#I was in the middle of doing homework when my brain decided it was time to process trauma from six years ago

[daxwritesstories]

The Luxury of Goodbye (vent piece)

[A/N]: This is a "scene" from Cyra's old TV show. It's mostly just me trying to process something...

Content warning: drug abuse, suicide

INT. Cyra’s bedroom - Morning

Cyra is just finishing getting ready to go to school. She puts her laptop into her bag, along with her mouse and charger cord. She zips up the packed-full bag, struggling a bit to get it closed. 

Once she has everything ready, she throws her bag over her shoulder and makes her way to the door. 

She almost makes it out of the bedroom when she suddenly stops. Her shoulders and arms tense up and she tilts her head down, squeezing her eyes shut. She breathes deeply a few times but this doesn’t relax her at all.

She gives up and checks the time on her phone. We see a closeup of her phone. The time is 11:35 and there are a bunch of stacked notifications from her class group chat.

Upon seeing the time, Cyra’s eyes widen in panic. Ignoring the message notifications, she turns around, going back into her room. 

Cyra heads straight for her closet and picks up a bottle of Advil from one of the shelves. She hastily pours six pills into her hand and puts the bottle back onto the shelf. She reaches into the side pouch on her bag and takes out her coffee thermos. She takes a large swig of the liquid inside and shoves all six pills into her mouth, swallowing them in one go. 

She isn’t done yet. Cyra reaches past the Advil bottle and grabs one of the packets of cold medicine behind it. She removes two of the blue pills from the packet. She uses her coffee thermos again to swallow them. 

Looking just as anxious as before, Cyra breathes a heavy sigh and leaves her room.

EXT. Train station - Morning

Cyra waits by herself at the train station. She seems just as anxious as she usually is, but she also looks a bit dizzy, involuntarily swaying at random.

It’s a warm sunny morning. So warm that Cyra isn’t even wearing her coat, just her hoodie. There is only a slight breeze that gently brushes through Cyra’s hair. The train station is relatively empty. Only a few small groups of people are there waiting.

As she waits for the train, Cyra glances down at the tracks. This makes her even more anxious. She closes her eyes and takes a deep, slow breath. We hear her inner-monologue as she breathes.

CYRA (internally): I feel like something terrible is going to happen today.

Cyra opens her eyes again and we hear the automated train announcer.

ANNOUNCER: The next train is arriving. Please stand behind the blue line.

INT. Train car - Morning

Cyra sits on one of the side benches in the train car. The train is so empty that Cyra has the entire bench to herself.

Cyra stares out the window across from her as another train passes in the opposite direction. The other train warps a bit as it passes. The windows and paint patterns shift from moving horizontally to moving diagonally. Cyra doesn’t react to this.

Cyra’s phone buzzes, catching her attention. She turns on the screen and sees a message from Arella. Cyra makes a confused face and opens the message. We hear Arella’s voice reading out the text.

ARELLA (voiceover): Hey, are you okay?

Now Cyra is even more confused. Regardless, she answers honestly. We hear her voiceover as she types her response.

CYRA (voiceover): Not really.

A new message from Arella pops up almost immediately.

ARELLA (voiceover): Well if you need someone to talk to I’m always here for you.

Cyra just stares down at her phone with a look of pure anxiety. Before she can even start typing back, another message pops up, this time from Travis.

TRAVIS (voiceover): Hey man, are you doing alright?

CYRA (whispering): What?

Now panicking, Cyra checks her class group chat. There are well over thirty new messages that Cyra has to scroll past. We can catch glimpses of what the messages say. Most of them contain “RIP”. 

Cyra finally stops scrolling when she sees a post linked by Emmett, followed by a message from him.

EMMETT (voiceover): Tragic news. Thought I’d share this post that Ainsley mom made. Everyone should send their condolences. 

Cyra stares blankly at her phone. She moves her finger almost robotically to open the link. She is immediately taken to a Facebook post. 

We don’t get to see the full post for more than a second before it is zoomed in to certain words in it. First we see “My beloved daughter”, then “gone”, then “Ainsley”, and finally “ended her own life”.

Cyra locks her phone and drops it face down on her lap. She stares at the floor of the train, eyes cloudy and unfocused. Her body then curls forward, wincing in pain.

[writingroom21]

I Dare You

Pairing: Bestfriend!Rafe x fem!reader

Summary: A game of truth or dare shouldn't be an issue right? Definitely not when it's with you hot best friend. It's all fun and games right?

Warnings: 18+, smut, unprotected sex (wrap it up), p in v, cockwarming, cream pie, slight chocking and slapping, teasing, let me know if I miss any

Wc: 3.2K

Part 2

“Let’s play a game or something?” Rafe suggests next to you. You’ve been hanging out for the past few hours. It’s kinda a tradition at this point. Every week the two of you will hang out at either Tanny Hill or your house. The two of you would spend the time watching movies and binge eating pizza or whatever food you decide.

Tonight was the same thing. You had ordered pizza and wings before Rafe got to your house. Giving him the perfect timed entrance with the food since he ran into the delivery boy. That was at least four hours ago and the food is long gone. The movies you watched are just rolled credits. 

“I think I have Monopoly in the closet. We also have the switch that we can play on.” You rack your brain trying to think of what games that you have. “OOO! We can play just dance.” Rafe groans at the thought of the game. All throughout middle school you were obsessed.

Everyday you would go home from school, do your homework and play for hours. It was a great way of letting out energy while also giving you a workout. Your love for the game was then forced onto Rafe. You made him go home with you one day after school and play. Rafe has always been athletic, even as a child he loved sports. But that game took something out of him.

Every move was always red, never getting the motion correctly. Don’t get him started on the burn he would feel the day after. All the jumping around and the squating tore his muscles til they were strands. He hated that damn game but for some reason he would go back to your house the following day to do it over again. Now even thinking about the game hurts him.

“I would rather get back together with Christine then play that game.” He’s being over dramatic. The game isn’t even that bad. To say he would rather get back with the ex that stole from him, tried to sleep with his dad, and reported him to the cops is crazy. The stare you are giving him tells him you aren’t convinced. “Okay I wouldn’t but seriously I am not playing that death game.” Typical Rafe, drama queen. “Fine then what do you want to play? We can just put on another movie if you’re that bored.”

You took the bait without even thinking too much about it. “Why don’t we play truth or dare?” He suggests. His eyes are staring at the phone in his hands but he keeps an eye on you. Watching the perplexed look you give him. “Truth or dare? What are we twelve?” Teasing him will never get old. He just has a habit of saying the dumbest or weirdest things when he’s comfortable around people. Teasing him is a part of the friendship.

Rafe throws his phone on your bed as he moves around to look at you better. “Weren’t you watching that dumb kids tv show the other day? Gluey or something.” “Bluey.” You correct him. “That doesn’t matter. It’s good for your brain to help relax, you clearly need it.” Your foot nudges his thigh as you poke fun at him. He catches it and yanks you closer to him, your legs resting on his lap now.

You get a little more comfortable, fluffing the pillow behind you as you lay back. “It does matter. You watch something made for toddlers but you can’t play truth or dare. Come on indulge me.” He whines, his hand squeezing your calf. The feeling of his hands on you is not something new. You are one of the only people that he is comfortable enough to physically touch. The only thing is that sometimes the touch lingers, filling you with a fluttering feeling. 

Clearing your throat to distract from your emotions, you answer. “Fine. Truth or dare?”

“Dare.” You giggle as you think of something. “I dare you to try on one of my dresses.” His face drops and your giggles become full laughs. “Fuck you. I’m not doing that shit, think of something else.” His nails graze along your skin, reaching your knee then going down. “Nope, gotta follow the rules.” You know he would never put on a dress in his life. You also know that he has a hard time saying no to you. 

This is more of a test to see how far he would really go. “Too fucking bad. I’m not going to wear one of your dresses.” You pull your legs back to your body. Rafe tries to stop you from leaving but you had already turned away from him. “Baby come back.” There it is. That little moment he gives you butterflies. He’s been calling you that recently.

Baby

Like some freudian slip, a moment where he truly reveals how he feels. You ignore him as you open your closet grabbing a crop top instead. A dress was a long shot but you could pull this off. You walk back over to the bed, shirt in hand as you climb up. “What are you doing?” He’s watching as you crawl over to him. He can’t help but to have to adjust his pants. The action doesn’t go unnoticed.

“If you put the shirt on I’ll be happy. Then we can continue.” Rafe stares at the shirt then you. “Plus guys in crop tops are kinda hot.” You shrug your shoulders, looking down at the fabric and playing with it. Fanning innocence in your words to hide your true intentions. His eyes perk up hearing you say that. “You think guys look hot in that?”

His voice somehow got a little lower. You are itching to squeeze your thighs to sedate the ache you feel. But you won’t let him see that this is affecting you. It’s harder for him to hide and your eyes keep glancing down to get a peak. “Yeah. I like when you can see how tight the shirt is over their muscles.” Your eyes follow along his chest, imagine the shirt clinging to life on his chest. Your fingers are dying to touch him.

“Give me the damn shirt.” Rafe rips his shirt off, taking yours and puts it on. You mindlessly stare at him. You were right, the shirt is clinging to him. His muscles are stretching it out but his biceps are the main show. They are bulging out, the fabric barely holding together. He could choke you with his arms and you would be happy.

“Happy?” Your eyes flicker up to his. “Very.” Rafe shifts back to relax, his arm resting by your folded legs. His fingers extend out to brush against your exposed skin. “Truth or dare?” You think about it and take a long pause. “Truth.” His eyes squint at you, expressing his irritation that you took the easy way out. “Why did you and Evan break up?” 

He knows why you two broke up, it was him. Evan made it known he never liked rafe and your friendship with him. It definitely didn’t help when Rafe and him got into a fight. Rafe may have implied that you would leave him in an instant if he asked you to. That really set him off and escalated from there. The next day you told Rafe that you and Evan had broken up. He was relieved to know he had once again chased off another guy.

“We had a huge fight after the party. He accused me of sleeping with you and wouldn’t stop yelling. In the end he told me I had to choose, you or him. I chose you.” His hand sandwich between your calf and thigh. Tightening as his mind processes what you said. “Why?” “That’s not the game. My turn.” He tries to protest and you won’t let him. You can’t admit that a part of you does want him. Evan was right to be concerned, not that you would cheat but that you have feelings for Rafe.

“Dare.” You wish you had fought harder to not play this game. You suck at coming out with things to say. “Are you always going to say dare?” “Yes.” You huf a bit. “I dare you to take a thirst trap photo and send it to the group chat.” He groans, already picturing the texts he’s about to get. Reluctantly he gets up positioning himself in front of your full length mirror. He takes the picture and sends it to the chat.

Automatically Top and Kelce start blowing up the group chat. He ignores them and walks back over. “Truth or dare.” You don’t even think. “Dare.” He crawls on the bed like you did earlier, forcing you to lay back. His body is hovering above you, hand playing with the hair that frames your face. “I dare you to show me what you got earlier at Victoria Secret.” He saw the package when he got through the door. His curiosity was eating at him. Smirking, you run your hand around his chest, teasing where the shirt ends only to push him off you.

You grab the box that was sitting on your dresser and open it up. Slowly you take off your sleep shorts and shirt. Your fingers wrap around the thin piece of fabric you call underwear. Pulling them down inch by inch teasing him further by throwing them at him. You don’t know where your confidence came from. Before today you would never strip naked in front of Rafe, you just can’t help yourself.

You take out a red lace teddy, the lace only covers part of your sides and your breasts. It was held together by thin straps, leaving your front fully exposed. Rafe’s hand starts to palm himself over his sweatpants, the pain in his dick becoming unbearable. “Fuck you look good.” You giggle and give him a twirl shaking your ass in the process. “Yeah? You like it, pretty boy.”  Your hands are roaming your body, pausing to play with your breast.

Rafe can’t help but stare. “Come here.” You do without question, not wanting to let go of the game you ask him again. “Truth or dare.” Rafe reaches for your sides as soon as you get close. Playing with the lace between his fingers. “Can we both just stick to dare? It’s more fun that way.” Smiling you lean in, closing the gap slightly. “I dare you to take off your pants.” Like a good boy he does.

His boxer does nothing to hide the impressive dick he has. Your mouth water just thinking about it. Without really thinking your hand lands on his thigh, making its way up and retracting as soon as you get close to his dick. “Don’t be shy, baby. You can touch me.” Your eyes look at him through your eyelashes. He could probably cum just from watching you. Bingo

“I dare you to touch yourself.” A gasp leaves your lips at his dare. You know what he means, he wants you to pleasure yourself in front of him. But instead of listening you start to touch your thighs, then arms, and chest. “You know what I meant. Don’t you go start being a brat right now.” Giggling you move his thighs, slotting yourself in between them. Leaning back you expose yourself to him. The open crotch leaves you fully bare to him.

“Fuck.” He grunts as your fingers play with your clit, collecting the wetness by your entrance to help your movements. You almost get lost in the feeling, forgetting about the game, almost. “I dare you to take those boxers off and show me how you take care of yourself.” Rafe’s dick twitches when the cool air of your room hits him. His hand rapidly wrapping around himself and tugging. 

The two of you kinda stay there in a lull. Both of you watch the other as they play with themselves, waiting the other out till they crack. Rafe had envisioned this differently, he thought he would be the one having you begging for him. Now he doesn’t even know if he can go another minute without touching you. Without feeling you stretch out on him. He knows this is only going to torture himself more but he can’t help it. “I dare you to come sit on my lap.”

You may have been confident before but this is going further then you thought. Before you can psych yourself out you do it. Throwing your legs over his, your folds parting as you sit down on him, his dick laying perfectly on your pussy. His hands find your hips as your arms wrap his neck. Holding each other and staring into each other’s eyes. “Like this?” Your voice convey’s innocence, so do your eyes. Melting him even further into your spell. “Just like that baby.” 

His hands start to rock you back and forth, his dick sliding between your folds. The tip brushing against your clit. You let out a moan from the feeling, grinding harder to please him too. Your efforts were rewarded with a chocked moan leaving his perfect lips. Wanting to test how far he’s willing to go, your head leans forward. He's moving in trying to taste your lips, only stopping when he sees that you did. “I dare you to kiss me.” The words whispered on his lips.

