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hunnylagoon · 1 year ago

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Birthday Girl

A/N This is my first tumblr fic. I’m a retired Wattpad warrior, I only wrote this bc the Ellie tag is over diluted by smut, we need some angst and fluff to balance it out. My credentials are that I used to write Game of Thrones fanfic and I was blocked by Noah Beck on Twitter. Apologies in advance for any spelling errors or confusing sentences, bc I was high off my ass when I wrote this.

Summary

Jackson’s resident Baker works herself tirelessly to take care of everyone on their birthday and ensure they get something nice to brighten their special day but who is there to take care of her?

Birthdays are like brilliant gems in the kaleidoscope of time; they are the times when life's symphony crescendos into a celebration of its children. As the sun circles the earth once a year, we are given a day to celebrate our own journey, a day that whispers stories of victories, laughter, and the sweet notes of resiliency. You had always loved birthdays, who didn't? The look of joy on someone's face when they open a gift you spent weeks looking for, the uncontrollable smile and pure serotonin that took over even the grumpiest of people. Everyone had a special day designated to them, of course, it was a cause to celebrate.

You worked in the town bakery with very few other people, from five am to twelve pm on Monday to Friday every single week you were hustling around in a humid bakery, hell, you ran it like the navy. Every morning, walking into the bakery is like stepping into a fragrant paradise where time seems to slow down to the sound of ovens buzzing to life. The first two hours were just for you before you let anyone in, The comforting routine of donning a flour-dusted apron and tying back unruly hair precedes the artistry of crafting pastries and breads. The almost therapeutic rhythm of kneading, rolling, and shaping becomes second nature: the soft crack of eggs, the calculated pour of sugar, and the clouds of flour hovering in midair.

There wasn't much creative freedom while working in the Jackson bakery, it really just consisted of making dozens of bread loaves daily and then carting them over to the 'Barbecue Place' Which was once a restaurant though it had been refashioned into Jackson's mess hall. However, you were able to dabble in some fun and were able to make cupcakes daily and a large batch of miscellaneous pastries every Friday. The cupcakes were very dear to you, you had to beg Maria when you were thirteen to approve the idea and eventually, you were green-lit.

As you step into the bakery you are greeted by the creek of wooden planks which are a testament to decades of busy activity; the dance of innumerable bakers has worn away at their shiny surfaces. The aroma of baked goods still hovers in the air from the previous day and all the days that came before, taking you to a more peaceful time. Sunlight streams through old lace curtains, illuminating worn, mismatched tables and chairs that have served eager clients for centuries though they no longer serve guests in the bakery. Deeply patinated wooden shelves support a variety of ceramic jars, each containing a treasure trove of hidden ingredients. Fading photos and yellowed newspaper clippings decorate the walls, telling the story of the bakery's illustrious past. There are copper pots and pans strung like time capsules on strong hooks, and an old-fashioned cash register sits on the end of the counter past the empty glass displays, it no longer serves a purpose but you have fought bravely to keep it around as it makes you think of what life had been like before the world fell apart.

You look at a beat-up calendar on the walls, sitting in the place of an old picture frame that had been knocked down and shattered by none other than yourself when you were fourteen and had the bright idea of having you and your friend toss a bag of flour at each other to see who was strong enough to last longer in the odd game of catch. Surely, Ellie threw the five-pound bag a little too hard, you ducked to save yourself but it smashed into the framed photo of the family who ran the bakery before the apocalypse. It not only was smashed into little fragments but the bag of flour exploded and covered the dining room of the bakery as well as yourself in white powder, it looked like it had snowed inside. The calendar you were checking held the birthday of every person in Jackson, it was messy and hard to read as you usually had to cram several birthdays into a single day which was only a small square, it was hardly legible, there was almost no one else who could read it. Every day when you walked into the bakery, the first thing you did was check the calendar to find out whose birthday it was, then you began your bread dough or carried on with the sourdough started the day before, while the dough rose, you made cake batter, adjusting the recipe according to how many you had to make. After finishing work for the day or sometimes when you were midway through it, you would give each person a cupcake to celebrate their special day.

Even if no one else remembered their birthday, you were always there to make it a little bit better.

Today there were two birthdays on the calendar, Sean Casey, a man who was turning sixty. The second birthday marked down in the little square was yours.

That's what made that day so special, you were ecstatic to see what your friends had planned for you later. Last year Ellie promised that she would go above and beyond for your next birthday and you were going to hold her to that. There was already a nice start to your morning by having your dad wake you up with breakfast in bed which you found truly impressive as he usually slept in till at least ten, on top of that he had scavenged a stand mixer for the home. You grabbed your apron off of the hook putting it over your neck and tying it tight around your waist. Everyone had a couple of designated aprons to rotate through throughout the week, yours consisted of two plain white ones, a red gingham pattern, one of forest green, and another made of a fabric covered in hyacinth flowers, their colours diluted like paint. Today you wore the apron your father gave you last year on your birthday, it was your favourite colour and the neckline was embroidered to say '(y/n)s kitchen'. You could tell your dad did the embroidery himself, the stitches were loose and uneven in some areas while being extremely tight in others, that's why you loved it so much, it was the thought and care behind it.

With a gentle hand, you pulled each of your necessary ingredients along with equipment out to begin your day. You preheat the ovens and in the quiet pre-dawn hours, the bakery comes alive with the hushed sounds of industrial mixers. The heady scent of freshly milled flour dances in the air as you measure the precise alchemy of ingredients, your hands moving with practiced grace. Kneading the dough becomes repetitive, muscles working in harmony to transform a mound of humble ingredients into a soft elastic texture. As the dough rests and rises, the anticipation builds—the promise of crusty loaves and soft, pillowy interiors. You slipped the pans of dough into the industrial ovens, the heat attacking you the second you opened the door; making sure to place the pumpernickel, rye, sourdough, brioche and wheat loaves all sorted on different racks in the respective ovens.

By the time you put the loaves in ovens it had been two hours from when you began, even with preparation the day before and dough starters, it was a process. You quickly washed your hands before unlocking the door for Juno as well as anyone who wanted to come in to visit.

The clock read '7:09', because of the passthrough you were still able to look outside via the glass storefront, you could see people walking along the streets heading to whatever job they worked to contribute to the community, no one got paid, it was a commune after all, you couldn't imagine a world where everyone was so dependent on money and so obsessed with over-consumption. Part of you was waiting for one of those people to come in and wish you a happy birthday, but you shook the thoughts from your head.

You began to make the small portion for two of cupcake batter, remembering distinctly how four years ago you sat next to Sean at the Fourth of July party and he went on and on about how much he hated vanilla, it seemed like one of those crazy old man rants but you found delight in it. Never had you seen a man so passionate about cake flavouring. He said vanilla was nothing special, flavourless; you had come to learn that he was a chocolate man, every holiday event filling his pot belly with chocolate, when you had brought assorted sweets for a Christmas party he dove straight for the brownies. So it was easy for you to make up your mind on what flavour of cupcake to make.

After years of this cupcake tradition you had memorized each ratio to make, a double serving of chocolate batter consisting of 1/4 cup of flour, 2 1/2 tablespoons of white sugar, 1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/4 tablespoon of baking soda, a dash of salt, 2 tablespoons milk, two tablespoons canola oil, 1/4 tablespoon vanilla extract. You treated baking like it was a science and recipes were your formulas.

As for the frosting, you had a stockpile of plain buttercream that you took small servings from and flavoured according to said person's preference. All you had to do was whip it up and add some cocoa powder to make it fluffy and creamy again.

The bell above the doorway rang, signalling the arrival of someone, you looked up to see Maria. "Hey, there," You smiled, turning off the stand mixer so you could hear her.

"Hi, (y/n)," She greeted and you quickly wiped whatever was on your hands onto your apron before coming around to the service counter to speak with her. "I have something to ask of you."

"Yes?"

"I know you already do your little cupcake thing but we are throwing a surprise party tonight for Sean and I was hoping you could make a cake for him?"

You nod with a smile "Anything for the town chief."

"Great, then how about a simple vanilla cake?"

"Sean doesn't like vanilla," You answered quickly.

"Okay, well I trust you with it, his party starts at eight tonight in the town square and he's turning sixty so it's a big one, I'll see you there around then?"

"Definitely," You grinned at Maria, waiting for her to wish you a happy birthday and reveal that she was only pretending to forget but she didn't. She thanked you and walked out, leaving you in a flour-covered apron with a tinge of hurt in your heart. It wasn't like you weren't close with Maria, you had Thanksgiving at her house every year.

Nonetheless, it was only a blip in your soon-to-be perfect day. Just as you had frosted the two cupcakes, putting chocolate chips on Sean's and breaking half of a double fudge cookie and sticking it into the thick icing. Rainbow sprinkles cascade like confetti, adding a whimsical touch to the miniature confection. The bell rang again calling for your attention, this time you didn't leave the kitchen instead just moved to look at whoever it was by the passthrough.

"Hey, kiddo!" Tommy greeted, clad in a red flannel tucked into blue jeans. He walked into the bakery as comfortably as he would his home.

"Howdy, Tommy," You said, moving out of his sight for a quick moment to put the two cupcakes in the fridge to prevent the buttercream from prematurely melting.

"So, it's Sean's birthday today and I was wondering if you could bake a cake for his party-

"Maria was already in," You answered "Don't worry, I'm on it."

He smiled "Of course, you're always so on top of it," He leaned over the counter slightly, trying to get a look inside the kitchen via the passthrough "Say, have you got anything back there for me?" You opened the box of double fudge cookies you made the day before and scooted around the passthrough to hand him one, boots clattering on the ground. Tommy loved to visit the bakery as you always had a sweet treat for him and he would never get sick of the aromatic embrace of fresh bread. "Thanks, kiddo, I'll see you around."

This was the moment you were almost convinced that they were planning a surprise party for you, sure Maria could forget about your birthday, she was a busy lady but there was no way Tommy would. He was good buddies with your dad and was over at your place for beers a minimum of once a week. You always baked for him when he came over and he constantly joked about you trying to fatten him up.

The bell sounded again though you didn't bother to look up, you knew who it was by the time of the clock, Juno was starting her shift. As usual, she tied her mousy brown hair into a sleek ponytail then grabbed her apron and stuck a baseball cap on over her head so there was no chance of her hair coming loose. "Good morning," She walked into the kitchen, heading over to the sink to wash her hands.

"Mornin'," You answer.

She looks you up and down with a slight smile "You're wearing your favourite apron, must be a special day."

“Sure doesn't feel like it."

♡

Your birthday wasn’t panning out great but you didn't want to lose hope.

You had walked over to the greenhouses after your shift to find Sean, he loved the cupcake, he even hugged you which was nice albeit a little odd. You walked through town a bit after you had stopped and talked to everyone on the street for not a single one to say the words you've been pleading to hear all day. Taking it as defeat, you grabbed a sandwich for lunch from the mess hall and began the desolate walk home.

Nestled at the end of a peaceful, tree-lined street, the charming but battered house had a certain charm that cut through its worn yellow exterior. Tentacles of ivy wrapped about the crumbling outside walls, their green tones infusing the dilapidated building with a hint of the natural world's tenacity. The worn-out yet friendly doormat and weathered rocking chair on the porch told of years spent taking in the changing of the seasons. The wooden frames of the windows, adorned with faded drapes that seen innumerable sunsets, spoke tales of laughter and time passed.

The house's coziness unfolded inside like a time capsule, with worn-out rugs covering creaky floorboards and a fireplace in the living room that was adorned with vintage tiles that were mismatched and provided warmth in more ways than one. The rooms had a lived-in comfort despite the peeling wallpaper and chipped paint, and each mismatched piece of furniture seemed to tell a story of its own. Despite being tatty and ragged around the edges, the house exuded a calmness that invited guests to enjoy the beauty concealed in the flaws of a place that had aged gracefully and with character like most homes in Jackson. The living room was always your favourite, there was a spruce bookshelf pushed behind the gray, L-shaped couch, and the rug was once a maroon colour though it's clear that it's been well-loved over the years. Pillows and throw blankets were carelessly scattered over the couch from when you and your dad had watched '21 Jumpstreet' the night before, he kept saying it was a shame the outbreak happened before they got to make a second one, though many of the jokes didn't land with you, you loved to see your dad laugh so hard he snorted. The room was illuminated by a warm glow from the fairy lights overhead that your dad scavenged years prior, a small stack of books piled up on the coffee table which had been hand-crafted by Joel.

You popped 'Mean Girls' into the DVD player, just to have some background noise and went to the kitchen and started on Sean's cake. As much as you loved the bakery, you wanted to be somewhere a little more close to comfort.

As you measured each ingredient with care, you couldn't shake the bittersweet feeling that lingered in the air. Sifting the ingredients into the bowl, you had wished your father was home from patrol duty, all you really wanted was a hug but instead, you slaved away at a black forest complete with layers of moist sponge, decadent frosting, and a profusion of vibrant decorations.

As you delicately frosted the cake, your mind flitted between thoughts of the celebration and the poignant fact that everyone seemed to have overlooked your own special day. The kitchen, usually a sanctuary for you to escape to, now harboured the weight of unspoken emotions. Your heart, though excited for Sean to get a nice surprise on his Birthday, held an unnoticed longing for acknowledgment.

The aroma of the baking cake filled the kitchen, mingling with the scent of disappointment that you couldn't quite shake.

As the cake took shape, you couldn't help but think back to the calendar at the bakery, where the date circled in red seemed to mock you. Your own birthday, usually a day filled with surprises and the warmth of laughter, had slipped through the cracks of everyone's awareness. Though the night was still young and Ellie had said that she was planning something incredible.

Finally, nine was about to roll around, you changed into some clean clothes that hadn't yet carried the memories of your disappointing day, just a white top and some jeans. The sun had set, and your dad wouldn't be home for a good while so you walked over to the town square alone.

