t make any mistakes like that again. You never bring up Jackson’s soulmate, EVER. He has never talked about who she or he is. No one knows why. You never bring up Namjoon to Eun-Ha, she goes into a full meltdown and it’s not pretty. You don’t interfere with any relationships… meaning that if you crush on someone which… I feel like I won’t have to worry about with you two but either way. If you crush on someone and they’re taken you have to leave it that way. For the sake of the hideout, we can’t afford petty issues. Oh! And, you don’t ever bother him-” his gaze lead them in the direction of Taehyung, still sitting on the ground with no one around him. “-he doesn’t like any of us but he’s done a hell of a job at protecting everyone.” “He doesn’t like anyone here?” Jimin asked. “It’s pretty complicated, even I don’t understand since everyone bases off of rumors. Apparently, he doesn’t trust newcomers because of an incident that happened a while ago.” “Oh...” the two boys responded in unison. “That’s pretty much it, you’ll have to get to know everyone to figure out what things they like and don’t like. Are either of you two in the stock team?” “No, I’m army.” “And I’m medical.” “Ah damn, I thought it’d be fun having you two around. Well if you need any tech help, I’m here.” “Likewise Mark.” Jimin responded with a bright smile on his face. “I should get going; I wanna take a nap. See you around guys.” Mark shook hands with the guys and left the pit.

                Later that night Eun-Ha paced back and forth in her small room, mumbling to herself over and over again, “This isn’t possible... This can’t be…. No way… I can’t believe this.” She’d gone over the calculations a thousand times and each time the result would be the same, an affirmation of what she didn’t want to believe. Hoseok walked into the room and smiled at his girlfriend. “Hey baby, what’re you doing in here? I thought you might’ve been with the crew?” “Not this time, I asked for a couple hours so I could speak with you. Can we talk?” Hoseok looked worriedly at his girlfriend, taking her small hands in his big ones, “is everything ok? Are you hurt?” “I… I don’t know. Just sit down and listen to me-” she paused and took a deep breath, “-throughout all of my family… the women have never been the type to skip a period. We’re religiously on time for that. I say we because I’m included in there. I’ve never skipped a period, ever. However this month… I did.” She stopped speaking for a brief moment, collecting her thoughts and gathering courage. “When the bags that Jungkook and the other two brought… a pregnancy test was hidden in there. They must’ve brought it in thinking it was some type of medicine but, that’s aside from the point. Anyway, I took advantage of that test and I used it.” Her hands reached underneath the pillow that she shared with her boyfriend and pulled a test out from it. She handed the test over to her boyfriend. “Wh-what does this mean?” He asked as he looked at the pink symbol on the test.

“I’m pregnant.”

[ficdirectory]

Blink (An AU Fosters family fic) Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

On New Year’s Eve, Pearl wakes up early again.  3:45 AM.  That means she’s managed (somehow) to sleep in a little.  She has to spend several minutes convincing herself that the dream she had last night of Gracie eating so much food that she grew to the size of a service dinosaur would not come true.

Not her usual dream, but not a great one.  Her heart’s still beating a little fast, but she cuddles Gracie, whispering, “I’m so glad you’re not a dinosaur,” and Gracie stays in place, lying on Pearl’s chest until Pearl feels calm enough to get up.

She does some self-care, journaling about the dinosaur dream:

12-31-14

4:01 AM

So I just had this weirdly scary dream that Gracie was the size of a brontosaurus and I could not walk her or feed her or anything because she was so massive.  Every time she tried to calm me down, she ended up crushing me, or knocking me over or taking my whole arm into her mouth because she was trying to pull me somewhere I needed to go.

Do I think that knowing Jesus is a huge responsibility?  That knowing him is getting too intense?  I don’t feel overwhelmed by Gracie being here, but Jesus is the first major change I have had in my life since Gracie actually came into my life.  Maybe Char is right and I should watch how invested I get.  I do need to be sure I prioritize myself and not lose sight of my own mental health being there for him…  Still, I don’t FEEL like he is a huge responsibility or that he is too intense at all.  I feel like we get each other.  I feel ok around him and that’s rare.

I should be glad.  This really is a step up from dreaming about driving under threat of my life or constantly smelling the woods that i am not even in.  Still, I’d rather my dog be a normal size.