Rafe brings a hand up to the back of your neck, dragging you in for a kiss. His lips devour yours as if you were his last meal. With the way that your soaking cunt is drenching him, it might actually be. He feels like he’s in heaven right now, he never wants this feeling to stop. But he knows it could be better. “I dare you to put it in.” Your hips stop, lips following along. There’s saliva connecting your lips as you detach yourself. You look apprehensive, not really sure if you want to ruin the friendship. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

Your fingers graze his scalp, missing when he had hair. The feeling of it weaving through your fingers can be felt lightly. “I miss your hair.” Rafe grins at you, pecking your lips. “I’ll grow it out again if you sit on my dick.” You clench around nothing, itching to feel him inside you. “Plus we’re best friends. We should be able to do everything together.” He brushes a piece of hair behind your ear, his hand resting on your check, thumb grazing your bottom lip. Blue eyes following the movement, flickering up to catch yours.

In your mind you know he’s trying to manipulate you with the best friend card. The truth is you don’t care, you would have pulled the same trick. Rafe isn’t the only one desperate to have him in me. “Okay. Promise this won’t change anything.” you lift your pinky up to him, he latches his to yours. “Promise, Just…just sit on it. That’s all you have to do.” He needs you now, he’ll say or do anything to get it. You lift yourself a little, getting a hold of him to line him up to your entrance.

Slowly you tease your hole with his tip. Slightly putting it in and then going up to then swirl his head around. Rafe is getting frustrated, groans of displeasure leaving his mouth. “Please.” He whines out, hands death gripping your hips. You lightly tap his cheek so he can open his eyes. With a smile you sink down, moaning at the feeling of his big dick stretching you. When you bottom out you lean your forehead on his. Hips flushed to one another.

Your eyes are locked in, watching as you both stew in the pleasure of feeling each other. Your walls are fluttering around him so nicely. He doesn’t know how much of this he could handle. Honestly he’s glad he suggested you cockwarm him. If he was fucking you right now he would have already finished. You are so tight and warm he wouldn’t have lasted a minute. Plus it gives you a chance to get used to him, he doesn’t plan on being gentle next him. His hands explore your back, nails raking down and slapping your ass. You let out a loud moan, your walls contract making him let one out as well. 

The minutes pass by as you two explore each other. Sharing kisses on lips or exposed skin, hands touching every inch they can reach. You can feel him throbbing inside you, pulsating every few seconds. Pulling away, your hands lay flat on his chest to keep him still. “I dare you to touch me.” Tilting your head you mock him. “Let’s see if you can make me cum.” A hand flies to your clit rubbing calculated circles, the other gripping your neck. “Dangerous game you’re playing there, baby.”

Rafe’s back to attacking your lips, moving his assault to your jaw nipping at the skin. His fingers move faster on your clit, hurdling you closer to your orgasim. “Tighter.” You plead, your own hand laying over his to get what you want. He tightens his hold, chuckling at your open mouth expression. “Fucking dirty girl. Here I thought you were my little angel, turns out you're a little devil.” Words don't seem to be forming in your brain.

Everything is blank, the only thing in your head is forcing you to focus on how good his fingers feel. How every twitch of his dick brushes your g-spot only adding to your pleasure. He can feel how close you are, your walls are strangling him. Ironic since it's the same thing he’s doing to you. The fuzziness of your mind snaps the band in your stomach, all the stimulation too much for you to handle. “Rafe please.” Your moans mix with his, they echo in your room bouncing off the walls. 

Rafe continues his motions to help you ride out your orgasim. His hands give up once you relax again. He’s on the verge of cumming, mustering up all his strength he holds back. You sense his hands on your hips ready to pull you up. You slap his hands away, cementing yourself to his lap. He gives you a panic look, knowing he won’t be able to hold off for long. “I dare you to cum in me. We should be able to do everything together right?” The moan he let out was pornographic at best. His body is shaking from how intense his orgasim is.

You moan as you watch him enjoying the view of his face and the feeling of him filling you up. He pulls you to his chest, keeping you close as he comes down. This is better than any drug he has ever taken. Slowly and carefully he moves you around, laying you on your back and pulling out. He stares at his dripping cum slides out of you. “God baby you’re amazing.” He kisses your stomach, chest, chin, then lips.

He holds you there, lips molding with yours. He gets up after a minute, getting a wet rag to clean you up. You lay in bed motionless when Rafe comes back after disposing of the dirty rag. “That was fucking amazing.” You say to your ceiling. Laughing, he lays down next to you. You look at him with a smile. “If you think that was good just wait till I actually fuck you.”

[girlthatgotawaysdiary]

study tips: how to get a 4.00 GPA 🩰

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

All throughout last year I've gotten perfect grades on my report cards and many of my friends have asked how I've done it and i seriously had no idea until recently when I started to take notice of my new ways of studying... and today ive decided to put all my findings on this post...so here we goo...💋

#1 finish ur homework the second u get it:

I cannot stress this enough HOMEWORK IS IMPORTANT! idc if you’re too lazy or busy studying for exams, homework is almost half of your grade, doing it the second you get it is the best way to eliminate the stress and procrastination you get when trying to tackle an assignment.

#2 be nice to teachers:

ultimately teachers are the ones deciding your fate, so being a teacher's pet isn't always a bad thing. you don't have to absolutely love them, but giving them respect while speaking, trying to connect with and get to know them, and even just thanking them after class would take you a long way. 

#3 pay attention in class:

ive heard this a million times and as a girly with undiagnosed adhd it is so hard for me to focus during class, but one thing I found helpful is sitting in front of the class. this was important because the teacher was literally in my face so I couldn't zone out. a thing that also helped me is 24/7 taking notes or highlighting passages.

#4 start caring: 

in middle school, i literally did not care about school whatsoever(and im sure most of u as well) and that was because i didn't have any severe consequences. my parents may get mad at me and i may feel disappointed in myself, but there was no long-term consequences. so when i started high school.

i had to start caring because high school grades are all that matters to universities. it was also because i knew i had a dream and wanted to achieve it, and the only way to do so was to fake being a good student till i actually became one.

something that also stops you from caring about school, is u caring about other people or what they think of u, whether it be positively or negatively. thinking about others will take up most of your brain capacity very quickly, which would result in u being distracted and not caring about ur schoolwork.

#5 surrond urrself with people who actually want to improve themselves:

this is SO important! surrounding urself with negative people who don't care about education can greatly affect you(e.g. making u late to class) making friends with people who show up to class on time, get their work done fast, and respect others is a pathway to getting good grades. i believe that the most people you spend time with reflect on who you are, and don't let those people be negative.

*now these tips won't guarantee you getting immediate straight A's, but applying them to your school life will definitely improve it.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

[crusty-chronicles]

Airheaded S/O Headcannons #9: Hiei (Yu Yu Hakusho)

He wants you dead at first

But that's just because he's a bit standoffish

You'd waltzed in right as he had Yusuke suspended in his clutches at a warehouse.

"Yusuke, you left your calc homework on your desk, you ditz!"

And then you looked up and saw the three eyed demon and your friend.

And he was a little shocked that a human had found his hideout, even with his manipulated spirit energy.

"Kinda in the middle of something here," the greasy haired boy responded.

"Well cut that out for a second. I've got places to be."

Like you weren't just witnessing him about to be killed

It was so baffling how you just completely dismissed the situation, that Hiei's powers actually faltered and let the detective get away.

What the actual hell????

"Get out of here, now!" Yusuke warned.

And you'd just frowned

"Dude, it's not that deep. Why are you even here?"

Now was Hiei's chance to attack

But when he disappeared and quickly reappeared behind with his sword raised, you just caught the blade and glared at him

"Can you back off, I'm trying to talk to my friend."

You shooed him away like a pest.

And that was the moment he decided he wanted you dead.

A strong believer in survival of the fittest

And what the hell, because you had not a single working brain cell but were somehow stronger than him????

Kuwabara is your best friend and the two of you combined are stupid²

And it's horrible because there's only so much stupidity Hiei can take.

During the time he's still conforming after being caught, he spends most of it in the human world scouting you out for any weaknesses.

He still holds a grudge from the first time you met

But he's so damn surprised to find out that you're a walking hazard

How does one leave the stove, microwave, and oven on?

How does one forget that they're all on at the same time????

It would be so easy to let your own recklessness kill you

But his damn pride won't let that happen because he wants to be the one that defeats you

So, you wake up from your nap to see all your appliances turned off

Which is surprising because you vaguely remember cooking something before you feel asleep.

You do earn his respect eventually

It's when Yusuke is tasked with defeating the Saint Beasts

All of you were struggling to keep the roof up from collapsing

Yusuke had suggested Hiei be the one to pull the lever because he was the fastest.

And you'd said something then. Something that made him not want to kill you anymore.

"I might be able to hold the whole thing by myself. You all have to be really fast though."

"Are you crazy?!? There's no way we're gonna leave you behind. We're in this together or not at all," the oaf had protested.

You gave a dopey smile and released all your spirit energy at once, lifting the ceiling with all your might and alleviating the pressure from all the others.

"You scared, Kuwabara? People die everyday. What's one more?"

Hiei had never moved as fast as he did when he pulled that lever down.

You were a fool for risking your life over the others.

A fool for wasting your power on the weak.

But you weren't scared of death, of dying for your morals

And that had his respect.

Hiei does not baby you and finds great amusement in your failures

After all, you're not his responsibility

You accidentally got captured by a demon?

Good luck to whatever idiot thought they'd last more than a minute in the same room as you

You swallowed a poisonous plant Kurama was growing because you were hungry?

That's what you get for giving into your human whims

You threw a punch at an enemy that missed and hit Yusuke instead?

You should've hit him harder

Uses your naivety to his advantage

The tape with Yukina?

You'd told him without much thought about the situation

Only for Hiei to drag you towards where she was being held captive.

"Ooh, where are we going?"

"Just quiet down and follow me, human."

It's because you can sense spirit energy a little better than he can.

That and if he's spotted, he can just pass it off as you dragging him along to see Kuwabara.

Surprisingly, you're quiet and don't make a sound that gets the two of you caught.

And maybe he's a little grateful you don't question him about it.

You don't question why he wants to save this girl you've never heard of up until a few days ago.

You just go along with it because 'We're friends.'

You're so stupid for trusting him that easily when he wanted so badly to kill you not long ago

So unbelievably stupid for following around a demon just cuz

You had a fool's heart, that was for sure.

You were a trustworthy ally during the Dark Tournament, a strong warrior during the battle with Sensui, and a true fighter during the demon tournament.

It's the last event that he realizes he values you a little more than he should.

He had just barely beaten Mukuro and was set to fight you next.

The thing was, Hiei could barley stand with his injuries, while you hadn't broken a sweat.

This was the one fight he looked forward to the most, besides the one he wanted with the spirit detective.

But there was this look on your face

An uncomfortable yet sorrowful look.

Why weren't you as excited as he was?

He shrugged the feeling off as the announcer told them to begin.

His sword was long destroyed, so he resorted to basic combat skills instead.

He lunged, fist clenched to hit, but you just dodged with that same look

He tried again and the result was the same

You didn't even try to block his attacks, just moved out of the way.

Like he was beneath you to even try.

He recognized the look now

It was pity

And that infuriated him.

"Why won't you fight back!" A kick aimed for your side.

"You think you're so-called friendship matters here? Your emotions mean nothing. Not in here. So quit acting like a fool and fight!" A punch aimed at your throat.

You stopped it this time, but didn't attack him back.

You were making a fool out of him.

And before he could berate you again, you spoke.

"I don't care if we're friends or not. Either way, the fight still isn't fair."

And that had temporarily halted his anger.

"What do I gain from beating someone so injured, they can't stand up? What do you gain from fighting when you have no power? Think about it."

You didn't want to fight because you wouldn't enjoy it?

It wouldn't be a win for you

"It's not fair to either of us if we fight like this. We'd never get to find out who's really stronger."

Hiei was the fool.

He'd lashed out at Mukuro for letting her feelings get in the way and here he was, doing the same.

Letting his pride get in the way of rational thought

He'd been the one to get upset that you weren't fighting him as an equal, when the condition he was in clearly said otherwise.

"I know you don't want to lose the tournament, so I quit. But I want you to heal up and get stronger. Don't die because next time I see you, I'll kick your ass the way you want. Got it?"

Don't die

You and that oaf shared the same moral code.

But something about it being you made him tolerate it.

"...I surrender. I'm in no shape to continue. Y/n, you better not hold back next time."

Much to the dismay of the audience, the two of you walked back together. The outcome of the match: no winner.

There was something for him to look forward to now. A new goal.

He'd surpass you and then Yusuke.

Following the events of the demon tournament, he's a little softer towards you.

You and that stupid human heart of yours had him observing you from the trees.

He was unused to the heaviness he felt seeing you visit Yukina and making her laugh.

He couldn't understand the warmth consuming his face when you would fight a stray demon and win.

He didn't know why he used his Jagan to see you while he was in demon world.

But he did know he didn't like seeing you and the idiot duo hanging off of each other, cackling at something one of them said.

Don't count on him acting on his feelings.

He would never tell you.

But his actions towards you are more than enough to let the others know you're his.

He calls you fool(derogatory) and if he's feeling sweet, just by your name.

Jealousy is a big one.

Hiei's never had something special he's been allowed to keep.

So if you're spending a little too much time with Kuwabara, don't be surprised to see him at your window the next day.

He'll deny to his dying breath that he came all the way from demon world just to see you.

He'll also deny leaving some of his own clothing or even his sword at your house just so it smells more like him than it does your (just as stupid) best friend.

Hiei leaves for months at a time and without fail, will always come back the day after you went crying to Kurama that you think he's died.

(Thanks to his Jagan that is. There isn't a day he doesn't check up on you so he's bound to know when you miss him.)

Kurama is his best friend, but that doesn't stop Hiei from getting upset when he comes to get you and sees you sound asleep on the fox's bed.

You just smell so much like the other demon now, it pisses him off.

"Keep your scent off my human."

And Kurama finds immense joy in his childish anger.

"Maybe if you would physically see them more, they wouldn't come by so often."

And Hiei's grumbling as he picks you up, still dead asleep, to bring you back to the home that would restore his own scent back on you.

The time spent when you wake up is for sparring.

He can't find it in him anymore to fight you for real

But that doesn't mean he won't enjoy the false matches you have with each other.