There was a table full of food and a long banner that read 'Happy Birthday Sean!' strung between two street lamps. There were twinkling fairy lights illuminating what would have otherwise been a dark night.

"There she is!" Tommy smiled, doing that awkward little dad jog over you. "Wow, that cake looks incredible, mind if I take it off your hands?"

"Go ahead," You held out the cakeboard. Tommy gingerly took it away from your grasp, his forearm underneath to support and his other hand held the side of the board for balance.

"I owe ya' kiddo," He winked before taking the cake away to show a group of adults.

You stood around awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what to do with yourself. You turned your attention to the moon, wanting to believe that it shined so very bright just for you, because the moon, unlike everyone else recalled how important this day was to you-

"SURPRISE!" Everyone erupted in cheers as Sean walked up to his party, his daughter had her arm linked with his. He had the biggest smile on his face it almost made you forgive everyone for forgetting because at least Sean got something thoughtful.

"Lord, I was thinking everyone forgot my birthday!" Sean laughed, pulling Tommy in for a hug.

"(y/n)!" Dina yelled, you turned your head to follow her voice. She was sitting at a long picnic table beneath an awning with some friends "Over here," She motioned for you to sit down and you obliged, taking a spot between Ellie and Laila. "What have you been up to? I feel like I haven't seen you all day."

"That's because you haven't," You said with an awkward smile. "I've just been baking, like always."

"You're always working so hard, I swear you live in that bakery and when you aren't in there your busy busting your ass around town to make sure everyone gets something on their birthday," Dina sat across from you and put a hand onto yours "You look out for everyone, but who's looking out for you?"

"My dad?" You glance at Ellie who isn't tuned into the conversation in the slightest, she has her arms crossed in front of her on the table and her head resting on them.

"Aw, that's sweet-" Kayla moves to look at you but in doing so, she spills a glass of juice onto you. "I'm so sorry," She slaps one hand over her mouth, her eyebrows furrowing. Kayla stood up from the table, her ginger curls rustling with the breeze "I'll get a cloth or something-

"Don't worry about it," I wave her off "It's just clothes, I'll grab some napkins." You push yourself away from the table, walking over to the table adorned with food, you see a small stack of Christmas themed napkins (it must've been hard for them to come by regular ones) and grab a handful, bunching them up in your hand in an attempt to soak up some of the juice that had already indefinitely stained your clothes.

You feel some eyes on you from the other side of the table, to look up and see Joel, he doesn't say anything though his lips are pressed together tight.

"You're back," You say, a spark of happiness rekindling inside of you "So my dad's back from patrol too?"

Joel nods "Too tuckered to come out, said he was just heading home," He uses tongs to put a couple cuts of chicken onto his plate "Oh and happy birthday, you've probably heard that a whole bunch already, lord, it's all your old man would talk about on our last couple of patrols."

"What did you say?" You look at him with furrowed eyebrows, unsure if he said what you really thought.

"I said happy birthday, shame you've stained your clothes on your birthday," He absentmindedly added some mashed potatoes onto his plate. The words hung in the air, a moment that transcended the boundaries of their usual exchanges. You, momentarily taken aback, met Joel's gaze. It was a simple, earnest wish, uttered with the spontaneity of someone who had remembered a small yet significant detail in the whirlwind of festivity.

"Thank you, Joel," You replied, your voice carrying a mix of surprise and gratitude. In that fleeting instant, the isolation that had surrounded her seemed to dissipate. A connection, however tenuous, had been forged in the acknowledgment of her existence amidst the collective celebration.

"No problem, kid, I'll see you around," He left with his plate leaving you to stand alone at the table. You continued to dab at the juice on your white top, and though you knew it wouldn't come out you proceeded to rub it; the best exchange of your day, no more than eight sentences suddenly turned from joy to frustration. The only two people who remembered your birthday were your dad and a fiftey-eight-year-old man who practically raised the girl you had spent years crushing on, not the girl herself, but her father figure. However, you thought, maybe if Joel remembered, Ellie had aswell and she actually did have something planned.

Amidst the lively chatter and laughter that reverberated through the night, you stood in the midst of flickering candles and colourful decorations, your eyes cast down to the ground. The atmosphere of celebration enveloped her, but a palpable sense of solitude hung in the air like a heavy mist settling upon your shoulders. It was a birthday party, yes, but not your own. Forgotten and overlooked, your heart echoed with a quiet ache, the irony of your situation casting a shadow over the festive scene.

The square was adorned with streamers and balloons, a tapestry of colours that seemed to dance in rhythm with the joyful voices around her. The community gathered, their faces lit by the warm glow of the fairy lights and street lamps, each one caught up in the merriment of the moment. Yet, for you, the celebration felt like a distant spectacle, a scene from which you were detached.

It was your birthday too—a fact that no one cared enough to recall. As Darla (Sean's daughter) calls guests toward a decadent cake adorned with candles, which you had made, you couldn't escape the bitter irony of the situation. You watched as the room erupted into a chorus of "Happy Birthday," the song meant for another soul, another moment of joy. You joined in, lips forming the familiar words, your voice harmonizing with the collective melody. But within the depths of your being, the celebration rang hollow, a stark contrast to the cheer that echoed around you.

Throughout the evening, you navigated the party with a forced smile, concealing the invisible weight of your emotions. Conversations buzzed like bees in your ears, no- it grated like a fork in a blender, but you found yourself on the outskirts—a silent observer amidst the numerous connections. The laughter that erupted like fireworks, the clinking of glasses, the embraces of old friends—it all seemed distant, an echo from another realm where she once belonged.

The party unfolded as a series of snapshots: a group photo with smiling faces, a toast to Sean, and the opening of gifts that weren't meant for you. Each moment, though vibrant and filled with the warmth of shared camaraderie, magnified the silence that enveloped your own celebration, forgotten and left to dissolve into the shadows.

As the night carried out, seeming like the celebration would never cease, you cut yourself a slice of cake, grabbing one of the half-melted candles that Sean had already blown out, they sat in a frosting-covered pile next to the cake. You took your favourite colour out of the rainbow assortment of candles and stuck it into the piece of black forest cake.

With your cake you sat back down by Ellie at the picnic table where she still returned to after conversing, everyone else had gotten up to dance. You reached for the lighter in your pocket and struck it to ignite, sparks flickered around the end of it, you struck it again and a flame arose, you carefully brought it to the wick of the partially melted candle.

The flickering flame cast a subtle glow as you made a silent wish for understanding, for the beauty found in selflessness, and for the recognition that sometimes the most meaningful celebrations are the ones we craft for others, even in the quiet echoes of our own unacknowledged birthdays. Ellie turned to look at you as the candle's flame danced in the darkness, before you could blow out the candle to solidify your wish a little girl climbed up onto the bench and blew it out, you looked at her and all she did was smile up at you, the gap in her teeth prominent, her deep chocolate hair braided so intricately you had to believe that it must've taken her mother hours.

As much as you wanted to deck that little girl in the face for ruining your moment, you didn't because it would be wildly inappropriate. "Do you want this?" You sighed, holding out the plate to the girl, she smiled and nodded enthusiastically, taking the cake and scattering away "Hey, Ellie," You pushed back tears in your eyes, forcing a smile on your face "Got any plans later?"

“Yeah," She said, short

"Oh, what are they?"

"Not to sound like a cunt but I'm not really in the mood to talk, I had a shit patrol and all I want to do is go home, smoke a joint, watch a movie, maybe read a comic, and pass out on my couch, the only reason I'm here is that Dina dragged me out and Joel said I need to be more involved in the community."

Your smile dropped, you couldn't hold it in anymore, realizing that this wasn't the elaborate setup of a surprise party but Ellie genuinely forgot it was your birthday. "Are you serious?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Do you know what day it is?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember what's happening today?"

"It's Sean's birthday," She gestured to the party around her.

"You're fucking serious," Any amusement that had been in your tone was gone, replaced by a subtle anger boiling up inside of you

"Are you going to cry?" Ellie gave you a weird look "What are you so mad about?"

"I can't believe you," You laugh bitterly "Actually I can, this is so like you, I need to stop building it up in my head that you're going to surprise me with something great. But hey, at least you never fail to let me down."

"Jesus," She scoffed "There's always something going on with you, can you go one day without finding some irrational reason to be upset?"

"Irrational?"

"Yeah, irrational," She reiterated "You always come to me when something sets you off in the slightest then your problem becomes everyone else's. You're so fucking draining and I'm sick of it."

"Fuck you, I hope your comic catches fire from your joint and you burn your place down." You stand up from the bench, wiping tears away from your eyes. Your boots clattered against the cobblestone. You stormed past the dancers, some stopping to look at one another with concern. Dina leaves Jesse to ask Ellie what happened.

The walk home might've been the loneliest you had felt in your life, the harsh wind of the night bit at your nose. The feeling of the sticky juice soaking through your clothing was borderline unbearable, were just about ready to scream. There wasn't a single person out and about as everyone was either at the party or cozied up in their own homes.

Arriving at your doorstep, you fumbled with the handle, the metallic clink resonating in the quietude that enveloped the house. The door swung open, revealing the dimly lit foyer, still no surprise. Why do you still think there is going to be a party? No one is coming.

You wandered into the living room, the TV was lit with the options screen for 'Mean Girls' that you had put on hours earlier.

Sinking into the worn-out couch, You let the weight of the day wash over you. A single tear welled in your eye, and as it escaped, a floodgate of unshed sorrow burst open. The first teardrop traced a silent path down your cheek, leaving a glistening trail of heartache in its wake.

The tears you cried weren't silent and dainty but violent sobs that burned your throat each time you cried out. As you wept, it felt like someone had stabbed your gut with a thousand needles, you cried and cried, to no one in particular, maybe the moon glistening outside the window though the moon seemed to absorb your tears, offering no solace in return.

The soft tick of the clock on the wall echoed in the quiet room, marking the strike of midnight, your birthday had ended. There was no secret party or a prank where everyone was only playing an act, only the emptiness of the house echoed the howls soaked in your tears.

The oak staircase creaked, and your dad turned the corner, peering into the living room. "What's wrong, honey,?" He shook the sleep from his mind, focusing on what was important, he sat next to you on the sofa. "I thought you said you were going to be out all night with your friends?"

You shook your head, breathing shaky breaths alone, hardly able to get a word out "They forgot," You felt the harsh sting of desolation hit you all over again "Everyone forgot," You grabbed his grey t-shirt burying your face into his chest. He wrapped his arms around you, cradling you gently like you were a child who had just scraped her knee not someone who had just turned nineteen, "Except for Joel, so be nice to him, please."

"I'm sorry, baby, it was probably just a mix-up," He rubbed one hand on your back to comfort you. "I should've been there with you, I'm so sorry."

You couldn't get the words out of your mouth, all you could manage was to shake in your father's arms with sobs until you cried yourself to sleep.

♡

"Happy birthday, Jasmine!" You smile brightly, presenting a lemon-raspberry cupcake to the woman. She was serving breakfast in the mess hall, the early morning light streaming through the many windows, blinding those trying to enjoy their meals.

"Aw, thank you, love" She took the cupcake "That's real sweet," She wore a hairnet, despite having short cropped hair. "I just realized I don't even know when your birthday is."

"It was yesterday, actually."

"Aww, how was it?" Jasmine smiled, her white teeth contrasting with her dark skin.

"It was nice, it was quiet too, I just spent it by myself."

A frown replaced Jasmine's smile and she lowered her tone "Did your friends drop the ball?"

You wave off her question "Oh no, loads of people remembered, I just wanted some time to myself, it was nice."

You could tell Jasmine didn't wholeheartedly believe you, she was at Sean's party last night and saw you rush out with tears building in your eyes "If you say so," She shrugged, taking a bite of her cupcake "This is really good."

"Thanks," A small smile plays on your lips.

"God bless you, sweetheart, you deserve the best." She said, every bit of truth behind her words. She took another bite of the cupcake, savouring the sweet and sour taste "And I mean that."

You were too caught up in conversation to notice Jesse ahead of you in the service line right away, he grabbed a glass and filled it with water from the dispenser, trying to play cool and not have your attention drawn to him. With a shaky hand, he put the glass on his tray and hurried over to the table where Ellie was eating with Dina. "Guys, something not that great just happened."

Ellie furrowed her eyebrows looking from Dina to Jesse "What?" She asked through a mouthful of scrambled eggs, she swallowed them down and spoke back up "Please tell us what terrible thing has happened in the time it took you to walk to the service line, get your food and come back?" Sarcasm dripped from her voice.

"We forgot (y/n)'s birthday," He said quickly, Ellie and Dina looked at each other with wide eyes, thinking back to the night before and the way they had both behaved. Dina was extremely ignorant and Ellie got into an argument with you, though Jesse didn't speak to you at all.

"We're awful friends," Dina says quietly, scraping her mind for any way they could salvage the situation and play it off like they hadn't forgotten. "We could change all of the calendars in town and make it seem like her birthday is actually today."

"Be serious, Dina," Jesse said, though he was considering her idea. "I think the only way we can fix this is by making it up to her."

"How would we do that? We can't make it up to her, she remembers every single person's birthday in this town and gives them a cupcake, even people she doesn't like, do you remember how she planned all of our birthday parties for the last four years and has never let us down?" Dina and Jesse nodded "And how we always scramble something together last minute? Like last year, we only remembered two days before and we threw her a subpar movie night, we watched Star Wars and she doesn't even like Star Wars."

Dina sucked air through her teeth "Yeah, not our best moment."

"You think?" Jesse asked, sarcastically. "And Ellie didn't make it any better by yelling at her yesterday!"