Pearl

Pearl closes her journal and swings for a bit. Checks Skype for Pav, but she’s not on today.  She’s getting breakfast together, around 8:00, when it occurs to her just how little is here.  Dread fills her.  She’s going to have to go shopping.  Not tomorrow.  Not next week.  (Because Pearl pushes these things if they can be pushed, for as long as they can possibly be pushed.)  Today.  She’s out of bread, milk, oatmeal, juice, and Gracie needs dog food.

Just the thought of going to the Super One in Crosby makes her mouth dry and her palms sweat.  Gracie’s at her side in no time, trying to distract her from the obnoxious hand tremors.

She needs to do this.  Gracie needs food.  Pearl had to scrape the bottom of the bin to get her enough for this morning.  She’s going to need more by tonight.  But just the thought has her pacing.  Tears forming in her eyes.

“I can’t do this.  I really can’t do this.  God.  I should have gone earlier, but now I don’t have a choice!’  Pearl curls up on the couch, and Gracie joins her, licking her face.

“Don’t!  I don’t deserve love right now!  I’m a horrible person!  I can’t even go to the store to buy you food without freaking out…” she exclaims.

Gracie doesn’t listen.  Stays close.  

Pearl glances out the window.  Jesus is out on the back step.  Scanning.  Waiting to see if she and Gracie will come out.  But she can’t come out, or she’ll probably start crying, and that’ll be embarrassing.  

...But he had said if she needed something this week to let him know...

Instead, she waits until he goes back inside and picks up her phone.  Dials Frank’s landline next door, and immediately regrets it.  

(They’re on vacation!  Like they want a phone call at 8:15 in the morning from a woman distraught about the prospect of grocery shopping!)

“Hey.  Pearl?” Jesus answers on the second ring.  

“Yeah, it’s me.  Listen, I have kind of a weird favor to ask…”

--

“What’s up?” Jesus wonders.  This is the first time Pearl has called.  The first time Grandpa’s phone has rung since they arrived.

“I have to go to the store,” Pearl says and Jesus can hear her voice shake a little.  “And that’s kind of stressful for me.  I was curious if you wanted to come with...keep me company?”

Jesus glances over his shoulder, where Mom’s reading a book at the table.  “I’d have to run it by Moms, but I’ll call you back.  I wanna be there.  And I’ll come if I can.  Okay?”

“Yeah, sounds good.  No pressure.”

Jesus hangs up, and turns to Mom.  He’s still angry at her, but she was talking about how well she knew Pearl last night.  Maybe she’s a safer bet than Mama because of that.  Still, he keeps his distance.  She hasn’t torn down the blankets from around the table, but that could just be because he hasn’t pissed her off yet.

“Pearl wanted to know if I could go into town with her.  She has to run to the store,” Jesus says in a rush.

“Yeah?  Well, I think this is something you should talk through a little more first,” she advises, setting her book aside.

“Is Mama up?” he asks.  (The more days go by, the later everyone is sleeping in.  It’s already 8:20 and breakfast isn’t even in progress yet.)

Oh.

“I’m gonna go shower,” he tells Mom, hurrying upstairs and knocking quietly on the girls’ door.  “Hey, Mari?  You up for being a human I-Pod for me?”

“Yeah, give me a second…” she yawns from behind the door.

It’s more than a second, but it gives Jesus time to pick out his clothes.  He goes with the most boring jeans and plain shirt he brought, because if he’s going into town he’ll see people, and people might recognize him.  Better to blend in.

Finally, Mariana comes out, blowing air through her lips and making her voice go up and down.  He smirks.

“What song is that?” he asks, smirking.

“I’m warming up, Jesus,” she says witheringly.  “Unless you want your song to sound like an old man is singing.”

“No.  I mean, do that.  Warm up,” he says.  He waits until she says she’s ready and offers to sing Tomorrow from Annie, as long as he’s not bothered by it.

“No.  It’s fine,” he nods.  “Thank you.”

“Don’t worry about it.  You know me.  Never pass up an opportunity to perform.”  She smiles.

He knows the truth though:  Mariana likes to sleep and sleep late.  The fact that she’s been up before noon the past two days while on vacation is a pretty big sacrifice on her part.

Jesus showers and when he’s done (no problems today either), Mariana goes back to bed.  Downstairs, Mama and Mom are cooking breakfast.  “French toast?” he asks, his eyes going to the clock behind them.  8:30.