He refuses to take you with him to demon world.

You have a life here

And though it's tempting to take you where you wouldn't be very far away from him, he knows you wouldn't be happy away from everyone else.

So, the one and only thing he does that hints at his feelings for you is give you the makeshift necklace made from hiruiseki stone. His to be exact.

"Take it."

"Why?" Your small little brain was struggling to figure out why he would want you to have it.

"It represents a promise. A promise that I'll be back for you no matter what. So take care of it for me, human."

NEXT UP: Kurapika Kurta

MASTERLIST

An: Yall sorry it took so long, i deadass got sick last week.

[yellowsweater-bluevest]

Paper airplanes

Written for 'edge' for the @steddiemicrofic wc: 509 | Rated: G | no cw

This made more sense in my brain maybe lol

ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ ᓚᘏᗢ

It was a lonely day in the Harrington Household. All the kids and Robin were busy with their own lives.

Steve lay in the middle of his living room, trying to combat boredom alone. That's when he saw a pile of old homework shoved into a box. He thought he had thrown all of it away, yet there was, hiding behind a sofa a year later. 

Steve dragged himself over to the box with the plan of throwing it away, but then he remembered the origami cranes El taught him.

Trying to recreate them was more difficult than he thought, and one thing led to another, and now he had a lot of paper airplanes.

Too many paper airplanes.

Enough to fit in the box.

Having still too much time, Steve decided the best course of action was to try them out. So he climbed his stairs, stood at the edge, and made them fly.

They flew very far. In fact, most hit the wall. So, Steve decided he had to try them outdoors to see their true potential.

He grabbed the most promising planes, put them in the box, and went outside. His plan was initially to throw them in his backyard, but his pool was uncovered, and he did not want to deal with wet paper in his pipes. So into the woods, he went. 

Eddie did not even see him coming. He was resting his eyes with headphones in when suddenly, he was hit in the face by a plane.

"Ow, what the fuck?" He exclaims, alarmed. "Is this a paper plane?"

"Fuck, sorry," Steve apologized, suddenly aware of his presence. "I did not see you there."

"Oh, in that case," Eddie said, standing up suddenly. "It's okay you nearly poked my eye out while I was innocently relaxing."

"It did not fall anywhere near your eye," Steve defended himself. "What are you doing sleeping in the woods, anyways?!"

"That is normal to whatever the hell it is you're doing, Harrington!"

"I thought you were all about fucking normality, Munson," Steve shot back.

"Well-" Eddie started. "You do have a point there."

They both stood there for a second.

"What are you doing here?" asked Eddie.

"I wanted to see how far these paper airplanes could fly." Steve explained nonchalantly.

"Did you make them?" Eddie wondered.

"Yeah, they fly pretty far out."

"I have a better place you can try them," Eddie said.

That's how they were on top of the Munson's trailer. Their feet were over the edge, aiming paper airplanes at Eddie's annoying neighbor.

"These are some pretty solid planes, Harrington," Eddie commented, aiming for Ms. Fowler's potted plants.

"Dude, we are throwing airplanes at your neighbors, you call me Steve."

"Alright, whatever," Eddie rolled his eyes. "Bullseye!" 

"Won't they get mad?"

"Me and her have a long rivalry, Steve."

"She looks old." Steve commented, trying to hide his smile.

"The devil is old!" Steve laughed at that, and Eddie tried to keep a serious expression but failed. "You are alright, Stevie."

"Likewise, Munson."

[fatuismooches]

dottore brainrot hit me right in the middle of my poetry class so I'm making it everyone else's problem

dottore with a poet s/o. he's a logical man, he doesn't go into the arts, let alone decipher and examine them. would challenge dottore to decipher their poems. he's STRUGGLING bc how was he supposed to know that "the running water loves the land that hugs it" was meant to represent his hugs?? sometimes the segments can hear him muttering to himself and reading the poem aloud over and over again. but when he figures it out?? he melts(internally) bc it's just so sweet. 100% would support his partner's art

OH YM GOSHHH I FREAKING LOVE THIS. As someone who always adored writing but sucked at poetry like THIS IS SO CUTE BDWQHDWJ ILY FOR THIS ANON (Nah fr though... Dottore probably handed all the literature homework over to you to do for him in the Akademiya because he couldn't be bothered or interested enough in stuff like that 😭)

But even all these years later he still claims to be able to understand it if he tried (lies) so you decide to whip up your own poem to put him to the test. He easily accepts the challenge with his usual confident grin because how hard could it possibly be? He deals in complicated ancient texts relating to science, math, and all these other matters. Surely he can figure out a poem. (He turns out to be wrong. So so wrong.) For such a smart man he couldn't seem to interpret the hidden feelings, or the metaphors and poetic devices used in these poems or writings as quickly as he thought he would. He's POURING over every word, every punctuation mark, stanzas, line breaks, everything trying to understand what's going on. There are literally whole notes, underlining, circling, and more scribbled around the poem. And you thought you made it pretty easy too... of course your poem would be about your love for him!

Despite how much it looks like he's suffering trying to understand what's going on, it's enjoyable to Dottore. Like a stress relief. He knows he's not the easiest person to be around so he wants to understand you and your hobbies too... although he isn't adept at them at all. After a dozen pages of brainstorming he finally reaches a conclusion and he just gets so excited and cocky, like how he does when he finally makes a breakthrough in his research. Dottore will come up to you with his confident smirk again and tell you in plain words what exactly you want. Acting as if you didn't make his brain short-circuit a few times.

"The running water loves the land that hugs it" was meant to represent his hugs??" IS SO SO CUTE IM EVAPORATINGGG AHHH

[mushyblushyredhead]

Cure For a Bad Day—MCU

No thots. Just a silly fluffy Irondad thought I had to turn into a story. :3 If you don’t like, don’t read. But if you’re here for Irondad fluff or just fluffy Marvel tickles, then come on in! OvO

Word Count: 5,000

Summary: After a rough week of school mishaps, Peter starts to doubt his future at being a good student and even being Spider-Man. It’s up to Tony Stark to remind Peter he’s still worth it, and bring back his mentor’s favorite smile. (This is a tickle fic duh, purely platonic)

Lee! Peter

Ler! Tony

If there was one thing Peter Parker was good at, was multitasking. How many other teens could juggle the responsibilities of high school while fighting crime almost every night in the not-so-friendly-neighborhood, and still manage to finish their homework on time for the next day?

Somehow he was able to do both.

But like any other student, he had his challenges. Like today, for example. Peter was in the middle of trying to finish a lab report essay for chemistry class. He was pretty stressed out, as he hadn’t had so much time to work on it for the past three weeks stopping midnight crimes and shenanigans almost four nights a week.

Now, here he was, hunched over at his desk, typing away at his laptop attempting to finish his lab report that was due tomorrow. He was mid-paragraph, stuck on page three out of the required five.

Normally, Peter would rack his science loving brain and throw something together quick, but tonight was different. He was having trouble figuring out more words and what to say in the report.

His eyes were starting to hurt from staring at his computer screen so long. His spine ached from being hunched over like a shrimp in his chair for hours. And his stomach growled; he had skipped dinner and was insistent with himself that he could have time to eat after he got his report done.

He looked at his bedside clock. 10:37pm. Oh come on! I’ll have to go to bed soon and I’m not even close to being done.

Peter sighed. Sometimes, his full time job being Spider-Man could really put a dent into his student life.

There was a knock at his door. “Peter? You alright?” the soft voice of his Aunt asked.

“I’m okay, Aunt May,” Peter stifled a yawn. “Just finishing up homework.”

“You said you were finishing up two hours ago.”

“Well this time, I mean it. I am almost done.”

“Alright if I come in?”

“Yeah. Go ahead.”

The sight of her tired, stressed, hunched over nephew saddened May. “Oh, Peter, you’ve been at that science report of yours all afternoon. Why not call it a night and get some rest?”

“I can’t,” Peter’s eyes stayed glued to his screen. The blinking curser that sat there unmoving for hours seemed to mock him. “I have to finish this tonight. This thing is worth a lot of my grade this semester.”

“Hmm, okay how about this?” May offered. “I’ll let you knock off school tomorrow, and send a note to your teachers that you’re out sick. It’ll give you an extra day to finish your report.” Her lips ruled into a soft grin. “Maybe after that, you and I can head off to the mall and buy you some more of those Squishables things you secretly like.”

Normally, Peter would laugh and jokingly say what a bad influence she was letting him cut school like that. But tonight, he didn’t even crack a smile. “No thanks. I’ll get this done before I go to sleep. Shouldn’t be much longer.”

Aunt May saw that tonight would be one of those nights where Peter wouldn’t budge out of his zombie induced state. So she decided to let him be. “Alright then,” she sighed. “Just please don’t stay up past midnight. I don’t want to get another phone call saying you slept through class and other kids decided to draw on your face.”

“Yeah, will do.”

And with that, she shut the door.

Peter rubbed his eyes with a sigh. “C’mon…c’mon…gotta finish. Ugh! Why can’t I finish?” The teen was just about to give up and call it quits when the hairs on the back of his neck and arms stood out on end. His Spidey tingle was going off!

Despite feeling achy and sluggish, he quickly stood up and tore off his clothes, slipping into his Spider-Man costume. He pulled his mask over his face and was about to jump out the window when he stopped himself.

Aunt May might come back to check if I really did go to sleep. Dang it! Ok uhh…oh wait! That’ll work!

Peter grabbed some day old clothes off the floor and shoved them under his blanket, pushing them into a sort of Peter-shaped lump. Hopefully, if his aunt came to check on him she wouldn’t look too closely.

Grabbing his phone, he hopped off the windowsill and swung out into the night.

By the time Peter managed to sneak back into his room through the window, he was exhausted. He felt like he was about to pass out as soon as he stepped into his bedroom.

He flopped onto his bed, lifting his Spidey mask off his sweaty face. He didn’t have the energy to take off his costume just yet. He was so tired.

He had stopped a home break-in coordinated by three criminals. Normally, a crime like a break-in was child’s play to Peter. But after spending the whole week fighting off crime and running on four hours of sleep, and topped with the stress of his recent assignment, Spider-Man suddenly didn’t have the energy to do a lot of fighting tonight.

His web-shooting was uncoordinated, one punch nearly knocked him out, and he appeared to be wobbly when he landed.

Even the criminals seemed to noticed how he wasn’t putting much of a fight, and taunted him while having their weapons pointed at the sleepy hero.

Peter barely managed to stop those three criminals, and earned himself a bruise on his jaw and knee. So by the time the boy made it home, the clock read 1:55am.

Peter wanted to scream in frustration. Well there goes another sleepless night, he thought as he quietly stripped himself out of his Spidey suit and grabbed a T-shirt from his floor pile.

He cringed as his brain calculated the few hours of sleep he would be getting again.

The next day at school turned out to be so much worse. First, Peter was late to his first class due to him sleeping through his many alarms he set for that morning. Next, he ended up forgetting his lunch—and even emergency lunch money—from rushing to get ready earlier. And then, as if that wasn’t enough to put him in a bad mood, he completely forgot about his lab report.

His stomach churned as he heard the teacher announce for everyone to hand in their reports to the front.

“Peter?” The voice of his best friend made him whip around.

“What is it, Ned?”

“What’s up with you?” Ned asked in a hushed whisper. “You look like you haven’t slept in a month, and you’re acting way jittery than normal.” Ned’s eyes widened. “Is it the spider sense?! Is there danger somewhere right now? Do you need me to come up with an excuse so you can get out of here?”

Peter could barely register his friend’s overlapping questions. “No, Ned, I don’t need anything. And it’s not that. I just…” he sighed, burying his face into his sweater covered arms. “Trouble in the neighborhood late at night, and I completely forgot to finish my lab report.”

“What?!” Ned whisper-shouted. “Y’know normally I’d scold you like your aunt does, but you look like you’ve been through enough already.” He put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Need me to make up some excuse? Save your skin at least a little?”

Peter shook his head miserably. “No point. I’m screwed enough as is here. Total failure.”

“Are you su—“

Their conversation was interrupted by the teacher snapping at them. “Parker? Your report, please.”

Uneasiness filled Peter’s stomach again. It felt borderline nauseous. He slowly walked up to the front desk. “I uh…don’t really have it physically with me right now.” He pointed towards his lab table. “I-It’s on my laptop.”

“Trouble printing it out?” The teacher asked.

“Something like that.” Peter could feel his cheeks growing warm.

The teacher sighed with a head shake. “Well then if you email it to me in the next three minutes, I’ll still give you credit. But next time, Peter, make sure you are able to find a reliable printing source ahead of time when you’re printing your reports. Don’t just try to print them last minute, that’s when these incidents happen.”

“Yes, of course.” Peter swallowed dryly as he shuffled back to his table. His fingers trembled as he opened his laptop, the unfinished pages of his lab report staring back at him. It felt like a punch to the gut. Well…something is better than nothing, right?

After school, the poor exhausted teen wanted nothing more than to go home, face plant onto his bed, and hope his mattress would swallow him up.

He was surprised to see a text message from Happy on his phone screen. Meet at the Avenger’s facility right after school. Your ride is waiting for you out front. New missions are heading your way. :) -Happy

New mission? That perked Peter up a little. At least he could forget about school for the weekend. Sulking in his room would have to wait. Right now, he was curious as to what sort of new mission awaited him at the Avengers’ headquarters!

The car trip didn’t take so much time. It did, however, leave the boy to replay the events that had just happened prior. He slumped in his seat. Suddenly, a new mission with the Avengers didn’t seem to excite him anymore.

Why can’t I just be more responsible? Peter bitterly asked himself. The other Avengers are able to juggle their normal lives and jobs and still manage to fight bad guys all without breaking a sweat. Heck, even Mr. Stark can do it. So why can’t I? *sigh* Am I really that bad of a student? What’s my future going to look like if I can’t even make it through high school?

Ugh! Why is your entire self worth and future determined by one stupid grade?!

Upon arrival, Peter didn’t seem as starry-eyed or ecstatic anymore. At least, that was the noticeable vibe Tony Stark noticed with his young mentee. He, in fact, looked in bad shape. Dark rings circled under his eyes, he looked disheveled like he had been sleeping under a bridge the whole week, and he seemed very anxious. Not the typical anxious-excitement Peter normally projected whenever he heard any mention of a potential new mission.