"You yelled at her? You told me you didn't yell at her," Dina whipped her head to look at Ellie, the smallest glimpse of judgment in her eyes. "Shh, she's coming!"

You were making your way to the exit lugging the cart that had held loaves of bread on it before you dropped them off to the kitchen, still in your flour-covered apron, hair pinned up messy, baby hairs flying away. Clad in jeans, a green T-shirt and beaten-up boots, clacking against the hardwood floor, you still looked beautiful to Ellie with red eyes and a puffy face from crying all night. "Watch this," Jesse murmured to the group before turning around and flagging you down. "Hey (y/n)!" He smiled brightly, his words catching your attention "Did you enjoy your birthday, yesterday?"

"Jesse, I know you heard me talking to Jasmine." You said and Ellie couldn't bear the disappointed look on your face. At that moment, the guilt hit her all at once. You had been the first kid her age that she warmed up to when she arrived in Jackson, trying your best to include her in everything. You invited her to hang out with your friends even though she didn't particularly get along with them, she went anyway because she just wanted to see you. On her birthday the previous year, you had scoped out an old comic store hours away just to bring her there for one day.

Jesse's smile fell and you had walked out the door before he had the chance to push a lie through his teeth. Last night's conversation echoed through Ellie's head over and over again, she cringed at the memory, god, why did she even say that?

Dina reached over the table and gave Ellie a harsh smack on the arm "Why did you even say that?!"

"Ow," She flinched, rubbing the spot that had been assaulted by Dina "What are you talking about?"

Dina looked at Ellie like she was just about ready to scream "What you said to her last night, what was going through your head?"

"Not much, apparently," Jesse answered for her, earning a death glare from the Auburn girl.

"I'll just apologize and it'll be water under the bridge," Ellie said, leaning back.

"That's not going to work," Dina replied quickly.

It, in fact, did not work. Ellie had shown up at the bakery where you promptly ignored her. "(y/n), I'm really sorry I forgot your birthday and said those things to you." Nothing Ellie said could get you to even look at her.

She had later stopped by your house, it was your dad who answered the door and Ellie sheepishly asked if you were home. He called for you to come down, the moment you saw Ellie, you shut the door in her face. There was no way she could defend herself, she couldn't say that she said those things because she had a bad day (even though she did), and that would just make her seem pathetic. She really wanted to say that she was scared of how much she liked you, she didn't want to ruin a good thing, you both had spent years playing the role of each other's best friend until Ellie started to distance herself from you and you ended up enwrapping yourself with work to distract yourself from the fact that she was drifting away.

Ellie didn't know what to do, if she didn't act fast, it would be too late and she was going to lose you.

♡

One week later

The sun was just beginning to set as you were already preparing to settle into bed and read a book, just about to change out of your floor-length sundress and into one of your dad's old shirts. However, your plans were interrupted when you heard your dad screaming downstairs, it was blood-curdling. You dropped everything, pulling your bedroom door open and rushing down the stairs, tripping on a step and stumbling before quickly regaining balance and moving with haste "Dad?" You called out, worry running through your head.

"SURPRISE!" People practically screeched, the volume so loud that you jolted back in fear. The chatter only grew as you looked around you and realized what was happening, this was your belated birthday party.

You were pulled in suddenly for a hug, squeezing you so tight you thought your eyes would pop out of your skull was Tommy "I'm so sorry, kiddo, I was being a real shithead on your birthday."

"It's okay," You choked out, nearly gasping for air. Much to your relief, he released you and you took a deep breath.

"Happy belated birthday!" Dina sang, placing a fat box in your arms. Many people followed after her, piling gifts on top of the initial one, you were quickly losing balance, so you stumbled into the living room and put the gifts onto the coffee table. There was so much life in the living room it was almost hard to believe that just a week before you had been crying alone, bathed in moonlight.

There were streamers strung throughout your house and odd dangly decorations that hung from the ceiling. Some balloons were taped to the walls while others bounced around the ground.

The lively hum of conversation, the clinking of glasses, and the melodic strains of birthday wishes filled the room as the party pulsated with energy. Colourful decorations adorned the walls, and the air was charged with the festive spirit.

You had the biggest smile on your face while everyone joked and jeered. Shoving their gifts into your face, trying to get you to open them first. It had made you forget about how awful your real birthday was, though you did try to dodge awkward apologies of people fumbling over their own words to make up excuses as to why they missed your real birthday.

"Happy birthday to you-" A voice began singing, and soon enough the entire crowd joined in, harmonizing into an off-key rendition of the birthday song. They made way for the person carrying the cake which had been none other than Ellie herself. The song ended off and Ellie placed the cake in front of you on the coffee table. "Make a wish."

You blew out all of the candles, and no punchable little girl around to steal your thunder, the room erupted into applause. The celebration continued with the living room becoming a dance floor, laughter echoing through the corridors, and conversations flowing freely. The cake itself reminded you of the embroidery your dad had done on your apron, it was sloppy and imperfect but you could tell it was made with love, the icing had been put on prematurely and had partially melted off the cake. It read 'Happy birthday' with 'Sorry for being a dick' written smaller beneath the first bit of text.

"Thank you, Ellie," You smiled softly up at her.

No one else was paying attention to you anymore, aside from those who wanted a slice of cake. Ellie nervously fumbled around with her hands "Do you want to dance?"

Ellie invited you to dance as the opening notes of the song floated through the air and she held out her hand. With a gentle smile, you accepted and you moved into the middle of the living room to form a makeshift dance floor. The soft aroma of fresh flowers blended with the scent of vanilla candles created an ambiance that enhanced the moment's sensory magic.

To the gentle beat of the song, your bodies moved in unison. Your hand settled comfortably on Ellie's shoulder, and her hand wrapped around your waist. Your bond transcended the material in the living room dance, an unspoken language of mutual feelings and unknown depths.

You both danced, recklessly, so much so that you were nearly a hazard for the swaying couples drifting around you, moving faster and not hurriedly as the tempo picked up. With each step, the living room's walls became silent witnesses to a romance that was developing on the plush carpet under their feet. The muted rustle of your clothing and the melodic notes of the music were all that could be heard to your ears.

The two of you took great pleasure in the dance's exuberance, laughing at the imperfect nature of it. In the noise of the living room, your eyes, locked in a dance of their own, spoke volumes. You were embraced by the dim lighting's vulnerability, which freed you from the burdens of the outside world to fully enjoy the moment.

Ellie guided you in a soft spin as the song went on, your moves were not fluid and elegant but Ellie could've sworn that looking into your eyes made it feel like there was liquid sunlight coursing through your veins

You and Ellie drew closer in the song's last moments, your bodies pressed together in an embrace that went beyond the material. As the last notes of the music faded, they held each other for an extra moment, relishing the warmth that they shared and the unspoken promises that danced between them. You wished that you could've stayed in Ellie's strong embrace for centuries.

You let go of Ellie, taking a step back with a smile, "Why didn't you tell me you were such a good dancer?" You tease, almost out of breath.

"I didn't know I was," She grinned, taking the sight of you in. Your cheeks were flushed and your hair had become messy, she thought you to be beautiful all the same, if not more. Her eyes raked over your body, your floor-length sundress and mismatched socks "And here I was thinking it was too late for sundresses."

"It's never too late, Ellie."

#ellie williams #ellie tlou #ellie x reader #ellie williams x reader #the last of us #slow burn #the last of us ellie #ellie williams x you #ellie williams x female reader #ellie williams fluff #Ellie Williams X reader angst #angst #fluff #ellie x fem reader #mean!ellie #tlou #super slow burn

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littleplantfreak · 2 months ago

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Wait for the tone, you know what to do~

Pairing: Umemiya Hajime x reader

Tags: SFW and no cws I think!

Word count: About 1.0k

So it's a songfic! I listened to Austin by Blake Shelton and knew if anyone would wait for you even after a year, it'd be him. I followed the song pretty much to a T

︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵

It had been a year since you left him. The feelings from back then still haunt you, but you thought they would've been long gone by now. You were an idiot, to be clear. You got so scared of how hard you fell for him and how good he was for you that you ran a few towns away without so much as an apology.

Since you'd left, though, the bed feels cold and hollow, or maybe that's just you and you're not sure if it's a good idea, but you decided to call him. If he changed his number, you wouldn't blame him in the least. This was your fault after all. He was so in love with you back then, he looked at you as if you'd brought the sun out every day, and put it to sleep every night. You fiddle with the necklace he gave you on your first anniversary, the one you still haven't brought yourself to take off, even on the few dates you've tried to go on. If he answers, great; if he doesn't...you're not sure what to say.

The phone rings three times, and you hold your breath as you hear the sound of his voice mail.

"Hey! If it's Hiragi, I'm teaching the kids to swim over at the gym down the street," and you can't help but puff out a laugh. Of course, he is. "It was a last minute thing since the regular teacher got sick, so meet me there if you wanna grab a drink tonight! Oh, but if it's Sakura, I'm still having that barbecue tomorrow night, and yes, you and your girlfriend are invited and then some. Bring as many plus ones as you want! It's gonna be an amazing night. If it's anyone else, just leave me a message." You hear a slight pause before you almost press the button to hang up. "...If it's ___, I still love you." and your breathing stops at the way he sounds. His voice is still so full of affection; it sounds the same as the day you left, and you drop your phone by accident. The screen is shattered, but you can tell it hung up. The spidery cracks of the glass in your heart stabbing and slicing at the wound you'd tried so desperately to close, reopen it from only seven words. Seriously, this guy...who even says that?! Who knows how long and how many times he'd changed his recording and still kept that in there.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒

It takes three days for you to get a new phone and get it activated and synced up. You can't just text him. That is in no way a text conversation, you tell yourself. Let's try this again. Three rings, just like before. Okay, here we go; you brace yourself, wondering if it'll be the same one from a few days ago.

"If it's about the fundraiser at the library, donations go to Kusumi or you can drop them off at the cafe. If it's Saturday, we're going to the beach for the weekend! I'm trying to 'unplug' a bit, so unless it's an emergency, I'll get back to you Monday! Have a great weekend. P.s., if this is ___, I do still love you!" The tone is different this time. A little more chipper, and it may be due to the beach trip. He always did love dragging you there for the day. He'd wake you up at 6 AM, lifting you out of the bed, blankets and all, to hold you to him and whisper that he's kidnapping you for the day if that's alright, and he'd never fail to mumble the last part since he knew you'd have to call off work for it. It didn't matter; you'd call off work a thousand times if it meant you'd get to hold his hand on the train again.

You leave your number. That's it. He should know your voice, right? You feel the cowardly part of yourself that you hate so much rear up only for you to shove it back down. No more running. If he's waited for you this long, he deserves the best version of you that you can give right now, not the same one that turned tail at the first sign you'd wanted to spend your whole life with him. So you'll wait for Monday.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒

Umemiya knows that voice anywhere. You didn't leave your name, but it has to be you, right? His hands shake a bit as he hits redial, and he curses himself for going to the beach now. He needed it given how stressed he's been lately, but of all times to miss your call. What would you have said? What would he have said? Are you going to answer? The phone is ringing, and for the first time in a while, he's speechless.

"If you're calling about my heart, it's still yours. I should've listened to it a little more. Then it wouldn't have taken me so long to know where I belong." Oh, it is you. He should've known immediately; he was just afraid to get his hopes up. Your old number called the first time, and he nearly had a heart attack rereading the numbers over and over to make sure, but you didn't leave a message, so it could've been accidental. He didn't want to push you further away than you already were. The last time, the number you gave was new. He wondered what that was about, but he has the chance to ask you now that he's sure you reached out first. "Not sure if you're still there..." your voice trails off in a nervous chuckle, while he's silently panicking that he hadn't given any response, "...but if you are, I still love you too."

"No I do! I am...You too- I mean I still love you too- also-," He's never been so unable to articulate the thousands of things he's wanted to tell you and say to you, and he might just get choked up if he's not careful.

"Thank you, Hajime," You say, and this time you're going to run straight for him, no looking back.

#mari writes #finally right? i've been working on my ghostface ume thing though! im...pretty much done with it so i dont feel guilty writing this #umemiya hajime x reader #wind breaker #wind breaker x reader #yippee im using cute dividers still #slowly but surely making it cuter

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heart-ripping · 5 months ago

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Office Kiss.

pairing: Regina Mills (The Evil Queen) X Reader

summary: you somehow end up kissing your ex-girlfriend in her office.

words: 539 words, 3045 characters.

warnings: exgirlfriend!regina, visitor!reader, kissing, no smut involved (my apologies), fluff.

hello babies, i couldn't resist myself pulling off a good oneshot of the infamous regina mills!

──────────

Regina sat at her desk, surrounded by the usual chaos of a busy Monday morning. Her office was buzzing with activity, the sound of ringing phones and clacking keyboards a constant backdrop. She sipped her coffee, trying to summon the energy to dive into her overflowing inbox.

Just as she was about to open her first email, her friend and sheriff of the town, Emma, rushed over. "Regina, we have a new visitor in town this early morning. Can you show her around?"

Regina sighed but nodded. "Give me a moment."

A few minutes later, she stood in the lobby, waiting for the new arrival. She glanced at her watch, impatiently tapping her foot. The elevator doors opened, and out stepped a woman she never expected to see again: You, her ex-girlfriend.

Her heart skipped a beat as their eyes met. You looked as surprised as she felt. "Regina?" you inhaled, a mixture of shock and something else flickering in your eyes.

"You," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper. Memories of your time together flooded back, but she quickly pushed them aside. This was serious. She had to stay professional.

"I wasn't expecting to see you," you expressed, breaking the awkward silence.

"As do I," Regina responded, forcing a smile. "Let me show you around."

The two of you walked through her office, with Regina pointing out the different departments and introducing you to various colleagues. As you moved, the initial shock began to wear off, replaced by a strange sense of familiarity. Despite your past, you both slipped into an easy banter, reminiscing about old times and catching up on the years you had missed.