“That’s right,” Mama says,  flipping a piece.  “So, did I hear that Pearl called?”

“She did.  She has to go to the store and asked if I could come with her…” Jesus repeats.

“How do you feel about it?” Mama asks him.  (Mom gives him regular toast with peanut butter and jelly to eat while he waits.  It helps him relax just a little.)

“I feel...nervous about being recognized...and that it’s a store and I don’t really go shopping much...but she’s my friend and I wanna help,” Jesus tries to explain.  “What do you guys think?” he asks, trying for it to just be a question, nothing more.

Back Then, he used to ask Him what He thought of things on purpose, in order to get what he needed.  It was manipulative.  He doesn’t need to manipulate Moms.  To them, it can just be a question, because he does respect them and their opinions.

“To be honest, love, I’m nervous at the idea of you being in a car with her,” Mama admits.  “I don’t know her very well yet.  And I’d like to know your friends a bit better before I feel comfortable with you in a car with them.”

Jesus bites his lip.  “But other than that.  Do you think it’s possible?”

“Slow down,” Mama cautions gently.  “Help us think about this.  How would you feel most comfortable getting to the store?  I know vehicles aren’t your favorite thing.”

“Well...if you’re really that concerned about Pearl driving me, one of you guys could drive us.”

“Back up!” Frankie calls.  “I need some back up, please!”

“Hold that thought,” Jesus says, getting up from his chair and climbing the stairs to give Frankie a lift down them.

“Morning, buddy!” Frankie says cheerfully.

“Good morning, buddy,” Jesus grins.  “How are you?”

“Hungry,” Frankie says.  “And I heared Mariana sing Annie for you, so then I smelled all the good smells.”

“French toast,” he tells her, settling her in a chair near him.  “Moms and I are talking, okay?”

“I know.  I heared that, too,” Frankie nods.

“You know, I could drive them,” Mom volunteers.  “I mean, assuming it’s okay with Jesus.  I assume Pearl just goes up to the Super One.  It’s not far, and I can get some things, too.”

“To the grocery store?” Frankie asks, like they’re talking about the toy store.  

“Yes, my sweet.  Here, have some French toast,” Mama says, putting some on each of their plates.

“I love the grocery store,” Frankie sighs happily.  “‘Specially where it smells like bread.”

“That’s great, Frankie, but let’s hear from Jesus, okay?” Mama says.

“I think it’s cool if Mom drives.  Are you cool with her dog in the rental?” he asks.

“Oh!  Your friend and the dog and the grocery store?” she exclaims all in one breath around bites of French toast.  “Can I come, please?  You said you asked her and she was thinking about me meeting the dog.  So can you please ask her if she’s done thinking now?”

Mom makes a face.  “Her dog?  Seriously?”

Jesus turns to Frankie because it’s easier to explain it to her than it is to Mom.  “Listen, buddy.  My friend, Pearl?  Her dog’s name is Gracie.   Gracie’s job is--”

“Silly!  Dogs don’t got jobs!” Frankie laughs a forced laugh.

“Gracie does have a job.  You know how we have things that help us calm down, like our blankets?”

“Yeah.  Night-Night’s the best at that.”

“Some people have animals that can help with that, too.  They’re called service animals, because they’re helping their people.  Gracie’s job is to help Pearl.  That means we can’t pet Gracie, okay?  So she can stay focused on doing her job,” Jesus explains.

He waits, eating some French toast while Frankie thinks this over.  

When she turns to him again, a light of recognition is in her eyes, and Jesus is sure she gets it.  But instead she says, confident and certain:  “Guys.  I have to tell you this:  I have a service blanket.”

Mama coughs to cover up a laugh and Mom whispers to Jesus.  “Her dog is welcome in the rental, love.  Why don’t you call her back and ask when she’d like us to pick her up?”

--

Pearl has tried swinging.  She’s tried calming self-talk.  Music.  More journaling.  But all she can really do is watch the hours tick by and wonder if Jesus has forgotten all about her call.

Almost an hour later, her phone rings, and Pearl picks it up after half a ring, never happier to see the name Frank Cooper on the screen.

“Hello?” she asks, trying not to hyperventilate.

“Hey, it’s Jesus.  My moms said it’s okay for me to go with you, but they’re not comfortable with me in a car with you.  Is it okay if Stef drives us?”