Tony wrapped an arm around the silently depressed teen. “So how goes it, kid? Survived another week of school?”

Peter scoffed. “Just barely.”

“I hear ya. But hey, cheer up. It looks like a certain web-slinging hero will be tagging along on more serious world-saving missions with the rest of us. Now how’s that upgrade for your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man?”

The boy merely shrugged. “I guess it could be good for my rep. So long as I don’t screw anything up again.”

“Hey, look. You just made a couple mistakes, underoos. It happens to all of us when we’re starting out as heroes. But this a fresh start; a chance to really show the others and the world that your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man protects more than just the neighborhood and supermarkets. He protects the world, too.” He gave Peter’s shoulder a shake.

“Okay,” Peter said with a small sigh. Oh how he wished he could get back to sulking in his room right about now.

Tony started to grow more worried about his mentee that afternoon. He assumed the kid had a bad day at school or was simply tired after a long week, but this seemed much worse.

Peter didn’t go on mini gush-rants about random things. He didn’t spit out any science jokes or puns. He didn’t even quote any old movies. Peter Parker always quoted his vintage iconic quips and lines. It was like his second vocabulary—first vocabulary being talking in only Star Wars lines.

Something was really wrong. And Stark was not going to wait around any longer to find out.

When Tony finally found Peter, he was sitting upside down from the corner of the ceiling, the hood of his sweater almost covering his face, earbuds in and mindlessly scrolling through his phone.

“Peter?”

Said teen took his earbuds out. His gaze softened when he met eyes with his mentor. “Oh, hey Mr. Stark. What brings you here?”

“That’s just what I want to ask you, kid. What are you doing up there by yourself?”

Peter shrugged. “Bored.”

“Bored?! In the freakin’ Avengers’ facility?”

“Well, sorry. Guess I’m just a little too tired today.”

He’s trying to avoid my question, Tony thought. “A better question would be, why have you been moping around since you got here? Happy even said that you were so quiet in the car ride here. No offense, kid, but you’re never the quiet type. Especially around Happy. So what gives?”

The boy averted his game. “Nothing. It’s nothing. Just tired like I said. Y’know, keeping the neighborhood safe almost every night really drains your energy.”

“Cut the charades, kid,” Tony said firmly. “I wanna know what’s up with you. I’ve known you long enough to know that even with your nighttime gig as Spider-Man, you somehow always have enough energy to set Happy’s blood pressure spiraling, and annoy the rest of the Avengers with your weird vine refreshes and those picture things you call memes.”

Peter averted his gaze. How could he tell his mentor and biggest idol all the crappy events that took place that week? It wasn’t like it was a serious topic. It was just his own failure to be responsible.

“I don’t know,” he answered quietly.”

“Hmm…let me guess. Trouble at school?”

Peter looked up.” Maybe?”

“Alright, give me names here. A description of the punk. Who’s organs do I have to obliterate?”

“What? No, no, no, it’s not like that, Mr. Stark,” Peter quickly objected. “It’s just…rough days at school is all. And my student life.”

“I see. Want to come down from there and talk about it? I’ll have Happy make us some hot chocolate.”

“Alright.”

The warm hot chocolate was very comforting. After the long harsh week of events, a hot comforting drink was just what Peter needed. And it helped ease the hesitance he had earlier so he was able to come clean about what had happened.

“Wow,” Tony said, finally breaking the silence. “It sounds like the week really treated you terribly.”

“Tell me about it.” Peter fixed his gaze on his cup.

“Hey, listen, kid. You just had a bad week. Things will get better. You gotta believe that.”

The teen hero frowned. “How do you know I won’t keep failing? I’ve been screwing up nonstop this entire week. And even when I try to do better, everything always turns out worse. It’s like the universe hates me because I’m Spider-Man.”

Before Tony could respond, Peter kept talking. “And its so dumb, too. This whole situation. I’m sitting here whining about something that could’ve been avoidable if I had been a more responsible student. There’s no one to blame but me. And look at you, Mr. Stark. If you were in my shoes, you wouldn’t be a failing student just because you’re Ironman. I just want to do better, but I don’t feel like I can. And I know the school system doesn’t believe I can either.”

“Hey now, don’t say that,” Tony protested. “You’re a brilliant kid, Peter. Yes, you’re going to hit roadblocks along the way with your full time gig as Spider-Man and as a full time student, but you’re going to be fine. You just need a little encouragement. When you’re out there saving the neighborhood and face-to-face with an enemy that makes you feel like it’s hopeless, I’ve noticed that you never back down. No matter how difficult it is. This right here isn’t any different.

And if the crappy school system that’s been putting too much pressure on their students and treating them like garbage doesn’t believe in you, I do. I believe you can do it, Peter. You’re so much stronger than you think you are.”

Peter almost wanted to tear up at the words his mentor was telling him. Damn, he really was good at this inspirational uplifting speech thing. Maybe even better than Captain America.

He couldn’t stop the tears, though. He had been feeling so emotional this entire week and after hearing Tony freakin’ Stark rant about how he was worth it despite everything he was feeling, Peter really needed to let some tears out.

Seeing the boy’s eyes fill with tears made Tony panic. Had he made the kid feel worse with his words? “Oh god, are you alright? Did i go too far with that?”

Peter let out a breathy laugh. “No, no, you’re good.” He sniffed, and wiped his tears with his sweater sleeve. “Sorry I got emotional back there. Your uplifting speech just got me teary-eyed. Thanks, Mr. Stark. I guess I really needed to hear that.”

Tony gave the teen’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. “Anytime, kiddo. Glad I could help. Now, I do want to help out with your school problem a little so you’re not feeling traumatized Monday morning.”

The boy tilted his head like a curious puppy. “Huh? What do you mean help out?”

“Well I sort of did a little research on what your next assignments for the week are going to be on for your classes. And I took the liberty to have FRIDAY complete next week’s assignments so you’ll have the entire week off to not worry about your homework.”

“You…wait, are you saying that you had FRIDAY hack into my teachers’ lesson plans and did all my homework for me?!”

Tony nodded, stirring his half drunk mug with a spoon. “Yup. Your homework’s done with all the right answers so it’ll guarantee to bring your grades back up to an A+.” He paused. “Well, an A- to make it seem like you did it.”

Peter didn’t know if he should feel grateful or disbelief. “I-I…thank you? I guess?”

Tony smirked. “What, that’s it? I do you a favor here so you can have the week off. You can have more time to focus on your web-slinging career, or use the extra time to take a nap in home room, or stare at girls more between classes.”

Peter blushed at that last comment. “Okay, fine. Thank you, Mr. Stark. I really appreciate it.” For the first time that week, Peter smiled. A genuine warm smile. Then his face melted to concern. “Wait…do you think that it’s cheating?”

“Uhh….nah,” Tony assured him with a wave of his hand. “Hey, as long as it gets you the grades you deserve. Besides, you aren’t even going to use 90% of the crap they teach you in school. You’re gonna forget it immediately anyways.”

Peter giggled, covering his mouth with his sleeve. “Oh my god, Mr. Stark. You’re just as a bad influence as May.”

“Good! Maybe you can learn something here about all the shortcuts and loopholes to high school.”

“There are noho loopholes or shortcuhuhuts to high school!”

“Hell yeah there are! How do you think I got to where I am today?” Tony gestured to himself. “You think all of this happened by being a full time student? No way. High school did nothing to help me be who I am today. All it did was give me anxiety, student debt, and unrealistic expectations on what I needed to thrive in the real world. Oh yeah, high school teaches you nothing on how to adult or pay your bills. But hey, at least they teach you that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, right?”

Peter could not stop his giggles anymore. His giggles turned to laughter, and even while trying to muffle them through his sleeves, Tony could see the corner of his smile and the blush that dusted his cheeks.

It was always so easy to make the kid laugh, and Tony always liked to take advantage of it every time.

“Y-You’re terrihihible, Mr. Stark!” Peter said through his bright laughter. “A bahahad influence! Y-You’re even worse thahahn Loki!”

“Excuuuuse me?!” Tony pretended to be offended. He sat up, scraping the chair back, which made Peter’s eyes widen in alarm.

“Wait, no!” Peter surprised Tony by flipping onto the ceiling. “Don’t—Don’t tickle me, Mr. Stark!” Peter had had enough recent experience knowing what that look meant every time Tony got up from his seat. Having his own mentor know of his one dreaded weakness—the fact that he was insanely ticklish—and using that to mess with him anytime he got depressed or a little too snarky always flustered him to bits.

Tony grinned up at the spider teen on the ceiling. “Huh? Tickle you? Now why on earth would I do that? Oh right, because your ticklishness got dialed up to eleven from the spider bite. Isn’t that what you told me?”

Peter’s blush darkened. “S-Stop saying that so casually! I now what you’re up to!”

“Hey, I’m not up to anything. And honestly, I wasn’t going to tickle you.” A sinister smirk spread across his mentor’s face. “But since that was the first thought that crossed your mind…”

Peter’s tummy did fluttery flip flops. “Oh c’mon!! Mr. Stark nohoho! Dohohon’t you dare!”

“Too late. FRIDAY, a little help?”

“Yep. On it.”

The poor flustered teen squealed in alarm as one of Tony’s Ironman suits came flying over to him, trying to pry him off the ceiling. It was surprisingly easy, as Peter was already too giggly and flustered to concentrate on his sticking to the ceiling.

With Peter off the ceiling, he was dumped ungracefully onto the floor in front of Tony where the Iron suit immediately grabbed and pinned the kid’s wrists above his head.

“What the—FRIDAY you traitohohor!” Peter squawked. He pulled on his wrists, internally pouting that his spider strength wasn’t working in that moment.

“Hey now, don’t you insult FRIDAY,” Tony playfully scolded with a poke to the boy’s stomach. Peter squeaked at the touch. “We’re just here to help you out. I know how rough it’s been with school lately, and I don’t want to lose my underoos just because of that. You’ve been real upset ever since you got here and I know you’ve been upset all week. So no more of that now. You should know the Avengers’ facility is a no-sadness zone!”

And with that said, Tony right away scribbled both hands into his kid’s belly, making Peter screech.

“EeeAAAHAAaahahaaa! HeHEHE—Heyyyy! No faHAHAhahair!” Peter thrashed and kicked, instinctively trying to pull his arms down to no avail. “Mr. Stahahark! Nohoho pleasHEEAheeheehease!”

“Sorry, no can do, kiddo,” Tony casually answered over his mentee’s squeaky laughter. “I haven’t seen my underoos’ favorite smile in forever so I’m making up for lost time!”

“B-But nohohot like tha—HAAAHA! Heheheyyy!” Peter arched his back as Tony’s fingers crept up to his ribs. His blush now spread to the tips of his ears. He was cursing internally at how his Spidey strength was suddenly no longer there as he was laughing like a maniac.

Any other intense situation, Spider-Man would be able to easily get himself out of, but this was different. The ticklish sensations buzzing throughout his nervous system plus all his laughing was sapping any strength he had left, including his spider strength.

As Tony let his fingers inch closer to the teen’s underarms, he was playfully shocked when Peter tried to bite him. He pulled his hands back with a gasp.

“Whoa! What the heck was that?! What are you, a biting tarantula now?”

“You were getting too close to my armpits!” Peter shot back.

“Ohhhh I see.” Tony flashed him an evil grin that reminded Peter of that creepy, murderous knife-hiding doll from that 80s movie that always came back from the dead. “That’s your death spot, isn’t it?”

Peter shifted uncomfortably, his blush darkening. “N-No..?”

“Wrong answer.”

“AAAAAAHHERRHWHRHFEAAHAAAAAHAAAHA!! No Mr. Stahahahark!! NAAAHAHAHAO!!” Peter squirmed like a fish out of water, his body instinctively trying to twist away from Tony’s evil scribbling fingers. But no matter which way he turned, it didn’t help much. Tony’s fingers seemed glued to his hollows.

“EEEEAAAAHEHEEHHAAAA!! M-MR STAHAHARK!! IT…IHIHIT REALLY TIHIHAHAHA TIHIHICKLES BAAAAHAHAHD!!”

“That’s the point, kiddo! It’s more—whoa! You are just extra kicky today, aren’t you? FRIDAY, a little help here?”

“NOOOHOHOHO!”

Tony and FRIDAY had switched places; FRIDAY grabbing ahold of Peter’s flailing legs while Tony grabbed the boy’s wrists in one hand. Even as the two switched places, Tony couldn’t help but notice how Peter wasn’t putting up a fight to get away. He could’ve easily gotten up and bolted the second they let go of his limbs, or curl up with his arms wrapped around his torso so they couldn’t bring his arms up anymore, but he just laid there with a silly smile and blushy cheeks. Almost as if he secretly wanted this to keep going.

Tony had to ask the billion dollar question. “Y’know Pete, despite all your complaints, you’re not even putting up a fight to stop me or FRIDAY. Could it be because…you actually like this? You like getting tickled?”

Peter fell silent. He looked anywhere but his mentor’s eyes. He opened his mouth to answer but all that came out was stutters and keyboard smashes.

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Really? Look, I’m barely holding down your arms here and you’re not even trying to get away!” Peter’s face felt like was on fire now. “You know you can easily break out of my grip—even FRIDAY’s—and hightail it outta here, buuuut…I’m starting to think you don’t want to. Am I right or what?”

“I-I…” was all that came out of Peter’s mouth. Finally, he sighed and locked eyes with his mentor. His flustered, trembling lip suddenly curled into a crap-eating grin. With a defiant smirk, Peter stuck his tongue out. “Bite me, old man!”

Tony’s mouth formed a perfect O. Oh the kid was so asking for it! Recovering in a millisecond, Tony cracked his knuckled for dramatic effect. “That’s it! You’re finished, kid! You know I’m sensitive about my age!”

Peter actually had the nerve to stick his tongue out at him again.

Okay, so maybe truthfully he didn’t want this playful attack to cease. It was a great stress reliever after the rough week he endured. And if Peter wanted to dig a little deeper into it, while he was being tickled to pieces and screeching at frequencies only dogs should hear, he couldn’t think of all the bad things that had happened—his lab report incident, academic pressure, or even any general insecurities he had as Peter Parker and Spider-Man.