As you both reached her desk, Regina's phone rang. She picked it up, only to have the cord catch on a stack of papers, sending them tumbling to the floor. Slightly flustered, she bent down to pick them up, with you doing the same.

You both reached for the same paper, and suddenly, you were inches apart, your faces so close that she could feel your breath.

Time seemed to slow as you locked eyes. Without thinking, Regina leaned in, and before she knew it, your lips met in a soft, unexpected kiss. It lasted only a moment, but it was enough to bring back a rush of emotions she'd buried long ago.

You both pulled back, with Regina wide-eyed and breathless. "I'm sorry," Regina blinked, feeling her cheeks burn increasingly.

You chuckled softly, shaking your head. "No, it was my fault. I didn't mean to..."

Regina could only nod, avoiding eye-contact and attempting to compose herself. "We should go," she mumbled, her breath short. "This is complicated."

"Yeah," you agreed, a small smile playing on your lips. "But maybe it's a good kind of complicated?"

Regina didn't know what to say. She wasn't sure what this meant or where it would lead, but as she looked into your eyes, she felt a flicker of hope. Maybe this surprise reunion was the start of something new.

For the rest of the day, she couldn't help but steal glances at you, wondering what the future held. One thing was certain: life at the office was about to get a lot more interesting.

──────────

#regina mills x reader #regina mills #evil queen #evil queen x reader #ouat #lgbt #lesbian #ouat imagine #regina mills fanfiction #once upon a time #lana parrilla

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beardedmrbean · 1 month ago

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Kamala Harris appeared to struggle to explain her economic policies and how she will get them through Congress in an interview with CBS' 60 Minutes.

The Vice President's full interview will air at 8pm ET Monday as part of an election special, showing her repeatedly asked about her plans for the economy.

'My plan is about saying that when you invest in small businesses, you invest in the middle class, and you strengthen America's economy. Small businesses are part of the backbone of America's economy,' she said.

But when CBS' Bill Whitaker continued to grill her what her plan does and how she would pay for it, Harris didn't offer any specifics, just staying she knew lawmakers agreed with her.

'I'm going to make sure that the richest among us who can afford it, pay their fair share in taxes. It is not right that teachers and nurses and firefighters are paying a higher tax rate than billionaires and the biggest corporations. And I plan on making that fair,' she said.

'But we're dealing with the real world here,' Whitaker told her, asking her how she would get it approved by Congress.

'You know, when you talk quietly with a lot of folks in Congress, they know exactly what I'm talking about, because their constituents know exactly what I'm talking about. Their constituents are those firefighters and teachers and nurses,' Harris replies.

The Democratic presidential nominee released part of her economic plan last week. It focuses on lowering middle-class taxes, cutting food and grocery costs, and lowering prescription drug prices.

She also talks about creating an 'opportunity economy' for Americans to buy their first home or start a business.

Voters rate the economy as one of their top issues for the 2024 presidential election. Harris is seeking to distance herself from President Joe Biden, who receives low marks from voters on his handling of the economy.

Biden was hammered for high inflation during his tenure, which led to a spike in prices in groceries, gas and rent.

'While real gross domestic product growth slowed in the first quarter of this year, growth rebounded to a strong 3.0% in the second quarter. All available evidence suggests policymakers may have managed to bring inflation under control without causing a recession,' analysts wrote.

Harris sat down with 60 Minutes for a pre-election special that will air on Monday night. CBS released some early excerpts of the interview, which will also address the war in the Middle East.

The news program also asked to interview Donald Trump as part of their special. The former president agreed and then backed out, saying he felt 60 Minutes owed him an apology for some of its previous reporting on him.

Trump appeared to be referring to his last interview with program, which took place in 2020 while he was president. He walked out on correspondent Lesley Stahl.

'They came to me and would like me to do an interview, but first I want to get an apology, because the last time I did an interview with them, if you remember, they challenged me on the computer,' Trump said last week.

'They said the 'laptop from hell' was from Russia, and I said it wasn't from Russia. It was from Hunter, and I never got an apology, so I'm sort of waiting. I'd love to do '60 Minutes.' I do everything.'

Harris, meanwhile, is on an interview blitz in the final days of the election.

In addition to appearing on 60 Minutes, she also taped an interview with the popular Call Her Daddy podcast, which has a target audience of young women.

On Tuesday, Harris will be live on ABC's The View, visit The Howard Stern Show, and appear with Stephen Colbert on CBS's The Late Show.

On Thursday, she will participate in a Univision town hall.

Many of the interviews are considered 'friendly' territory for the candidate. Trump employs a similar strategy, often appearing on Fox News. _________________________

#nunyas news #Empty suit is putting it lightly #when it comes to kammy #she has zero substance

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brf-rumortrackinganon · 8 months ago

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Hello rumor tracking anon, what's happening with Catherine's mother's Day's pic?

I have no idea what is real and what isn't any longer, with regard to the Wales'. The press routinely makes molehills into mountains when covering them, and the Squad just adds to the confusion. I'm very very confused. You and your analytical mind are my only hope here.

Hi there! Nothing like an internet tempest in a teacup to start (or finish) your Monday, right?

Basically the TL;DR of it is that KP posted a photo of Kate and the kids for UK Mother's Day yesterday. Everyone loved it, it went viral.

Then late yesterday afternoon (US time), the Associated Press (AP) - a US-based nonprofit news distribution agency that's popular and trusted worldwide - issued a "kill notice" on KP's photo, which essentially told their subscribers "hey, we think this photo isn't real, take it down and stop posting/publishing it until we can verify it." Two other wire services did the same thing.

How does a wire service like the AP work? They're a big newspaper with a huge reporting team around the world. Those reporters write stories for the AP (or your national wire service), the AP turns around and sells those stories to other publications ranging from big national media like The New York Times and The Washington Post to your local town crier newspaper. Those other publications (or subscribers, if you will) then publish the AP stories in their newspapers. If the AP doesn't have a reporter in whatever area where news is happening, then they'll contact a local reporter and buy their story for the wire service that they then sell to other publications. If you know how Getty Photography works, then think of the AP and the wire services as the news version.

Here's another quick explainer of how the AP works.

Now specifically for photographs, the AP - and other wire services - have a strict set of rules for editing and photoshopping. Apparently KP's photo didn't meet those rules so they retracted their circulation of the photo (killed it, in industry parlance). And when the AP did it, because they have an international reputation, a couple other wire services also did it, then social media picked up on it, then the royal reporters picked up on it, and presto. A media firestorm.

From what I can understand, there are three and a half main issues with the photo, from AP's perspective:

Charlotte's left wrist

Kate's right hand/Louis's right shoulder

The baseboard behind Louis's feet

The heel of Charlotte's right boot (this is the half - some people have pointed it out, the AP hasn't)

Social media is saying there are more problems/"fails" than these three or four items, such as: George's hands around Kate, Kate's hair, the zipper on Kate's jacket, the trees in the background show autumnal growth not spring growth, etc.

Then last night, a couple of the news organizations, including several from Fleet Street, reached out to Kensington Palace for comment and explanation. KP didn't respond, the reporters reported it, it kept going and the internet interneted, social media social media'd, and finally this morning (6:30am EDT/11:30am GMT), KP published a new statement from Kate clarifying that yes, she edited the photo as all photographers do and apologizing for any confusion. (Which, again, I think is bullshit. She didn't need to apologize for doing something that everyone else does.)

There's some speculation that the Sussexes or Sussex affiliates or Sussex bots tipped the AP off to look more closely at the photograph. I personally haven't seen any of that, but I have seen all the social media from Sussex Squad gloating about Kate/KP being caught red-handed "manipulating" the press and citing it as vindication in their anti-Kate crusade. I think they're overplaying their hand - yes, take the win but be careful. Meghan edits her photos too and gloating about Kate getting caught only means the Waleses' side is going to go after Meghan's photos that much harder.

You can see my debunking of the claims here. I personally don't think this is a big deal, I do think it's ridiculous that it became the firestorm that it did, and I think you can tell in that post I've gotten a little fed up with how oversaturated such a non-story has become. But that's the side effect of 24/7 news and internet.

#ask #brf #waleses

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lionlena · 1 year ago

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Dancing With Your Ghost (JavierPeñaxreader) Part XII

Summary: You are a ghost (sort of) and you don’t remember what happened to you. You only know your name and you feel that something bad has happened to you. The only person who sees you and hears you is Javier, so you don’t leave him because you believe he’ll help you. That he will solve the mystery of what happened to you.

Warnigs: the reader was a ghost, sadness, past trauma, mention of coma, just sweet, lovely, comforting, and caring Javi!!! Because after everything they through, they deserve all happiness the world, smut, NSFW, fingering, unprotect p in v, semi-public sex (sort of), Just sweet, loving and a little insecure Javier.

A/N: Title inspired by this song

Part XII

The next weeks were very intense. Javier started building your house and often worked until the evening. You started your job as a librarian. Often, Javi would be so tired in the evening that he would fall asleep on the couch and you would have to gently wake him up and encourage him to go to bed. But despite this, you didn't regret anything or hold any grudge against him. How could you? He was building a house for you. Maybe it was a little old-fashioned, but you loved it. Plus, even though he was tired, Javi always made sure to show you affection. He kissed you in the morning and made you coffee. He always made sure you left home knowing that he loved you.

Well, if he was rested enough after the night, he could find very original ways to assure you of his love.

You were just making sandwiches for work. You had taken a shower earlier and were only wearing a towel, and that couldn't go unused by Javier. Before you knew it, your semi-conscious boyfriend was already on his knees, his hands firmly gripping your hips and his head already between your legs.

“Javi... I have to go to work.” You moaned as you felt his tongue work on your clit.

Javier just laughed and, without taking his mouth off your pussy, he murmured:

"I won't let you out of here without a good orgasm, hermosa ..."

And then without warning, he started eating you like a hungry dog.

When you went to work that day, you had two amazing orgasms and you were wet all day just thinking about Javier's mouth.

But Javier showed you affection not only through sex. It was a lot of smaller things too. He brought you a bouquet of wildflowers that grew in the meadow near the construction site. He bought your band's favorite album because he saw it while he was in town for building materials and he thought of you.

You couldn't be happier and you knew that one day the house construction would be finished and then you would have more time for each other again.

And then there were Sundays.

Magical Sundays.

Javi worked the construction site from Monday morning to Saturday afternoon but on Sundays... Sundays were just for the two of you. And you two did whatever you wanted.

If you felt like it, you would lie in bed all day long, cuddling, making love, and talking. If you felt like it, you went to the lake and had a picnic.

But something went wrong. Your last Sunday was a disaster. According to you, because Javier said it's normal for couples to argue sometimes. However, you felt remorse. It was Friday and you were still thinking about it.

It all started when you feeling nauseous in the morning and it was upsetting you because you had been feeling sick for two weeks. Then Javier lit a cigarette and the smell of smoke drove you crazy and you snapped at him to go out onto the balcony. He, of course, apologized to you. He knew you didn't like it when he smoked. But the problem was that his submissive didn't calm you down at all. You only got more nervous and started acting like you were looking for a reason to argue. Because he put the cup down wrong, because he burned the toast because he didn't straighten the sheets on the bed. You were rude to him for half the day and Javier finally couldn't take it anymore. He asked you if you wanted to go to the lake and you snapped that he was probably blind because he couldn't see the storm clouds in the sky. Then he lost his patience and raised his voice. No, he didn't scream. He just told you loud and clear that he was allowed to have a bad day too. And if you don't want to spend Sunday with him, he can go to dad's for a few hours to give you space. And then you started crying. You didn't even know why. It was so stupid, and yet you couldn't control it. You started crying and apologizing to him while asking him not to leave you. Javier immediately changed his attitude from annoyed to very worried. He immediately wrapped his arms around you and started kissing your head.

"Cariño, what's going on? Shhh... Calm down." He started rubbing your back tenderly. "It's okay... I'll stay if you want."

You sniffed and muttered, "I don't know what's wrong with me today... I think got period soon..."

Javi nodded and started rocking you gently, “Okay, okay… Maybe we can just cuddle on the couch?”

"I'm sorry, Javi... I'm terrible. Please don't leave me."

He immediately cupped your face and lifted your head so that you were looking into his eyes: "Mi vida, everyone has a bad day sometimes. This is not the end of our relationship. It's just a little fight. Not the first, and not the last."

You nodded and smiled weakly. "Thank you."

Javi pecked your nose and chuckled. "You're welcome. You're cute when you're nervous."

Even though the rest of Sunday passed in a better mood, and on Monday morning Javier acted as if nothing had happened, it didn't change your attitude. You felt something was wrong, but you didn't know what.

And suddenly you remembered how you told Javier it was because of your period. You told him on Sunday. Now it was Friday and you still hadn't had your period. You started counting on your fingers. Your last period was 6 weeks ago and it was very strange... It was almost like you didn't have it. Suddenly you remember that you once heard that bleeding can occur in the early stages of pregnancy and can be mistaken for a period. Suddenly everything started to make sense. Nausea, fatigue, mood swings...

However, before you panicked, you decided to make sure. You told Laura, your co-worker, that you had to leave early. You immediately ran to the pharmacy and bought five different pregnancy tests.

Half an hour later, you were sitting in the bathroom, staring straight ahead in shock. Actually, you shouldn't have been so surprised considering the amount of cum Javier had been pumping into you over the last few weeks.

But it wasn't like you didn't protect yourself. You were taking birth control pills. Except you always had trouble remembering them. You always forget to take one or two. That's why when you were in a relationship with Michael, you strictly followed the rule of using condoms, but with Javier...

With Javi, it was simply different. Although you had never talked about having children, you assumed he wouldn't leave you alone. After all, he was building a house for you.