Pearl’s distracted by a little voice in the background: “Ask her, Jesus, please!”

“And, my little sis is really wondering if you’re done thinking about whether or not she can meet Gracie.  I know it’s a lot.”  He waits.  “You can say no.”

“No, it’s fine, and actually Stef driving will really help.  That’s part of what makes shopping stressful,” she confides.

“Okay.  Well, when did you wanna go?  I’m ready, but we might need a few minutes for Mom and Frankie.”

“Wait.  Frankie?” Pearl asks, the name breaking through her panic.  “Your little sister’s name is Frankie.”

“Yeah.  Why?” Jesus wonders, a little amused.

“Is she named after Frank?” Pearl asks.

Jesus laughs.  “Yeah, she is.”

“Nice.  I’d like to go as soon as we can.  When you’re ready, you wanna just give me a call, and we’ll walk over?”

“Yeah.  No problem.  Hey Pearl?”

“Mmm-hmm?” she asks, still too shaky for comfort.

“Breathe.  It’s gonna be okay.  I’ll be with you.  Mom’s got her own shopping to do, and Frankie needs to smell the bread, so...you know...just you, me and Gracie.”

Pearl takes a deep breath.  “Thanks.”

“I’ll give you a call when we’re ready to go.”

[todorokis-left-shoe]

I had two separate kinda weird but kinda fun dreams last night.

1) This first one was sorta short but funny as hell. An old lady and old man were driving through a neighborhood or outside a neighborhood— something like that— and a person in the back seat(it was first person I think?) and asked something along the lines of "grandma you wrote a movie?". The grandma responds quickly with "Oh just you wait and see" with I think a wink and smile. The grandpa I remember rolling his eyes. And the next thing I know these two young men dressed in loose street clothing, somewhat colorful like it came from the 90s, come up into view. Both had straight and very emotionless faces, they're just staring at the grandma and the person. And then *SPLAT*. They... They smash a giant watermelon. The end. I thoroughly enjoyed this dream. 4/5 stars.

2) The second one was actually super cute. It started off in Dollar Tree. I was looking around, apparently for a hamster. I found them and just carried the little thing around happily, cooing at it and petting it. I sit down but then a worker comes from the back and I get nervous so I scurry back over to the hamster cage and put it back. Next thing I remember was I was still browsing but not for anything in particular. I went in and out of aisles mindlessly. Then more animals showed up— I can't remember the specifics anymore, I did when I first woke up but for some reason I no longer can. I believe there were birds and some kinda reptile though.— and I looked through their cages. I get to, I think, the 40th aisle and there's barely any cages in this aisle(I can't remember what else was there but my mimd goes immediately to candles when I do try to remember so I am assuming it was candles). I look into the largest one there and!!!! Dragons!!!!! I let them out and I exclaim "baby dragons!" Happily. The baby dragons remind me of spyro(same shade of purple body, blue eyes however, no horns or wings though) but if he were drawn by Lisa Frank(the eyes and I believe they had glitter on them somewhere?). I happily grab them both and play with them. But then, again, a worker came out from the back and I got nervous and quickly put the two back. I leave the aisle and go to check out where I guess my parents were. And real quick, I just wanna put in the small detail of those twirly display bins; I remember seeing a restaurant kids mat and little rubber toys(size of a novelty pencil topper) of the aliens from Toy Story. I'm not sure of the importance but I am grateful for it either way. Anyway, my brother comes up and we leave for the aisle again. I take him to the baby dragons excitedly and we go back to the same spot from earlier to play and coo at them. A worker comes out once again, neither of us run, and tells us we have to put them back. When we get there he says they cant go in the same cage so he takes us to the back(which looked endless like a huge warehouse or something) to find it a new cage. He comes back with a purplish-pink crystal looking thing and hands it to me. We take them back once again and for some reason ignore the "cant go in same cage" fact, the crystal is also gone. We lock them up and look at the cage next to us. We lean in and see a kitten's head. Oh, but its not just any kitten! Its got antlers and a deer's(buck? Because of the antlers would it be a buck?) body! It yawns amd stretches and moves over to a somewhat larger antlered cat and curles into it. They both yawn cutely. Then my brother and I are called by our parents to leave. As we're leaving someone excitedly yells about the baby dragons— and then thats where it ends and I wake up. This is the most I've remembered about a relatively normal dream. 5/5 stars because of the baby dragons.