All he could think about in the heat of the moment was the playful ticklish feeling, the waves of dopamine, and the pure fun bonding vibe. So despite all the squealing and squirming, Peter was genuinely having fun. He’d be bummed if Tony stopped so soon. So he had to provoke his mentor some more to keep the fun going.

And that’s just what he did.

Oh, but if only FRIDAY hadn’t been traitorous enough to actually look up other sorts of tickling methods and suggest them to Tony to use against Peter.

“W-Wait! Wahahahit!! NonononoAAAAAAHAHAHEEHEHAHAAAA!! EEEEEHHAAAHAEHE!! THAT FEEHEEHEEHEELS AHAHA—AWFUFUFUL!! *snort* NAAAAAAHEHEAAHAAAAHAHAAA!!”

“Did you just snort, kid?!”

“N-Nohoho!! Shuhuhut uhuhup!! AAAAH! Waitwaitwait!! I tahahahake it baHAAAAAAHAHAAAAA!!”

Better hope that none of the Avengers nor his enemies finds out about Spider-Man’s adorable little weakness.

[fefesoutsiderstuff]

More Autistic Cherry Stuff

Started masking around the age of five when she noticed her classmates didn't seem to like her as much as they did her other classmates, connected it to behaviors that were perceived as odd/abnormal.

"Kids my age don't like me because I'm weird" eventually led to: "How much interest, as an average, would you say your peers have in Medieval European geopolitics?" "I don't know what that is." "Oh." *frantically writes in little notebook: delete all evidence of interest in/knowledge of the Middle Ages, Europe, and geopolitics* "Why?" "I just heard those words on the TV last night." "And you decided to... do that?" "...Yes."

Perpetually struggles to copy others while not being super obvious and maintaining enough honesty that she seems interesting

Tries to be more outgoing -> joining random conversations she has nothing to do with

"Should I answer this homework question wrong intentionally so I don't seem like a dork?"

Gets overstimulated at a party and tells the host her mom called and wants her home so she has an excuse to leave

Also lied about what time the party would end so she wouldn't be questioned as to why she was home early

Party ends at 12, tell mom it ends at 10 because she knows she won't be able to function past then and her weekend bedtime is 11, starts goodbye procedures at 9:30

All this effort goes out the window once she's tired/burnt out. School is a horror show for her because it's simultaneously a bunch of loud noises and social conventions. The infamous drive-in double date happened after school. It was also very loud and she was already stressed about getting in a fight with Bob.

Literally just wanted a hand squeeze and felt safe taking the mask off with Ponyboy and only Ponyboy. There was nothing but friendship. She was on the brink of a panic attack.

This, on top of yet another fight with Bob, which ended in a breakup, and then finding out he died, and then getting blamed/yelled at lead to the events of the fic I submitted for Soc September: a complete lack of ability to maintain any semblance of the mask.

Cited John Locke when she dumped Bob. "I'm done." "Did you just break up with me? You can't do that!" "John Locke said that if the government isn't protecting the rights and welfare of the governed, the governed have a right to revolt. When you agreed to be my boyfriend, you agreed to love, respect, and remain loyal to me. You agreed to make me feel safe and comfortable. I agreed to do the same. You are scaring me. I heard the "I got my best girl and some others too" line. Therefore, I have the right to leave." "Cherry, what the fuck?"

Anyway...

Marcia was her biggest cheerleader for demasking once Cherry could finally communicate what was happening.

Cherry did a bit of thinking after the events of the story and sort of started suspecting that she was autistic.

Her cousin was diagnosed with autism and had much higher support needs, but very similar traits to Cherry, just, for lack of better term, on higher levels.

"Hold on. Autism affects the brain. Your sex doesn't determine whether or not you have a brain. So that means girls can be autistic too. But I'm not... wait, what if there are different amounts?"

I'm aware that there's no such thing as less/more autistic. I just didn't know how else to word it and this is Cherry's thought process. This is how she connected the dots.

Her routines are so specific. She always knows what she's supposed to be doing based on the time and date. Things that mess up her routine such as dates/football games stress her out, but she does them anyway.

Does barrel racing and cheer for fun, actually not that good at it, has the proprioception of a box of crayons.

When I say she doesn't want to be a flyer, I mean her internal reaction is to ask the coach how big the curve on their IQ test was when they suggest it, but she sucks it up and does it anyway.

Gets caught, back to ground level, starts crying, they never threw her again.

[nothing0fnothing]

When I was a school girl I struggled to understand that other kids didn't go home to experience what I was experiencing at home. I thought the life I had wasn't fucked up at all. I thought that because I believed that everybody has a dad who loses his temper over TV Sitcoms or a mum whose tendency to violence was on a hair trigger. Basically I thought that everyone else went home to the same level of abuse and dysfunction that I did.

So obviously I all the trauma related issues that impacted my education experience deeply; the brain fog, the constant anxiety, the difficulty making friends, the inability to understand and make myself understood, I thought were just a me problem. I never connected that I was experiencing this because my home life was so chaotic and scary. I thought everyone's home life was chaotic and scary. I never realised I was performing worse at school when my experience at home was worse, because I just thought I was one of those smart people that doesn't do well in school. That must be it right? The issue must be all me.

So I had some serious issues in school because I was experiencing some serious issues at home. I was bullied all year because I didn't understand people aren't supposed to be cruel, I was constantly in trouble for missing classes or losing homework because I had permanent brain fog, I was always 4 steps behind the class and struggled to pick up new concepts. It was so bad that towards the end of year eight my parents were offered the opportunity for me to attend a local school that could support me better. My parents didn't want me going to the local school that could support me better, they wanted me to struggle and underachieve at the underperforming Catholic school they decided I would be attending.

Nobody questioned it further. Nobody thought to check on me. Everyone just stopped recommending better schools and started treating me like a shit student who was being annoying on purpose.

And that was final. I continued struggling at home, I continued struggling at school. I continued having messages arrive for my mum daily reporting back on the issues I was experiencing and I continued getting the absolute shit kicked out of me every time it would happen. Then I would come to school the next day, probably concussed and usually confused and definitely too anxious to learn anything. I'd scrape together a middling grade in that condition, and my teachers would just record that I was a bad student who wasn't trying.

[luvchampagne]

WHOLE - k. tetsuro

summary: kuroo may be lacking and imperfect in some ways but you are there to make up for him.

pairings: kuroo tetsuro x fem! reader

a/n: this has been seating on my drafts for too long, and you can tell im loosing my brain juices at the ending. :')

kuroo tetsuro feels whole the day you entered his life. Every moment he gets he captures himself reminiscing the day how you two met. It was rather a sunny sunday and as always he spent his weekends on his grandmas house. last night he had cried himself to sleep; he had once again wondered what he did wrong for his mother to forsake him, he never truly got a proper answer no matter who he asked and he felt like he would never get one. so today, on a sunny sunday he decided to skip homework. it was unlikely of him, and he knew that all too well but something itched in him to go outside and play after that miserable evening, and there he found you. hair tied up in a pretty pony tail, dressed in floral pink dress as you drew random objects on the sidewalk. one particular thing that caught his eye is a black cat. “you forgot to drew it's whiskers.” he pointed out, he wasn't even aware that he had approach you. “oh,” and oh my god, if he knew that he had fallen inlove with those eyes of yours middle school kuroo wouldve laughed and won't believe a word. “it seems that i have, would you mind drawing it for me?” you offered him a white chalk. “im busy drawing it's food. by the way, his name is mr. cat” kuroo raised a brow at that. “mr. cat? how odd.” he could only smile at that thought as he proceeded to draw mr. cat's whiskers. so, on that day onwards kuroo tetsuro looked forward to every weekend. not only has he gained a new friend besides kenma and he had also gained a fellow friend thats actually interested in his volleyball activities. he learned that you had a crazy obsession with cartoons and like to fan girl over them, you adored taylor swift and you do seem to get along with kenma, occasionally playing video games with each other as you teamed up against kuroo and tell him that he sucks. of course he'd get pouty about it so you always promise to play volleyball with him and drag kenma along.

kuroo tetsuro feels whole when you two met again in college, unfortunately your parents had found a new job at a better neighbourhood and decided to move there. forcibly severing your contacts with your friends as you entered high school. he had saw you first in the library, hair tied once again in a high pony tail as you typed something on your laptop, your anti rad glass seating beautifully on the bridge of your nose. he remembers particularly in middle school he had told kenma how he felt about you, how his hands get clammy and a random wave of nervousness rush over him every time he gets to see you and how he feels like he's about to vomit his heart whenever you smile at him and tell him how proud you are of his volleyball accomplishments. kenma told him it was a crush and he immediately denied it. of course, middle schooler kuroo didn't care about any of that so he hadn't thought he'd grew feelings of you unconsciously. he recalls that feeling on a random sunny weekend once more when he was on his first year of high school after his friends asked (specifically yaku) if he ever had a crush. it was only then that the realization dawned on him, he liked you. he liked you and, ohmygod, kenma was right and everything's too late now and there was 1% he could actually meet you again. he remembers correctly that he felt hopeless and how dumb of him to never realized his own feelings for you. of course he mopped over that for a week, i mean sure, maybe you wouldn't reciprocate his feelings too but atleast he could've told you before you left. and he felt so stupid and dumb to deny what kenma told him 3 years ago. So, to meet you again in a random library was something he didn't expect. one thing led to another and he had approached you and thank god, you still remember him. a tiny part of him would've died in embarrassment if you did forget about him. he had guessed that if you didn't, he'd just re-introduce himself to you.

kuroo tetsuro feels whole when you drunkly confessed that you like him. of course, that wasn't his ideal way for confessing but if its you, he'd let it slide.

kuroo tetsuro feels whole when he finally get to feel your lips against his. it felt like home oh-so-warm and tasted like watermelon. he never knew that he'd obsessed over that fruit.

kuroo tetsuro feels whole when he gets home exhausted and youd always be there to engulf him in a hug, whispering “i miss you's and welcome, love.”

kuroo tetsuro feels whole when you said yes to him repeatedly on a sunny sunday under a wisteria trea. it was a three letter word but it meant the whole world to him. perhaps it wasn't sunday's that bring him luck but you. because when you had looked him in the eye when you two were seven and offered him a chalk, the day after his parents argued once more over custody, you had saved him. unconsciously.

kuroo tetsuro feels whole as he admires your sleeping face, legs tangled together under the blanket as your warmth engulf him. he can feel you starting to wake up but he can't help but stare at you longer. it was sunday again, and god knows how many times he had already hit snoozed on your alarm just to admire you further. kuroo tetsuro may not be perfect and lacking in some parts but, when he is with you he can feel as if he could conquer the whole world, because you keep him whole and he has zero plans of loosing you again.

[ravenssh1t]

Midnight Kisses - X.T.

telekenesis!reader, Wednesday’s twin!reader, gn!reader, mindreader!reader (lmao), fluffy, SFW

AN: hey beautiful people! this is my first fic that im acc publishing so please be kind. that being said i am always open to constructive criticism. if you enjoy this, please let me know, and if you’d like me to write more, or for other characters, just drop me a message or an ask! I will write for a whole plethora of characters so just let me know which characters and maybe a small prompt if you so desire!! i hope you enjoy!! <333

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I looked over at my alarm clock. The bright red number glared 00:34 back at me. I'd only been at Nevermore for a week or so, and already it was a torturous experience. The glares from Barclay and her minions, the rumours, everyone walking on eggshells around Wednesday and I. It's a miracle neither of us had pulled another 'piranha incident'. There was one thing that never seemed to care about the rumours though. Well, one person. Xavier Thorpe. 

Wednesday had met him before.  His godmother's funeral. Allegedly, she saved his life, which is rather unlike my dear sister. However, in the long run it's been rather helpful.

Since starting at Nevermore, I had only really become close to two people. If you could even call it close. Our new roommate, Enid. And Wednesday's old acquaintance, Xavier. 

Right now, I need a distraction. From the thoughts that clouded my mind and prevented the graceful release of sleep from my grasp. Enid, Wednesday and Thing were all asleep. I decided to head down to Xavier's dorm. Since Rowan was expelled (killed, left, whatever) I've ended up in Xavier's room a few times. Once for stalking purposes, once for homework, once for... well I'm not entirely sure how to define it. But I know that he's what I need right now. 

I crept out of the window, and distracted the housemaster with an illusion of a hamster that I know he loves. I crept up the stairs and knocked on Xavier's door. No answer. I knock again and poke my head in and softly say "Thorpe? You in here?" Nothing again. He must be in his art shed. 

The brisk walk through the grounds was not unwelcome. It gave me quiet. I saw the lights on in Xavier's shed and picked up my pace a little. Something about that man makes me feel a weird tingling in my stomach. It's a new unfeeling. But not unpleasant. 

He doesn't answer when I knock, but I can hear the not-so-delicate sound of Deftones playing through decrepit doors, so I doubt he heard me. I decide to just walk in, and he's got his back towards the door, so I just take a seat on one of the stools and watch him paint. Something about him seems to draw me in. I can't help but admire the way his hair looks in a messy bun with the front strands poking out. The way his tall stature towers over his canvas. His masterful hands sweep the paint in particular ways just to fit his liking. 

I accidentally knock over a plastic cup full of multicoloured paint brushes and he jumps and turns around swiftly and catches me and says “Jesus Christ, Y/N! Do you make a living out of scaring this shit out of people?” and I smirk and say “No, but that is the goal.” He scoffs at my retort and saunters over to me while he asks “What’s wrong?” 

“Who said there’s anything wrong?” I ask slightly bitterly albeit unintentionally.

“Drop the tough guy facade, we both know that Wednesday and Enid are asleep, so you found me. Now, what’s wrong?” Damn. He read me like a small children’s book. 

“I couldn’t sleep. Needed a distraction. For some reason my brain seems to find your company tolerable.” 

He decides to ignore the last statement and instead questions “Do you want to see my new painting?” 

“If I must.” 

We walk over to one of his canvases and he spins it round. It’s me. Well, my hand. My hand in the middle of culminating an illusion with my powers. The deep crimsons and maroons contrast against the vibrant scarlet just like they do in real life. He even got the rings I wear down to a T. 

It’s incredibly rare that I am rendered speechless. But alas, here I am. My mouth ever so slightly agape, mind void of all language. Just pure astonishment. He breaks me out of my trance by saying “Sorry. I know it’s a bit creepy. I can get rid of it if you want-”

“Xavier,” I interject. “It’s beautiful. I love it.”