What if you took it wrong? You felt a surge of nausea and started to worry.

You didn't know what to do next, so you decided to go to Chucho's house. Elder Peña often helped his son build the house as much as he could. Because you didn't want to be ungrateful, you often visited him after work, you already had your own key, and you made dinner for them. When they came back from the construction site, they were always happy to see you and always said that you didn't have to, but for you, it was so natural. Besides, you liked watching them eagerly eat what you prepared.

So you went to Chucho's house, but since you finished work early, you still had a lot of time before they returned. You felt tired and thought a short nap wouldn't hurt. You sat down in an armchair, wrapped yourself in a blanket, and closed your eyes:

"Only ten minutes," you said to yourself.

Sometime later, you felt a gentle hand on your shoulder, pulling you out of your deep sleep. You opened your eyes, still very sleepy. You slowly realized you were seeing Chucho's round, smiling face. You suddenly realized that your ten-minute nap must have lasted several hours.

"Don Chucho... Oh God... I'm sorry, I didn't make dinner..."

You wanted to jump out of the armchair, but his hand firmly, yet still gently, held you in place.

"Calm down, mi hija, you're not a maid here and you have no obligation to make us dinner."

"But, I... I..."

You felt tears forming in your eyes and you actually didn't know if you wanted to cry because of the elder Peña's kindness and tenderness. Is it because of remorse? Or maybe it was just your stupid hormones?

Chucho laughed softly and kissed your forehead.

"Now, now, there's no need to be nervous."

You took a deep breath and calmed down, you already knew that Javier had inherited the gift of spreading an aura of peace and comfort after his dad.

Chucho nodded and then asked.

"Does my son know yet?"

You raised your eyebrows, not sure what he was talking about.

"That I didn't make dinner?"

Peña laughed as if you had told a joke.

"No, mi hija. Does he know he's going to be a dad?"

You held your breath and stared at him in shock.

"But how? How do you know? I... I found out a few hours ago."

Chucho himself looked surprised for a moment, but then he nodded and shrugged.

"Well, you look just like my wife did when she was carrying Javier. You have the same glow and…" Elder Peña chuckled softly. "She also took long naps in the armchair."

You smiled for a moment.

"Well, it's not 100% confirmed yet. I haven't been to the doctor yet, but... The symptoms I've been having recently and the pregnancy tests indicate that... I'm pregnant."

Chucho clapped his hands. "Wonderful!"

However, he quickly noticed that you did not share his enthusiasm. He looked at you worried.

"What is it about?"

You lowered your head and spoke quietly. "I don't know how Javi will react... We... We haven't talked about it... I assumed he might want to have a baby with me someday, but... We just haven't talked about it. What if he doesn't want this child?"

Chucho shook his head.

"If my son doesn't want this child, but you do, you can count on my help. And that he will no longer be my son, but... Javier loves you and will love this child because this baby will be a part of you. Trust me."

You wanted to say something else, but Javier entered the house. He smiled broadly.

"Mi amor! "

The smile disappeared from his face when he sensed that something was wrong.

"What happened?"

Chucho gave you a reassuring smile and said, "I'm going to check on Herman. I'll leave you two alone. You need to talk."

He patted his son on the shoulder as he passed him, which confused Javier even more. He immediately walked over to you and knelt by the armchair, placing his hands on your lap.

"Mi vida, what happened?" he asked gently.

He tried to hide the anxiety in his voice, but the truth was that his heart was beating like crazy. What if you decided to leave him?

"I didn't make dinner," you said sadly.

He couldn't help himself and laughed. "This is indeed a terrible crime. What am I supposed to do with you now? I think I'll put you in a maximum security state prison."

You snorted slightly and shook your head. His joke lightened the mood a bit, but you were still nervous.

Javier began to gently caress your thigh and looked at you with his puppy dog eyes.

"Cariño, tell me, what happened? Did I do something wrong? Did I hurt you?"

"NO." You grabbed his hand. "The thing is... There's a possibility..." You felt your heart beating faster and faster. "I think I'm pregnant."

Javier's eyes widened and he smiled widely. He took your hands in his and started kissing your hands.

"Mi amor! If it's true, then... I swear to you that I will do everything to make you feel cared for and loved. I will fulfill your every whim."

You looked at him in shock. This wasn't the reaction you expected.

"You... Are you happy?"

Javier immediately looked at you with concern. "Yes, and... You don't? You don't want this child..." You saw the sadness in his eyes, but he still replied, "I will respect any decision you make."

If you thought you couldn't love him more, then you loved him even more.

"What? I want this baby! I thought you…"

"Me! Why wouldn't I want our baby?"

Javi was still kneeling next to you, but he moved even closer and placed his hand on your belly. You involuntarily smiled at his gesture.

"We just didn't talk about it and... I don't know, I just kind of assumed that..."

Javi raised one eyebrow.

"That I don't use condoms because I'm completely irresponsible and selfish?"

You rolled your eyes. "Okay, good point."

Javier began to tenderly stroke your belly. "I didn't talk about it because I assumed that... Maybe you didn't want to have children with someone like me, but... Then again, you didn't tell me to use condoms, so I was hoping that... You know, not without reason I planned four rooms in our new house."

You laughed lightly and finally felt your nervousness leave you.

"Thank you, mi amor."

Javi stood up and kissed you on the lips. "You are my love. And if this love turns into little Peña, I will be the happiest man in the world. Don't be nervous about anything. I will take care of you and our baby."

You wrapped your arms around his neck and sighed. But suddenly new fears appeared in your heart.

"But there are so many things to do... Home, my work..."

Javier started caressing your face. "Hey, take it easy... I assume we still have a few months, right?" You nodded. "Everything will be done on time, I promise. And don't worry about work. We have enough money. Now the only important thing is your health and well-being."

"What if something is wrong with our baby? If the fact that I was a ghost..."

He laughed softly and pecked your nose. "If you give birth to a little friendly ghost, we will name him Casper."

You slapped his chest and hissed. "Javier, I'm serious!"

He kissed your forehead and gave you that sweet look of his. "I know, mi vida. But let's not worry in advance. We'll go to the doctor and tell him that you were in a coma and we're worried about the baby. He'll definitely order additional tests then. But please, don't think about it. We'll deal with it. With everything."

Javi knelt between your legs again and kissed your belly. "And don't worry about anything either, Little Bean, you'll have the greatest mom in the world and a cool dad."

You laughed and stroked his hair. Only Javier could make you feel so special.

After a while, he stood up and extended his hand to you, helping you up.

"Tell me, honey, what do you need? Do you want to eat something, go for a walk, or go home? I'll do anything for you."

You snuggled into his chest, wrapping your arms tightly around him, and murmured, "I need you to hold me for a moment."

Javi smiled widely and wrapped his arms around you protectively, holding you in a tight embrace.

"With the greatest pleasure, mi vida ."

After a while, Javi started rocking with you. You looked up at him, intrigued.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm dancing with you," he replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

And just like that, a wave of happiness washed over you. You knew everything would be fine. Javier will take care of you and the baby. It will provide you with a dignified and happy life. You will be safe and happy. You closed your eyes and imagined the months and years to come... You felt Javier kiss the top of your head and you had a strange feeling that he was imagining exactly the same thing.

I don't know what it is that makes me love you so I only know I never want to let you go 'Cause you started something Can't you see? That ever since we met you've had a hold on me It happens to be true I only want to be with you It doesn't matter where you go or what you do I want to spend every moment of the day with you 'Cause look what has happened with just one kiss I never knew that I could be in love like this It's crazy but it's true I only want to be with you You stopped and smiled at me Asked me if I want to dance I fell into your open arms And I didn't stand a chance

Hope I Only Want To Be With

A/N: Look who's back! 👻 I'm sorry you waited so long🥺 It's hard for me to let go of this story, and it's almost over. Only the Epilogue remains.

Part XI

Epilogue

Taglist: @aestheticangel612 @kittenlittle24 @hxpburn76 @creedslove @ranahx @yyiikes @fuglyputa24 @picketniffler

#pedro pascal #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal characters #javier peña #javier pena fanfiction #javier pena x reader #javier pena and you #javier is so sweet #soft!javier #narcos fanfiction #fanfiction #dancing with your ghost #hurt/comfort #pregnant!reader

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atmilliways · 1 year ago

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Wrong On The Money (28)

part 28 of ?? | 862 words | Teen+

Blackmail fic on Ao3 | on tumblr

Summary:

The next time Dustin visits, Eddie goes out of his way to agree that, okay, sure, Steve is pretty great. Dustin is ecstatic, bragging about how he knew they would be friends if they gave each other a chance. Steve himself dozes through the start of the conversation, but Eddie is pretty sure he wakes up with a smile, so who knows.

Happy Monday, have some idiots. (affectionate)

28.

And with that, the floodgates have broken.

When Robin stops by, Eddie name drops a possible mutual friend. Her eyes go big and her mouth drops into an O before she rounds on Steve and hisses, “Dingus, I know you’re on medication but did you tell him?”

“What? No,” Steve yelps, eyes flashing back and forth between them in sudden confusion. “I mean—” and oh god, his poker face is laughable, whoever dubbed this guy Mr. Cool was hilariously wrong “—uh, no? Told him what? I don’t know anything.”

Eddie smirks and cuts in with a smooth, “Nah, he’s innocent as a little baby. It just takes one to know one, Bucks.” (He’ll come clean to her about the blackmail some day, but. . . not without the ability to book it out of there in the event of nuclear rage.)

They bond over laughing at Steve for sputtering that he is not a little baby, he was a whole nine pounds at birth—

Lucas stops in again, between visits with Max, and Eddie clears the air about the end of the last Hellfire campaign.

“But look,” he concludes, after apologizing for cutting him out, “if it ever comes up again, don’t have your friends try to make the reschedule happen for you, ‘kay? Being there to plead your case is a much better look, and shows a lot more respect for everybody else’s time. Catch me, or . . . whoever runs the club next year, between classes or something.”

The kid nods, saying he will, and after he’s gone Steve peers over at him.

“Are you finally going to graduate this year, Munson?” A little coil of hurt starts to form in Eddie’s chest, only to be immediately unwound when Steve beams at him. “That’s great, man, congratulations! Maybe ‘86 is your year after all.”

“It's not,” Eddie mumbles, face reddening—except for where a livid scar already crawls up the side of his cheek. The stitches only came out of it yesterday. “I missed finals, so it depends whether good ol’ Hawkins High decides to send me off in victory or disgrace, which. . . .” He sighs. “Let’s just say that there’s already a precedent, and it ain’t the good option.”

“Oh come on, if they let me graduate they can let you graduate too,” Steve argues. “I racked up two concussions and a shit-ton of missed days in senior year because of migraines.” (And yeah, Eddie remembers his comment about how he’d helped Wayne and ‘didn't even get another concussion doing it.’ Jesus H. Christ.) “You nearly died, and as far as this town knows it’s because a mob came at you with torches and pitchforks! They can cut you some slack.”

“They won’t.”

“I can call my parents,” Steve offers, and holy shit he looks serious. “My mom’s super respected by the school board. If I promise to move out so they can sell the house, I’m sure she’d do me a favor.”

Eddie winces. “Steve. Where would you live if you did that?”

“With you and Wayne,” he replies, as though it’s the most obvious thing in the world and totally not causing Eddie’s brain to self-destruct. “The government’s giving you guys a house, and I’ve spent the past couple months pre-paying on rent.”

“I. . . .” Eddie blinks. A pretty boy is asking to live with him. A pretty boy he threatened for money, for months, is asking to live with him, even knowing what he did and that he’s a flaming homosexual. “Are you sure you don’t have another concussion?”

“Yeah, nothing got me in the head this time. Why?”

Why. Jesus H. Christ, this guy. “Steve,” Eddie says gravely, “You might be insane. Sweet . . . but insane.”

Steve smiles. “You think I’m sweet?”

“Oh my god.”

The thing is, Eddie knows Steve is sweet. In kind of a bitchy way—he’s half convinced the guy plays it a little dumber than necessary sometimes just to wind him up. But that, Eddie's embarrassed to admit to himself, is part of the appeal. Steve keeps him on his toes, which is generally where Eddie likes to be anyway. It’s fun.

But.

Okay.

So, he might be falling for Steve Harrington.

He just can’t see how Steve could ever feel the same. And it’s fine, they can be friends. Shit, with how much half the town still probably hates his guts, Eddie needs all the friends he can get—and he’s got a lot now.

Helping save the world will do that, it seems.

So Eddie has to kill this crush before it gets any more off the ground than it already has. Kill it with fire, because he doesn’t need an actual rejection (that Steve would be sweet about, fuck) to know that Eddie Munson doesn’t get the guy. Not like that.

Being friends is fine.

#steddie blackmail fic #they're stupid your honor #steddie fic #eddie munson #steve harrington #dustin henderson #robin buckley #lucas sinclair #steddie #the mutual friend is dorothy btw

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allthingsfangirl101 · 3 months ago

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ER Visits – Timothy McGee

I've worked at the ER for three years. I've known Timothy McGee for almost six months. We met at the coffee shop. He was sitting, trying to write and I had just gotten off a 12-hour shift. I was tired and accidentally spilled my drink on his notebook. I freaked out and started apologizing. He just laughed and told me not to worry. He reassured me that he hadn't written anything down anyway.

I bought him and me another cup of coffee and we spent the rest of the morning talking. At least until he got a call from his boss and had to rush off to work.

I went to that coffee shop at the same time every morning for the rest of the week. Unfortunately, he didn't show up. I went to that coffee shop the next Monday and was about to leave when Tim walked in. After that, we agreed to meet every morning for a cup of coffee before he went to work.

It took about two weeks of morning coffee dates before he finally told me what he did for a living. This was after I asked why we hadn't gone on a dinner date. He explained that his work schedule was hard to plan around and he didn't want to stand me up. After that, we kept to our morning coffee dates and had dinner dates rarely when they weren't working on a case.

I knew it was dangerous but it took a bomb at the Navy yard and a special patient for me to realize just how dangerous it was being an NCIS agent.

My heart jumped into my throat when I saw him being brought in on a gurney.

"Tim," I said but it got stuck in my throat. I ran over and started jogging with the gurney. "What happened?" I asked, switching back to my doctor's voice.

"There was an explosion at the Navy yard," the EMT said. "He's an NSCI agent or whatever. Some of his coworkers were brought in too."

"He's an NCIS agent," I corrected.

"How do you know?" Asked one of the other EMTs.

"He's my boyfriend."

With that, we rushed him into one of our free rooms. I wasn't sure who else was brought in with Tim, but I was more focused on him. He didn't have any serious injuries or burns. He hit his head so he was slightly unconscious for a little while.

When we got him settled all we had to do was wait for him to wake up. I quickly went to check on his team before going right back to his room. I stayed in his room, nervously pacing, as I waited for him to wake up. I sat up straighter when I heard him let out a small moan.

His eyes fluttered open and it took him a second to realize where he was. I waited for him to notice me. He slowly sat up and ran his fingers through his hair. When I couldn't wait any longer, I spoke up.

"Tim?"

He looked over at me and smiled.

"Hey, you," he said as he started to get up. I walked over and made him lay back down. He tried to stop me by saying my name. I ignored him and had him lay back down.

"I'm fine."

"You were in an explosion," I said with no emotion in my voice.

"None of us were in the room," he tried to rationalize as he sat back up.

"You were hurt," I said as I grabbed his file.

"Just a bonk on the head," he shrugged. "It could've been a lot worse."

"Can you not?" I sighed, slamming his file down on the rollable table.

"Not what?"

"Act like we're not in the ER," I snapped. My eyes filled with tears as I said, "You don't understand, Tim."

"Understand what?" He asked, the tone of his voice completely changing.

"This is my worst nightmare," I said, my voice breaking.

"What is?" He asked as he slid off the bed and walked over to me.

He gently took me in his arms as I explained, "You coming into the ER after a case gone wrong," I whispered, "and me not being able to do anything to help you."

"Y/N," he said gently, "you are the best doctor in town. I wouldn't want anyone else taking care of me."

"But what if. . . There are some people I can't help, Tim," I said, my sob getting stuck in my throat. "And I don't want one of them to be you."

Tim pulled me into his chest and held me tightly. I took a shaky breath as I tightly wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my face in his neck.

"I'm sorry I scared you," he whispered. "But I really am fine."

"To be fair," I mumbled, "you're an NCIS agent. Not a doctor."

I stepped out of his arms, grabbed his chart, and started to leave but he grabbed my hand. I sighed when he pulled me back so I was standing in front of him.

"I'm sorry, baby," he whispered. He reached up and moved some hair out of my face. He leaned in and gently pressed his lips to mine. I let out a small sigh as I kissed him back.

"I know your job is dangerous," I said, breaking the kiss, "but I need you to promise me something."

"Anything," he said instantly.

"Next time you get hurt," I said, my voice shaky, "please don't act like it's not a big deal. Let me check you out so I know for myself that you're okay. I couldn't handle. . ."

Tim kissed me to stop me from spiraling again. He slowly broke the kiss and smiled down at me.

"I love you, Y/N," he whispered. My stomach flipped when he said those words to me for the first time.

"I love you too, Tim."

* * * * *

When Tim finally sat down and let me check him out, I discovered that he had a minor concussion and nothing else.

"Care to take me home, doc?" He asked teasingly as he walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I got to finalize your paperwork," I explained, "but give me five minutes and I'm good to go."

Tim kissed my cheek before leaving. I filled out what I needed and left. As I walked out of the exam room, Gibbs was hugging Tim.

"I'm okay," Tim chuckled as they broke their hug. "Passed with flying colors, got a clean bill of health."

"I wouldn't say that," I said leaving the room.

"How is he, Doc?" Gibbs asked me.

"Mild concussion," I said. "I might be paranoid because I love him but give him a couple of days to recuperate and he'll be fine. In fact, you should all take a few days to recuperate."

I walked over to the nurse's station and finished filling out Tim's discharge papers but I could hear their conversation.

"Love?" Gibbs asked Tim with a small chuckle.

"Yep," Tim cleared his throat.

"Good for you, Tim," Gibbs patted him on the back. "Good for you."

#timothy mcgee #tim mcgee #NCIS #special agent tim mcgee #NCIS McGee

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colleenmurphy · 14 days ago

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"So...do we know why my Dad left? Who he even is? Because I'm drawing a blank here and I'm not liking it, Mother."

The tall dark haired woman turned ever so slowly from her place at the stove top as she stirred the pot atop it. Her shoulders slumped slightly before she gently set down the well worn wooden spoon onto the counter and came face to face with her seventeen year old mirror image in both facial features and temperament. She knew this day was coming but she sure as hell didn't think it would come at 5:45 on a Monday evening during a busy as hell October.

"Caroline Eileen.."

Colleen could almost hear the smirk in her daughter's voice.

"What's my last name?"

Walking out of the kitchen, up the stairs and into her bedroom Colleen grabbed the small box she kept her stash in and grabbed a roll up and the lighter she always used. Thinking better of it she snatched up the box and the photo album and came back downstairs.

"It must be interesting if you've The Box out..."

"Sit down, please."

It was a demand or a barked order it was a simply, if slightly tired statement meant to get her daughter's attention as she sat herself down and felt every bit of her forty-seven years and an additional 20 years for the partying she'd done before Caro came along.

"Ok..fine but please don't ever make that face at me again. You look just like Granny."

A sudden sense of deja vu swept over Colleen as she went about preparing a second and then a third roll up. She'd had this conversation before, she knew it she felt it in her bones. The words were already out of her mouth and the feeling of being punched in the gut gripped her.

"Mirror mirror on the wall I am Mother after all.."

Clapping her hands over her mouth she felt like she was either going to laugh or cry. Her therapist warned her of having moments like this the older Caroline got.

"I...I'm sorry..I'm so sorry Carri..."

Caroline's dark eyes widened as she saw a side to her mother she'd never ever seen before. She'd seen her mother all glammed up for the stage, heard her sing to packed venues and travel the world and at home being her normal jean clad t-shirt wearing self as she did housework. She'd seen her mother at the start of the divorce and how she handled Frank's suicide afterwards. But this? This crying profusely apologizing breaking down was something Caroline never wanted to see again. It just hurt too much.

"It..Mom it's ok. I don't know what you think you did but you don't have anything to be sorry for..."

A hiccuping sob sounded from across the table as Colleen lit her joint with shaky hands before motioning for her daughter to open the album. Inside was a trip straight back in time. Photos from tours in Europe circa early 76 and into the start of 1977 painted a picture of two very bohemian young artists who had the world by the tail. Strolling the streets of Amsterdam together hand in hand, kissing under one of the arches at the Coliseum and on The Spanish Steps before another page turned and they were in France and then various photos from their trip to Galway to visit Col's granny Sheehan.

"Who's the old dude next to the other dude?"

"That's my father...we trekked through six different towns before we finally found him. I went through the same conversation with Granny Eileen when I was your same age."

"No fucking way..."

"Yes. But your Dad was there with me every step of the way.."

Caroline studied the various photos and then flipped the page and went wide eyed all over again. A mini poster for one of their first gigs as The Vault had been carefully pasted into the book, the band had gone through many line up changes but three never wavered. Charlie Wilbury on guitar, Colleen with that damn tambourine and Jerry Withers, or Whip as they called him, on the drum kit. Back then he kept his bear full and his hair shaggily long. His large frame wasn't quite hidden by his kit set up yet but he was still grinning like a fool as he wrapped an arm around Colleen.

"My Dad is Jerry fucking Withers?!"

Caroline didn't seem noticed her Mother's face fell for a moment as her heart skipped a beat in terror. Colleen had prepared herself for everything but the onslaught of questions that were about to fired directly at her.

"Why didn't you tell me I've been listening to his stuff literally all of my life? How did you two meet? How long were you two together? Why'd you marry Frank? Where'd he go?"

In all her years she never thought telling her daughter would be as simple and easy and just...remembering.

"Woodstock. We met when we were both just college students. Your Aunt Helene and I went and we'd lost your Aunt Liz and Charlie somewhere in the crowd just before Creedance Clearwater Revival came on and we were just talking to people having fun and we got swept up into a smoke circle and I saw his hands first...large massive paws

A hard large lump formed in her throat as her eyes welled up with tears.

" As he nudged me to pass me a joint and we were talked and talked like we were in our own little bubble. We were inseparable after that and once he met Charlie we were off and running to the races. Charlie and I broke up and Whip and I ended up together for the better part of ten years.."

Caroline was always quick on the uptake with numbers.

"Until I came along..."

Colleen watched Caroline's hand reach for the joint in the ashtray and sighed before swatting her hand away but she missed the left hand that snatched a roll up from the awaiting box.

"If you can't handle it that's on you my darling dearest daughter."

"Not to detract from the heaviness but where do you get your stash? I've always wondered. It's like you're magic or something

Simply shaking her head with an age old maternal smile. Caroline was certainly her father's daughter.

"That's for me to know and you never to find out. Whip...and I were together for a long time, yes, but when it came down to having a quiet life together...he just needed more. I wasn't enough to keep him happy, so I married Frank and you know how that ended when you were little."

Caroline fumbled for the lighter, a heavy Zippo Colleen had been given by a friend long gone from her growing up years on the Copperline and etched with a gator head and lit her roll up and took a rather large drag from it. Sputtering and eyes bugging it fell into place. Years of gifts and cards and little things slipped into place. The weekends Mom took every few months. She was slowly trying to rebuild and welcome Whip back into the fold.

"Are you guys still on speaking terms?"

"Yes, he's still working on himself. He was a perfectionist in the studio and that was his major hang up. He was so exacting he couldn't focus on anything other than the music. But he knows about you..."

"I figured all those gifts ' from Santa' and the 'birthday fairy' were from him somehow. When can I meet him?"

"Hey hey, I was the birthday fairy young lady. He was the good luck dragon. Well, he should be home by now and it's not like you have a long walk."

Getting up and stretching herself in a very catlike fashion Colleen smiled at her daughter's confusion. Unlike her Caroline didn't have to go across the world and hunt down her father.

"Walk? You're stoned."

"He only lives a house down on the left."

"Granny told me that was Mrs. Krandall! The crazy cat lady from Modesto and that I shouldn't bother her as she was nuttier than a fruitcake."

"That sounds like something Ma would tell you. Now, c'mon lets go and surprise him shall we?"

Looping her arm through Caroline's Colleen lead her towards the house she'd literally been born in back in December of 1977.

"You know you were born here, right? Like literally in this house."

"Wha..."

"Yep, in the master bedroom."

"Mom!"

"Well, it's better than telling you where and when you happened isn't it?"

"Oh god.."

"It was Saint Patrick's Day and we were stuck in Chicago of all places so we ended up at a bar downtown and one thing led to another. Van Morrison was on the radio.."

"JESUS MOM!"

#Tango in the Night #Caroline's beginnings #Colleen Delaney x Whip Withers

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violetmuses · 12 hours ago

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Terry Richmond + Female Reader ❤️‍🩹

Fandom: “Rebel Ridge” Film Universe

Character: Terry Richmond

Main Storyline: Your “best friend” offers some news.

@episodes-ff @becauseimswagman1 @helloncrocs @diaries-of-me @liquorlaughslove @babybratzmaraj @cloveroctobers 🏷

This Idea 📞

====

2024

Blocking time off from work, you noticed that your cell phone started ringing out of nowhere.

Officer Jessica Sims from the Shelby Springs Police Department called.

“Jess?” Picking up this afternoon, you definitely responded.

“Girl! I'm so sorry for not reaching out, but guess what?” J's Southern accent revealed itself.

“Don't worry.” You're fully aware that the rural precinct struggled now. “What happened?”

“Think I found your husband.” Despite that police station keeping vintage technology, you noticed Jessica's humor loud and clear.

“Oh, God!” You nearly laughed out loud. “What are you talking about?”

“I helped out this man earlier and…” Jessica wouldn't go on.

“Spit it out, J!” You kept listening to her no matter what.

“I'm working, but we don't have reception outdoors.” Jessica cleared her throat for a moment. “He's fine.”

“Don't play matchmaker again.” You quickly rolled both eyes.

“Listen: Light eyes, in shape with service tattoos, and acts respectful.” Jessica detailed this man.

“Sounds too good to be true.” For once, you don't believe her.

“Visit tomorrow. He's still in town. Bye!” Jessica dropped the call before you could say anything else.

Here we go. You thought.

*****

Uniformed once more, Jessica traded this brief smile when you entered the department.

“I'm here. What's going on?” You spoke quietly en route to her desk.

“I'll explain everything.” Sims then faced your direction.

Just before you could sit down and learn gossip, the door opened again.

Leaving her desk behind, Jessica held your wrist and you both hid near one corner, watching whoever arrived.

“What's wrong?” Your voice immediately whispered to Jess.

“That's him!” As Jessica pointed upfront, her accent pulled all over again.

Uh-oh. This time around, you finally realized what Sims meant.

Remarkable eyes noticed the building and service tattoos inked along his muscular frame.

This morning, the handsome individual paired another tight shirt with jeans and sneakers.

“Go back to work. We'll talk soon.” You prompted Jessica to speak with this man.

“All right. Pardon me…” Jessica excused herself from your side and sat down, addressing the man.