He smiles at this and the tip of his nose and his cheeks turn a distinct rose-tinted pink. He lifts his hand over the portrait and animates the picture. It moves exactly as mine do. The astonishment I first felt came sweeping back over me like a tidal wave. “Thank you, Xavier. This is amazing.” 

“Amazing enough for a hug?” He questions boldly. 

“Fine.” My reluctance is entirely feigned because the one thing I need right now is a hug. He practically jogs over to me in excitement and wraps his long arms around me tightly. My head sits just at the nave of his chest and it feels like the final two puzzle pieces finally slotted together. “You can hug back, you know?” He (not so) subtly hints as his chin rests on the top of my head. “I know.” I grumble back stubbornly. I hesitantly wrap my arms around him. Oddly comforting. Something in me tells me this is exactly where I’m meant to be at this moment. I don’t notice myself relaxing into the embrace and tucking my head impossibly closer to his chest, but he does. “We can do this more often if you need it.” 

“I may just take you up on that, Thorpe.” We stay there for a few seconds longer, then he lets go, and I do too. I wander back over to the desk and take a seat on the oak plank. He follows me and leans over me to ‘grab a paintbrush’ or so he says. He gently places his hand on my hip as he does, and I feel my face flush bright pink. He catches this and says “Am I that good?” 

“You wish you had that effect on me, Thorpe.” 

“Oh, I know I do, Addams.”

“How’s that then?” I query, genuinely hoping he is completely oblivious to the way I feel about him. 

“You’re a dick to pretty much everyone here. But with me? You had a soft spot almost immediately. You blush every single time I touch you. You watch me paint for hours on end while pretending that you’re doing homework because you don’t want me to notice that you’re staring at me. It’s obvious!” He chuckles out the last statement with the cockiest smirk on his smug, beautiful face. 

“Well, what about you Mr Loner who can’t seem to want to spend enough time with me? You touch me every chance you get. You painted a picture of my hand for God’s sake!” It’s possible I may have gotten slightly defensive. 

“Y/N. I never said it was a bad thing.” He etched ever so much closer to me until he was only two inches away from my face. He placed his strong hands on my delicate shoulders and gazed into my eyes. “Can I kiss you?” Speechless once again. I try to force out something, anything coherent, but I just stammer silently. “Ok, answer me this,” He notices my nerves. “Do you want to kiss me?” 

‘Yes! Yes, Xavier Thorpe! Of course I want to kiss you! It’s my dream, my livelihood, my reason for being alive!’ is what I want to say. No. What I want to scream from the rooftops. But all that comes out is a hushed and hesitant “Yes.” 

He puts his long pointer finger under my chin and lifts my head towards his face so I have no choice but to stare into his beautiful green eyes once again. “Speak up, sweetheart.” If he wasn’t standing in between my legs right now, I would be forcing them closed. “Yes, you dick.” I force out, it comes out slightly louder than I expected, but the excitement is evident in my voice. “Then can I kiss you?” 

“Yes.” I assert firmly this time. 

His hands move down to my hips, and he squeezes them gently. He leans down and pecks me on the cheek, then the lips. Feeling unsatisfied, a sudden overwhelming confidence regains control of me. I wrap my hands around the back of his neck and suggest that “If you’re going to kiss me, you should at least do it properly.” He smirks again. God, he loves doing that. If it wasn’t so attractive I might just complain about it. “Like this?” He asks, grasping my hips harder this time and before I know it, our lips collide again. This time, it’s not as soft and fast-lived. It’s passionate, deep. If I thought the hug felt like two puzzle pieces fitting together, this is ,oh, so much better. Our lips move together in perfect harmony. My hand moves up into his hair, and I tug it gently, which covets a deep groan from the bottom of his throat into my mouth. I had never heard such a beautiful noise in my life. 

He pulled away softly. “Yeah. Like that.” I mutter breathlessly. 

“Thought so. Let’s go back to my dorm.” Yet another bold move from him. 

“I’m not that easy, Thorpe.” 

“No, idiot. You’re staying in my dorm tonight. You’ll sleep better.” 

That makes me smile. “Okay,” I accept. “but I expect more kisses.” 

“You read my mind, Y/N.” Oh, the irony.

[roudiseshipweek]

Fixed It

Summary:

Louise’s battery dies in the middle of an important assignment. She borrows Zeke’s laptop just to protect her grade. She stumbles upon a fanfiction written by Zeke and it reveals anxieties shared by her and Rudy.

Roudise Week 2024 Day 4. Prompts: Anxiety/Consequence. Chosen Prompt Anxiety.

Notes:

Yes I am a big enough dork to write a fanfic within a fanfic.

Louise cursed under her breath. She fucking hated business statistics. She had always been pretty good with math and science, but this class was a monster, and her professor was the devil. She had never wanted to drop out more. She reminded herself that if she passed her final, she only had one semester left and then she would FINALLY have her business degree. She would finally convince her family she was more than the spoiled brat she had been as a child. Bob would finally hand the restaurant over to her. She in no way wanted to push him out but he was old and tired. The work wore on him more than it did in the past and he deserved to rest. She knew one day it would all be worth it but in that moment she just wanted to quit. The front door slammed shut and Rudy huffed up the stairs toting the snowstorm staples.

“I got home just in time. It’s really coming down out there.” Rudy wheezed.

“Yeah, I was seriously worried you would get snowed in at the grocery store.” Louise replied.

“It could have happened. They were locking up when I came but I guess the manager felt sorry for me. The last time I moved that fast was when Mr. Frond made us run the mile.” Rudy explained.

“You sound awful I am sorry for making you go out.” Louise apologized.

“Don’t be I want my little scholar to succeed.” Rudy cooed.

“Little?” Louise scoffed.

“Huge, ginormous, mammoth scholar!” Rudy cried.

“Eh maybe something in between dwarf and monster?” Louise suggested.

“Regular sized?” Rudy smirked.

“Aw but that’s your title.” Louise reminded.

“Not anymore now I am Tall Rudy.” Rudy laughed.

“Fine I am a regular sized scholar now let me get to work. I have to have this in if I want to take my exam on Monday.” Louise insisted.

“Of course,” Rudy replied.

  Rudy went to put the groceries away and Louise continued to toil away at her homework assignment. She wished she were a brain like him and had been able to finish a year early instead of almost two years late. Though brains didn’t really matter here. Rudy went to school through the summers, so he didn’t have to deal with deciding which parent to stay with during the summer months. It came with the advantage of Kaylee and him having the same apartment throughout their time in college. Louise, by contrast, wanted to have as little debt as possible and that meant taking an extra two years to graduate with a basic business degree.

The storm continued to intensify, and Louise continued to suffer. She was almost done when there was a loud crack and then the power cut off. She prayed it was just a flicker, and it would return within seconds. Seconds passed and she knew she was fucked. Her laptop was on fifteen percent. She hadn’t charged it because she stupidly assumed she would get done before the storm hit. Speeding through was not an option. All she could do was hold her breath and pray. In a cruel twist of irony, she had finally reached the end when her battery gave out.

“FUCK!” Louise screamed.

“Are you OK, babe?” Rudy asked.

“No, I was almost done and my battery died.” Louise sniffed.

“Is there another computer? The session holds for fifteen minutes. If we get you logged in elsewhere fast you might be saved!” Rudy explained.

“Tina has a deadline, so she took her laptop, but Zeke left his!” Louise cried.

“Hurry!” Rudy ordered.

  Louise barreled into Tina and Zeke’s room. After the bike incident she had sworn not to mess with Tina’s things anymore and she had mostly been successful, but this was an emergency God Damit! She yanked Zeke’s laptop off the desk and frantically logged into “Bog Harbor Community College’s” website. She entered her information and records speed and logged in with time to spare. She was done within five minutes and once the exam was over on Monday she would finally be done with this nightmare.

“I did it!” Louise cried collapsing onto Tina and Zeke’s bed.

“Mazel Tov!” Rudy cried.

“Yep, now to get Zeke’s laptop back exactly how it was.” Louise replied.

“Boy that’s a far cry from the Louise I knew at Wagstaff.” Rudy smirked.

“I had a good influence.” Louise replied.

“I’m flattered.” Rudy replied.

  Louise wanted to be good. She really did but her crippling curiosity got the best of her. It wasn’t a crime and besides, she had to ensure Zeke was being good to her sister. It wasn’t going to harm anyone. She clicked the button that would show Zeke’s browser history. Something caught her eye, and she let out a laugh.

“I thought you were reformed.” Rudy observed.

“It’s just a teeny slip up but look at this! Zeke has an Ao3 account.” Louise laughed.

“Well, I mean it’s public. It can’t hurt.” Rudy replied.

  Louise clicked on the link. She guessed Zeke either made the account as a back-up for Tina or only used it to read because there was only one story. She assumed it was something Tina had written, and she was not into smut. So, she started to close the tab but to her surprise Rudy scrolled down.

“Ohh Brooklyn 99! Your favorite!” Rudy cooed.

“God No! It’s probably Tina shipping herself with Boyle! I mean why?! He’s gross and he hates horses! And he’s gross!” Louise cried.

“He hates a horse, and you ship yourself with Rosa and Pimento who are also gross.” Rudy corrected.

“Consensual gross.” Louise scoffed.

“Aw man! It’s a Casecation fixed it fic! I have got to read this!” Rudy cried.

“NO!” Louise ordered.

“Aw come on Louise you read Tina’s diary all the time. Hell, you used to summarize it on the playground. I get you have grown but don’t act superior.” Rudy sighed.

“No Rudy. You… you don’t understand. Tina and Zeke had a fight just like Jake and Amy’s in that episode. Except Zeke didn’t get advice from an insightful old lady who he assumed was going to kill him. He didn’t change his mind right away and… and Tina actually left him.” Louise explained.

“What?” Rudy gasped.

“It was when you were away at college, and we were broke… taking a break. Sam and Becky announced their pregnancy, and I guess Tina wanted a baby too. Zeke wasn’t sure and God why does Tina have to be so much like Amy?! It’s so annoying! But she actually talked to a divorce attorney. They were separated for months. They were both horribly depressed. It was horrible.” Louise explained.

“So, what made them get back together?” Rudy asked.

“Zeke’s mom died, and Tina was the only person he could call.” Louise replied.

“Why didn’t you tell me? We were just apart because you worried, I would find somebody more compatible at college.” Rudy questioned.

“Because it freaked me out. Tina and Zeke have always been couple goals and when they split up. I mean they are perfect. It scared me.” Louise admitted.

“Yeah, I guess that’s why I haven’t popped the question yet even though everybody is pressuring me to.” Rudy confessed.

“Because of a fight between another couple you didn’t even know about until two minutes ago?” Louise questioned.

“Because I am worried, we will get divorced.” Rudy clarified.

“Really?” Louise asked.

“Yeah, my parents are divorced. My grandparents are divorced, my great grandparents were divorced. Divorce runs in my family.” Rudy explained.

“Or your family just picks non compatible partners.” Louise observed.

“But we are different.” Rudy reminded.

“Different and non-compatible are not synonyms.” Louise pointed out.

“Yeah, but what if you want somebody stronger? Somebody who can keep up with you?” Rudy questioned.

“If I wanted that. I would have pursued that. I want you because you are gentle, and you make me better. Besides, you could want somebody who is calmer and not always testing your limits.” Louise countered.

“If I wanted that I would have pursued it. I want you because you are a badass who brings me out of my comfort zone,” Rudy replied.

“Excellent. So, we are in agreement. We are a power couple who is going to be married forever and adopt our kids.” Louise explained.

“The first two of whom we have to name Hitchcock and Scully because of a bet you made with our friend you will not tell me about.” Rudy added.

“We really will be living the American dream.” Louise said with a smile.

“Yeah, we will.” Rudy agreed.

[bnha-more-like-bnh-gay]

I got a prompt for you! Prompt: Tired of the daily abuse he suffers, Izuku makes the choice to run away, hoping for his mother's life to get better once he's gone. Keep in mind this Izuku isn't blinded by the flashiness of heroics and gave up on it a long time ago.

So as Izuku wanders the streets alone, he meets up with some of the future LOV members such as Dabi, Toga, Spinner, Compress, ect.

Together they form a found family with a mission to work their way up to expose hero society and change it for the better (instead of whatever the hell the LOV were doing)

HELLO, I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG, SCHOOL AND MY BRAIN FUCKED ME OVER, BUT Y E S!!!!! I LOVE

Okay, imma be honest, a large part of this is going to involve toga, because I love her so much and she deserves so much better than she got, and she and izuku would’ve been such good friends if they had met earlier

Tw: for bullying and self esteem issues (a lot of self blaming) and as a general rule for my headcanons,,,,,, ✨angst✨

Kaachan and his ✨henchmen✨ had been getting worse lately. Well, ever since his “diagnosis,” it had been getting worse and worse, but izuku was about to reach is breaking point

Every day, he heard about how it was his fault that his father left, that no one loved or cared about him, that the world would be better off without him, that his mother would be better off without him.

He could see how tired she was, he could tell that the bills were starting to stack up, and that kaachan repeatedly busting his hearing aids was Not Helping.

Really, izuku knew they were right (they’re not, I’ll fight them). If he wasn’t such a burden on his mother, she’d probably be a lot happier. She’d probably smile more. Sing more. Hell, her husband wouldn’t have left her if it hadn’t been for him!

His mom worked long hours, so he’d often wander through the streets if he didn’t have too much homework. It was rather peaceful in the early hours of the morning when his mother had the night shift and izuku would find his only friends in the alley cats

That being said, izuku also knew it was rather dangerous in dark alleyways during nightfall. Especially for a quirkless kid. But, that had never stopped him before, and so, when he hears muttering from a few streets over, he silently, curiously, stupidly! Izuku, turn back now! The rational part of his brain reprimanded.

He didn’t listen

Eventually, he found a girl in one alley, only a few turns away from his, she seemed to be taking to herself?

Well. Izuku wasn’t one to judge. Especially when he did the same thing!

But she seemed to be in distress. Her muttering was getting louder, and seemed to be turning into a full on beat down of her own misgivings

Again, izuku could relate

He approached her, asking if she was okay. He made sure to stay several meters away, he might not have much self preservation, but he wasn’t stupid

She looked at him frantically. Oh kami, why did she have a knife?! (Please imagine the vine there) she was telling him to stay back, too

But again, when has izuku ever done what people tell him to?