******

“Who was that?” When Officer Jessica Sims found her longtime desk this morning, veteran Terry Richmond chuckled through his deep tone.

“My friend…” Jessica would pull this vague response.

“I could use some good news at this point.” Terry encouraged Jessica. “What were y'all talking about?”

“Nothing.” Jess shrugged while beginning to work as usual. “How are you holding up with the case?”

“No better than before.” Richmond lost bail money for his cousin during an altercation with law enforcement. “Know any lawyers if I can't reach out on Monday?”

“Attorneys pool from the local courthouse, but workloads get swamped over there.” Jessica declined.

“Fair enough, but you didn't answer my other question.” Terry arched his brow.

“Which question?” Jessica asked.

“What were y'all talking about?” Catching Sims red-handed, Terry's smile offered brightness.

“Should I tell the truth?” Jessica spoke up for many reasons.

“I don't appreciate falsehoods.” Terry crossed both arms.

“You.” Jessica stopped playing around and headed out for lunch. “Good luck with your case.”

Right when Officer Sims walked away, Terry glanced down and noticed a sticky note waiting on her desk.

Jessica had discreetly written your phone number on paper.

******

“Sorry.” Terry apologized when you first met him up close. Drama flew all over the police station now.

“Everyone hopes for better circumstances around here.” You picked up Richmond and started driving away from this hospital.

On the other hand, medics helped legal assistant Summer McBride for various reasons.

“Sims told me about you.” Terry changed the subject.

“Surprised you didn't call me first.” You know that Jessica slipped your phone number by this man.

“Chief got in the way.” Richmond almost laughed and chided Sandy Burne.

“Where should we go since you're free?” You learned that Terry confirmed this settlement for this case, especially with his cousin Mike gone.

“Anywhere you want.” Terry grinned toward you and watched the city limits disappear.

#movies #terry richmond x black reader #terry richmond x reader #terry richmond x y/n #terry richmond x black female reader #terry richmond #aaron pierre #slight angst #❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹#fanfiction #au fanfiction #my writing #violetmuses #💜💜💜#rebel ridge

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thesupernaturalhouse · 1 year ago

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More depth to Jimmy, specifically why the others rag on him all the time; they view him as disrespectful.

This isn't Jimmy hate btw, just...I wanted to add more reason for why they bully him. It's misunderstandings all around and eventually they get fixed and the bullying turns into small teasing and stuff

Jimmy was raised in tumble town until he was 14 Which he moved to a different city all together; I'll have to expand on the politics and kingdoms and cities and stuff later

He moves back, eventually because he discovered the cities police are corrupt and didn't want a part in that. He takes up the job of sheriff, well. One if them.....one of two- p.s. the sheriff's only need to know tumble towns laws

So while he knows all if tumble towns laws he doesn't fully knwo the others. He doesn't bother to read uo on them either because they have to be similar to tumble towns, right???

Nd the other empires figure that since he is in law enforcement, he knows their laws. So its all a big misunderstanding.

So he violates laws that the other empires have by accident, such as going to dawn past midnight

He also tries to press his laws onto the others, because he thinks they all share a law code which they don't but he doesn't know that, yet. So like when he bans the toys, Sausage listens to him ebcause the shop is on Jimmys land and so if it agnst his law then okay, he'll listen

Then Jimmy said shit about his son and oops. It looks like Jommy broke his nose!

Some other reasons are, he tries to copyright everything related to be a Sheriff, even of its not inspired form him

Plus distressing a gobland holiday with would be warden killing march monday, which is just the king goblin given a warden to the other empires to kill as a way to reduce the warden population and say 'hey, this is what we do, wanna join??' Now an empire can refuse to participate with a valid reason(example A: Shelby, because she's pregnant!)

Not to mention that destroying a 6 year olds toy because it is you in toy version doesn't exactly win you any favors among family driven people Like Shelby, Katherine, Scott, Fwhip, Lizzie, Sausage, Joel

Also he's taken their criminals before, because he has a jail better suited for them but he doesn't ask and just assumes they know. The others see this as 'you are incompetent and I'm better at this'

Havnt fully thought it out. But the tldr is: Jimmy doesn't read up on the others laws because he assumes they share laws and so breaks a ton of them and tries to force his onto them(by accident) so they get back at him by bullying him and breaking his laws

Eventually, Shelby snaps one day and yells at Jimmy and has to be comforted by Katherine. And Jimmy, quietly, admits he thiughr they ahd the same laws. Jimmy stays up all night writing apology letters to each person and promises to read up on their laws and stuff

#mama witch au #empires season 2 #jimmy empires smp #no hate #just my explanation as to why everyone bullys him in my au #they all assume and it causes misunderstandings #it all gets figured out eventually

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iron-bullogna · 3 months ago

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I'm going to vent a bit about it here then. I'm a bit flustered so hopefully it isn't all over the place. Over my life I've experienced a lot of cruelty, primarily at the hands of white cis women and men. I grew up in a town of 1,000 people and my graduating class was 32. I went to the same school my entire life. The area was predominantly white and I mean that in a "I can count on my fingers and toes the amount of POC I encountered in my life before 18" way. I was also born AFAB. It was very clear from a young age I wasn't "normal". I have preschool paperwork highlighting my very obvious autistic traits (playing alone, organization, and at one point I could see from one quarterly report to the other how I taught myself to mask a behavior the aids noted as an issue, etc). My first "best friend" was a boy from the Ukraine who no one wanted to befriend because everyone assumed his English wasn't good. I can't even tell you how his English was because I don't remember that. I just remember he didn't care that I was a little weird and liked "boy" stuff and wore boys clothes when I could cause he liked "girl" stuff.

The boy and girl stuff mentioned here are literally as simple as Pokemon and Britney Spears. We were bullied by our peers, family, and parents for just being children. The only female friend I had growing up that I chose myself was bullied for being indigenous, looking masculine, (I believe Shoshone/Cherokee but I was 9 and I can't recall now apologies) and liking "boy" stuff. She moved only a few years later. I did not have another female friend until my senior year in high school and big shocker that a few years ago she was diagnosed with autism alongside her son. I knew from age 12-14 roughly that I was trans. I thought I was a transman back then. This was pre-internet btw folks. I had NO IDEA wtf a trans person was or that it was even a real thing. I just felt like I wasn't a girl and I couldn't possibly be a girl, all because of how those around me treated me. I'm not saying every transman is just a traumatized cis woman, but I know for a fact for me and my personal situation, being told I looked like a boy, all the stuff I liked was for boys, just literally everything about me = well that is what boys do, not girls. I genuinely think in my case, that it impacted me psychologically in a way so deep it gave me a lot of mental health issues surrounding gender. I would go through phases of hyper performing femininity and hypersexuality to try and fit in. I developed a huge complex around my self worth and being desirable that still persists to this day. This is the part Twitter was angry about and wouldn't let anyone interact with. I'm now 34 and it's manifested in a new way since quarantine since I didn't have interaction with people outside of close friends for that entire time. I find myself with an intense fear of pretty cis women, particularly white women. It's a genuine uncontrollable fear response where my entire body starts trembling because I can't stand the thought of being perceived by them. I feel so lacking. I don't even fucking identify as a woman anymore either but I can't even describe the dread I feel about being near them. It isn't even their fault either. They can be the nicest in the world to me but societal pressure and the treatment of women, cis and trans alike, has caused me so much harm I'm actually actively searching for a new therapist to help with this issue. TERFS out here literally causing the issues they say are "plaguing women from being women". Like HUH? You're literally reinforcing stereotypes babes!!! The same stereotypes you say are misogynistic! You're the problem!!! I actually have surgery on Monday and I told my husband I'm more afraid at being perceived by the beautiful women in the clinic (it has an attached MedSpa, trust me, they're all flawless goddesses in there) than I am being awake for the actual surgery. I don't doubt I would still come out as trans (rn I identify vaguely as non-binary/transmasc) because I just don't really vibe with the concept of gender as a whole. I would have just probably figured out that those feelings weren't necessarily me wanting to be or actually being a man a lot sooner. My heart just hurts for Imane Khelif because I can't imagine if she legit is just a normal ass cis woman with higher testosterone how it must feel right now to be attacked like that. And if she is intersex, how much she probably faced a lot of similar treatment that I did growing up. At this point I'm just rambling, but it has all made me very very sad and just brought up a lot of trauma from my own life.

#shut up kit #a very long gender rant #surrounding imane khelif #just a lot of anger #sadness and frustration

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starwinxie · 2 years ago

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Sims 2 BACC Rules (Maplewood 2 Edition)

Hi :) I'm not the best with explaining things, so apologies in advance if parts of these rules are jumbled around, but I wanted to have one specific rule set to link people to while I’m streaming the Build a City Challenge. I basically took rule sets from a bunch of other players and then tailored it to fit my personal gameplay preferences. Credits to: Katatty, Kahlena's sims, deedee-sims, PleasantSims and Didily's Sims.

The basic goal of this challenge is to start an empty hood with a bunch of settlers and have them work together to build the town from the ground up. Careers and promotions are limited and the buy catalog is (mostly) off limits. Example: if your sim needs a fire alarm, they will need to purchase one from the Fire Station. Need an easel? Better have a sim open an arts and crafts store! This goes on and on and over time, as your sims open more businesses, you create and move more sims into the hood. You may choose to use the Monique Hacked Computers to allow your sims to take out a loan to open their business.

My end goals are to just grow the population as much as I can, try to unlock every career and subhood, and have fun! I don't use a points system and I keep the tax collecting simplified because I get easily overwhelmed and hate math (lol), but if you want to add the extra challenge, you are free to do so.

Keep reading for LOTS of info, rules, ideas, and mod suggestions :)

Start with creating a new custom hood completely empty of any townies (I actually didn't do this for Maplewood 2 because I didn't know how to at the time and didn't feel like starting over...Oops). It's not a huge game-breaking mistake, in my opinion, but if you really want your neighborhood to be devoid of ANY townies and only want the Sims you make yourself to appear, then I would suggest looking into this tutorial on Creating a Clean Neighborhood and downloading the No Townie Regen hack (The link will take you to an overwhelmingly long list, but it's alphabetical so just scroll down until you find NoTownieRegen.zip).

If you're like me and don't really care if randos show up in your game, then ignore all of that. The worst thing that will happen is a bunch of townies will be wandering around the hood, which sort of breaks the immersion that you're only playing a few pioneers on an empty land. I just ignore the game-generated Sims and made my own eligible townies in CAS. Also be sure not to add any Vacation, Downtown, University, or Business subhoods to the town - these will be unlocked down the road!

ROTATIONS Since this challenge revolves around rotational play, you will play each household for a total of one season before moving onto the next household. I like for my seasonal order to be: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter. You can choose whichever order you like, but make sure you play each household for the same amount of days. To make this easier for me to keep track of, I use a mod that allows you to change how many days are in a season. I personally set this so that a season is 7 days long, the length of a full week. This way, when I start to play a household on Monday, I will know that the following Monday will be time to move on to the next household in the rotation and the new season will begin at the start of the next round. (For some reason, the idea of ending a rotation in the middle of another season confuses me.) You can get the Seasons and Weather Controller here.

I also recommend getting the Day Setter, just in case your days get messed up somehow and you need to change them. Mainly just a precautionary mod.

TAX SYSTEM Some players do the tax system differently with points or percentages. I personally prefer this simpler method of dividing households into separate tiers based on which class they fall into according to their family funds (determined by what their net worth is from the neighborhood view). I got these rules from Katatty:

Upper Class (net worth $100,000+)

Middle Class (net worth $50,000-$99,000)

Lower Class (net worth $25,000-$49,000)

Poverty (net worth below $25,000)

Each tier earns the city tax per week based on the number of sims in that household:

Upper Class: $1,000/Sim

Middle Class: $500/Sim

Lower Class: $250/Sim

Poverty: $100/Sim

Taxes are paid on the last day of the played week to the Mayor, who manages the town’s funds. I use the money order mod to directly send the money between households. I play my Mayor household first in the rotations.

POPULATION Like I mentioned before, I’m not really good at keeping up with an elaborate points system to keep track of the population. Instead, my rules for adding more sims to the town will be:

Every new community lot: 1 Townie (5 community lots = 5 Townies wandering the hood as potential partners for your founders)

Every 5 businesses opened: 1 New CAS Sim (15 businesses = 3 NEW CAS Sims that will be playable households added to the rotation)

A sim reaches the top of a career track: 2 Townies

A Subhood Connection is unlocked: 5 Townies + 1 New CAS Sim

Keep in mind, these rules might be changed or tweaked over time as I get into my BACC and see what works!

I’m going to break my rules up into separate posts because otherwise, it’s ridiculously long, so click whichever section you would like to read about! I tried my best to include links to the mods I use to hopefully make it easier to follow. I will also be adding things over time, so check back for that :)

[MAKING YOUR FOUNDERS]

[CAREER TRACKS]

[GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS]

[SUBHOOD CONNECTIONS]

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misty720 · 1 year ago

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That's my husband - Ch7:

Monday morning and no alarm sounds to wake the dead was what Chara looked forward to every week. Papyrus still rose early to jog, shower, wake the kids, and make breakfast. Chara still took the horde to school except Papyrus woke her instead of the annoying buzzer from the clock. However, this morning he started with waking his woman with a kiss on the back of her neck and then her shoulder feeling challenged after Sunday's failed advance. Chara squirmed against him as she began coming to and rolled over to wrap her arms around him. He gave her a sweet kiss which she returned and rolled him over her. As if on cue, a knock echoed from the bedroom door and a scruffy little voice called, "Momma, Papa! We're ready for breakfast!"

"NO ONE'S HERE BY THOSE NAMES!" Papyrus answered receiving a light chastising smack on his arm from Chara.

"Go jog. I'll throw some pasteries in the oven and scramble some eggs. I can do that much," she fussed playfully. Her husband just laughed and kissed her before standing up to stretch. "Good morning, Kabel," Chara exited and pat her troublemaker on the top of his head. "How about I make you kids some cinnamon rolls, scrambled eggs, and cut some fruit?"

"Did we do something bad?" he asked following her heels down the stairs.

"No, not at all. Why do you ask, my love?"

"Then why are you punishing us with breakfast?"

"KABEL SKELETON, APOLOGIZE TO YOUR MOTHER," Papyrus scolded him leaving the bedroom to go for a run. "I EAT HER COOKING TOO, AND YOU DON'T HEAR ME COMPLAIN."

Chara inhaled slowly and pinched the bridge of her nose. 'That... that's my husband alright...' she thought to herself knowing he didn't mean it how it came off.

"Sorry, Momma..." Kabel obeyed.

"It's alright, sweetie. Just be careful about things you say to others. Think first and ask yourself if it would make you feel bad hearing someone else saying it to you. A lot of times, the answer is correct, but not always. What's funny to one person might be hurtful to another. Everyone is different, my love." After breakfast, Papyrus rode with them so he and Chara could run some errands while out. "Pap, you know you could have stayed home and rested. I know you're tired," she made conversation.

"NONSENSE! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL NEVER TIRE WHEN THERE'S WORK TO BE DONE! BESIDES, I LIKE BEING THE PASSENGER FOR ONCE," he joked.

Chara just smiled, rolled her eyes, and shook her head. 'That is also my husband...' she mused.

"WHERE ARE WE GOING AGAIN??"

"Well, we need groceries for one. I just used the last of the eggs and milk. I thought we might pick you up a new pair of work shoes since yours are starting to break down, the car needs an oil change, and I need to make a payment on your business loan. I also thought we could grab lunch before picking up trouble and minion."

"CAN'T YOU JUST MAIL THE PAYMENT IN OR PAY IT ONLINE??"

"Nope! Processing fees are worse than the gas burned to bring in cash when it's right next to the shopping center where we'll be anyway."

"AND THAT IS WHY YOU HANDLE THE BUDGET. I WOULD JUST PAY THE FEES TO AVOID THE DRIVE TO TOWN."

"We don't have a safety net in the bank by paying excess fees and spending frivolously, Pap. Those extra fees versus gas spent is only a couple hundred a year but it adds up when applied to everything. A couple hundred here and there adds up quick."

"TRUE, BUT TIME IS A MORE PRECIOUS RESOURCE THAN MONEY AND I CAN ALWAYS MAKE MORE MONEY. WE AREN'T MAKING ANYMORE- WHAT??"

"Are you really about to say 'time'? To the person who was given a way to manipulate time by Gaster?" Papyrus grinned and shrugged.

The first order of business for Chara was the oil change where they were stranded at the shop for an unpredictable amount of time. As she handed the guy behind the counter the key for the transaction, Papyrus told him in jest, "DON'T FORGET TO TOP OFF THE BLINKER FLUID, ALRIGHT. NYEH HEH!"

"Funny, sir... I see what you did there..." the guy replied unamused tagging the key.

'Oh dear stars, that is my husband!' Chara screamed internally and palmed her face in a vain attempt to hide herself cringing at his joke. After receiving the key back, their next stop would be to drop off the payment and spend an hour or so in the store as he went through every pair of shoes available to find the absolute best fitting pair. She had given up rushing him a long time ago. After finally deciding on the perfecg pair, they headed to the grocery store which took half the time getting through with Papyrus because he knew exactly what he needed and where to find it. Chara was the one who liked to browse and take her time deciding which new snacks to try and trying to remember which foods the children randomly decided they suddenly liked or didn't like.

"I'M GOING TO GRAB ALL THE PRODUCE WE NEED WHILE YOU LOOK. SEND ME THAT PART OF THE LIST AND I'LL GRAB IT AND THE MEATS. THIS WAY WE CAN GO HOME AND HAVE LUNCH BEFORE PICKING UP THE KIDS," he offered. Chara agreed and sent him a text with part of her list.

Once everything was loaded in the cart, they stood in line to check out and pay. "Ooh! Someone likes eating healthy! It's not often I see a cart with so much whole food!" the cashier exclaimed in a bubbly voice.

"WE TRY AT LEAST. BUT IT'S HARD TO GET ONE OF MY FOUR TO EAT GREEN STUFF AND IT'S NOT THE ONE YOU THINK," Papyrus cut up with the lady in a hyperbolic manner and pointed to his wife.

"Papyrus!" Chara chastised. "I am not a child so don't lump me in with them."

"Oh! This is your husband?? I would have bet money on you being a child if you hadn't said something! You look so young and adorable!" the cashier kept up her appearance.

"Um, thanks? Yes, that's my husband and he thinks he's a comedian like his brother. Pap, pay the bill and let's go. We don't want to hold the nice lady up."

"DON'T BE SALTY, LOVE. YOU MIGHT JERKY THE MEAT BEFORE WE GET HOME," Papyrus chuckled at his own joke. Chara gave him an indignant side eye taking the receipt from the lady.

"Thank you, miss. Have a good evening," Chara turned to her politely to speak before taking the cart. "Papyrus. Must you?" she hissed exiting the store.

"I WAS ONLY TEASING, DEAR. YOU GET SO TOUCHY OVER BEING THOUGHT OF AS A CHILD SOMETIMES," the tall monster scratched his crown as he put the bags in the trunk.

"Pap, we've been over this so many times. I'm not a child. I'm your wife and people mistake me for your child so damn often if I'm not dressed to the nines. It's frustrating only being seen as an adult through your validation if I'm with you because no one takes me seriously..."

"JOIN THE CLUB, HONEY. NO ONE TOOK ME SERIOUSLY AS AN ADULT UNTIL I BECAME A FATHER. I GET IT. IT SUCKS BEING SEEN AS A PERPETUAL CHILD JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE DIFFERENT. BUT, I THOUGHT YOU WOULD BE MORE ADULT THAN TO BE SO UPSET OVER A SMALL TEASE THAT MIGHT HAVE MADE SOMEONE ELSE'S LIKELY AWFUL DAY A LITTLE BETTER."

"Grr! How dare you make sense to me and appeal to my empathy." Payrus kissed her cheek climbing into the passenger side and took her free hand. She knew he was right especially about others taking him seriously as an adult. People often mistook his jovial and whimsical nature as childish and innocent, but Papyrus knew all too well the harsh and ugly truths of reality. He simply chose to not let it affect him much. He was an optimistic soul with his own little dark side only Chara was privy to. 'Yep... that's my husband for sure...' she reminded herself as they left for home.

Later that evening after homework, dinner, and nightly baths, Papyrus finished his day catching up on his favorite shows. Two tiny munchkins sat in his lap watching with him while Serif studied in his room with headphones on. Chara leaned on him half asleep from boredom. His detective dramas were not her favorite but she didn't fuss since he didn't always have time to watch them. "Papa!" Sylfae grew restless and began squirming under her blanket.

"YES, PUMPKIN?" he indulged her.

"I wanna play before bedtime! Can we build a fort?!"

"Yeah, Papa! Can we?!" Kabel joined in.

"FIND SOMETHING STURDY, GRAB ALL OF YOUR PILLOWS, AND YOUR BLANKETS," he told them.

"You are actually going to have them drag their bedding down here to set up a mess for me to clean tomorrow?" Chara gave him an unamused scowl.

"I'LL CLEAN IT UP AFTER WE PUT THEM TO BED, I PROMISE. THEY WON'T BE TINY FOREVER, DEAR." She agreed reluctantly and watched as he daughter dragged her dollhouse downstairs to make a wall. Papyrus tossed a large blanket over the back of their couch and the dollhouse to make the cover and another on top to make the back wall. Kabel stuffed the inside full of their pillows and extra blankets. It was then that Papyrus dove inside and barricaded himself in. "I, KING PAPYRUS, HAVE DECLARED THIS MY CASTLE FORT! NYEH HEHEH!!"

"Attack!!" both young ones shouted jumping through the gap where his eye sockets peeked from behind a single pillow knocking him and the blankets down.

"It's too dark!" Sylfae cried.

"YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE KNOCKED IT DOWN, YOU LITTLE GOBLINS!"

"Papa, I'm stuck!!" Kabel exclaimed.

"AS LONG AS YOU'RE BREATHING YOU'RE FINE, SON." He then pulled the blankets off of them and bundled them up. "WELL, NOW THAT IT'S DESTROYED, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO?"

"Let's rebuild it! Then, you can read us a story under the roof," Sylfae giggled with excitement.

"YOU TWO KNOCKED IT DOWN SO YOU CAN REBUILD IT. THEN, YOU CAN DECIDE ON WHICH BOOK - WHICH ONE BOOK. IT'S ALMOST BEDTIME." The two rushed to their rooms to grab a book and argued which one was the lucky pick. "NOPE! NO QUARRELS! BRING THEM TO MOMMA AND SHE'LL DECIDE." Chara smiled at him as she draped herself over the back of the sofa.

"Kabel, this is your reading assignment for school. Nice try, but we'll go with minion's pick tonight even though it's a little above your level. This was Serif's book once right?" Chara chose. Papyrus nodded in confirmation and took the novel.

"Rats! Caught again," Kabel sighed.

"What is all the noise??" Serif asked exiting his room for a snack.

"Papa is going to read us a story in the fort we built," Sylfae answered peeking out.

"Which story?" She held up the cover to the small window to show him. "Sweet! I love that one!" Serif joined them in the spacious area making it cramped as Papyrus started reading.

"WHEN I LEFT MY OFFICE THAT BEAUTIFUL SPRING DAY..." As he read the first couple of chapters, the little two dozed off soundly atop their nest of pillows and blankets. Once little snores and steady breathing could be heard, their papa marked the page and carefully removed the top sheets that served as the roof and back wall. He gently cradled his daughter and motioned for Serif to pick up his brother so they could put them in bed. "GOODNIGHT, LITTLE PUMPKIN. I LOVE YOU," he whispered kissing her forehead and tucking her in. Chara was tucking in Kabel when Papyrus entered to tell him goodnight as well. "GOODNIGHT, YOU LITTLE TROUBLEMAKER. JUST LIKE YOUR MOTHER AND UNCLE ASRIEL... I LOVE YOU," he spoke softly and brushed the wild wavy strand out of his face.

"We weren't that bad..." Chara pouted.

"WE DIDN'T CALL YOU BOTH THE TROUBLE TWINS FOR NOTHING," he muttered on exit to tell his oldest goodnight. "GOODNIGHT, STINKY! I LOVE YOU TOO!" he spoke to Serif not so quietly and put him in a headlock reminiscent of how Undyne used to do.

"Dad! Come on! I'm almost big enough to take you, ya know!" Serif protested.

"OH YEAH?! YOU DARE CHALLENGE ME! I'VE BEEN FIGHTING YOU SINCE YOU WERE A LITTLE POMEGRANATE IN YOUR MOM'S BELLY! I KNOW ALL OF YOUR MOVES!"

"Alright! Fight me!" Serif laughed as he took out his dad's footing sending both of them to the floor. "You might be bigger, but I'm squirrely!"

As the two wrestled trying to pin the other, Chara warned them, "You better not wake the others up! I'm not staying up with them if you do! Serif, you can stay up since you're so full of energy."

"Not now, Momma! I've got Dad in a full nelson and Imma 'bout to make him tap. Unless he wants to keep wearing me like a backpack!"

"UNFORTUNATELY FOR YOU, I'M FLEXIBLE," Papyrus reminded him as he slipped out and picked Serif up wrapping him around his neck vertebrae in a backbreaker power mover.

"Gah! Dad! No fair! I can't get a grip on you because you're all bones."

"NYEH HEHEHEHEH!! Papyrus laughed all the way to Serif's room where he dumped him on his bed. "GOODNIGHT, STINKER. SLEEP WELL." He petted his son's head, but Serif stood up and wrapped his arms around him.

"Goodnight, Dad. I love you."

"I LOVE YOU TOO, SON. I LOVE YOU KIDS VERY MUCH."

Chara wore a smile that touched her eyes watching them interact. 'Now that... that's my husband,' she said to herself when Serif threw his arms around her and picked her up.

"Love you, Mom," he said hugging her.

"Oh! Serif! I love you too, sweetie, now put me down," she laughed. "I get it. You're taller than me, geeze." She kissed his temple and left for bed with Papyrus in tow.

"THREE KIDS... WHAT WERE WE THINKING?" he mused climbing into bed. "SERIF WAS A SURPRISE, KABEL WAS NOT EXPECTED STILL, AND WE PLANNED SYLFY. DON'T GET ME WRONG, I LOVE ALL THREE AND WOULD MURDER SOMEONE OVER THEM WITHOUT HESITATION BUT WHAT THE HELL WERE WE THINKING?"

"Do I really have to answer that for you?" Chara arched a brow at him opening her book to read a little before bed. "Why? Do you regret having them??"

"OF COURSE NOT, BUT BETWEEN THREE CRUMB GOBLINS, YOU, AND WORK, I'M EXHAUSTED."

"All the more motivation to hire more help."

"FAIR. READ TO ME? I STILL LIKE IT WHEN YOU READ YOUR STORIES." He curled up and laid his skull in her lap and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Of course, my love." She started where she left off the night before reading the first passage again. As his breathing steadied, she couldn't help but think to herself, 'That's my husband, the father of my children, and the love of my life. He's such a dork.' She grinned leaning down to kiss his cheek bone and worm her way into the blankets for sleep. Feeling her shift, Papyrus squeezed her tighter and buried his face into her neck without ever waking up.

End ❤️🧡🤍🧡❤️

@papara-week

#papara-week #shipping #fanfic #day 7

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