He tells her his name and tries to reassure her that he’s not going to hurt her, that she’s safe

It takes a while, but she is eventually able to calm down a bit

It’s strange really, two kids who couldn’t have been out of middle school out in the middle of the night. But, they started to talk.

For the first time since he was 4, izuku had someone he could consider a friend? Well. Aside from the cats, of course!

Toga was so kind! And she was just as excitable as him! She really liked cute things, so he decided that he had to show her all the pictures of his alley cat friends!

She. Loved. Them.

He taught her how to get close with them! You just had to be a little patient! She wasn’t the best with that, but that was okay! She would do anything for a friend, and her new friend really liked these cats! So, she could totally be patient for them!!

It was worth it too! They were so cute, and izu-Chan looked even cuter holding them!! (Not an izutoga ship, she just loves cute things)

The two young teens (I imagine they’re like,,, 13 and 14 around now? Maybe 14 and 15? Toga runs away after she graduates middle school at 15, so like,,,, around there), as the weeks go on and they get to know each other, toga begins to open up about her family’s hatred and suppression of her quirk, and izuku tells her about his quirklessness, the bullying, and the stress he puts on his mother

She is incredibly protective of him. That’s her little brother/best friend/only person who cares about her/her person.

He’s the same with her, really, just shows it a bit differently. Has 1000000% written 100+ page PowerPoints on how once she is and that she can do anything she puts her mind to

She’s more action and physical based. She’s very affectionate, she hugs him as often as she can. They’re both touch starved, and she knows she’s not the best with words. So, she steals shit for him.

He doesn’t know that it’s stealing at first, when she shows up with a new notebook after kaachan burned another one. She doesn’t get why he’s so worried about her stealing at first. It’s only from big companies and corporations that could afford to lose a few notebooks every now and then. He just doesn’t want her to get caught though. But she’s safe! Really!!

They find Dabi a few months later. He’s older than them by 7 and 8 years respectively, and he’s kind of an asshole. But toga likes his spunk and disregard for the rules. And izuku likes that he doesn’t care about quirks

Dabi and toga shit talk katsuki and I will not be told otherwise. Izuku feels bad at first, but they kinda put it into perspective of like, “how would you feel if he was doing/saying this stuff to/about us?” And izuku just like >:0

Obviously it took a while, and he still doesn’t know that they made shirts with katsuki’s face in the 🚫 sign, but I like to imagine that they show up to pick izuku up from school wearing them and bakugku had a conniption

Toga and izuku don’t actually run away until toga’s graduation from middle school

Some of her classmates pulled a really asshole prank on her and she had a panic attack. She ran away from the ceremony thing and was later found by a frantic izuku and dabi (her brothers)

She told them that she couldn’t go back. That her parents were mad at, no, disgraced by her

Dabi was mad. “More bitch ass parents. The worlds just fucken’ full of them”

- dabi, 2xxx

He offers to kill them for her. Izuku tells him no :( shame.

Let’s just say that this is around the time bakugou says his infamous “swan dive” comment and the sludge villain incident (I know I think both toga running away and that whole deal would happen around the relative same few months, so let’s just push them together! Why not!)

And the three decide to pull a little disappearing act

Well. Mainly toga and izuku. Dabi pulled his disappearing stunt a while ago. He gives them pointers. Dramatic bitch

Let’s be real, the three of them are all dramatic bitches

Izuku leaves a letter to his mom, explaining that he’s sorry for putting her in such a difficult place, and that he hopes she can find happiness, and that he’ll miss her.

:((((((((((((

They end up crashing a couple towns away in an abandoned building. Not very safe, but. Abandoned. Sooo

Toga says that the building is just like them

Abandoned

Dabi tells her not to look too deeply into it, but izuku thinks about that statement a lot

Spinner and dabi both have like… 0 respect for heroes. -10 actually. But, spinner is quite interested by these three vagabond’s plan to expose corrupt heroes and make society a better place, so, he tags along.

Mr. Compress catches dabi trying to pick pocket someone.

It goes badly </3

Dabi’s slight of hand just needs a bit of practice, and who’s better to teach him than a world class thief?

No one. That’s who.

Mr. Compress cannot believe he’s going to have to parent these teens and young adults. Fuck man. Can he leave now? He didn’t ask for this, he just wanted to share some tricks to the next generation of thieves, now he’s listening to this green child explain their plot for world domination?!

Oh, what’s that? It’s not world domination? Fine. Guess he’s going to teach these four how to steal shit because he will not be caught dead with criminals who don’t know how to complete a heist

Obviously, they go after endeavor first.

They take great joy in destroying him.

What?? Just because they aren’t the league of villains doesn’t mean our vigilante crew doesn’t enjoy some sweet sweet revenge on those who have hurt their little make shift family!

Mr. Compress is not a dad. He’s just not.

Did he show izuku all his masks and listen to the boy nerd out about them and their different histories and design origins? Yes. Did he think it was adorable? Yes.

That means nothing though and you can’t prove anything!

Spinner and dabi are the “cool” big brothers

Read: fucking dumbasses with issues with authority

It’s fine

Toga and izuku are feral sinanon rolls with issues with authority

Mr. Compress went from following his father’s footsteps in living life as a thief to overthrowing the hero commission with these kids who are all over a decade younger than him

Love that for him.

Dabi learns how to make katsudon for izuku when he’s homesick

Izuku helps dabi and toga deal with their quirk issues

They have a few run ins with stain, (spinner fanboys)

Izuku starts making them gear!

I don’t know why I love izuku making gear and tech, but he’s just such a smart and chaotic lad that I think it’s perfect for him

Definitely hacks into U.A. And plays online chess with nezu

He’s getting better

Nezu has heard whispers of their little group, and is quite excited to see how everything plays out!

I hope you liked thisss!!! Again, I am SO SORRY that this took so long. I had it in my drafts for about a week and worked on it when I could, but brain and homework were djsjcinsignaj

I love this thoughhhh!! Sorry if spinner and mr. Compress are ooc, I really don’t remember their personalities too much 😅 but I hope it was okay anyway!!!

[magical-girl-coral]

Happy WIP wednesday. Today's dish is a snippet from AP:NP because I legit have no idea when the fuck I'm actually gonna finish this chapter.

When Ayda invited Adaine over to the Compass Point Library, Adaine was ready to kneel at her and thank her until the end of time. Between feeling restless from the sudden lack of action or summer homework, realizing she is the reason why none of the Rat Grinders remember last year, and hearing everyone around her 'get lucky', she was more than willing to run away from her problems for the next twelve hours. She waved goodbye to Jawbone, locked arms with Awelyn and got the fuck out of there before anyone could ask any questions. Fig was already there with a history book about ancient instruments in her hand (probably searching for inspiration for her next album) and just through the smallest of eye contacts she understood not to ask any questions either.

It has been about two hours since Adaine got there, and she and the rest of the girls were all standing around the receptionist's desk while Awelyn is having her lunch break. Fig was telling them about what happened the night before with Ivy Embra's disappearance, and Adaine snorted into her cola when Fig reached the end of the story.

"You're kidding!" Adaine choked out, trying to breath threw the gas coming up her nose. "Karma, bitch? Those were her last words?"

"They were, I shit you not," Fig said, describing what happened with wild hand gestures. "I was waiting up in my room for mom to come back and I heard everything through my window. Oisin screamed for ten minutes and Lucy almost fainted too. I think even Mary Ann looked like she was having a heart attack."

Awelyn smiled. "A woman after my own heart."

"Is she alright?" Ayda asked. "Fainting can be a serious issue. I need to know she's healthy before deciding if this is a laughing matter."

"Oh, yeah, she's completely fine," Fig said, waving Ayda's worries away. "She was just emotionally overwhelmed and her brain decided to take a break for her. Kristen didn't even need to heal anything so they sent her home with Oisin." Fig eyes widen. "Oh my god, I forgot to tell you something-"

Just as she said that, a portal opened in the middle of the library, with one Oisin Hakinvar walking through gingerly, hunch shouldered and a bewildered expression from everything around him. He gave them a shy hand wave.

Adaine slowly turned to glare at Fig.

Fig shrank into Ayda. "Oisin asked this morning if he could see the library. I kind of... said... yes?"

Adaine turned away from Fig and laid her forehead on the wooden desk.

Awelyn eyed Oisin's up and down. "Need any help, little dragon boy?"

Oisin somehow got even tinier under Awelyn's glare. "Just, some stuff about conjuration magic? And rune magic, for some reason? Ivy has plans she doesn't want to tell me about."

"I can show you where both subjects are," Ayda said, leaving Fig's side. Oisin's body language loosened as she showed him the way and he got further away from the entrace. Did the Abernant sisters really scare him this much?

The second they were out of view, Fig grabbed Adaine by the arm. "Okay, you have to tell why you hate his guts so much. Weren't you the one who asked Ankarna to bring them back? What made you go through a whole one eighty?"

Adaine signed. Here goes nothing. "You know those moments in life, where you're really excited about something and think 'hell yeah, I'm gonna do the thing!', so you prepare a shit ton of stuff at three AM and get really excited for it and think about how now you're finally going to get your life together before you go to sleep only for the next morning to come around and now you realize your whole room is a mess and you actually have to work on all the plans you made the night before?"

Fig had a deeply, deeply haunted look in her eyes. "...Maybe so. What does this have to do with Oisin?"

"Because now I have to deal with him being around after everything he did and there's nothing I can do about it," Adaine groaned. "He can't apologize for things he didn't remember doing, he can't pay for actions he didn't even want to commit, and I hope to god no one is giving him shit for getting betrayed by his friend. But it still fucking hurts, because I was still hurt by a version of him, and all this anger that has nowhere to go and the fact that it's even there just makes me feel even worse. He was brainwashed for a year! It's even less fair to him!"

She slammed against Fig's shoulder. "It all just sucks, Fig. All of this just sucks so fucking much."

Fig snuggled back into Adaine. "If it makes you feel any better, I threw up on his lawn when they had their party."

Adaine laughed. "It does make me feel better. Thanks, Fig."

[blurglesmurfklaine]

omg I need to hear your thoughts on teachers!Javey because that makes my brain go BRRRRRRR

OKAY OKAY OKAY SO. I can already tell this is going to be long winded so. apologies.

To understand why Teachers!Javey has a grip on my two brain cells like a dog has on his chew toy, we must first understand the types of students they are.

---

Jack Kelly is never really the stereotypical "good" student. He's a ward of the state, probably has some sort of undiagnosed learning disability that all his teachers attributed to him being a poor student with lousy attendance. Reading and writing is difficult for him from an early age, and he's okay with math until they introduce fucking word problems--what is that about? Why are they putting reading in math?

Every teacher from first to fifth grade he has can see that when Jack speaks to his peers, he's intelligent. He's a natural born leader and trend setter amongst the students. It's such a shame he's wasting his potential. It's such a shame that he never finishes his exams on time, and chooses to waste time doodling in the margins instead. It's such a shame he's only ever at school half the time, the other half out and about doing God knows what.

It's such a shame that every single teacher he had for the first eleven years of his life just assumed his failure was a deliberate choice.

But he finds solace in arts and craft time in elementary, and then is delighted to find out he can have art class every single day, for an entire period in middle school.

Teachers get meaner in middle school. Jack's smart mouth gets smarter--or dumber, according to his seventh grade History teacher, who loudly announces that Jack has the lowest grade out of everyone in his class. Jack stops showing up to History after that, but manages to scrape by with a C by convincing this girl, Katherine, to do his work for him, and he'll finish her art project she needs to get her Fine Arts credit.

(They date for a while and ofc decide they're better off as friends)

He meets Miss Medda his freshman year of high school, because the counselors screwed up his schedule and put him in Theatre instead of Art for his elective class. He needs remedial English Language Arts and Reading classes, both of which are during the only Art classes his stupid school offers. But Miss Medda is kind, treats him with respect, and after Jack accidentally leaves his sketchbook behind, offers to let him do backdrops for her plays instead of having to act in them.

Jack really can't afford to make time for this kind of long-term project--he's got to walk his little brothers (who aren't... legally his brothers, but... it's easier to just call them his brothers) home from their school, and then helps them with their homework best he can because he's not going to let them struggle the way he does and Tony is starting to get in fights, which is really, really stressing Charlie out and--

Miss Medda offers to let them stay in the theatre while the younger kids work on their schoolwork and Jack on his paintings.

It's an excuse to stay away from the Refuge an hour longer. It's an offer Jack can't refuse.

It's Miss Medda who first suggests to Jack he might be dyslexic. Jack's never even heard that word before, but it sparks a light of hope in him. He's not stupid. He's just--wired differently.

A diagnosis is not easy to come by. Jack has no legal guardians who can request testing from the school on his behalf, and Mr. Snyder sure as hell isn't going to shell out the money to do it third party. Miss Medda says she's doing it to streamline the testing, but when Snyder calls him in to say she's requested to foster him, Race, and Charlie, it takes every ounce of Jack's willpower not to cry right then and there.

School was never easy for Jack, and it still isn't, but it's amazing how much easier it becomes when he's got something that resembles a home. A soft bed, with clean sheets. A diagnosis. A family.

College is a possibility. It becomes a reality when Medda helps him submit his application to NYU.

Even though he's an art major, he's got to take basics. A computer that can read his assignments to him helps get him through with flying colors.

Medda assures him he doesn't have to do this for her. He's not. He's doing it for the fourteen year old Jack who needed a teacher like Miss Medda--and now, one like him.

---

David Jacobs is the stereotypical "good" student. Math, Science, History--it all comes incredibly easy to him from a young age. But especially Reading and Writing.

He finishes assignments early for the sole purpose of having more free time in class that he uses to read. Six years in a row, he's the top reader in his entire district, even beating out kids in high school starting from the seventh grade.

Students adore him, teachers love him, and his parents are proud as they could be.

Most kids are impressed. Some think he's doing it to show off, but he does it because there's nothing else he'd rather be doing. No amount of parties or dances can measure up to the way the ending to Of Mice and Men broke his heart, or the way Jodi Picoult's Leaving Time put it back together.

He loves analyzing the worlds he's being sucked into, highlighting passages that make him feel a certain type of way, and analyzing them to understand what makes them so powerful. He loves the power authors give their readers--to escape this world, to find meaning in theirs.

When he gets accepted to Colombia, it just makes sense for him to be an English major.

And he loves every second of it.

He loves writing papers and sticking to the most outlandish interpretations of Kafka, joining the campus newspaper club--even all the terrible peer reviews he has to do. He adores it all.

And then he graduates.

Magna Cum Laude, of course.

And David's not really sure what to do.

And a few months of crashing on friends' couches until he can get something published turns into a year turns into eighteen months turns into "Don't sweat it, you'll find something," and "Hey, I know a guy at The World who'd love to have you write columns," and if one more person tells him about the twelve publishers who rejected Harry Potter, he is going to pop a vein.

And then he's working for a Tax Attorney's office as a secretary and he hates every stupid minute of it, but it pays the bills for about a year before the office downsizes due to an actual fucking pandemic and decides he's the first to go.

He crashes with Sarah until quarantine is over. Then he spends another year working odds-and-ends jobs to help her with rent because he is not a freeloader with an English degree, for fuck's sake.

Sarah sends him a listing for a teaching position at a district in Brooklyn. Alternative Certification paid for by the campus. Eleventh Grade English.

It's a steady income, and he has an entire year to get his teaching certificate.

David applies for the position, not expecting to even really be considered, but in this teacher shortage--all the school is looking for, really, is a warm body.

David accepts the job.

He's always been good at school.

---

There's a weird, lanky looking guy who comes into Jack's class unannounced, accompanied by the academic dean, who informs Jack (with absolutely no heads up) that Mr. Jacobs is their newest English teacher and needs three more hours of live Observations before he's allowed to begin his classes.

Jack is less than thrilled at being observed for the last half of the day, but Mr. Jacobs smiles awkwardly and waves and that’s the end of that. Jack is instantly endeared by this guy who is way in over his head.

The academic Dean leaves, and Mr. Jacobs retrieves a binder and notebook from his messenger bag. As Jack resumes his lesson, the newest teacher takes fastidious notes throughout.

Jack has to actively try not to smile when one of his students goes to Mr. Jacobs for help with a guided practice warm up sketch. Mr. Jacobs seems surprised, but easily answers the questions best he can.

At least this new guy seems to care.

---

At the end of the day, David gathers his things into his bag and heads towards Mr. Kelly, extending his hand. “Thanks so much for this, Mr. Kelly. I really appreciate it.”

“Call me Jack.” He takes David’s hand.

“David.”

“Nice to meet you, Davey.” David’s stomach does a funny little flip at the nickname. It rolls off of Jack’s tongue so casually, so easily, that David doesn’t even feel the need to correct him. “If ya have any other questions, lemme know.”

David digs a pen out of his front pocket and extends it to Jack. “No questions, but could I get your signature on my observations sheet?”

“‘Course.”

The pen passes between their hands and with it, a bolt of electricity David wonders if he’s imagining, but hopes he isn’t.

He is not ogling the muscles of Jack’s hands as they sign the papers, and he’s definitely not noticing the way Jack’s smock hugs his waist where it’s tied behind his back, or the way his rolled up sleeves seem to broaden his shoulders.

“I noticed you have pictures detailing the steps on each of your assignment packets,” David says, redirecting his train of thought towards something work-appropriate.

“Reading ain’t so easy for all kids.”

Jack says it like it’s the simplest explanation in the world, with a shrug and an inherent understanding of this demographic that David lacks.

He hands the pen back to David, along with the paperwork, now donning his signature is messy script letters.

“Thanks.”

“No problem. I’m down the hall.” David has never been particularly boy crazy, but even he is not immune to the charms of Jack’s radiant smile. “If you ever need anything, Davey.”

It’s an offer for mentorship, not a marriage proposal. And still, color rises to David’s cheeks, despite his best efforts to remain cool.

“I’ll uh, see you around.” The words come out high and strangled in his throat, eliciting the widening of Jack’s already knee-weakening, cocky, shit eating grin, but David still hopes there’s truth to them.

It’s clear he has a lot to learn from Jack.

---

Jack pops in to Davey’s room once during his own lunch, and is delighted to find out Pulitzer High’s newest addition has the same period off.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Davey is smart as a whip, he’s passionate, he’s organized (which comes in handy on a Teacher Work Day. Davey spends some time helping Jack organize supplies, and Jack hangs up art and decorations he’d made for Davey’s room).

He finds out that teaching wasn’t always in the plan for Davey, it was just something he sort of fell into. And still, Jack can see the effort he puts into his lesson plans, the quick way he’s learning the ropes and never makes the same mistake twice.

Jack knows teachers who’ve been doing this for years, and don’t have the dedication to self-improvement that Davey has.

And not that Jack is into the habit of checking out his coworkers, but Davey sure as hell ain’t ugly.

He's got a smile that makes you feel like a winner, if you've earned one from him, and he's surprisingly strong (as Jack found out on the aforementioned Teacher Work Day, his mind sputtering and stalling like a dying car when he saw Davey haul out three huge boxes of art supplies from his closet).

Lunch together becomes a regular thing. Which means Davey has words to say about Jack's typical lunch--or lack thereof. One day, Davey unceremoniously presents Jack with a Tupperware of latkes.

“Eat,” he orders.

Jack side eyes him. “I got lunch right here.”

“Cup-O-Noodles is not a meal.”

“Lunch doesn't have to be a meal.”

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Oh, so you've never heard yourself speak?"

"Shut up and take the damn potatoes."

They're heavenly and damn delicious.

In return, Jack brings him a tub of spaghetti the next week.

"Eat," he mimics. Davey gives him a withering glance and Jack clarifies. "It's my ma's recipe. You won't regret it."

"Ah, so you can be a functioning adult," Davey teases. "You just choose not to."

Because Jack's got exactly two brain cells, and both of them are focused on Davey taking an uncharacteristically messy bite of the meal Jack's prepared for them, he says, offhandedly, "I choose to, for you."

Davey nearly coughs up his spaghetti, but doesn't mention it again.

Other than that, things at Pulitzer High are great. Quiet, even. Easy.

And then they get The Memo.

---

“I honestly don’t see what’s so bad about becoming a charter school.”

“Davey,” Jack hisses. Even though Jack seems upset, it doesn't stop the warmth in his stomach at hearing the nickname. “Davey, Davey, Davey. Charter schools get public funding, but they get to decide which kids stay and which kids go. Those signs that say 100% passing rates of standardized testing? It’s because they kick out anyone who can’t meet it. Including kids with LDs and 504 plans. It ain’t right.”

“Shit, I didn't know that. That's fuckin' awful."

"On top of that, you don't have to be certified to be hired."

"I'm not certified," Davey points out.

"Yeah, but you enrolled in one of them ACPs--so you will be. Charter schools don't require the year grace period because they don't require certification. Look, I'm not saying that every teacher in this country is perfect, or hell, even at this school. But it takes a lot of effort to get certified--even if it's not a perfect system--and I don't think it's something we should bypass. If Pulitzer goes Charter, Admin determines your hours, not the board. And kids with lower income households and undiagnosed LDs are gonna bear the brunt of these so-called higher standards. They'll fall right through the cracks, and ain't nothing we can do about it."

A tense silence falls between them, and Davey isn't quite sure how to respond. He doesn't disagree with anything Jack's said, now that he's informed, but he's at a loss regardless.

"I... Sorry, this sorta shit just gets me all worked up. I feel so... so stupidly helpless."

"No, no," Davey says quickly, reaching across the table to clasp Jack's hand in his. It comes automatically, before his brain has the good sense to cross it. Jack looks down at their twined hands, lips parted in what Davey thinks (hopes) might be a breathless gasp. "I get it."

Clearing his throat, he tears his hands away and tucks them beneath the table. He faces away, training his gaze to the creepy portrait of their school's namesake that's hung in the Teacher's Lounge and--

Shit.

Davey has an idea.

A big, stupid, risky idea.

A big, stupid, risky idea that might just be big and stupid and risky enough to impress Jack Kelly, who almost prides himself on being all those things.

"You know about Joseph Pulitzer?" Davey finally asks.

“Yeah, wasn’t he some big time publisher or something?”

“He was. He also tried raising newspaper prices for kids who made a living selling them.”

“Sounds like a real sweetie. Taking advantage of a buncha kids like that.”

“I mean, they did fight back. Gotta give them that credit.”

“They fought back? Against a giant like Pulitzer? How’d they manage that?”

“Well.” Davey turns to meet Jack’s gaze. “They went on strike.”

[skullsandswearwords]

Chapter One of My Dad, the Quidditch Coach

Author's Note: My first fic, have mercy <3

"Now, Harry, love, remember to do your homework, pay attention in classes-" Lily began, anxiously tugging his wollen hat further down over her boy's ears, her own flushed pink with the early morning chill. Her green eyes were searching his face, looking for anything that would justify her in snatching up her boy and going home, and letting him start at Hogwarts next year.

Yes. Maybe that would work, Lily thought. After all, maybe a year of muggle school would do him good. Maybe it would help him to keep a level head and not get swept away by all the magic and wonders of Hogwarts. Maybe-

"And have fun, and make lots of friends," James finished as he steered Harry's trolley towards the pair, parking it rather wonkily before swooping in to wrap an arm around Lily, pulling her to his side, smiling from ear to ear. He was still wearing his crumpled quidditch jersey that he'd slept in the night before, the hopeless man. He was a professional quidditch player and he still couldn't remember to wear clean clothes, or where to find his glasses even when they were on his head. Lily sighed, wrapping an arm around her husband's middle, finding comfort in his solid form as they both looked at their son. He was just so small. "Relax, Lils. He'll be fine. He's a big boy now," James reassured, as if reading her troubled mind.

"S'right," Harry agreed rather absently, distracted by the large owl eyeing him rather banefully from the birdcage sitting atop his suitcase. He shifted closer and lifted his hand as if to reach through the bars to touch it, then thought better of it. Then he thought a third time and decided to do it anyway. Just like his father.

"Oh, James," Lily sighed again upon spotting the bird. It returned her disapproving look. She'd never really liked owls. There was something so haughty and condescending about them. "I thought we agreed on a cat."

"He'll be able to send letters faster this way, if he doesn't have to use one of those old things they supply at Hogwarts," James wheedled, squeezing her, hazel eyes glinting in the pale sunlight. He was always so good at getting his way. Or maybe she was just a pushover for him.

Lily knew she was being unreasonable. Grumpy. A nag. But how could she help herself? Her son, her only son, her little baby, who just yesterday had been taking his first steps to greet his father at the door...

Off to Hogwarts. She hadn't come to terms with it, really. How could this be her boy, standing before her in his new robes, wand safely in his pocket, poking his fingers through the birdcage of his very first owl, trying to touch the downy white feathers, his green eyes sparkling with delight even as the bird screeched in warning? 

She had a sneaking suspicion she would go home and lie in bed for a very long time, pretending, just for herself, that she had just fed Harry and put him to bed, and he would be sleeping in the next room as he always had, and then maybe she would hear his tiny voice raise in a wail again, and she would-

"Mum?" Harry's voice. Not raised in a wail. Simply puzzled, his green eyes that so mirrored her own fixed on her, head cocked to one side, a mannerism he'd picked up from James, watching, waiting for acknowledgement. "Are you alright?"

Lily gave herself a little shake, summoned a trembling smile, and enveloped him in the biggest hug she could muster, despite his protests at being seen as a baby by his new peers. She held his small, wriggling body to her chest, burying her face in his tousled hair---hadn't she told him to brush it this morning?---and breathing deeply, trying to sear this feeling into her brain.

Somewhere beside her, she heard James, felt his hand brush her arm as he rubbed Harry's head. "Go easy on your mum, kiddo. This is tough on her. You're still our baby, you know."

"Dad," Harry whined, evidently building himself up to a proper complaint, but was cut off by the screaming horn of the train.

"Well, there's the train," Lily managed, blinking away foolish tears. She was really making a spectacle of herself, wasn't she? Come on, Lily, pull yourself together, she scolded. It's a happy day, your son is going to Hogwarts!

And she smiled again, less shaky this time, down at her son, who was distractedly cleaning his glasses on the edge of his shirt. Just like his father always did. "Remember, Harry if you have any problems, you go to your uncle Sev, alright? Promise me."

James' nose wrinkled. He still liked to play at being sworn enemies with Severus, though both men had matured and grown out of it long ago. 

Harry glanced back up at her, then towards the train, where other students were boarding, lugging suitcases and bird cages and god-knows-what on with them. He suddenly looked as nervous as she felt. "Yes, Mum."

"Don't be scared," James said, stooping to drop a kiss atop Harry's head. "You're gonna have a great time. Come on, give us a hug and I'll help you with your bags."

Harry wasted no time in embracing them both at once, holding on for dear life. Lily almost sobbed.

But she didn't. And neither did Harry, and neither did James.

So Harry went off with James, manning Harry's trolley between them, and Lily watched them blend in with the hordes of children and parents swarming the train.

She felt oddly abandoned. What was that quote? Sometimes the loneliest place in the world is in a crowd. Was that it? If it wasn't, it certainly should be. 

She was just beginning to wonder if she ought to follow after, to see if help was needed with Harry's bags, when a worn, warm hand gripped her shoulder.

"It's always the hardest the first time," the brisk voice of Molly Weasley said, brown eyes crinkling at the corners as she offered Lily a brief smile, then disappeared back into the crowd, her youngest, a little girl, clinging to her cardigan.

Lily hoped that meant it would get easier each year. But she had a feeling it wouldn't.

And then James was with her again, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, head angling towards hers, mouth brushing her ear as he spoke above the din of children and parents calling goodbyes, directing her gaze to where Harry leaned out of a window, waving frantically to them, and was that the Malfoy boy with him?

Lily laughed tearfully and waved back, blowing kisses as the train's horn sounded again, signalling that it would leave shortly.

"Don't forget to write, kiddo!" James called, also waving wildly, face split with one big grin. 

"Goodbye Mum! Goodbye Dad!" Harry shouted, almost falling out of the window in his excitement, saved only by a young boy Lily didn't recognise grabbing onto the back of his robes and hauling him back in with an exasperated noise that could be heard even above the racket around them.

"Harry, knock it off, would you?" the boy demanded, and both boys disappeared back into the window, and that was that.

That was that.

Harry was off to Hogwarts.